The idea (which I'm not saying you necessarily endorse) that some people might be NPCs relegates them to mere ciphers there to make life more "interesting", so to speak.
Here's one definition of NPCs from the urban dictionary:
An NPC is seemingly a human that is unable to think objectively.
We exist in a simulated reality and some humans take on the role of NPCs, spouting "opinions" they are programmed to spout and repeating in a cult-like manner.
Conservative: (Yelling) Fuck Hillary! Ban immigrants!
Friend: Bro, I'm sick of all these people just repeating shit...
Me: Its hard to move forward with all these NPCs.
It's not an idea I take literally, but it's interesting to think about it metaphorically: there might be those who can think for themselves, and those who merely follow a script, in a sense have no inner essence or soul. They are nothing but ego, focussed only on their own well-being. In the extreme, I suppose one might call them psychopathic, incapable of true compassion.
I suppose all of us are capable of behaving like NPCs. Put another way, every one of us can sometimes surrender to his/her ego. I've done it, and I'll wager everyone here has too. But at the same time, I'll wager we've all had occasions of self-reflection during which we've become aware of our own egoism: so we all know at least to some degree the difference between acting from ego and acting from essence. I think I behaved more like an NPC as a child, but hopefully have -- to a degree at least -- grown out of it since. I suppose complete NPCdom would only be applicable to pyschopaths.
It's nothing to do with intellect: psychopaths could in theory be highly intelligent, just not be able to use their intellects in tandem with compassion. Any "compassion" they exhibited would be calculated so as to benefit themselves: to enhance their own self-image. There might be some psychopaths who on balance do more good than evil: it's just that morality doesn't really concern them. Psychopathic billionaires might give away huge amounts to charity, might sponsor good causes and give every appearance of virtue, but if so, only to aggrandise themselves.
Most human beings both intellectualise and empathise, and it's the interplay between the two that helps shape their lives. But the psychopath's life is shaped only by their intellect, which is by its nature completely amoral: they think only in terms of what is beneficial for themselves. It's useful for survival purposes to think like that, and we doubtless all do it to some degree, but for them, it's
all they can do. They can never be truly altruistic.
So, one wonders, are psychopaths truly human? Do they actually have a soul? Or are they in some sense just NPCs who, when they die, will simply disappear, be annihilated? Can they ever have NDEs with a life review in which for the first time they can experience compassion? I find that a fascinating question, and if anyone here can shed any light on it, I'm all ears...