Roustame Diodore, also known as the "Mega Rich Light-Bending Guy", is a character in Disco Elysium.
Background[ | ]
Roustame Diodore is a multi-billionaire, speculated to be in the triple digits,[2] residing in a container in the container yard. He has an incredibly high net worth, due to inheriting an enormous sum from his grandmother and proceeding to invest it,[3] with an economic coefficient of over .96 (at least between him and Harrier Du Bois). He is traveling on the cheap, with his entire container shipped from one point to another, in order to prevent being subjected to targeted advertising for luxury items.[4] Due to his wealth allowing him effectively no problems, he believes that material goods are not as important as mental space and time.[5]
Interactions[ | ]
- He is part of an optional encounter if you can open the shipping container in the harbor. As the days pass, the Rhetoric check becomes easier and easier. Apart from that, to improve your chances, you can also:
- Gain (Doesn't need to be internalized) One More Door and The Precarious World thoughts
- Buy a set of Icosahedral Dice Set Sirens
- Insist with Kim on opening the container as part of a thorough investigation
- Ask Evrart Claire about the container
- Talk to the "moneyman" who is always on the first floor of the Whirling-in-Rags until he says that money is all about trust
- Once you gain access, you can talk to him to learn a few things about the mindset of the rich and even get a bit of money from him. He will usually only part with just 3 reál, though.
- It is possible to gain 100 reál from him. Convince him to invest in your business idea with your Conceptualization. It helps to have a more "Interisolary" style. He does not value art degrees; they are useless.
- After the Mercenary Tribunal, the player will be unable to get the chance to meet him or talk to him again, as the harbour is locked down.
- The closer you get to the Mega Rich Light-Bending Guy, the higher your own net worth appears. As you walk away, your net worth returns to the original value.
Behind the Scenes[ | ]
- The Weiss-Wiesemann/Rougon-Macquart coefficient -- a ratio designed to reflect the difference in net worth between individuals, which has been observed that when the coefficient reaches about .96 or so, the laws of physics begin to bend around the high-net-worth individual -- was named after the 19th-century French novels documenting French life under different socioeconomic conditions.[6][7]
- The coefficient can appear under two names: The first is described in-game as Weiss-Wiesemann, the second is known around the world of Elysium as Rougon-Macquart.[8]
- There is, however, a real coefficient that measures the distribution of net worth (or any value) across a group of individuals: the Gini coefficient.
References[ | ]
- ↑
MEGA RICH LIGHT-BENDING GUY – [..] My name is Roustame Diodore -- investor, licence holder, and extremely high-net-worth individual. And you are?"
- ↑ Harrier Du Bois: "Are you telling me that you are so rich that light literally bends around your face?"
Roustame Diodore: "Among other things... but calm down, I'm but a lowly single-digit billionaire."
Harrier Du Bois: "Really?"
Roustame Diodore: "No, not really. There are actually quite many digits."
Suggestion: [Easy: Success] - "A man this *chill* is at least a triple digit billionaire." - ↑ Harrier Du Bois: "What's the matter, Kim?"
Kim Kitsuragi: "Oh, nothing. It's just that we've got this *murder* to solve, and yet you go around asking everyone about *money*. And every time I ask, 'Are you sure this is related to the case?', you say, 'Sure, Kim. I think it is'... And yet it never seems to get us any closer to solving the case."
Roustame Diodore: "The man chuckles. "It's quite alright. I'm used to the question by now. To be blunt, I inherited my fortune from my grandmother, who, herself, was an extremely high-net-worth individual back in Graad... All I did was take her fortune and invest it prudently. Believe it or not, it takes more than a bit of skill not to blow a vast fortune on sailing boats, bad choices, and *unsupervised* state policy." - ↑ Harrier Du Bois: "So you travel from place to place via shipping container?"
Roustame Diodore: "Smart, no? It also provides a means to hide from all the targeted advertising we extremely high-net-worth individuals are constantly subjected to... Luxury yachts, high-fidelity portable radio systems, pale-proof outerwear, and so on. It just gets a bit *middle class* after a while. A bit *bourgeois.*" - ↑ Harrier Du Bois: "Those things all sound pretty nice."
Roustame Diodore: "Don't get me wrong: They're nice things, but once you achieve a certain level of wealth your time and mental space become *much* more important than material goods."
Empathy: "He speaks from the heart. He has very different problems compared to low-net-worth individuals such as yourself. For example, no problems at all." - ↑ Chris Priestman Twitter: "SPOILERS: This is an effect of the Rougon-Macquart coefficient (named after the French novels) which indicates who is the wealthiest in a group of people. If you're poor in Disco Elysium's world you literally cannot see the richest people"
- ↑ Chris Priestman Twitter: "The Rougon-Macquart novels document 19th century French life through two families; one fortunate, the other less so. They look at how the likes of socio-economics, alcoholism, and lust for land splits the bourgeoisie and working class."
- ↑ Chris Priestman Twitter: "I'm pretty sure it was invented for this game - the coefficient can appear with two different names, the one in the screenshot, and the Rougan-Macquart"