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[Shell]

Rules of Engagement

[Rogi Ocnorb]

Respect is everything.

Respect the genre and its history. The revolutionary twist you're contemplating has probably been tried already and there are lessons to be learned, good or bad.

Respect your players. Collectively, they're smarter, faster, and generally better in all ways than you.

Respect your resources. Pooping all over somebody's site leaves a bad taste in everybody's mouth.

Respect yourself. Don't start something you aren't absolutely sure you can will finish. Know your limitations and get help if you need it. It's really NOT okay to fail.

ETA: Regarding respect for the players...
As I sit here, watching Stargate's 200th episode, I'll have to offer up a quote from Cam Mitchell...
"Never underestimate your audience. They're generally sensitive, intelligent people who respond positively to quality entertainment. "

[vpisteve]

It's tough to say there are any hard and fast rules from a design standpoint, as every project is different. But some very general "best-practices" may be emerging.

For me personally, I have a few guidelines for design and execution. Again, these are very loose :

1. "Is it fun?" Anybody can make a tough puzzle, or a clever experience. But the thing to keep asking yourself every day is, "Is this fun for the player?" If it's not, fix it or throw it out. Also, when it comes to puzzles or gates, it's important to strive to make your players feel clever for solving them, as opposed to marveling at your cleverness in building them.
2. "Just because you can, doesn't mean you should." Self-explanatory. There may be things that that sound cool on paper (such as pitting players against each other), but are usually very problematic at best, or disastrous at worst. Think things through very carefully, looking at real-life historical examples when possible.
3. "Players can't break things, only design can make things that are breakable." In other words, don't blame the players for doing something you didn't anticipate, or being dumb, or "playing it wrong." If something's broken, it's because you didn't take something into account, so step back, take a breath and figure out a way to fix it.
4. "See how it plays out before you react." Don't make knee-jerk decisions when your game is live. Give things a little time. Players are still having fun, can't see the bedlam going on behind the scenes, and 9 times out of 10 the problem will fix itself.
5. "Jazz, not chess." Remember, your not in competition with your players, you're more like playing Dueling Banjos with them. Together you are shaping the experience, and it just may go in a different direction than either of you anticipate.

[notgordian]

The ARGFest 2007 Keynote is very relevant to your question. Sean Stewart and Elan Lee argue that it all condenses to TRUST, and I agree.

As long as you create an environment that seems fun, you're doing it right. The more fun you make it seem, the more the players will be willing to put up with the odd mistakes and bumps in the road that will come up. But realize you're developing a relationship here: the players need to trust you to keep up the fun, and you need to trust the players to be there for you.

And honestly, this philosophy applies for more than just ARGs.

[thebruce]

[Rogi Ocnorb]

Thanks for the back-up, thebruce. The "respect your players" mantra can't be reiterated, enough.

But I really was going for a different take on the "respect yourself" tangent.

In a world where high-school graduates are unable to read and personal responsibility is quickly becoming an endangered species, I think it's worth pointing out that beyond the burden it imposes on others, giving yourself a pass on everything that gets too involved or boring is a long, convoluted path to a wasted life. A little instant gratification is a fine thing. a great mid-morning snack, if you will. But if that's your diet, you'll eventually become malnourished. Sometimes you've got to fill yourself up with pride. And the only way to do that is to have completed something involving real work and risk.

[thebruce]