SpielByWeb

[hagin]

I have several ideas in this category:

1. Do Not Play lists: the ability to nominate players you just don't want to play with. If someone is on your list they can't join a game you're in once you're in it. Nor can you join a game that they are in.

2. Invitation games: you set up a game and mark it as invite only. Anyone else can "join" but that simply means they're put on a list. The game creator has some short period of time (say 1-2 days) to choose the other players from those that applied;

3. Conditionally open games, meaning you can join if you satisfy whatever the condition is, which could be:

- minimum # of games played;
- minimum win %;
- maximum average turn time.

[freduk]

I'm wondering why you raise the topic? You've never had an abandoned game, nor are any of your current games overdue.
The ability to set up a game and have a "no thanks" list does sound nice. I'm not convinced the other 2 suggestions would fly, particularly #3 which has been discussed several times previously and is likely to cause more problems than it "fixes".
However, speaking personally, I'd prefer the developers spend their very limited time on bringing new games.

[stargate]

like freduk I wonder why you posted this

I looked at you completed games list and most of your opponents
in those games look like a list of who's who of the good people on SBW

1. this is a friendly site a "do not play list" is not friendly
I think this would create problems here we do not have, need or want

2. create passworded games and invite the people you want
or create a series of password protected "hagin" games
let the the people you want to play with know the password
and they can join on a first come first serve basis
this is currently done with the CrazyYog games

3. most users honor these requests others do not
that's life and you do not always get what you want

[mdfreeman7]

[Bkruppa]

I can't get no satisfaction...look at my stats

[mdfreeman7]

Hey, Bk, get off of my cloud!

[hagin]

Firstly, don't take this to be an indictment of anyone I've played with. So far I've only really had two complaints:

- a silly rule (but thats to do with the game not SBW or even any particular player); and

- people ending games (of RE) when they're going to lose anyway. It kinda throws the game to someone (usually the person who played just before them) but is really a function of inexperience and not anything bad.

Actually I will add a third to that list and it's really the motivator for this: there are certain people I've played with who will play the game the same way every time and they have a terrible record doing it. On another server at another time I had the same thing with Puerto Rico: a few players would play the factory/guild hall strategy EVERY game.

The point is that it simply gets a bit old.

Heres how I can see me using what I'm suggesting:

- If people paly a particular game completely randomly and just don't seem to care about learning (after several games), I'd rather than play with them, hence the "Thanks but no Thanks" list; and

- The invite list would be a good way of simply avoiding a repetitive game pattern. It's not that you'd want to avoid those players every game but you don't want them in 75% of the games you start either (which can happen at times). It just seems rather limiting and arbitrary that you have no control over who joins the games you create.

That's really what I'm getting at: more control over who plays in the games you create. Variety is a key factor here rather than abuse. Let me reiterate that my experience here at BSW has, for he most part, been superb.

[Rebelslayer]

If I set up a non-passworded game then I'm happy for anyone to join. If I want certain people I pm them with the password for a certain game.

Has worked well with almost a dozen different people so far.

I agree with Stargate that any formalised "no thanks" list would take away from what is a great site with less abuse or angst than any other site I have played a game on!

Compare that to BSW where about 1 in 5 games (real time) stops when the person who is about to lose quits!

Lets keep SBW as it is

[stargate]

to Rebelslayer --- Thank You

to hagin --- you can handle your problem by yourself
start a series of games i.e. hagin - 01, hagin - 02 etc .......
with a common password

advise the the dozen or so competitive players you want to play with
what the password will be and they can join as they like

as you meet more competitive players you can tell them the password

for the non-competitive players ---
I suggest you invite some of them to a two player game
and teach them the finer points of Reef Encounter
you will find that students can learn to beat the teacher

[hagin]

While having a common password is one solution, it's not a very good one. For example, I never even look at the passworded games. Only times I have is because I've been playing with some members of a local gaming club.

Plus the focus is wrong: everyone is excluded from a passworded game unless you include them. I want it the other way: everyone is included unless they're specifically excluded.

That's why a sign-up sheet for a game is (imho) a good idea. It lets you pick who to play with without specifically saying to someone "no I don't want to play with you" (when you probably just mean "I'd rather play with X for this game at least") because if you don't get in then the presumption is that there more people signed up than there were spots available.

[t_o_m9]

I 2nd Stargate and Rebelslayer. PMing people and setting up games is very easy.

[stargate]

I agree that since the games list was split into open and passworded games
people have not been looking at the passworded games as much
the positive site of the split is better then the negative side of the combined lists

but the CrazyYog, for geeks, for good players and other game series
do WORK

with a little work on your part you can do this with Reef Encounter
also -- after you create some games you can post a note in the forum
that way others will know there are games to join without checking
the list of passwored games all the time

[smlait]

[Bkruppa]

One other idea hagin, you could start a series of games specifically saying not to join, i.e. -- Amun-Re: Flatlanders need not apply

[t_o_m9]

what is BSW? By spiel web?