Narrative GPS Gameplay
I’m finally back from vacation and I had lots of time to continue building the location based game design for the r1. I am pulling a lot of design philosophy from MUD games, as I want a big focus to be on narrative gameplay and meaningful character building. I am also trying to leverage the unique aspects of the r1’s hardware design choices, and AI integration as much as possible.
If you have experimented around at all with roleplay on the r1, you will know that its narrative ability is pretty good. Having direct access to an LLM is a powerful tool in generating the narrative meat that needs to tie together gameplay mechanics, and I’m looking forward to trying my hand at making a cohesive world!
//Argo, The r1 ARG companion
Multi User Dungeons
MUD games, short for Multi-User Dungeon games, are text-based multiplayer online games where players interact with each other and the game world through text commands. In MUDs, players navigate virtual environments, solve puzzles, engage in combat, and interact with non-player characters (NPCs) entirely through text descriptions.
Players communicate with the game by typing commands such as “go north,” “attack dragon,” or “talk to NPC.” These commands trigger actions within the game world, allowing players to explore, fight, trade, and engage in various activities. The text-based nature of MUDs encourages players to use their imagination to visualize the game world based on the descriptions provided.
One of the defining features of MUD games is the emphasis on player-driven narrative and roleplaying. Players have the freedom to create their own characters, develop unique personalities, and interact with others in a collaborative storytelling environment. Through roleplaying, players can immerse themselves in the game world, engage in social interactions, and contribute to the ongoing narrative of the game.
Players in MUDs often form communities, guilds, and alliances, working together to achieve common goals or engage in player-versus-player conflicts. The collaborative nature of MUDs fosters creativity, social interaction, and the development of complex storylines that evolve based on the actions and decisions of the players.
Overall, MUD games provide a rich and immersive experience where players can engage in interactive storytelling, roleplay with others, and contribute to a dynamic and evolving virtual world through text-based interactions.
//r1 summarizing MUD games
I see a lot of value in understanding how interactions work in MUDs. Given the design pillars I have set up so far, MUDs encompass a lot of aspects I want to achieve. They are nostalgia filled, as they were extremely early multiplayer games. With primarily text based interaction, they build the perfect foundation for strong narrative gameplay. GPS integration brings an innovative and unique aspect to both genres of game, providing users with one stop location for the types of experiences I want to create.
Because the r1 uses voice commands and text based responses for its primarily interaction, I feel it is within the best interests of the device to create games that focus on this type of interface. This does not mean abandoning all graphic interfaces. As I have stated in the past I believe using vision to capture images for the gather gameplay loop is something the device makes fully possible. Using features like magic camera the create graphics you can view when accessing an inventory or item log is something I would still like to put into effect. For any “world” or “narrative” interactions, I believe it is in the best interest of the gameplay experience to limit graphics to ascii.
Each user should be able to visualize their own story and narrative based on the descriptions we provide. This means we must accurately use GPS data and map APIs to create an immersive world – one that the systems of the game can reference as needed. Interactions a user has that effect a location in their personal narrative should effect that location on a multiplayer scale. The world is persistent, though that does not necessarily mean each user has the same exact experience.
Due to the persistent nature of players actions (generally actions of a large scale), each player must be driven to write a compelling character, take actions that fit into the world building, and drive the narrative of the world in an interesting way. We should not force any specific character types on the player yet should design the game in such a way that players have an interest in the character they write, the actions they take, and how they affect the world around them.
While each action needs limitations, players who go above and beyond describing their actions should be rewarded for immersing themselves in the experience. Greater descriptions should have more influence over the outcome a players actions may cause, as well as allow for a better understanding of the players intentions. This also means as more actions are developed, each needs its own set of hard limitations. If we let generative AI run free, a lot of the consistency we attempt to create will begin to unravel. Avoiding inconsistent results in the actions a player takes in active (non narrative building) gameplay is vital.
Location Based Design for MUD style gameplay
Deciding on which aspects of each genre to focus on will help keep the scope of the project, as well as any future additions to the project consistent. We know the focus is on location based narrative gameplay and high fantasy roleplay, any additional gameplay mechanics or gameplay loops should reinforce this idea.
In its most obvious form, location based gameplay will influence the virtual location a player can interact with, based on their real world location. We will use this to limit and track the resources that players can acquire, using a locations real world scarcity to run a virtual fantasy economy. On top of this, we can provide chatrooms users can connect with, enabling them to chat within a set area around them (spanning a few miles - tens of miles, we need to respect player privacy). With the ability to set GPS context aware areas, we can set areas to access social hubs, marketplaces, and limited/special events.
I would also like to restate how important it is to ensure that we are not overusing the location based aspects. It should not be a chore or annoyance to interface with and play a location based game. With location specific networks like marketplaces a good practice may be to have one market per city/region, then scatter multiple access points to that marketplace. Accommodating players across an entire area or region instead of forcing players to visit a location they generally wouldn’t will benefit the growth and accessibility of the game.
Ending this one here, over the next few weeks I am going to be taking a deep dive into some of the available MUDs. I have a pretty good grasp on how they work, and the types of designs they generally fall into; however, I would love to get some more experience with the types of players and extent of the multiplayer interactions! As this design continues to mature I am putting lots of thought into how it will all string together. I am looking forward to webhook integration and teach mode so I can start working on the framework.
//Argo