[MUD-Dev2] [DESIGN] MMO's are for Newbies

[Richard A. Bartle]

On 21 September 2006, John Buehler wrote:

>I believe I understand your points, but ultimately I think that you're
>flogging a dead horse.

        So do I. That's why it was in the Soapbox column.

>Based on your logic and your use of terms such as
>"virtual world", I get the impression that you want to be able to wander
>around Middle Earth for real.

        Well, for virtual. If it were for real, that wouldn't be a
virtual world any more.

>Or some other fantasy environment that
>someone could build, complete with every bit of reality that can be
>produced.

        Real physics are useful in virtual worlds because they enable
you to anticipate what's going to happen without having to think
about it. If I jump off the cliff, I'll fall down, not sideways.
You notice when something doesn't work properly, and that makes it
harder to become immersed in the world. It doesn't make it impossible,
just harder.
        Virtual worlds need to reflect reality only insofar as they
don't jar on the way you'd expect reality to work. I don't think that
the ultimate aim of a virtual world is to create something that's
a simulacrum of the real world.

> My summary response is that the reason that current games are so
> frustrating
> to the virtual world enthusiasts is because the current games cater to the
> masses - who are not drawn to virtual worlds.

        It's not the current worlds that bother me, it's the ones we're
going to get following on from them...

                Richard