Review Submitted By: Maligon
Author Status: Player
Started on Xyllomer: couple months
Submission Date: May 8, 2007
TMC Listing: Xyllomer
The following review is the opinion of the review's author [Maligon]
and in no way represents the opinions of this website or its staff.
I joined and tried out this mud on the recommendation of a friend. I
usually play RPIs. I find the RPI ambiance excellent and was very
skeptical that a reputed PK-mud could win me over. However, my friend
assured me that this mud's roleplaying and immersion were something
that I had to see and that would make me leave my other muds.
So, I gave it a chance, and here are my impressions on the whole
experience:
- It was a pain to create a character. Now, I am a guy who IS USED to
a grueling RPI-type character creation, and let me tell you, this mud
went far aboye and beyond anything I've ever seen with steep
requirements for detailed descriptions, extensive backstories,
justifications for every possible thing, and the sad thing is that
later on none of that was used in the game by anyone at all; the
effort just went to collect dust.
- The email response from admin (which is required for your new
character to be accepted) was very slow and unresponsive. I waited
more than a couple days which is usually enough for me to scroll down
to the next mud on the list out of boredom; I stuck with this one for
the sake of my friend.
- Once in the game, first thing I noticed was people going OOC very
often. And almost always for the same reason: To ask if I was really a
'newbie' or rather just some old player's alt-character trying to
get a free ride. This annoyed me on two levels: First, this assumpion
really lays bare how few new players this mud gets which does a lot to
dispel its charm, and second, I wasn't even LOOKING to get anything
handed to me, but everybody assumed that since I was new, I must be
looking for a handout.
- On a corollary from the above point, I always look forward to
building up a little starting wealth, yet in this mud I was freely
given so much stuff (after the requisite suspicious are-you-an-alt
questions) that nothing had any value.
- Gameplay with other people amounted to typing 'join name' and
then being treated to a whirlwind of scrolling rooms and screens of
text as I was dragged through various mob-areas and drilled on the
intricacies of the fight-engine (which doesn't actually seem that
intricate).
- One thing which is surprising is the quality of the emote engine.
Here is something which pleased me to no end, as it is flexible, easy
to use and powerful. At the same time, it was so very sad that nobody
ever used it for anything, or at the most, used it in the most
simplified, superficial way possible. Such a waste.
- Finally, the thing that tipped the issue for me is what I would
call the strong OOC nature of the MUD. Make no mistake, this is and
will continue to be an OOC MUD. Players know each other as players,
not as characters. Everybody knows which character is an alt of which
other character and how many other alts that player has and will be on
the lookout for any metagaming between those chars (and let me point
out, players that are constantly policing metagaming in other players
is the worst form of metagaming there IS).
- Players go OOC constantly, and not only demand that you explain the
reasons behind your roleplay in detail for them to decide whether
it's acceptable or not, but also they will actually go OOC to explain
THEIR OWN roleplay to justify it TO YOU with no provocation
whatsoever, something which I found to be a gigantic turnoff.
To be fair, I should mention some positive aspects of the mud, which
is basically a very good single-player game. It basically played out
like a very good piece of interactive fiction at certain points, most
notable being the dwarven mountains and underground, and an orc castle
filled with secret passages and such. However, the considerable charm
and atmostphere falls apart once you start interacting and trying to
get into the world and the game's societies of silent PK and war.
In conclusion, I gave it a good go, I was assured I would be leaving
my mud after trying this one, but all in all, after this I think I'll
be going back home.
