What is the benefit of not telling anyone about a discovery?
One of the more ambitious goals I have for the game is to make information valuable. I want npc dialogue, quest text, item descriptions, lore, ect. to be more than just passive entertainment or fluff. Obviously not every piece of lore or line of text can be meaningful and stuffed with hidden clues or references... that would be unrealistic. The idea is just to make it so that every once in a while some of them are. Often enough to keep players interested and reward those who choose to follow the lore and look at the game world with an investigative eye.
Any piece of information within the game might be the starting point to a hidden puzzle, quest, progression path, or treasure hunt of sorts. Some of those may be one-time things which can only be completed by a single player or clan (although that will be rare). Discoveries might also provide hints which will help players better survive and traverse the game world. For example perhaps one of the game creatures is a type of bear whose bestiary page includes something along these lines: "Honey is one of their favorite foods. Travelers within the valley are often cautioned not to consume the treat before passing through. Just a hint of it's scent on the breath can be enough to draw the beasts from miles around." In a lot of games that might just be present for the sake of world-building, but in mine it might be a clue to players that if they travel in the map region the bears are native to with honey in their inventory this enemy will be much more likely to spawn.
As a result there will probably be some cases where a player or clan wants to keep a discovery they've made through the research/discovery feature to themselves. Doing so won't stop others from discovering the same eventually, but could give the discoverer or their clan a head-start in unlocking any secrets or hidden meaning that might be tied to it. In other words (assuming the discovery is true) it gives them a temporary informational advantage.
But why would they choose not to refute it?
When it comes to validating discoveries I wanted to allow for a bit of room for deception. Thought it might be interesting... but it is one of the functionalities of the feature I'm still debating since I think the choice not to refute will rarely be used.
Anyway, say for example a player belongs to a clan which has had a discovery revealed to it (that isn't available to the site as a whole). The clan wants to know if the information is legit so they ask one of their members with a high rank in research to check it for them. The player checks successfully and finds that it is false but for whatever reason doesn't want the clan to know (maybe he's already discovered the true entry for himself and doesn't want competition in some hidden quest it points towards... maybe he's actually a double agent and the false entry will lead the clan into some dangerous situations) something along those lines.
What's the point of reputation in your game currently?
I was intentionally vague about the reputation earlier because I didn't want to run off on too much of a tangent. Lol.
I don't mind talking about it though, in essence it's just a special currency.
Right now I actually have three different kinds: faction reputation, clan reputation, and fame. Each is awarded under different circumstances. Clan rep is given to clan members as a reward for doing things that help improve or level up the clan (like participating in raids or donating resources). Faction reputation is specific to key powers within the game (mostly deities and guilds) and added or subtracted for performing certain actions they approve or disapprove of while within their domain or sphere of influence. Fame tracks a players impact on the game world as a whole. It is rarer, and is awarded only for significant achievements like making global discoveries, participating in special events, and solving hidden quests. Each type of reputation has it's own store which offers special talents, items, and cosmetic upgrades to players that cannot be obtained anywhere else.
So for example if you make a global discovery you'll get some fame plus a small amount of clan rep (if you're in a clan) and some faction rep with the Archive. Sharing a discovery only with your clan will grant clan rep (more than you'd get normally) but no fame or faction reputation. Keeping a discovery to yourself grants a small amount of reputation with only a specific faction (that doesn't yet have a name).
Anyway... Glad you found the concept so far interesting (sorry for rambling on so much about it). I don't have a production server up for the project at the moment (just developing locally at this point), but when I do I'll have to invite you to test it out. ^_^
It's okay. I was sad about it for a while, but now I feel so relieved. I think working on a smaller-scale game with someone that can create the features I want in a short period of time will be much better for me in the long run. And in letting that game go, I also realized that I don't really like doing the HK art style. It looks nice as a final product, but it's not for me. I don't have fun creating it. I want to do a style that's a little more messy. But anyway, now I'll be putting the same effort into this new game, and hopefully people can start playing it in the near future.
Ah, sounds like it was for the best then. It's never good to box yourself into something you don't really enjoy. In the long-run it would have just been a bunch of extra stress.
If you don't mind my asking, what kind if game is your new project going to be (as far as the genre goes at least)? Another petsite like HK? Adoptables? Something different? Just curious.
I guess stuff happens though... Glad to hear you have something else in the works in the meantime. I'll have to keep an eye out.
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Nice to see you on here! 