I guess I can move this here? I'd prefer a private forum anyway until I finish it (college stuff prevents me from writing it all)... So yeah, here's part 1 of it. And this whole article is mine and mine alone, so I'd appreciate it if it was kept that way.
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In recent months we have seen a large surge of a lot of MMO’s that deviate from the usual form that was set in place by game’s like Everquest and World of Warcraft. Which has become to be known begrudgingly as the “WoW Formula”. It’s a successful game sure, and still popular among most casual users who can only devote nights to games as opposed to a few more hours than that. Yet, at the end of the day it’s the same old thing that follows a path that we have to get away from, and we are! That’s the great thing, so many games lately and some old have cut away from that formula into something people have been waiting years for.
Now, before I get into the more recent examples I’d like to get into 3 games in particular I’d like to get into, and while I know very little of them I have touched base a few times with them enough to know their advances; however unrecognized or recognized. They are Anarchy Online, Ultima Online and DDO. All 3 games came out far away from each other but they do each do something that few others did or were afraid to. Significant, but went unnoticed once WoW became popular.
For Anarchy Online the benefits are straightforwardish, but what it did was diversify classes in a not so-overbearing fashion. As opposed to being skill locked you were to choose a series of Classes that STARTED OFF in your gameplay style of choice. But no skills were actually locked out, it was basically the original game with free-form growth. A bit on the low end side, but everything needed to make a successful game with a classless mentality was and is there.
For Dungeons and Dragons, more than anything I found it to be the smooth instancing of areas that reduced a lot of lag and dynamic dungeon events that in many if not all cases were straight up optional. That and the use of a variety of skillsets rewarded you for playing differently from your friend, even with classes I found this to be a small problem with the rewards for classless skills being far more rewarding than being classless. After all, it’s based off of a board game. Roleplay even when you aren’t. It was the first real step to me, in larger scale Dynamic Events for the genre as a whole and without sacrificing much to it.
For Ultima Online, oh Ultima Online. In it’s heyday it was the MMO to go to, and there was no other. Rightfully so, but it was quickly overwhelmed by the 3d MMO’s that were to soon follow a year or so later. Was the House Building aspect of it. Extremely in depth, highly personalizable and from what I gather just a perk of it all. You actually felt like you weren’t just playing a game but were a part of it’s world. When you tell me “Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game”, I ask you why it’s role playing if you’re not immersed in the world; only your character. Ultima did this, and oh did it do it well. Until Second Life, but whatever…
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Part 2 will deal with WoW Formula oriented MMORPG's.
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In recent months we have seen a large surge of a lot of MMO’s that deviate from the usual form that was set in place by game’s like Everquest and World of Warcraft. Which has become to be known begrudgingly as the “WoW Formula”. It’s a successful game sure, and still popular among most casual users who can only devote nights to games as opposed to a few more hours than that. Yet, at the end of the day it’s the same old thing that follows a path that we have to get away from, and we are! That’s the great thing, so many games lately and some old have cut away from that formula into something people have been waiting years for.
Now, before I get into the more recent examples I’d like to get into 3 games in particular I’d like to get into, and while I know very little of them I have touched base a few times with them enough to know their advances; however unrecognized or recognized. They are Anarchy Online, Ultima Online and DDO. All 3 games came out far away from each other but they do each do something that few others did or were afraid to. Significant, but went unnoticed once WoW became popular.
For Anarchy Online the benefits are straightforwardish, but what it did was diversify classes in a not so-overbearing fashion. As opposed to being skill locked you were to choose a series of Classes that STARTED OFF in your gameplay style of choice. But no skills were actually locked out, it was basically the original game with free-form growth. A bit on the low end side, but everything needed to make a successful game with a classless mentality was and is there.
For Dungeons and Dragons, more than anything I found it to be the smooth instancing of areas that reduced a lot of lag and dynamic dungeon events that in many if not all cases were straight up optional. That and the use of a variety of skillsets rewarded you for playing differently from your friend, even with classes I found this to be a small problem with the rewards for classless skills being far more rewarding than being classless. After all, it’s based off of a board game. Roleplay even when you aren’t. It was the first real step to me, in larger scale Dynamic Events for the genre as a whole and without sacrificing much to it.
For Ultima Online, oh Ultima Online. In it’s heyday it was the MMO to go to, and there was no other. Rightfully so, but it was quickly overwhelmed by the 3d MMO’s that were to soon follow a year or so later. Was the House Building aspect of it. Extremely in depth, highly personalizable and from what I gather just a perk of it all. You actually felt like you weren’t just playing a game but were a part of it’s world. When you tell me “Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game”, I ask you why it’s role playing if you’re not immersed in the world; only your character. Ultima did this, and oh did it do it well. Until Second Life, but whatever…
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Part 2 will deal with WoW Formula oriented MMORPG's.
