[MUD-Dev] Gender and Mud Development (back on topic, some)

[claw at kanga.nu]

On Wed, 9 Jun 1999 22:37:20 -0500  
Koster, Raph <rkoster at origin.ea.com> wrote:

> My experience has been that players ASK to be allowed to make up
> their own goals, but then find the game lacking in direction if
> they are actually given that. They complain that the game doesn't
> offer enough to do in a structured format. Ultimately, I think the
> right answer is to give the freedom to make up your own goals, and
> to also offer as many different ladders of achievement as you can,
> so that there are multiple types of structured goals to reach for.

Precisely.  Mostly I suspect that this is a product of growth and
learning curves in players, and the complex interaction of system
systems (ie the component goal lines).  Once a player has observed
and accomplished a number of goals, they have learned enough about
and are comfortable enough with the game that they are both
confident of and capable of defining their own goals with a
reasonable chance of having that goal be achievable and enjoyable
withing the game and world definition.  

Give a man a chess board and a pile of pieces and tell him to invent
a game (which is essentially all a goal is, a principle component of
a game), and he'll likely do nothing of note.  Teach him chess and
checkers and half a dozen other bboard games, let him play for a
good while and then throw the pieces at him and he has a far better
chance of coming up with something that is at least not boring.
He's no longer a stranger in a strange land, he has some familiarity
and knowledge of system that he can base things on.

--
J C Lawrence                              Internet: claw at kanga.nu
----------(*)                            Internet: coder at kanga.nu
...Honorary Member of Clan McFud -- Teamer's Avenging Monolith...


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