Thread: MMORPG = MUD
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Old 04-03-2006, 02:28 PM   #5
DonathinFrye
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Join Date: Dec 2005
Name: Donathin Frye
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Being a game developer myself, I have to disagree. The active community of MUDers refer to their games as MUDs. This community includes some of the most well-known developers, coders, writers, builders, and players from a large variety of MUDs. And for many, many years(before the term MMORPG was coined, actually) the community has referred to this pocket world of gaming as MUD. Infact, this website is entitled "Top MUD Sites".

If you want to use semantics to call Achaea a MMORPG, or the like - of course that is your decision, as the designer of your own game. You can call it whatever you want. However, the rest of the community will probably still refer to your game as a MUD and not a MMORPG. Whereas the article writer's purpose in comparing the two was to show that they both attempt to accomplish the same(or similar, each game varies) goals, your goal seems less clear.

Calling Achaea MMORPG could possibly rope you a couple new players, I suppose, who are easily impressed with phraseology - however, it will probably also make others in the community take you less seriously, since (within connotation of the gaming community) Achaea will still be the same old MUD that it always was.

Using you, and your MUD, is an example of course - any MUD that wanted to call itself a MMORPG would likely raise the same eyebrows. This is why it is better to understand the connotation than to try to change it. Internet Communities are notoriously hard-headed and pro status quo. This is both a positive and a negative.

In theory, though, I do agree with the article. It simply changes nothing.
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