If you were to write an article for the site (with no limitations), what would you write?

BLNX

See title.

Personally knowing myself I'd probably write a satire on how "great" monetization currently is (mobile MMOs being run by whales, introduction of crypto and NFTs, loot boxes and gambling tactics, etc., Kickstarter MMOs, the crazy amount spent of graphics). Or maybe just something about MMOs being silently killed.by publishers who keep them on life support.

Maybe the subject has been done to death (both the topic and my post), but I would like to hear from people. No agendas, no limits, could be about any game or game topic, what would you find interesting enough to put on the site?

cameltosis

1) The importance of a technical lexicon, with a focus on the term "MMO"

As with many others on this site, this is a hill im willing to die on, so may as well come out of the gate strong and get this divisive subject nailed down. Even if the readers don't agree with me (or with history, the english language or actual developers), at least this article would explain my POV, something that would be useful for followup articles

2) The decline of the MMORPG genre (assuming it is declining....)

This would be a deep-dive into the genre, specifically the actual data of the genre, not gut feelings. I'd basically be looking to make a bunch of graphs to chart the genres history. Specifically:

• MMORPGs released per year
• MMORPG releases per year, including expansions
• Number of MMORPGs available to play per year

Each of these graphs would have multiple versions. I would want to see the full dataset - basically anything wikipedia calls an mmo, i'll include. Then I'll filter by player caps, so charts that only include games that support 128+ players, 250+ players, then 500+ players.

I'd also want to break down the lists by region. For example, it feels like the West has pretty much given up on the genre, we had to wait from 2014 until 2021 for a AAA MMORPG from a western studio. I think it would be interesting to see how each region performs over time.

I would expect these charts to show that the MMORPG genre is suffering, assuming you agree the definition of what an mmo is. But, as nobody seems to have done this research, i don't know for sure! hence the need for such an article.

3) The evolutionary purpose of gaming, and how modern designers are failing us

There is an evolutionary purpose behind why humans play games, but that purpose has been almost completely ignored or lost by modern devs. I'd like to talk about this evolutionary purpose and then show why we're getting it wrong.

4) The potential of massively multiplayer games

I have long maintained that the massively multiplayer genre has an enormous amount of potential, but that potential has barely been scratched. I'd like to discuss all the different things that are only possible with a massive amount of players (admittedly, this is in the hope that a dev would read this article and actually do some of it!)

5) Quantifying Difficulty and the Theory of Multiple Intelligences

This would be focused on how we measure different types of difficulty, how they relate to intelligence, and then looking at some popular games and measuring their difficulty.

6) Depth vs Complexity

This would be a followup to the article on difficulty, this would be focused of the idea of depth within gameplay mechanics, why depth is amazing, and why most people confuse depth with complexity.

7) Art vs Engineering - How we view games

Computer games are extraordinary feats of engineering, yet some people think of games more like art (they're wrong!). I'd like to explain why games are nearly 100% engineering projects and why viewing them as art is harmful. I'd also look into the things the gaming world could learn from more established engineering sectors.

8) Using psychology to make games better, and not just more addictive

It has taken a long time, but the gaming industry is now being taken seriously by the wider world, and academic research is now being done. However, most studios only seem to use psychology when it comes to marketing and cash shops, and not on how to make their game more fun. This article would discuss some of the psychology research that can be applied to gameplay.

9) Pattern Matching, and why games have an inevitable end date

Human beings are, essentially, pattern matching machines. It is simply how we view the world, how we remember information, and how we decide what our next actions should be. However, this also means that no matter how great a game is, we'll eventually match all the patterns, get bored and stop playing.

This article would also present the case for the MMO world building sequels, rather than continually expanding games.

10) Niche vs All-in-One

This would focus on the the relative strengths and weaknesses of building a niche game, vs building an all-in-one game. This is a common argument on these forums. Both types of game are valid, but are more suited to specific types of design.

Quizzical

Who says it has to be an official article?  Write what you want and post it here on the forums.

Amaranthar

cameltosis said:

1) The importance of a technical lexicon, with a focus on the term "MMO"

As with many others on this site, this is a hill im willing to die on, so may as well come out of the gate strong and get this divisive subject nailed down. Even if the readers don't agree with me (or with history, the english language or actual developers), at least this article would explain my POV, something that would be useful for followup articles

2) The decline of the MMORPG genre (assuming it is declining....)

This would be a deep-dive into the genre, specifically the actual data of the genre, not gut feelings. I'd basically be looking to make a bunch of graphs to chart the genres history. Specifically:

• MMORPGs released per year
• MMORPG releases per year, including expansions
• Number of MMORPGs available to play per year

Each of these graphs would have multiple versions. I would want to see the full dataset - basically anything wikipedia calls an mmo, i'll include. Then I'll filter by player caps, so charts that only include games that support 128+ players, 250+ players, then 500+ players.

I'd also want to break down the lists by region. For example, it feels like the West has pretty much given up on the genre, we had to wait from 2014 until 2021 for a AAA MMORPG from a western studio. I think it would be interesting to see how each region performs over time.

I would expect these charts to show that the MMORPG genre is suffering, assuming you agree the definition of what an mmo is. But, as nobody seems to have done this research, i don't know for sure! hence the need for such an article.

3) The evolutionary purpose of gaming, and how modern designers are failing us

There is an evolutionary purpose behind why humans play games, but that purpose has been almost completely ignored or lost by modern devs. I'd like to talk about this evolutionary purpose and then show why we're getting it wrong.

4) The potential of massively multiplayer games

I have long maintained that the massively multiplayer genre has an enormous amount of potential, but that potential has barely been scratched. I'd like to discuss all the different things that are only possible with a massive amount of players (admittedly, this is in the hope that a dev would read this article and actually do some of it!)

5) Quantifying Difficulty and the Theory of Multiple Intelligences

This would be focused on how we measure different types of difficulty, how they relate to intelligence, and then looking at some popular games and measuring their difficulty.

6) Depth vs Complexity

This would be a followup to the article on difficulty, this would be focused of the idea of depth within gameplay mechanics, why depth is amazing, and why most people confuse depth with complexity.

7) Art vs Engineering - How we view games

Computer games are extraordinary feats of engineering, yet some people think of games more like art (they're wrong!). I'd like to explain why games are nearly 100% engineering projects and why viewing them as art is harmful. I'd also look into the things the gaming world could learn from more established engineering sectors.

8) Using psychology to make games better, and not just more addictive

It has taken a long time, but the gaming industry is now being taken seriously by the wider world, and academic research is now being done. However, most studios only seem to use psychology when it comes to marketing and cash shops, and not on how to make their game more fun. This article would discuss some of the psychology research that can be applied to gameplay.

9) Pattern Matching, and why games have an inevitable end date

Human beings are, essentially, pattern matching machines. It is simply how we view the world, how we remember information, and how we decide what our next actions should be. However, this also means that no matter how great a game is, we'll eventually match all the patterns, get bored and stop playing.

This article would also present the case for the MMO world building sequels, rather than continually expanding games.

10) Niche vs All-in-One

This would focus on the the relative strengths and weaknesses of building a niche game, vs building an all-in-one game. This is a common argument on these forums. Both types of game are valid, but are more suited to specific types of design.

Mr. Jeeves, I presume. 

AlBQuirky

I would write an article that would get loads of backlash here. I won't even mention the topic as the mere mention would have some posters here attempt internet killing sprees LOL