[MUD-Dev] Cans of Achievements and Quests

[Rayzam]

From: "Sean Kelly" <sean at hoth.ffwd.cx>
> On Thu, 29 Aug 2002, Koster, Raph wrote:
>> From: Sean Kelly

>>> I don't believe that there is any way to be recognized for your
>>> achievements in the current crop of MMORPGs (though there is in
>>> some MUDs).  Further, I don't think that there ARE any
>>> achievements in the current crop of MMORPGs.  Time spent there
>>> is completely forgettable.

>> Now, that's just nonsense, to my view. So I assume you must have
>> particular definitions of "recognition" and "achievements" that
>> are coloring your perspective. Can you explain what you mean?

> I'll define "achievements" since that's the crucial term.  By
> achievements I mean anything that permanently affects the game
> state.  The bulk of the current crop of MMORPGs follows the
> popular MUD model where canned quests are constructed for players
> to play through, and each element of those quests resets after a
> predetermined interval so other players can experience the quest
> as well.  There are no achievements because the world state resets
> -- nothing a player does has any lasting impact on the
> environment.  One might argue that completing the quest is an
> achievement whether or not the effects are permanent, but it
> doesn't feel that way to me.

Why is this so bad? It sometimes seems to have the infamy of the
Boogeyman! I start with the assumption that the games are for
people's entertainments, and not as a full replacement for real
life. From there, look at other entertainment. There are fairly
standard story and movie plots that get rehashed over and over. One
person watches it. That doesn't detract from the enjoyment of
someone else watching it. One person watches many different versions
of it over their lifetime. That doesn't stop their enjoyment of
later ones. Some versions are good and enjoyable. Others are
bad. Others are boring. There are many tales of star-crossed lovers:
Romeo and Juliet, Casablanca. There are many tales of boy with
unknown heritage discovers himself and saves the world [or Rebel
Alliance]. If we just reduce it to the lowest denominator, they're
just canned plots. But when done right, they're so much more.

So the devil is in the details. It's not that it's a canned quest
which resets. It's the quality of the quest that matters. When a
player has completed it, do they feel like they achieved something? 
I want to argue that you don't need a lasting impact. You need the
quality of the quest to be good enough that the player feels a sense
of personal accomplishment. If it's just 'take package A to location
B', very low to no sense of accomplishment. But if there's a story,
and it's well crafted, and I get into the quest, then yes, I've
accomplished something. Both follow the same formula.

If you don't find a sense of achievement, please note the quality of
the quest. See if they correlate. I'd be surprised if they didn't.

Anyone want to do a quick and dirty poll of their player populace on
this one?

    rayzam
    www.travellingbard.com




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