When you decide to invent or create something there are a few questions that must be asked. These questions range from things such as, what does your creation offer that others don’t? Who will your creation be for? And most importantly, does anyone actually want it? There have been many cases where a product has been released to a market when the world just wasn’t ready for it or the technology just wasn’t up to scratch yet.
Take 3D Gaming for example, many attempts were made in the 80′s and 90′s to make stereoscopic 3D gaming the next biggest thing. It wasn’t and no matter how many times they tried, it always died out hard. Remember the Virtual Boy’s inability to display in colors other than that awful black and red? The problem was the technology just wasn’t there yet, from 1982 with SubRoc-3D, to 1995 with the Nintendo Virtual Boy, no one managed to achieve any real success. I believe the main problem was that it wasn’t a step forward, in order to have a 3D experience it generally meant you had to play a game that fell behind visually, even for those times.
No one wants to take a step backwards for any reason other than nostalgia, with this simple logic it could be said that to have any real success you need to take a step forward. This brings me to the topic of MMOs, which currently seems to be suffering from the game developer’s equivalent to writer’s block. Taking a look at the offerings today it is safe to say that there isn’t a lot of variety available in your choices when it comes to MMOs. Developers seem to find the appropriate niche for their game, discover how everyone else is modelling their titles and just follow suit.
The lack of variety is all World of Warcraft’s fault, Blizzard took the theme-park MMO gameplay style that previous titles like EverQuest had found some success with and gave it a face-lift. Now i’m talking about WoW which is a touchy subject, but this isn’t about whether WoW is currently a good or bad game, it’s about what they have undoubtedly achieved, so let’s keep that in mind. Blizzard successfully took a style of game that was considered for ‘basement nerds’ only and introduced it to mainstream society. Investors, publishers and developers alike turned their heads towards what was rather a dull industry beforehand.
This is why it’s WoW’s fault, it caused every businessman to begin throwing money in to the industry to try replicate the success. That’s at the end of the day what it comes down to, making money with minimal risk. These days no one wants to invest in something that isn’t proven to be profitable, even before work has began, this has become a business industry through and through. I love games, I dedicate my life to them and I know many others who do too. I can’t say however that I believe developers and publishers share the same passion anymore. Sure there are those that do, but it’s far less obvious these days.
I bet you don’t remember when Activision was a bunch of cool gamers. Above is a photo of one of many jacket patches that Activision would send you if you sent them photo evidence of particular accomplishments. There were different patches for different high scores or achievements in-game, that’s right, an early achievement system. These patches were free, all you had to do was excel at one of their games and you could get one. Try getting free swag like this out of Activision now. People used to put in effort and they had passion, this is gone, we want guaranteed profits and therefore much like movies, you are going to see the same junk over and over.
I would like to say that people will eventually refuse to play these terrible excuses for games but the truth is they will, we all will, and that is very sad. It won’t last forever though and the market will in a sense, implode on itself. This won’t be from a sudden loss of gamers interested in MMOs, the industry will continue to grow, but at the same time it will fall apart. That’s my opinion at least and there’s a very good reason for my thinking so. Gamers love fresh games, we love to play something different but at the same time we are an extremely picky bunch. Different doesn’t always mean better and playing it safe isn’t always safe.
The cookie-cutter MMOs are going to keep piling up, players will play select games just to kill time but then something will happen. A developer will be smart enough to ‘make games like they used to’ and rather than spending 6-12 months developing a game, they will put in real effort and make a real game. All it takes is for one developer to get ahead of the curve, take a risk and develop a game that takes us forward rather than the current stand-still in terms of gameplay with only a change in scenery. There is a reason people scream ‘WoW clone’ at everything, it’s not because it’s like WoW, it’s because it is the same theme-park experience we all know so well and most of us are sick of it.
It’s time for a change, we need something next-gen and we need it bad. Don’t fall for the misconception that next-gen means fancier graphics, it can also mean a new generation of gameplay. I believe the next big hit, the next title to even get a small taste of the kind of success Blizzard has had, will be a sandbox MMO. In fact, I believe the sandbox MMO is the next in line to be abused, which makes me both excited and fearful at the same time. RPGs and other select genres have been making the transition to open-world sandbox, almost setting it as a standard, linear storytelling isn’t enough anymore. People want big open worlds they can interact with and explore under their own free will, not invisible walls and tunnels.
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Naturally, I think MMORPGs are following the same path and so it should. If you were a vanilla WoW player then I am sure you remember how much it meant to be decked out in T2 armor early in the game. It was an achievement and people respected you for it, but most of all people were willing to go through so much more to get it. I believe this is because people like feeling as if they have had an impact on the world, when someone listens to what you have to say or flees at the sight of you because of your achievements in the world, that is a pretty good feeling. Gamers want that feeling, they want to have an impact on their world and make a difference and most of all, to have the power of true choice.
EVE Online is a sandbox MMO that does a brilliant job at offering a world where gamers have complete control over what they do, when and how. It’s a massive player-driven universe where every players actions matter and contribute to the world to some degree. The developers work very hard to continue to turn EVE in to the ultimate Sci-Fi universe, with the help of DUST 514 and other future plans, a scenario such as the one in the video above could be possible very soon. EVE has all the right features to be a huge blockbuster, but frankly it’s too hard and unforgiving for most people.
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EVE has always been stepping in the right direction, they want to make the MMO a lot of people dreamed about as kids, a place where you can live out any sci-fi fantasy or scenario you could ever come up with. The way the game functions however will always make sure it remains a niche game. Darkfall was another step in the right direction, if you ever wished an Elder Scrolls game was an MMO, this is everything you could ever dream of. Well, it was supposed to be at least, but failed to deliver due to lack of budget, staff and talent to pull off what was set to be one of the most impressive fantasy sandbox MMORPGs ever created.
Darkfall is still a great game for anyone who wants an Elder Scrolls style MMO but it has become the perfect example of how a player-driven universe can fall apart. With little in the terms of questing, Darkfall like many sandbox MMOs relies almost completely on player activity to drive the world forward. Basically, the excitement level of your game only amounts to the size of its playerbase. If there isn’t anyone around to play with then a lot of the games systems are useless, leaving you with less exciting ways to spend your time. What we need is a blend, the perfect balance between a theme-park MMO and a sandbox MMORPG.
So with the explosion of sandbox games we’ve seen and the surge of popularity, i’d like to hope there is some credibility to what i’ve been talking about. It’s safe to say that the mainstream are enjoying sandbox worlds in their non-MMO titles. Games such as Minecraft, the Elder Scrolls series and even Grand Theft Auto to an extent all show just how adding a sandbox environment can lead to massive success. Factoring this in and the trend of upcoming games, i’d like to say it’s a great possibility that this is the way the industry will move, so I will put my money where my mouth is and throw you a few predictions.
Guild Wars 2 will set a new standard for questing.
I’m sure we’ve all heard a million times about the dynamic questing to be featured in Guild Wars 2. While this isn’t a sandbox MMORPG so to speak, I believe it will play a major role in proving that you don’t need a static questing experience in your game. Without the need for static questing you can strip almost all of the normal barriers that force developers in to creating a theme-park experience. If you aren’t up-to-date, GW2 features no real quests, rather there are dynamic events that take place throughout the world. This may be a boss appearing to attack an area or nearby monsters raiding a town, but all these events effect each other and are triggered under certain conditions.
Say monsters start gathering in an area, if someone doesn’t take care of them, they will continue to expand until their numbers are great enough to attack that unprotected village nearby. This keeps players on their toes and actively interacting with the world and I am sure by now you are already imagining how this could improve a lot of sandbox MMOs, and theme-park ones at that. You can provide missions and even tell a story through events such as these, with different plots initiating in the story depending on what events are triggered. Remember how Star Wars Galaxies played out the storyline whether you were online or not? This kind of system, amongst a continuous plot will sky-rocket immersion levels through the roof. The other applications it could have are limitless as well, outside of my example.
Salem while looking rediculous, will capture the hearts of crafters.
The developers of Salem share my prediction that Sandbox MMOs are the future I am sure, their future really depends on it. Salem is an upcoming sandbox MMORPG that puts players in the role of a settler, players must colonize a massive virtual world with a heavy focus on crafting. Featuring a complex crafting system, players will have to go to great lengths to construct things. You want to build a house? You will need wood, which requires a lumber mill, nails which require a forge, so on and so forth. It’s been said even baking a cake will be an achievement and while the graphics may look a tad ridiculous, I believe this game will capture the hearts of hardcore crafting fans worldwide, after all there isn’t a true crafting MMO around.
Overall, I think Salem will become the Minecraft of MMOs and I think it is definitely a game to keep an eye on. It will definitely be interesting if this isn’t another victim of the hype train and manages to provide the complexity it promises.
Planetside 2 will show why the current MMOFPS titles aren’t MMOs.
This is a touchy subject for me, I often argue that the current shooters calling themselves an MMOFPS aren’t actually MMOs at all. It’s been said to me that this is defined by it’s multi-player only features and cash shop. I’m sorry, but I don’t ever recall Battlefield 2 being an MMOFPS, that had no single player. Currently we have Battlefield Europe, which is a WWII themed MMOFPS that is actually set in a massive persistent world. Players battle across a recreation of Europe, fighting to take and control land. The battle moves and progresses through territories determined by who holds the most ground.
Players run for hours sometimes through fields, forest and towns and what is one of the only real MMOFPS titles currently available. It doesn’t look the best, but if you’ve never played then go try out the free trial by clicking here. Anyways, PlanetSide 2 will follow the same principle and will expand on the beloved original to create another true MMOFPS. This game I believe will turn the spotlight towards MMOFPS games and will hopefully result in other developers making the move. Say no to session-based shooters calling themselves MMOs, say yes to persistent battlefields!
ArcheAge will redefine MMOs but may only remain a niche game.
This is probably my boldest prediction. ArcheAge is an upcoming sandbox MMORPG that is set to be the fantasy version of EVE Online in most people’s eyes. This title however, creates the perfect blend of MMOs that I said we needed and I believe it will have a big impact on the industry. Featuring three continents, players are introduced to a world where they are free to make their own choices and shape the world around them as they see fit. Players can grow forests, plantations and other plants by planting seeds. Work with a guild to plant trees and watch as it grows in to a forest, it doesn’t just appear out of nowhere.
Start a farm with actual crop fields, build a house or an entire city, embark on theme-park style quests in a sandbox world. You are truly free to colonize, shape and transform the world in this sandbox MMORPG. Now I believe ArcheAge will find more success than EVE Online purely because it is more forgiving, there is a seperate continent where cities and castles built by players can be destroyed. On this continent players can claim territory and take land by force, while the two other continents available serve their own purposes. Players can experience a more theme-park style experience on the first continent, while the second continent is much like the third only you can’t destroy other players buildings as far as I know.
Amongst many other complex and grand features such as prison-time, a dynamic eco-system that relies on players to survive and many more that I couldn’t possibly list right now, is one notable feature. The three continents are seperated by ocean, but unlike WoW you don’t teleport between them, you can actually get on a boat and sail from one side to the other. Yes there is full naval warfare and yes it is truly one big open sandbox world. I bel
eve the game will find success due to how well it blends different game systems that truly redefine MMOs and the developer openly says they are trying to create a third-generation MMO. Some features of this game however will probably make sure this game remains a niche game much like EVE.
eve the game will find success due to how well it blends different game systems that truly redefine MMOs and the developer openly says they are trying to create a third-generation MMO. Some features of this game however will probably make sure this game remains a niche game much like EVE.
So what do you think? Do you agree and think that sandbox MMOs will play a more important role in the future? Do you disagree entirely? Let us know what you think in the comments below!