Re: PBM design: give away the formulas? (*FORMULAE !)

From: srt@aero.org (Scott 'Dr. Pain' Turner)

Date: Wed, 23 Jun 1993 17:09:10 +0000

Formulas suck.

There's nothing worse than playing a game with the kind of
calculator-toting weenie who spends weeks reading the rules and
calculating every iota of advantage.  That kind of single-minded,
anal-retentive min-maxing of a game is no fun for anyone involved.
There's certainly nothing that will kill the "sense of wonder" that
games like Atlantis can instill faster than a detailed description of
the game mechanics and a couple of mad optimizers for players.

And for what gain?

The single advantage of detailing all the mechanics involved in a game
is that it allows the min-maxers to calculate exactly what the results
of their actions will be.  So what?  That lets the min-maxers be
happy?  That's a very small gain as far as I'm concerned.  Let the
min-maxers play Chess for all I care.  (Not that they will; their real
enjoyment comes from "beating" the other players in analyzing the
rules, not from playing the game itself, or they'd all be off playing
Chess all the time.)

My faction in "Olympia I" got crushed because I didn't predict
accurately what the result of a battle would be.  Had Rich published
an extensive description of the combat system that wouldn't have
happened - but I would have enjoyed the game a lot less.  I don't want
to pick on Russell here, because I like Russell and think he's doing
some interesting things, but the consensus I've heard from people who
played in both Olympia and Atlantis is that even with all its bugs,
Olympia was more interesting and involving that Atlantis.  And I trace
that directly to the fact that Atlantis isn't a game about a fantasy
world; its a game about manipulating an abstract set of rules to your
advantage.

If you want a pure game, in the abstract sense of maximizing some
success function based upon a set of constraints, then by all means
publish the formulas.  Done well, like in Galaxy, that can be an
enjoyable puzzle.  But for me, I'll take a little sub-optimal play in
exchange for a sense of wonder and the excitement of discovery.

-- Scott t.

References

PBM design: give away the formulas?
skrenta@rt.com (Rich Skrenta)
Sat, 19 Jun 1993 18:12:59 +0000
Re: PBM design: give away the formulas? (*FORMULAE !)
rob@ccc.govt.nz (Rob McNeur)
Mon, 21 Jun 1993 12:00:33 +0000
Re: PBM design: give away the formulas? (*FORMULAE !)
desj@ccr-p.ida.org (David desJardins)
Wed, 23 Jun 1993 05:22:30 +0000

Referenced By

PBM design: give away the formulas?
skrenta@rt.com (Rich Skrenta)
Sat, 19 Jun 1993 18:12:59 +0000
Re: PBM design: give away the formulas? (*FORMULAE !)
rob@ccc.govt.nz (Rob McNeur)
Mon, 21 Jun 1993 12:00:33 +0000
Re: PBM design: give away the formulas? (*FORMULAE !)
desj@ccr-p.ida.org (David desJardins)
Wed, 23 Jun 1993 05:22:30 +0000