[Fiendish]

Well, I'd agree that many MUDs have rules set up that way. But I don't agree with the notion that either way is necessarily "bad" or "good" without some additional qualifying statements. They just provide for different game experiences. What the administrators and players expect from the game is what determines whether something is bad or good. You might have a game focused on designing competitive bots, for instance. I wouldn't enjoy making or participating in such a game, but I'm sure that some people would.