Cantr II Discussion Forum

So... anyone else bothered by how all these players that have map making characters change the direction north is?

Why would a character do that when he is spawned in a world where north is to the right? Why would a character decide all of a sudden to change north pointing to the top of the screen?

I absolutely hate it when I see a map and north is pointed upwards and even a compass on the map is facing the top of the screen. Characters have no reason at all to believe that north is up and not to the right.

Um what. How do you know north is right. Do you have this ability in real life too? That's pretty awesome. Do tell us more about that!

Hey hey, there is this thing.

I don't know, I might be mistaken but I believe it is called

A SENSE OF DIRECTION.

Yes now you can argue that these characters sense of direction is "out of whack" according to the game mechanics, but.. so many of them and being out of sorts in the same way that they place north to the top?

It bothers me that for as long as this game has been online North has been to the right, its game mechanics even the mini map provides on the location page has a compass and its pointing to the right side of the screen, but all of these characters/players feel the need to say north is up.

Wiro you gonna tell me that this isn't a bit wrong?

It's like someone is saying that north... isn't north. ( In the real world.)

In Cantr world there is no "top". Its all in your imagination and on your screen only.

North is right in the Cantr world. No argument about that. All the screens work that way - though the roads on Cantr island are all doo-hickey admittedly.
Just as in RL north is up, in Cantr west is up, and that's the way of it... so yes, making maps the wrong way is using OOC information.

Yeah it bugs me too. I mean, if you're going to muck it up, put north to the left like that one guy *grumble grumble* and make sure *grumble* people get lose for *grumble* years because your character was unsure.

All maps I have already seen (Polish's, Lithuanian's and Portuguese's maps) north it to the right....

English maps are different?

Yeah a bunch of English players decided to have their map makers put north on the top of the map instead of to the right.

Well, someone could take the time of tilting and redrawing them. If the result will look better then people might start preferring it. One thing that bugs me also is people using graphics from screenshots. It's okay for personal reference but I think when you're making a map to be published in the game, you shouldn't use the map graphics because that would be like taking photos from the air, and there are no helicopters in Cantr.

So when a character reads a note, they always hold it so the right side of the note is facing north? Is that what your claiming?

tiddyogg wrote:Just as in RL north is up,

Where I live, up is where the aeroplanes go.

Nothing but a bunch of smart ass punks. You all know what is being said, up as in the top of the fucking game screen.

Whats being said... is that North in the GAME is to the RIGHT of the SCREEN. Not the TOP of the SCREEN. These notes are absolutely everywhere with maps in them with north going the wrong direction.

Bran-Muffin wrote:It's like someone is saying that north... isn't north. ( In the real world.)

Well, north is north. But whether it should be on the top of all maps is an entirely artificial concept.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reversed_map

Humans does not possess the same ability as pigeon to detect the magnetic north. We can detect whether we are upside down or not, but not if we are near the north pole or not.

We have the knowledge to discover a determinate direction, but not a natural ability. We define our own directions. Setting north on the top of a map is solely a convention used by modern cartographers, influenced by Ptolemy. But before that, most european maps were drawn with the East on top. The word orientation in itself comes from latin "oriens", "east".

One might argue that cantrians possess the natural ability, since all of them "see" the north (something arguable). But even if they did, they are sentient. They can define another orientation if they desire to do so. Orientation is thus a subject matter. If you believe that the map should point to a holy city, or that the capital of your empire should be at the center-top to symbolize its superiority, why not to put the map that way then?

But I understand that the reason for putting the maps that way isn't mostly generated IC. Still, don't see a problem.

Bran-Muffin wrote:Why would a character do that when he is spawned in a world where north is to the right?

Because it isn't. Putting the north to the right is a pure OOC concept. (As is putting north to the top.)

How is it an OOC concept when in fact game mechanics have North heading to the right side of the game screen?

Because the game interface is OOC. Your character doesn't see it.