Syzygy Conversely, the player who wants open invasions is familiar with the Souls multiplayer systems, looks at the Taunter’s Tongue and understands its use.
Disagree on this point, actually. I think the use of “lure in” was pretty misleading and I didn’t really make the connection that that was for opting in to invasions in general. I thought that meant the Taunter’s Tongue was more about intercepting invaders who were already invading someone who was not open to it. Sort of like, you are catching someone hoping to hunt down someone not looking to be hunted down and they’re then confronted by someone who is actually looking for a fight.
I perhaps would have preferred it to have been on this whole time, but also, I was having too much dang fun to think to try turning it on either. Maybe I’ll try it now, or next time! I suppose that’s an example of confusion resulting from familiarity with the series, I mean, also influenced by how besides messages and bloodstains it’s been a somewhat barren experience for me multiplayer wise in general, so I rarely thought about why I wasn’t ever getting invaded. I had kind of assumed that was the case for the same reason I couldn’t find summon signs even when I went looking.
If you ask me, a much more fun way to have done this would have been to have made multiplayer invasions on by default, and at the conclusion of one’s first actual invasion by a player (whether you kill or be killed), it gives you the Taunter’s Tongue, rather than from the static NPC whose invasion event is so boring, like every other invader NPC. Not to mention he also gives no indication that he drops an integral multiplayer feature activating item when killed. I mean, I figured he would drop something interesting based on his location, but that’s me.
I mean, I think even if they wanted to make sure all the new players knew they could opt out of invasions, it would be an exciting thing to not give new players a choice as to whether or not player invasions are a part of the game they experience at least once. It’s the kind of mode of play that really falls flat if it’s not happening authentically. NPC invaders are just weird non-respawning minibosses in almost every way other than their moveset, their appearance, how they’re not visible until you get close to their area, and when they appear you get a system message about it.
If you set a multiplayer password, you’ll only be matched with other players using the same password for voluntary multiplayer features.
Yes, this is more concise and therefore much better. So long as the rest of the tutorials were to standardize the distinction between voluntary and involuntary multiplayer it’d be more clear.
And with that in mind, that’s also what’s missing from the description of the Taunter’s Tongue. A very clear indication that invasions are involuntary multiplayer, but you do have to opt in to have them happen when you’re playing solo.
