Re: Empty Rooms problem


9 May 1995 07:26:56 GMT

In article <GDR11.95May8185248@stint.cl.cam.ac.uk>,
Gareth Rees <gdr11@cl.cam.ac.uk> wrote:
>Magnus Olsson <mol@oberon.df.lth.se> wrote:
>> On the other hand, if the plot element is "finding the lost city of
>> Uxx", then the player can expect this to be linked to geography rather
>> than to time.
>
>Why not use a bit of ingenuity then? Maybe after wandering in the
>desert for 5 days, the player comes across an inhabitant of Uxx who can
>be persuaded, or bribed, or tricked into leading the player to the lost
>city of Uxx.

SOunds like a good idea.

BTW, if one is going to include a large featureless plain or whatever in
one's game, one should make sure to catch the player's interest _before_
throwing him or her out on the plain.

I can think of few "instant turn-offs" that are more effective than having
an adventure game that starts in the middle ofa featureless plain, with
nothing to see, nothing itneresting happening, just an endless plain stretching
away in all directions. Or, if yhe game has to start on the plain, there
should at least be a very captivating introduction to the game. Or at least
things should start happening within a few moves.

I'm writing this because I recently tried a game that starts out in an
almost featureless desert. You have to explore for a while before you
find anything even remotely interesting, and even then you have no
idea of what you're doing in the desert in the first place. Need I add
that I quickly laid that game aside? :-)

Magnus Olsson (mol@df.lth.se) / yacc computer club, Lund, Sweden
Work: Innovativ Vision AB, Linkoping (magnus.olsson@ivab.se)
Old adresses (may still work): magnus@thep.lu.se, thepmo@selund.bitnet
PGP key available via finger (to df.lth.se) or on request.