Top Mud Sites Forum - View Single Post - Nice MMORPG MUDs-to-MMOs article

Greg · 03-17-2012, 09:55 AM

The columnist asks

"The second thing that piques my curiosity is the reason for the transition from MUDs to MMOs. Is it simply evolution or is it because we're visual creatures at heart? ... What would stop you from engaging in a text-based game that offers you the things you have craved in an MMO?"

I'm going to cross-post my reply from there:

I think that there is no reason for MUDs not to be much more popular than they are.

Successful MMORPGs are inviting in ways that most MUDs are not, even when they could be. MMORPGs tend to do a much better job of getting you right into the action. MUDschool is generally long and very dull. MMORPGs tend to do a much better job of keeping the momentum of your character's advancement moving. MUDs tend to inflict XP debt for dying, often along with dull corpse runs, so you can easily finish a session significantly behind where you were when you started it. Conservative as the MMORPG genre can be, MUDs tend to be bad at individuating themselves. Plenty of official MUD descriptions barely even mention the setting - or mention it in passing.

Above all, MMORPGs do a much better job at allowing you to improve your character's equipment without having to scrutinize a lot of statistics. It is common, for instance, for a MUD character to have to try on every piece of equipment and then study their own statistics to spot the changes.

03-17-2012, 09:55 AM	#4
Greg New Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 21	Re: Nice MMORPG MUDs-to-MMOs article The columnist asks "The second thing that piques my curiosity is the reason for the transition from MUDs to MMOs. Is it simply evolution or is it because we're visual creatures at heart? ... What would stop you from engaging in a text-based game that offers you the things you have craved in an MMO?" I'm going to cross-post my reply from there: I think that there is no reason for MUDs not to be much more popular than they are. Successful MMORPGs are inviting in ways that most MUDs are not, even when they could be. MMORPGs tend to do a much better job of getting you right into the action. MUDschool is generally long and very dull. MMORPGs tend to do a much better job of keeping the momentum of your character's advancement moving. MUDs tend to inflict XP debt for dying, often along with dull corpse runs, so you can easily finish a session significantly behind where you were when you started it. Conservative as the MMORPG genre can be, MUDs tend to be bad at individuating themselves. Plenty of official MUD descriptions barely even mention the setting - or mention it in passing. Above all, MMORPGs do a much better job at allowing you to improve your character's equipment without having to scrutinize a lot of statistics. It is common, for instance, for a MUD character to have to try on every piece of equipment and then study their own statistics to spot the changes.