Limits: Escapism on a Budget

AJ · 2009-03-03T15:03:16

For those gamers who are motivated to play for the sense of exploring and stepping into another world, do you think that limits enhance or hinder escapism? If I were to tell you that you get to explore a strange, ancient world that's full of mystery, lore, puzzles and dangers-- but then I give you a time limit, either arbitrary or based on a resource (meaning you'll only be able to explore certain sites) what do you think that would do to your anticipation in terms of the experience? On the one hand, escapism almost seems like a virtual vacation. You're there to roam and see the sites and get into whatever trouble you want that the game offers. Having an itinerary seems to sort of spoil any hope of a leisurely pace, and as such would kill the enjoyment of escapism. On the other hand, having a limit can galvanize you into strategizing. If you only have X amount of time, then potentially each location you visit becomes all the more important. I've been thinking about this in terms of pure exploration centered around finding neat things and places or clues to where they can be found. I want to offer the fun of escapism but guard against aimless wandering. So I was thinking about creating a time/cost structure based around being funded for an expedition. This gives both a time limit and a monetary limit, both of which create strategy. Certain sites would require greater investment and offer greater potential rewards (including more time/money), but others could be dead ends or red herrings. This probably divides goal centric and self directed gamers. It would likely be possible to cater to both types, but if I do the strength of each type of gameplay would be diminished. Thoughts?