Category Archives: MMO design

Group work.

Posted on October 18, 2007 by SynCaine

When I think of Dungeons and Dragons, one of the first things that come to mind is a group of players sitting around a table and adventuring together. From its very foundation D&D is designed to be a group activity. … Continue reading →

Posted in DDO, MMO design, NWN2 | 4 Comments

Dear CCP, could we get some elves in EVE?

Posted on October 15, 2007 by SynCaine

Over the weekend the same thought hit me again and again; CCP needs to make a fantasy version of EVE. I know I know, blasphemy, but hear me out. CCP has already proven they can create an open-ended world MMO … Continue reading →

Posted in Combat Systems, EVE Online, MMO design, World of Warcraft | 8 Comments

Warhammer delay thoughts.

Posted on October 10, 2007 by SynCaine

As many other sites/blogs have reported, the Warhammer Online beta has been suspended for two months, and instantly rumors sprang up as to why this happened. Some people took the now usual ‘doom and gloom’ perspective and assumed the game … Continue reading →

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

Why not having fun is fun.

Posted on October 4, 2007 by SynCaine

Darren over at Common Sense Gamer has a post up commenting on a Gamesutra article, which contained the following: “The biggest lessons I’d like to see products like World Of Warcraft and other traditional, retail games learn are: 1) Free … Continue reading →

Posted in MMO design | Comments Off on Why not having fun is fun.

How do we judge skill in an MMO?

Posted on October 3, 2007 by SynCaine

Tobold made a post today asking what should be rewarded in an MMO. Halfway through posting a comment I realized it was getting a bit lengthy, so instead we get this post. Tobold is correct in his statement that an … Continue reading →

Posted in MMO design, World of Warcraft | Comments Off on How do we judge skill in an MMO?

More ‘Sword of Insta-pwn’ talk, and why EVE is better than WoW/EQ!

Posted on October 2, 2007 by SynCaine

If you go look at any item database website, you can easily look up any mob in WoW or EQ2 and find out exactly what item could drop off said mob, especially raid bosses. Long before most people kill Illidan … Continue reading →

Posted in EQ2, EVE Online, MILK Corp, MMO design, World of Warcraft | 4 Comments

Endgame, pick your poison.

Posted on October 1, 2007 by SynCaine

Recently I was thinking about the past MMOs I’ve played and the different ‘end game’ systems they offered. Some had raiding (WoW, LoTRO), some had PvP (DAoC, AC on Darktide, Lineage) and others left it open-ended (UO, EVE). Anyone who … Continue reading →

Posted in Dark Age of Camelot, EVE Online, Lord of the Rings Online, MMO design, Ultima Online, Warhammer Online, World of Warcraft | 6 Comments

A look ahead, and why can’t I have the Sword of Leetness+5?

Posted on September 27, 2007 by SynCaine

Playing EVE Online, EQ2, and Sword of the New World all at the same time gives you a very interesting view of where MMOs are today. Two of the games (EVE, EQ2) were released a few years back, but both … Continue reading →

Posted in Combat Systems, EQ2, EVE Online, MMO design, SotNW, Warhammer Online, World of Warcraft | 9 Comments

AFK leveling.

Posted on September 25, 2007 by SynCaine

Just a quick post today, but Sword of the New World is very… well different. You can AFK level yourself to basically 100, and the game does nothing to really stop you. It’s just one of the many differences between … Continue reading →

Posted in MMO design, SotNW | Comments Off on AFK leveling.

Sword of the New World I love you. No wait I hate you. No just kidding I love you.

Posted on September 24, 2007 by SynCaine

Thanks to a PCGamer demo DVD, I installed Sword of the New World over the weekend to give it a go. Seeing as how the game is Free2Play (stupid marketing trend word) and got a 90% review in the same … Continue reading →

Posted in EVE Online, MMO design, SotNW | 5 Comments