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Old 10-08-2007, 02:42 AM   #22
Throttle
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Join Date: Aug 2007
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Re: How many muds have permadeath?

How is it false? You can't possibly argue that permadeath is not a measure taken to promote roleplay. Whether or not it works is a matter of personal experience. Ours must conflict into the extremes as I have almost always found the quality of a mud's roleplay to be in direct proportion to its realism and, thus, in part, its permadeath system. I've tried every RPI mud I've been able to find, and a lot of RPE muds. None of the ones without permadeath in some form have provided what I'd consider even moderate-quality roleplay, and only the ones with true permadeath have provided the complete and believable roleplay experience.

The best roleplaying muds find an acceptable balance between realism and playability. If the goal is full-focused roleplay with as little OOC interference as possible, this means that the only realistic aspects that are removed are such things as the need to go to the bathroom, which nobody wants to play. To dismiss realism in an argument about roleplay is pretty odd.

It's one of my markers for roleplay. Nothing would deter me more than having my character kill another character for an entirely in-character reason, and then seeing that same character the next day walking around, especially (and I have experienced this) if they're walking around shouting "beware the assassin Amos, he's a tall dark-skinned man who wears a grey mask!". Or seeing players commit ridiculous acts of nonsense because they knew that it couldn't result in real death; that's what I've seen on every self-proclaimed roleplaying mud where death was just a setback that you could work around.

Ah, but I do look for games that incorporate as many aspects of realism as possible without sacrificing playability to a critical degree. If you look at any of the long-standing, established and popular RPI muds, you'll find that the very key ingredient is realism, the thing that makes people roleplay responsibly and convincingly because one of the possible consequences to not doing so could be, you know, death.

To dismiss realism in a discussion about roleplay is about as valid as dismissing the idea of class balance on a hack'n'slash PvP mud. If the players aren't captivated and immersed with the game they play, they'll usually have a harder time roleplaying their character to the fullest. For the exact same reason that a movie wouldn't be as good if every five minutes you catch a glimpse of the camera crew, my opinion is that the quality of a roleplaying mud is proportionate to how often in-game events and factors remind you that it's just a game. Of course the player knows that it's a game, but the less they think about it while roleplaying, the better they do it.

My experiences, and thus opinions, are in direct conflict with this statement. I think you'll find similar response from just about any established roleplayer on every single RPI mud that incorporates such outrageous aspects as realism and permanent death.

Also, I find it amusing when in a discussion about roleplay, somebody mentions a "roleplaying mud" that rewards people who "roleplay often". On RPI muds, with the exception of a few inevitable twinks who are usually dealt with, everybody always roleplays, at all times, without exception. That's why RPI is the only thing I've ever been able to consider the true roleplaying experience. It's very much comprable to theater: if the actors are on stage in the middle of a performance, they don't just go out of character. Does it sound elitist? Hell yeah. But it has been my unfailing experience through ten years of mudding, with no exception. The roleplay is best where every measure is taken to promote it.
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