[MUD-Dev] [News] Virtual goods--Oh, the controversy!

[Kevin N Shallow]

--- Brian Hook <hook_l at bookofhook.com> wrote:

> Okay, point taken.  I guess what I'm trying to differentiate
> between is innate skill -- such as the training and reflexes you
> acquire from playing a shooter, or the intuitive analysis you have
> to make during a strategy game -- vs the knowledge-based
> expert-system type rote play mechanics I typically see in combat
> oriented MMOGs.

> The typical "skill" in a game like EQ is just a huge expert system
> based on knowledge, which to me isn't nearly as challenging to
> master or become an expert at compared to games where innate
> player ability is stressed to a higher degree (shooters, Warcraft
> 3, Civilization, etc.).

I agree that there are two different categories of skill, but I
wouldn't dismiss games like EQ as being skill-less. Sure the
knowledge is out there for anyone with a web browser, but that
doesn't remove the problems of actually applying that information.

There is also the issues of subtleties that don't come across in
public discussions. Online guides tend to say things like, "Mob x is
vulnerable to fire-based magic and must be fought in room y". What
the guides don't say is how to get the mob into that room. That
requires intimate knowledge of mob spawning patterns and pathing
information that only a highly experienced player could know. Guides
also don't say how to avoid getting aggro from the mob. That comes
from extensive experience in managing aggro in such situations.

A fairly common viewpoint is that once a player has the requisite
knowledge for defeating a mob, then that player can simply apply
that knowledge and be successful in that encounter each time they
make the attempt. I would say that even with that knowledge, things
go wrong that require adaptability, and that is where the skill
comes into play. If the key to success in a game like EQ was simply
having the right formula, then there would be no failed raids.

For arguments sake, consider the real-world problem of
cooking. There are several good recipes out there for the budding
chef, but it is still possible to follow one of those recipes and
end up with something that tastes less than spectacular. I don't
think that anyone would argue that cooking is a skill in the sense
that not everyone can do it. I would suggest that skill in game like
EQ is of a similar variety.

_Kevin
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