I have to agree that MUD's have a small pool to draw from for the reason you mentioned, the presence of more gaphical/less challenging games. I imagine a lot of gamers view it as Why do I want to invest in CF when I can buy an xbox game, put it in, and essentially break the game mechanics in 2 hours or look up cheat codes and play in god mode? People hate losing. Gamers especially. They want to win, and they want to be almost assured they can win. CF has no winning in the long run- your char will always die. To me that's the allure. It's like golf, I play it to play it, not to win it. It's also why I hate most other online games. If my main competition is AI, it's not difficult. Games like Halo become very repetetive after death match # 32542. And most fantasy non-rpg games ultimately just end up being button mashing pointlessness. Might look pretty on the screen, but there is really not the same satisfaction as you get when you land a tough PK or kill a tough mob like an Ancient - or dare I say it, Tiamat. I played the dragon age games, I liked them. I got the second one. I didn't even bother finishing it cause it just bored the hell out of me. I came back to CF instead.

There are a very distinct group of gamers that play games for the sake of the enjoyment they get just from playing, not playing to win.

I started playing 3 years ago. But I also liked reading fantasy books and the like when I was younger - Azure Bonds kicked ass!. I've played countless RPGs and such. I've tried a few of the big online games, though never WOW cause that just is something I would never bother with. I have never seen any game that really ofers what CF does. I saw a friend playing it, and I knew I had to try it. Have not stopped playing since.

So far, I can honestly say there is not a single game I have played more in my life than CF. And I played Halo 3 non stop when that came out.

I think the biggest problem for CF is generally it seems more intimidating than it really is. I think after a bit of playing, you read the wall of text as it goes by, but you certainly do not see CF in text terms. You visualize things.

When I read those R.A. Salvatore books, I didn't see words, I saw the images he created. The same thing happens when I play CF. Which is a testament to the Imms who coded and wrote the areas for this game. The enviroments and depth that it offers are amazing. Sometimes I feel like I'm reading a really good book when I play CF. (And then I get Pk'd cause I forgot to pay attention to my surroundings )

I truly believe the biggest untapped source of players is tied into the market for people who chronically read fantasy novels. Because they have no problem with reading text, they actually enjoy it. They enjoy these types of environments. And most people wish they could wander around them or be like some of their favorite characters. CF offers that very thing.

Any person that reads a choose your own adventure book (Do they still even make those?) that got introduced to CF I can almost guarantee would be hooked, if they got over that maybe few hour intial learning the basics hump. Not all would, but the vast majority I'd say would try out playing a character, if they have the time. (And yes Cf does take a fair bit of time- but that's a different discussion)

If I knew a 15 year old liked playing fantasy games, I could give him a few classic fantasy books, and if he read them, I'd bet he'd be willing to give CF a shot.

Just a theory. Mass Marketing won't help. Targetted marketing would. Cf offers something that a lot of people want, but don't know exist. I KNOW I would have been mudding in 2000 or earlier if I knew it existed. I didn't, I'd never heard of MUDs. When I did learn, I've been playing ever since. I really think most people don't even know this gaming option exists.

Imagine R.A. Salvatore's book had inside the cover an advertsiement for CF (not saying this is realistic or anything). That would probably make a lot of the readers curious enough to try it out because these are the sort of things those people enjoy.

Of course, attracting players is one thing, keeping players is different. You don't want to lose people, so CF has to consistently offer something new. Race class combos/ cabals- there is cutomization- but after three years I want that next challenge which is not always there, and not always easy to create for yourself as a player.

If reading books dies out (arguably this is a real concern), MUD's will. Until then, there will always, I think at least, be a market for MUDs. Some will die. The best ones will endure. I'd like to think CF is one of those that will endure.