[MUD-Dev] trade skill idea

[Matthew Mihaly]

On Thu, 5 Oct 2000, Koster, Raph wrote:

> > -----Original Message-----
> > Patrick Dughi
> > 
> > Do they have 5 years to put into bread making?  How many more
> > to expand that to a general 'Cooking'?  Too bad you left out the
> > blacksmith, or the tanner, or the talior, the candle-maker, the chimney
> > sweep, and the janitor.  How long did it take to make SimAnt (a fun game,
> > but not very detailed simulation) anyway?  
> 
> Got me. I don't actually know. I am pretty sure that more people played it
> than played all the muds open at the time it came out, though.

But what do you think the marketing and production budgets of the muds
people weren't playing were compared to SimAnt?

> I would never in a million years be able to convince my aunt JoAnne in Ohio
> to try to save the world from amonster invasion on a computer. In fact, I
> don't think I could convince any of my relatives to. But I am pretty sure I
> can convince them to build rollercoasters and houses and yes, to bake bread.

So, you think that if you could make yourself a bread-making simulation
game, your aunt would play it more than once or twice? I sincerely doubt
it. That's because the enjoyment that comes out of something like making
bread has _nothing_ to do with resource management, nothing to do with
twitch skill, and so on. Kneading the bread is enjoyable (try duplicating
that with today's primitive technology!). Smelling the cooking bread is
enjoyable. Eating it is enjoyable. Without those elements, I do not
believe that something like baking bread will ever be fun in a game. They
will only ever be fun if they exist for the sake of interacting with other
people via being a merchant or provider. 

 	
> We are, by the nature of the spaces we make, fulfilling fantasies. I can't
> believe you'd presume to dictate everyone's fantasies, or to denigrate
> someone whose fantasies are a bit more modest than saving the world--not
> intentionally, and not when it's put to you that way. Suffice it to say that
> such people do exist, and are more numerous than our insular little
> community tends to think. If I say "stake & garlic" on this list, everyone
> thinks vampire; the rest of the world is more likely to think "medium rare,
> with a baked potato." 

I don't think anyone is questioning that Raph, but I think a reality check
is in order if you think that the rest of the consumer world doesn't
want epicness. They do, and they demonstrate it constantly. 

--matt




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