[MUD-Dev] Birthday Cake (or Why Large Scale Sometimes Sucks) (long)

[Jon A. Lambert]

> J C Lawrence wrote:
> 
> What was the last truly multi-player game you played?  What was it
> about that game such that being multi-player wasn't just integral to
> the system, but that the system itself was unable to exist, let
> alone function without it being multi-player?  
> 
> What exactly constitutes a multiplayer game?  
> 

Diplomacy.  Always my model of a PURE multiplayer game.  

1) Impossible to play without human opponents.  
2) Impossible to win without direct player cooperation.
3) Impossible to win without direct player conflict and competition.
4) No way to solo.  No computer playing aids that I am aware of. 

Here's a review of an effort to attempts to add a single player vs. 
+computer option... this is the inverse of your design problem.  

  http://www.gamecenter.com/Reviews/Item/0,6,0-3564,00.html

Stunningly bad.  Exceedingly awful.  :-)

This game may well be one of those windmills for AI researchers 
to tilt at for years to come.  

Now here's some links to the board game that some notions
of the how the game is played.

  http://devel.igo.org/DipPouch/  - The best source.
  http://www.hwthwood.demon.co.uk/

There was at one time a mud server where diplomacy players gathered
and games were played out real time.  E-Mail and postal play has
always been more popular.  

--
--* Jon A. Lambert - TychoMUD        Email:jlsysinc at ix.netcom.com *--
--* Mud Server Developer's Page <http://tychomud.home.netcom.com> *--
--* If I had known it was harmless, I would have killed it myself.*--
 





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