[MUD-Dev] MUD client popularity

[Edward Glowacki]

On Thu, 2004-02-05 at 04:22, Tom "cro" Gordon wrote:

> As for interaction, tha's already covered by the MUD anyway, so
> why not convert it to a graphical form? I've seen good basic work
> done putting a 3D engine on top of Nethack, and I see no reason
> (except time and effort) that it couldn;t be done for just about
> any MUD out there.

While technically you could take any MUD and make a 3D GUI interface
for it, doing so would essentially destroy the original game in the
process, as too many things would change on a very fundamental
level.  Input switches from keyboard to mouse, which may slow down
the action quite a bit.  The game world would have to be altered to
"work" with graphics, as many zones don't actually work in real
space very well (just look at the difficulty mapping some zones in
MUDs).  Skills would have to be altered to "work" in a 3D mode,
which may have far-reaching implications in game balance.  PvP/PK
combat would likely be entirely different. Development time for new
content increases, as now graphics and animation are required for
everything, and it has to be on par with the quality of the rest of
the game (whatever that par may be).  The audience and player types
would change too, as generally MUDs seem to attract different crowds
that GUI games.

So any such conversion would entail significant redesign and
rebalancing of the game.  With that in mind, it would probably be
better to build an entirely new game from the ground up in 3D, and
pull various pieces of the MUD design and content where it makes
sense.  The end result that way would be a lot better than trying to
shoehorn a 3D GUI onto a MUD that wasn't designed for that type of
interface.

-ED

--
Edward Glowacki			glowack2 at msu.edu
A PBS mind in an MTV world.
	-- Author unknown
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