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AOL NEWS YEARBOOK Earthdate July 1995 |
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AOL NEWS YEARBOOK Earthdate July 1995 |
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THE MONTH IN BRIEF As more players started coming into Fed during the open beta period, we made some changes to make it easier to keep track of things when there were lots of people in the game. The <WHO> command had the variants <WHO channel#> and <WHO systemname> added. SpyNet Notice became toggleable so you could turn it off easily (phew!). That pesky cleaning droid started cleaning all around the solar system, rather than being confined to the Martian ruins. It was no longer safe to hide objects away so no-one else could use them. Tired of people forever wheeling her furniture down the road in their drunken revelry, Diesel bolted the piano firmly to the floor! Some tough new ships were added to Arena Space, giving those of a violent nature something to attack even when players aren't interested in fighting. Fed got a button on AOL's welcome screen for the first time and in just 15 minutes a veritable plethora of GroundHogs rushed - nay, stampeded! - to try out AOL's newest game, giving rise to numerous jokes about it being GroundHog Day. The first rumours started to surface about an organisation that was to become one of Fed's most venerable institutions... the Encasa Familia. Freya's 5" high heels were stolen, shock horror! Everyone wondered who had done the dastardly deed, and how she would survive without them. The job system was changed, abolishing what used to be known as milkrun jobs - simple, easy but low-paying jobs obtained automatically from the planet you were on. The promotion requirements for Merchants were changed. No longer did they have to increase their stats and then solve the awesome JP puzzle - instead their economic prowess was measured in the amount of profit they could make with their companies. The Starship Cantina was moved to a new location, making room for the Meeting Place where new players start out their lives in Fed DataSpace. The public address messages were introduced to give them information to help them get started. Two new Game Hosts started work - Syfari and SunKeeper. Alan Lenton, the creator of Federation, wrote a letter for the news explaining about the changes that were being made during the beta test period. We reprint part of the letter below.
Hello, This is just a short note to tell you all about the changes to Federation that are in train at the moment and to give you some idea of what we have in store in the future. We have been overwhelmed by the reception the game has received on AOL - when we agreed with AOL a few months ago to bring the game to the system, we didn't realise just what we were letting ourselves in for! We made a number of alterations to the game when we ported it - mainly to make it easier to cope with much larger numbers of players. These included making more communications channels available and adding extra objects for some of the stats puzzles. Since then we have been tuning the jobs that you get from the workboard, and we have taken an entire level of players - Merchants - out of having to do stat puzzles. Some of problems players have experienced, like the number of jobs, is a temporary problem caused by the fact that so many players are at low levels. As the game continues and its population spreads over the available ranks, many of the problems people are experiencing now will be alleviated. In the meantime we will try to make temporary adjustments in order to help things out. We have been working on a new puzzle for Journeypeople to complete in order to advance to the rank of Guild Master (not to be confused with the Grand Master of the Traders Guild, in whom Adventurers have a special interest!). This puzzle is in the final stages of testing at the moment, and as soon as it has been tested and all the loose ends are tied up, it will go in, allowing our patiently waiting JPs to advance to the next rank. A number of people have commented on the fact that they feel Federation is anachronistic because it is a text game. I must admit that when I wrote Federation nearly eight years ago I assumed that it would have a shelf life of a couple of years - four years if I was very lucky - and then I would have to go on to write more 'sophisticated' products. That hasn't proved to be the case. Federation is more popular now than when it was first launched - and that is in spite of not being a hack 'n' slay type game. Not unnaturally, every one looks at the almost overnight disappearance of single player text adventure games and expects the same to be the case for multi-player games - I know I did. What I had overlooked, however, was that single player games didn't vanish because people stopped buying them, they vanished because the very small number of large companies that control the distribution of games to the retailers decided that graphic games were the way of the future, and so stopped stocking then! The best analogy I've heard is one that was put to me a few years ago. It was that the relationship between text and graphic games is like that between books and television. There's plenty of room for both, and contrary to wildly exaggerated claims of the pundits when television first came out it didn't destroy people's ability to read. That said, we are talking to AOL about the possibility of developing new games for the system - probably graphical ones this time, and we will, of course, tell you all about them when we have something to report. I'd like to take this opportunity to thank you all for playing our game - we realise that sometimes it is a drag when something goes wrong and we can't fix it immediately. Your patience is greatly appreciated. Have fun playing Federation
If you're looking for the One True and Correct Path to Play Federation, you're going to be disappointed. There is no "correct" way to do anything. Everyone develops their own strategies. Sure, in the early ranks of the game you're hauling cargo, and that's quite simple, but you still have choices about doing other things to boost your groats and your trader credits - matching up objects with mobiles, gambling on the roulette wheel, even the choice of whether to do milkrun jobs, workboard jobs, or hold out for jobs from rich people! Once you get to trade on the exchanges, the only rule is: Buy Low, Sell High. The method you use to do this is for you to evolve for yourself, by observing the markets, observing the other players, and trying things out. If you ask one of the Game Hosts a question, you're going to get different answers from different Hosts. The Hosts all have personalities that they have evolved for their characters, and they'll stay in character when answering your questions. The Hosts are not obliged to answer all questions asked of them, only the reasonable questions. They will give out only so much information and then will tell you to RTFM (Read The Fed Manual).
Just who was the GroundHog who entered the game and then started offering clues in return for groats? Sadly no-one was willing to take him up on his oh-so-generous offer, so we weren't able to verify the accuracy or otherwise of his hints, but we suspect they may have been a little far from the truth! The Galactic Administration was shocked to discover that its secret science labs have been raided and some experimental fireproof shields stolen. Certain players have been flying into the sun unscathed while trying out their illicit shields... only to find that although they don't die, the gravity field of the sun prevents them from escaping back into the Interplanetary Wastes and they have to suicide anyway! Scientists are working to remotely disable all such devices and make the sun reliably fatal again. WorkThings Unite! You have nothing to lose but your chains. That's the cry going up as Fed's first Union is formed, the WTU. Read all about it in the message board.
It had to happen. DreamPixie's pixie sisters have swarmed over to the Solar System via DreamPixie's messed-up link to her developing planet. Slightly annoyed, Gecko X shot one down with his blaster, scraping up the remains into a plastic bag. Gecko gave the remains to Icedrake, the 25-foot long winged and clawed serpent who sits in CDs. With a taste for Pixie blood Icedrake hunted down all the little pixies he could find, even biting off DreamPixie's left wing! Since then DreamPixie has been seen hiding in unsuspecting fedlings' pockets... although that uncontrollable giggling of hers frequently gives her posistion away.
Explosions reverbrated through FedSpace all day Saturday... Jurre, anxious to test out his spanking-new missile racks, decided to take on Pegasus. Equally excited was AdmrlPinky, the leading benefactor of the "Peggy-go-Boom" fund who donated 1.5 meg to the cause. Two hours, four insurance policies, and dozens of missiles later, a rattled Jurre and a much poorer AdmrlPinky decided that the life of a bounty-hunter isn't all it's cracked up to be... Although AdmrlPinky could be reached for comment, FedNews declines to print TOS-able articles... Jurre was overheard asking, "Anyone know where to get some good hauling jobs?"
SarahT, preparing to embark on the awesome JP puzzle, during which it is entirely possible to blow up large sections of the planet Mars: "I feel like a baby about to explore an electric socket!"
Recently, many of us (US being those who know what we're doing, as opposed to THEM who are clueless) have noticed the veritable deluge of new players entering Federation DataSpace. Indeed, not an hour goes by without the coms being littered with such questions as "Where's the spaceport?", "Where's the office block", "What's a spaceport?", and, of course, the ever-popular "this sux. bye". Please, friends, tolerate these young captains, commanders, and yes, even the groundhogs. Certainly, they're annoying. They're clueless. We were nowhere near that clueless when we were new. Ever. Really, we weren't. But remember, these newbies will eventually be adventurers and traders. A few of them may even scrabble their way up to Squire. Wouldn't you like a friendly planet on your side? Isn't it nice to have someone owe you a favor, especially if all you did was lend them fuel money, or guide them to the shipyards? Rudeness, or worse, outbursts such as EMckensie's and GeckoX's recent killing spree helps no one and can only hurt you in the long run. This has been brought to you by Gold & Appel Enterprises, Inc. Opinions expressed in this article may or may not bear relation to the opinions of the editor, readers, or writer.
There is a huge difference between a GroundHog who is clueless, and a GroundHog who is obnoxious. While clueless newbods should be tolerated and helped until they learn the ropes, anyone who deliberately sets out to be obnoxious deserves everything they get. And of course, TOS violations will not be tolerated and will be dealt with, regardless of whether other players decide to exercise their trigger fingers! The standard AOL TOS rules apply in Fed, just as they do on the rest of the system.
Anyone who was on during one of the tests we ran last week will have seen the somewhat scary sight of over 100 RoboBod's marching around the Solar System. The Starship Cantina was doing a roaring trade in oily drinks! This was not part of a plot to overthrow the Galactic Administration and start a new order in Fed, it was merely our techdroids running a test to see how many simultaneous players the game could cope with. So don't panic!
Last week we reported on a new mafia appearing in Fed. Now they have come somewhat out into the open and have given themselves a name: the Encasa Familia. Several of our top newsdroids were destroyed to obtain this information, and one only survived long enough to deliver to us a message from the mafia group: "We are coming. The Encasa Familia shall begin to take shape. Already there are companies under direct control, and many fringe companies that have Alliances with us." It is rumored that the CEO of Danzig Industries Inc. has ties with this illustrious group, but the CEO was unavailable for comment.
If you read the Fed message board, you'll see a rash of new groups, organisations, societies, guilds, unions and so on. The Family, the Republic, the Pack, the Purple People... it seems everyone wants to start their own exclusive group, or join another group. Well, that's fine, but Fed really isn't a game that supports guilds or groups. There's no method for players to co-operate in an endeavour and then split the spoils. Players are encouraged to find things out on their own, by exploring and trying things out. Most of the groups offer protection to the members from... well, unspecified threats. But what exactly is there to be protected from? Fed isn't a violent game. Once you learn your way around the Solar System, it's very easy to avoid being shot at by the few violence-minded types. It's actually pretty hard to kill someone in space if they know what they're doing. Some of the groups offer maps or solutions to puzzles. But how do you know the information you are given is correct? Some of them demand answers as a requirement of joining. But why would you want to join a group just so the leader can pick your brains? The society that is Fed DataSpace on AOL is very young and incomplete. Until there are players at all ranks, it won't have a real shape or structure. When we have some players at the rank of Duke, the game will naturally fall into several different groupings as assorted players align with the Duke of their choice. But until then, there's really not much use for sects and societies in Fed, apart from the entertainment factor of group rivalry!
Fed is a game of economics and money, but a comm message from a player who shall remain nameless carried this just a bit too far: 'I WILL PAY REAL DOLLARS IF SOMEONE HELPS REPAY MY LOAN!' He never did specify how much he was offering.
Icedrake's back! Well, you might not have noticed he was gone, but he was... He's been on a safari hunt! "It wasss ssso exciting," he hissed. "We headed deep into the jungle, and then carefully ssstalked our prey... the sssucculent pixie!" Icedrake then proceeded to describe the 943 different ways to cook pixie, many of them too graphic for him to say very much about. (It's a good thing DreamPixie wasn't there to hear this!) After horrifying (and delighting) the listeners, Icedrake explained they also went to Denmark, where he ate a lot of danishes. We aren't sure if he's talking about the pastry or the residents of the country... Icedrake concluded his travelogue by giving all the listeners some roasted pixie on a stick with barbeque sauce; while several asked for honey mustard sauce for their pixie, the general consensus was that it was delicious, and that Pixie Season will be opening shortly.
The Chef's in the kitchen at Chez Diesel were most offended. The WaitDroids were gagging into the pizzas. Diesel herself was threatening to turn green! Why? Because a group of Fedders were discussing the most disgusting aspects of cuisine with relish. Nykk, XenXheng, AutumnDay and the demi-Goddess Hazed herself were the culprits. Their conversation ranged through such delicacies as spam, scrapple, haggis, chitlins, tripe and head cheese, by which time the bar had emptied as other patrons rushed for the toilets with their hands over their mouths. The big question of the evening was: What part of the chicken do the McNuggets come from? The second big question: Is discussing organs TOSable?
It's hard to believe, but it's true! Sweet li'l Xandra2 went on a massive killing spree several days ago! Literally hundreds of players got shot down by Xandra2's twin lasers... while standing on a planet's surface! It seems Xandra2 got the spanner and dipped it in the liquids under the altar in the Martian Ruins. Then, after journeying there, she brought the spanner to transuranics and supercharged the liquids that were coating it. With this delicate operation complete, she went and got the TDX. Dropping the TDX, she caught it with the spanner and channeled the explosive power! The spanner, glowing with untold energies, was then able to pry the twin laser right off her ship! With the twin lasers, Xandra2 made a tour of the Solar System, blowing players to bits as they sipped their drinks in CDs, wandered around the Mercury caverns, or fled for their lives! Fortunately, the killing spree came to an end when Xandra2 chased Amenemhet through the Interstellar Link to the planet Heliopolis... and the customs guards took Xandra2's twin lasers, since they were now an object instead of part of the ship. Xandra2 vows that she'll get her revenge on the customs guards by smuggling unstable anti-matter and explosives through the link for them to capture, and blow them all to bits.
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