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<H1>RE: [MUD-Dev] Fair/Unfair? Scenarios (fwd)</H1>
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<LI><em>To</em>: "'<A HREF="mailto:mud-dev#kanga,nu">mud-dev#kanga,nu</A>'" <<A HREF="mailto:mud-dev#kanga,nu">mud-dev#kanga,nu</A>></LI>
<LI><em>Subject</em>: RE: [MUD-Dev] Fair/Unfair? Scenarios (fwd) </LI>
<LI><em>From</em>: Matthew Mihaly <<A HREF="mailto:diablo#best,com">diablo#best,com</A>></LI>
<LI><em>Date</em>: Mon, 6 Dec 1999 17:21:32 -0800 (PST)</LI>
<LI><em>Reply-To</em>: <A HREF="mailto:mud-dev#kanga,nu">mud-dev#kanga,nu</A></LI>
<LI><em>Sender</em>: <A HREF="mailto:mud-dev-admin#kanga,nu">mud-dev-admin#kanga,nu</A></LI>
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<PRE>
On Mon, 6 Dec 1999, Sellers, Michael wrote:
> JC wrote:
>
> > ...
> > The idea that the game world (or game designer for that matter) is
> > going to come up to me prior to every "dangerous" section and warn
> > me off (however subtlely), or ensure that I can never trap myself
> > without a means of escape is somehow deeply offensive.
>
> To you. I think I can safely say that you're in a tiiiiiny minority who
> feel that way. The idea that (as they say in the theatre) "a pistol placed
> on the mantel in the first act must be used by the third" is seen all
> throughout our culture's fiction. A corollary to that is that you don't
> make a pistol that no one's seen or talked about a central piece to the
> story. Doing that is deeply dissatisfying to most people. So, in terms of
> the fiction created by our game worlds, it's not surprising that most people
> would find it unfair (dissatisfying/frustrating) to have the centerpiece of
> their story turn on an item or monster that they could not possibly have
> known exists. Some, of course, will find such uncertainty thrilling and
> anything else annoying and coddling; but most will not.
I don't feel that a play has much to do with the overall experience of an
MMORPG. A play is a singular experience with a beginning and a definite
end. There's no such thing as the centerpiece of a player's story in a
MMORPG because it's not just a sequence of rigidly defined experiences,
like a play or most videogames are.
>
> > "Life isn't always fair. Deal with it." We've all heard the line.
> > How true is that for our players?
>
> People play games as a diversion, escape, or for fun. Life isn't fair, and
> it often isn't fun. Why should our games follow the same restriction?
To me, the goal of MMORPGs isn't to just be a glorified one-player game.
With all due respect to classical game designers, if that's all MMORPGs
end up being, I and many others will be deeply disappointed. I see no
reason why they cannot eventually be made far more compelling than the
"real" world (I use real derisively there, as I consider an MMORPG world
just as real, though obviously nearly infinitely more limited than what we
term the 'real' world). I want people to use my world (fictional
world...Achaea definitely doesn't cut it here) to live their lives, not
escape from another life or just to have 'fun', and a cotton-candy world
where there are no real risks (a danger you can categorically avoid if
you have the information, and are given the information, is not a risk) is
not a world, but a game. Sure, some people who are the 'victims' of said
dangers will be upset, but it makes the world seem a whole lot more real
for everyone, that that GREATLY outweighs pissing off a few citizens of
your world, imho.
--matt
_______________________________________________
MUD-Dev maillist - MUD-Dev#kanga,nu
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<li><strong><A NAME="00547" HREF="msg00547.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] Fair/Unfair? Scenarios (fwd)</A></strong>
<ul compact><li><em>From:</em> Mik Clarke <mikclrk@attglobal.net></li></ul>
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<LI><STRONG><A NAME="00531" HREF="msg00531.html">RE: [MUD-Dev] Fair/Unfair? Scenarios (fwd)</A></STRONG>
<UL><LI><EM>From:</EM> "Sellers, Michael" <MSellers@maxis.com></LI></UL></LI>
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<ul><li>Thread context:
<BLOCKQUOTE><UL>
<LI><STRONG>Re: [MUD-Dev] Fair/Unfair? Scenarios (fwd)</STRONG>, <EM>(continued)</EM>
<ul compact>
<ul compact>
<ul compact>
<ul compact>
<ul compact>
<LI><strong><A NAME="00554" HREF="msg00554.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] Fair/Unfair? Scenarios (fwd)</A></strong>,
Lucas Moten \(Krozy\) <a href="mailto:krozy@hotmail.com">krozy@hotmail.com</a>, Wed 08 Dec 1999, 22:49 GMT
<UL>
<LI><strong><A NAME="00555" HREF="msg00555.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] Fair/Unfair? Scenarios (fwd)</A></strong>,
Matthew Mihaly <a href="mailto:diablo@best.com">diablo@best.com</a>, Thu 09 Dec 1999, 02:01 GMT
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</UL>
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</ul>
<LI><strong><A NAME="00517" HREF="msg00517.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] Fair/Unfair? Scenarios (fwd)</A></strong>,
Marian Griffith <a href="mailto:gryphon@iaehv.nl">gryphon@iaehv.nl</a>, Sun 28 Nov 1999, 23:16 GMT
</LI>
<LI><strong><A NAME="00531" HREF="msg00531.html">RE: [MUD-Dev] Fair/Unfair? Scenarios (fwd)</A></strong>,
Sellers, Michael <a href="mailto:MSellers@maxis.com">MSellers@maxis.com</a>, Tue 07 Dec 1999, 00:15 GMT
<UL>
<LI><strong><A NAME="00534" HREF="msg00534.html">RE: [MUD-Dev] Fair/Unfair? Scenarios (fwd)</A></strong>,
Matthew Mihaly <a href="mailto:diablo@best.com">diablo@best.com</a>, Tue 07 Dec 1999, 01:29 GMT
<UL>
<LI><strong><A NAME="00547" HREF="msg00547.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] Fair/Unfair? Scenarios (fwd)</A></strong>,
Mik Clarke <a href="mailto:mikclrk@attglobal.net">mikclrk@attglobal.net</a>, Wed 08 Dec 1999, 21:22 GMT
<UL>
<LI><strong><A NAME="00550" HREF="msg00550.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] Fair/Unfair? Scenarios (fwd)</A></strong>,
Matthew Mihaly <a href="mailto:diablo@best.com">diablo@best.com</a>, Wed 08 Dec 1999, 21:43 GMT
</LI>
</UL>
</LI>
</UL>
</LI>
<LI><strong><A NAME="00538" HREF="msg00538.html">RE: [MUD-Dev] Fair/Unfair? Scenarios (fwd)</A></strong>,
Dan Shiovitz <a href="mailto:dans@drizzle.com">dans@drizzle.com</a>, Tue 07 Dec 1999, 15:44 GMT
<UL>
<LI><strong><A NAME="00542" HREF="msg00542.html">RE: [MUD-Dev] Fair/Unfair? Scenarios (fwd)</A></strong>,
Joe Andrieu <a href="mailto:joe@andrieu.net">joe@andrieu.net</a>, Tue 07 Dec 1999, 23:10 GMT
</LI>
</UL>
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