[MUD-Dev] Life

[clawrenc at cup.hp.com]

In <3398b2a2.23782289 at relay.mnsinc.com>, on 06/03/97 
   at 08:21 AM, caliban at darklock.com (Caliban Tiresias Darklock) said:

>On Mon, 2 Jun 1997 22:38:05 PST8PDT, clawrenc at cup.hp.com wrote:

>>I have no such areas.  Actually I have no real centralised routes or
>>newbie specific areas.  Starting locations are the next best things to
>>random and there are (hopefully) fairly decent game advantages to stay
>>spread out across the land (crowding leads to vulnerability).

>These areas will develop. With or without your involvement. New
>players will rely on other players to find out where the important
>places are, and there will be somewhere that presents a definite
>advantage to the new player, even if it's just two shops with good
>prices and useful equipment located next to each other. 

True, however as an area designer I would cosider it one of my jobs to
architect the game to spread users, especially newbies, out more.  Its
not a question of dissuading them from congregating or using the
"common" locations, but of providing a multiplicity of locations which
are all advantageous.

>>No.  I want characters to die, both at other player's hands, and by
>>the game.  There are no better predators that other players.  I
>>certainly can't write a mobile script as good as even a mediocre
>>PK'er.

>I'd question whether your total lack of control over that PKer is
>worth the trade-off, myself. I can see that placing the development
>of the game entirely into the hands of the players works when you
>give them a set of goals, but when that set of goals is to kill and
>loot and pillage and burn I sort of have to question whether the end
>result is going to be what you expect.

On that score I have a rather specific hope: societies will will occur
in an attempt to guarantee or enhance the probability of survival
within the game.  The game itself won't explicitly support those
societies, but also won't act against them in any cohesive form.  It
will just ignore them.

--
J C Lawrence                           Internet: claw at null.net
(Contractor)                           Internet: coder at ibm.net
---------------(*)               Internet: clawrenc at cup.hp.com
...Honorary Member Clan McFUD -- Teamer's Avenging Monolith...