Your MD experience

[xrieg]

[u][b]Objective:[/b][/u]
Prepare [b]brief[/b] summary of your [b]personal [/b]opinion for each topic:
1. what brought you to MD and kept you for the first a few days/weeks,
2. what aspects of MD make you keep playing,
3. what in MD discourages you from playing more than you currently do (lack of something may also be a reason here),
Each question should be adressed and answered, preferrably in bullets for clarity. I am asking about gaming experience - all aspects may be positive or negative (number of ppl, ppl themselves, game mechanics, game handling, parties/ events etc etc)
Each bullet/item should be graded between 1 and 5 (1: almost neutral, 5: very important)

[u][b]How to enter:[/b][/u]
The only accepted entries are by forum PM to me with witle 'MD experience'. Please write whether:
1. you do not mind sharing your opinion with public, your name will be published with entry (default)
2. you prefer to remain anonymous, only your approx AD will be published (state it, in case I would want to award WP it could not remain anonymous, to be discussed)
I am interested in feedback from players with at least several weeks of MD experience.

[u][b]Prizes and judging:[/b][/u]
Prizes depends on number of original entries. Depending on number and quality I may award up to:
2 imps
2 sharpies
1 santa
1 WP ([b]only[/b] if number of entries high and some interesting perspectives)
I will judge entries - I will try to evaluate the feedback usefulness rather than it's allignment with my personal opinion. If somebody would want to sponsor, they would be entitled to award participants with their prizes. In case I will find entries interesting enough to merit a WP I will verify it with some veteran player before announcing it.

[u][b]Deadlines:[/b][/u]
I expect it to run no less than 1 month, deadlines will depend on number of original entries.
All original entries will be published here together with their authors (well, or their age)

[u][b]Example:[/b][/u]
Entry I would consider not original, not deserving recognition (schematic, true about any online game):
[quote]
1. what brought you to MD and kept you for the first a few days/weeks,
- great original graphics 5
2. what aspects of MD make you keep playing,
- great people 5
3. what in MD discourages you from playing more than you currently do (lack of something may also be a reason here),
- not enough people 2
[/quote]

[Seigheart]

I'll throw in a GC for every applicant that submits a decent quality review. (TK Sponsored)

I will let xrieg be a judge of the ones worthy of a GC.

Edit: Just to clarify, I do not mean shedding good light on MD by decent quality. But by the quality of the review itself.

Edited December 27, 2011 by Seigheart

[lone wolf pup]

Out of curiosity, can we start from returning after quitting, or do we have to start with the first few weeks of making an account.. which I can hardly remember anymore. Or maybe both >>

[xrieg]

@lwp: write both. the goal is to collect feedback what attracts ppl, keeps them, repells them. if you left out of boredom or found something more appealing at the time - write the reason. Keep it brief - but informative

Further clarification:
1. please remember to grade the importance to you of aspects you describe (the 1-5 scale), sometimes it may be derived from context... but sometimes plain number may replace the context :-)
2. in-game age I need only if you prefer your opinion to remain anonymous, for readers to give some 'background'; not required otherwise

Edited December 28, 2011 by xrieg

[ChildOfTheSoul]

This seems like a really interesting quest. I'm excited to hear about others' experiences and share my own.

[Krioni]

Sent mine! I am hoping this will also be seen by people who can use it to make a better experience throughout, I want to see this game grow and I truly enjoy all the people I play with. Cannot wait to read the others!

[xrieg]

I hope answers will be interesting to read to all.
I already received 10+ answers :-)
I am sure TK sponsorship helped - but first 2 entries I got almost immediately after posting the thread.
Do not hesitate to add your opinions - please fo not see it only as a way to anwer xrieg's curiosity - all entries will be published and with enough entries it may be useful for community and game creators/ moderators.

[Passant the Weak]

Please confim deadline will not be before January 7 or so. I wish to participate but won't be able before I'm back home after the 2nd.

[xrieg]

I confirm. While number of entries I received so far exceeds my expectations and I will likely set deadline last days of January, I do not plan to terminate it rapidly - I will announce deadline at least 7 days in advance

Edited December 29, 2011 by xrieg

[Atrumist]

Ooo thats great even me will have time to write something interesting. Thank you for the opportunity .

[Eagle Eye]

send, thanks to xrieg

[ChildOfTheSoul]

I still plan on shortening mine. Have you set a general deadline yet, xrieg?

[xrieg]

Nothing final, I guess about the end of January - I will announce deadline at least one week in advance. I hope to get more entries :-)

[Seigheart]

When will this contest end?

[Pipstickz]

[quote name='xrieg' timestamp='1325014592' post='98820']
[u][b]Deadlines:[/b][/u]
I expect it to run no less than 1 month, deadlines will depend on number of original entries.
All original entries will be published here together with their authors (well, or their age)
[/quote]

[Seigheart]

I was looking for a more exact date, not a rough estimate.

Thanks though Pip.

[xrieg]

I want to thank all that have already posted me their feedback - I admit its volume has exceeded my expectations. As I can see some post above screaming for entries publication *winks* I think I may set

[b]Deadline: Jan 31st 2012[/b]

LE: thank you Rumi... time flies :-)

Edited January 17, 2012 by xrieg

[Rumi]

I hope you mean 2012

[ChildOfTheSoul]

Edit: Joke's dead. I deserve the negative rep. :S

Edited January 19, 2012 by ChildOfTheSoul

[ZenTao]

I apologize greatly but the TK has already sponsored this so another sponsorship would be inappropriate.
BUT!!
I will personally sponsor this quest with a fresh Pimp if that's okay with you X?


[color=#a9a9a9][s]The TK will also sponsor this quest with the following Items.[/s][/color]

[color=#a9a9a9][s][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif][size=3]. SharpTear[/size][/font][/s][/color]
[color=#a9a9a9][s][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif][size=3]Pimped Grasan[/size][/font][/s][/color]
[color=#a9a9a9][s][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif][size=3] BP[/size][/font][/s][/color]

Edited January 26, 2012 by ZenTao

[xrieg]

Thanks ZenTao - I read your initial post and missed the later edit part and the question therein :-) Sure :-)

We passed the deadline and I will accept no more entries. I want to thank everybody who sent me their feedback - these posts made very interesting reading for me (very little time irl - so I skip most of other forum stuff to read those peacefully). These posts made me notice how diverse MD community is - how different ppl value different aspects of the game and react to different stuff. I will publish all entries within a few days and I hope they will make as interesting reading for others as they were to me. Thank you.

RL may delay processing - but I will do my best to publish all entries within days here, following with a few more days to announce rewards

[Seigheart]

Perfect xrief.

I'll be in GoE. Tally up the entries, and I will send you the Gold.

[xrieg]

[log=Mr Mystery]1. Well, when i first entered MD in 2008, i entered with a

friend, who is now, doing other stuff. But during that time, back in the old

days, where there weren't as many creatures, and rits such as Drachorn rits, and

angiens, and insane stats, dueling was fun, and a challanged. Head Hunting a rite

of passage, where everyone fought as equals. That is what kept me on. As time

passed by, i left the game, and would come back on christmas eve, every year to

see what has changed. At first it was the fighting, and eventually, the

roleplaying, and the community of which MD has.

-Unique Fighting System
- Ability to be who you want to be

2. Well as i answered in the first question, at first, it was the challange of

being able to build the ultimate ritual. Back then, we fought the basic

creatures, regardless of MP level. Drachorns, were rare only given to those that

have proven it. the General majority, had creatures that are easily obtainable,

Elements, Grasan, etc. Even the veterans during that time, arnt as powerful as

they are now. There is a fair chance of anyone being the strongest

fighter/tactician. This is why i choose to play. The 2nd reason, would have to be

the roleplaying aspect "Be what you want to be". Although back then it wasnt

official what you are, if you stay enough with that role, Mur would eventually

let the events present itself to make you what you will, RPC's.

- Varied Strategies of Fighting
- Developer giving the people power to influence the game

3. What ultimately made me quit the first time around, was that there was a lack

of development. Over time, nothing really changed. Eventually Drachorns were

given out, and anyone having them would have the immediate advantage. Those 6

drachorn rits, ouch. Fighting was no longer a challange of setting the best

ritual, it became on whether you have a drachorn or not, is it tokened? etc. I

was willing to Role play, for a while, even that failed. As more people are role

playing, it is easy to get outshadowed by another person. Role playing can only

bring you so much in this game, and eventually i decided to quit playing for the

time being, waiting for development to take it's course, and see how much will

have changed a year later.

- Overpowered Rituals came into being
- As more people have power to influence the game, the aspect of being unique got

lost.

So here i am, back again, to once again experience the MD Experience.

Hope you enjoyed reading this, as much as i have enjoyed typing it out [/log]
[log=Ledah]An advert in an old game called Tribal Wars brought to MD. It look odd

so I thought I'd pop in and have a go. It was like nothing I saw up until this

point (hand drawn pictures were the main thing I remember drawing me) and decided

to keep playing. There was a lot of testing at this stage with alliances and such

and it was just too fun to leave I don't play as much as I can nowadays but what

DOES keep me playing is the RP. I haven't seen any game that supports like MD.

the only thing that discourages me from playing 24/7 and showing my face as much

is skill damage. That's nasty stuff :/[/log]
[log=Soothing Sand] 1. It was a fateful day... I was looking for a game to play

for a bit, and I found magic duel.
~After a short tutorial, I chose to wait 24 hours before doing anything else.

Surprisingly, 5.
~Lots of principles and philosophy stuff to read. 3.

What kept me here after like 4 days of story mode
~A battle system that forced you to lose on purpose. 2.
~No skill trees! 5.
~Soo much to discover. 3.
~Puzzles-Bezerkers/Loreoot guards. 4.
~Very different, in general. 5.

2. What keeps me playing-
~Talking to people. Everyone here is smart in their own way, and willing to share

their ideas. 4.
~Fighting, a bit. Not a huge fan. 2.
~The fact that i can see the creator of the game playing his own creation. 5. And

he is awesome. 5
~Especially more recently, older players have real roles that effect many people.

4.
~The "feedback" system is real. Actual feedback. Even if people don't agree. 4.

3. What discourages me from playing more-
~Silence in the chat. 3.
~Losing the simplicity. Haven't thought this one through yet, but it's true. It

might be that I just didn't know anything back in the day. Sometimes I get the

urge to just get rid of everything I have except my hourglass. No creatures, no

money, nothing. I wonder what that would be like. 6.
~Haters? Maybe. 2.[/log]
[log=Dragual/ Dragual Monarth]1. what brought you to MD and kept you for the

first a few days/weeks,
-Curiosity, the drive to explore and see the rest of MD
2. what aspects of MD make you keep playing,
-Unique and original. It is so far from most other games. ALSO the social aspect

that makes it into a REAL roleplay game.
3. what in MD discourages you from playing more than you currently do (lack of

something may also be a reason here)
-Real life garbage. I would play more if RL wasn't such a pain[/log]
[log=Luke27/ Luc Recial]1. what brought you to MD and kept you for the first a

few days/weeks,
- Story 5 (even if the story isn't fully completed yet like which is stuck at a

"Under Construction" sign)
- Curiosity 5 (I liked that I would want to know more about his game than any

game I already played)
- Complexity and Simplicity 5 (if you really look carefully, this game is both

complex and simple at the same time and that's what hooked me in)

2. what aspects of MD make you keep playing,
- Learning 5 (basically about people. I take what I can from others in this game.

I like observing peoples reactions and such)

3. what in MD discourages you from playing more than you currently do (lack of

something may also be a reason here),
- Lack of communication 5 (people here,me included, lack this. Let it be in RP or

in the forum. This game just lacks it)
- Credit based 1 (I don't really hate it and I know it's what keeps MD alive but

I really want something more. Maybe I'm just tired of all the free links and

stuff)[/log]
[log=lone wolf pup/ Lone Wolf]1. what brought you to MD and kept you for the

first a few days/weeks,
-Loneliness, had known MD was a good game with a good community back before

quitting. 5
-Exploring, wanted to know the unknown. 2
-Uniqueness, MagicDuel is unique, no other game have I seen is similar to it and

it attracts me. 4
-Upgrading creatures, I was always curious to see what would be next and how much

stronger the next evolution would be! 3
-Holidays, I had started playing during the holidays, and during that time it was

very enjoyable time. 4
2. what aspects of MD make you keep playing,
-Desire, wanted to become one of the strongest players in the game and with the

change in battle and high ammount of people it seemed possible. (Still do.) 5
-Interacting, talking to the new people that would come in and some of the older

ones was enjoyable and that's what I look for in wasting time. 5
-Grinding, who doesn't love grinding! 5
-Mur, he was enjoyable to watch and see him experiment, not sure how else to put

that. 5
-Endless possibilities, as it is said! Much of the things on how one could be and

who others were are endless. 2 (Didn't join in, but it was a +)
-Creativity/thinking improvements, being around and interacting with the people

helped developed me as I grew up with the game. 4
3. what in MD discourages you from playing more than you currently do (lack of

something may also be a reason here),
-Skilldamage, it lessoned the productivity of the training I once was able to

obtain.5
-Community, it seems like there is no longer a stable community in MD. 4
-Low recruitment, not too many new faces stick around, and less to talk to and

train on. 5
-Vets, how they treat younger people opinions and ideas and how they treat people

is horrible. 5
-No longer being able to train and talk because of skilldamage. 5
-Inconvenient interacting during my time zone, less people are on when it is most

comfortable for me to get on, (unless Mur is on.) 5
-Fair competition, BHC (only fighting competition for awhile I can join) (PS

burns competition doesn't count! He smells!) was extremely unfair tipping in

favor of vets who new players will never be able to beat. 3[/log]
[log=Prince Marvolo/ Marvolo]What brought me to MD and kept you for the first few

days/weeks:

About 4 years ago, I was playing a silly an online game when I suddenly saw an

interesting ad somewhere on the screen. I clicked something then, and the ad

dissapeared. My thoughts: "Shit, that looked like an interesting one" My action:

*refresh* *refresh* *refresh* … Untill I found the advertisement again.
When I saw the homepage, I immedeately made an account, and started playing

Back then, I was a complete noob, had no idea what I should do, and was uttely

confused (beeing the 14/15 year old silly boy I was)
I think (can't remember a very lot from back then) I quit for a couple of days

then, but the fact that I knew I was missing something made me try again, meet

some interesting people, and actually getting past the first troubles of the

game.

The graphics (as an artist) also were a factor for me to stay at the beginning. I

just wanted to explore new things and see how they look
This, and the uniqueness of the game. (I PMed a LHO back then, asking if they

knew any similar game like MD (I think it was Grido I mailed))


What keeps me playing now:

A big factor for me personally, is that MD has been with me for quite an

important period of my life (14/15 year old till 18 now). The fact that I learned

a lot here, makes me feel that leaving, would make me not learn as much as I

did/do now.

In these years, MD also became a daily routine for me. And quitting would be

like… trying to quit smoking or something?
Of course, all the wonderful people I met here are also a big factor that I stay

here. And the always changing things that are always in MD

I must confess I sometimes am a very passive player, I log in, stay on my spot,

and occasionally say something when someone passes by. But I know a more active

period will come after that, so…

When I start my browser, I always type the same adresses (I know I could set the

mto homepage, but yeah…) Those are (in order of appereance) MD, MDforum, FB and

Youtube – it is a routine after opening Firefox.


What discourages me to play MD

Silly people beeing silly about silly things and making silly arguments and silly

fights.
I find that silly, to be honest…
The fights and disrespect between some people can ruin MD A Lot – maybe more than

they realise.
Also, the lack of activeness in MD is something that bothers me sometimes (while

I am not very active myself)

What brought me to MD and kept you for the first few days/weeks:

- Advertisement on another browser based game: I searched for it after it

dissapeared (ads:5)
- Homepage: very nice art and graphics (graphics: 4)
- The fact that is not always clear what to do made me quite fors ome days

(clearness: 2)
- Knowing you missed something: (mystery aspect: 5)
- Uniqueness (4)


What keeps me playing now:

- It's been with me in a long and important period of my life (4)
- Daily routine (5)
- People I met (5)


What discourages me to play MD

- Silly people (5)
- Activity (2)[/log]
[log=Princess Katt]1. what brought you to MD and kept you for the first a few

days/weeks

I was bored with the game I was playing one day, and found myself on one of the

game link sites. MD was featured, and I clicked on it.
I was first interested by the game concept and story, then I met Peace and Yala,

and they encouraged me. An important factor that kept me interested was Burns'

noob quest. I found it entertaining and challenging. Also, when I was discouraged

about fighting, people helped me... and then, before I knew it, it was Murmas,

and I found that participating in events was far better than many parties in RL.

2. what aspects of MD make you keep playing

More than anything else, it is the RP and the sense of community. Yes, there are

some players that bicker and complain, but you will find people like this

anywhere-- and besides, that is what makes it a true community, there is both

good and bad here. I feel that the friends I have made here are just as important

to me as the friends I have in RL.
I do enjoy the quests when they are not too difficult-- however, I enjoy that

people create quests, even those that I feel I don't have the time to pursue.
And I love when there is an event. There is always fun where there are people.

3. what in MD discourages you from playing more than you currently do (lack of

something may also be a reason here)

At present, I am a little discouraged with my own fighting ability, as I don't

seem to be able to improve easily, especially with Eon around and my having

joined a guild.
But mainly, I would play more if I had more time. Often RL issues get in the way

of my logging in at a certain time or participating in a quest or event. I have

rarely had to miss a day because of RL, but it has happened, and there was just

nothing I could do about it. I am a working professional, not a student, so my

time is often more limited.[/log]
[log=anonymous, age: 1-2Y AD]1. What brought you to MD and kept you for the first

a few days/weeks.

- I saw the website front page which showed all the various spells, principles

and graphics. A poor website would have made me walk away - 5
- The story was delightful with its beautiful graphics and choices. - 4
- Once plopped in the park I saw lots of people chatting, giving the game life

and interest (I didn't feel alone). - 3
- The few NPC fights and the puzzles kept me busy while I learned to get around

and made friends. -5
- worshipper feature - This allowed me to get a mentor which taught me how to fit

in the land and to create a persona. Without it, I might have lost interest and

moved on. It made me feel included. - 5

2.what aspects of MD make you keep playing.

- Quests. I love quests. I try to participate in as many as I can. I especially

like quests that involve interacting with the environment (e.g. clicking on rocks

and doing stuff). Best example of my favorite quests are Fyrd's quests. - 5
- Fighting. I like the multitude of creatures and rituals one can make. - 3
- Rare creature collecting (but who doesn't?). - 2
- Really enjoy getting items and resources. Almost a personal goal to see just

how much stuff I can get - 4
- Interraction with people. -3
- Being part of an alliance helps a lot to this end as it facilitates creating a

role in the game, and it automatically creates enemies and friends. - 5
- festivals. Brings people together == fun - 4
- wishpoints store with lots of abilities to strive for. I would want to see even

more abilities available - 5
- regular store. Also provides candy to strive for - 3
- christmas celebrations. Love the tree. Love the gifts. Love the happy, party

athmosphere it creates - 5

3. what in MD discourages you from playing more than you currently do

- Drama. Hate it. I avoid being dragged in it like the plague. - 4
- Demise of kings. I actually quite liked having kings, if only for the RP aspect

of it! Kings make me think of chivalry, which as a lady I very much enjoy. Their

demise left something empty behind. - 3
- Allowing people to have loyalty to multiple lands. I see that as abuse. When

you leave a land for another, you should loose the loyalty of the previous land.

I find it disheartening to see people jump from alliance to alliance only so they

can move freely through all the lands. That's simply not right. They are traitors

when they move alliance to the old alliance and should loose all benefits! -

5[/log]
[log=Tipu]1. what brought you to MD
A link in a MMORPG Top 100 List saying Magic duel.5

what kept you for the first a few days/weeks,
Spoilers.5

2. what aspects of MD make you keep playing,
I don't play MD... But i make MD play my game hehe.5

3. what in MD discourages you from playing more than you currently do
Discouragement is what makes me to Play more. [/log]
[log=Krioni]1. What brought you to MD and kept you playing for the first few days/weeks?
Found on a mmo site, tried it like many other different games. 2
Combat and interface, different at first but fairly simple to understand 3
The Creatures, and the different statistics and progression 5
Ease of use, able to have in window in the background 1
The ability to play as little or as much as I wanted and be able to still feel like I did something 4

2. What aspects of MD kept you playing?
Actually left because the above become boring, but what kept me playing when I returned:
People like Sharazhad and Firsanthalas who were welcoming 3
Questing 2
Roleplaying, taught by Mya, Keida, and some others 5
Opportunity to engrain myself in the world, meet, and help others 4
Different Creatures to obtain 1
Opportunity to form my character, creating a working piece of the game 4
Attention of some players who are like minded and want to enjoy other people 3
College allowing me to play on my own time without control of others 3
Stuff I had yet to explore or discover 3

3. What aspects of MD keep you from playing more than you currently do?
Combat centric nature for "strength" 4
The skewed view of skills by Mur and some others. That skills "really don't matter that much" so skill damage or combat doesn't matter that much, therefore causing large gaps between lower skill amounts and uppers, skill damage furthering that gap. 5
The dead nature of alliances 3
The lack of care for alliance badges and what they mean. From my understanding you attack other alliance members either by permission or if you are looking for a fight with an alliance, in theory. In actuality, I feel like alliance MP5's take it as easy training on significantly weaker MP4's. 5
Disregard for roleplaying by some 1
Vacation time and school 1
Feeling of being excluded from a more 'elite' group, even when I try to form who I am and interact, be active. Not understanding how I am lesser in some way. 3
Hating being caught in between casual player and hardcore and not being able to move up 2[/log]
[log=Orbi/ Orbinatus Numedorus]1. what brought you to MD and kept you for the first a few days/weeks,
* the hand drawn images
* the curiosity to understand how this game could attract quite a few players online as far as I could see
* the fact that the players themselves helped the beginners via the help functionality

2. what aspects of MD make you keep playing,
* the excitement to discover more creatures and their powers
* the interest of optimising the creatures rituals in offence and defence
* the fun to discuss in role play with some of the active players

3. what in MD discourages you from playing more than you currently do (lack of something may also be a reason here),
* the time it takes to catch up with some of the players who are already much more experienced.[/log]
[log=SkyArmy/ Eagle Eye]1. what brought you to MD and kept you for the first a few days/weeks,

- good game, more excitement and interesting game. 5

2. what aspects of MD make you keep playing,

- friendly and hater people, all the people here are unique because of the any land. forever MD 5

3. what in MD discourages you from playing more than you currently do (lack of something may also be a reason

- To solve the QUEST,PUZZLE and RIDDLE but im still FAILED. Communicate to each other land in REAL WORLD. Trying to be strong my opponent. Collecting creatures what fit to my stats(i love it). We cannot see the discouraging all people here willing to help you and most of all friendly.[/log]
[log=Zratam]1. what brought you to MD and kept you for the first a few days/weeks:
- The roleplaying elements at the beginning of the game (5): the initial story and its different paths, choosing elements to build part of a character, the possibility to get a public role in the game
- A game built as a learning quest (4), where abilities and knowledge about the world are gained gradually. I truly enjoyed not understanding some concepts (heat, differences between realms, crit abilities...) in the beginning, having to try things out or ask around. Resolving puzzles or quests also brought a lot of fun.
- No absolute ladder or ranking (2). Basically there is no direct comparison of players strength/might/level. It ensures that people do not (exclusively) focus on building the strongest profile/crit squad. In addition, this eases off any potential pressure on newbies if they could see straight away how strong (and impossible to reach) the oldest/strongest players are. To my mind, MP levels are different as one can choose to remain at a certain level.

2. what aspects of MD make you keep playing
- A game where players are really part of the world and can change it and shape it (5): RPCs, map areas named after actual players, game mechanics changed based on ideas/suggestions of players, etc
- The friendliness of its inhabitants (4). I found most people easy to talk to (that is if you try).
- The innovative events (3): festivals, halloween, christmas, head contest, torch contest, you name it, there is always something going on in MD.
- The number of different crits (1)

3. what in MD discourages you from playing more than you currently do
- The lack of public information about many game concepts (5). While I enjoyed discovering new things in the beginning, there are areas that remain completely obscure as little information is available in the game interface itself. For instance resources is still a grey area to me. What are the resources available, how to collect them, where to find the appropriate resource gathering tools, what to do with them... This knowledge is kept by a few and people don't talk so much about it. This is just an example, but I feel that game mechanics should be accessible to everyone, not just by a few.
- The hoarding and grinding (4). Some players unfortunately accumulate resources and shared tools to the point that only a few can use them of them. Quite a few times I went to places where shared tools are gathered, only to find empty urns only a few hours (or even a few minutes sometimes). This is very frustrating because one feels it is almost impossible to get access to these items and again a sense of being excluded is felt.
- The amount of time required to 'progress' in the game (2). Unless you have a lot of time to dedicate to MD on a regular basis, I have been so far under the impression that it is difficult to follow all quests, train regularly, etc in order to guarantee a steady character development.[/log]
[log=Chengmingz]Question 1
- Exploring. 3
- Amused with the mysteries, especially regarding the Loreroot Guards. 3

Question 2
- Hopes of an assassin role 5
- Friendly people 3
- Politics - The tensions and wars that may happen between the lands 2

Question 3
- The spam - People who keeps repeating words, clearing chat for no reason other than to annoy 3
- The disrespect -When people are rude towards other people. 5
- Stealing - When people do not honour their word and not keep their end of their bargain2[/log]
[log=Guillak]1. What brought you to MD and kept you for the first a few days/weeks

Uniqueness (3)
I remember wondering what the hell was going on, starting from the MD website itself. A strange story, in a peculiar world, keeps curious minds in a constant state of expectation. I just wanted to see what was going to happen, and explore as much as I could.

"Home-made" feeling (1)
Hand-drawn artworks, and those eternal spelling mistakes scattered everywhere [yeah I'm not a specialist myself either], make you understand you are in some sort of family environment, so you won't meet thousands of anonymous people, but rather a few (hopefully) nice persons.

Slowness, no stress (3)
No need for super-reflexes nor typing skills, no need to be connected at all times of the day nor every day. Although it helps.

Ailith bathing Lone Wolf (5)
My first real interaction (RP) with MD people. I became addicted.


2. What aspects of MD make you keep playing

People (5)
Having fun. Encountering new people, making friends, making (RP-)enemies (that I consider friends anyway). RP RP RP. And generosity of various people, taking various forms.

Using my head (3)
Trying to understand how this world works, having many questions without answers, keep me in suspense constantly. A closed world would probably be much more boring. Also, despite the "no spoiler" rules, one can find huge amounts of information, in the forum for instance, on which we can build our own "research", so we don't start completely from scratch.

Freedom (3)
I can do what I want. I've played another RPG recently, after a couple months spent in MD, and I was quite disappointed when I realized I could not sneeze, stick out my tongue, kick people in the pants, or meet a farting Tipu.

No end (2)
So why would I leave? The game is constantly evolving, new people keep coming, as I am growing. The more I play, the less I want to waste the time I invested here.


3. What in MD discourages you from playing more than you currently do

Bad behavior (5)
As in real life, a few people suffice to make you focus on bad things instead of the good ones, although I tend to ignore it. Greed to get rewards while there is no point in being stronger than the others in this game, forum bickering at all times, and being sent packing while I'm just trying to be nice, make me feel like closing my browser and have a walk to count the seagulls in the sky. I somehow miss my early days, when I was not aware of all those and everything looked marvelous.

Unfairness (3)
Tightly related to the previous point. The limit between game rules and common sense is unclear. Some use it at their advantage, others get punished while trying to help.

Mess (1)
... when a single scene is too crowded, you can't follow the chat anymore!

Zombie alts (1)
This prevents me from going to meet fresh people. I used to do it regularly, starting up conversation, but I don't do it much anymore since half of the times the newbie appears to be an alt that does not even care to reply. (N.B. I have no problem with alts as long as it is actually played, or if the alt owner clearly states it is an alt.)[/log]
[log=Axel Keravnos]what kept me from leaving at first:
-The LHO's were very helpful leaving hints to help me progress through the story mode faster, and also was just nice to see people who really cared that I made it through the story mode without any problems.Importance rating:3

-I love the artwork and how unique everything is and the clickable artwork is awesome. Importance rating 5/5

-The people here are all friendly and unique, it's a tight knit community and I love how fun everyone is in general

what repels me from playing more:

-On arrival to MD I was sort of confused with the story line and found it held little to me so I rushed through it. Importance rating:1

-I found the alliances slow, I was in the children of the eclipse for a short time and it had quite a bit of potential but nothing was really happening that I could see, as for all the other Alliances I know very little about them and

haven't been introduced or offered to join any. I find it disapointing as well. Importance rating 2/5

-Joining the alliance brings me to something that almost made me quit on the spot. I was teleported from a sanctuary and completely destroyed. I gained massive stats loss and -2million value points. Being mp4 I was able to leave the

alliance which really sucked and if it wasn't for the help of some people to fix my character I would have quit. I really dread the thought of advancing to mp5 and this takes quite a bit out of MD for me. I don't see the point of stat damage, it's no fun. Importance rating 5/5

-I quickly found out that roleplay is sort of a on the wall thing it's there and people really get into it but then there are the people who don't roleplay or just roleplay for attention. All in all the roleplay here isn't stable and I was sort of dissapointed about that. Importance rating 4/5

-Quests are so hard to do, they should give warning to newbies attempting them saying that older players have a massive advantage on you. Importance rating 3/5.

what I found more appealing in later stages (Mp4)

-I quickly grew in love with the complexity of the combat system and regularly get lost in to countless logs, figuring everything out from how influence affects the stats and vitality you put into creatures to each and every skill and

ability each creature has and how it would effect the outcome of a battle. Importance Rating:5/5


-Murmas or Christmas whichever you want to call it was amazing, the outcome of people gathering around the christmas tree the presents and how confused santa was active all the time or at least whenever I was awake showed true dedication

and a christmasy spirit. It really made me smile and get me all worked up and excited to play. Also introduced me to stat grinding which I am starting to love. MD really knows how to celebrate!! Importance rating 5/5[/log]
[log=anonymous, age 0.5y AD]1. what brought you to MD and kept you for the first a few days/weeks,

I like Rpgs so I look up for good games from time to time.

I was drawn in by the story mode first,as I started to advance I expected it to go on for a loong time and chose the longer waiting options in order to gain most stats at the end.Guessing stats are a way to power.I expected Story Mode to go on while I play the game thinking it would be nice to wait in anticipation and I'll log in at least to wait for the story to go on.

Soon I found out the story ended quickly but now there was a huge realm that I didn't expect to find,it wasn't particulary enticing to me despite the game looking not bad but since I'm cynical by default I expected to have disapointments sooner or later like game resets ,cheating players,shallow game mechanics..and I thought charcoal arts as a sign of second grade game and coloring like it's the second just before the supernova goes off,distracting,dark colors are easier on the eye.Yay I want a night mode for MD.

Also I hardly played any browser games before so there were lots of things I was simply unable to comprehend.I bet there is still lots of flaws in my understanding of this setting but as I sticked around by mostly by burning desire to gain stats and gather creatures despite my fairly low learning curve threshold and game's every man for himself alone in the jungle start(which is great but I could only faintly appreciate it).I was also stubborn(despite the little returns at mp3)by chance so sticked around for a while.

I liked the fighting with creatures,detailed panels,controls with basic use,existence of secrets to find,seeing daily this game getting bettter,letting you have fun without too much effort,that your char gets stronger by only logging in daily,also a good enviroment to experiment.This is a good setting to improve powers of imagination.I liked the shop,credits system,honor system,land affiliations, nicknames, avatars, clickies,papers..it didn't end as i go on,that's a looot of features connected well in one game which is a sign you can expect good results in return.Also being in a focused state is where game leads you to go at the side.A good invention.

Big amount of things available surprised me..I thought I would never ever catch up to older players..or it will be too much bother or the game seeming incomplete would suck at higher levels,that could be the main reason lots of new players leave this game,that the train left up the station already,you won't be able to ever make up the time you've lost,while this is true to some degree...better not give up and start from scratch.

2. what aspects of MD make you keep playing

All of the above..plus my daily need to grind be it stats or money even if it's on a game or improving mind powers by looking at nice pics.

Also as you do the same thing more it gets more pleasurable and addicting in a good way.Just being in MD becomes a nice routine after a while.

Some people are nice and intelligent here,so I like it.

3. what in MD discourages you from playing more than you currently do

A big problem is..player base is too little.It should be 10 times more with all the tools and stuff available.BFH could advertise it more on China..

It looks like a game that have some chance of being shut down.

Time is a real problem..

Sometimes I just don't want to play.

Eon is a pain we all should suffer apparently.So I'm not saying anything.

As I said before good qualities of this game that I can now appreciate,didn't appeal to me a lot mostly because my final expectations were low.Despite this I understood this was a game that took good efforts to make and as I go on I judged it an admirable,nice game.
[/log]
[log=nadrolski]1. What brought you to MD and kept you for the first a few days/weeks?
• I was looking for an no-need-to-download, free-to-play, role-playing fighting game, and MagicDuel came first to my search results. Wasn't really sure if I will last on this game as I do not know how things work, but kept on playing to learn and survive.
• Game concepts that were new to me made me stay to play.

2. What aspects of MD make you keep playing?
• Making me choose how I shape my own character kept me playing this game.

3. What in MD discourages you from playing more than you currently do?
• There seems to be favoritism within the game.[/log]
[log=tankfans]What brought you to MD and kept you for the first a few days/weeks?
The real life friend (in-game name: hunter1123) who invited me to MD - 5
The interesting storyline, eventually developed to going under-construction - 4
The unique artworks - 3

What aspects of MD make you keep playing?
The RPCs(Role-Playing Characters) and PWR(Player with Roles): SmartAlekRJ, Savelfuser, Metal Bunny, etc - 5
The quests given by RPCs (Ailith, Akasha, Alche, Aqune, Bootes, Calyx of Isis, Gargant, Grido, John, Junior, Khalazdad, MetalBunny, Morgana Le Fey, phrog, Raven, Savelfuser, simplyzero, etc.) and Cutler - 4
The Combat System and Creature Abilities - 3

What in MD discourages you from playing more than you currently do (lack of something may also be a reason here)?
Also reason why I had been inactive for a long time
Under-constructing storylines - 4
Stats-gap with other players - 4
Fall of Willow's Shop and Golden Globe Gazebo - 4
Scattering population, hard to find other characters - 3
Tokens - 4
MD friends missing/quit - 4
Lack of NPCs and creature fights with non-players (there was a period that I can't find a single player to attack) - 5

Initial reason why I came back around September
To get gifts from the Christmas Tree, but sadly, I didn't meet the requirement
[/log]
[log=ChildOfTheSoul]"What Brought you to MD and kept you here?" (4/5)

What originally brought me to MD was a combination of a bad situation and strange luck. I used to really enjoy MMOs and RTS games, and played almost exclusively those types of games in regards to the computer.

When my desktop died about a year and a half ago, I was forced to use the local library and friends' houses to check my e-mail and such, which was when I started playing bbgs. It was on a browser-based game ranking site that I found Magic Duel.

It wasn't ranked at the top of the list, but the idea of a "choose your own adventure story" type game intrigued me. What truly held me was the game's prompt and friendly LHO staff as well as what the game promised, an experience with seemingly no limits.

When I bought new computers, I continued to play MD and obviously haven't stopped.
"What aspects of MD kept you playing?" (5/5)

I was enchanted by MD from the very start, but what really hooked me was how intimate it was. You would play alongside another person, and then the next day you'd see most everyone you saw yesterday.

MD is a small community, and it was exactly what I needed after such a long time of playing mmos with millions and millions of players. In most games, you'd get lost in a sea of other players, and there would be nothing unique about them.

MD is a vibrant and unique community, and every character is different. You'll never feel insignificant or anonymous. In MD, you feel like a part of something, rather than just another player out of millions. I love that about this game.
"What discourages you from playing more than you already do?" (3/5)

1. The Dispersion of the community, most notably the fighting community:

This has been the most significant and most bothersome thing that has happened to MD since I started playing, in my opinion. As an MP3, you are essentially "birthed" at the Marble Dale Park.

I know it says "A park of solitude in which to hear, the divine song you know is real", but MDP used to be a bustling hive of activity. Protectors would go there to protect their adepts and guide youngsters, LHOs would also go there to help newbies, and the rest of the community would meet at the park because it was a great place to fight, learn, and just talk.

That has since disappeared, partially because of skilldamage, and partially because most everyone has just stopped trying. It's frustrating, and keeps me from playing the game as actively as I used to.

2. The De-evolution from politics into bickering:

This might have happened before I even started playing, but it seems like important people used to have a certain air of dignity and respect around them.

People with positions used to tread with care and focus more on being positive role models and upholding the duties and responsibilities of their roles rather than trying to get each other in trouble.

Honestly, it doesn't bother me that much, but I wish that politics were less about complaining and more about cooperation.[/log]
[log=Chewett]1. What brought me to MD and kept me for the first few weeks/days

I found MD on the 20th (or so) page of Google for MMORPG's or something, i was very bored and was trying TONS of them. When i came to MD there was no game and no forum (it had been hacked and was down).

All there was, was a very wonderfully drawn image of the angien pulling the box, and a question, what do you think is in it.

I posted a couple replies to it, and was amused by the rather rude message to the hacker that broke the forum that I bookmarked the site.

A month or so later I was clearing up my bookmarks and found MD, went back to it and found it had a forum. So I registered. I like forums since I worked a couple and i like meeting new people.

Here we discussed various aspects of the game; the few print screens murry had put, and gave various opinions and insights into what we thought it should be like.

I found it incredibly interesting that a developer would be spending time talking to the users, iv never really experienced this for a game, and found it incredibly interesting. It was rather exciting to be one of the “first” users to a game, and this was certainly something that interested me.

During that period of time, it was the community that made me keep checking back. Seeing what X was doing, or how Y was. But most interestingly, what new feature murry would post on the forum next.

Then after a while we could play the game! That was interesting... no real combat since we couldn’t find anyone. And so i continued to play for a while. Until i had some work and stopped for a period of time.

Summary:
1 – Rude message to hacker
2 – A forum
3 – Interesting posed question
4 – Talking with a developer of a game, and the chance to play the Beta ect
5 – Awesome artwork
5 - Community

2. what aspects of MD make you keep playing

Iv gone through various stages of playing for various reasons. At points i was obsessed by the rituals and ways to make a good one. Then i also spent a period help run GGG and grind there. Iv spent a fair amount of run on bugs and such. And ofc for me, the forum is also one reason why i kept coming back.

But most of these reasons, where i had a period of in MD where some specific thing interested me. I got fascinated by a certain part, and started to do such a thing a lot because I found it fun.

But, the enduring part of MD that has always made me come back was the friends iv made. You guys know who you are, and this is one of the reasons i play MD. MD is a mix of so many different people and i love talking and meeting with you all.

The community has its problems, but overall my friends in the game, keep me in the game. Specific things that I’m doing will ebb and wane, but no matter what I’m doing, I will be on yim talking to whomever about whatever. Not even MD related, just random stuff.

Summary:
5 – Various things that interest me at a specific moment
1 – Various thing that doesn’t interest me at said moment
(aka everything can be boring or fun, depending on my mood at that time)
3 – Forum (because im running it lol)
5 - Community

3. what in MD discourages you from playing more than you currently do (lack of something may also be a reason here),

Lack of time is a major factor for me. I’m a relatively busy person and that limits the time i can play MD and do other social activities. And MD will always come after work and important RL events because that’s how it should.

There have been times where i have needed and taken a break. Where people and arguments have annoyed me to the point i just want to not hear any more. And thusly i do take breaks and such.

These arguments, specifically on the forum, are tiring for me since i do read them all. And they get old fast. You might read a whole page of posts each time you check the topic, iv most likely seen each and every one pop up, and read it one response at a time

I also dislike abuse for personal gain, and get rather frustrated when i present evidence, and it is completely ignored. But i cannot do anything about that, and therefore have tried to care less, since it is out of my hands.

Summary:
3 – Lack of time
4 – Arguments
5 – Arguments on forum specifically
2 – abusers not being punished and getting away with it[/log]
[log=phantasm]1. what brought you to MD and kept you for the first a few days/weeks:
:It was 2009, I had just stopped playing Warhammer and was bored. I found MD and created Phantasm(there are older char, but shall remain nameless for spoiler reasons). 3
:What kept me was the actual role playing going on. I have been a LONG time gamer, and when MMOs first started they were packed with great RP. As MMOs went mainstream RP was lost in place of the usual who can be first and have the most stuff. 5

2. what aspects of MD make you keep playing,
:Friends. People like Sagewoman, Windy, Shadowseeker, Marvolo, Zeiphneir,etc 5
:Caretakers. The alliance and East Land are home after being a traveler for as long as Phantasm was around. A feeling of home is often ones final accomplishment. 5

3. what in MD discourages you from playing more than you currently do
:Real Life. As a man with 2 grown children and a wife, I am a very busy person. Remodeling our house, spending time with the wife, and going on motorcycle rides(often for charity). 5
:Modern gamers perspective. As being an older gamer, I often am in the mind frame of game-playing from long ago. Now a days everything is so mainstream. Not just MD, but most all games are a race to see who can level up the fasts, have the most gear, have the most resources, and then laugh and be cruel to those who are lesser. 5

*Why all are 5* All of these are a 5 in my opinion because they are all the most important. I'm sure not just me but most of us could go on listing reasons for each question for hours.[/log]
[log=DarkRaptor]1.what brought you to MD and kept you for the first a few days/weeks?
a. Interest and complexity of the presented storyline as well as the captive graphics (5)
b. Learn and understand the basic dynamics of the realm, lands, lore and characters (4)
c. The novelity of a realm where players challenge each other with Quests in a dynamic world (3)

2.what aspects of MD make you keep playing?
a. The amount of secrets still to be discovered/achieved in the realm (4)
b. A small but motivated part of the comunity that keeps quests, fighting and trainning alive on the realm (5)
c. Curiosity and interest over the direction of the realm and his players (1)

3.what in MD discourages you from playing more than you currently do?
a. High dependency on other players favors and/or moods to enable your character progress (4)
b. Low number of efectively active players (3)
c. Inequity caused from declared and globally accepted "special" treatment for some influent/veteran players (5)
d. Some inconsistent game issues and restrictions: (5)
d1. Land loyalty accumulation, should not be possible to be loyal to all lands
d2. Alliance Leadership based on loyalty, a rebelion or a votes should be required to take leadership
d3. Shared Tools Usage restrictions based on citizenship, restrictions if exist should be based on skills
d4. Shared Tools Availability, controled access locations turn "Shared Tools" into "Private Tools"[/log]
[log=Passant the Weak]1. what brought you to MD and kept you for the first a few days/weeks,
When i tried MD, I was really tired of the games I was playing at that time. Either because they were becoming boring (rank rank rank was the game play) or because I felt treated bad by the admins (closure of a server for a game upgrade, that was actually a pretext to make people re-start from scratch and spend money).

My requirements for my new game were:
1. Free to play (I don't mind paying on a voluntary basis, but just don't want a game where who pays most is the best)
2. Power of character independant of time spent online (I have no problem being online around 12/16 hours a day... just I am active only a couple minutes in a row, randomly during that time.
3. Attractiveness of the game environment (I mean, i would not play a pokemon game as i have no interest nor knowledge of the pokemon world).

To find that new game I was looking for, I decided to do it by browsing a voting site linked by another game (one of the sites we are voting in via the Free credit section of MD).

So to answer the questions:

1. what brought you to MD
1.1. (Grade 2) When i saw the name Magic Duel Adventures, it reminded of MagicDuel the card game that I loved and I thought, that's a cool name. Let's test that.
1.2 (Grade 5) Reaching the home page of MDA I got a "wow". "This looks different. And it's as if they claim it's not for everyone.... then it's for me"
1 bis what kept you for the first few days weeks
1.3 (Grade 4) It was different! First time I am told to slow down (story mode) in a game. Cool unique artwork.
1.4. (Grade 5) Feeling that there was always something new to discover, day after day.
1.4 (Grade 3) I loved the berserker puzzle, and the way it was opening other things
1.5 (Grade 2) Sense of having found THE game that allows me to log in at the pace I chose and still have loads iof fun.
1.6 (Grade 4) Discovered newbies quests (Burns, Rhaegar, Mya) and loved the idea that players were REALLY involved in game design. Not counting that quests themselves were just great.

2. what aspects of MD make you keep playing,
2.1. (Grade 5) Feeling that I have not discovered half of what could be discovered in the realm.
2.2 (Grade 4) Community: there is a few players in there I love to meet and interact with
2.3 (Grade 3) Role: I have evolved in the realm and will continue. I have plans that I never manage to follow because I am so slow. But they end with new plans. I have a future here, and want to visit it!
2.4 (Grade 3) Recognition of a n00b: being given an independant tool while I was not well known and had not done anything visible in the realm was a pure happyness.
2.5 (Grade 5) Game updates. They have been scarce at my beginning (one year ago). I even wondered if the game was not dying. All recent updates give me hopes and willingness to see next update.
2.6 (Grade 3) Player's quest. Although i did not have much time to do quests lately, I enjoy them. Even those I don't participate in. To me MD will be dead when players will stop making quests.

3. what in MD discourages you from playing more than you currently do
3.1. (Grade 5) Free time. I play when I can. I cannot much more than I currently play.
3.2 (Grade 2) Something starts bothering me: power that a few others can have over me. I have no problem with being fought, being beaten, being skill damaged etc... But I want to keep the full responsibility of my actions.
I have been stroke by teleport spells against my will a few time. I don't understand those in term of role play. I can't do much against them (they strike me even when I am offline). They usually strike me after either I have spent credits on higher regeneration (which give me the feeling that someone stole my money) or after I have taken time and given all effort to go to a remote place (which gives me the feeling that someone is just making me waste my 2 days of walk). That is very discouraging to say the least.
3.3 (Grade 3) Use of ALTs. I might be biased, having been involved in ALT search and fighting in a couple other games. However recent discussions around ALTs make me believe they should be forbidden. Maybe accepted to test story mode, but then to be stored in a locker and forgotten. Every time there are some ALTs in a game they get abused one way or the other. And MD is no different on that matter.[/log]
[log=Fyrd Argentus]1. what brought you to MD and kept you for the first a few days/weeks.
• Nothing bad happens (like your army starving) if you leave the game for RL commitments. 5
• There is very little "reaction time" need in the game, mostly thinking and deciding quick 4
• Lots of different weird things to explore 4

2. What aspects of MD make you keep playing,
• The multi-faceted nature of the game. Something for every interest and temperament. 5
• An opportunity to shape the game by contributing quests, culture, politics 5
• The soap-opera flavor of wondering what the high-profile characters will do next 4
• Non-combat powers to be had are complex and interestingly mysterious 4

3. what in MD discourages you from playing more than you currently do (lack of something may also be a reason here),
• There have been many instances of major contributors having their work trashed, undercut or otherwise not valued. Investing energy here is a risky business. 4
• To do RP well requires more time commitment than I have in big blocks. 3
• I don't like relearning combat rules repeatedly when they seem likely to keep changing 3
• Building up combat power seems sort of pointless, it is open-ended, no real benefit. 3[/log]
[log=Pipstickz]what brought you to MD and kept you for the first a few days/weeks,
I was referred by someone from another game, played the tutorial, and found it rather boring, so I quit. Then I came back about a month or three later, and stayed for the community, the discoveries such as new creatures and story mode, and the personal evolution that eventually came with playing.

what aspects of MD make you keep playing,
Exactly the same ones that kept me around in the first place, with perhaps one more: I've put over a thousand days into this game, no sense letting that go to waste.

what in MD discourages you from playing more than you currently do (lack of something may also be a reason here),
I play MD more when there's actually something for me to do, whether that's picking fights on the forum, running around attacking people to raise a creature, or just talking to people. Every once in a while, I'll play my alts or make new ones, just to see through the eyes of a newbie again. Really, it ties in with the finding new things bit, there isn't many more superficial things (not research-based) that you can find once you've played for a significant amount of time. There's always new things being added, but it can't quite compare with the ignorance of being a newbie.

Community - 4
Finding new things - 5
Personal aspect - 4[/log]
[log=Nimrodel]1. What brought you to MD and kept you for the first a few days/weeks?
- People. The community was so friendly that I had to stay. It was like a heavenly retreat from a day of stress. Really refreshing and relaxing. Made me happy and brought a smile to my face. (5)
- Helped me improve my English. (2)
- Role-play. The whole idea of role-play was very interesting and captivating. Couldn’t find a game like this anywherelse on the net. (4)
2. What aspects of MD make you keep playing?
- People. Now that I have so many friends, I can’t let go of MD. I have to log on at least once a day to talk to them and find out what’s going on. (4)
- Politics. MD politics is as gripping as a mystery novel. You never know what you’re going to get to see. It’s highly entertaining. (3)
- Knowledge. I have learnt about so many things in MD. People of a variety of interests play this game. And they come from a lot of countries. It’s the variety of culture, tradition, people and the amount of information they have to share… from music to general knowledge to history to art… I’ve learnt so much… (5)
- Quests. It’s not just for the wish points and the other rewards even though they are addictive. It’s for the amount of information one gains by solving a quest. And the means one uses to win it. It was like a mental exercise. All the info I learnt while solving quests, I use them in everyday life. (5)
- Psychology. It’s very interesting to watch characters evolve in MD. Each character portrays some part of the player’s psychology. It gets even better when you know the person well outside the game. You learn so much about people and their behaviour. (5)
- Combat. Keeping goals and achieving them is one side of the combat while testing your logic and mental skills is the other. It’s not always about brute force in this game. There are elements of randomness and understanding which have a major part to play in combat skills. (3)
3. What in MD discourages you from playing more than you currently do (lack of something May also be a reason here)?
- Time. I barely have time to log on to MD for a day. My work and education steal away all my time. (5)
- Deviation of interests. I get to perform some awesome procedures in RL. Hence, the wavering of interest. (5)
[/log]
[log=Maebius]1. (overall 4/5 WP stars) While the Story Mode was interesting enough, and the strange little quests like the Berserker's Way puzzle are a wonderful introduction to the game, my first good memory of MD was meeting the people, and the sheer diversity of their actions, personalities, and papers. I met a nymph, quite a few Wolves, or anthro-furs, a Dragon, and a flirtatious Pubkeeper in a "pretend" pub. Even more-so, was Awiiya. Far beyond the mechanics of this game, seeing a "living Tree" in the form of a Rooted Philosopher, as well as the rather funny and Deepy Symbolic "Bob" which was rumored to Bloom, put my mind to wheeling in Joy and happy Potentials for this not-quite-Roleplaying "game". Below is a more bulleted breakdown:
2 - Mini quests like Berserker's Way/Willow's Shop guards.
3 - Story Mode choice alludes to the "personal" tone of our adventures here.
5 - People you meet in the Park and elsewhere. Diversity!
4 - Personal Papers, Concept of "Lands", and Alliances to group peoples.
4 - Starting creatures nicely diverse. Hints of other rare creatures to battle with later.
5 - Scenery, (visual aspect for otherwise chat-based game, & automated combat)

2. (3/5 WP stars) Quite related to the first points, the overall Theme of the MD realm keeps me logging in. The deeper I get into things, the more layers there appears to be. For those who love Roleplaying, there is plenty of that, if you seek it out and play along. For those who like the grind of training, there are combo fighters all around, and even Eon stands as an example of what someone with dedication and time could become. The many, many, Many different creatures and combinations of abilities really do add the most complexity I've seen for fighting, compared to other "strategy" games. And of course, beside all this, the spiritual/symbolic/esoteric secrets that Mur admits to scattering around the realms, add a much more unique layer of play-style for folks to persue.
4 - Theme of visual style
3 - Roleplaying Aspects (among other people)
4 - Role aspects (Mur's concept of "role", not to be confused with "fantasy emoting RP")
4 - Political concepts of Lands/Alliances
3 - Combat strategy, training stats
3 - creature collecting
4 - Research clues
2 - Forums, mood panels, and meta-chat stuff.

3. (3/5 WP stars) The main thing that discourages my playstyle is, strangely enough, the Drama and politics of the realm. I don't mind Eon, I don't mind the fact that Viscosity makes Tribunal hard to wander, but I do rather mind the constant complaining about those sorts of things. Additionally, I think that while Resources have changed the nature of the game considerably, it seems to have shifted the tone towards consumerism or "having resources". The principle of them is interesting, in terms of "something to do", and "how to handle Depletion", but the mechanics and tone seem to have changed the realm for me.
4 - Forum drama & cliques apparent.
3 - Resources encourage greed?
2 - selfishness in terms of Role
2 - Reliance on mechanics of things, before "potential RP".
2 - Timezone differences from my good friends limits interaction. [/log]
[log=gonzalocsdf95/gonzalocsdf]What led me to Magic Duel was searching for an unconventional role playand that also have a large community (unfortunately few speak Spanish) always ready to help. A game that is different from others but without losing the essence of the game role.The game I saw on the internet and I never regret trying it.
When you try it and see all those hand-made drawings, as well as the large number of creatures, a huge map to explore, mysteries and unexpected that will make you think more of the account .The ability to choose your own path in history and that each decision made can have any influence on the game is undoubtedly the most inportant aspect in my mind to let me catch the game.

What makes this game caught me and a lot is just "naturally compelling," his ability to make you want to play more and not stop to discover the mysteries and puzzles to assemble as many as the game offers.

Finally , in conclusion...I play this game very much..what stands out about this game is the work and dedication to improve the daily lives of people who make the game and also their ability to harness the different talent seach player has either artists (I aspire to it) or creating documents which can be very important to the newest.
Unfortunately... the aspect that makes not play even more is its poor translation in to Spanish (which is sometimes zero) , making them understand even a sentence task was many minutes or having to constantly use the translatoris not what better.[/log]
[log=Glaistig]1. what brought you to MD and kept you for the first a few days/weeks
My brother referred me to MD. It's curious, but I don't know how he found it. Most likely, he saw some mention of MD as a game in alpha testing--he enjoys jumping into testing phases of games. Ironically, MD has been in alpha stage forever anyway.

What kept me for the first few days/weeks was the element of exploration and discovery. MD's game mechanics were very novel to me, in that it was a browser game that incorporated a TCG-like strategy battle system (yet without trading cards, monsters are indeed cooler), puzzles, and--not only a storyline to explore--but a storyline that affected gameplay. The principles weren't fully developed and I think they still aren't, but they certainly leant more promise of magic, and the honor/mindpower system seemed clever. Without a doubt, MD is a very creative game world. It is only that it is also a very organic and disorganized world. These functions will never fully work, and with the way MD is developed, with features constantly being developed and others left with loose ties, it simply emulates the complexity and imperfection of real society.

2. what aspects of MD make you keep playing,
Perhaps, what aspects of MD made me keep playing? More or less, it was the social aspect. All of us players who were initially enamored with the novelties of this game system to become engaged saw ourselves in a community of other smart, intellectual individuals in a cool environment. We were privy to the development of what we presumed to be an excellent game; we wanted to be a part of that history, the intitial testers of the game. Early MD encouraged an open community that freely discussed the game's development in addition to getting to know each other; I think the chatbox made player interaction and community/culture formation really accessible. Having such a deep common bond as being part of MD (like a high), it was easy to make friends and I guess enemies as well. While others may have kept on returning to "discover everything" or "become the best in the early history of the game" the social aspect itself became a part of the game motivational system for me: to rise in the esteem of others, or to become popular, recognized, liked, I would attempt to accomplish reputation of some sort through the game's formal mechanics. This was exacerbated by the integration of social gameplay through the rpc/npc thing and Mur's assumption of the role of a social monarch--you can imagine, right?

3. what in MD discourages you from playing more than you currently do (lack of something may also be a reason here),
As the player population grows and changes to the gameplay are made, of course the game changes. The community and culture change. Older players become dissatisfied and leave, and your old group of friends are all gone, so you leave too, unless you also like the new group or find pleasure in being an old vet. In terms of MD, the rpc/npc deal or whatever it was called, adventure log, I can hardly remember by now, might have been innovative by some means, titillating at first, but it was also a drastic gameplay change. I didn't appreciate the level of experimental roleplaying (as opposed to formal game mechanic exploration) that came into play while many of the features I had been enamored by--puzzles? storyline? principles? battle?--remained the same status as the time before; I came to realize, they might never progress. Only new features would be introduced, and I already didn't like the new gameplay turn.

The new players didn't value the same things I did; they were new and fresh and easily enamored by everything MD was at that point, including the new features of MD as a roleplaying world, not a traditional roleplaying game, you know, rpg in a browser-based form. I found their manner of roleplaying and their enjoyment inane. I found the game overall, finally, to be inane. It was a whole different community, and a whole different game.

Real life factors also came into play. It wasn't easy for me to leave, since I was pretty addicted, but that meant I was spending an enormous amount of time on MD that was conflicting with important matters.

Anyway, that was not brief, but I am never brief. This is relatively concise for me.
A couple of years ago before I quit MD you might find my opinion much more inflamed and interesting. I feel a little bit bored by my own dispassion now, but I supposed that's that.[/log]
[log=Jolla]• ZenTao brought me in to MD Basically, she asked if I wanted to join in a really interesting RPG that she hadn’t played in a while. What kept me for the first days was the story, very intriguing not know what was going to happen next, was it right or wrong or what principles were and how they’re incorporated. What kept me the next few weeks was the mystery of “my” story and how it’s me and how my alt is someone totally different with a completely outrageous story. Wicked fun is the riddles/quests and people. MD provokes actual thoughts and interaction rather than just fighting and winning and that’s it…….

• The phases and traits of MD that keep me playing daily is that I get to see how much I’ve grown as a player and what I need to work on and honestly learn, listen and ask questions. The most impressive thing is that MD can’t be mastered so to speak and it’s ever changing. Coming in having never played RPG and not knowing squat to have people to interact with and learn along with you and actually having your questions answered by players and LHOs. I had never played anything other than gaming systems and that was seldom.

• Discourage from playing…… sorry, I honestly can’t answer that one. Gaming hasn’t been fun for me in 15+ years until MD. Besides getting to play with Zen and meeting some really interesting and awesome people from all over the world and becoming friends or enemies in some cases. I get to see how much I’ve grown as a player and what I need to work on and honestly learn, listen and ask questions. The most impressive thing is that MD can’t be mastered so to speak and it’s ever changing.[/log]
[log=FlyingChipmunk]1. what brought you to MD and kept you for the first a few days/weeks,

It is(or was... i've been here a while, but it hasn't really gotten old) a very different approach to a role playing experience, coming as close to pen and paper as you can without writing all over your screen. There's always all kinds of new things happening and new people moving through, molding it slightly as each passes. This has pretty much become the bar I use to judge any other games i start to play... needless to say.. not many have compared, and none surpassed.

2. what aspects of MD make you keep playing,

Definitely the people... a thousand different stories from different views in different styles... and even if you don't see eye to eye with someone, you can take two steps in any direction and have a handful or more people to talk to. the fluidity of people passing by, old and new, keeps everything interesting, and you never really have the same conversation twice.. unless you are really trying..

slightly less than the people is the interface in general.. you can jump in with almost no idea what is happening, and between helpful messages in the interface, and the occasional question asked to an older player, you almost look like you know what you're doing. the rewards and progression system is understandable, but not simply *click* level up! *click click* level up! *click click click*... you get my point. once again, letting different people decide how and why to reward what they choose. it really keeps monotony at bay.

3. what in MD discourages you from playing more than you currently do (lack of something may also be a reason here),

of the 1258 days (and counting) since i started playing, i've only actually been active 284... and i regret not being on more often.. but none of it was really through any fault of the game.. just reality getting into the way.. the only problem i do have is the fact that it is very hard to play on my phone, which is not really any fault of the game, just the fact that it's hard to keep things organized and seeable on a 4 inch screen... i would like (and could help build)an android (*sigh* or iphone i suppose) version... maybe not the full kit, but something to read/write letters, build rituals, check stats...things of that nature... i guess in actuality it wouldn't be hard to port the game over... the challenge would be keeping everything easy to access and uncluttered... and clickables i would probably get annoying... but i would def cough up some coin to just be able to take my writing desk mobile

as far as ratings? i never really though about it.. but i guess, to put it into perspective... if five is as high as i can go, i would say that everything about this game puts NWN at about a 2... and i loved that game

it's hard to review a game thats in its own little category, but i would (and do) highly recommend it to any fellow rper worth their salt

(...)

might be too later, but i found another feature that is totally worth a 6.. it cycles the winners in heads so everyone can have a chance to win a contest and a spiffy medal... i am fairly cool with that too...
[/log]
[log=Duke of Malfi]1. I was trying to find a way to sell my Magic the Gathering cards on the internet, as I had quit playing for quite long.
So, Google proved once again my friend: I saw MD's link within the first few results and clicked. That was it!
The site looked rather decent, its description was appealing, so I said why not. (3)
I could have easily left from day 1, as I found the game's interface rather hostile to the new player (not to mention the
game losing credit because of them innumerable typos and grammar mistakes). Wasn't sure if what I was doing was right, didn't know what each principle was about, didn't even know
whether I'd beaten them shades or not, till I accidentally hit the f5 button! So I could have easily quit, but I didn't. I
got stubborn, wanted to stay and find out what was going on, just because it was so hard to do so! (5)
Story mode also was a reason for me to stay too... It reminded me of the Lone Wolf gamebooks I'd been so hooked on many,
many years ago. (3)

2. I kept playing out of stubbornity, too! No matter how many things I'd discover, my questions grew more and more each day.
I had to find out everything. (5)
Another reason for it was its original artworks and the fact that the owner has a fixation with pencil drawings. (3)
I never role-played before, so that was something new for me, too. (2)
But the most important factor was this: I couldn't believe that a text-based browser game could be so... vivid! mp5s passed
by and it felt like giants were coming by, without seeing the actual movement or anything else other than a name under an
empty scene. I had to strive against this unseen but totally existant viscosity, I could do anything through blue letters
and most people would play along to what I'd do, most of the time. (5)
One of the most important reasons was the invention of the Duke. I love the Duke. It's part of me, I loved making his story
and his appearance and I enjoyed it to the full, just because I could make him anything I liked and present him to the others
in whatever way I wanted, no restrictions at all and whatsmore, I can still add to his story within the realm in any
direction I want. The game in general appeals to my creative side in a most interesting way. (5)

3. All that discourages me in the game is some people's behaviour. I hate sucking up in order to get something, I hate
nagging and patronizing, giving away spoilers easily or not so easily (coughs). I have ways to deal with that, but it's very
annoying to even read their text in chat... (4)
Another thing is waiting. I have to wait for my basket to become usable again, for the free credits to become available again,
for attacking someone a second time. I understand why that is, still it anoys me to some extend. (2)
I think I'd also prefer it if people roleplayed more. But not sure that discourages me. (2)
I found it also very discouraging when I got in an alliance right after I became mp4. I got kicked by giants repeatedly and
as I was not that into the combat system, I'm rather unballanced now. But that's my mistake, the game has nothing to do with
it, I guess... (4)
Last but not least, the combat system itself. I believe there could be a way to present each battle with a more user-friendly
way, and some general mechanics could be described somewhere (I know there is a combat faq, but we all know there's nothing
there, right?). The logs always discourage me from studying them, thus I can't make any useful deductions from them. Not
even my being stubborn can't treat this! (5)[/log]
[log=Kamisha]1. What brought you to MD and kept you for the first a few days/weeks:

Well that’s a tough one you see for the main reason was that I did not stay I kept clicking options in the story quest part annoyed that I had signed up for another point and click. I was playing for maybe 2 days and online for maybe a total of 2 hours before abandoning it completely. To be completely fair though I think that was something around 5 years ago so I was only 17 and I was impatient at that age. There was always something new to try. I was on again off again for a year it wasn’t until around the fourth time I came back that was the following year that I stayed.

2. What aspects of MD make you keep playing:

Difficult to actually put my finger directly on it so ill sort of stab randomly around the edges if you don’t mind too much; the reason being I never really made the choice to stay I just didn’t leave. However what did keep me was the role play that people implied (4). With any MMORPG or in this case MORPG the game is driven more by its community then its mechanic. You can create a great game with great mechanics but you don’t have a community immersion is lost and broken. In my occasional game reviews on youtube any multiplayer game when I see it online has to have a decent community or it loses its value considerably. That isn’t to say that the mechanics are not important just that they can’t stand alone in this genre. So obviously the next thing is the mechanics (3). The battle mechanic (5) is fun and the magic component (4) aids both role play and the battle mechanic which is important.
Like everybody though I like the art as the pencil, and keeping only black and white sort of give it a mysterious look as it sort of has a fantasy appeal to it. (3)

3. What in MD discourages you from playing more than you currently do (lack of something may also be a reason here):

Now I believe mur whole heartedly is trying to find just the right tweak or mechanic that sets it apart from other MMO’s but in my personal opinion no offence meant the battle mechanic has been in freefall for a while now (5). This actually merits a breakdown to make it a bit more understandable. In no particularly important order ill first list tokens. I (unlike most people) look at not only what I experience but what happens on the other end. In order for money to get to the game people have to spend some in order for there to be a steady flow simple as that. However I don’t have a problem with them. Its simply in the excess they cause a problem that can be major. A fully tokened drakehorn meets little resistance unless it hits another immobile object (another fully tokened drakehorn).
Skill damage is also a problem. I can understand the unbalance thing to cause skill damage. I mean the difference has to be extreme to actually feel that but when you got two players running around with skill damage it can take the fight right out of new players(4). I rarely take skill damage permanently since I fight so much and am very selective but damn it makes you want to hide for a while. I believe those who do have it have done a lot to earn it and it’s a rare occurrence to win the BHC but it hurts the system critically. There is also a fundamental loss of targets after the GGG closed down (4) but although I was against a training ground in that size being created when it was finally disassembled a lot of the players that gave me honor at a near balance left. Though those players were not a good influence and could not use strategy they did fill up the world a bit more when they ventured beyond the training ground walls.[/log]
[log=Aeneas]1. what brought you to MD and kept you for the first a few days/weeks?

- A friend had sent me an email to join this game. The mail remained forgotten for a long time. I found it after
2 months again when I was deleting some old emails. I decided to try the game, though I wasn't really that keen in
doing so, I must admit Thats how I started MD.
- The atmosphere. I was overwhelmed by the beauty of the hand draw artwork. These images are like they are moving
even though they dont. You see the dark and the light, you can feel the fear of a scary place or the warmth of
a sunny place. And all these in 2d by hand and only in black and white. (5)
- The story mode senario. The whole mystery is very intriguing. Who am I? How I been brought here? Who is this ghost girl?
What are all these people? I love solving mysteries! (4)
- Exploration. It is a great challenge for me to explore all these scenes and examine all this clickies. Every day
I discover details in the scenes that I haven't noticed before. In my first days I couldn't go anywhere except NML
and MB. I kept on playing out of a wicked need to discover all scenes. (4)
- LHO's. Very helpful and sleek guys. When I was lost they show me the way to continue. (4)
- The MD history. I've read the AL when I was in story mode. Very interesting! (4)

2. what aspects of MD make you keep playing?

- Not a "pay to succeed" game. The vast majority of the free browser games advertising that is "free to play".
The truth is that players who are able to spend a decent amount of cash for the game, have a large advantage
compared to them who do not pay, and eventually those who realize that they have no chance to succeed without
spending their money, abandon the game. MD is free, as all items in MD shop worth 1$ and you have the
option of "free credits" which is pretty cool. (5)
- The battle system. There are so many rituals, so many combinations. That makes the battle very unpredictable.
Predictable is boring, don't you think? The younger players have the opportunity to
beat a veteran if they choose the right ritual. That's awsome and make the young warriors to feel that there
are no invincible players in MD. (5)
- Role play. I'm not used in role playing games and I admit that I avoided roleplaying in the beginning. I started to
change my mind here in MD and day by day I speak to more people than I did in my first days. I'll have my personal
papers ready soon! (3)
- The public logs. I've never met this in a game before. You can see what others people think about a player and
make your first idea if he is a villain or a hero. You can also see what others have to say about you and correct something
in your attitude that may be wrong. Perfect! (5)
- Every character is unique. In other games I play, I usually choose an image from the web to use as an avatar
and my character is usually based on limited options. In MD I can be whoever I want to be. I can be a warrior, a magician, an
explorer, a priest, even a dead character! I have also the right to draw my own unique avatar.So cool! (5)
- The aura of moving players. "X" player was here, "Y" player passing by, "Z" player making tea... everything is in motion
in a stable 2d image! I love it! (5)
- The quests. It's not just the awards that they give. It is mainly that I had a lot of fun and I've learned a lot af things
about the game while I was searching clues for some quests I was trying to solve. Quests come and go very often in MD.
I cannot be bored in MD (5)
- The mystery. Ok I'm a noob and I haven't discovered the realm serets yet but I noticed that very few players
(not to say noone) have total knowledge about everything in the realm. For example I've read theories about a secret
path that starts inside the house of the liquid dust and leads to Necrovion but I'm not sure if anyone has discover
this path yet. (4)

3. what in MD discourages you from playing more than you currently do?

- High Viscosity. In some places it is impossible for me to go. I'm not saying that viscosity must been removed
from the game. Just to be a little bit lower. I want to visit Necrovion and the tribunal lands.
Please do not keep me outside... (3)
- Story mode idleness. I was like a lion in the cage for while it lasts. I wish I had something to do those days.
Something like an alternative land to explore inside the wooden box or so. (3)
- Alt accounts. I hate alts, unless they belong to people who officially investigate or test things for the
game. Ok, every character is unique but the player who pulls the strings is the same afterall. (4)
- The song in willow's shop. Doesn't fit with the whole atmosphere I believe (1)
- I have met a few bugs. People talking about more bugs. I don't know if a no-bug online game exists but I'd rather
there were less bugs. (5)[/log]

Yay, there they are :-) Enjoy
I aplologize, if my text preparation disrupted original formatting. pls let me know, if the damage I made changes the meaning or make the text less readable, I will try to rectify it asap :-P

[u]Request: [/u]
if you sent me your entry pls verify your entry is published and your preferences were observed ('private' sections, name/ age only preference)

[Glaistig]

Haha, I really liked reading all of this. Well, I didn't read all of it, but yeah.

Reading my own response made me realize an interesting point, which pertains more to the nitpicky issue about roleplayers, in that I disliked them for exemplifying aspects of my own playing style in MD--the whole spin and drum of roleplaying in that desire for social acknowledgement, for the feeling of acceptance in a community you esteem. Seeing how this subordinated the other aspects of the game, literally, in fact, in terms of game development, and otherwise in the attitude of players toward the game, allowed me to see how it was shallow. Though I did not explicitly relate it to myself, it did lead to a sense of dissatisfaction and searching. Why was I playing MD, after all? It took a bit of internalizing to process the changes in the game, but it eventually led me to quit.

There is certainly some legitimacy to roleplaying in a game. It added another dimension to MD, and it doesn't mean that players necessarily don't appreciate the more traditional aspects of its novel gameplay, battle mechanics, story, and player structure. Technically, roleplaying can be a creative exercise, and Mur's attempt to integrate it into part of the game system was another nod to MD's tradition of innovation. Isn't it natural to enjoy social interaction?--why not make a part of gameplay? I can see why other players can and will defend MD as it is now. But--it's not my thing. It requires too much suspension of disbelief for a shallow product, and I value more intellectual concepts in games than the social and dynamic alone. Yes, I enjoyed being a part of MD's community, but only while I liked that community for what it was. It's also not true that every community has its bickering and politics and drama, as some new players like to say; old MD's culture was very different from what it is now. I miss it.

For further comment on the deal of roleplaying in games and MD's development, I would like to add that there is a [b]balance[/b] (eh, eh? principles!) between chaos/imagination and rote/order. MD is so innovative by part because of Mur's inclination to experiment. But as he is adding in all these elements and trying all these things, the game becomes more complex, unmanageable, and gnarly--kind of a bit like reality, eh? There is a value to that. A mini-society, how interesting, how cool. But it wears down after a while--how interesting is it when that's what you're acquainted with in real life, anyway?

You can roleplay without going as far as asterisks, hence the normal sense communicated by "roleplaying games." Games by principle provide something different through rules, limits and simplification [b]in addition[/b] to fantasy and imagination: an alternate reality. I no longer see MD as an alternate reality (and I would rather see the aspect of roleplay and social play in MD executed in a more formal way). Mur has managed a bit by making his vision executable thus far. MD is a significant achievement. But I view it as unbalanced (in the end, though, since I'm disengaged from MD, I find that OK in a way--it's a compensation for MD's nature).

Finally, even ignoring personal preferences in gameplay, whenever significant change occurs and a new culture takes place, it's natural that older players miss what they are familiar with and feel displaced by newer players. In addition, some changes are bound to dissatisfy any one player. It depends on a host of factors, but I guess this is what Mur would call the inevitable loss of players.

Anyway, this is just a personal observation, provided to supplement my more mundane response. It looks like I've returned to my rambling habits. ;) From this you might get a better sense of what kind of person I represented in the previous MD community on the threshold of change, when it was dealing with the new roleplaying issue and game development. I used to be an incendiary anti-RP rabbler in the "stubborn old vet" school. As for why I still have some attachment to MD and bother replying to threads like this and visiting, it's the memories of good times that keep me going. :) Not MD as it is now; it's not mine any more.

Edited February 3, 2012 by Glaistig

[Jubaris]

Hmmmm, even if Glaistig is a player from different time of my own, I fullheartedly agree with her post - perhaps, not in the same way she meant it but rather in my own interpretation of the post.
Just recently, for example, had my own lack of understanding on the other side, in my discussion with one of the "new generation" players, when I showed "concern" about MD's development going "a bit" chaotic.

Edited February 3, 2012 by Rhaegar Targaryen