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PhasmaInMachina · 01-15-2014, 06:44 AM

Cronyism is generally a problem which is detrimental in any power structure. Naturally there tends to be some cronyism in most of the MUDs I have played too, though as a playerbase shrinks the effects of this cronyism typically become more obvious. I should mention that it isn't just staff cronyism which is an issue, players can also form little cliques which are OOC coordinated and run.

As such a high-level MUD staffer (or perhaps MUD owner) who is genuinely concerned with providing a relatively fair player environment must undertake a decision as to whether they want a transparent staff system at expense of immersion within the game environment, or support an deeply engaging world where there is lots to discover but may allow a culture of cronyism to become the norm.

Both systems have their merits and their demerits. Finding a balance between those two factors is a struggle, but it is notable that with a high degree of transparency and staff oversight, the ability for an unknown fantasy world to develop is also diminished. At that stage players know the staff intimately and can fit a face to the religion, or to the DM who they are questing with and some of the magic is lost.

We have opted for "somewhere in between", it isn't a perfect but hopefully, by screening new staff carefully and retaining people who are community spirited (rather than ultra-competitive) and genuinely feel the urge to do something for their game, we will minimize the affects of cronyism.

-Phasma.

01-15-2014, 06:44 AM	#3
PhasmaInMachina New Member Join Date: Sep 2013 Posts: 28	Re: Cronyism and Cliques Cronyism is generally a problem which is detrimental in any power structure. Naturally there tends to be some cronyism in most of the MUDs I have played too, though as a playerbase shrinks the effects of this cronyism typically become more obvious. I should mention that it isn't just staff cronyism which is an issue, players can also form little cliques which are OOC coordinated and run. As such a high-level MUD staffer (or perhaps MUD owner) who is genuinely concerned with providing a relatively fair player environment must undertake a decision as to whether they want a transparent staff system at expense of immersion within the game environment, or support an deeply engaging world where there is lots to discover but may allow a culture of cronyism to become the norm. Both systems have their merits and their demerits. Finding a balance between those two factors is a struggle, but it is notable that with a high degree of transparency and staff oversight, the ability for an unknown fantasy world to develop is also diminished. At that stage players know the staff intimately and can fit a face to the religion, or to the DM who they are questing with and some of the magic is lost. We have opted for "somewhere in between", it isn't a perfect but hopefully, by screening new staff carefully and retaining people who are community spirited (rather than ultra-competitive) and genuinely feel the urge to do something for their game, we will minimize the affects of cronyism. -Phasma.