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An Openworld Sandbox MMO
Nixeor
Member Posts: 11
I'll start this by admitting I don't know all I want to know about this subject, but I know enough to be intrigued. I want to talk briefly about this MMO that I've been following for several months. Its an openworld sandbox MMO, I love all sandbox MMOs, a few openworld MMOs, but I don't think I've ever mixed the two. Does anyone else think mixing two contradicting genres is ok?
This game "The Origins of Malu" looks pretty awesome for a game from an under the radar studio. Its graphics and designs are in par with WoW, so there is no debate over the visual quality. I read about its well received impact at PAX Prime in Seattle. Plus, I read about the proposed game mechanics on its website. All of these aspects (art design, player reception, and game mechanics) seem solid and I want to see more of them, but I don't understand how these opposing game genre's can combine into a functioning game.
Instead of racking my brain trying to figure out how two completely different genres like open world and sandbox work together, I'm just going to sit back and enjoy the art of the game. Heaven knows the genre is too confusing to understand. Best to stay within the parameters of that which you undestand.
Comments
All sandbox MMOs I know of are at least mostly open world. EVE is, UO is, Ryzom is, ArcheAge will be... Are you sure you don't mean something else?
Sandbox MMOs wouldn't even work that well without an open world, because creating content and participating in content created by others is of great importance in them.
must be confusing open world with themepark
every Sandbox like the poster above said is open world
Asheron's Call, Eve, UO, SWG, DF, Horizons
I really certain I meant an openworld sandbox. They say it all over their website.
From what I read about at PAX, they didn't showcase this feature, instead they showcased a minigame in a sandbox location. But then a minigame needs boundries.
I skate to where the puck is going to be, not where it has been -Wayne Gretzky
ArcheAge is not a sandbox MMO it's a mixture of themepark and sandbox features, it's a Hybrid.
Rimmersam just killed all my hopes and faith for ArcheAge to become the Ultima Online of 2013 =(
But i'll see with my own eyes..may be something good can pop out from this hybrid. Until you can modify the world with non instanced houses, I think there is still hopes..
Supermarkets also write "Fresh Vegetables" on their signs instead of just "Vegetables"
There isn't a "right" or "wrong" way to play, if you want to use a screwdriver to put nails into wood, have at it, simply don't complain when the guy next to you with the hammer is doing it much better and easier. - Allein
"Graphics are often supplied by Engines that (some) MMORPG's are built in" - Spuffyre
*chuckles*
Actually, to be fair to the OP, the emphasis can apply although it probably more packaging labels*.
Mostly the 2 are together but you could have instanced areas in a sandbox that are not shared... can't think up an eg!... and oc different emphasis. I mean Smedley using "Sandbox-style"... ffs... there's enough confusing terms in mmorpgs ie marketing flower-language =/= working definitions.
*NB: eg "Fresh" vegetables vs vegetables that are apparently "fresh" but have been in a vacuum for ages and so their proteins are all denatured, so you're getting more nutrious spinach from frozen spinach than from "fresh" (as opposed to Fresh)! The more you know... Does not always apply but be careful when you buy your greens, folks. But agree there is the marketing side to it as well: The tricks the food superstores use on customers are numerous and insidious and same with most other products eg mmorpgs.
http://www.gdcvault.com/play/1014633/Classic-Game-Postmortem
That's an explanation that makes sense to me.
If I'm playing around in an unrestricted area and my actions effect the other areas I vist, then that sounds like a very solid game design. I'm beginning to see why this design has been incorporated into an MMO. You would need plenty of charcters to help manipulate the world enough so the world feels alive.
Plus, "The Origins of Malu" has bragged about their faction controlled areas with housing construction. This game sounds like it would be fun to play and look at. I don't think there are any other MMO that encourage player factions to stake claims on world areas. World of Warcraft creates areas already controlled by specific factions, but that's not the same.
I bet I could get a dozen of my friends on this MMO, player kill everyone in an area, stake a claim on the area, and build a giant house the shape of Ryan Renalds head. And no body could stop us. *chuckles* Take that Minecraft!!
For a game to be truly open world, there needs to be plenty of places to explore. Warcraft covered did this by creating a world that was simply massive. The shear size of it makes it seem like it could be explored forever. But really the core design of WoW boils down to open landscapes, uneven terrain, and objects players must avoid to reach destinations (e.g. trees, rocks, rivers, crystals, statues). And that has proven itself to be a valid design for an open world MMO.
Design wise, The Origins of Malu does look a little like a them park in some of the screenshots.
Can an openworlds are meant to be explored, whilst thempark are meant to be enjoyed. Is putting a thempark in an openworld a good design choice?
How can a screen shot make it "look" like anything?
I mean if it shows quest givers then maybe it looks themeparky, or if it shows house building then maybe it looks kinda like a sand box.
The picture you linked is just a character standing against a backdrop. I see no game play elements.
The world design of an openworld game is not dependant on gameplay. World design simply allows for gameplay. I'm not sure if quest givers are what makes any game look "themeparky". But the gameplay screenshots do seem to account for the design of an open world.
As for house building, I havn't found a lot of media on that, but most articles I have found make mention of house building in The Origins of Malu. If there is housing construction, then I'm not going to play Minecraft any more. That game is too tedious for me.