[MUD-Dev] Expectations of in-game reality

[Freeman]

> From: J C Lawrence [mailto:claw at 2wire.com]
> On Thu, 25 Oct 2001 07:52:11 -0700 
> Jeff Freeman <Freeman> wrote:
 
>> 'Course the issue of consistency doesn't have to be resolved by
>> introducing death.  It could be resolved by having all the NPCs
>> to stop pretending that some other NPC died, deleting the
>> graveyards, and so on.
 
> There are two sorts of internal consistency: logical and dramatic.
> In Gibson's Neuromancer the lead character spends almost the
> entire book bemoaning the fact that he wants to jack in and can't.
> During that time he has untold opportunities to and doesn't.

> Yet the story works.

Well, I think there's a difference between a character complaining
about his inability to do some Thing - even given plenty of
opportunities to go ahead and just Do It - if it isn't completely
unheard of that a person would ever, under any circumstances, be
prevented from doing that Thing.

In muds with respawning mobs (and players), it's absolutely
inconceivable that anyone can die.

So if a dragon swoops down from the sky, lands next to me, and
complains about his poor old daddy dragon being killed, my
inclination is to think, "That's ridiculous.  You can't die *here*."

> A 50 tonne dragon with wings the size of postage stamps flying is
> not logically internally consistent, not unless you can also fly
> by wiggling your ears.  It makes good story however.  Why?

Perhaps internal consistency isn't the phrase I should have used
then.  If dragons can fly and an NPC complains about the flying
dragons - that strikes me as being Ok.  But it's different if he
complains about the flying dragons *killing* something.

I'd find it less bothersome if the NPC complained about the dragon
killing *him*, though.  As in, "I'm trying to travel from point-A to
point-B, but the dragon kills me every time I try to make the
journey."

I've never ever met an NPC that understood the laws of their own
universe though.  All of them seem to think they are in ours.
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