[Freeciv-Dev] Re: (PR#7113) some update to a new homepage plan

["Brandon J. Van Every" <vanevery@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

<URL: http://rt.freeciv.org/Ticket/Display.html?id=7113 >

Horn Gábor wrote:
>
> Another idea: players should together create a kind of "wishlist". Eg
> every registered player should have 5 points every week to destribute
> between existing wishes or for create new wishes. This way w/ 
> time there
> would be a list which reflects what the players "wishes" the 
> most to be
> developed. It might serve as a request list for the devs (who if want,
> can use it).

This can backfire on you.  I don't know that you should be creating wishlist 
expectations that the developers don't have an intent or vested interest in 
fulfilling.

If a developer is firm on what he/she wants to do, a wishlist is merely a 
source of input/noise among many things in the universe.

If a developer is wishy-washy about what he/she wants to do, then she could 
design a poll/survey with a number of options on it that she thinks is 
appropriate.  That way players don't need "5 points a week" or some irrelevant 
doleing of meaningless pseudo-democratic resources.  Players would just pick 
the radio button that the *developer* might be interested in doing.

If you have a polling mechanism, players should be able to create them too.  
They might construct a proposal with a reasonable number of options, stick it 
into a poll, get hard data on player desires, and turn that into a persuasive 
presentation.  Some developer might be persuaded.

My point is mostly about people taking responsibility for action.  If a 
developer is choosing to get player input, then it works.  If a player realizes 
that he's merely crafting a proposal, and that she's responsible for crafting 
it, it works.  Players just wishlisting every week by some pseudo-democratic 
game where they have no real power or influence, does not work.


Cheers,                         www.indiegamedesign.com
Brandon Van Every               Seattle, WA

20% of the world is real.
80% is gobbledygook we make up inside our own heads.