Category Archives: Housing

MMO housing IS gameplay

Posted on January 17, 2013 by SynCaine

And yes, I’ve heard the Ultima Online house analogy. But until I can plant a flower box outside my POS, I don’t buy it. EVE ain’t Minecraft. Going to pick on Jester a bit in this post. I say pick … Continue reading →

Posted in EVE Online, Housing, Lord of the Rings Online, MMO design, Ultima Online | 15 Comments

Darkfall:UW – Best Case

Posted on November 6, 2012 by SynCaine

With Darkfall set to release in two weeks, I want to write down my expectations for the game. Today will be a best-case post, while tomorrow I’ll do worst-case. If nothing else, it will be interesting to revisit these post-release … Continue reading →

Posted in crafting, Darkfall Online, Housing, Mass Media, MMO design, PvP | 7 Comments

Rift: Storm Legion – Who put this sand in here?

Posted on October 22, 2012 by SynCaine

James, a community manager from Trion recently reached out to me and asked if I’d be interesting in taking Rift’s upcoming expansion Storm Legion for a guided tour. While I’m not currently playing Rift, and my reasons why are well … Continue reading →

Posted in beta, crafting, Housing, Mass Media, MMO design, Rift | 13 Comments

EVE: A POS to call my home

Posted on September 10, 2012 by SynCaine

Another Jester-lead post for today (GW2 thoughts are brewing, but I can’t quite place my finger on them just yet. Something-something themepark though), this time about the next EVE expansion, and expansions/patches in general. Jester is worried that much like … Continue reading →

Posted in crafting, Darkfall Online, EVE Online, Housing, MMO design, Ultima Online | 6 Comments

You should return those glasses to their rightful owner

Posted on January 17, 2012 by SynCaine

Syp over at Biobreak has a post talking about the pre-2003 MMO market and todays, and how you can’t pay him enough to go back to that time. First I find this odd, as looking at his About page, I’m … Continue reading →

Posted in Asheron's Call, Atlantica Online, EQ2, Housing, MMO design, Random, Rant, Rift, RMT, SW:TOR, Ultima Online, World of Warcraft | 82 Comments

Darkfall: The siege revamp is finally here!

Posted on September 15, 2011 by SynCaine

Holy crap a Darkfall patch! And with its own manual too. At the very least, forumfall entertainment should increase for a bit. Hopefully now AV can put the finish touches on DF2.0, wipe, and get everyone back in the game. … Continue reading →

Posted in Darkfall Online, Housing, Patch Notes, PvP | 11 Comments

Darkfall: The only option

Posted on August 26, 2011 by SynCaine

To continue the blog merger, I’ll pick up where I left off on the reset topic and how it applies to Darkfall. It’s true that a character reset would cut millions of players from WoW, or thousands off games like … Continue reading →

Posted in Combat Systems, crafting, Darkfall Online, Housing, MMO design | 8 Comments

Wipe or Expansion: What’s the difference?

Posted on July 14, 2011 by SynCaine

Jef Reahard over at Massivily asks if you would keep playing if your MMO had a character/server wipe (side point: if a character wipe is a ‘full’ wipe in your MMO of choice, what does that say about its world?) … Continue reading →

Posted in Darkfall Online, Housing, Mass Media, MMO design, Patch Notes, PvP, World of Warcraft | 19 Comments

PvE Sandbox MMO: Housing

Posted on April 13, 2011 by SynCaine

If combat and the economy are the two most important areas for a sandbox MMO, player housing is the most neglected. It says a lot about the genre as a whole when the very first MMO, Ultima Online, had and … Continue reading →

Posted in crafting, Housing, MMO design, Random, Ultima Online | 21 Comments

PvE Sandbox MMO: Economy and crafting

Posted on April 12, 2011 by SynCaine

After combat, I believe the economy is the most important aspect to a quality sandbox title, and not just for those hoping to play a merchant. The ideal system would impact everyone playing on a regular basis rather than being … Continue reading →

Posted in crafting, Housing, MMO design, Random | 34 Comments