[MUD-Dev2] [DESIGN] Mechanical support for socializer playstyles

[cruise]

Thus spake Michael Chui...
> On 5/18/07, Ian Hess <ianhess at yahoo.com> wrote:
>> Despite that, there should be purely
>> socializer story options.  Examples might be: the experience of a close
>> friendship between heroic companions, the oft used dependant character
>> in superhero stories, or maybe even the romance that seems to exist in
>> every online forum I've played in.
> 
> I want to emphasize "seems to exist in every online forum I've played in".
> Why do you need to provide options? They're doing it. The option is there,
> embodied in the chat feature, in the representation of the character. You
> can't suggest it: romance happens or it doesn't. Are you going to script or
> contrive it? I can't see my way past thinking that as a good idea; maybe 
> I'm
> wrong?

We're, (more or less) discussing how to give socialising the same 
support and importance that, say, combat has in most MMOG's, yes?

I think Michael here makes a good point - there is already almost all 
the support needed, as evidenced by the fact it is all ready happening.

The issue is not so much to bring socialising up, but to lower the 
importance of achievement based gameplay so as to not swamp the social 
aspect.