I write this review as a long-time player of batmud, and as a registered newbie helper. I've been playing BatMUD for well over 10 years now, and have found several things to keep me hooked.

In the first role, as a long-time casual gamer, what keeps me coming back is the large amount of content: quests to complete, guilds to try out, areas to explore, and such. Not only is there a large amount of existing content, but it seems that there's constantly new things added that keep me hooked. And, because the game is very social-friendly. I've gotten to know a number of players quite well over the years, and can keep in touch through the game. I also enjoy that regardless of my power level relative to my friends' power levels, I can almost always successfully group up with pretty much anybody; and the game auto-tunes the rewards such that people are rewarded fairly for how much they've contributed to the party. And since the developers are also people who are logged into the game and most of them were once players too, it is possible to directly give positive (and negative) feedback, and really feel like you have a say in what things are changed or implemented. In short, the large amount of existing content, the rapid implementation of new and interesting content, and the ability to keep in touch with my friends through the game are the aspects which keep me coming back for more.

The part of this review from my role of a newbie helper, I'd like to take a second to mention some of the things a new player can expect when logging in. First of all, I will say that MUDs in general and BatMUD in particular can have a fairly steep learning curve at the start -- it may not be obvious at a first glance exactly how to get exactly what you want to get out of the game; so a large amount of effort has been put towards helping new players get started. * First off, when logging in, players will be presented with an optional tutorial which will go over the basics of how to get started. * As one progresses in the game, various things will trigger 'tooltips', or helpful reminders of how to deal with whatever's going on (for example, the first time someone tries to send you a tell (a private message), you will receive a note explaining that a player contacted you, and the note also explains how to reply. * Several players, myself included, have registered ourselves as dedicated newbie helpers -- you will quickly be able to contact us if you have any questions about how to do whatever it is you want to do in the game, and you can expect friendly, helpful replies. * A public 'newbie' channel is dedicated to answering your questions, and all replies to you on that channel will be helpful and polite. * You will start the game in a private village just for new players -- you can get familiar with the game before having to worry about the big picture out there. BatMUD is a fun and challenging environment, and you can decide when you're ready to leave the gates of pleasantville in search of fearsome monsters, cunning quests, or epic equipment to wear.

In short, I expect that new players will find BatMUD to be a welcoming environment for new players, and a challenging+exciting experience when you're ready to face it. I'm looking forward to seeing you there; if i'm online, you can 'tell ooga hi' and I'll answer your questions as well as I can.