Umadbro? Naw just trollin’

Posted on August 23, 2010 by SynCaine

At what point did “I’m just trolling” replace “I was wrong” in the English language?

I mean we have had to deal with a lot of stupid internet fads/memes/whatever before, but is “haha trolled” not the dumbest one yet?

Oh you have shown that my five comments above are in fact completely wrong, asinine, and make me look like a fool? Oh I’m just trollin’ bro b.c (insert reason to be wasting time).

Honestly, this makes “umadbro?” look like Shakespeare in terms of forum/internet stupidity, and “umadbro” is just a few steps below posting “1st” as the 3rd or 4th comment in a thread.

Chuck-o-the-day: It should be a universal law that when you post “Just trolling”, Chuck roundhouse kicks you in the nuts. Ever. Single. Time.

Posted in Rant | 25 Comments

WAR40k has a really, really bright future.

Posted on August 20, 2010 by SynCaine

I totally agree with Lum.

Just get it out already and state that WAR40k will:

Kill WoW.

Will have 20m users.

Won’t have a single issue at launch.

And then make version 2.0 of the “bears bears bears” video making some even more absurd claim.

Bonus Chuck: Not even Chuck Norris could kill the WAR40k IP faster than Vigil / THQ.

Posted in Rant, WAR40k | 15 Comments

The Trinity: Keeping the masses safe since 1999!

Posted on August 20, 2010 by SynCaine

This post by ‘I played WAR before anyone else did’ Richard Bartle (via KTR) brings up some interesting points, with the big take-away for me being that the MMO genre would be a lot cooler right now if Ultima Online had been more popular than EverQuest way back in the day.

SOE: ruining the genre since 99!

That aside, the main point of the post is about the ‘trinity’ of tank/healer/dps in many of today’s MMOs, and how it makes little sense not only from a realism perspective, but also in terms of design. ‘Forcing’ someone to play a meatshield, forcing someone to sit in the back and heal, and then having everyone else tag along to spam whatever they have at the boss does indeed look rough on paper for a wide variety of reasons, not the least of which is of course the fact that you can basically plug anyone into the dps role, while the tank and healers determine the fate of your group. The tank is the rockstar by design kids.

I would say it’s amusing that so many MMOs go down this path, especially when you have games like UO or EVE showing working examples of deeper, more free-form ‘classless’ systems, but than this sad but obvious fact comes up: the more decisions the average players has to make, the higher the chance they are going to screw up, and hence the trinity model is ‘safe’ and ‘easy’ in terms of design and player protection.

But beyond protecting the less aware, the trinity was also an easy way to fake AI back in the day and give encounters an easily-followed setup. Due to hardware and network limitations, you simply could not afford to have hyper-intelligent mobs that would play and react with anything more complex than “see player, attack player”, nor could you really have encounters go at the speed of a FPS in terms of movement, aiming, and precise timing. Technology has advanced, and while many MMOs claim better AI or more complex combat systems, they still crutch on the trinity and hence are still constrained by it. And now that MMO and WoW are one and the same for so many, the simple departure of the trinity itself is a huge shock for too many players. Too many still approach every MMO with a WoW mindset, trinity expectations firmly included.

Blizzard: Graciously accepting the destroyer crown SOE handed them!

One defense of the trinity you often here is that players enjoy playing a set role; be it tank, healer, or dps, and they view the removal of the trinity (or classes) as a change that no longer allows them to play the way they like. That’s just flat-out ridiculous. Sure, no one went around with ‘meatshield’ in their profile in UO, but do you really think smart groups did not organize themselves in a similar fashion? That they did not have someone who’s primary (but not only) function was to keep everyone in good shape, or someone who would initiate the encounter? Groups would still gear-out certain players to give them the best dps, but the fact that the player could still heal or take a shot does not mean he could not play the now-traditional ‘dps’ role. That it takes more skill to play a dps-focused character with ‘tank’ and ‘healer’ capabilities, or someone who is responsible for keeping people alive but can still fight back, should be viewed as a positive, rather than a possible design issue that needs the addition of ‘classes’ to solve and save the players from making mistakes.

Yet we all know that’s not going to happen. No matter how far technology advances, how smart you can make the AI, or how low your ping to the server gets, the shift back to a ‘classless’ system is not going to happen, at least not in mainstream MMOs. Sure, the combat in Darkfall blows hotbar MMO combat out of the water at its purest form, and thanks to better technology it works today when it would have been impossible in 1999, but the fact that a goblin can kill a player because the player played poorly is not acceptable for many in today’s market. The expectation is that the mob runs up, swings meekly, and waits to be hotbar spam-smashed to death, and that’s just for solo combat. Things get really ‘crazy’ when you get a group together… Choices, player skill being a factor, and a more open-ended approach are all scary things and potential sources of customer frustration. What you sacrifice in deeper, more interesting gameplay options you more than make up for in simplicity and accessibility, and it’s not hard to see which direction the mainstream has been going in for some time now.

MMO Genre: No thinking zone!

Chuck-o-the-day: Chuck Norris can build a snowman out of rain.

Posted in Combat Systems, Darkfall Online, EVE Online, MMO design, Rant, Ultima Online, World of Warcraft | 23 Comments

Putting a value on money

Posted on August 19, 2010 by SynCaine

I came across a rather shocking thread on the League of Legends board a few days ago, one where the author was arguing that LoL is not really ‘free’ to play, because in order to play at the highest level you have to have access to dozens of heroes, and the only way to have that many is to buy them with Riot Points (bought with $). He also argued that Riot was ‘nickel and diming’ people by releasing new heroes every few weeks and selling those in bundle deals as well.

It’s shocking on a number of levels. First off, the simple fact that someone who clearly enjoyed a product enough to worry about playing it at the high end was not willing to pay ANYTHING for it had my head spinning. How do these people imagine good games get created? Do they really think talented developers like Riot just donate their time to create something for you to enjoy? The only thing I hate more than crap games making money is good one not getting their due, and it’s this type of attitude that leads to a lot of that.

On top of simply paying for a quality product to support future development, LoL is actually far more ‘free’ than most F2P offerings of similar quality. All heroes can be purchased with IP (points you get for playing the game), and someone who reaches level 30 to play ranked games should easily have enough IP to purchase a few heroes and two rune pages, putting them at no disadvantage against someone who used $ to buy RP. The person who bought RP might have some different skins for his heroes (100% fluff), more total heroes, or they reached level 30 faster thanks to XP boosts (getting to 30 naturally is very, very doable, as plenty of Inq members are already there and I myself am at 21 now, having played only a month or so), but you can’t buy stronger heroes, more mastery points, or better runes with RP.

Now this is certainly not the first example of someone wanting the world for free, it happens all the time. But it stuck out to me given the recent news about a private WoW server selling item packs for $300 (and if they are selling them, my guess is someone was buying), games like Allods selling gem packs for thousands, and the now commonly accepted practice of paying 10, 20, or 30 bucks to change your characters name. Clearly the value of the dollar varies greatly not just between genres, but between games within a given genre as well. MMO X is really not worth paying $15 a month for, but paying $20 to transfer your character over to a server so you can play with your friends is?

Chuck-o-the-day: When Chuck Norris has a crush on a girl, it usually ends with a few broken bones.

Posted in Allods Online, MMO design, Random, Rant, World of Warcraft | 8 Comments

Selling epics in WoW; Coming soon thanks to a private server

Posted on August 18, 2010 by SynCaine

TAGN is wondering about the aftermath of the Blizzard vs Private server issue, and while he covers some interesting points, I think he (and as far as I’ve seen, everyone else) is missing a major, major bit of info here: some random person running a WoW server with an item shop made 3 million dollars.

3 million.

You think the destroyer of worlds, the revealer of identity, the slayer of fun, good ol’ Bobby is going to just pass at the opportunity to milk millions of dollars from WoW players without having to design a single new item/area? I mean if WoW players are willing to throw you $25 to reskin a pony, can you image what they would pay to get a power ranger suit without having to go through the trouble of facerolling an instance? On the private server, that cost you $300, and that is an absolute steal in pony bucks.

Now sure, such a change might destroy what little challenge/legitimacy/whatever WoW has left, but if you are willing to get people killed to gain some Facebook friends, are you really worried about some gaming nerds getting all upset with you selling their precious ‘epics’ to the masses? And having seen just how far you can bend people over with Call of Duty: MW2, would the countless “I’ll quit and take my entire 1000 man guild with me” posts/petitions/blogs do anything but give Bobby a chuckle as he takes his morning swim in his money pool while eating babies for breakfast? Of course not.

Just like, a month after ‘epics’ go on sale, that same player and his 1000 man guild will still be in-game, just now decked out in ‘exclusive’ $500 pink shiny suits, dancing on a mailbox while others watch in awe of their awesome gear.

I’m just hoping this happens sooner rather than later, because Bobby owes me a train wreck after delaying RealID.

Chuck-o-the-day: When Chuck Norris takes out a loan, the only collateral he puts down is collateral damage.

Posted in Rant, RMT, World of Warcraft | 13 Comments

Talkin’ Darkfall

Posted on August 17, 2010 by SynCaine

In my glorious return to podcasts, I was a guest on MMOSmackTalk with Ryan. He grilled me about my visit to Aventurine, along with some more general discussion about the game and certain features. What was planned as a 15 minute interview went a LITTLE bit longer, but hopefully everyone enjoys it. Head on over and have a listen.

Posted in Darkfall Online, Podcast | 6 Comments

Best ‘Your Mom’ joke I’ve heard in a while

Posted on August 16, 2010 by SynCaine

I found this entertaining enough to make an entire post about it (saw it on the LoL boards).

“Your Mom is like a free to play game. You can unlock her with effort, but it’s a lot quicker just to pay $5.”

Chuck approves the above insult.

Posted in Random | 2 Comments

Sheep, and the numbers they don’t understand.

Posted on August 16, 2010 by SynCaine

I always get a chuckle when people misuse the “80% of EVE pilots never leave Empire” stat from CCP as some sort of indicator that even the majority of EVE players don’t like PvP. As anyone who has actually played EVE knows, not only does PvP happen in Empire (be it FW, Corp vs Corp, or ganking), but many players have multiple accounts, and a second/third/tenth account makes for a great Empire-only pilot.

In a way though it’s a compliment to EVE and the PvP community, with EVE now growing to the point it can no longer be ignored or written off as a small niche title in the genre, PvP haters have to find a different approach to try and explain how its possible for a game to continue growing while still allowing the virtual wolves to continue feasting on the sheep.

But lets pretend for a minute that those who try to mislead (or simply misuse) with that stat are in fact correct, and that only 20% of all the players playing EVE have ever PvP’ed; does that actually tell us anything? Does it really show that most players don’t want/enjoy PvP in an MMO like EVE?

Of course not.

First off, if you removed PvP from EVE, you would not only remove an activity that, if you enjoy incorrect use of stats, you believe is 20% of the population, but you also cripple everyone else thanks to the countless side effects. That giant economic sink that is so vital to the economy? Gone. The reason certain materials are rare? Gone. The thing keeping ships like Frigates relevant and the demand for their production high? Yup, that’s gone too. I could go on.

Point being, even if you are someone who played EVE beyond the trial and never got into a single PvP situation, your overall enjoyment of the game would be drastically altered with the removal of PvP, and many of the things you took for granted (like the entire economy) would not function nearly as well. Not to mention it’s highly likely you might never have tried the game in the first place, since so many are drawn by the stories that ‘20%’ weaves.

Perhaps part of the confusion comes from the stark difference between a virtual world like New Eden and the disjoined selection of rides that is Azeroth or its ilk. Just like the teacups at Disneyland, you going on the ICC ride has zero impact on anyone else in the park, and how you did on said teacups has zero impact on your experience with Space Mountain. Each ride is its own little world, one that pops up and shuts down as soon as you zone in or out, and the only residual effect might be the stuffed animal you leave the park with to show to all your friends (who most likely already have three copies of the same cheap throwaway toy anyway).

That is the exact opposite of New Eden, where one event (Hulkagedon) not only impacts those directly involved, but also effects many other aspects of the game (ship prices, ore supply, etc). Every player leaves some mark on the world, and while most won’t be noticed overall, others certainly will. Beyond how many you effect, any one single player will remember an event that happens to them, so while a single Empire suicide gank has little impact on all of New Eden (unless of course you happen to lose a silly amount of PLEX), it certainly leaves a mark on the victim.

It’s that complex web of interaction that really fuels a virtual world forward and creates a ton of ‘content’ for everyone playing. It’s also why the idea of separating all parts of the game, making nothing ‘count’ beyond the scope of that one single instance, is both a boring and unsettling direction to take an MMOs in. The advantages are there of course (easy to design and balance, solo-friendly, instant rewards, etc), but I think I’ll stick with the ‘20%’ and enjoy my virtual worlds in all their interconnected glory.

Chuck-o-the-day: Chuck Norris can stare you down with his back turned.

Posted in EVE Online, MMO design, PvP, Rant, World of Warcraft | 14 Comments

The more things change…

Posted on August 13, 2010 by SynCaine

Which list is longer: The differences between LotRO, WAR, and Aion, or the similarities between UO, EQ1, and AC1?

It’s a rhetorical question of course, but highlights a point I was getting at yesterday, and relates to a post over at Don’t Fear the Mutant that I commented on. How is it that the first ‘real’ MMOs were all so distinct, so varied, and still ‘worked’, while the last wave of ‘big’ MMOs are so similar you can easy highlight their ‘unique’ points with a short list that is likely to be more marketing hype than actual substance?

WoW is of course the root of this evil, yet ultimately it comes down to the current player base and how they voice what they want. For every player done with the solo-quest faceroll shiny chase, there are ten others happily handing over $45 to get more of the same, or waiting in line to spend $25 to re-skin their in-game pony. Not that this is anything new to gaming mind you; EA has been happily collecting $50-$60 from millions of people each year to update NFL rosters, while Capcom will give you a sweet deal on four more characters for a re-release of Street Fighter, but it disappointing that it’s now happening to the MMO genre.

Somehow I don’t remember many people thinking these games were going to be copies of each other back in the late 90s / early 2000, with Madden-like ‘selling points’ attached to this years version of WoW.

Chuck-o-the-day: Every night before going to sleep, the Boogey Man checks under his bed for Chuck Norris.

Posted in Aion, Asheron's Call, Lord of the Rings Online, MMO design, Rant, Ultima Online, Warhammer Online, World of Warcraft | 23 Comments

Is the MMO genre back to being a niche market?

Posted on August 12, 2010 by SynCaine

Anyone else seeing the irony of SOE making their next EQ game a WoW clone? My my how quickly things change, and am I the only one thinking SOE is going to find a new and creative way to screw this one up as well?

But warm SOE thoughts aside, the EQ franchise going in a straight-up WoW-clone direction does bring up an interesting point; can you make a ‘mass market’ MMO in the post-WoW age without just trying to remake WoW? Or rather, WILL anyone try to make a ‘mass market’ MMO that’s not “here is how we plan to recreate WoW” in 2010, 2011, or 2012?

One would think that with so many titles having already tried that strategy in vain, someone at a big company would take a quick look around and say “hey, let’s not try to re-create what happened with WAR/Aion/LotRO/insert-failed-WoW-clone-here”. That perhaps they would look at the successful smaller titles that have been around for years and instead say “hey, if we throw X millions of dollars at this idea, I think we can expand the concept beyond the 10s or low 100 thousands of users”.

Now I’m not saying that if you throw 100 million dollars to make a AAA version of something like A Tale in the Desert or Darkfall it’s going to result in 1 million+ subscribers. Actually I’m fairly sure it won’t, but then again I’m also fairly sure cloning WoW using $100m and a famous IP gets you WAR, so…

This brings up two related questions: is ANY game capable of WoW-level success, and if so, is the WoW approach (easy, overly accessible, MMORPG-lite) the only way to go? My answer to the first question is no, as I’ve always believed that WoW is an outlier in the genre, a product that came along at just the right time and, due to a social snowball effect rather than any design decision, reached the heights that it reached. But assuming a title could reach WoW-levels of success, it’s interesting to think about the second question.

On the one hand, WoW has shown (reasons aside) that it IS possible for an MMO to attract 10m+ users. On the other hand we have the countless examples of why trying to re-create WoW is a good way to blow a ton of cash, and we also have a title like EVE, which is completely different in almost every way from WoW and yet is arguably the second most successful MMO ever (at least in the US/EU), considering it’s still growing after 6+ years and shows no signs of slowing down.

So if I’m an exec looking at the MMO market, I see two very different things. I see a huge game whose community loves an easy, accessibly, low graphics, solo-based MMO. I then look at the other big success story and I see a game that over the years has slowly built up its user base without sacrificing the original design core but has massively upgraded its graphics and the requirements to run them. A complex and at times arcane game as famous for its terrible lows as it is for its amazing highs (and one that many see as a giant spreadsheet-based bore), and one that has had more ‘famous’ controversies than perhaps all other games combined.

Is there a middle ground? Is there a way to make a broader-reaching EVE, or a WoW-like game that lives up to expectations? And perhaps most importantly, is that what TODAY’S gamer wants? Back in 2005-06 everyone and their mother wanted what WoW was selling, just like back in 2000 everyone wanted what EQ1 was selling. What if that something is not more WoW today, like it was not more EQ in 2004? Is the demand for something today more MMORPG-like, or something even LESS MMORPG-like than even WoW? And if it’s the latter, has the MMO genre’s time come and gone like beat-em-up games, fighting games, and recently music games? Have we come full circle and are back to being a niche genre again, like the ‘good old days’?

Chuck-o-the-day: All of the actions performed by a Chuck Norris action figure are hate crimes.

Posted in Aion, Darkfall Online, EQ2, EVE Online, MMO design, Warhammer Online, World of Warcraft | 22 Comments