Re: Newsgroup suggestions - for moderators

From: "Scott R. Turner" <srt-nospam@pbm.com>

Date: Thu, 01 Oct 1998 00:00:00 +0000

David desJardins wrote:
> I'm not sure that I agree that "handling of dropouts" is a difficult
> programming issue.  I think it's a difficult design issue.

When I said that a lot of PBM games suffer from poor programming, what I
meant was that the PBM author might have been capable of designing a
good
solution to a difficult issue, but was incapable of programming that
solution.  As a result you get either a poor implementation of a good
solution or a good implementation of an easier bad solution.

To take the dropout example, a very good solution is for the computer to
take over the dropped position and play it just as a human would.
However,
except for trivial situations, that is very difficult to program.

I've been annoyed in most of the PBMs I've played at how stupid the
NPCs are.  I don't think that's because the game designer doesn't know
how
to make his NPCs more intelligent, just that he doesn't know how to
program
that.  (On the other hand, I made the NPCs in Olympia:The Age of Gods a
tad
more intelligent than those in Olympia, and a number of players were
quite
put off.)

-- Scott T.

References

Re: Newsgroup suggestions - for moderators
"Steve Pritchard" <steve@spelbind.demon.co.uk>
Fri, 25 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000
Re: Newsgroup suggestions - for moderators
Carol Mulholland <Flagship@flagship-uk.demon.co.uk>
Fri, 25 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000
Re: Newsgroup suggestions - for moderators
"Scott R. Turner" <srt-nospam@pbm.com>
Mon, 28 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000
Re: Newsgroup suggestions - for moderators
David desJardins <desj@math.berkeley.edu>
Wed, 30 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000
Re: Newsgroup suggestions - for moderators
Carol Mulholland <Flagship@flagship-uk.demon.co.uk>
Thu, 24 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000
Re: Newsgroup suggestions - for moderators
lindahl@pbm.com (Greg Lindahl)
Thu, 24 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000
Re: Newsgroup suggestions - for moderators
Carol Mulholland <Flagship@flagship-uk.demon.co.uk>
Thu, 24 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000

Referenced By

Re: Newsgroup suggestions - for moderators
"Steve Pritchard" <steve@spelbind.demon.co.uk>
Fri, 25 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000
Re: Newsgroup suggestions - for moderators
Carol Mulholland <Flagship@flagship-uk.demon.co.uk>
Fri, 25 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000
Re: Newsgroup suggestions - for moderators
"Scott R. Turner" <srt-nospam@pbm.com>
Mon, 28 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000
Re: Newsgroup suggestions - for moderators
David desJardins <desj@math.berkeley.edu>
Wed, 30 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000
Re: Newsgroup suggestions - for moderators
Carol Mulholland <Flagship@flagship-uk.demon.co.uk>
Thu, 24 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000
Re: Newsgroup suggestions - for moderators
lindahl@pbm.com (Greg Lindahl)
Thu, 24 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000
Re: Newsgroup suggestions - for moderators
Carol Mulholland <Flagship@flagship-uk.demon.co.uk>
Thu, 24 Sep 1998 00:00:00 +0000