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Are Korean MMORPG's starting to surpass western MMORPG's?
MMO.Maverick
Member CommonPosts: 7,619
Throughout the years there have been memorable MMORPG's coming from Korea, like Lineage 1 and 2 and Aion. Nothing that was better than western MMORPG's though. But after looking at the list of upcoming MMORPG's and seeing the ones that originate from Korea, I'm starting to wonder if the real jump forwards in MMORPG progression are coming from Korea.
Reason for that being a number of impressive MMO's that seem to be upcoming.
TERA looks graphically great, better than most other MMO's, it has an inventive different combat system, tries to experiment with a political system, and it appears to have a seamless world - with that kind of graphics - that's far bigger than Rift and very likely even WoW.
ArcheAge just blew me completely away, with its phenomenal graphics, environmental effects and all kinds of sandbox features that western MMO companies dare not try to risk burning their fingers on. I recommend everyone to look at the footage, it'll leave you dumbfounded and speechless in awe.
Vindictus was maybe not a true MMORPG, but it had the best unconventional, environmental and situational combat that I've seen. It was maybe more an MORPG, but it had features that one'd wish an MMORPG would have.
Blade & Soul is another Korean MMORPG that's looking good and seems to bring its own brand of MMORPG.
And those are only the ones I know of, I read some glimpses of other Korean MMO's as well.
Thing is, it looks like the Korean developers are far more ambitious and willing to risk stepping away from traditional MMO mechanics and try out new ideas and features than western MMO companies are. Also, it looks like they might advance further technologically than their western counterparts: vastly larger seamless worlds wit highly detailed graphics and different, new mechanics thrown in the mix as well.
In fact, if this and next year wouldn't have such a strong lineup, I'd have thought the Korean MMO's to be superior already: would TERA, ArcheAge and Blade & Soul have been released in any other year, like in 2010, 2009 or 2008 or so, I'd have given them a high chance that they would've taken the MMO market by storm (well, maybe not WoW ofc), leaving all the western MMORPG's behind.
However, there's a GW2, SWTOR, The Secret World, the already released Rift, Firefall and World of Darkness as the strong western titles, each with their own unique features and technological prowess.
It doesn't change the fact though that the Korean MMORPG industry is strong, and it looks like its MMO companies are even growing stronger and progressing further. Which is an achievement, considering that it's just one relatively small country.
The ACTUAL size of MMORPG worlds: a comparison list between MMO's
The ease with which predictions are made on these forums:
Fratman: "I'm saying Spring 2012 at the earliest [for TOR release]. Anyone still clinging to 2011 is deluding themself at this point."
Comments
I think as far as pure subscriber or user/player count, they did ages ago. MMOS in the eastern market are generally much more successful then their western counterparts, however the problem is when a bridge is attempted between the two markets it usually results in failure.... the two markets have very different ideas of what MMOS should be , and having played a number of eastern mmos, I do not like them. For me the main reasons are the way woman are portrayed with the anime sex style, and the repetative grinding, that makes most western mmos look easy.
As far as the games you mentioned, their all unreleased, and carry ZERO weight until their released and proved to be sucessful in their markets. IMO judging unreleased games is utter madness, as I have been through god knows how many dissapointing launches. Though I do hope they suceed, as this genre really needs some innovation.
Honestly, no.
Graphically most Korean MMO look much prettier that Western ones. As for appeal, unless they specifically design for a Western audience about the best they can hope for is to be as successful as Aion.
Course the same holds true for Western MMOs in the Eastern market.
As a matter of fact the only real true crossover MMO to appeal to both Western and an Eastern audience has been World of Warcraft.
"I understand that if I hear any more words come pouring out of your **** mouth, Ill have to eat every fucking chicken in this room."
I will reserve all judgment on korean MMOs until they are released. However, I can tell you that no korean game will do well with a western audience unless they steer clear of 2 very important game mechanics that the eastern audience holds dear.
- Level based evasion with open world PvP (aka lowbie ganking).
- Very long level grind.
I would have to disagree. When you look at Korean MMO Publishers, you will see an impressive amount of MMOs, easily 5x the amount we have here. Facing such a large competition, they have no choice but to take additional risks in order to make something different.
Also, technologically speaking (as far as MMOs goes), they aren't more advanced. Vindictus uses Valve's Source Engine, TERA Unreal 3 Engine, ArchAge uses Crytek 2 Engine, Blade&Soul also uses Unreal 3 Engine. They're using the same tools as western developers, but again, they face a larger market and MUST make something different to be truly succesfull in the Korean market.
First KOREA is biggest game country in world secondly they made for years mmo's that surpass all western mmos by far.
Becouse WoW is most popular and have most subs dont mean its best and if one country place his influence on whole mmo market then also by far thats KOREA again.
That you dont like them thats another discusion i dont like most eather but western mmo's are few compare to korean mmo's and there influence.
And with games you mention who soon hit market KOREA will even more dictate the mmo market they lready dictate for last 7-8 years.
GW2 is almost korean its very influenced by KOREAN mmo's not only in looks also in gameplay.
Games played:AC1-Darktide'99-2000-AC2-Darktide/dawnsong2003-2005,Lineage2-2005-2006 and now Darkfall-2009.....
In between WoW few months AoC few months and some f2p also all very short few weeks.
Don't forget the one thing that drives away tons of players click to move.
I'm certainly watching ArcheAge. While i don't think that Korean MMOs have surpassed Western MMOs in Western markets, I do have to say that it looks to me as though Eastern MMOs are keeping the mechanics that I prefer in MMOs while Western MMOs are becoming/have become a genre I don't enjoy due to (for the most part, certainly there are exceptions) instant gratification, fast leveling, extreme soloability, zero learning curve, and a lack of meaningful crafting.
Western MMOs are more like online console games with updates and the option to group which is very popular right now. It's not my thing, however so I don't play them.
? I never said I didn't like them.
Besides that, I doubt whether they dominated the whole MMO scene for the past 7-8 years.
Well, it seems like they manage to achieve more within the limitations of the engines.
The ACTUAL size of MMORPG worlds: a comparison list between MMO's
The ease with which predictions are made on these forums:
Fratman: "I'm saying Spring 2012 at the earliest [for TOR release]. Anyone still clinging to 2011 is deluding themself at this point."
Wut?
While most of your post I agree with... GW2 is not VERY influenced by korean MMO's. ArenaNet's entire philosophy is very western.
Low-grind... and easily accessible.
Their look is also not Korean either. They draw their art from a painterly look... which actually was drawn from European looks. As for gameplay, they derived from single-player RPG games. Obviously some Korean MMO's are derived from the same source, but that doesn't mean GW2 is influenced from Korean games. They both just happen to draw from the same influence.
And the last note that MANY people are mistaken on. GW2 is not published by a Korean publisher. When GW1 launched, one of their head man went off to help form NCsoft West... which as you may guess, handles the western games. NCsoft west is strictly western... and will publish GW2.
Again, GW2 is NOT being published by a Korean publisher.
I used to play VIndictus until I played DCU.....
Cross out "korean" and replace with "mainstream consoles" and it makes more sense, imo.
Forums: The best real-time interactive MMORPG you'll ever be in.
No
The MMOs that interest me right now are SWTOR, EQ3 and World of Darkness Online.
I am not aware any of them is korean ...
The Korean market is significantly more saturated than the western markets. In time the innovation will come to the western companies as well.
Of note, if you still think every Korean MMO equals grind and open PvP, then you've had your head in the sand for the last three years.
Every Korean game I've played has sucked due to the model being "If there's a massive grind, players will give us cash for XP boosts! We're so clever!" and fucking up the game.
So, no. They have not, nor will they ever if they stick to this design, pass Western MMOs.
Korean MMOs have always been graphically more advanced than western MMOs
sadly korean MMOs since to be trapped in 1999, game mechanic-wise.
they still think that grinding endless hordes of mobs for 85% of the level, making the game cap take months upon months of normal gameplay, and provide a replay value of zero.point.zero is acceptable.
thats the reason why Korean games, while graphically godsends, always fall flat on their faces in the west. and i expect the trend to continue.
Korean Dev's seem to be not afraid to to try something new, so yea in that regard they are. But at the same time storytelling seems to be one of their weaker points IMO.
Velika: City of Wheels: Among the mortal races, the humans were the only one that never built cities or great empires; a curse laid upon them by their creator, Gidd, forced them to wander as nomads for twenty centuries...
No its different mentality , infact western MMO are best suited to solo players , since creating a virtual online world of team work and cooperation is getting rare and rarer , its all about me meself and I . or replace me meself and a small group of friends .
In asian market stuff like political Ideology is more likely to happen , since there pvp and gameplay system is more based on sacrifice honor and suffering for the greater good ..
Sure exception in both cases can be made and luckily the exceptions are currently not rare , but this the trend where its heading , its simply a seperate living standards .
It also has to do with prospect and future of youth , the west looks more bleak , while asia looks more developing thus postive.
As always exceptions can be made , since in the end if you work hard enough everything is possible .
Just doesn´t mean the conditions you work in are optimal .
Anyway SWTOR is the last MMORPG for me , and this time going to play it as a player .
So will fit in nicely with the me meself and I group , instead of organising stuff .
I think you nailed it drake.
Here in the states, people in general seem to have gravitatede more towards selfishness, and self righteous indignation. One needs only to look at our politicians to see the polarizing reality before us. The people who comprise our representatives are not picked from some anti society, no, they are a direct representation of the vocal group which comprises our society.
Is this dynamic indicative of all Americans? To some degree I would say it is becoming that way.
What trips me out is the way you just broke it down to show that it is even reflecting that in our video game play style.
Had a disaster of the same magnitude in Japan occured here, we would have roving bands of thugs, and soldiers firing on citizens.
Maybe we, the American gaming community, need to make an effort to change our gaming play styles, and in doing so, maybe we can set in motion the cogs that will revamp our society....
To the caterpillar it is the end of the world, to the master, it is a butterfly.
amen...all up for that
And broken asdw.
My two favourite mmorpg's these last 4 years are Asian :
- Atlantica Online
- Uncharted Waters Online
I think Asians makes more solid, more innovative, more clever games . Already .
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Playing : Uncharted Waters Online
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I really hope that gamers can make things right again , don´t forget it only takes some experience in a person lifetime .
That can radically alter a person perspectief of things , its not that youth don´t have the energy or motivation for it .
Its more that they are supressing themselfs more often then not .
Or focusing there energy in mindless nintendo vs sega war ... (both were japanese products anyway)
Its more I do not mean it negative , Its like somehow they simply blocked in a world were nobody understands them .
When you do understand them , they go into a total denial , cause of the I am special and a Individual .
In eastern society everybody is a sheep till they proof themself be able to get out from the masses .
So everybody did had the same chances , but if you don´t utilise it you are still a sheep and accept it .
Thats one of the reason grind is normal for those games , its what everybody else does , till you can find a way to seperate yourself .
But on the otherside , making cooperation much smoother and pleasant .
So ideas has to be really proven with logical arguments and facts or ground base founded .
Currently in here (western world where I also belong) its more the right of the strongest , the one who can shout the loudest or be the most ignorant . if that fails backstab is always a option .
Logic in most cases are irrelevant , cause excuses or side steps are easier found .
Dog ate my home work cases .