HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: vputz@nyx.cs.du.edu (Victor Putz)
Subject: Re: Preferred Game Interface ** Survey **
Organization: University of Denver, Dept. of Math & Comp. Sci.
Date: Fri, 29 Jan 93 01:57:42 GMT

hallch@CS.ColoState.EDU (christopher hall) writes:

>Hello,

>     I am working together with some peers to program a computer fantasy
>game.  We are trying to design an interface for the game that most peopl

>will like.  I would like to know from you people what sort of interface 
o
>like using the most?  Is it keyboard only, joystick or mouse only, or a
>combination of them?

>     For your information the game is being programmed for IBMs and thei

>compatibles.  Also, the game is in a 3-D texture mapped graphics format.
>Therefore, a character can see objects around them.  It is my opinion th
t
>the "Sierra-style" interface from their earlier games is the best.  I th
nk
>that the game can be more versatile by making the person choose the word

>and then type their commands.  Do you agree?  Do you know of another met
od
>that works just as well or better?

>     Please post any responses, and if you can, please e-mail a copy of
>your response to me also.

>                                                        Thanks in Advanc
,
>                                                        Chris Hall

>/-----------------------------------------------------------------------
--\
>|    The world cannot end today because it is tomorrow in Australia...  
  |
>|                                                                       
  |
>|       |________          Chris Hall                                   
  |
>| ||OOO||________>         hallch@handel.colostate.edu                  
  |
>|       |                                                               
  |
>\_______________________________________________________________________
__/

Laddie, if you can get people to play the kind of game where the player
has to use their brain to solve it (as opposed to clicking on random
objects), you're a good man.  Those games are superior, if you can get a
good parser (a GOOD parser-- the "word-hunt" games are as bad or worse
than the "pixel-hunt" games).  If you can, the typed-command game is the
better game.

It just might not sell as well, that's all.  Consumers love object games--
that's why there's so many of them.  Personally, I don't see the appeal,
but there it is.

Good luck (and good gaming),
-->Vputz

Newsgroups: rec.games.design
From: sos@oz.plymouth.edu (Steffan O'Sullivan)
Subject: Re: FUDGE damage and scale
Organization: Plymouth State College - Plymouth, NH.
Distribution: rec
Date: Fri, 22 Jan 93 17:35:29 GMT

skinner@fuzzy.stdavids.picker.com (Andy Skinner) writes:
>
>I want to bring up the issue with which I am least comfortable in FUDGE:
>scaling damage and strength.  
> ...
>Now, just because I've figured out how to do it doesn't mean I think it even
>resembles what FUDGE ought to be.  I like multiplying the defender's damage
>levels by scale, since that is equivalent to and easier than dividing damage
>done to it by its scale.  And I like multiplying attacker's damage by
>attacker's scale, as long as I don't have to work with fractions.  I just
>am a bit uncomfortable with changing an attacker's damage levels by who
>is attacking.  I guess it would be easier if we said that all scales would
>be 1/4, 1/2, 1, 2, 4.  Scale 1 would be whatever is most common.  That
>would get rid of the common denominator problem.

Yes, it is too complicated, I agree.  I don't yet see what we can do
about it, though, except go to a subjective system.  ("Hmm, the giant
hits you - you're incapacitated.  Let's see, the pixie does a critical
success hit to the giant?  Alright, you scratched him.")

At this point in time, I'm toying with the idea of 2 as the only scale
multiplier.  Anything else beyond this range either can't affect the
foe (if the foe is much bigger) or automatically incapacitates or worse
(if the foe is much smaller).  Critical Success by the wee one could
reduce a huge opponent by one level, I guess.  This would mean that 1/2
scale (by human standards) creature couldn't hurt a 2x scale (by human
standards) creature at all, except on critical success.  Is this
resonable?  It's certainly easy!  Note that you don't have to define a
halfling as 1/2 human scale - just give him a Poor Strength on the
human scale, for example.

>In the meantime, I'll also try to figure out different approaches.  I've
>toyed with ways of marking the damage levels down the right side of the
>page, keeping track of current levels with a paper clip which can slide
>up and down.  It is easy to add fractions by adding something of length 1/2
>to length 1/3--you don't have to know the result numerically.

Ah, yes, the nomograph.  Ancient and useful tool!  Let me know if you
come up with a good one.

-- 
  - Steffan O'Sullivan		         sos@oz.plymouth.edu
Newsgroups: rec.games.design
From: sos@oz.plymouth.edu (Steffan O'Sullivan)
Subject: Re: FUDGE Objective Character Creation
Organization: Plymouth State College - Plymouth, NH.
Date: Sat, 23 Jan 93 13:31:19 GMT

Okay, I'm off today for a week.  Yesterday I managed to look at the obj.
char. sys. with a better perspective - the posts and mail has been about
10 to 1 in favor of keeping it in - thanks for all the responses!

It's really not that bad.  I made a few cosmetic changes to make it read
better, but didn't change the system at all, and will leave it in.

So at this point, as far as I'm concerned, the main things to clean up
are:

1) Scale system;
2) Alternate combat system involving attack/defense as separate actions.

I may not get to read anything posted soon, so let me know if you have
any feedback on those two issues, or another issue you think needs
addressing.

-- 
  - Steffan O'Sullivan		         sos@oz.plymouth.edu
Newsgroups: rec.games.design
From: ldusseau@zeus.UWaterloo.ca (Lisa Dusseault)
Subject: FUDGE Magic System
Keywords: fudge, magic
Organization: University of Waterloo
Date: Wed, 27 Jan 1993 18:12:25 GMT

Hi all,

I'm beginning a FUDGE campaign with my preferred, personal mish-mash of a  
magic system.  Beginning mages/wizards/sorcerers must learn spells from  
other mages and cast them in the way that they were taught.  These spells  
are cast in a ritual (words, gestures, and/or components, depending on  
spell).  More experienced magic-users can do without words, gestures or  
components with a penalty, and can affect how exactly the spell works  
(changing the colour of the fire, the range, etc.) with similar penalties.   
(It's just that casting a standard, researched spell is easier.)  Very  
experienced magic-users can design their own spells, trying different  
rituals until they find the one that seems to work best.

Okay, description done with, here come the questions:

Any ideas on how I decide when a low-level magic-user can learn a new  
spell?  when a high-level magic-user can start to design a spell?  how  
complicated a spell they can design?  I can use my judgement a lot for the  
last two, but the first question is tougher; I'd like an objective way of  
deciding that keeps the magic-user at a reasonable level of power.

Newsgroups: rec.games.design
From: jpa@cs.bham.ac.uk (Jonathan P Alma)
Subject: Talking to computer controlled players (Re: Artificial Intelligence for Games)
Organization: School of Computer Science, University of Birmingham,UK.
Date: Thu, 28 Jan 1993 12:27:18 GMT

I'm developing an adventure game that involves asking computer controlled
characters questions.  The number of questions are limited to about 20-30, and
are along the lines of "where is the ..." and "what is your relationship to
...".  My problem is that I want the characters to not just answer the
question, but answer it in a way which is dependant on their emotions
(especially how they feel about the user's character).   If they dislike the
user then they will hide information, if they are flustered/uneasy then they
might let important information slip, and so on.

Any help in this area would be much appreciated (its the only thing holding up
completion of the adventure),

Jonathan.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jonathan Alma					         J.P.Alma@cs.bham.ac.uk
School of Computer Science
University of Birmingham, UK, B15 2TT.

The opinions expressed are my own and not those of Birmingham University
From: jeffj@yang.earlham.edu (ChaOs)
Newsgroups: rec.games.design
Subject: Re: RPG: The basic rules to ARM
Date: 23 Jan 93 14:49:49 GMT
Organization: Honest Bob's Used Toaster Emporium

In article <C18Go3.MDC@cantua.canterbury.ac.nz>, cctr120@cantua.canterbury.ac.nz (Brendon Wyber) writes:
> jbridson@kean.ucs.mun.ca wrote:
>> Perhaps Athleticism... not very catchy though.  I'll have to consider this.
> 
> Preformance?       Physique?        Prowess?
> 
>> Well, maybe I shouldn't put Scale right at the start... :-)  I have found 
>> that the five values you basically need to know (1, 1.5, 2.5, 4, and 6) 
>> come quickly to the memory.  I'll see if I can revamp that section to make 
>> it less off-putting...
> 
> Hero has a logrithmic system very similar to yours (but uses base 2 not 10).
> Each +5 STR doubles the effective strength. It disguises this through the
> use of tables.

The DC Heros game also uses a logarithmic scale, where each AP doubles the
(STR, power, whatever).  It can get pretty disgusting.

But there is a good suggestion: include tables, instead of mathematical
formulas.  HERO did this (as the above poster mentioned) and I am forever
grateful.
 
> "Ph-nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn."
  "In his city at Rl'yeh dead Cthulhu lies dreaming."

Next up on rec.arts.comics:  Who'd win, Morpheus (from SANDMAN) or Cthulhu?

-- 
Jeff (ChaOs) Johnston                             JeffJ@yang.earlham.edu
Newsgroups: rec.games.design
From: pierce@asc.slb.com (Edward Pierce)
Newsgroups: rec.games.abstract
Subject: Looking for GO...
Date: 27 Jan 93 04:26:53 GMT
Followup-To: rec.games.abstract
Organization: Schlumberger
NNTP-Posting-Host: asc801.asc.slb.com

I'm looking for a public GO game for both PC and Macintosh.

Also, I'm looking for a public Backgammon game for both PC and Macintosh.

Reply to   pierce@asc.slb.com

Thanks,
EP
From: blom@husc15.harvard.edu
Newsgroups: rec.games.abstract
Subject: Re: A new game?
Date: 24 Jan 93 18:14:01 GMT
Article-I.D.: husc15.1993Jan24.131401.19745
Organization: Harvard University Science Center

In article <C19spy.3q2@SSD.intel.com>, wms@ssd.intel.com (William Shubert) writes:
> boll@CS.ColoState.EDU (dave boll) describes a new game:
>>    The board: A MxN rectangle of dots.         
>>    The play : Players alternate making moves, last one able to move wins
>>    A move: A move in this game consists of drawing a straight line 
>>       connecting two (previously untouched) dots. The line may not cross
>>       any previously drawn line, nor can it pass thru one dot on the way
>>       to another. Each dot can have at most one line touching it.
> ...
>>  Anyway, has anyone ever heard of a game like this? Thoughts?
> 
>    Someone descibed a similar game about a month or two ago.  With this game
> it's pretty clear immediately that player 1 can win on any MxN board if M
> or N is even:
> 
> +   +   +   +
>        /
> +   + / +   +
>      /
> +   +   +   +
> 
> From here, any move that player 2 makes can be "mirrored" by player 1; player
> 2 MUST run out of moves first.  Is there a similar easy winning strategy on
> oddxodd boards?
> 				-Bill (wms@ssd.intel.com)


On boards with odd sides with no common factor, you can connect a line between
two corners with the same effect.

Eric Blom
Harvard U
Newsgroups: rec.games.abstract
From: 90dobias@davis.ensmp.fr (Philippe DOBIAS <90dobias@cc.ensmp.fr>)
Newsgroups: rec.games.abstract
Subject: Re: A new game?
Date: 27 Jan 93 15:17:27 GMT
Organization: Ecole des Mines de Paris


	Hello !

Sorry if I'm saying something that already went by, I missed the starting point,
but did you consider tha time factor ? That is, you only have 1 sec. to choose
your next move (much like Walt Disney's Tron movie). There wouldn't be so much
time to think. Just action.

-- 

	Philippe Dobias

	Ecole Nationale Supe'rieure des Mines de Paris.
	60, Boulevard St Michel
	75006 Paris, France.
From: dseal@armltd.co.uk (David Seal)
Newsgroups: rec.games.abstract
Subject: Re: A new game?
Date: 26 Jan 93 11:22:16 GMT
Distribution: rec
Organization: A.R.M. Ltd, Swaffham Bulbeck, Cambs, UK

In article <1993Jan24.131401.19745@husc15.harvard.edu>
blom@husc15.harvard.edu writes:

>In article <C19spy.3q2@SSD.intel.com>, wms@ssd.intel.com (William Shubert) writes:
>>    Someone descibed a similar game about a month or two ago.  With this game
>> it's pretty clear immediately that player 1 can win on any MxN board if M
>> or N is even:
>> 
>> +   +   +   +
>>        /
>> +   + / +   +
>>      /
>> +   +   +   +
>> 
>> From here, any move that player 2 makes can be "mirrored" by player 1; player
>> 2 MUST run out of moves first.  Is there a similar easy winning strategy on
>> oddxodd boards?
>> 				-Bill (wms@ssd.intel.com)
>
>On boards with odd sides with no common factor, you can connect a line between
>two corners with the same effect.

No - a board which is an odd number by an odd number of points has a central
point, which lies directly on the line connecting two opposite corners. So
connecting two opposite corners is not a legal move in this case.

I think the confusion may arise from the fact that a side which has an odd
number of *points* has an even length, and vice versa. E.g. the position
above is 4 points wide by 3 points high, but only 3x2 in linear dimensions.
The fact that the first player strategy described above works is due to the
position being an even number of points wide, and *not* to it having an even
height.

David Seal
dseal@armltd.co.uk

All opinions are mine only...
From: fkschmid@cip.informatik.uni-erlangen.de (Frank Schmidt)
Newsgroups: rec.games.abstract
Subject: Re: LIFE
Date: Tue, 26 Jan 1993 20:57:59 GMT
Organization: CSD., University of Erlangen
NNTP-Posting-Host: faui00f.informatik.uni-erlangen.de

PLEASE, don't send in contestants with more than 25 cells.
---
*********Frank Schmidt**********fkschmid@cip.informatik.uni-erlangen.de*********
From: kfl@access.digex.com (Keith F. Lynch)
Newsgroups: rec.games.abstract
Subject: Dictionary
Date: 27 Jan 1993 14:32:09 -0500
Organization: Express Access Public Access UNIX, Greenbelt, Maryland USA
Distribution: world
NNTP-Posting-Host: access.digex.com

Does anyone know where an online dictionary, or rather word list,
can be found, suitable for Scrabble and similar games?  The file
/usr/dict/words has too many non-words, and is missing too many words
(such as the word yes (!)) and doesn't have the ___ed or ___s or
___ing forms of words.  Thanks.

Keith Lynch, kfl@access.digex.com
From: tromp@cwi.nl (John Tromp)
Newsgroups: rec.games.abstract
Subject: Re: A new game?
Date: 26 Jan 93 14:02:41 GMT

tomj@kibo.enet.dec.com (Tom Jaskiewicz) writes:

>On MxN boards with both M and N odd there is a 180 degree rotational symmetry
>around the central point.  Player 2 wins by maintaining the symmetry:

>+   +   +   +---+   +   +
>       /
>+   + / +   +   +   +---+
>     /  |
>+   +   +   #   +   +   +
>                |  /
>+---+   +   +   + / +   +
>                 /
>+   +   +---+   +   +   +

Which is fine until player one connects the middle point:

+   +   +
  _/  _/
 /   /
+   +   +
      _/
     /
+   +   +

-John Tromp (tromp@cwi.nl)         f() is total -- R.L. Goodstein
define s(n){;auto e,r;for(0;n;n/=b)r+=n%b*(b+1)^s(e++);return(r)}
define f(n){;for(b=2;n;b++)n=s(n)-1;return(b)} for(n=0;1;n++)f(n)
From: juergen@mpi-sb.mpg.de (Juergen Stuber)
Newsgroups: rec.games.abstract
Subject: Re: A new game?
Date: 26 Jan 1993 13:14:40 GMT
Organization: Max-Planck-Institut f"ur Informatik
Distribution: world
Reply-To: Juergen.Stuber@mpi-sb.mpg.de
NNTP-Posting-Host: mpii02000.ag2.mpi-sb.mpg.de

boll@CS.ColoState.EDU (dave boll) describes a new game:
>    The board: A MxN rectangle of dots.         
>    The play : Players alternate making moves, last one able to move wins
>    A move: A move in this game consists of drawing a straight line 
>       connecting two (previously untouched) dots. The line may not cross
>       any previously drawn line, nor can it pass thru one dot on the way
>       to another. Each dot can have at most one line touching it.
..
>  Anyway, has anyone ever heard of a game like this? Thoughts?

For boards with odd M and N this could be analyzed as a Nim-like game
as described in Winning Ways by Conway.

Jrgen

-- 
J"urgen Stuber <juergen.stuber@mpi-sb.mpg.de>
finger juergen@mpii02000.mpi-sb.mpg.de for pgp key
Ni f}r g{rna skriva p} svenska.
From: rmb@psg.npl.co.uk (Robin Barker)
Newsgroups: rec.games.abstract
Subject: Re: A new game?
Date: 27 Jan 93 10:37:50 GMT
Organization: National Physical Laboratory, UK

>In article <C19spy.3q2@SSD.intel.com>, wms@ssd.intel.com (William Shubert) writes:
>> boll@CS.ColoState.EDU (dave boll) describes a new game:
>>>    The board: A MxN rectangle of dots.         
>>>    The play : Players alternate making moves, last one able to move wins
>>>    A move: A move in this game consists of drawing a straight line 
>>>       connecting two (previously untouched) dots. The line may not cross
>>>       any previously drawn line, nor can it pass thru one dot on the way
>>>       to another. Each dot can have at most one line touching it.
>> ...
>>>  Anyway, has anyone ever heard of a game like this? Thoughts?
>> 
>>    Someone descibed a similar game about a month or two ago.  With this game
>> it's pretty clear immediately that player 1 can win on any MxN board if M
>> or N is even:
>> 
>> +   +   +   +
>>        /
>> +   + / +   +
>>      /
>> +   +   +   +
>> 
>> From here, any move that player 2 makes can be "mirrored" by player 1; player>> 2 MUST run out of moves first.  Is there a similar easy winning strategy on
>> oddxodd boards?

>On boards with odd sides with no common factor, you can connect a line between
>two corners with the same effect.

This is rubbish.  A line between two corners on a board with odd sides always
goes throught the central dot, so is not a legal move.  This move is legal
(and the first move of a winning "mirror" strategy, as described above) on
an MxN board if (M-1) and (N-1) have no common factor.  However, this 
requires that one of (M-1) and (N-1) is odd, so one of M or N is even; so
this construction is less general than the construction above.  

There can be no simple "mirror" strategy on an odd sided board: the first move
touches two dots, leaving an odd number of dots, which can not be divided into
two congruent disjoint sets.
Newsgroups: rec.games.abstract
From: engp2063@nusunix1.nus.sg (NG CHEE MUN SIDNEY)
Subject: Re: Xiangi notations & rules
Organization: National University of Singapore
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.1 PL6]
Date: Thu, 21 Jan 1993 02:11:41 GMT

Jouni Tolonen (jtol@rieska.oulu.fi) wrote:
: 
: Some time ago there was a discussion about different notations in Chinese chess
: in rec.games.chess. A suggestion to be approved by Asian Xiangqi Federation 
: (AXF) was mentioned. Well, did they approve it?
In fact, this was not my suggestion. The idea was already hatched
some months before my posting in rec.games.chess. I was just merely
bringing up the idea for further discussion. Like it or not, this would soon be
approved by AXF in the AGM after the Xiangqi World Cup in Beijing in
May 1993. Also in store is a book on tactical jargons (Xiangqi) which
would soon be published.


: The first Finnish association for Chinese chess was established not long ago.
: We are planning to have algebraic notation as a standard in Finland. However,
: if I send any games to this group, I will use the AXF notation, right?

I think for the mean time, we would use any notations we are more
comfortable with till further action by the AXF.


: There were some games in rec.games.chess, too, but I haven't seen any lately.
: I would be interested eg. in endgame lessons, problems etc.
I posted a game some months ago. Due to the lack of discussion
(interest?), I have stopped doing so. I do not know the standard of
Xiangqi in Finland, but there are several classic Xiangqi books on
endgame problems and openings published during the Ming/Qing dynasty
which are very suitable for beginners. Unfortunately, all the 
Xiangqi books are published in Chinese. There are many such books in
sale in Singapore, and if you like, I can get these for you (provided
you pay the postage costs).

: 
: Does anybody have the exact!? rules concerning repetitive moves?
:
There are some moves which are limited to 3, like perpetually checkiung
the opponent's general; others are unrestricted eg, Rook threatens the
Horse which in turn threatens the Rook again. In such situation, a draw
can be declared if both sides do not change the moves. 
Newsgroups: rec.games.abstract
From: cet1@cus.cam.ac.uk (C.E. Thompson)
Subject: Re: A new game?
Organization: U of Cambridge, England
Date: Wed, 27 Jan 1993 17:59:30 GMT

In article <1k3dg0INN782@coli-gate.coli.uni-sb.de>, juergen@mpi-sb.mpg.de
(Juergen Stuber) writes:
|> boll@CS.ColoState.EDU (dave boll) describes a new game:
|> >    The board: A MxN rectangle of dots.         
|> >    The play : Players alternate making moves, last one able to move wins
|> >    A move: A move in this game consists of drawing a straight line 
|> >       connecting two (previously untouched) dots. The line may not cross
|> >       any previously drawn line, nor can it pass thru one dot on the way
|> >       to another. Each dot can have at most one line touching it.
|> ..
|> >  Anyway, has anyone ever heard of a game like this? Thoughts?
|> 
|> For boards with odd M and N this could be analyzed as a Nim-like game
|> as described in Winning Ways by Conway.

Of course it could be (and should be). There isn't going to be an enormously
simple characterisation of the winning positions, because the subspace of
games played on 1xn rectangles is the octal game .07 (is this "Dawson's
Kayles"? I haven't got Winning Ways with me) in which a move takes exactly
two counters (points) from a pile (set of contiguous lattice points) and
then divides the pile into 2 piles, either or both of which may be empty.
This has Nim values that repeat with a period of 34 for n > 52 (the exceptional
n being 0, 1, 15, 17, 18, 32, 35, 52). In particular the winning positions for
the second player are n=0,1,15,35,34m+5,34m+9,34m+21,34m+25,34m+29 (m>=0).

Chris Thompson
JANET:    cet1@uk.ac.cam.phx
Internet: cet1@phx.cam.ac.uk
Newsgroups: rec.games.abstract
From: nelson@reed.edu (Nelson Minar)
Subject: Re: LIFE
Organization: Reed College, Portland, OR
Date: Wed, 27 Jan 1993 17:54:32 GMT
Reply-To: nelson@reed.edu (Nelson Minar)

another vaguely amusing thing to do is to define two colours, say red
and white, and say "any cell created in part by a red cell is itself
red". An infection metaphor.

Typically I'd run a big world for awhile, and then infect one corner
of it and see how long the infection took to spread.
                __
nelson@reed.edu \/                  Where do you conceal the gun in a bikini?
Newsgroups: rec.games.abstract