[MUD-Dev] [bus][des] Anarchy Online and the free MMORPG...

[ceo]

Koster, Raph wrote:
> Douglas Goodall wrote:
>> Adam martin wrote:

>>> In fact, thinking about it now, I would go as far as to say that
>>> AO's twinking is what people like Dan and I have been crying out
>>> for every time Raph says that players don't want a challenge

> Whoa, whoa, I didn't say players don't want a challenge! I have
> said

Sorry about that; with hindsight it was a foolish throwaway
comment. It was an abbreviation that labels a set of concepts in my
head :( (makes sense to me without giving off the connotations that
it has to everyone else).

> merely a sane thing to do. I've also said that most players ask
> for less risk in gameplay in order to advance their personal
> agenda, which is also a very normal thing to do.

...which to me is "not wanting a challenge", and in my extremely
limited experience is not what "most" people want, but is what many
(perhaps most) people *think* they want - at least until you give it
to them.

I was really only mentioning it as shortcut to describing all those
of us who have issues with the dumbing-down of current games
(without trying to cast aspersions over anyone in particular, but of
course with hindsight I shouldn't have mentioned any name).

> Players will sabotage their own fun in this way, but it's for very
> logical reasons. Players want a challenge, but they're also not
> stupid: they will choose to maximize reward rather than risk.

Shrug. Most people I know won't make this choice, (which is why I
ahve difficulty accepting that statement), because they've learnt
several times over in their lives to date that unchallenging games
== boring games, whether via computer games, board games, puzzles,
or any kind of cheating in group sports - it's fun at first,
outdoing everyone else, but the lustre quickly fades.

Adam M
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