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-   -   Give the small Muds a chance (http://www.topmudsites.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4095)

elephantman 05-14-2002 04:17 PM

I've been thinking about this for a long time.

What about giving the chance to the smaller Muds getting some more hits/views for a 15 day period?

Say, allow only those Muds ranked 51 and lower be visible for maybe 2 or 3 voting periods in a year.

The large Muds will always attract a large player base, but it would be nice for the minions to have their day in the sun!

elephantman 05-14-2002 05:40 PM

Could those voting against care to comment?

KaVir 05-14-2002 06:31 PM

I voted against, simply because I don't think it makes sense to list the muds that are only half-way down the list.  I think it would also create some odd voting results, because people are more likely to vote for (by clicking on, to take a look) those muds which are listed on the front screen - but as those entries scrolled upwards, the ones above them would come down, and in turn get more votes.

I've nothing against giving the smaller muds more publicity, I just don't think your proposal is the right way to do it - just my opinion, but that's why I voted "no".

Cierin 05-14-2002 07:39 PM


Soki 05-14-2002 09:48 PM


Threshold 05-14-2002 10:01 PM

I voted no because this is "TOP" mud sites. This isn't "Middle" Mud Sites or "Bottom" mud sites. The whole reason for the voting thing is to indicate some of the larger, more popular muds.

If people wish to try out smaller muds, it is very easy to do so by simply scrolling down the list, or by using the search functions.

Also, when a mud is small, it needs to grow through word of mouth. A small mud would not benefit from having an influx of 50 users a day for a 2 to 3 week period. The very fact that it is small makes it unable to handle that kind of traffic burst.

I *do* however wish that more could be done to prevent rampant cheating. I know of a certain mud in particular that peaks at about 30 people online (they allow unlimited multiple characters, which results in each person running 5-6 characters per person), and yet manages to be in the top 5 constantly. Also, during its first few months of being on this list, that mud did not even have a VOTE link anywhere on their web page. Furthermore, the players of the game didn't even know about any voting. When asked, the admin of this mud said "I programmed my web page to only show the vote graphic every 12 hours." *chortle* This of course, was false. (yes, that means all their votes were somehow being generated by their administration/staff).

It would be nice to see that sort of stuff stopped. Synozeer does a DARN good job of policing the process and preventing abuse. I am sure its extremely hard to police. It is too bad the mud in question cannot just stop cheating on its own out of respect for this excellent site Synozzer has created.

DgateColin 05-15-2002 01:43 AM


Dionae 05-15-2002 02:07 AM

I like the idea of posting a random mud of the day/week somewhere on the front page, but keep the rankings the way they are now. I also agree that someone looking for a smaller mud will most likely look towards the bottom of the list, or just do a search for a mud with less players. But.. letting a random "little" mud get their few moments of fame might be a good idea.

Brody 05-15-2002 02:37 AM

Rather than try to reinvent the wheel to get more free publicity, you could do what several other games do to increase your visibility - regardless of your game's ranking on the list: Buy an ad. They're pretty affordable.

elephantman 05-15-2002 12:36 PM

Thanks for that, Brody. Totally ignoring the point.

Brody 05-15-2002 12:54 PM

Nope, not ignoring the point at all. Just presenting a different point for others to consider. The fact is, OtherSpace used to be "one of the small MUDS" that needed exposure. We gained visibility not by asking Synozeer to give it to us for free, but by supporting TMS through advertising purchases. We help him, he helps us, win-win.

Now, what you're asking him to do is cheapen the value of his advertising. Why should I spend money on an ad if I can get in a random rotation "MUD of the day?" Why should he shoot himself in the foot? Why should he make it pointless for the rest of us to advertise?

The fact is, small MUDs already have plenty of opportunities to get more visibility.

Maggie 05-15-2002 01:08 PM

It would probably be a lot of work, but is it possible to change things so it shows something like the top 30 medium to large games and the top 20 small games, so there's the same number being advertised but good games without a lot of players have a chance to be seen?  Seems like the top 50 of each would be a bit too much.

There are some people who prefer the smaller game atmosphere, and it would help them to decide which get fewer votes because they aren't as good, and which get fewer votes because they have few players without having to check the info on every game farther down on the list.

Brody 05-15-2002 02:30 PM


Threshold 05-15-2002 05:09 PM

Brody, I think you make a very good point in encouraging people to buy an ad. I have been an advertiser here for going on 2 years, and it has been very worthwhile.

A smaller mud could simply advertise for a month or two to get a nice influx of users. Then spend a few months adjusting to the burst. Furthermore, their advertisement contributes to the long term health and existence of this site which is a very good thing. In my mudding experience, this is the best MUD community site I have ever seen, and it has maintained that level of quality far longer than any of the other sites in the past. Synozeer does a great job, and advertising will allow him to continue to run the place.

As for small muds needing publicity:

This is an issue every single mud has dealt with since the beginning of time. Keep in mind that every "large mud" was at one point nothing but 1 person logged in coding away. Every mud had to slowly get the word out and try to give people an enjoyable experience so they would tell their friends.

If a game is interesting enough its playerbase will eventually grow. Further, it will grow organically which means it can manage its growth through creation of enough areas, events, etc. to accomodate its userbase.

Topmudsites generates a lot of traffic largely because of the presence and support of large muds with a lot of users. To artificially direct that traffic to a small mud (imho) would not only be unfair, but would also not very helpful in the long run to the small muds that got the traffic.


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