MISSILE MECHANICS
The way that ghosts work in the canon of Ghost Trick is a little bit hard to comprehend for those who haven't played it. So, this post is to hopefully clear up how things work for Missile.
Also, if anything is left unclear, feel free to use this as a place to ask questions, and I'll ask them as best I can.
TALKING TO MISSILE
First off, anyone can speak with Missile regularly over the Network. The Eggplants let his voice travel over, thanks to magic handwaving. However, since Missile can neither read nor write, text will be a mystery to him.
It used to be that Missile could only speak with those who have died, one way or another, at some point in their past. However, it has become available for the dog to make contact with anyone at all, if he so chooses.
When Missile goes to talk with someone, they are able to see him within their mind, but he's not a physical presence. It's all a mental connection between the two.(See that red, swirly background in that picture? That is the approximate appearance of what things look like when the dead speak. It's not like the two of you have physically gone anywhere, it's just an indication that you are not actually interacting in person. Something to keep in mind, is all.)
In fact, when connected with Missile, there's no need to speak out loud; your thoughts are on broadcast to him, just as any of his will be to you. Not that Missile thinks very deeply about things, anyway. There are no language boundaries whatsoever, be it between literal languages or different types of species. All are equal in the world of the dead.
GETTING AROUND
Just a small detail: "cores" are located within objects, too. Maybe it's a fan, or a blender, or a flag, or a lone leaf... honestly, what has a core is completely random. The point is, that Missile uses these to get around. His soul is able to jump about ten feet from one cored object to the next. He can only speak with people who are within ten feet of whatever object he is currently possessing, and he cannot jump into or travel around in the core of a living person; he can only talk to them. Dead bodies, though, lead us to the next point...
BEING REVIVED
An important ability of Missile's is his ability to travel in time before someone's death and save them. As stated before, a dead body develops a core, and when Missile possesses a corpse of someone who has died within the last 24 hours, he is given the option to travel back in time, to four minutes before that person perished.
(NOTE: Within Ghost Trick, the soul of someone who has just died will have temporarily forgotten who they were, and all details about their life.
However, they usually remember very quickly, most often within minutes. With how different death can be portrayed between different canons, whether or not you want to follow this detail is up to you.)
After seeing what occurred, Missile is then able to move around freely in the past, manipulating events with his abilities. With luck, he will be able to change what happened, and save your character's life... which essentially means that the world will branch off into a new dimension where your character is fine, healthy and maybe only a little shaken up by that near-death experience. However, they can still remember what happened, and will now have a nifty core for Missile to chat with them at any time!
SWAPPING
The ability that is particularly unique to Missile is the hardest to explain, because, well... it's really something designed for the 2D view Ghost Trick is presented in. But I'll do my best.
See, Missile has the ability to switch objects that appear to have the same shape. For example, if a basketball and baseball were sitting in two different places, he could switch them. This ability might not seem all that useful at first, until you take it to the larger picture. Instead of a basketball, what if a wrecking ball were about to fall on someone? Switching that with a baseball would be a serious improvement.
Switched objects still maintain momentum, as well. So, if you decide to save someone from a bullet by switching it with a potato before it hits them, the person will still have to clean their suit from a messy potato splatter.
It's an abstract concept, but this is the main way in which Missile is able to change how things happen, especially when saving someone from death.
Hopefully, this will clear a few details up and make playing with Missile a little easier for people to understand. Relatively speaking.
Also, if anything is left unclear, feel free to use this as a place to ask questions, and I'll ask them as best I can.
TALKING TO MISSILE
First off, anyone can speak with Missile regularly over the Network. The Eggplants let his voice travel over, thanks to magic handwaving. However, since Missile can neither read nor write, text will be a mystery to him.
It used to be that Missile could only speak with those who have died, one way or another, at some point in their past. However, it has become available for the dog to make contact with anyone at all, if he so chooses.
When Missile goes to talk with someone, they are able to see him within their mind, but he's not a physical presence. It's all a mental connection between the two.(See that red, swirly background in that picture? That is the approximate appearance of what things look like when the dead speak. It's not like the two of you have physically gone anywhere, it's just an indication that you are not actually interacting in person. Something to keep in mind, is all.)
In fact, when connected with Missile, there's no need to speak out loud; your thoughts are on broadcast to him, just as any of his will be to you. Not that Missile thinks very deeply about things, anyway. There are no language boundaries whatsoever, be it between literal languages or different types of species. All are equal in the world of the dead.
GETTING AROUND
Just a small detail: "cores" are located within objects, too. Maybe it's a fan, or a blender, or a flag, or a lone leaf... honestly, what has a core is completely random. The point is, that Missile uses these to get around. His soul is able to jump about ten feet from one cored object to the next. He can only speak with people who are within ten feet of whatever object he is currently possessing, and he cannot jump into or travel around in the core of a living person; he can only talk to them. Dead bodies, though, lead us to the next point...
BEING REVIVED
An important ability of Missile's is his ability to travel in time before someone's death and save them. As stated before, a dead body develops a core, and when Missile possesses a corpse of someone who has died within the last 24 hours, he is given the option to travel back in time, to four minutes before that person perished.
(NOTE: Within Ghost Trick, the soul of someone who has just died will have temporarily forgotten who they were, and all details about their life.
However, they usually remember very quickly, most often within minutes. With how different death can be portrayed between different canons, whether or not you want to follow this detail is up to you.)
After seeing what occurred, Missile is then able to move around freely in the past, manipulating events with his abilities. With luck, he will be able to change what happened, and save your character's life... which essentially means that the world will branch off into a new dimension where your character is fine, healthy and maybe only a little shaken up by that near-death experience. However, they can still remember what happened, and will now have a nifty core for Missile to chat with them at any time!
SWAPPING
The ability that is particularly unique to Missile is the hardest to explain, because, well... it's really something designed for the 2D view Ghost Trick is presented in. But I'll do my best.
See, Missile has the ability to switch objects that appear to have the same shape. For example, if a basketball and baseball were sitting in two different places, he could switch them. This ability might not seem all that useful at first, until you take it to the larger picture. Instead of a basketball, what if a wrecking ball were about to fall on someone? Switching that with a baseball would be a serious improvement.
Switched objects still maintain momentum, as well. So, if you decide to save someone from a bullet by switching it with a potato before it hits them, the person will still have to clean their suit from a messy potato splatter.
It's an abstract concept, but this is the main way in which Missile is able to change how things happen, especially when saving someone from death.
Hopefully, this will clear a few details up and make playing with Missile a little easier for people to understand. Relatively speaking.