[MUD-Dev] Re: Enforcement

[apollyon .]

On Wed, 12 Jun 2002, Matt Chatterley wrote:

> With that one out of the way, I only want to mention one more type
> ;) In-game actions such as PK, PStealing, Kill stealing, etc. I've
> seen these dealt with in a number of ways, but the two most common
> appear to be admin enforced rules and a player council system.

> Admin enforced rules are all well and good, but adding stress and
> grief to often overloaded administrators who work on a project in
> their (often fleeting) spare time can be bad.. and player
> councils?  Do they work?

Going back to the issue of "disallowing" certain actions, if you
have the code to prevent those actions which you deem harmful to the
overall enjoyment of the game, is it better to use the code to keep
them from happening in the first place, or to allow them to happen
but provide for some penalty to the commitor?

This issue boils down to choice and how much choice is good for the
game.  Too little and the player feels railroaded.  Too much and the
griefer ruins the experience for others.

So, to restate the question, if there are actions that you do not
wish to see in your world, but know that some (but certainly a
minority) of the players will want to commit those actions, is it
better to restrict choice by preventing (through game mechanics) the
commission of those actions or to enable choice by allowing the
actions but attaching a penalty to their commission?


apollyon

"You must be the change that you wish to see in the world."
- Mahatma Gandhi
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