[MUD-Dev] PVP and perma-death

[HRose]

Ola Fosheim Gr=F8stad wrote:

>> I follow your thoughts but I still don't agree here. Competence
>> and motivations come directly from the game. In fact I think that
>> one of the most important and always underestimated parts of a
>> MMOGs is the newbie experience. Are the game and the design to
>> provide competence and motivations.

> This is not really true. It takes time to master movement in a 3D
> environment for instance. Some players can't deal with it at all,
> others master it. The UI of MUDs tends to be horrible, some still
> manage because they have the required competencies. Some players
> have never played a RPG before, players who are better at picking
> the optimal choices for their character right from the start and
> so on. The best thing would of course be to have better designs,
> but I am not holding my breath. I think developers try to do their
> best...

I don't see where you are disagreeing. Those examples are all about
a responsibility of a designer and the newbie experience. Those are
reasons about why mmorpgs have strong accessibility issues that must
be solved with the design. The best you can. For example in World of
Warcraft you aren't forced to take decisions during the character
creation. You can just pick a name, a race, a class and define how
you look. Something that doesn't requires you any kind of experience
of the game. Try to compare this with DAoC or EQ where you are
forced to choose statistics that could screw your character right at
the start.

"Picking optimal choices" is an issue that must be considered in the
design. The game has to teach you how to play and how to pick
optimal choices. In this case World of Warcraft offers a wonderful
newbie experience unmatched in the market. And without even using a
tutorial.

> Besides there will always be tradeoffs. The ideal design would
> adapt, but adaptive user interfaces don't really work well as they
> tend to misjudge the context of the user. You can dumb down the
> gameplay at the newbie level even further than what you see in
> existing MMOs, but then you might make it boring for those who
> have competencies.

This sounds similar to a discussion I had about complex flight
simulator for experts and dumbed down simulator with the result of
being more accessible. Stop thinking that complex is equal to
complicated. The goal of a good accessibility isn't about making the
game dumb, nor to "adapt" as you suggest here. The goal is to
*teach*. Teaching doesn't involve "dumbing down", it simply involves
a slow and cautious approach that will turn a newbie into an expert.

You want every player to learn the game and learn its depth, not to
adapt the game to the player. It's the player to learn the game, not
the game becoming ridiculous to be accessible. The responsibility of
a designer is to give the player the competence. The designer gives
you the tool you need.

> Hm... I think it does get old. That's why you have big
> expansions. More user influence could help... but for now MMOs
> seems to either be games or constructive, not both. Unfortunately
> designers are afraid that players will express themselves. I don't
> really see the problem with someone writing "Fuck" on a wall, but
> I am not american...

I don't have an excessively experimental approach to this. I like
structures and skeletons. This is why I consider DAoC's PvP as a
good idea to start with and experiment. The game must offer a
precise structure and goal. Inside this structure you can start give
a lot of freedom. I don't like games or worlds where there's no set
purpose because more than a sense of freedom they give me a sense of
emptiness.

That's all I can comment right now. I'm tired and following too many
things.

-HRose / Abalieno
_______________________________________________
MUD-Dev mailing list
MUD-Dev at kanga.nu
https://www.kanga.nu/lists/listinfo/mud-dev