(Ln(x))3

The everyday blog of Richard Bartle.

RSS feeds: v0.91; v1.0 (RDF); v2.0; Atom.

Previous entry.


6:50am on Sunday, 26th October, 2025:

Poz Talk

Anecdote

I gave my presentation yesterday.



It went well, I think, apart from the fact I arrived at 3pm in the belief that the time was 4pm. I should have checked my watch first. Still, I got to listen to someone else's presentation while I waited.

My talk was about what we as the creators of virtual worlds owe morally to the NPCs of our worlds, or rather what we would owe them if they were as smart as or smarter than us. It's based on a talk I gave six years ago to a group of AI-and-games experts, but now that the rest of the world has caught up with the necessary AI knowledge I was able to give it to games experts. I'll upload it when I'm home and get a chance to do so.

Immediately afterwards, I was on a panel about the history of MMOs, alongside Gordon Walton and Dan Scherlis (who are also veterans of many decades standing). That was quite fun; I just wish I'd been on it before I finished the history section of Designing Virtual Worlds, 2nd edition. There were some curious facts mentioned of which I wasn't previously aware.

Overall, this was a very enjoyable conference and I met (or remet) a bunch of interesting and enthusiastic people. The games scene in Eastern Europe is packed with knowledgeable, driven enthusiasts, rather than the jaded, overworked enthusiasts we tend to get in the UK. I'm missing the final day as I'm flying home about three hours from now, but I'd be happy to come again if invited.

Whether they'd be happy to have me is another matter, of course! My talk was Somewhat Unlike Other Presentations.




Latest entries.

Archived entries.

About this blog.

Copyright © 2025 Richard Bartle (richard@mud.co.uk).