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DF General Discussion / Re: DF Talk: Playstyles and You
« on: November 12, 2011, 09:23:31 pm »
I'm not good at categorizing myself, nor do I typically try. I think of myself as an engineer, which has elements of all three. (WARNING: Unavoidable opinion statement inbound.)
I'm a gamist in that I don't want to lose my fortress, and basic survival is currently just as challenging to me as I like it. I don't need a predefined goal or "win" condition to keep me motivated; if boredom sets in, I wait for some new project idea to strike me and start another file in the meantime. I'm still essentially a newbie, and I've always been able to find fresh challenges by simply digging deeper. For me, the sheer depth of the game is what makes the perma-death bearable: I can go head-to-head with all manner of deadly stuff, lose several times, and still feel like I've achieved something when I succeed, because all the resources I used up in the process were produced by my fortress. (This is where I stop short of total munchkinry: I'll gladly accept losses that I have a legitimate chance of avoiding or recovering from.)
My simulationist nature (normally manifested as a high level of immersion) is probably part of everything I've said so far, although I tend to get frustrated as the logistics become more complex. However, a lot of my gripes could be solved by other realistic additions - standing task orders ("always smelt X ore in Y stockpile"), more intelligent pathfinding, stuff I'm probably not the first to suggest. In other words, maintaining basic control of my settlement is the one thing I don't want to constantly fight for. (Tantrum spirals are the exception, as they represent a managerial epic fail.) I can see a potential use for the mayor and high-level nobles here, which may well be in the works already.
I'm a gamist in that I don't want to lose my fortress, and basic survival is currently just as challenging to me as I like it. I don't need a predefined goal or "win" condition to keep me motivated; if boredom sets in, I wait for some new project idea to strike me and start another file in the meantime. I'm still essentially a newbie, and I've always been able to find fresh challenges by simply digging deeper. For me, the sheer depth of the game is what makes the perma-death bearable: I can go head-to-head with all manner of deadly stuff, lose several times, and still feel like I've achieved something when I succeed, because all the resources I used up in the process were produced by my fortress. (This is where I stop short of total munchkinry: I'll gladly accept losses that I have a legitimate chance of avoiding or recovering from.)
My simulationist nature (normally manifested as a high level of immersion) is probably part of everything I've said so far, although I tend to get frustrated as the logistics become more complex. However, a lot of my gripes could be solved by other realistic additions - standing task orders ("always smelt X ore in Y stockpile"), more intelligent pathfinding, stuff I'm probably not the first to suggest. In other words, maintaining basic control of my settlement is the one thing I don't want to constantly fight for. (Tantrum spirals are the exception, as they represent a managerial epic fail.) I can see a potential use for the mayor and high-level nobles here, which may well be in the works already.