[MUD-Dev2] [DESIGN] Active and Inactive Currency

[John Buehler]

Caliban Darklock writes:

> On 8/2/07, Michael Chui <saraid at u.washington.edu> wrote:
> >
> > Which is a problem that banks have to deal with in the real world,
> too
> 
> Banks don't normally have to deal with the problem that their
> customers DON'T ACTUALLY EXIST and can't be compelled to live with
> their situation. You can't make Bob keep playing your game until he
> pays back his loan.
> 
> However, we could deal with this the same way real banks do: credit
> ratings. You can't borrow more than your credit rating permits. Losses
> from loans made on credit rating basis are rolled into operating
> costs.
> 
> Or, alternately, the bank doesn't make loans to players. It only makes
> loans behind the scenes to stores. Then you simply don't have this
> problem.

Alternately, the lender requires collateral.  You can get a loan, but you have to put up your sword as collateral.  Get behind on payments and you lose your sword.  Such contracts are easily enforced by code.  The sword stays in the game world, so the lender has control over his risk.

Eve Online uses security deposits for a number of areas that would normally involve trust (which is fundamentally the collateral technique).  If I am going to fill a contract to transport goods of value X, I may be required to pay as much as X in advance to be able to take temporary ownership of the goods.  Failure to complete the contract in the allotted time causes forfeiture of the security deposit.

JB