Your Internet Consultant - The FAQs of Life Online

10.28. Are all MUDs text only? I want graphics!

Most MUDs are text only. Although graphics-oriented MUDs exist, they have drawbacks. First, they are usually slower than text-only MUDs.

Second, using a graphical MUD requires special "client" software that interprets the graphics data and displays it on your screen. Because there are so many computer systems--from Atari ST to Macintosh, from Sun to Z80s--it's not always possible to get the right client software for your machine. So, for now, text-based MUDs are the norm.

Most mudders don't consider this a drawback, however. MUDs are quite like "Zork" and other text adventure games: The graphics are unnecessary when there are detailed and imaginative descriptions of players and objects.

Table of Contents | Previous Section | Next Section