Considered Harmful

Kingdom of Loathing is, to quote Wikipedia, a “browser-based multiplayer role-playing game.” It was released all the way back in 2003 and is still being actively developed fifteen years later. (You may be aware of West of Loathing, which has a very similar style.)

The game has a rather… unique style. The playerbase isn’t what it used to be, but it’s still worth playing, and there’s a small but dedicated community of speedruners.

The game also makes for a few very interesting case studies. Kingdom of Loathing contains early versions of a lot of freemium elements… but far less predatory, and introduced years before they became popular. I particularly like its implementation of “premium currencies” and “turn limits.”

Today, I want to talk about gambling minigames.

(Specifically, the little fellow in the corner.)

Continue reading An Oral History of the Money Making Game

1. To make a statement about a subject that immediately reveals you know nothing about it.
   If you hadn’t epoxied the birdbath, you would have remained a philosopher.
   
2. To become confused when attempting to follow a guide, with catastrophic results.
   “You tried to bake foil-wrapped potatoes in the microwave?” – “Yeah, the recipe confused me and I ended up epoxying the birdbath.”
   
3. To give worthless but technically accurate advice to someone, just so you can tell them it’s their own fault when something inevitably goes wrong.
   Take an old computer and first epoxy the ethernet port so it’s not able to go online. (…) Write down the key and bury the paper wallet under a birdbath in your backyard.