Design Discussion: MMORPGs

I don't think it's a subject that's been really aired out much among developers in recent days, and for good reason too: Every revolutionary idea that is suggested could end up being used in an MMORPG for their own profit.

However, I feel that since IGDA is a neutral ground, it should be agreed that the suggestions, theories, concepts and ideas proposed by one person in the course of this discussion remains confidential among those of us here and should not be used unless thoroughly discussed as an "open source subject".

With that said, I'd like to propose a subject that is worth discussing among both game designers, developers and connoisseurs such as myself (I'm not officially a developer/designer yet, but it is an objective).

We should discuss what exactly is wrong with the MMORPG genre since the inception of World of Warcraft, what influences are causing the genre to steer in the direction it seems to be going, and how to forestall or completely halt a potential meltdown of the genre market.

I may have pointed this out in my thread in the general discussion/commentary forum to which nobody has replied to, but I feel it needs to be reiterated.

With each new MMO that is released, it tends to feel like a knockoff of a more successful product or it is half-arsedly done. Cases relating to the former are the Korean MMOs that continue to deluge the Western market that are poorly designed and clearly copied after the more popular Lineage II. For the latter, a very strong case comes to mind: Age of Conan.

What happened with these products, exactly, and how can we avoid those mistakes?

In the case of most Korean MMOs, the mistake is starkly evident: Copy-and-paste mentalities that seem to prevail resulting in a poor product. With Age of Conan, we're all aware of why it suddenly tanked - lack of high-end content. Focusing on the initial levels and thinking that you can add the high end content later...that's foolhardiness. AoC does win brownie points for adopting a hybrid point-and-click and action combat approach.

The problems with the genre doesn't stop there. It extends farther than that with the design choices made by game developers. An overwhelming majority of MMOs utilize point-and-click gameplay, in combination with keyboard hotkeys. This is a tried and true gameplay mechanic, but I feel it is growing more stagnant as players start to want to feel more right up with the combat.

So as the first facet of our discussion on MMORPG mechanics, let's provide some discourse on what you think might lead to the stagnation of the MMO genre, and what you think needs to be done to keep it fresh.

For my personal perspective, I think a shift to a more gamepad-type approach with the genre is necessary to make an MMO product available on both console and PC platforms. A strong example is Final Fantasy XI, although the interface was clunky, and was not very intuitive. If a developer were to produce an MMO for both PC and console markets, I would probably look at FFXI Online as the archetype for the next-generation MMO. If more developers went towards this, the one who develops the most streamlined, intuitive and fun-to-use user interface for both general gameplay and combat in an MMO would win out in the design aspect.

Additionally, as a little side note, I should mention the phenomenon that I have coined the Marionette Effect. This is an incidence of the sensation that you are detached from the MMOG's world, that you are not directly interacting with it through your character but rather you are pulling the strings of your character to do things.

The lack of "projection" of the player's self into the game world, as well as the game world's projection unto the player causes this effect to take place. Games where I experienced this strongest was in World of Warcraft prior to Wrath of the Lich King, EVE Online, and EQ2. The Marionette Effect does not occur however, in games that firmly establish your identity as an inhabitant of the game world, and are not "babysitting" you as most current MMOs are today.

Case in point for a game that seems to be completely devoid of the Marionette Effect: Final Fantasy XI Online. This game establishes your identity as an Adventurer, and you are then thrown out into the game world like a wet baby without diapers into the den of the wolves equipped with but only a few hints on what to do next.

But if you want to skip that lengthy bit about the Marionette Effect, I'll put it into a nutshell: Immersion Factor. It's gotta capture your imagination, and be able to maintain that. In fact, this is why nearly all of the first MMORPGs were set in the realm of fantasy.

Of course, I could just be as credible as an armchair general for the White House. I wanted to get this subject out there so that it would be worth the discussion, it does need some attention.

-NK