Time is the Fire in which We Burn

Just Passing Time

 

It seems a simple thing really: the passage of time. But in fact, the time scale of a virtual world is as important as the scale for length, width, and height. As we discussed what the scale of time should be in Pathfinder Online, in the context of designing for a single server, these were factors we considered:

 

1. Players should not be forced to play in a constant state of day or night based on their local time
2. Golarion has four seasons just like Earth, and there is value in reproducing those seasons in the game—for the sake of immersion and the value in storytelling, and also for marketing and promotions
3. Distance creates value, in that time is required to transport objects across it; also, when initiating or responding to aggression, distance adds strategic complexity to the game... but the time to cross long distances can also be boring and creates a reason to quit playing the game

The following represents the current design of the game and is, as always, subject to change based on community feedback, future design work, and playtesting.

 

Cont'd...

Yes, Time is oc an amazing concept/measurement. But for mmorpgs, online persistent virtual worlds, you'd think it's "inner player time" vs "external person time"  and the potential for change between 1. playing sessions OR 2. time to travel between places and the change effected since or the change from Year1.Day1 to Year2.Day1 etc... Could be so relevant to many players...

Blog is a gold mine. : )