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I'm probably gonna reignite a debate many builders have already had once or twice before by posting this...
I've been around to a few different MUDs and had a chance to glimpse their guidelines for building areas. A guideline I've noticed on many roleplaying MUDs is one prohibiting the use of the word "you" in descriptions. Generally, the people behind the guidelines back this up by saying its in place to prevent descriptions that force emotions on a player, like:
"The haunted house is scary, a chill runs up your spine." or "The waterfall is one of the most beautiful sights you've ever seen."
And I agree, those are bad descriptions, but I don't think the word "you" is the cause of it. Descriptions that force emotions or actions on a character are bad, whether they use the word you, or not. I also think descriptions like "You can see a tall building rising into the sky towards the east." or "A vast expanse of icy tundra stretches out before your eyes." are fine. In both sets of examples I've given, the statements can be rewritten without the use of "you", so what's the big deal?
Granted, I do more coding than building, so my opinion might not hold as much weight, but I'm interested in seeing what some experienced builders have to say on this subject.
Jherlen
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