October 2005
- DESIGN: Role playing Mike Rozak
- DESIGN: Role playing Michael Hartman
- DESIGN: Role playing Arnau Josep Rosselló Castelló
- DESIGN: Role playing Michael Hartman
- DESIGN: Role playing Arnau Josep Rosselló Castelló
- [SPAM] DESIGN: Role playing Dana V. Baldwin
- DESIGN: Role playing Mark Whittington
- DESIGN: Role playing Tess Snider
- DESIGN: Role playing ghovs
- DESIGN: Role playing Michael Hartman
- DESIGN: Role playing Amanda Walker
- DESIGN: Role playing Mike Rozak
- DESIGN: My current grand unified theory of avatar games Mike Rozak
- Reward system for social gaming? Martin Gundtoft
- Reward system for social gaming? Sean Howard
- Reward system for social gaming? Alex McGivern
- Reward system for social gaming? Sean Howard
- Reward system for social gaming? Arnau Josep Rosselló Castelló
- Reward system for social gaming? Kiztent
- Reward system for social gaming? Scott Jennings
- Reward system for social gaming? Sean Howard
- Reward system for social gaming? Scott Jennings
- Reward system for social gaming? Lachek Butalek
- Reward system for social gaming? Alex McGivern
- Reward system for social gaming? Sean Howard
- Reward system for social gaming? Damien Neil
- Reward system for social gaming? David Love
- Reward system for social gaming? Sean Howard
- Reward system for social gaming? cruise
- Reward system for social gaming? Damien Neil
- Reward system for social gaming? Adam Miller
- Reward system for social gaming? Arnau Josep Rosselló Castelló
- Reward system for social gaming? Sean Howard
- Reward system for social gaming? Damion Schubert
- Reward system for social gaming? lwl@black-knight.org (Lydia Leong)
- Reward system for social gaming? Tom Hunter
- Reward system for social gaming? Christopher Allen
- Reward system for social gaming? Arnau Josep Rosselló Castelló
- Reward system for social gaming? lwl@black-knight.org (Lydia Leong)
- Reward system for social gaming? Matt Chatterley
- Reward system for social gaming? cruise
- Reward system for social gaming? Arnau Josep Rosselló Castelló
- Reward system for social gaming? John Buehler
- Reward system for social gaming? Christopher Allen
- Reward system for social gaming? Freeman, Jeff
- Reward system for social gaming? Sean Howard
- Reward system for social gaming? Sasha Hart
- Reward system for social gaming? Sean Howard
- Reward system for social gaming? Sasha Hart
- Reward system for social gaming? Sean Howard
- NPR - 'Virtual' Virus Sheds Light on Real-World Behavior Zach Collins (Siege)
- DESIGN: Role playing and Voice Chat Damion Schubert
- DESIGN: Role playing and Voice Chat Michael Hartman
- [SPAM] DESIGN: Role playing and Voice Chat Dana V. Baldwin
- [SPAM] DESIGN: Role playing and Voice Chat Michael Hartman
- [SPAM] [SPAM] DESIGN: Role playing and Voice Chat Dana V. Baldwin
- [SPAM] DESIGN: Role playing and Voice Chat Lachek Butalek
- DESIGN: Role playing and Voice Chat Damion Schubert
- DESIGN: Role playing and Voice Chat Tess Snider
- DESIGN: Role playing and Voice Chat John Buehler
- DESIGN: Role playing and Voice Chat Tess Snider
- DESIGN: Role playing and Voice Chat John Buehler
- DESIGN: Role playing and Voice Chat Ted L. Chen
- Newbie in-flow Mike Rozak
- EmlenMUD II - Can it be found? jason
- DESIGN: Role playing and Voice Chat lwl@black-knight.org (Lydia Leong)
- DESIGN: Role playing and Voice Chat Lachek Butalek
- DESIGN: Role playing and Voice Chat lwl@black-knight.org (Lydia Leong)
- DESIGN: Analysis of Fable Mike Rozak
- DGN: MMOG Game Economies Christopher D. Chapman
- DGN: MMOG Game Economies William Leader
- DGN: MMOG Game Economies rayzam
- DGN: MMOG Game Economies Tom Hunter
- DGN: MMOG Game Economies Jaycen Rigger
- DGN: MMOG Game Economies John Buehler
- DGN: MMOG Game Economies William Leader
- DGN: MMOG Game Economies John Buehler
- DGN: MMOG Game Economies Christopher D. Chapman
- DGN: MMOG Game Economies William Leader
- DGN: MMOG Game Economies Jaycen Rigger
- DGN: MMOG Game Economies Paolo Piselli
- DGN: MMOG Game Economies William Leader
Paolo Piselli wrote:
> This is a very interesting discussion, but theories about
> controlling inflation must be a common topic in economics, and we
> should not pretend to be able to reinvent such a well-studies
> field. Does anyone have any good references for background
> reading on this material?
This was one of the main points that came up in my many discussions
with my Economics professor. Time and time again we ran into the
problem that the rules are simply not the same.
Some examples of how things are different:
- Interest Rates - Its generally accepted that raising interest
rates combats inflation but typically MMO's do not have interest
rates, because there are not usually Banking institutions. And
there is almost never an institution that resembles a federal
reserve.
- Mints - Mints produce currency of all forms, but I would be
willing to bet that there is no MMO that has the equivalent of a
Mint. Instead currency is created all over the place by monster
drops, quest rewards, merchants.
- Government - The governments often interfere with the economy
when appropriate. MMO's rarely have governments aside from the
Developer Dictator who probably has better things to do with their
Time. This one wipes out a huge chunk of real world economics.
- Minimum Wage - I know of no MMO that has a minimum wage
(although one could probably be created.) Non-Renewable Resources
- I can't think of many games were players could actually run out
of something. Almost everything has an infinite supply even if it
only trickles out over time.
- Investors - The kind of investment where players put their money
into the hands of others (banks, markets, futures etc.) just never
happens. the only kind of investment that really happens is the
kind where the player buys a better sword so they can kill
monsters faster.
- Smart Merchants - Most NPC merchants do not adjust their prices
to reflect supply and demand. It doesn't matter how many rat tails
you sell to a merchant the price all ways stays the same. Even if
the merchant has 10,000 rat tails in his inventory the price never
goes down.
- Very small service and manufacturing industry - MMO's typically
have a small service industry, that is mostly tied up with
magic. Healing, Buffs, Removing curses. this compared to the...
- Huge Farming/Mining/Hunting Industry - While players don't
typically grow corn, they do run out and grow gold and other times
by running around killing stuff and picking up what the kill
drops. Players spend a huge amount of time collecting resources,
and very little time really doing anything with those collections.
- Instant Trade skills - In the real world it takes days maybe
weeks to create a suit of armor, but a player can conceivable do
it in a few dozen mouse clicks. This reduces the value that a
player adds to the metal when they change it into armor. Because
the amount of time needed is trivial, the cost of player crafted
items (typically stuff that far better than anything else in the
MMO) also becomes trivially priced. Many trade skilled players
spend far more time collecting ingredients then combining them.
I could go on, but I think you get the point. There is a great deal
that is different, so much of what is studied about real world
economics just doesn't work in MMO's. The few things that are the
same are much more related to Human Behavior. Things like supply and
demand, perceived value, Competition, and Free markets all still
happen, but over all they are just too different. With that in mind,
I can't think of a better place than MUD-Dev to hash out how MMO
Economies work.
- William Leader - DGN: MMOG Game Economies Vincent Archer
- DGN: MMOG Game Economies Damion Schubert
- DGN: MMOG Game Economies Jaycen Rigger
- DGN: MMOG Game Economies Christopher D. Chapman
- DGN: MMOG Game Economies Jaycen Rigger
- DGN: MMOG Game Economies William Leader
- DGN: MMOG Game Economies Artur Biesiadowski
- DGN: MMOG Game Economies William Leader
- DGN: MMOG Game Economies Kirinyaga
- DGN: MMOG Game Economies Adam Spivey
- DGN: MMOG Game Economies Jaycen Rigger
- DGN: MMOG Game Economies Christopher D. Chapman