[MUD-Dev] [MEDIA] Finding an Interesting Middle Path in the RPG

[David Kennerly]

Douglas Goodall wrote:
> J C Lawrence wrote:

>> Is this at core a variant of the stamp collector problem?

>>    http://www.ludonauts.com/archives/000057.shtml

> I think that depends on the implementation. If you have to
> hard-code a middle path which is rarely used, that is a kind of
> "stamp collector problem." But if, instead, you create a system
> which inherently has more than 2 choices, it's not a "stamp
> collector problem."

To a writer, a lack of moral ambiguity implies shallow characters or
plot.  To have a game with both shallow characters and deep
characters is not a conflict of interest; thus, moral ambiguity is
not Dr. Cat's stamp collecting problem.

There is a difference, though, between a gray and ambiguous.  The
middle path of moral grayness, to caricature Thomas Moyles, is the
Neutral between Good and Evil.  On the other hand, moral ambiguity
is the complexity that a plausible character possesses.  As well as
many other writers on character design, David Freeman gave a few
tips in Creating Emotions in Games.  A presence of lukewarm moral
grayness, i.e. True, disinterested Neutral, is just as shallow, thus
as boring, as Good or Evil.

David
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