A roleplay-intensive MMORPG would never really match what RPI muds have for a multitude of reasons. Even what that advertised itself for roleplayers and had pure RP commands like think (I’d love to see a little thought bubble show up like in comics), there’s no real way to keep a high level of roleplay outside of guilds. It’s too easy for some omron to start screaming “CHUCK NORRIS” over and over again to ruin things. Enforcing roleplay in a game with couple hundred active players is a task and of its own. What about in a game with thousands, or even millions? I can’t see it as being possible, though I’d love to see someone -try- at least. Even getting there halfway could be an enjoyable gaming experience.

Ironically, I’m actually a 3D artist working with the famous / infamous tool called “maya”, a very powerful and popular tool used in Hollywood in the entertainment and animation industries. I have a real passion for graphics, but Arm has a certain wicked power that these graphics can’t seem to touch. Not because books have traditionally been more encouraged than video games and are often described as being “better” than the movies that so often imitate them, but because the text leaves the mind completely open to fill in the blanks. A truly frightening concept for anyone to realize, the extremes of just about any emotion we could have during the unfolding of a story is fueled by images created by ourselves – nature has nothing on imagination. I have a complete, crystal-clear picture in my mind of what the land of Zalanthas looks like, buildings, weather, moons, villages, etc. Even what some of the animals and clothing and weapons look like as well.

While it may at times be more cumbersome to type and read so much than a graphical game, demand more of a commitment to play once you’re in the game than a traditional first person shoot-em-up, Arm is something that stays with you long after you quit playing. It becomes a story you wrote yourself just begging for sequels.

The above is the reason I continually play, through marriage, kids, crazy busy job schedules and family & friend drama. It’s also what makes things you don’t like about the game even that much more tolerable. Features such as this “think” command are a tiny sliver of the game and represents one of many things that root themselves in each player’s motivation to keep coming back.

I think if the boob imms (spoken of above) were left to keep running the game, it would’ve likely shut down long ago. Consistent, dedicated administration and policy making with a true appreciation for fairness has built this game from average to great, and while features such as this “think” command are great role playing tools and make the game even that much more fun to play, it’s a mere shadow of the real magick Arm has, at least what it’s brought me.

- HK

Text games that are role-play required do offer that “textual space” that you can’t find anywhere else – it’s like the best of the pen and paper games of old, only better because you can’t guess what the other player is really up to.

I do hope text based games featuring high quality role play stick around for a long time.

I’m surprised interactive fiction games haven’t been better supported by mobile game companies as well. I’m tempted to hack my iPhone just to play Zork.

Some games do focus on storytelling and the results are a mixed bag. While some games have achieved emotional power (Final Fantasy VII and X spring to mind) they have followed a model of “go from A to B, hitting things along the way” and you will be rewarded with a piece of story). While, at their heights, emotional punches can be delivered, it’s never going to be as strong as in a text roleplaying game because you’re never truly playing the role, you’re just following along.

Recently some western graphic RPGs have challenged that. Specifically I’m thinking of Mass Effect and Fallout 3 (I own an Xbox 360, so that’s my frame of reference). Both these games have offered players a wide range of choice in their actions, and the actions they take do noticeably influence the story. And in gaining that ability you do start to take on the role, because the nature of a character becomes important. And while the implementation of these system still leaves a lot to be desired, (in both games you are mostly influencing sub-plot, not the main plot) I found Mass Effect to be a truly emotionally effective game.

As good as these two games are (and they are very good) in terms of allowing a player to influence a story, to interact with a story, to create a story, they’re pitiful compared to a MUD or tabletop RPG, where instead of a set of programmed responses you’re dealing with an infinitely more resourceful GM, someone who’s able to adapt to the unexpected. It’s doubtful in fact, that they’ll ever be able to touch them.

But graphic games will always be more popular. I think it’s sad but it’s true. So much less is required of a player with a graphic game (in terms of time, not money). Less imagination is required, no rules need to be learned. The experience is immediate. It doesn’t have the depth, but it is likely to be deep enough for most people.

Simple questions really: What does “the dungeon has an oppressive air” look like? Could I represent this through visual description alone? Could a picture represent this alone? Or would you need a dark thrumming in the distance, which is more felt than heard? Can you do this through a game?

In the end, no, you can’t do all this through a game. This is why sometimes the game instructs the player to be thinking ‘You think something is lording over this dungeon with an iron fist’ or something to that effect. The idea being is that there is a reason for the original text, and you want the player to be thinking down the path of ‘plot’.

Getting players to follow plot is hard. Why do you do anything in WoW for instance? I mean seriously, you kill hundreds of creatures with little to no reason why. So, you imply ‘why’, through little snippets, stupid emotions by the mobs, etc, but by saying simple things like ‘You think…’ you can give a real reason why something is happening, from the player character with years of combat experience, without relying on the observation skills of a 14 year old unexperienced boy.

BTW, this goes completely wrong in graphical games far more often, like when an NPC accidently walks through an object so you can’t see them, or someone disconnects, etc. It’s less common in old school text adventures, but as the immersion level steps up, there will be more technical challenges that will pull people out of the world.