I have to say, I started mudding when I was about 12, I am 34 years old now.. probably about the same age as most folks around here. My kids think this game is a joke. I think the key to longterm survival of any mud, is two things, player retention being #1. I ended up here, because the mud I came from uses the same code base. The mud I came from changed ownership several times over the years, and ended up becomming a playground for the Immortals, and their morts. With a few long time players sprinkled in here an there. I could count on two or three people max being on at any one time, and cheating became pretty normal. I was over it. Aside from a completely different world layout, CF shares the same basic mechanics as the mud I came from, so it was just a matter of learning areas, gear, cabal powers etc... And I am still learning. CF is HUGE.

I will say this, there is little to no chance of recruiting younger teenage kids to play this game anymore, they have all been spoiled by intense graphical first person shooters, and WoW, and things that don't require them to be creative, read a book, or type really fast. The only shot CF has at building a playerbase of sizable proportions, is to bring in people from other muds who are of our generation, and can be relatively quick studies, that may mean trying to merge with another dying mud, enticing former players back somehow, or straight advertising to people who PLAY muds still - somehow. But when the downward spiral of a dying playerbase starts to happen... as it does, since we are like... responsible adults now with kids to feed and shit to do... It is really difficult to stop. Thats my take at least, I ended up here, because when I logged in to check it out the first time, it was 20 people online. Which was huge compared to the 2, 3, 4 or so I had been playing with for the year prior.