@KarmaBum
That’s perfectly understandable! And thanks for expounding, it really helps me to understand where Silent Heaven stands in the MU ecosystem, haha.
Here are some responses to your points. Don’t worry, I’m not trying to convince you to play. I’m just providing clarifications.
1- I understand the frustration with mobile closing the connection the instant you tab out. I’ve recently learned about split screen being a feature for Android phones to help with web connections. It’s still not ideal, but maybe someone reading this doesn’t know about split screen and could benefit from it. (Tap the button that lets you switch apps, then tap the icon at the top, and choose “Split Screen.”)
2- The Discord server is absolutely not necessary. It’s just for OOC chatter. I’ve seen a number of issues for when public OOC is on the same medium as IC, involving people blurring the lines between the two. And for a game like Silent Heaven that could carry higher bleed than usual, I felt it prudent to separate the two. Everything else, such as event scheduling and notifications about OOC updates, are available in-game.
3- I worked hard on making an intro sequence that sets the tone while teaching the most necessary commands, so there are no worries there, haha. The first 30 minutes of any new player’s experience are the most important minutes, because those are when they’re most likely to bail if they can’t figure something out.
4- I fully understand that the “crunchiness” of the game mechanics is a dealbreaker. I did my best to make it support RP, not supplant it. For example, the automated NPC responses are to help when PCs or Storytellers aren’t available, with teaching commands, providing basic setting information, and suggesting safe places to explore. While it helps with some of the cognitive offload of initiating new players into a setting, as well as standardizing rules around certain aspects of the game, it is ultimately gamier, and I accept that that reduces freedom.
Thank you again for responding!