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Turned based MMO, is that even possible?
Masoniclight
Member Posts: 87
Good to be back on the boards and good to see you all.
I wanted to ask all you thoughtful gamers out there, would a Turn Based MMO be possible, innovative or even wanted by the gaming community?
As Civilization V goes live tomorrow and the continued success of the Total War series has led me to wonder this question?
Total War the MMO.. hmm... or Civilzation the MMO... interesting to be sure, but I am not even sure an MMO could be done in the style of an MMO...
so what say you all? what are your thoughts on this matter? Let's start this conversation!
Comments
atlantica is a turn based mmo. its an nice game although the cash shop usage is almost manditory to really enjoy the game.
Civ MMO would be absolutely awesome. There's a lot of design & technical issues they would have to figure out, but I'd play it, I'm a Civ freak.
For now I'd love to just settle with Barren Realms Online, Solar Realms Online, or heck, remember L.O.R.D.? I'm sad they haven't made those old BBS games something you can play online. They were great turn based games.
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Well, technically Atlantica Online is a Turn Based MMO. A little different than what you seem to have in mind though.
But something like Civ 6: The MMO. Meh I dunno devellopers would have to get real creative to pull off a large scale turn based MMO.
Saga is actually not to far removed from a Civ type MMO - Sort of a turn based RTS hybrid.
I wish they would make a more complex version of Wizard 101 for adults instead of kids. I love their turn-based combat system, but the decks and deck building are too simplistic for any lasting appeal.
An interesting gameplay model to consider is the old board game Diplomacy - turns have a fixed length of time where everyone negotiates and schemes and writes down their attempted moves in secret. Then everyone reveals at once and the actual outcome is resolved.
VGA planets was a play-by-email 4X computer game that followed a similar idea. The moderator ran a server program that would process each turn and generate a file for each player of everything they could see and everything they owned, emailed the appropriate file to each player who then planned out all their moves with the help of a client program and emailed a list of attempted actions back to the moderator.
I don't know of any modern versions of the same idea, although I suspect facebook would be a good breeding ground for those types of games. The dynamic of long wait and then sudden simultaneous action makes for some *very* intense politics and heated emotions - too much for my tastes, personally.
I was wondering this... maybe the turn based application would be too difficult to translate into an MMO... how long does a turn last? What would define a turn? If after a period of time you are allowed to respond, would the game just skip you? What happens if you play in a different time zone? Lots of issues I guess.. but, in theory, it would be a cool concept. I build my civilization just as I would in Civ and then hit enter... maybe if the game world was heavily instanced or tournament style where you have a time you can RSVP to play and then play at that time against a room of whatever size that instance would be.. bigger tournaments or bigger challenges would be a larger headache to create maybe, but perhaps that would be a way to go? hmm
I would also love to play a civization styled MMO.. I know that Cities XL failed but that doesn't mean developers can't keep trying to get it right.
When you say MMO, are you imagining a persistant world and persistant civilization you play forever or are you imagining a server with gigantic multiplayer games of CIV with 1000 starting players per map?
Great question Maple... pros and cons for each. Either would be an interesting innovation to be sure under a turn based system. I like the second one a bit more, but I think either way could really be intriguing!
I like to see a good MMO from Heros of Might and Magic 3. I know there is one but it is not playable in the US.
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You should really give Atlantica a try and see how their system works. It's a F2P with - as someone else noted - a nearly manditory cash shop, but for the first 60+ levels there's really no need to touch it, and depending on your play that could take a while, and you'd really get a feel for the game.
Also, there's a browser-based game, Travian. I used to piddle around with it a couple years ago, and I really enjoyed it at the time. It may well be in line with what you're hunting, and looks like it's probably still pretty active. Fairly addicting little game there, at least for something you just play in your browser. Hell, I even used to update a few things here and there on my iPhone back then right through safari if I wasn't near a PC.
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Most MMOs are turn based which is opposite to twitch based. Basically is it like playing D&D but the computer do the rolling for you, in a turn based game you wont attack faster because you click faster.
But I understand what you mean, you are talking about game where the combat stops up after every turn, like in CIV, Suikoden, Heroes or Final fantasy.
Those MMOs do exist, Atlantica is one that is free. But combat feels rather boring to me in them.
They work but are not exiting, go ahead and try one.
I am pretty sure it is, but don't bother since it suck badly.
Maybe you should give Atlantica Online and Final Fantasy XI a try so that you may get some ideas regarding turn-based mmorpg's.
Oh man, I'm having a bad day remembering things.
Anyone remember that online game where both you and an opponent choose 1 out of 5 cards in hand. And depending on the cards action your chosen 'Avatar' or figurine would perform and action. The actions could vary from moving two spaces back, attacking with an arrow, or building a wall.
Not really on the scale of what you were looking for, but it also uses the lesser liked turn based style, where all players take turns at the same time. In a Civ type circumstance it wouldn't really work out well, but possibly in something a bit less traditional. Maybe a game where you lead a army and choose battle tactics?
Wrong. Most MMOs are real-time as opposed to turn based.
No, turn-based means that you have to wait until the other player finishes his turn before you have yours. Hence, TURN-based. A game is not turn-based because it has auto-attack.
Yes, that would be turn-based.
NO, dammit! FFXI is NOT turn-based. Turn-based does NOT mean, "Play is slower than I prefer."
It's not the same type of game as those being mentioned, but the original Neverwinter Nights on AoL had turn based combat, which I quite liked. It was very "Chess-like." There was an (invisible) grid for player's and monster's icons and while the strategy involved wasn't too deep, there was some thinking to be done, especially given the D&D system of spellcasters having a limited amount of spells. It was turn based and timed, so one couldn't sit on his hands all day and ruin things for others.
I'd bet a modern company could overhaul the Gold-Box combat idea and make it even better.
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Obviously having the entire game be turn based wouldn't work as waiting on 1999 other people to take a turn before you can even more would be terrible at epic levels.
But there have been games that make the move around real time and then the combat turn based. The Realm, the longest running MMO, is this way. Atlantica is this way.
To the guy who said most MMOs are turn based, no. They are a method referred to as tick based. They say x amount of things are possible per tick and once you've done one you can't again until later. It is a middle ground between real time and turn based. But it seems more MMOs are headed into the fully real time combat. Asheron's Call always has been, DDO is, TERA will be. It is a method that is catching on because it is so interactive and fun.
As far as I know combat system is turn-based in those games but not the game itself. I don't have clear idea how the MMO itself can be turn-based
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You need to check out PoxNora. Endless deck building complexity. Be prepared to spend some money though if you want to compete in PvP.
And +1 to Atlantica Online
I'm liable to get flamed for this but here goes:
Turn based MMO's already exist. Just not in the form you currently think of. There are a TON of browser based games that are turn based that have multitudes of players. Some are more strategic than others. Many of them are those little facebook games that people choose to ignore like Farmville.
They come in a variety of flavors, and odds are that you can find one that fits your taste.
For Civ Fans I might Reccomend Ikariam.
The difference is that the games are not TRULY turn based, buildings and resources happen on a VERY slow RTS style of play.
So long, and thanks for all the fish!
Pretty weird that nobody mentioned it so far... all Ankama games are turn based too:
1. Dofus - the original one - fully blown MMORPG with crafting, auction house and whatever else one usually expects in this genre.
2. Dofus Arena - their 2nd game - this one isn't a MMORPG, it's a ladder PvP game, but still turn based. Last time i checked it was free also.
3. Wakfu - their 3rd game, a MMORPG as well, currently in beta testing afaik.
Also there is Dofus 2 which as far as i had understood will be the successor to Dofus. Haven't played this one though and i don't know if it is turn-based - i think it is. Also i don't know if they will keep both the original and Dofus 2 running simultaneously in the future.
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