[MUD-Dev] DESIGN: Why do people like weather in MMORPGs?

[Michael Hartman]

Mike Rozak wrote:

> Do players just want weather for eye candy? Or do the MMORPGs and
> reviewers use nighttime and weather as a checkbox item in order to
> differentiate themselves.

Both and a little more.

First, do not underestimate the eye candy effect.  When the scenery
is always the same, it can feel a bit tedious. Even just day/night
and weather cycles can spruce up the environment enough to make
things feel different.

Second, day/night and weather cycles add to the immersiveness of the
game because they make the game world more similar to, and more
reflective of, the real world. A world where it is always day time
or where it never rains or snows is inherently unrealistic.

Third, the fact that many games make poor use of day/weather cycles
does not mean they are pure fluff. There are indeed games where NPCs
are only available at certain times of the day or where certain
abilities only work during day or night or when certain weather
conditions exist.

Finally, if you look to text MUDs you will see dramatically more
complex usage of both day/night cycles and weather. It is dangerous
to discuss a topic like this on a list called MUD-DEV and ignore
what is going on in the MUD world. :)

--
Michael Hartman
President and CEO, Threshold Virtual Environments, Inc.
http://www.thresholdrpg.com
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