Newsgroups: rec.arts.int-fiction
Subject: Re: [general] multiple player IF
References: <e68ee7614a%cdl24@utopia.jesus.cam.ac.uk>
From: Alex Schroeder <kensanata@yahoo.com>
Date: 27 Mar 2001 22:18:41 +0200
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Chris <cdl24@pop.hermes.cam.ac.uk> writes:

> I could just turn it into a MUD, but I don't want to.  What I mean by MUD is
> a game where you have multiple copies of everything essentially, (i.e. each
> player will find a lamp in the cupboard, not first come first served)

This is not true for the MUSH I play on.

> players aren't trying to complete the game, but play against each
> other and impreove their attributes.

Well, on a MUSH there no game to complete, it's just endless roleplay
(or chat, as often happens).

> This last part I detest - doing 'quests' to improve your characters stamina.

No such thing on a MUSH.

> Is any of this be a good idea?  Does the whole thing smack of naivete?  Has
> this been done already?  If so did it work well (or at all)?

What you get on the MUSH I play on is objects, rooms, characters,
talking, moving, fighting (if you choose to do so), but little or no
bots, quests, and fights, and no experience points, no levels.  So
much for the downside of MUDs/MUSHes.  Whether it is a MUD or a MUSH
depends very much on the softcode used, so I think you are lumping
together things that are not necessarily connected.

What I have done on MUSHes is code rooms, objects and NPCs.  But there
was no fighting, no experience to be gained.  In essence a quest to be
solved because it was entertaining to read.  It involved a murder,
underground chasing in the sewers, hidden rooms, a shop with
information about my characters culture.

What exactly was different from an IF?  No score.  No death.  And the
*focus* was different.  People didn't expect there to be quests.
People expected to roleplay together.

So what I'm getting at is that you can have all that you want within a
MUSH (eg. http://www.pennmush.org/), all you have to do is advertize
your focus on puzzle solving and coding to the players.  All you need
is lots of energy to put in setting up a MU*, running it,
administrating it, inviting other players...

One alternative is to "hijack" a social MUSH run by other people.
Code what you need to code.  Invite friends for a session and roleplay
the riddles and puzzles you've set up.  I know people that have done
this and it must have been great fun.

Alex.
--
http://www.geocities.com/kensanata/
Coffee should be black as hell, strong as death and sweet as love.
	-- Turkish proverb

