Category Archives: EVE Online

Fun with lists

Posted on May 26, 2011 by SynCaine

What do the games listed below all have in common? Age of Conan All Points Bulletin Dungeons & Dragons Online Lord of the Rings Online Global Agenda Ragnarok Online Champions Online Everquest 2 Extended If you answered “failed to meet … Continue reading →

Posted in Age of Conan, Allods Online, Darkfall Online, DDO, EQ2, EVE Online, Lord of the Rings Online, Mass Media, Rant, Rift, RMT, World of Warcraft | 36 Comments

EverQuest: The first themepark

Posted on May 16, 2011 by SynCaine

I will say this upfront so we are all on the same page, the definition of a sandbox/themepark is more opinion than science. It’s more general approach than X+Y=Z. Its shades of gray, and themeparks can have sandbox features, just … Continue reading →

Posted in Darkfall Online, EQ2, EVE Online, MMO design, Ultima Online | 15 Comments

Celebrating 12 years of themepark hate

Posted on May 12, 2011 by SynCaine

My enjoyment of virtual worlds goes back to Ultima Online, in large part because I loved the sRPG Ultima games, growing up on Ultima V and always being jealous of a friend who had a PC and had Ultima VI … Continue reading →

Posted in Age of Conan, Asheron's Call, Dark Age of Camelot, Darkfall Online, EQ2, EVE Online, Inquisition Clan, Lord of the Rings Online, MMO design, Random, Rant, Rift, Ultima Online, Warhammer Online, World of Warcraft | 36 Comments

Burnouts Anonymous

Posted on April 11, 2011 by SynCaine

Quick break from the PvE Sandbox series to make an observation about Rift, but no worries (you were worried, I could tell), another post in that series is coming soon. Over a month in and I’m still having a ton … Continue reading →

Posted in Dark Age of Camelot, Darkfall Online, EQ2, EVE Online, Fallen Earth, Lord of the Rings Online, MMO design, Rant, Rift, Ultima Online, Warhammer Online, World of Warcraft | 27 Comments

Shades of blue

Posted on April 5, 2011 by SynCaine

Back then I was on the ‘red’ side, now I’m firmly on the ‘blue’ side. Guess the player along with the game evolves. Wise words from a wise man, minus the grammar fail on the original. The first part of … Continue reading →

Posted in Darkfall Online, EVE Online, Inquisition Clan, MMO design, Rift, Ultima Online, World of Warcraft | 13 Comments

Patching like its 1999

Posted on April 1, 2011 by SynCaine

I appreciate the rapid pace of patching. It’s impressive, even by “first month of a new MMO” standards. And as we saw with 1.1, the updates are not all just bug fixes but actual content additions. Major bonus points for … Continue reading →

Posted in Asheron's Call, EQ2, EVE Online, MMO design, Patch Notes, Rift, World of Warcraft | 7 Comments

Amateur hour

Posted on March 25, 2011 by SynCaine

The kids, they grow up so fast. Shadow’s post before the one linked above was his original (even weaker) attempt, and while it’s pretty fail at a FBW starter, it does (slightly) manage to raise one question: if you’re a … Continue reading →

Posted in Blogroll, Darkfall Online, EVE Online, PvP, Rant, Rift, World of Warcraft | 22 Comments

Souls > Trinity

Posted on March 22, 2011 by SynCaine

If everyone can be a tank/healer/dps, do you still have a holy trinity? Games with skill systems, rather than class systems, don’t have the holy trinity problem. You don’t stop a fleet action in EVE because your tank is afk, … Continue reading →

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

I sense a Rift in your guild

Posted on March 17, 2011 by SynCaine

It seems the self-sacrifice that EuroGamer made for the good of our community is being forgotten, and it’s getting embarrassing. It’s been just over two years since the infamous “5 minute MMO review”, and yet here we are today, with … Continue reading →

Posted in beta, Blogroll, EQ2, EVE Online, Guild Wars, Mass Media, MMO design, Rant, Rift, Warhammer Online, World of Warcraft | 26 Comments

The cult of MMO; Why it’s good to be a fanboi.

Posted on March 3, 2011 by SynCaine

MMO success has been the topic of a few blogs, mostly inspired by Rift’s successful launch and predictions of what will happen next. Will it WAR or will it WoW? Readers here will know I’m leaning more toward WoW than … Continue reading →

Posted in Darkfall Online, EVE Online, MMO design, Rant, Rift, Ultima Online, Warhammer Online, World of Warcraft | 4 Comments