[MUD-Dev] Maintaining fiction.

[Travis Casey]

Michael Tresca wrote:
> Alex Kay posted on Wednesday, May 30, 2001 8:55 AM

>> It's interesting. I remember when I started playing EQ and there
>> was alot of talk on whineplay to show all the numbers. I was in
>> favour of this at the time, finding some of the vagueness annoying,
>> and falling into the trap of playing the stats game.

>> After a year or so I tried AC and found the stats overwhelming, it
>> took the numbers game to the extreme. I quickly found I didn't like
>> this much at all and had a new appreciation for Verant's stance on
>> not showing the numbers (which has lately been relaxed it seems,
>> though I 'quit' a few months back).

>> Now, I would welcome a game that hid all that. I have little doubt
>> that this would reduce/eliminate the power gamers and l33t dudes
>> and encourage roleplay.

>> I also agree with the idea of using metaphors to increase
>> immersion, but wonder at it's practicality. At the moment the
>> market is (in general) trying to appeal to the mass market, and
>> hence publishers want to minimise the barriers to entry.

> Speaking of which, look closely at what's happened the Third Edition
> Dungeons & Dragons.  There are now articles in Dragon magazine that
> tell players how to "maximize their characters."  That is, abuse the
> hell out of the system to be killing machines, be the most powerful
> in a fight, and generally, be what Dungeon Masters DON'T want.

Now?  They've had things like that in Dragon and in supplements for
years... the main reason that you're seeing more of it now is that
there's a new system, so there's a new set of min-max tricks to be
learned, instead of just using the same ones that have worked for the
last 20-odd years.

> In the new supplement, "Sword and Fist", the book goes into detail
> about combat tactics.  Not, "A fighter should keep his weak hand
> away from his opponent," but details on how much damage each attack
> does, which weapons should be used to inflict the most damage, etc.

... and the "Complete Fighter's Handbook" for second edition did some
similar things.  Not to mention various articles in old Dragon
magazines, like "Be A Two-Fisted Fighter" around issue #80.

> In other words, the originator of a lot of our gaming fantasy is now
> specifically catering to min/maxers who, apparently, the largest
> market of gamers.  Alas, the era of fluffy-bearded wise old gamers
> like Gary Gygax are on the wane, and is being replaced by a younger
> generation -- the ones who want to play Diablo in D&D.

Talk to the old D&D grognards, and they'll tell you this has always
been going on.  I remember someone complaining about the addition of
strength bonuses to hit and damage in the Greyhawk supplement, saying
that it was just adding more power to fighters to appeal to hack &
slash gamers...

It's the same old cycle.  AD&D got rid of some of the worst abuses of
D&D... and then added new ones in UA and other supplements.  AD&D2 got
rid of some of the worst abuses of AD&D, and then added new ones in
the Complete X books.  Now D&D3 has gotten rid of some of the worst
abuses of AD&D2, and is starting to add new ones in its supplements.

--
       |\      _,,,---,,_     Travis S. Casey  <efindel at earthlink.net>
 ZZzz  /,`.-'`'    -.  ;-;;,_   No one agrees with me.  Not even me.
      |,4-  ) )-,_..;\ (  `'-' 
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