Category Archives: MMO design

Modern MMO design creates new barriers for grouping

Posted on December 16, 2014 by SynCaine

Keen is talking about why people choose to solo instead of group, and all of his points are spot-on. Some are design mistakes (solo being more efficient/rewarding than grouping), others are social (people are mean), and for some the time … Continue reading →

Posted in MMO design | 6 Comments

Burnout is a myth

Posted on November 25, 2014 by SynCaine

When WoW was declining due to one crappy expansion after another featuring accessibility-inspired dumbing down, some people tried to write this off as not being about the content, but just due to ‘burnout’. They would have you believe that after … Continue reading →

Posted in Clash of Clans, DoTA, EVE Online, Final Fantasy XIV, League of Legends, MMO design, Random, Rant, World of Warcraft | 36 Comments

I’ve officially quit WoW again

Posted on November 12, 2014 by SynCaine

Title of the post is just to continue things for folks who apparently only read titles and go directly to comment. There was a lot of nostalgia when my old raiding character, an orc warrior in full T2 wielding the … Continue reading →

Posted in MMO design, World of Warcraft | 20 Comments

AA: Good design can’t overcome a bad business model and stupidity

Posted on October 27, 2014 by SynCaine

Whelp, things went downhill fast huh? To some extent this should have been obvious, given that ArcheAge is a F2P MMO, the very clear minor-leagues of the genre. Maybe I was trying to convince myself otherwise, or maybe a particularly … Continue reading →

Posted in ArcheAge, MMO design, Trion being Trion | 37 Comments

AA: View from level 50

Posted on October 21, 2014 by SynCaine

I recently hit the current level cap of 50 in ArcheAge, so now is a good time to talk about that experience, what changes, and plans going forward. First thing however is how effortless getting to 50 was. Not only … Continue reading →

Posted in ArcheAge, MMO design | 18 Comments

Some people play MMOs, some play EVE

Posted on October 20, 2014 by SynCaine

To say that EVE is a different kind of MMO is perhaps the biggest understatement in gaming. Year after year events happen in EVE that no other game will likely ever come close to replicating, and the game’s depth, complexity, … Continue reading →

Posted in EVE Online, MMO design | 28 Comments

PvE-only servers don’t actually work

Posted on October 17, 2014 by SynCaine

Would CCP be better off if they created a PvE-only server for EVE? Some carebears would argue yes, because since EVE only has a PvP server, they don’t play. On the surface that makes sense; PvP-only games are indeed locking … Continue reading →

Posted in ArcheAge, EVE Online, MMO design | 17 Comments

AA: Surprisingly good questing

Posted on October 6, 2014 by SynCaine

One bad ArcheAge post (because Trion) needs to be balanced with a positive one, so let’s talk about the great questing! The above line actually isn’t sarcasm. AA has surprisingly entertaining questing for an MMO. Now I’m not talking about … Continue reading →

Posted in ArcheAge, MMO design | 6 Comments

AA: Trade Routes bring life to the roads and waves

Posted on October 1, 2014 by SynCaine

With ArcheAge being a sandbox, it’s somewhat difficult to talk about just one aspect of the game without the post spiraling into a dozen other supporting topics. If I focus too much on just the actual topic, I feel like … Continue reading →

Posted in ArcheAge, crafting, Housing, MMO design | 15 Comments

AA: The true spiritual successor to UO

Posted on September 30, 2014 by SynCaine

With the lead weight that is Trion and F2P covered yesterday, let’s start digging into WHY you should tolerate Trion and play ArcheAge anyway, because yea, you should be if you enjoy virtual worlds and smart MMO design. I always … Continue reading →

Posted in ArcheAge, Combat Systems, crafting, MMO design, PvP, Review, Ultima Online | 25 Comments