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I thought up a mechanic to do something a bit like table top roleplay. I'll describe it, quickly mocking up a few numbers.

Okay, so it'd be pretty normal browser game stuff, but at random times it brings up a screen which gives you a text box, where you can describe what your character would have done. This kind of lets you step outside of just having various action buttons. The data would be santised (by my 100% effective, if slow, method...)

When it prompts for you to type out what actions your PC would do, if you fill in something you'll get X amount of game money or points or something good like that. Yeah, some people might just type erweruewrewyhui, but that's okay, the games currency can take it.

Next is that it tells the player if theirs is checked as a valid move, they will get Y amount of money or points. Say ten times as much as X. Sometimes if it's really good you get 20 times as much. And sometimes if it's crap, like dsuhewriuer, you get nothing!

Okay, behind the scenes two things can happen. One is that each new day they log in, there's a 20% chance the computer will automatically give the okay to the text and the user will get the $$$.

Also I'll have a script that only I can run, which goes through and plucks one of these descriptions from the database at random and shows it to me, with the option of giving the x10 reward or the x20 reward, or nothing if they've been a plonker. With the 20% random chance from above, it gives me atleast five days to check it, but if I fall behind in checking the 20% means it doesn't backlog.

Note: There's a bit of psychology at play because while people could type hfkjsdhfkjl and perhaps the 20% would okay them for the points, they will be paranoid that the admin/me will check. So they will probably put the effort in

It sounds complicated but I think it'd be pretty simple in play and fun. It's obviously not an immediate responce mechanic, but it would allow you to describe what your characters doing, something outside the usual action buttons, and earn more from having done so.

I agree that it would be simple to play, but for you to maintain it?

Two scenarios: 1- it flops, little to maintain; 2- It becomes extremely popular, you can't maintain it.

In order for an online game to work, it nearly always must be automated.

Personally, the only scalable way to make this (this being the parsing of appropriate responses) to work would be to have an initial database of valid answers. Then every time someone someone answers the box, it searches the database for some thing similar to it. If it is found, then it acts from that. If there is nothing similar, then it creates a new entry. Based on the user's previous responses (whether the user normally gives good answers), it will then store his past answer validity.

Example 1: In the game it is evening and a textbox pops up asking Jack what to do. Jack types in 'Setup camp'. The server searches through the database in the table 'evening' for an entry semantically similar to it. The entry exists. The server then reads the 'correctness' of the answer. It turns out to be 58.3 (out of 100). Jack's average answer 'correctness' is 82. This is then added to the database and averaged (the total times the phrase was matched is also stored and this is used to calculate the avg.). The 'correctness' of 'Setup camp' has now been pulled up to 63 due to Jack normally making the correct answer. The computer assumes that since Jack normally answers correctly, his answer is most likely valid. The average after the database being updated with Jack's result is 63. This is an acceptable answer, but not the best. From a list of outcomes, it selects one with the skill or chance factor being 63. Out of the 2 possible outcome types, (recover/loose health, and find/lose gold), one is randomly selected. Then the correctness is used to determine the magnitude of the outcome Let's assume for the sake of this example that the algoritm for health recovered/lost is "rand(-20,correctness)". From this, the script then returns the result 'You rest and regain 32 hp.'

The benefit of this setup is that eventually as the game progresses, the database will grow and the gameplay will evolve. The negatives are the separate tables needed for each circumstance (finding firewood at night is a bad idea, while doing it during the day is a good idea). Groups of players can also group together and all give bogus answers. If their ratings are high enough, then the answer could become a high-correctness answer, and this will be a problem. Of course, reviewing all the new high-ranking answers each week would be a lot easier than checking each one.

If you decide to take it that path, it will be an extremely challenging (although fun) project to code.

pax.

Oh no, my game becomes popular? Please don't throw me in the briar patch!

This already partly self automates as described above. I don't need to check every single result - just enough that players assume it's worth it to type something out. And even if they type wrjewklrjlekrjewlk every so often, it wont crack the games currency system. I'm not gunna check everything.

If I ever get above a hundred players per day, I'll pay you your point though. But at that point I might be able to assign a sub GM to do stuff like this as well as me.

And if I get millions of players - nah, not gunna happen, so I'll ignore that issue! >:)

Personally, I wouldn't call that automation. It's essentially bypassing the system. I understand your point that for the rest of the time, the response will matter, but for that section of the time, the user's input is essentially ignored.

Also, if I was to do it manually, I would rather check each response quickly than check some responses thoroughly.

However you design your game, tell us how it turns out!

pax.

If the timing is an issue, you can "extrapolate" the current new value against other submissions within a given time limit. If there are matches found there, you can safely assume they are doing something similiar for that given timeframe, which means you can automate the process too. If p1 decides to gather wood at 6pm, but p2 is gathering wood at 8 , when it is dark, it`s out of scope, but if a player p3 submitted at 6:30 that he stopped gathering wood because it`s getting too dark, you can evaluate that within the given scope op time. Hence the extrapolating on previous records. but i guess that are many variables you don`t know, so this would probably not work.

Maybe some AI? Mapping a frame of time with given possibilities to do, if a match is found on a keyword, calculate the offset on the time as well as the action, and index this.

What I could do is set an amount I'm able to do each week and once it hits that limit, it wont offer any more until I've read them through.

not sure if this was what you were meeting but this brings up a idea i would love t make for the forums. A smaller game, say 5-30 people where you login using your forums account. It would start with the GM opening up the scene and explaining whats going on. All players would have the same text.

The text would end in the player having to make a choice or answer how they would get out of a situation. This would also be followed by some defined rules about rolling. The GM would then check all the answers and divvy out experience and decide who makes it to next level and who doesn't by their response. Then on the next day they continue the adventure and it goes again. Any non responses by a player would result in losing out of that adventure. Or if the GM thought you were dropping out to stay alive he could kill you off or take exp or an item. Some rules would be around this. When the adventure ends all surviving players would level up if they have enough experience. Now one of the players could take over as GM and run a couple day adventure or how ever long the rounds are. Anyone could actually start a adventure for we could run several adventures at once.


We could actually run on going dungeons where you can join at anytime and run through it. The creator of the dungeon would just have to keep a eye on the responses...we could have them emailed to the GM assigned.

Example: We have a game start and it is in the Sci-Fi section...So I choose a character out of my sci fi characters and start the adventure...
Something like this but far better follows
" You find yourself in the space station of Torus Drome. While sitting at the bar you hear some commotion from one corner of the bar. You ignore it for the most part but it gets louder. Two men are yelling and now both have pulled out pistols and start firing. The design of the bar is to keep laser pistols from punching a whole through the walls and sucking the occupants into space. You know the missed laser shots will result in bouncing lasers all over the room...What is your next move.

Notes:
all players must make atleast two dodges, unless the cower somewhere, then they only need to make one
any attacks will need a attack roll, -3 for having to dodge"

So now the players all have a text box for their response, so lets say:
Joe the space ranger: "Scared for the patrons of the bar I pull out my pistol and shoot at one of the men. With my two dodges I jump off the barstool and dive behind the bar.
Dodge roll 1(there is a die roller on the game btw) 14 Success
Dodge Roll 2 7 Fail!
Strike roll 15 -3 = 12 success"

Kirk the alien: " I head for the door and dont look back. Not getting my butt shut off in here!"
Dodge roll 1 10
Dodge roll 15"

So now the GM reads the responses and answers with a personal response then continues the story, same response to everyone

to Joe: You dive off the stool while pulling your pistol narrowly dodging a bouncing blast off the wall. You then dive over the bar while making a last shot and you see it hit one of the men just before you land on all the bottles behind the bar shattering them underneath you. You take 4 points damage from the broken glass.
total of 20 exp

to Kirk: You take off running through the bar and heading straight for the door with your tail between your legs. You dodge other screaming people and bouncing laser blasts.
total of 4 exp

and then the next part of the story would continue