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From: buzzard@world.std.com (Sean T Barrett)
Subject: Re: [Announce] Degeneracy
Message-ID: <GBFvK8.765@world.std.com>
Date: Sat, 7 Apr 2001 20:28:56 GMT
References: <3AC65801.FDE85DFC@nightlightpress.com> <9aab34$bcc$1@news.panix.com> <9abclq$m05$1@bob.news.rcn.net> <9afo1u$sgj$1@news.panix.com>
Organization: The World Public Access UNIX, Brookline, MA
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Xref: news.duke.edu rec.games.int-fiction:62170

In article <9afo1u$sgj$1@news.panix.com>,  <emshort@mindspring.com> wrote:
>Shrapnel had some
>clever things going for it, enough so that I voted for it for its Best
>Use of Medium award

This reminds me of a comment I've been meaning to make: I found
the award for Best Use of Medium to Shrapnel to be utterly inconsistent
with the definition of the award that was listed e.g. on the
nominees page (http://www.xyzzynews.com/2000nominees.html)--see
the quoted text below.

I think Shrapnel was wonderful, and I would have voted it
for "Best Use of the Medium" if that award didn't have the definition
given.  I wonder whether those voting for it were voting according
to this definition, or just based on the name of the award, and if
the latter, if the XYZZYs need to be revised, e.g. by keeping a Best
Use of the Medium award but finding a better name for the award that is:

   This award is meant to honor proficiency in use of the parser, default
   messages, and so on. In the words of Kathleen Fischer, who came up with
   the name for it: "I would give the award (whatever we call it) to the
   game that reduces the number of "You can't see any such thing." and "You
   can't do that." to a bare minimum. The game should offer some clever
   reason why I can't burn down the forest with my match and handle me
   taking water from the stream 100 times with grace. The parser should
   understand me within the context of the game and the grammer must be
   complete enough that I don't have to play "guess the verb". If the
   game describes a pile of garbage in the room I expect it to be prepared
   for me to to try to get it, eat it, or push it out the window. The
   window, by the way, should be either openable, locked, or "It's not
   that kind of window" and not "That's just scenery". I know you are
   saying "But I can't code all my objects". I'm just saying this is an
   award... and if somebody goes to that much effort they should get
   some credit for it!"

Or is that what people who voted this way really thought of Shrapnel?

SeanB
