The five elements that hook me to MMOs

Clovis

My MMO experience is limited to UO>EQ>EQ2>LOTRO so I'm coming from a limited perspective, but here are the elements that compel me to play and my opinion on which game captures each to its full potential.

1.) Community. An obvious one, but also fascinating when you consider the different "feels" each game has. UO had many levels of community. One around the major banks...one in the major dungeons...one in the PK wilderness...crafters...tamers...large guild halls with auctions and vendors etc. Interestingly enough, UO has the least sophisticated chat interface. Perhaps the inability to shout across a zone facilitates more virtual-world gathering places.

2.) Wonder. The feeling of excitement and anticipation entering a new zone. Not knowing how far you can venture in safely. Observing more experienced players to learn how to adapt to the more dangerous and lucrative areas. "Unrest" in EQ captures this perfectly. Even fighting yard trash takes practice and you can still wipe. The first time you entered the house really got your heart pumping. Keeping your eye out for the festering hag training to the zone, etc.

3.) Discovery. Stumbling upon a hidden cave in the wilderness leading to a new quest line. Finding a relic on the ground that has an inscription to heed. Knowing that if you really take the time to explore an area, chances are that you will discover something that would have been unobserved if you just ran through. EQ2 does a great job with this. I stumbled upon many unexpected locales, objects, instances that always made exploring on its own fun. I hope LOTRO develops more of this over time. There's not much point to random exploring at this point.

4.) Accomplishment. Some games you finish a quest-line or acquire an item and it's right on to the next thing. Others you get that fist-pumping, ale-guzzling need to celebrate and feel a true sense of accomplishment. The Epic quests in EQ2 are like that. Just reading over what you have to do for one of them is enough to cause many players to pass them over. Rare MOBs, grinding faction, timed races etc. Finishing one of those quests and getting a truly prized item was a great feeling. It facilitated a lot of group-bonding too if you did most of it with the same group-members. I remember the Level 15 class-armor quests were also much fun.

5.) Sandbox/Structure Balance: I think UO hits this perfectly. The skill point cap allows players to develop an infinite combination of skills although there are still agreed-upon archetypes. I love that you can be completely self-sufficient as a player, living solely off the land and your own resources. I had one character that never entered a town or used a bank...role-played a hermit. There is also logical loot. Any animal you kill can be skinned for hides used in crafting and meat used in cooking. An NPC attacking you with a halberd has a halberd to loot, along with the clothes they are wearing too! The ability to run your own store with vendors is a great facet of the economy. It’s the only game I’ve played so far where you could have a very entertaining and rewarding experience solely as a merchant. Plus they have fishing and treasure hunts! Hmm…did I just convince myself to play UO again? Nah…the memories won’t be as sweet if I go back but I sure wish other MMOs would take some pages out of the UO blueprint.

Those of you with more MMO experience than I feel free to list which games you feel really maximize the potential of the above elements. I'm not a big-time PvPer, so I don't feel I can comment on those aspects.

 

 

slannmage

I reckon it's subscriptions and the feeling that you've paid the $15 so you have to play it now and then the grind with a sense of feelign that your chaarcter is getting somewhere and you want to be uber.