[MUD-Dev] Grouping in MMP Games

[Amanda Walker]

On Sunday, September 22, 2002, at 01:04  PM, Clay Fenlason wrote:

> Research and reflection are quick to look for - and find - the
> fact that interaction with other players is the most rewarding
> part of MMPs (which I don't deny), and so the hasty conclusion is
> that group play universally trumps solo play.

I would add "and that traditional RPG 'fellowship' grouping is the
obvious solution".  Few things annoy me more than being invited to
group with random other people "for more xp" while I'm trying to do
something else.  In many cases, I do in fact prefer playing alone
with a bunch of other people around to grouping with strangers for
the same of game mechanics.

In fact, social interaction and grouping have been pretty much
orthogonal for me in the current crop of MMPs (AC, AC2 beta, EQ,
DAoC, E&B beta).  Yes, a lot of the reason I'm online at all is to
socialize, but often it's with people I'm not "with" in the game
context.  It's a matter of friends lists, targeted tells or
persistent group chat (monarchy chat in AC, guild chat in DAoC,
etc.), not of grouping with people in the immediate vicinity.

These persistent social groups may involve game play (events,
quests, even just 'hey, wanna go do this?' spontaneity), but they
are not a consequence of them.  In my case, group play is a
consequence of socializing, not a cause of it.

> Would they rather be generally self-reliant yet often take on
> meaningful missions or quests with people they know and trust?

Yep, that would be me.  If friends happen to be on at the time,
quests & missions can be a blast.  If not, I just want to play for a
while.  Requiring one playstyle or the other just bugs me.  I
recently canceled my EQ account after concluding that the game just
doesn't fit my playstyles.

> The answer, of course, is "it depends on the player."  And I think
> a design which has a single group strategy targeting a normative
> attitude toward group play is the wrong one.

Very much agreed.

Amanda Walker


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