Respawning Thread, long

[MrVicchio]

Author Topic: Respawning & Matrixing Technology
|-|oRneT
Station Member
Registered: May 1997

posted 02-13-2003 01:08 AM user search report post
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First I'd like to congratulate the developers of Planetside for coming up with a plausible, or at least more plausible explanation for coming back to life after being shot in the face. However, it brings up an interesting philisophical question that I feel will provide an interesting way to pass the time. Pardon me if this has been discussed, but to the best of my knowledge it has not.
In the thread about suicide bombing, NapalmEnima says, "Death for these people isn't what you or I consider death, for a couple reasons. 1) Matrixing tech means they're all basically imortal. Death isn't an end... just a trip back to the spawning tube."

If I die and am then cloned by the matrixing technology and programmed with the memory I had up to the point where I last saved my genetic information, have I truly achieved immortality? Or have I ceased to exist and has another seperate entity, who just so happens to be exactly like me, taken my place? Are the fictional people in planetside truly immortal? Or are they caught up in a science fiction version of groundhog day, waking up in the tubes again and again having no idea why they cant move on?

Basically, I believe the question at hand is this: Are human beings simply products of their experience and memory or is there something more that makes us, us? If Jimbo died today, but Jimbo was cloned exactly as Jimbo was yesterday, is it really Jimbo?

Fun stuff.

I HIGHLY Suggest you go read the FULL thread to get what SJ is saying... Big long thread...
SmokeJumperPS
Station Admin
Registered: Sep 2001 posted 02-13-2003 08:02 PM user search report post
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The "rebirthing" or respawning tech is not well understood by Humanity at the point in time that PlanetSide occurs.
There is human tech that interfaces with a complex mechanism deep within the core of Auraxis. The human tech interfaces are grafts onto existing ancient Vanu tech and they use, without fully understanding, that technology.

The assumption right now is that the Vanu *did* identify how to preserve the matrix, or "core" of an individual and they somehow store it in the planetary core database, watching the surface of the world until that pattern disappears...at which time it is restored automatically. Since Auraxis was left behind by the Vanu, Humanity is under the impression that the Vanu were running some sort of experiment that they left behind. Humanity is essentially acting like a parasite on their system.

Of course, there is an alternate explanation (proposed by TR scientists) that the replicated humans are not the same people AT ALL. But rather, they are other versions of "you" plucked from other, almost exactly the same, dimensions. Dimensions so similar that there is, for all intents and purposes, no difference. And since the multiverse is infinite (so the theory goes) there are an infinite number of your "selves" that can be plucked to replace you.

Of course, none of that matters hugely to the game...but it sure makes interesting conversations.

P.S., My first thought about this, from a fictional standpoint, was that you could capture an enemy soldier, torture him to death, bring him back to life, torture him to death, etc. until he finally either a) completely ignored the pain due to repetition, or b) spilled his guts. But then, I'm a sick so-and-so and I think like that.

http://boards.station.sony.com/ubb/p...ML/002713.html

[Irrational]

I wouldnt want to be captured by SJ

[mistled]

Originally posted by MrVicchio
I HIGHLY Suggest you go read the FULL thread to get what SJ is saying... Big long thread...

You talking to me, Vic??

[Destroyeron]

I would never be captured. I'd say hey guys! *pulls pin* been nice knowing yah!

[Chanfan]

<WARNING - NERDY CONTENT AHEAD>

Isn't this basically the same discussion as from Star Trek (original), with Dr. McCoy being worried about the transporters? He was always concerned that you were essentially destroyed by the transporter, and a clone of you, with your memories - but that wasn't really you - created at the other end.

But, interesting and scary to think about.

</NERDY CONTENT>

[TheJrade]

lol, nerdy content ahead... hee hee... I need that on all my posts...

But seriously, if you are captured, you can't be revived and tortured ad nauseum because you bind yourself to a number of friendly terminals and choose which one you want to respawn at. Unless you are speaking "in character," rather than "in game," in which case it would be possible only if an enemy could control a base without taking it over so they could scarf up whomever respawned there.