Project Information
| Project: |
KoLmafia |
| Related Documents: |
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Process impact: This document helps identify potential customers and their defining aspects. That helps to suggest and give weight to requirements. The list of benefits gives the sales team information on how to sell the product, and highlights important use cases and test cases.
Target Audience
- What market segment is this product in?
- Computer games. Specifically, online adventure games.
- What is the target market for this product? Include specific defining characteristics.
- Players of the online adventure game, Kingdom of Loathing. Specifically, veteran players who would benefit from task automation.
- What is the size of the total available market? Cite references for facts.
- Roughly 10,000 users, if the number of registered users at The Forums of Loathing can be used as an indication.
- What are some other customer options or leading products that address the same needs?
- KoLmelion: A VB.NET implementation of a Kingdom of Loathing desktop interface.
- KoL CLI: A PERL implementation of a Kingdom of Loathing command-line interface.
- Argon: A browser helper which interfaces with the Kingdom of Loathing.
Benefits
- Task automation
- Repeatable tasks can be automated so that the user does not have to grow bored clicking the same set of links over and over again to achieve their ends. This enhances the experience of Kingdom of Loathing by saving them time and allowing them to multitask, letting the program take care of mundane tasks. In many ways, it's like the Clockwork Maid, only for the whole game rather than for the campground.
Potential Downsides
- Character detachment
- In many massively-multiplayer online games, part of the enjoyment comes from the relationship between the user and they player they have created, a relationship which is formed through the investment of time and effort towards the player's development. Task automation may disconnect the user from the player they have created, since users no longer invest as much time towards the character. This may also create a rift between veteran and new players as veteran players begin to take their original time and effort in character development for granted.
- Encourages multiple accounts
- Because most mundane tasks in Kingdom of Loathing can be completed through automation, a natural response is to create more accounts, which defeats the purpose of saving time for its users since no time is effectively being saved. However, should these multiple accounts be accessed simultaneously to still save time, this potentially increases server load, creating lag for everyone.