[Brody]

I believe it can be a selling point if you don't mind selling to a very small customer base, as it were.

It's akin to the question of using other barriers to entry as selling points. A game that requires a player to do some writing on the front end, such as a biography, can pitch that it's promoting quality over quantity - but it does so at the risk of alienating a lot of players that might otherwise give it a try.

I don't think it's a bad thing for you to market a game as unfriendly to newbies, I just think it's risky. If you're willing to take that risk in the current MUD market conditions, then more power to you. You might succeed in spite of it!