[Threshold]

You are right. And honestly, people should mind their own business more and not obsess so much over how other people choose to market their games. It is no wonder our segment of the gaming industry flounders: too many people devote too much of their energy towards taking someone else's MUD down. That time and effort would be much better spent making one's own game better.

As a side note, this is another reason why I think the whole payment issue should be avoided completely in any official capacity by Lasher or the search options. It is an example of some people being busy-bodies and trying to force their own opinions on everyone else.

It isn't really analogous. People are very aware that the hand written areas are written by the MUD operators. It is obvious in advance that there is an inherent bias. But checkboxes have a much greater implication of accuracy, as if the operator of the site has verified that information himself/herself. That is why I think checkboxes for this issue are especially bad - particularly since this involves money and therefore makes it more contentious than comparatively trivial things like PK rules, number of rooms, etc.





Yeah, but the thing is, people aren't really crushed by minor inaccuracies or exaggerations in those areas. If the number of rooms isn't exactly what was claimed, or the PK system is a little different than they expected, or the codebase is a little different, most people really don't care very much. But when it comes to money, people care a LOT. That is why this particular set of checkboxes is more serious than any of the others, and that is why Lasher shouldn't even touch it. Being wrong (which will most certainly happen in many cases) is more serious when it comes to money than in any of the other little factoids.

If I thought I rented a drama, but it turns out to be more of a dramedy, I might be a tad annoyed. But if the movie was good, I ultimately don't care. I also won't be mad at the store I rented it from. I'll be mad at the people who made the movie.

But if the sign says it costs $4 to rent the movie, and later I find out I got charged $6, I am going to be enormously ticked off. And now I am mad at the store (and the people who run the store), not the people who made the movie.


Something is not ambiguous simply because it "only" answers one question instead of many. The 2 option method answers the MOST important question and does so with complete clarity: does money change hands between player and admin or not?

The 2 option method is less ambiguous because it does not introduce subjective concepts like "rewarded in game", "has an effect on the game", or even "donations vs. payments." Furthermore, it doesn't scam an innocent player into thinking there is any such thing as money NOT affecting the relationship between player and admin once there is any financial transaction.

But in the end, the superiority and greater accuracy of the 2 options vs. the 4 still does not avoid the much larger problem. That is the fact that we have MUD admins obsessing over the way other MUDs advertise themselves, and seem to think it is appropriate for them to force certain MUDs into a less advantageous marketing position. That kind of behavior should be ignored and shamed, not catered to.