StarMaster

[Starkadder]

I would be amazed if a nationally scaled GM moderated game could be a profitable enterprise in the United States today. I considered StarMaster to be expensive back then and it would only be more so today. Perhaps, if the moderators were in a foreign country where hourly rates were much lower but then they'd be dealing with language and culture issues that would complicate the situation enormously.

Bulgaria and the Philippines do level up services for WoW characters. So the practice is not unheard of. But I think you are right about the complications. Not only would you need to find people who could at least read and write English, they would also need to be able to create a story from the turn's hard data.

The gamemasters for StarMaster tried modernizing their software so they could automate more of their work, but that work and the actual running of the game, did them in. As it was near the end, it took weeks and/or months to receive a turn. They simply did not have the time to run and moderate the game, while having a steady job and family life.