Nanvaent is one of those rare things, a game that can keep me coming back to it. You know how it is...you buy a new game for your pc, and no matter how much fun they are, you always get bored eventually.

Not so with Nanvaent. I’ve been playing since two of my friends got me hooked when they went to University in 1996. I played for a bit, and was told that I should go to the next “Nan Party”, so I went along. It turned out to be a weekend full of fun – drinking, laughing, telling stories about Nan, meeting new people. All in all, great fun. So when I got home, I logged on again. This time I recognised some of the names, and was able to talk to a few more people than just my two mates. This helped me no end.

As a newbie, I found that I got lots of help from various kind hearted people, especially when they quickly realised that I hadn’t a clue what I was doing – this is still my first MUD! However, once I got to a slightly higher level, I found that I was a target for serial killers, which led to me starting new characters. Eventually I became tired of having to change character every time one of these serial killers logged in, and I drifted away for around 3 years, before coming home drunk one night and logging in.

Now, I’ve got a character in almost every guild (10 out of 13), and most of them are fairly high level. I’ve got three addicts (level 100+), including one character that reached the dizzy heights (at the time) of level 211, and became the Guild Master of the Clerics guild. The serial killers have gone away now, or limit themselves to established players, so as not to scare off newbies, which is a good thing IMO.

Admittedly, the days of regularly having 30 players on at a time are gone, and no-one spends their Saturdays playing and competing with each other to get the latest football scores onto the Sports channel any more, but it’s still fun. There have been more and more (and more!) quests added since I’ve been playing, and even two new guilds. The guilds have all been beefed up, and the arena fights have brought a new lease of life to the game – PVP without losing a life is a lot more attractive than being unexpectedly slaughtered “with extreme style and precision”.

It’s my 11th year here now, but I still come back time and time again, because of the people. I’ve made lots of friends here, and no matter how you’ re feeling, there’s always something to laugh at, someone to talk to, something new to do, somewhere new to explore. I’ve been to over 10 Nan parties and meets, met loads of people IRL, including some of the players who came over from the Netherlands and Greece, and even people who came over from America. I’ve yet to meet any of the Aussies or Kiwis, but they’re on my list!

In short, Nanvaent has become and been a way of life for me, and it could for you too. All you have to do is login, and don’t be afraid to ask for help.