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Interesting Article

  • Thread starter imported_Thed
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imported_Thed

Guest
Just read an interesting news article on the BBC New Website.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7262202.stm

It's about Peter Molyneux a long time game developer.

Please, I don't want this to be mistaken as a dig at UO but the article made a few good points from Peter Molyneux that could be applied to UO as well.

Such as:

"For a long time ... I mistook adding complexity for being a good thing," he says. "In actual fact I kept adding new features and new features to a game when I should have been fixing something deep down in the guts of the game that was slightly wrong."

And:

"What I feel more and more as I get more and more experienced is that if I can make something really simple, give gamers a highly-polished experience, then I have succeeded.

"A lot of the time it is making things simpler but much, much richer."

I hope that the development team is keeping things like this in mind... work the guts of the game first then add new stuff. And the KISS motto (Keep It Simple, i'm Stupid).

Just a good article and hope it's of value.
 
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Paris_Hilton

Guest
"And the KISS motto (Keep It Simple, i'm Stupid)."




Who's he calling stupid?


 
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Guest

Guest
Although some of the ideas apply, I think that a "world" like UO behaves a little differently. In a single-player game, you need to offer an experience that delivers the maximum fun for the amount of effort - every extra feature is a potential distraction. But in a game like UO, there need to be many niches that allow people to differentiate themselves, to create a rich tapestry of different interacting playstyles. I'm not say that new features/complexity don't sometimes get in the way, just that it's a much more complex experience that is being created.

I find that I keep returning to the comparisons between fantasy world development and collectible card games like Magic. Each set expansion of UO is like a new set of Magic cards: each new system is like a new card and a player builds their own experience in the world the way a card game player might build a deck.
 
G

Guest

Guest
Keeping it simple is all well and good if it doesn't become a dumbed down boring heap of junk as other games are
There needs to be a mixture of games from simple to complex, otherwise anyone with half a brain will get bored and move on without finding anything with depth.

IMO there is too much emphasis on dumbing down games rather than allowing players to grow through playing them. UO does have complexity, but it's feasible to start with one profession, learn that then move to the next. If it became like other simple MMO's I'd be resorting to MUD games where I might need imagination to work without graphics, but I'd get a game that kept my attention for years rather than days.

Fix bugs, sure, moderate adding content and work in systems that allow easy event management so players can be entertained in the meantime. But please don't dumb down UO


Wenchy
 
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Guest

Guest
<blockquote><hr>

Who's he calling stupid?

[/ QUOTE ]People. Just like in Men In Black: "A person is smart; people, are stupid." The motto as I've heard it was always "Keep It Stupidly Simple". Your average end-user is an idiot, or at least becomes one when trying to use your products! Complicated designs do little more than keep your phone lines lit up with calls for help.

Keep It Stupidly Simple!
 
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