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'{{short description|Political internet meme}} {{For|the concept the meme is based on|Non-player character}} {{Infobox character | name = NPC | image = NPC wojak meme.png | alt = A drawing of a grey head with simplified facial features in black, on a cyan background | caption = The NPC | first_date = July 7, 2016 | creator = /v/<ref name="theverge"/> Anonymous | based_on = [[Wojak]] | alias = }} '''NPC''' ({{IPAc-en|E|n|p|i|s|i|}}; each letter separately; also known as the '''NPC Wojack'''), derived from ''[[non-player character]]'', is an [[internet meme]] that represents people who do not think for themselves or do not make their own decisions; those who lack [[intrapersonal communication]].<ref name="theindependent">{{cite web |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/npc-meme-right-wing-trolls-liberals-donald-trump-twitter-insults-republicans-a8588036.html |title=What is an NPC? The liberal-bashing meme sweeping social media ahead of the US midterms <nowiki>|</nowiki> The Independent |date=October 17, 2018 |website=www.independent.co.uk |publisher=Independent Digital News & Media Ltd |access-date=December 23, 2019 |archive-date=November 22, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191122041003/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/npc-meme-right-wing-trolls-liberals-donald-trump-twitter-insults-republicans-a8588036.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://observer.com/2018/11/maga-conservative-memes-dominate-why/ |title=MAGA Memes and The Right Still Dominate Social Media-Here's Why <nowiki>|</nowiki> Observer |date=November 5, 2018 |website=observer.com |publisher=Joseph Meyer |access-date=December 23, 2019 |archive-date=January 3, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200103090422/https://observer.com/2018/11/maga-conservative-memes-dominate-why/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="theverge">{{cite web |url=https://www.theverge.com/2018/10/23/17991274/npc-meme-4chan-press-coverage-viral |title=The NPC meme went viral when the media gave it oxygen - The Verge |date=October 23, 2018 |website=www.theverge.com |publisher=[[Vox Media]] |access-date=December 23, 2019 |archive-date=December 20, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181220030609/https://www.theverge.com/2018/10/23/17991274/npc-meme-4chan-press-coverage-viral |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="nytimes">{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/16/us/politics/npc-twitter-ban.html |title=What Is NPC, the Pro-Trump Internet's New Favorite Insult? - The New York Times |date=October 16, 2018 |website=www.nytimes.com |publisher=A. G. Sulzberger |access-date=December 23, 2019 |archive-date=October 19, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181019033210/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/16/us/politics/npc-twitter-ban.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="theweek">{{cite web |url=https://www.theweek.co.uk/97291/what-are-npcs-and-why-has-twitter-banned-them |title=What are NPCs and why has Twitter banned them? <nowiki>|</nowiki> The Week UK |date=October 23, 2018 |website=www.theweek.co.uk |publisher=Dennis Publishing Limited |access-date=December 26, 2019 |archive-date=January 3, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200103090421/https://www.theweek.co.uk/97291/what-are-npcs-and-why-has-twitter-banned-them |url-status=live }}</ref> The NPC meme, which graphically is based on the [[Wojak]] meme, was created in July 2016 by an anonymous author and first published on the [[imageboard]] [[4chan]], where the idea and inspiration behind the meme were introduced.<ref name="knowyourmemenpc" /> The NPC meme gained widespread attention and in October 2018 was covered in numerous news outlets, including ''[[The New York Times]]'',<ref name="nytimes" /> ''[[The Verge]]'',<ref name="theverge" /> and the [[BBC]]. In 2022, the meme garnered popularity on video sharing service [[TikTok]].<ref> https://www.distractify.com/p/what-does-npc-mean-on-tiktok </ref><ref name="bbc">{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-trending-45888176 |title=Why has Twitter banned 1500 accounts and what are NPCs? - BBC News |date=October 17, 2018 |website=www.bbc.com |publisher=BBC |access-date=December 26, 2019 |archive-date=October 17, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181017160854/https://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-trending-45888176 |url-status=live }}</ref> by user “shneeby” who also owns the meme page “[https://instagram.com/Shneeby Shneeby]” on [[Instagram]] ==History== The concept of the NPC first appeared on 4chan in 2016. The post by an anonymous user who initiated the NPC meme, titled "Are you an NPC?", detailed the behavior of individuals acting similarly to non-player characters in video games by repeatedly using phrases such as "JUST BE YOURSELF",<ref name="kotaku">{{cite web |url=https://kotaku.com/how-the-npc-meme-tries-to-dehumanize-sjws-1829552261 |title=How The 'NPC' Meme Tries To Dehumanize 'SJWs' |date=October 5, 2018 |website=kotaku.com |publisher=G/O Media |access-date=December 24, 2019 |archive-date=January 12, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210112095626/https://kotaku.com/how-the-npc-meme-tries-to-dehumanize-sjws-1829552261 |url-status=live }}</ref> and ended the post with the following description of people the NPC meme intends to depict.<ref name="knowyourmemenpc" /> {{Quote |text=If you get in a discussion with them it's always the same buzzwords and hackneyed arguments. They're the kind of people who make a show of discomfort when you break the status quo like by breaking the normie barrier to invoke a real discussion. it's like in a [video game] when you accidentally talk to somebody twice and they give you the exact lines word for word once more. |author=Anonymous |title="Are you an NPC?" |source=4chan (July 7, 2016)<ref name="knowyourmemenpc" /><ref name="kotaku" />{{efn|The text was accompanied by a drawing from a ''[[Frog and Toad]]'' story concerning a [[to-do list]], with below it "1. {{Strikethrough|Wake Up}}".}} }} The design of the NPC meme character is based on [[Wojak]] ({{Lang-pl|Wojak|lit=warrior, soldier}}, {{IPAc-pl|v|ɔ|j|a|k}}),<ref name="knowyourmemenpc">{{cite web|date=July 29, 2019|title=NPC Wojak - Google Trends|url=https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=today%205-y&geo=US&q=npc%20wojak|access-date=August 19, 2020|website=Google Trends|archive-date=June 23, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200623070654/https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=today%205-y|url-status=live}}</ref> a meme created in [[Microsoft Paint]] in 2010.<ref name="knowyourmemewojak">{{cite web |url=https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/wojak-feels-guy |title=Wojak / Feels Guy <nowiki>|</nowiki> Know Your Meme |date=January 7, 2018 |website=www.knowyourmeme.com |access-date=December 31, 2019 |archive-date=January 12, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210112095619/https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/wojak |url-status=live }}</ref> Unlike the NPC meme, the Wojak meme (also known as Feels Guy<ref name="bbc" />) appeared first on the image hosting website vichan and has mainly been used for expression of feelings, most often melancholy or regret.<ref name="knowyourmemewojak" /> During the weeks leading up to the [[2018 United States elections|2018 midterm elections]] in the United States, the NPC meme gained remarkable attention, with relatively high media coverage, publication of new NPC memes online, and several noticeable events. A large number of animated videos based on the NPC meme were uploaded to YouTube in the second half of October 2018,<ref name="dailydot" /> and Google searches for the term "NPC Wojak" peaked around the same time.<ref name="knowyourmemenpc" /> In October 2018, a large number of [[Twitter]] accounts were created which presented themselves as NPCs, and more than 1,500 such accounts were subsequently banned by Twitter.<ref name="bbc" /> In November, ''[[InfoWars]]'' held a competition promoting creation of NPC memes. The winning entry, by a Twitter user named "Carpe Donktum", was later retweeted by then-[[President of the United States|U.S. President]] [[Donald Trump]] on February 2019 before it was removed for copyright infringement.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Alexander|first=Julia|date=15 February 2019|title=President of United States reposts video from winner of Infowars meme contest|work=[[The Verge]]|url=https://www.theverge.com/2019/2/15/18226716/trump-meme-twitter-infowars-winner|access-date=8 January 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Krause|first=Alexander|date=16 February 2019|title=Trump reposts video from winner of Infowars meme contest after first version removed for copyright violation|work=[[Insider Inc.|Insider]]|url=https://www.insider.com/trump-infowars-meme-removed-for-copyright-violation-2019-2|access-date=8 January 2022}}</ref> The re-election campaign for then-[[Iowa]] [[United States House of Representatives|Representative]] [[Steve King]] also tweeted an NPC meme around the same time, aimed at the sitting [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] members of [[United States Congress|Congress]].<ref>{{Cite news|last=Jones|first=Sarah|date=23 January 2020|title=Steve King Is Building a Dank Fascist Meme Stash|work=[[New York (magazine)|New York]]|url=https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/01/steve-king-needs-help-building-dank-fascist-meme-stash.html|access-date=30 May 2022}}</ref> The number of searches for the search term "NPC Wojak" remained relatively constant during 2019, though at a level significantly lower than its peak from early October through mid November 2018.<ref name="knowyourmemenpc" /> Although the NPC meme was created 6 years after the Wojak meme, the NPC meme rapidly gained attention in comparison with the Wojak meme. On the website of the meme community ''[[Know Your Meme]]'', the NPC meme has 858,000 page views, 33 videos, 597 images and 749 comments as of December 31, 2019.<ref name="knowyourmemenpc" /> This can be compared to the Wojak meme on which NPC is based, which has 787,000 page views, 6 videos, 332 images and 47 comments as of December 31, 2019.<ref name="knowyourmemewojak" /> A [[Subreddit]] exclusively for "right wing, political" NPC memes without "extremist content" called r/NPCMemes was created on October 10, 2018.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/NPCMemes/ |title=NPC Memes |website=www.reddit.com |access-date=December 30, 2019 |archive-date=January 12, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210112095619/https://www.reddit.com/r/NPCMemes/ |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2022, a variation of the NPC meme called "I Support The Current Thing" was popularized. According to ''[[Slate (magazine)|Slate]]'', the meme is mainly used by the political right to mock liberals for "perceived conformism, frivolousness, and distractibility" who "blindly flit from news story to news story, issue to issue, changing their Facebook profile pics and Twitter display names to 'support' whatever 'Current Thing' dominates news and commentary. The current thing has been [[Ukraine]], [[essential workers]], the [[Women's March]], [[Notre-Dame de Paris|Notre Dame]] after it [[Notre-Dame de Paris fire|caught on fire]], etc." In March 2022, [[Elon Musk]] tweeted a version of the meme.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Read |first=Max |date=2022-05-09 |title=What Is "The Current Thing"? |url=https://slate.com/technology/2022/05/current-thing-meme-twitter-elon-musk-marc-andreessen.html |access-date=2022-05-13 |website=[[Slate (magazine)|Slate]] |language=en}}</ref> ==Characteristics== {{color swatch|#89F5FF|Electric Blue<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40/types.html#h-6.5 |title=HTML 4.01 Specification |access-date=2020-01-03 |archive-date=2018-12-26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181226130532/http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40/types.html#h-6.5 |url-status=live }}</ref>|right}} In appearance, the NPC character is [[gray]] in color, and usually short in stature<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.technologyreview.com/f/612312/twitter-has-released-more-than-10-million-tweets-linked-to-election-interference/ |title=Twitter has released more than 10 million tweets linked to election interference - MIT Technology Review |date=October 17, 2018 |website=www.technologyreview.com |publisher=Elizabeth Bramson-Boudreau |access-date=December 30, 2019 |archive-date=January 12, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210112095620/https://www.technologyreview.com/2018/10/17/139722/twitter-has-released-more-than-10-million-tweets-linked-to-election-interference/ |url-status=live }}</ref> simple in its design,<ref name="theweek" /> with an expressionless face,<ref name="theindependent" /><ref name=":0">{{Citation|last=Demsky|first=Jeffrey|title=That Is Really Meme: Nazi Pepe the Frog and the Subversion of Anglo-American Holocaust Remembrance|date=2021|url=https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-030-79221-3_7|work=Nazi and Holocaust Representations in Anglo-American Popular Culture, 1945–2020: Irreverent Remembrance|pages=105–125|editor-last=Demsky|editor-first=Jeffrey|series=Palgrave Studies in Cultural Heritage and Conflict|place=Cham|publisher=Springer International Publishing|language=en|doi=10.1007/978-3-030-79221-3_7|isbn=978-3-030-79221-3|s2cid=238951868 |access-date=2022-01-19}}</ref> a triangular nose<ref name="nytimes" /> and a blank stare.<ref name="knowyourmemenpc" /> The shape of the NPC face resembles that of Wojak, and is drawn crudely.<ref name="nytimes" /> The initial ''NPC'' refers to [[non-player character]], a term used in video-games for characters the player cannot control.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=The Next Generation 1996 Lexicon A to Z: NPC (Nonplayer Character)|magazine=[[Next Generation (magazine)|Next Generation]]|issue=15 |publisher=[[Imagine Media]]|date=March 1996|page=38}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Citation|last=Demsky|first=Jeffrey|title=That Is Really Meme: Nazi Pepe the Frog and the Subversion of Anglo-American Holocaust Remembrance|date=2021|url=https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-030-79221-3_7|work=Nazi and Holocaust Representations in Anglo-American Popular Culture, 1945–2020: Irreverent Remembrance|pages=105–125|editor-last=Demsky|editor-first=Jeffrey|series=Palgrave Studies in Cultural Heritage and Conflict|place=Cham|publisher=Springer International Publishing|language=en|doi=10.1007/978-3-030-79221-3_7|isbn=978-3-030-79221-3|s2cid=238951868 |access-date=2022-01-19}}</ref> As such, a non-player character in a game is controlled by the computer, and typically interacts with the player through simple and repetitive actions, such as communicating the same sentence each time the player approaches the NPC. As such, NPCs have "no internality, agency, or capacity for critical thought",<ref name="kotaku" /> they rely on scripted lines<ref name="nytimes" /><ref name="hollywoodreporter" /> and do not think by themselves.<ref name="theindependent" /> Following the analogy of non-player characters, the NPC meme is used to mock individuals the maker perceives as lacking those attributes, generally political opponents. The NPC responds using simple dialogue resembling video game NPCs, with no capability for discussion.<ref name="knowyourmemenpc" /> Due to NPC memes' greater popularity among the political right, the NPC is generally portrayed as parroting left-wing positions.<ref name="kotaku" /> Despite being co-opted<ref name=":0">{{Citation|last=Demsky|first=Jeffrey|title=That Is Really Meme: Nazi Pepe the Frog and the Subversion of Anglo-American Holocaust Remembrance|date=2021|url=https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-030-79221-3_7|work=Nazi and Holocaust Representations in Anglo-American Popular Culture, 1945–2020: Irreverent Remembrance|pages=105–125|editor-last=Demsky|editor-first=Jeffrey|series=Palgrave Studies in Cultural Heritage and Conflict|place=Cham|publisher=Springer International Publishing|language=en|doi=10.1007/978-3-030-79221-3_7|isbn=978-3-030-79221-3|s2cid=238951868 |access-date=2022-01-19}}</ref> by right-wing movements to "mock leftists," both left- and right-wing NPC variants exist.<ref name="theweek"/><ref name="theverge"/> •⎳• is an [[emoticon]] version of the NPC meme.{{Citation needed|date=December 2020}} ==Media coverage== The NPC meme has been featured in major and minor news outlets alike, with frequent coverage during the peak of the NPCs popularity in fall 2018. According to ''The Verge'', a few articles (including one by ''[[The New York Times]]'' published on October 16, 2018) sparked a "domino effect" and led to increased spread of the meme on Twitter, YouTube and through articles.<ref name="theverge" /> ==Notable events== ===Twitter mass ban=== In October 2018, users of [[r/The_Donald]], a large subreddit that supported United States President [[Donald Trump]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-48783866 |title=Reddit places pro-Donald-Trump forum in quarantine - BBC News |date=June 27, 2019 |website=www.bbc.ccom |publisher=BBC |access-date=December 27, 2019 |archive-date=June 30, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190630000313/https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-48783866 |url-status=live }}</ref> coordinated in creating accounts presented as NPCs on the American microblogging and social networking service Twitter.<ref name="bbc" /> According to ''The Week'', the accounts spread "bland, politically correct messages intended to mimic and provoke liberal pronouncements".<ref name="theweek" /> Following the mass creation of NPC Twitter accounts, the term "NPC" was used over 30,000 times on Twitter in a time span of 24 hours.<ref name="bbc" /> Twitter responded to the event by banning more than 1,500 of its users presenting themselves as NPCs.<ref name="theweek" /> The created accounts typically used profile pictures of NPC with slight modifications, such as colorful hair or partially covering masks.<ref name="nytimes" /> According to one or more anonymous sources quoted by ''The Week'' and ''The New York Times'', the users were banned for violating a term of use by Twitter against "intentionally misleading election-related content", ahead of the United States 2018 midterm election.<ref name="nytimes" /><ref name="theweek" /> The claim that NPC memes were used to spread misinformation about the 2018 United States midterm election is also reported by other news agencies, including ''[[The Verge]]'',<ref name="theverge" /> ''[[BBC News|BBC]]''<ref name="bbc" /> and ''[[The Independent]]'',<ref name="theindependent" /> although no examples are presented. The decision by Twitter to remove NPC accounts has upset many conservatives according to ''BBC''.<ref name="bbc" /> ===Billboard defacing=== In 2019, the NPC meme was used in the modification of two existing billboards in the United States.<ref name="dailydot">{{cite web |url=https://www.dailydot.com/layer8/john-oliver-billboard-ad-meme/ |title=Guerrilla artists turn John Oliver billboard ad into right-wing meme |last=Gilmour |first=David |date=February 19, 2019 |website=[[The Daily Dot]] |access-date=December 27, 2019 |archive-date=January 12, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210112095623/https://www.dailydot.com/unclick/john-oliver-billboard-ad-meme/ |url-status=live }}</ref> On January 13, 2019, the conservative street artist group ''The Faction'' modified a billboard featuring American comedian [[Bill Maher]] in [[West Hollywood]] using the NPC meme.<ref name="hollywoodreporter">{{cite web |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/bill-maher-labeled-npc-by-conservative-street-artists-1175703 |title=Bill Maher Billboard Targeted by Conservative Street Artists |last=Bond |first=Paul |date=January 13, 2019 |website=[[The Hollywood Reporter]] |publisher=Lynne Segall |access-date=December 27, 2019 |archive-date=January 14, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190114014951/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/bill-maher-labeled-npc-by-conservative-street-artists-1175703 |url-status=live }}</ref> On February 19, 2019, a similar modification was performed on a billboard featuring English comedian [[John Oliver]] in [[Los Angeles]], in which the face of Oliver was replaced by that of an NPC, and text "''[[Last Week Tonight with John Oliver]]''" was replaced by "''The [[Donald Trump in popular culture#Orange man bad|Orange Man Bad]] Show with John Oliver''".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/john-oliver-jussie-smollett-criticized-la-street-art-1187538 |title=John Oliver, Jussie Smollett Criticized in Hijacked Billboard, L.A. Street Art |last=Bond |first=Paul |date=February 18, 2019 |website=[[The Hollywood Reporter]] |publisher=Lynne Segall |access-date=December 27, 2019 |archive-date=January 12, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210112095623/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/john-oliver-jussie-smollett-criticized-la-street-art-1187538 |url-status=live }}</ref> The modified billboard also included the text "*MATRIX APPROVED NPC PROGRAMMING" and a [[speech balloon]] from the NPC containing words such as "[[Donald Trump in popular culture#Skin color|CHEETOH]]"{{sic}} and "[[Drumph|DRUMPH]]" with random symbols in green text, resembling [[Matrix digital rain|the text shown in ''The Matrix'']]. According to ''[[The Daily Dot]]'', the modification of the billboard featuring Oliver, also credited to ''The Faction'', was an attempt to counteract the media's supposed "[[Trump derangement syndrome]]".<ref name="dailydot" /> ==See also== {{Portal|Internet|Politics|Video games|Conservatism}} * [[List of Internet phenomena]] * [[Philosophical zombie]] – a philosophical thought experiment that imagines a being which appears to display consciousness but is actually not conscious. * [[Solipsism]] - the philosophical idea that only one's mind is sure to exist. ** [[Brain in a vat]] - a similar philosophical thought experiment. ==Notes== {{Notelist}} ==References== {{Reflist}} ==External links== * [https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/npc-wojak NPC at ''Know Your Meme''] * [https://imgflip.com/memegenerator/NPC NPC Meme Generator] * [https://www.reddit.com/r/NPCMemes/ NPC Memes at Reddit] [[Category:Internet memes introduced in 2016]] [[Category:Satire]] [[Category:Politics of the United States]] [[Category:4chan phenomena]] [[Category:2010s fads and trends]] [[Category:Political Internet memes]] [[Category:Internet-related controversies]]'