Gara Terminology: Vitrification vs. Crystallization

[freeformline]

Having not played Gara yet, my chief complaint about our newest frame is one of terminology: The description of Gara's fourth ability, Mass Vitrify refers to crystallizing enemies, but the definition of vitrification is solidifying an object into a non-crystalline form. I don't imagine this is a problem for most people, but it seems like something that would be easy to fix.

[DeMonkey]

You say that but Tyl Regor to this day refers to a Vivisection as a Dissection.

I get where you're coming from of course, I just wonder whether it's likely to change or not.

[PsiWarp]

But what if Gara's glass exhibits properties of both? Orokin-made remember.

[Imaru]

5 minutes ago, DeMonkey said:

You say that but Tyl Regor to this day refers to a Vivisection as a Dissection.

I get where you're coming from of course, I just wonder whether it's likely to change or not.

That was by design. The quote is "... I always learn so much from a live dissection... No, dissection sounds too kind. Your punishment will be more... Painful." Dissection does sound less painful than vivisection. He is alluding to the fact that he will make the player suffer as punishment for the destruction of the Tubemen. 

Regarding vitrification versus crystallization, glass is technically an amorphous solid, lacking a definite crystalline structure. So technically if we were vitrifying the enemies they would truly become glass. The problem with changing the wording is that if it was changed to better reflect (HA!) what it thematically does the word vitrify would be used to define what it does. It would feel like clumsy wording. 

[DeMonkey]

14 minutes ago, Imaru said:

That was by design. The quote is "... I always learn so much from a live dissection... No, dissection sounds too kind. Your punishment will be more... Painful." Dissection does sound less painful than vivisection. He is alluding to the fact that he will make the player suffer as punishment for the destruction of the Tubemen. 

Sorry, but the actual quote is...

''I'm very excited now. The anticipation. Ooh. I always learn so much... from a live dissection. A dissection? No, no no no, that sounds too humane. Your death will be... painful."''

... ''Your death will be... painful'' means that we would in fact be alive for the dissection (the fact that he's changed his mind is irrelevant), meaning that it's not a dissection at all but a vivisection.

[Mu_Gera]

Gotta admit this has bugged me too, also when the codex describes her as crystalline even though glass is amorphous. Oh well, guess void magic is the answer.

[Birdframe_Prime]

As a point, friends, it is vitrification because the enemies don't become glass, they become coated in glass. They are the non-crystalline solid by virtue of being surrounded in a crystalline solid.

[DeMonkey]

7 hours ago, Thaylien said:

As a point, friends, it is vitrification because the enemies don't become glass, they become coated in glass. They are the non-crystalline solid by virtue of being surrounded in a crystalline solid.

Whilst the act of encasing something in glass is known as Vitrification, the ability states that it crystalises enemies.

If it's merely coating them in glass and vitrifying them, then it isn't crystalising them. If it's crystalising the enemies themselves then they aren't coated in glass and are therefore not vitrified.

You can have 1 or the other, but not both.

[Birdframe_Prime]

3 hours ago, DeMonkey said:

You can have 1 or the other, but not both.

Well, you have a point about the description, but when your word limit is as low as it is for ability descriptions? I think they get an allowance because 'crystallises enemies' is less words (and less confusing for players who don't know the difference) than 'coats enemies in a layer of glass, crystallising on them and stopping them in place'

[DeMonkey]

27 minutes ago, Thaylien said:

Well, you have a point about the description, but when your word limit is as low as it is for ability descriptions? I think they get an allowance because 'crystallises enemies' is less words (and less confusing for players who don't know the difference) than 'coats enemies in a layer of glass, crystallising on them and stopping them in place'

They could simply leave out the crystalising bit altogether imo.

"Enemies are encased in molten glass which rapidly cools, stopping movement".

[Carnage2K4]

Heh, well it's over now but Plague Star was also pretty terrible on the biology;
Peristalsis is a symmetrical contraction of muscles down a tube like the gastrointestinal tract... Not something related to an immune response as seems to be implied in the story.
Antibodies are not the "creatures" that come out to kill the infection, they are basically markers that tell the creatures (cells) to attack something.
And when Lotus says to prepare for an immune response because antibody count is increasing... Well, an increased antibody count is the immune response...

Point is they are game devs not biologists or physicists, they will always use terms that sound smart but look silly if your life is part of the real world that uses those terms.