Future MMORPGS

[Stridar]

Originally posted by Sorran
I'm *really* looking forward to Planetside - out of all the games listed in the first post, its probably the only one that doesn't require a huge time investment and doesn't generate character attachment like EQ does. I'm looking forward to being able to jump on, run around shooting, driving, hacking shit for a couple of hours, have a blast, and log off. I should be able to happily and easily play this one without it cutting too much into EQ.

Cheers,

Sorran.

So why not play tribes? BG1942? They don't charge monthly charges.

Shadowbane and Horizons I've been watching for like 2-3 freaking years. Doubt I'll try SB now, but maybe. Horizons though I stillthink could be good. EQ2 if they don't have the incredable bs time sinks that eq has, I'll try.
WoW looks good to me.
Lineage 2 could be fun, I'm playing ragnarok online right now as a time sink and enjoy the different graphics. Not to mention I need a severe PC upgrade to play any of the other new games right now.

[Sorran]

Sorry, to clarify - I want to do all that stuff in a persistent world =). I've played plenty of CS, Unreal, Quake , BF1942, etc, etc in my time, and had alot of fun doing so, but the idea of an FPS in a persistent world with thousands of other "regular" players on the same server really interests me =). I'm a huge fan of the communities that form around and in MMOGs and I look forward to experiencing the ones that will be in PS.

Cheers,

Sorran.

[Fogel]

Speaking of future games, any new news on Sigil?

[fade]

mmorpg's are heading downhill, fast. its not fun, its stupid, and the leader of all of them, everquest, has so many people hating the game but keep on playing for some reason. lets get right down to it, overall, everquest SUCKS. bad graphics, low gameplay, and its BOOOOOOOOOORING, the reason people played it in the first place is because it was the first of its kind, being able to travel and fight in a magical world sounds fun, so people played it.

anyway, enuf about gayquest, what about final fantasy 11? for ps2 and PC. say hello to the end of everquest.

[Worfless]

lol fade you just proved how fucking retarded people can get...

final fantasy 11 will not end the mmog regime, final fantasy 11 will be gay and like no one wants it, so no one will play it

admit it the only final fantasy you have ever liked was 7 you fucking moron...

[Lord Thanos]

Very nice list Archeiron, out of all these games, the ones that am most interested in are

City of Heroes, always like superheroes (shit, look at my username), I like the idea behind this game and I really want a break from the usual dragons, elves and dwarves, etc.

And thanks to your list I've just become interested in EVE, it looks freaking sweet! I've looked at Earth and Beyond and it just seemed too, I don't know, colorful (bright red, blue, green spaships, wtf?), yeah minor detail, but I kind of like to have my eye candy look the way I like it

I like the darker look of EVE, can't wait to give it a try, should be out soon, according to the latest issue of Computer Gaming World it should've been ready by now, maybe it was delayed before they went to print

[Cybsled]

I'm interested in FFXI...but in the PC version, F using a PS2 for that.

Least Square loves monks. Remember them in FF1? It was always funny to see them attack WITHOUT a weapon (everyone always thought they had to equip the claws). They'd kill the last boss in like 3 hits heh. Speaking of which, Square is releasing FF1 and FF2(japanese) on the PS1 in April, all with redone graphics and cutscenes. Hopefully they redo the craptastic ending for 1.

[elrich]

Based on a game system by the guy who created Dungeons and Dragons (Gary Gygax). If he is involved it should be cool.

Gary Gygax was forcible pushed out of all the work with D&D (TSR) because he was a fucking number crunching power gamer. It might be cool for EQ worlds, but d&d was/is meant for an actual roleplaying atmosphere, not just hack and slash like Mr. Gygax wanted.

[Kreugen]

fade's post was so true until he vomited up that bit about final fantasy: the worlds most homoerotic MMORPG. Holy fucking fruity fairy gay. And I LIKE many square games.

Basically, MMORPG's suck. Hell, nearly every single character RPG game I have ever played sucked, at least in terms of actual gameplay. Combat for the individual is universally boring in all of them. If you controlled the entire group EQ might be interesting, but for the individual, its just fucking dull. You just don't have enough to DO, no matter if you are solo grouping raiding or throwing mass fucking bodies at an encounter in some big idiotic horde.

If you do not like Everquest, you will not like ANY of the upcoming games. Because every one of them has the same fault, the same simplistic gameplay for the individual. Press attack. Click spell button. If its PVP, spend most of your time running away from tougher opponents/numbers while you look for an easy target - in a horde of people all doing the same. IT'S ALL THE SAME. Only one person in everquest truely gets to have fun, and that's the raid leader. Not the "okay, invite everyone level 65 you can find and charge the mob" manager of mindless hordes type GM. I mean, for example, Furor. To him the game is the worlds most complex RTS game. Fine. For everyone else, you push a few buttons and then go back to chatting.

So for all of you starting up these threads: "I'm sick of EQ what's the next big thing" Its NOT A FANTASY MMORPG. That's for damn sure. Shit look at this thread, what are the odds of 10 of these games all being made at once and they ALL apparently suck? Its no accident.

I look at every one of these games and I see the same thing: Repetative and boring. Your comments sound like this "I'm tired of Everquest, what's another game where I can do the exact same thing with different pictures on the screen?"

I've pretty much decided on "none of the above" for now. Including EQ.

[Fingul]

Bah, the 'next big thing' is in my pants!..

But seriously.. What's one of the claims usually made on the back of any PC or console RPG? over 80 hours of gameplay!! Average say 40 - 100 hours per, depending on if you're one of those who likes to rush through and beat it quick, or if you're like me, and want to breed the gold chocobo and grab knights of the round just so your list of stuff is complete.

I'll try pretty much any MMORPG for the first month, since it's generally free to play, and I get on average, over 100 hours of gameplay out of it, just for the price of the box. That way I get to see any nifty features that other games haven't used yet, and explore 'new' worlds and areas for a bit, then, as soon as the gameplay becomes repetetive, as per what Kruegen mentioned, bang, I can quit with no extra money invested.

If you want lasting gameplay, MMORPGS aren't going to provide it. Lasting useability yes, but true replay value? Not really. For that you tend to have to look at strategy games, or shooters.. How many people are still playing counterstrike or various permutations? Hell of a lot more than are playing EQ, that's for sure.

In that vein, I truly wish that it had been something about the game that had so captivated me when EQ first came out. But it wasn't, it was the experience of a MMORPG for the first time. I can't ever get that back in a new game, because I look at them all from the perspective of someone who's done it before.

Ah well, back to the emulator and D&D Shadow over Mystara.. (Now there's an RPG =)

Fin

[Stroker Ace]

Here is a list of upcoming MMORPG's that look interesting.

Black Moon Chronicles

http://www.blackmoon-online.com/news/news.aspx


Face of Mankind

http://www.faceofmankind.com/


Boundless Adventures

http://www.boundless-adventures.com/


Darkfall

http://www.darkfallonline.com/


Lord of the Rings: Middle-earth Online

No official webpage as of yet


Lost Continents

http://lostcontinents.vr1.com/


Priest

http://www.gamepriest.com/english/index.asp


Trials of Ascension

http://www.shadowpool.com/

[Archeiron]

Originally posted by Kreugen
fade's post was so true until he vomited up that bit about final fantasy: the worlds most homoerotic MMORPG. Holy fucking fruity fairy gay. And I LIKE many square games.

Basically, MMORPG's suck. Hell, nearly every single character RPG game I have ever played sucked, at least in terms of actual gameplay. Combat for the individual is universally boring in all of them. If you controlled the entire group EQ might be interesting, but for the individual, its just fucking dull. You just don't have enough to DO, no matter if you are solo grouping raiding or throwing mass fucking bodies at an encounter in some big idiotic horde.

If you do not like Everquest, you will not like ANY of the upcoming games. Because every one of them has the same fault, the same simplistic gameplay for the individual. Press attack. Click spell button. If its PVP, spend most of your time running away from tougher opponents/numbers while you look for an easy target - in a horde of people all doing the same. IT'S ALL THE SAME. Only one person in everquest truely gets to have fun, and that's the raid leader. Not the "okay, invite everyone level 65 you can find and charge the mob" manager of mindless hordes type GM. I mean, for example, Furor. To him the game is the worlds most complex RTS game. Fine. For everyone else, you push a few buttons and then go back to chatting.

So for all of you starting up these threads: "I'm sick of EQ what's the next big thing" Its NOT A FANTASY MMORPG. That's for damn sure. Shit look at this thread, what are the odds of 10 of these games all being made at once and they ALL apparently suck? Its no accident.

I look at every one of these games and I see the same thing: Repetative and boring. Your comments sound like this "I'm tired of Everquest, what's another game where I can do the exact same thing with different pictures on the screen?"

I've pretty much decided on "none of the above" for now. Including EQ.

*nods* not gonna disagree with you here. MMORPG makers are caught in a tough spot. On the one hand you want to make the action less boring (twitch based attack, magic etc) at the same time you don't wanna isolate yourselves from your player base by making a game that favours 14 years with high hand eye coordination, fast reflexes, and a broadband internet connection over the average joe that will actually stay with a MMORPG for mroe than one to two months. As a result they have to make combat automated and therefore boring.

EQ is one of the best things I have seen to do while chatting to your friends on a chat channel. thats about it, and I made this list NOT as a disillusioned ex-eq player, but as an addict who can't stop playing but is stuck without EQ for RL reasons and since my social life is f*cked for the same RL reasons (read: no money) I had the time/luxoury to look around at other games coming out.

For anyone who thinks this genre is gonna die off, you are out of your mind. MMO games of any sort are the way forward. Why would you want to play a game alone, when you have the option to play it with friends? (pre-emptive response: stfu I know there are games suited to playing solo, don't be obtuse) There wouldn't be sooooo many publishers each taking a stab at a MMO game if there weren't an enormous cash cow waiting to be milked. The sad thing is that the publishers have already seen that people will pay money to eat shit in this niche, complain about how bad it is, then go back for seconds. So we can only pray that one of these games comes out as a gem, so that when the EQ teat shivels and dries up, we aren't all caught standing around with our dicks in our hands.

[Cantatus]

mmorpg's are heading downhill, fast. its not fun, its stupid, and the leader of all of them, everquest, has so many people hating the game but keep on playing for some reason.

My hope is that the companies realize EverQuest has its faults and is not a golden game. Among these new releases, I'm willing to bet a majority of them are going to be EverQuest knockoffs in some fashion as these companies will be ignorant enough to believe that they'll be able to steal the playerbase by introducing the same basic concept with newer graphics.

Personally, I think we're just seeing the beginning in a new type of gaming genre. MMOGs aren't going to die off anytime soon, but I think we'll see a lot of mistakes in the process.

[Lhon]

EQ got a lot of things right, which is why it is so successful. What is happening is all these new games are trying to fix EQs problems without actually realizing what the true problems are. People complain "the only way to advance is by killing things, it is boring!", and so the devs decide to add item decay and complex trade skills to their new game so you don't have to spend all your time in combat. Meanwhile they leave combat the same was as it was in EQ.

Well there are enough new games coming out that eventually someone will stumble in the right direction.

[Heylel Teomim]

Anyone read Tad William's Otherland series? Specifically the first book, City of Golden Light. In it, two of the main characters are players in what is, effectively, a highly advanced mmorpg.

What makes this particular example so unique is the method by which content refreshes itself (Mind you the author's intent is the story, not exposition on rpg design). The players basically buy "packages" of content from the game company (and it is suggested these packages are sold by other folks as well). These include all sorts of things, from new powers and items to characters to entire castles. If you wanna be a wizard, get your self the wizard kit complete with tower, plunk it down in the game world and get started.

The entire world grows organically from what players choose to build and do. Nor do these additions decay when the character quits or goes away. If a great warlord, played by a PC, dies and leaves behind a trap filled tomb, then other PCs can try to break into said tomb and steal the dead guy's shit. It resembles tabletop rpgs in alot of ways. There's a central control via tribunal that handles "crime" (cheating), but in game law is dealt with via players.

The feasibility of something like that is something I would love to see investigation into. Personally, I think it sounds doable. It would require a game engine capable of being hooked onto efficiently and with as little intrusion as possible, and would all but require private servers owned by non-company individuals for the purpose of keeping the game running. Almost like a little private internet with a goal. Socially I don't have any clue what would happen, without proper control it could degenerate into PK fest in no time, i imagine.

RPG design is a field I'm quite interested in from a layman's point of view (and a writer's. I'm more familiar with table top and larp design and social aspects than I am mmorpg). If anyone feels like chatting about design aspects anymore, throw me an email at gte047v@hotmail.com or post here. I'm all about good discussion.

Heylel

ps. Kreugen, it's obvious you're pretty fed up with the current method of online play. My main question then, is what you'd choose to do? You mention Furor has all the fun because he's the general, so to speak. Any idea how that could be spread around to other people? Not everyone can be Achilles it seems =/