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Here is the reason we are doomed
ghoul31
Member Posts: 1,955
Large companies only make simplistic games, so they can reach the largest audience, aka World of Warcraft.
The games that we want are only being made by smaller companies. And these companies don't have the resources to make theses games. Morning, Darkfall, Trials of Ascension etc. All of these games are years behind schedule, and if they are ever released, they won't have half of the things they promised.
Dark and Light is supposed to be out in November, but from what I hear, its years away from completion.
I think we are all doomed.
Comments
1. Win powerball
2. Make awesome game
3. Declare yourself savior of MMORPG
Easy enough to follow - now get cracking!
Why didn't they just go 2d? The complaints i keep hearing on this forum and others, are exclusively about gameplay design... not about graphics, music, or presentation. Maybe we care more about the fluff than we want to admit.
Personally, i'd be plenty interested in a great 2d mmorpg. I don't know much about programming... or anything at all in fact, but shouldn't 2d just be plain easier in every single way? Furthermore, the same exact resources that they'd be committing to a 3d mmo, instead directed towards a 2d MMO... would that mean more content, more customization and monster variation, etc etc?
Well the mass acceptance of online games is upon us. Our community is no longer a bunch of ex tabeltop geeks looking to take their passion for roleplaying online. Now its ex Xbox and PS kids looking to continue their simplistic button mashing in a bigger multiplayer environment.
Companies like Blizzard have recognised this and acted accordingly, no one can blame them for it. If success is measured by popularity (like it is with music), then WoW is a huge success. For us old schoolers however its nothing more than a mildy amusing sideshow that wouldnt keep a genuine MMORPGer entertained for any longer than a few weeks.
Companies will always try to apeal to the largest portion of the market... so the future of games looks more like WoW on that basis.
Yes its sad... yes its undesireable... but I dont see how it will change unless one of the major developers takes a risk. If Hollywood is any indication, thats not going to happen. We can expect to be playing WoW 4 in a few years time.
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"MMOs, for people that like think chatting is like a skill or something, rotflol"
http://purepwnage.com
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"Far away across the field, the tolling of the iron bell, calls the faithful to their knees. To hear the softly spoken magic spell" Pink Floyd-Dark Side of the Moon
I disagree.
Ive seen this post like 50 times now.
Wrong, if everyone makes cookie cutter games everyone'll get bored, they'll leave and the MMORPG's will be out of cash. Notice how successful innovation nets higher profits ala Katamari Damacy, Tetris, etc. So while WoW may be successful now from being hyped, they're going to have to -work- to keep their title and it's not going to last as long as they'd like if they throw the same content over and over.
At the risk of sounding like one of those Scratchware loons, The only thing you need to make a game is a computer and a copy of codewarrior. I personally use Dev C++ for programming Blender and Gimp for modelling and good old Qradiant for level design. Well, I use Qradiant if I'm doing anything with BSP or Oct-trees. The back end of a MMORPG is put together alot like a traditional text based MUD. For awhile, people actually referred to MMORPGs as graphical MUDs. Guess cross demographic market analysis determined that people like unpronouncable acronyms better than simple words.
At any rate, a small company or group of hobbyist could put together a MUD and take far bigger risks since they spend far less on developement. Will it take a year or more, probably. Will it be too much for 3 people working part time, definately. That's why small set ups have to involve the community from the git go. Players feel better about a game that they contributed to in some way (in-game art, story, scripting, etc.). For hobbyists, Building a graphical MUD ( or any MUD for that matter) is like building a skate ramp in your back yard. You get your friends together, you all pitch in and eventually you have a place to play.
And please drop the shit about bandwidth. There are private UO servers that can accomodate 1000+ players at peak hours and NWN servers that can go as high as 256 players at peak. For a hobby MMO you probably won't have more than 500 people on at a time anyway. For a small set up, you could run a dedicated server from a Cable connection untile you got the funds to switch to a T3 line. Oh yeah, and most of these people quoting bandwidth and server costs are suits that are RENTING the servers and connections. For about $6000 you could have a rack the size of a bookcase that would go above and beyond your needs. You'd have to maintain it yourself, but that's all part and partial with startups. Remember kids: EVE, A Tale in the Desert, and Anarchy Online were all made by small, independent companies. At least one of those games was made for under $100,000 and all three introduced new concepts into the genre. Unfortunately, none of those concepts have been adopted by the "mainstream" MMOs yet.
Wrong, if everyone makes cookie cutter games everyone'll get bored, they'll leave and the MMORPG's will be out of cash. Notice how successful innovation nets higher profits ala Katamari Damacy, Tetris, etc. So while WoW may be successful now from being hyped, they're going to have to -work- to keep their title and it's not going to last as long as they'd like if they throw the same content over and over.
The population of WOW just keeps getting larger. They have like a million people now. So people arent getting bored with it. There is nothing new about WOW and its the most successful game ever. So no, companies aren't going to take chances if they can repackage the same old junk and make money.
I think the only hope is Vanguard.
You can quote me on it or mock me if you wish. Back when Brad was helping to make EverQuest there was no risk cause there was no real competition. But with Vanguard they are (with the help of Microsoft) trying to create a decent MMORPG that should actually give a sense of accomplishment, reward, danger, and comradery (I hope)
The population of WOW just keeps getting larger. They have like a million people now. So people arent getting bored with it. There is nothing new about WOW and its the most successful game ever. So no, companies aren't going to take chances if they can repackage the same old junk and make money.
I think people are just bored with the genre in general and thats why the play WoW, cause there's not much better. There is no other game that is either innovative or AMAZING to draw our attention away from Blizzard's creation.
I think people are just bored with the genre in general and thats why the play WoW, cause there's not much better. There is no other game that is either innovative or AMAZING to draw our attention away from Blizzard's creation.
WTF? there's nothing amazing about it. The only reason why it's "successful" is because its so damn easy. The graphics are minimal. The gameplay is about the same as every other fantasy mmorpg thats out there. After playing games like EQ and UO for so long I guess the majority of mmo gamers want it easy now. Unless there are still gamers like me who like a challenge and have time to play a game like EQ2.
I have to agree with the above post. I went back to FF XI for real gamplay and a mature community... even found members from my old guild and its great. WoW is easy street, and that is the appeal really. Any 12 year old and his dog can play that darn game. Heck I even was talking to some middle age guy, and he was loving the WoW, and he was not a gamer before hand. These kinds of people don't want deep, in depth, hard quests and content. They want their instant gratification, and altough WoW is not exactly instant, it the easiest darn mmo out there. I really must commend Blizzard for their job remaking a 2nd gen. mmo in the image of a 1st gen., but just making it easier, shinery , and polished. Yeah, it managed to pull in 1 million peeps... Hopefully someone will make some games more suited to us. Untill then, FF XI is just what I need.
2d is fine, but 3d is good too. However, the graphics don't need to be uber... like realistic and all like EQ2 is.
But DETAILED. Variety! Look at AC and UO. AC has the variety, where UO has the detail. I hope I'm getting across what I'm thinking of.
It can be simple 3d graphics, but with plenty of little details, not just flashy and 'realistic.'
*sigh*
Anyhow, yes, MMOs need to be very interactive. Not just combat, and crafting and such. But being able to pick up a book maybe, tossing a fork somewhere. You see it, you can move it. And it shouldn't just stop there.
Interaction between characters. Make it more than just emotes and facial expressions. Make the characters actually interact with eachother. Want to wrap an arm around your buddy's shoulders and give him a noogie? There should be a command for that, then the visual expression. And if your buddy doesn't want it? Hell, he can type in a command to get away lol. Really, how hard can it be, besides coding and graphical representations?
And yes, don't scream, "bandwidth issues!" Please. So what if there's a little bit of lag now and then. It's not that hard to get a cable connection these days either.
Now of course, when they make VR systems that track your body movements and mimic them in game,t hat would be the ultimate ^^ but that probably won't happen for another 10 or 20 years lol ^^
The doll would surely say, "I do not want to be human!" although her master wants her to be even more.
CCP (Eve On-line) is definitely swimming against the tide. The subscriber numbers are growing and yes, Eve is a very ambitious game that is not simplistic.
Go CCP! Even if you are not a big Eve fan, perhaps you can appreciate what the company is pulling off here: small company, big goals, dedicated fan base, growing subscriber base, complex game-play, and somewhat limited resources. One of the few current success stories.
The doll would surely say, "I do not want to be human!" although her master wants her to be even more.
Each MMOG has its own fans and whiners....
Most of the time.. we see whining thread...
where are all the fans go?
most of them are having fun playing the game
so.. stop whining and find yourself a good game ..
MyBrute = addicting mini online game!
I think people are just bored with the genre in general and thats why the play WoW, cause there's not much better. There is no other game that is either innovative or AMAZING to draw our attention away from Blizzard's creation.
WTF? there's nothing amazing about it. The only reason why it's "successful" is because its so damn easy. The graphics are minimal. The gameplay is about the same as every other fantasy mmorpg thats out there. After playing games like EQ and UO for so long I guess the majority of mmo gamers want it easy now. Unless there are still gamers like me who like a challenge and have time to play a game like EQ2.
If you actually READ it you will find it does not say WoW is "AMAZING" , he says there are no good innovative or amazing games decent enough to play. "There is no other game that is either innovative or AMAZING to draw our attention away from Blizzard's creation" see, he says basically there are no good games that big budget companies make, he says nothing about WoW being good.
Blorg
UO is still the best! Just not on O$I shards. I think Angel Island is just a best online experience you can even get today.