I tend to agree for the most part with your assertion not to give it all away. Discovery, interaction, adaptation and evolution are what keep me coming back for more in games. Thats why I love mountain biking as apposed to track racing. The former offers discovery, adaptation and mental stimulation while the later is purely predictable, non-stimulating drudgery.

Take HL2 Deathmatch mods for example. The kill box mod where there is an extremely confined space and constant frenetic movement and destruction. That type of mod became soooo boring after about one minute. The mods that had secret portals, invisible objects, one way visibility through walls, secret treasures were so interesting and kept me playing. The added element of interacting with other players made the mods even more interesting and dynamic. My fondest memories of playing DM were those in which I was exploring new secrets in maps with other players in a co-operative manner (not shooting).

By including user input to determine the evolution of Heritage’s game play you are making the game more unpredictable and thus more appealing to folks like me. I don’t want to just exercise my skills, I want to explore, learn, adapt and enjoy. I think you are making a wise choice.

I have thought seriously about evolving narratives influence by out side forces in my games. There are plenty of ways to accomplish this. I look forward to seeing how Heritage unfolds.