Dargo… Who?
I suppose it’d be a good idea to write more about who I am in order to reveal my credibility (or lack thereof) on the topics I discuss.
My real name is Joel. 18 years old. I am currently a first-year at Stevens Institute of Technology, a small (very small) university in northern New Jersey. I am majoring in Computer Science and intend to get my Bachelor’s in four years. I started programming way before coming here, though.
About four years ago, I found an open-source project that aimed to reverse-engineer server software for a popular MMORPG called Ragnarok Online. I found myself drawn to the concept of being able to be head of my very own private server, which would have been the closest I’ve ever been to designing and coding my own MMORPG. Yes, yes. Unfortunately, I (like thousands of others) had delusions of grandeur when I first decided to learn how to code.
I headed my own server for nearly a year, fixing various bugs in the server software as I learned C programming. It was around that time when ethics caught up with me and I learned that what I was doing is illegal. In the end, I took down my Ragnarok Online private server and spent loads of time playing various MMORPGs and MUDs instead of coding them.
I’ve played Legends of Terris and Legends of Cosrin, both MUDs which have been around since 1995-ish. They run on the same engine but have drastically different designs and content. I’ve also played on Achaea and Imperian, but not too long since I just couldn’t get into them for some reason. As for MMORPGs, I’ve played Everquest for four years as a hardcore gamer. Lots of free MMORPGs, mostly of the badly-translated Korean variety, have crossed my path. After Everquest, I didn’t play many commercial MMORPGs as I feared the addiction that plagued my childhood. Currently I’m in the Lord of the Rings Online closed beta after having decided to be a casual player and not a hardcore player.
Every day I read blogs by other gamers and programmers, such as Tobold’s MMORPG Blog, which happens to be my current favorite. Alongside that, I visit Zen of Design, Casual Game Design and Sierra Kilo, where I can brush up on MMORPG design thoughts from other, more established bloggers.
In my experience, people are usually one of two types: research or experiment. I’m not talking about science here, where you’d need both research and experiment. I’m talking about how people would go about solving their problems, whether it be designing a MUD or purchasing a car or what color to paint their room. Some people tend to research, meaning they read about their problem, probably on the Internet, and formulate a best possible approach to their solution. Others tend to be experimental, meaning they just try different solutions until they find one that is satisfactory.
I am a researcher. I read lots of articles and blogs on the topic of game design and use those opinions and ideas to formulate the best approach to designing my MUD. As such, lots of my design entries will link to other blogs and articles.
This entry is too long. Way too long. I thought it’d be a paragraph or three at most but it’s turned into a monster! Better end it before I ramble even more.
