Gamemaster powers
Posted: Mon May 27, 2019 8:31 am
I have the impression that there was no formal institution of a GM until 2018, maybe I'm wrong. It's a good idea, keeps things from totally descending into Thomas Hobbes law-of-nature (even though I know that would be fun for some).
However, seems to me there's also some real potential for conflict of interest if the GM is simultaneously a player the game he or she is GM'ing. I'm not naming any names, just talking theoretically, in a spirit of sportsmanship. I'm sure everyone wants to make the best game possible.
Two big questions:
1. What exactly are the technological powers of a GM, I mean over the machinery of the game itself?
2. Must a GM have a country in the game, or can he or she be a non-player?
I think depending on the answer to #1, #2 is extremely important. Even if the person has the best intentions, best reputation, best integrity, he or she is open to accusations of cheating that would be far worse than what could be said about a player using algorithms or scripts.
It's the difference between an athlete using a performance enhancement drug (give me some of that sweet sweet AI to manage my cities better) and having the referee of the game also playing it (don't like a player? oooop magically he can't access the game. having an argument with a player? oooop I need to do a "bug check" to make sure everything is hunky dory). Again, I'm not naming any names, but I think this needs to be discussed.
A third but small question:
There's another element to this. Let's say the GM needs to have a country in the game, but only builds one city. Very good of him or her ... but what happens if some jerk then destroys the city? Seems to me like a weird vulnerability to have in the game.
Post-script:
The easiest solution would be to literally have a referee system, such that there are people who are the "professional" GMs. That's not realistic of course because everyone wants to play. So, it would be good if there was at least a rule that a player cannot be a GM in the game he or she is GM'ing.
It would also be good to find some way of enforcing that rule (like if he or she slips in under another name). It's easy to see how GMs themselves could turn into a cabal. But maybe that worry is putting the cart before the horse.
Fundamentally, the GM situation goes to the heart of the legitimacy of the main FCW website. So, the issue goes beyond sportsmanship, to some extent into community politics. (There are already two clones out there, which I suppose is one answer to the problem...)
However, seems to me there's also some real potential for conflict of interest if the GM is simultaneously a player the game he or she is GM'ing. I'm not naming any names, just talking theoretically, in a spirit of sportsmanship. I'm sure everyone wants to make the best game possible.
Two big questions:
1. What exactly are the technological powers of a GM, I mean over the machinery of the game itself?
2. Must a GM have a country in the game, or can he or she be a non-player?
I think depending on the answer to #1, #2 is extremely important. Even if the person has the best intentions, best reputation, best integrity, he or she is open to accusations of cheating that would be far worse than what could be said about a player using algorithms or scripts.
It's the difference between an athlete using a performance enhancement drug (give me some of that sweet sweet AI to manage my cities better) and having the referee of the game also playing it (don't like a player? oooop magically he can't access the game. having an argument with a player? oooop I need to do a "bug check" to make sure everything is hunky dory). Again, I'm not naming any names, but I think this needs to be discussed.
A third but small question:
There's another element to this. Let's say the GM needs to have a country in the game, but only builds one city. Very good of him or her ... but what happens if some jerk then destroys the city? Seems to me like a weird vulnerability to have in the game.
Post-script:
The easiest solution would be to literally have a referee system, such that there are people who are the "professional" GMs. That's not realistic of course because everyone wants to play. So, it would be good if there was at least a rule that a player cannot be a GM in the game he or she is GM'ing.
It would also be good to find some way of enforcing that rule (like if he or she slips in under another name). It's easy to see how GMs themselves could turn into a cabal. But maybe that worry is putting the cart before the horse.
Fundamentally, the GM situation goes to the heart of the legitimacy of the main FCW website. So, the issue goes beyond sportsmanship, to some extent into community politics. (There are already two clones out there, which I suppose is one answer to the problem...)