The MMO Notebook

Archive for the ‘MMO General’ Category

A couple of new updates have been posted on the official Star Wars: The Old Republic website. These updates deal with the subject of music and sound and how they affect the way players perceives the world around them. The blog post has this to say:

It’s our job to create an audio experience that enhances the emotional experience of the game and reaches the quality level expected of the Star Wars franchise. As fans and as game makers, we’re excited and privileged to breathe life into every planet, every weapon, and every creature that beeps, squawks, or just plain talks…and it’s not as easy as it, er, sounds.

I agree that music and sound can greatly influence how a game world is perceived. I know that many people play games with the sound turned off, but that is something I am unable to do. It adds so much to the experience. I can’t wait to see what they have created.

An official video dealing with this subject has also been posted. You can view it over on the official site, or watch it below.

–Wolfen

The huge backlash against Blizzard’s plan to have players of World of Warcraft post on the official forums with their real name has caused them to change their minds about this dubious change.

Blizzard CEO Mike Morhaime posted on the forums to announce that they have changed their mind and that posting with your real name will not be required. A huge cheer was voiced by many in the community.

Personally, I wish they had kept the plan in place. I think it would have resulted in a much more civil and productive discourse about the game and I think that was what Blizzard was trying to accomplish.

The internet has exploded with the news out of Blizzard that their forums will begin using a system called Real ID. What this means is that anyone who posts on the official forums will do so with their real names. Posters will not be able to hide behind their character names any longer. The massive thread on the WoW forums about this subject is monumental.

Naturally, people are up in arms over this for a variety of reasons. The biggest reason is player privacy. If another player does not like what you did in-game, or did not agree with what you said in a forum post, they are now armed with your real name and the potential for harassment is greatly increased.

My biggest worry is for female players. We all know what female players go through with the crude remarks, verbal sexual abuse, and general idiotic in-game stalking. Now imagine those idiots having that woman’s real name. In theory, the potential of some crazy love-struck guy could track her down in real life is very possible.

I am not sure what Blizzard’s real motivations are for this change. Are they tired of the official forums being a repository of the lowest common denominator? Do they think a more civil discourse will ensue once people are required to use their real name? I don’t know, but it sure is going to be fun to watch the outcome of this one. The Real ID system gets turned on just before the upcoming Cataclysm expansion.

As a side note, parents can opt their children out of using RealID. You can find instructions on how to do that right here.

Every now and then I post a nostalgic screenshot from my gaming days of old. Here’s one from 1999 in the South Karana zone.

If you happen to roam around the MMO blogosphere and news sites, you might have seen some hints and whispers about the possibility of Everquest 3 being a reality.  Some say that has been in production for years while others think it will never be made. People seem to be split on the idea of Everquest 3 seeing the light of day. Personally, I would welcome another Everquest title into the marketplace, but only if it was created in a certain way.

I have mentioned before that the original Everquest is and always will be my best gaming experience of my life. Be that as it may, I can’t see myself ever returning to Everquest, even though I have friends who would like to see me return. The reason is game mechanics. Back in 1999, Everquest was the best game you could play. During those early years, the game played mostly as you thought it should. Due to the lack of other MMO games on the market, we gamers did not have a large frame of reference as to how things could be done.

Other games did eventually come on the market, with Everquest 2 being one of them.  It met with lackluster success at best. It did improve many things over the original version, but it also left many things to be desired in gameplay and UI experience. It took World of Warcraft to show all of us how an MMO can be done right.

If Everquest 3 is indeed on the horizon, I would like to see it play like a cross between WoW and Lord of the Rings Online. Give us a UI that blows our socks off. One that is super simple to start using yet easy to delve into the deeper parts of what is possible. I would also like to see the game go in a much different art direction than current Everquest games. The environment does not need to always look super-realistic. I want the designers to use their imagination and surprise me. Show me something that has not been done before and let me see it without needing to buy a new computer to experience it.

Everquest 3 should take me back to its roots. Don’t take me to a future reality or magically transport me to a moon. Show me the “old west” of Norrath, one that I envisioned in my mind as the game taught me about the Combine Empire. A world more barbaric and yet more civilized at the same time. In other words, show me the lore I have only read about and never seen.

Is there room on the market for another Everquest game? It is difficult to envision three Everquest games operating at the same time. Original Everquest turned 10 years old this year. It obviously is still making a profit or Sony would not keep it running as long as it has. EQ 2 has more subscribers, which one would think brings in more money than EQ 1. Should Sony shut down EQ 1 to make room for EQ 3? It is a tough call, but as they say, it all comes down to money. Just how profitable are these older games? Would a new version generate more revenue?

I hope that Everquest 3 will be released. I also hope that they do it right. Only time will tell.

Yeah, I am still waiting for my new computer to arrive. Not being able to play any game for more than a month is making my fingers itch.  I have, however, had plenty of time to think about what games I want to play going forward.  I am a litle torn on the subject.

My World of Warcraft subscription is still active, even though it is not being used right now.  The easy road says to go back to playing it, but I am getting urges to play other games.  I have a lifetime subscription to Lord of the Rings Online, a game I have not logged into for a long time.  The urge to play LOTRO has been heightened lately by the fact that I have been listening to the LOTR audiobooks again.  I do this every couple of years because I love the books so much.  My only complaint with LOTRO is that I grew weary with all the quests, but if you are not questing, you are wasting your time.  The experience gained from grinding mobs is a pittance compared to what you receive from a quest.

Another option is the Sony Station Pass.  As you probably know, the $30 a month Station Pass allows you to play any of Sony’s MMO’s that you own the software to.  Everquest will ever be my first MMO love.  I played Everquest 2 for awhile, but none of my friends followed me there, so I gave it up.  I also played Pirates of the Burning Sea for a short while.  It grew stale fast.  Star Wars Galaxies is another that I played from launch, but the game destroying NGE update had me running for the exits.  I tried Vanguard again, but as I mentioned on this blog earlier, it still is way too buggy for me.

It could be because I am older now, but nothing in the MMO space gets me very excited these days.  After playing so many of them, it all seems like I’ve been there, done that.  I don’t see much innovation anymore.  Are all the great ideas used up?  I don’t think so, but you can’t tell that from the latest crop of games to be released.  Conan, Warhammer, and Darkfall are more of the same tired ideas that have been used over and over again. The only thing that sets Darkfall apart is the fact that it is so hardcore that most people will never want to play it.

So what is a veteran noob supposed to do?  I think I will start from scratch in LOTRO and see how it goes.  I still need to decide if I stay with WoW or go with the Station Pass.  My computer isn’t due for another couple of weeks, so I have plenty of time to decide.

What could have been…

This was made back around the 2001/2002 timeframe.  I don’t know who put the video together, but they did an incredible job.  It also looks like they were doing some great things with motion capture.

I have returned to working more soul-crushing hours at work, so I haven’t had much time for playing games lately. The fact that Vanguard keeps screwing me over hasn’t exactly drawn me to the computer. That doesn’t, however, keep me from thinking about the games that I play.

Gaming companies keep trying to find the right formula that will allow a game to become as popular as World of Warcraft. They have tried emulating WoW, being completely different from WoW, and trying to be something in between. None of them has worked as well as they had hoped. Well, I have the secret sauce that will make a game even more popular that World of Warcraft. The game companies have shied away from it, but if they want to make the huge dollars, someone will need to do it. What is it, you ask? Why, an MMO based on sex, of course.

Everyone knows that sex sells. Heck, it sells everything from Barbie dolls to fried chicken. Since this is a fact, I am suprised that a company hasn’t jumped on this for a game. I mean, just imagine a high-budget MMO with stellar graphics geared towards the perv in all of us. The social gaming potential is staggering, and in my opinion, the reason why a great many people play and stay a long time.

Imagine, if you will, a 350 pound behemoth, sitting at his computer in a basement somewhere. He will never get laid in the real life. But, what if he could create a customized avatar that made him look like a 20 year old stud muffin? Or reverse the idea, and a female 300 pound goliath could make her avatar look like a young Pamela Anderson. They could meet in a bar, have a few digitized drinks, flirt in text or voice chat, then go back to his/her apartment and do the dirty deed. The stellar graphical engine would allow for some amazing visuals as they live out their wildest fantasies. You can’t tell me that wouldn’t draw a ton (no pun intended) of paying customers.

Oh, but don’t stop there. Design amazing virtual strip clubs, malls, and sex toy shops to titillate their every desire. Allow them to wear whatever they want, whenever they want, so that they can live out an online life they would never be able (unwilling) to do in real life.

The biggest draw, of course, would be the sex. Allow players to have consensual sex in any way they see fit in high graphical detail. It would draw paying customers by the millions.

If you want to be king of the mountain and topple World of Warcraft, a porn MMO is the only thing that has any chance of doing so for quite some time. Will a company be bold enough to do this? I doubt it, but if they did, I would love to be on the design team!

From Kokatu, this picture shows where the left over game boxes of Tabula Rasa go to die.  Myself and most others who tried the game didn’t like it very much.  Still, I always hate to see an MMO fail.  I wouldn’t mind having one of those boxes to keep for old times sake.

I am a Star Trek fan, but I have not followed the development of Star Trek Online.  I seem to automatically assume that any new MMO that comes along is drek warmed over.  Lately, I have not been proven wrong.  Just see Conan and Warhammer for proof.

Cryptic, the company making Star Trek Online, recently released information on the first of many ships to be found in the game.  The NX91001 is a nice looking starship and it has peaked my interest in this game.  The gameplay trailer also looks fantastic.

Will Star Trek Online suck like so many MMO’s these days?  Only time will tell, but I am now very interested where I once was indifferent.