[MUD-Dev] DGN: Rooms, Directions, etc. - any alternatives?

[Fred Snyder]

Skane2004 wrote:

> I realize that just about every mud uses the direction system of
> north, south, east, west, up, down -- but are there any
> alternatives?  One of the common complaints I hear about are that
> people don't like having to memorize cardinal directions from
> recall to get places -- or new mudders have a hard time getting
> where they want to go because they don't have the directions
> memorized...  Are there any muds that don't use NSEWUD?  If so,
> how does their system work, and how do they define where a
> character's location is?  It seems more realistic to be able to
> manipulate (or at least see) what's in the rooms around you...is
> that implemented anywhere?  How does it work?  I'm just trying to
> think outside of the box here...any suggestions?

I've seen a couple MUD projects that tinkered with coordinate-based
systems.  Instead of rooms, they provide you with a dynamic
description of your surroundings.  In one I tested, the game log
would have looked something like this, had I saved it:

    You are standing in a grassy field.  There is a large rock to the
    north.  Further off to the north you hear the babbling of a river's
    current.  There is a windmill to the northwest.
    >walk north
    You begin walking north.
    A river becomes visible to the north.
    You are walking past a large rock.
    >stop
    You stop walking.
    You are standing next to a large rock.  A river is visible to the
    north.  There is a windmill to the northwest.
    >run to windmill
    You start running to the windmill.
    You run past a large rock.
    You are at the base of a windmill.
    You stop running.

Unfortunately, I can't find that particular MUD right now, or even a
MUD that uses a similar design.  I do remember, however, that I
found the above project on the mudconnector discussion boards.

My own graphical MUD (currently offline) supports similar features.
Players can use FPS-style controls to move their characters around
the map, or they can use the command-line interface to enter
commands such as "go to the tavern," "approach the rat," or "enter
the cave."  I haven't put much effort into generating dynamic
descriptions because it uses a graphical interface.  In a pure text
MUD, good dynamic descriptions would be much more crucial for
immersiveness.
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