Howdy, Stranger!
It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!
Quick Links
What do you look for when reviewing a mmorpg?
Kiamde
Member CommonPosts: 5,820
What do you look for when reviewing a mmorpg? Just wondering.
Open your eyes, close your mouth, and make a fist.
"Whoever controls the media controls the mind..-'Jim Morrison"
"When decorum is repression, the only dignity free men have is to speak out." ~Abbie Hoffman
Comments
Personally I look for a large number of things.
I could go on and on about the things that I seek in an MMORPG, and I know I expect alot. However when you pay a monthly fee as well as an intitial purchase fee, and also pay for expansions, plus paying a monthly for a solid internet connection, and constant hardware upgrades then you deserve to demand alot out of your chosen hobby. Regardless above are the top 10 things that I look for in an MMORPG, in no particular order.
Thanks for asking!
FINBAR
---------------------------------------------
Now Playing: Nothing
For beta info, or other contact info
see the user info section.
FINBAR
-------------------------------------------
I look for the following in order of importance:
1. Community
2. Content (including storyline)
3. Graphics Quality/Game Stability
4. Combat/Spell/Play System (including how to deal with griefing, corpse looting, etc.)
5. Economy
6. Tradeskills System
7. Character/Race Options
8. Character Development (leveling, etc.)
9. PvP Options
Of course, these are very subjective and will certainly be interpreted differently by everyone you ask.
----------------------------
Omol da'Ox
The Blooded
----------------------------
Omol da'Ox
Gameplay that doesn't completely suck... I guess?
I have been very unimpressed with all the "successful" big MMORPGs thus far. The gameplay in all of them (UO, EQ, AO, DAoC, SWG) has been horribly repetitive. None of these companies have set aside and policed at least one out of all their many, many servers to allow a RP environment to flourish. There isn't a single one of these supposed "role-playing game" that has a single server where roleplaying is even possible, let alone happening. The management of these games refuse to even consistantly monitor character names or the in game shout/yells. It's a wee bit tough to RP while some l33t d00d is spam-screaming how awesome The Rock was that night during WWE Raw. Becuse of this, NONE of the games listed comes close to actually being an RPG. They ones listed are all basically bug-filled online theme parks... kinda like Disney World or Universal Studios Orlando. Yeah, the environment looks kinda authentic, but you're standing in long lines waiting for something fun to happen only very occasionally surrounded by little kids screaming, "Are we there yet?"
Four games on the horizon that might change this. World of Warcraft. Warhammer. Dark and Light. City of Heroes
Blizzard is launching WoW in the first half of next year. Blizzard has never botched a game launch. The graphic will not be cutting edge, but they generally clean up the bugs before their release date, and find a way to make their games fun. I'm a little concerned about one thing I have heard. I;ve seen Blizzard describe wanting to make WoW an advance in making MMORPGs (paraphrasing) an excellent desktop toy. That leads me to think that WoW will probably be fun, but I'm not sure how much WoW will leave behind that "theme park" feel MMORPGs have.
I would expect Games Workshop will launch Warhammer into the big content void that currently exists. NOBODY will ever accuse GW of launching a product light on background detail. Warhammer Online should most likely fill the hole in the market that currently exists for a MMORPG with realistic roleplaying envoronment.
Dark and Light has some big goals. First game to fit everyone on one massive server. A seperate advancement track for social skills. Characters can earn their own permanent strongholds/castles that can be fought over by the PCs. Lots of neat stuff. I hope they haven't set their sites too high. If Dark and Light launches with most of what they are promising actually working, it will move the whole game genre forward years instantly (unlike a certain nameless SF MMORPG game that actually has horsies and poke-monsters when it's supposed to have X-Wings and Death Stars).
City of Heroes. It not only will be the first attempt at a superhero MMORPG, it currently looks like it really might work well. The background writing done for the game thus far is really excellent. The game looks like it will launch with a setting that actually does what it does for internally consistant reasons. I can't emphasize enough how important that is to gameplay. The more consistant a setting is, the more quickly we are drawn into that state in which we begin to suspend disbelief in what one interacts with in the game environment. Drawing the player into the environment and allowing a players own imagination to fill in the gaps in what can be potentially experienced is the big battle a game designer fights. Studies indicate individuals who are daydreaming experience 80% of the content an individual actually experiences in actually doing an activity. Therefore, a game setting must "make sense" to a player, and allow their own brain to fill in the gaps a computer game can't supply. Once the illusion is shattered, no amount of technology can supply what the mind has stopped supplying to the game player.
"...you just #@*&;$% with the wrong rhino!" - Smoochy
"...you just #@*&;$% with the wrong rhino, pal!" - Smoochy
I will have to argue with Leftie a little (not much though) here. DAoC does have a RP ONLY server. They are trying but I do agree, it falls short of what true Role Playing is. As long as there is no penalty for NOT RP'n, the masses will not RP.
As far as what I look for...
Ok, there's way too much to look at and those listed above are not in order of importance for me.
(Blizzard is launching WoW in the first half of next year. Blizzard has never botched a game launch.) hehe. I've been waiting patiently for WoW. The beta was supposed to start in Oct of this year and they are still in Alpha. We all know that it will be in Beta for 1 to 1.5 years. The one thing I love about Blizzard is that, even though there may be a few bugs, they will have the game running and looking great at release.
~Tarqueth~
~Tarqueth~
I agree with lots of what you said above leftie. However in retrospect I have had very deep and involved roleplaying experiences in all the games that you mentioned. These experiences included, player controlled NPC's (players playing characteres that they made specifically to introduce and further prearanged plot elements), over arching player implemented plots (prewritten on a guild websight and acted out in game like a play), and character development (My paladin stopped following his god Prexus, so I remade him as a Shadowknight). It is very possible to roleplay in an MMORPG. I think what you are after is a controlled environment roleplay, something that can not be done in an MMORPG unless you want to put everyone but your friends on /ignore. You could try makingyour own NWN server, I have played on a few of those whith dyehard RPGing, where they kill you and kick you off if you even THINK out of character lol. Or maybe MMORPG's are just not your cup of tea?
In summary, yes I agree. Roleplaying is difficult and not openly encouraged in most MMORPG's. Even those MMORPG's with specific RP servers like EQ and DAOC do not absolutly enforce RP. They could have a report system where by, if 20 players report a guy for not RPing then he gets his character moved to another non-RP server, but they dont.
I would like to add one thing to my list of things that I look for in an MMORPG.
11) Community controlled roleplaying tools and posibilities.
FINBAR
---------------------------------------------
Now Playing: Nothing
For beta info, or other contact info
see the user info section.
FINBAR
-------------------------------------------
Finbar... I didn't say it was impossible to roleplay on the current crop of MMORPGs. I just said it was real difficult. It's still easier to play a paper and pencil RPGs than it is to RP on these MMORPGs because these environments are so hostile to it. The staff running these games is dead wrong to allow those who grief/spam any hint of roleplaying that happens around them to be a "legit" form of game character. There are just too many people who openly ridicule and disrupt any and all RPing they happen to run into. A solution would be to segregate those who intentionally grief/spam all RPing around them to special servers.
"...you just #@*&;$% with the wrong rhino!" - Smoochy
"...you just #@*&;$% with the wrong rhino, pal!" - Smoochy
To put it simply (for me)...Friendly community and some Decent Graphics, and for the game to not be that costly, under 13 bucks a month.
FINBAR
---------------------------------------------
Now Playing: Nothing
For beta info, or other contact info
see the user info section.
FINBAR
-------------------------------------------