One way of enticing players to choose a more balanced gaming life is to assess or measure players on something other than level - something that can be achieved equally as well by performing quests or trade skills as well as combat. In part, a skill-based system will achieve this, but then you are simply supplying a choice of treadmills! Another way is to try and direct player focus at something a little more generic; for example, if your goal is to achieve a level of popularity (or unpopularity), then you could achieve this in many different ways.

If you can't encourage players, then you can always force them into performing more interesting tasks. One way of achieving this, which we are implementing in Warhammer Online, is a career tree system in which players must navigate the career tree to further their characters. Each career provides the chance to influence and entertain the player. At each career junction, the player must also make a progression choice, which gives the player the opportunity to change direction as they develop their character