Archive for March, 2008

Pirates and Gold Spammers…

12 March 2008 | No Comments » | LHStaff

And when I say “pirates” I am talking about the newly released Pirates of the Burning Sea game. You see, I have recently raised my sails, hoisted my flag, and set out to sea in this new frontier in the MMORPG world. It’s a great game and I have having loads of fun; anybody who wishes to join me can find me playing on the Blackbeard server as a Frenchie! Anyways, I digress, as it has come to my attention that everytime I log on I find the game to be swimming(punny!) with gold spammers. Seriously, I can’t go 30 minutes without seeing a spammer broadcasting over my nation’s channel about the recent RMT for doubloons. So what’s the deal?

This practice doesn’t really take me away from the game all that much. In fact, despite these worrisome antics contributing to what is essentially a banned practice within a game I am paying $14.99/month for, I am still having a bunch of fun. Unfortunately, what this does do is worry me as to the management of the game. I mean, seriously, I have been playing for a month now and still everyday when I log on I am greeted by the same spammers. Does the developer even care? They say they do, and yet as far as I can see nothing has been done UPDATE: Apparently, patch 1.2 coming on Tuesday will have some new tools in order to help fight these pesky intruders. Good news for all players, and also something that deserves a retraction of my earlier statements. Hurrah!

Of course, management aside, when all is said and done Pirates of the Burning Sea is still unlike most other MMORPGs. The game literally thrives on it’s player-run economy. Sure, you can say that about other games such as LoTRO or WoW, but it’s doesn’t really hold a candle when you compare it to PotBS. While the practice of such activities may seem harmless now, how will it affect the economy when there is massive amounts of gold doubloons being poured in from unconventional sources? Nobody can tell for sure now, but if there is a bigger problem threatening PotBS right now I’d definitely like to know what it is before I waste anymore money on this game.

Thanks for reading.

LF Tank/Healer/DPS! PST!

11 March 2008 | No Comments » | LHStaff

In our MMO society today we basically have three groups of players. There is no denying it, really, almost every MMO uses these “archtypes” for their games (some exceptions apply). Of course, the archtypes I am speaking about are the tank, DPS, and healers. Using this model of gameplay most MMORPGs have basically become the same game, especially when you look at fantasy mmos. Lord of the Rings Online plays like World of Warcraft which plays a lot like Everquest 2, and, as such, plays very much like Everquest 1. Each has their own minor rules that play their part to make the games somewhat different but the major players are there: tanks need to take agro from the enemy and be a damage buff, DPS’s need to deal damage as fast as possible but without gaining the agro from the tank, and healers need to heal. A simple, yet very powerful, time-tested method, but now it’s time to throw it out. . .

For over ten years we have had MMORPGs come and go under this method. It is largely the most popular method and, as such, it has begun to stagnate. It’s a bit sad, for me anyways, to buy a new MMORPG and instantly know which class does what and what to expect from each. There is no more mystery involved with the gameplay and because of that I find myself avoiding games that would likely use this method. They just aren’t fun anymore, and I don’t want to be stonewalled into a very specific branch of the game. So how does this change?

I know some of you are sitting here reading this article thinking: there is no possible way to change this method. It has been here almost since the beginning and to change it would mean to change the very essence of the MMORPG. I know you guys are out there because I used to think the same thing. I mean, seriously, this method is basically synonymous with the MMO, but that doesn’t mean a new method can’t be implemented. Change is good, even in our fragile MMO worlds. Throughout gaming history we have gone from a simple game like pong to having a whole host of genres and sub genres to satiate our desires, so why can’t somebody think up some other method? If we can really go from having a game like Space Invaders to having a fully interactive, open ended world like World of Warcraft is it really out of the question to simply tweak the gameplay a bit? I should hope not. . .

Of course, I really don’t have any answers here for you. I’m not a game designer, and if I was I would certainly be designing right now and not writing. But not all hope is lost, there are a bunch of bold developers out there right now who seem to be trying to mix things up with this exact issue; I just wish they’d let us in on their secrets already. 38 Studios is cooking up something big, as well as BioWare. The Agency has some definitely neat concepts, and the combat in Age of Conan is supposed to be revolutionary. So change is coming, but will it be enough to get pulled away from the tank/DPS/healer model? I honestly can’t answer that question for you, but as soon as I hear something on this matter you guys will hear something.

Thanks for reading. Comments, thoughts and flames can be posted in the comments. Thanks!

Call of Duty and GTA MMO?

10 March 2008 | No Comments » | LHStaff

Well it seems like just about everyone wants to make a MMO these days. A few days ago EGM did an interview with Rockstar founder, Sam Houser, who had this to day about a possible GTA MMO.

“is very, very doable and is a very, very compelling proposition.”

And a few days before that CEO Bobby Kotick of Activision stated this about Call of Duty,

“What would be the natural evolution of a property like Call of Duty into a massively-multiplayer environment and how do you monetize that?”

Although it’s just talk at this point in the game, I do think both of these games could be made into successful MMOs. Lets theorize at what these games might be like.

Call of Duty MMO

No doubt a Call of Duty MMO would be a FPSMMO. While many have tried, most notably Planetside, none have really created a widely successful FPSMMO.  Huxley is the next game to give the genre a go and while the graphics do look amazing, that does not mean the gameplay will match. Call of Duty already has a huge following and if the already popular multiplayer maps can be converted into one massive battle field I have no doubt that a Call of Duty FPSMMO would be a huge success.

GTA MMO

I think turning GTA into a MMO would be much harder, I mean you can’t have 1000 gangsters running around killing everyone including themselves, it would just be mayhem. Perhaps making cops playable characters would balance the game and turn it into more of a cops vs robbers scenario. I don’t know, that’s the first I could think of.

What do you guys think? Would would these games make good MMOs?

We Don't Want a BioWare Star Wars MMO. . .

7 March 2008 | No Comments » | LHStaff

And by we I really mean me. I really don’t speak for Mike or the others that write here at MMOCrunch.com. Each writer here has their own opinion and mine is my own. Anyways onto the article!

I don’t want BioWare to make an MMORPG based off of the Star Wars franchise. Wait! Don’t crucify me yet. I have some explaining to do. Naturally, I would definitely not spit on a Star Wars MMO, let alone one developed and designed by BioWare. Those are some talented guys and I can only dream of what they are creating. And that is the exact same reason why I don’t want what they are creating for their first MMO to be a Star Wars game.

Now I began writing this article mainly because of the recent rumour that is being spread around. Apparently some guy got a sneak peek at some documented script from the game. I don’t know, and to be honest, I don’t really care. Should you want to read about it head on over here.

Now, back on topic, let’s think about what other franchises BioWare has created. Have they ever created something that wasn’t awesome? Let’s take a look:

  1. Mass Effect, absolutely fantastic.
  2. Jade Empire, loved every minute of it.
  3. KoTOR, superb.
  4. Neverwinter Nights, classic.
  5. Baldur’s Gate, brought me into the PC RPG world.

So there you have it: four out of their five biggest games have not been associated with Star Wars. This leads me to my point, do we really want a developer such as this to spoil their creative interests on a world that is already so well developed that there can’t possibly be any real customization and expansion? Star Wars is great, but I’d rather these guys come up with their own kick ass world. Mass Effect was a brilliant universe, and I have no doubt that they could make a world for an MMORPG be equally as awesome.

Anyways, thats just my opinion. Take it for what you will, but there are plenty of MMO developers that can do the Star Wars MMO justice, let’s allow the poster child of the RPG industry the luxery of giving us something truly out of their own imagination, ok?

Thoughts? Comments? Flames? You know where to leave em!

Why Do MMOs Limit Storage Space?

5 March 2008 | No Comments » | LHStaff

One of the main problems that all players have faced in basically every MMORPG to date is what items to store and when to get rid of them. Developers continue to restrict the amount of room players have in order to store items, which in turn has caused players to create “bank” characters to transfer their loot. Lets take a closer look.

Storage Space

There are many different levels of storage space and this varies from game to game, but basically there’s three levels.

Level 1 is personal storage that you carry around you at all times. Usually this is very limited and allows you to keep just enough items with maybe some room to store loot.

- This is the most important storage space for may reasons. One, it saves the player the most amount of time by having items they need at all times. There’s no need to run to a bank or chest to get the item/s you need, then run all the way back to where you just were. It also is for most people the primary way of making money. The more open space you have the more loot you can carry that you can in-turn sell to vendors.

Level 2 is personal storage that you do not carry around. This is often a bank or a person chest where you can store more loot that you might not need at all times. Most games allow you to purchase even more space if you need it.

- While important, I dislike using this space. It’s just too much of a hassle to have to go all the way to a bank or chest to get your stuff. If I want to go work on my profession (LOTRO), I first have to go to the bank to pick up my items, then I have to go to a working table and gain XP. Once I’m done, I have to go back to the bank and store my stuff there and pickup my other items. The same back and forth running is basically part of whenever you need an item from this storage area. Having a group of people waiting on you because you have to go all the way to your secondary storage space to pickup some item sucks. It sucks even more when you realize that you left one of your quest item in your bank and have to do the run to and fro just to finish a quest where you’re already there.

Level 3 is guild storage. Many games now allow guilds to purchase houses and other forms of guild space that offer even more storage for its members as well as an easy why to trade items.

- Guild storage can be at the same place as your secondary storage or it came be in a completely different area, but where ever it is it’s the most useless storage space out of the three. Any guild with any member base will completely fill the space within 5 mins. My guild in LOTRO is quite small and we’ve ran out of space on day 1. When I find an item I know someone might need, I’d like to put it in our guild storage, however it’s full, so I need to take something out, most likely something I don’t want or need which then takes up my space.

Bank Characters

In order to combat this restricted space players have been creating “bank” characters, characters that are strictly used for the extra storage space. Some people might have only 1 extra character while others might have 5-6 characters to hold all their high end loot. But it’s not just individuals that are creating extra characters for the additional space, guilds have started to create sub-guilds in order to get more room. Large guilds break up into sub-guilds that are based on levels. So for instance a sub guild can be level 1 – 25, 26 – 49 and 50, which would be the actual main guild. A large guild such as the one in this example might have 2 sub-guilds so that they can store items of that level in the sub-guild and not take room up in the main guild that would be reserved for guildies that have reached the max level.

So why do developers insist on limiting our space? Why do they force us to use these retarded methods of storing loot when they can just make everyone happy by increasing storage? The only reason I can think of is to keep the gaming economy in-check as well as to offer some realism since unlimited space is impossible. However how many people do you know that can carry 5 swords, full set of armor, 50 potions, scrolls, food, camp equipment and about 20 different quest items. So the realism argument gets thrown out in my opinion.

Give us more space!

I think developers need to get over the limited storage space, no one likes it. There should be 2 types of storage. Personal storage that I have at all times and guild storage. Personal storage should be large enough where not only can I carry everything that I can ever need, but also have plenty of room for loot. No need to ever waste my time running to a bank. Guild storage should nearly be unlimited, if you have a guild with 500 members, you obviously will need more that 100 slots of storage space.

Common devs, stop wasting our time making us constantly run back and forth for no reason.

Does RMT Help or Hurt the MMO?

4 March 2008 | No Comments » | LHStaff

I read a very interesting thesis paper today by a student from Seoul National University. It was basically a over-all view of the RMT industry, and it proposed a very big question: does the act of Real Money Trading have an adverse effect on the demand for an MMORPG? That is to say, do games that use a RMT system see their population decline because of it? Well if you were to read thesis paper above as I stated you’d probably be more inclined to say no. In fact, according to that paper RMT actually increases the population of a game. Surprised?

When I first started reading the thesis above (word to the wise, skip to the conlusion) I was a bit skeptical on the idea of RMT from a business perspective. I mean, after all, if I were to make a game would I want some other entity to come into my game and use it to rake in millions upon millions of dollars? Probably not, however, after reading the thesis paper it becomes abundantly clear that as an RMT system gets implemented the more of a demand there is for the game. This seems to be in a stark contrast to what most players on a forum would have you believe. . .

So what’s the deal with RMT systems? Well, for a hardcore gamer they are inherently bad. It’s probably the worst thing that could happen to their MMORPG as far as they’re concerned. These are also the same people that make up the vast majority of MMO forum goers. On the other hand, for a casual gamer RMT systems are a good thing. Think about it for a moment: a hardcore gamer has the time to spends hours, if not days, in the game at a time doing everything he wants and getting all of the good items. However, they pay no more than a casual gamer who maybe gets in a few hours a week. The casual gamer will probably never get to see any of these items ever. Who wins in this situation? The hardcore gamer. Now, enter the RMT system and the casual gamer can get the same items at a premium cost thus bringing the same amount of “fun” to each player. This is probably why games with RMT systems have a higher demand. The hardcore gamer is a very, very small market of the industry, and the casual market is always looking for instant gratification and a quick fix. RMT provides that and, as such, the casual market tends to head toward the games with RMT systems.

Of course, this is all based on Korean games with the Korean market in mind, but is it really that far off from our own industry? Nope, even today one of the most popular MMO games is a game with an RMT system, Second Life. You could make the argument that World of Warcraft is the most popular and yet still refuses RMT systems, but really how long can that last? I can’t even begin to tell you. . .  

How “Not to Be Seen” in WOW

3 March 2008 | No Comments » | LHStaff

I came across this humorous Monty Python inspired video today and thought it was funny so here it is.   Click here if you want to see the original Monty Python skit.

World of Warcraft Armory Website Down?

3 March 2008 | No Comments » | LHStaff

After wandering through the interwebs this morning I came across an interesting photo (above). Apparently, the World of Warcraft armory website was down. According to the source of this photo, they tried to access the armory about 7-8 hours ago and this page popped up instead of the real website, which is back up as of this posting. So what does this say about Blizzard?

Not much. The website could have been down for any number of reasons. Although it is worth noting that apparently GoDaddy.com controls the DNS to wowarmory.com, which also hints at them actually hosting the website. Apparently all of Blizzard’s own servers are too busy hosting the actual game. Whats the matter Blizz? Running out of money to pay the bills? Enjoy the photo guys. . .

UPDATE: Apparently GoDaddy.com does not control the DNS servers for wowarmory.com but rather something called cerf.net does. No idea why a GoDaddy.com lander page appeared, pretty bizarre if you ask me.