[MUD-Dev] Stranger in a Strange Land (was Usability and interface and who the hell is supposed to be playing, anyway? (Was: PK

[Maddy]

Previously, =?iso-8859-1?Q?Ola_Fosheim_Gr=F8stad?= wrote....
> Maddy <maddy at fysh.org> wrote:
> >> >It wandered into the topic of newbie areas, 
> >> >training wheels, and the like, and basically ended up, i think, at
> >> >the  opinion that ifyou can provide such an experience to people
> >> >crafted  well enough that they do not feel they are being channeled,
> >> >it can be  successful. But if they start to sense channeling and
> >> >restrictions,  they rebel...
> >> 
> >> I'd question if the rebellion really matters if the players know that they
> >> can always retreat back to the guide whenever they want.  The key then
> >> would seem to be able to pick up on a guide at any point on his tour.  The
> >> guides then really become randomly tappable references rather than a fixed
> >> tour.
> >
> >Hmm.  The problem with newbie area, is that all the ones I've seen are
> >linear.  A guide (see my comment above) is probably a good idea.  The thing
> >is, is that you don't want the newbies thinking that the guide is a guide,
> >more like a very friendly person who is offering to show them around. 
> >Rather than the guide saying "Ok - lets go this way" the guide could also
> >follow the newbie around, pointing out places of interest.
> 
> The discussion on the list covered guides as well as force-functions
> (like missing keys/id-cards).  The main point with the newbie-safe
> area was to make the world "browsable". To present the basic
> attractions in the world to the user in the first few sessions and let
> him have some hands on experience as well as a feeling of success, and
> eventually learn to master a "complex" interface bit by bit. All this
> without annoying the more experienced users too much.
> 
> My guide example was to have a little bird follow the newbie, give him
> hints about the implications of his actions and soforth.  As Robert
> Goemans (on the mudlist) pointed out, users can become very fond of
> their npc-pets, so I guess this solution could have some synergetic
> effects...
> 
> Anyway, the discussion seem to end in an apparently common agreement
> that closed newbieareas is rather difficult to design without making
> them feel like a cage.  So perhaps a more translucent boundary on the
> newbie area should be pursued, possibly achieved through clever
> artistic design?

How about having an exit that only newbies can go through - say for example
a trapdoor in the ground that "randomly" catches newbies as they walk past,
dropping them into a fairly safe underground realm in which they can explore
at their leisure and at any time climb back out to the rest of the game.

I'd guess this idea's only flaw is that you could end up with newbies
getting trapped and not knowing how to get out.  Although it all depends on
how easy it is - maybe there is a ladder on the wall leading back up to the
trapdoor.

Maddy