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Comment by barcoder | Hacker News Reader

MUDs taught about the real world from the confines of my bedroom. As a teenager I was giving responsibility through my guild and had to negotiate with adults from all around the world.

My main MUD was Discworld MUD which was started in 1991. I can't describe the excitement I felt on finding a game where the world continued when I was offline. Where I could go to make friends with the thrill of also making enemies.

It was the perfect place to escape to, which taught me about addiction and many aspects of myself.

My character is still alive after 20 something years and if I feel like logging in I'm sure there will be friendly faces who remember me.

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I played a bit of Discworld, really great game. I love all the Terry Pratchett usenet quotes in the game.

I also played quite a bit of Ancient Anguish (still around) and Forsaken Lands (still around)

Sounded all wholesome and win until this bit:

> It was the perfect place to escape to, which taught me about addiction and many aspects of myself.

It surprises me that the world of MUD’s would have been addictive, but I suppose it didn’t limit the amount you could play per day?

On reflection, this was an unintentional healthy aspect of the BBS; 30 minutes a day and then booted for the next guy.

Oh, no, it was highly addictive. Socialization and safety at the same time? Interacting with grownups but nobody knows you're a dog? You can actually be good at something and get recognition for it without being judged by your physical age? Massively, massively powerful.

I managed to keep my IRL grades above failing, but as far as I was concerned they were no longer relevant, the people in the MUD were what mattered.

similar story although I can't remember the name of the MUD anymore. Nor much of the game for that fact. I do remember flee was an important concept and action early on when you started out. What did matter and stay was exactly what you said - there's this living and breathing world even when I'm not in it, live people and what's today knows as NPCs.. you could do something with people online interactively together and it wasn't talk/ytalk or IRC.

You should login and have a wander again. I've done the same recently, and it still has the same community / tone, a small relic of what the internet used to be!

I think I visited Grimne maybe 10 years ago? Some players were connected but all of them were running on automation scripts, i.e. no actual humans to talk to. There was an occasional admin popping in.

The feeling was eerie, like walking around an empty museum of your own past :)

Oh wow, the Discworld MUD was my mainstay in my early teens.

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