Category Archives: Combat Systems

PvP theorycraft, and the lessons MMOs need to learn.

Posted on April 22, 2008 by SynCaine

Playing as much DoTA as I have lately, it’s got me thinking about the general idea of PvP, and why most MMOs can’t seem to get it right. We have seen what happens when you make it too extreme in … Continue reading →

Posted in Combat Systems, MMO design, PvP, Ultima Online, World of Warcraft | 11 Comments

Understanding failure, the PoTBS story.

Posted on April 17, 2008 by SynCaine

As has been well reported, Pirates of the Burning Sea is cutting down on servers, going from 11 to 4. While PR would like you to believe otherwise, it’s fairly clear that the game is underperforming, and the reduction in … Continue reading →

Posted in Combat Systems, EVE Online, MMO design, Pirates of the Burning Sea, PvP | 18 Comments

You can’t have everything, sorry.

Posted on April 11, 2008 by SynCaine

Keen has a post up about his recent experience in DAoC. The gist of it is that after the ‘newness’ of being back in DAoC wore off, the fact that the PvE in DAoC is not as on-rails as more … Continue reading →

Posted in Age of Conan, Combat Systems, Dark Age of Camelot, EQ2, EVE Online, Lord of the Rings Online, MMO design, PvP, Site update, Ultima Online, Warhammer Online, World of Warcraft | 24 Comments

Fixing Alterac Valley.

Posted on March 5, 2008 by SynCaine

This will be the last post about AV for now, I promise. All previous commentary was based on the 51-60 bracket, and having finally hit 61+, I’ve experienced 61-70 AV. As bad as the 60 bracket was, the 70 bracket … Continue reading →

Posted in Combat Systems, MMO design, PvP, World of Warcraft | 4 Comments

Will Warhammer be good enough to overcome the inevitable PvP shock?

Posted on February 14, 2008 by SynCaine

The following is based on a few assumptions that are key to understanding my thinking here. Please keep them in mind when reading. Assumption one: Most MMO players have only played WoW. Assumption two: Most MMO players don’t know about … Continue reading →

Posted in Combat Systems, MMO design, PvP, Warhammer Online, World of Warcraft | 21 Comments

Less can be more; how Warhammer Online could benefit from fewer class options.

Posted on February 12, 2008 by SynCaine

News that Warhammer online might not ship with all classes ready to go at release is making the rounds, which got me thinking about the possible impact that might have on the game. As most know the current system is … Continue reading →

Posted in Combat Systems, MMO design, PvP, Warhammer Online, World of Warcraft | 1 Comment

Collision Detection, a key to smart PvP?

Posted on February 5, 2008 by SynCaine

Ha, and just as I hit the ‘post’ button, something that I have been meaning to talk about pops into my head. Funny how that works… A long time ago, Mythic announced that Warhammer Online will feature collision detection. Now … Continue reading →

Posted in Combat Systems, MMO design, PvP, The Witcher, Warhammer Online | 12 Comments

Misunderstanding PvP.

Posted on January 25, 2008 by SynCaine

I think ‘PvP’ is the new ‘nerf’. Remember back in the day anytime anything bad happened, it was called a nerf? And nerf was this dirty word you used to blame the developers for everything going wrong in your MMO? … Continue reading →

Posted in Combat Systems, EVE Online, MMO design, PvP, Ultima Online, Warhammer Online, World of Warcraft | 21 Comments

The death penality, it’s a good thing!

Posted on January 3, 2008 by SynCaine

There has been a lot of talk here lately about PvP, griefing, and the differences between negative and positive sum PvP systems. As with most ‘hot button’ topics, the discussion tends to stray and generally degrades into a hardcore vs … Continue reading →

Posted in Combat Systems, EVE Online, MMO design, PvP, Ultima Online, World of Warcraft | 7 Comments

When less is more, a lesson learned.

Posted on December 7, 2007 by SynCaine

The upcoming release of Pirates of the Burning Seas has highlighted some interesting discussion points about MMOs and the importance of certain features. As is often the case, it is not until we see both sides that we realize how … Continue reading →

Posted in Combat Systems, EVE Online, MMO design, Pirates of the Burning Sea | 5 Comments