It seems as though I have heard of this concept before, but I would like any thoughts or even perhaps a testimonial as to the good and bad of the following set-up.
Player Joe logs onto a mud for the first time. Goes through the creation process, is setup with a new character and is given the choice of new to muds? [Yes/No]
Following the No response Joe is sees through the eyes of high level character and dropped in the middle of a demo battle where the various commands are shown and the flow of battle is explained. This could also draw attention to the range of goodies available to the higher level players. When the demo ends he is dropped back to his original character and begins his normal newbie training.
Of course this is a simple version of the demo, which could be tied into the storyline in a number of ways, wether its the battle of the land's great hero defeating his arch-nemisis (or vice-versa) or a powerful mage taking on a dragon which plagues the land. Also movement commands and channels could be addressed as well as the use of help files etc.
The major plus I see could be the fast introduction of the player to the storyline and done in a fashion much more interesting than You see a SIGN here.
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