Massively.com: The Soapbox: Seriously, we have enough fantasy MMOs

News from: Massively.com

Filed under: World of Warcraft, Fantasy, Aion, City of Heroes, EVE Online, Fallen Earth, Lineage, MMO Industry, Opinion, Ultima Online, RuneScape, Free-to-Play, DC Universe Online, RIFT, World of Tanks, TERA, EverQuest Next, The Soapbox, Miscellaneous, MOBA, Neverwinter, The Elder Scrolls Online, MMORPG, Buy-to-Play

Let's play a game. I'm thinking of an MMO that features magic, monsters, humans, and a vast fantasy world full of steamy swamps, grassy plains, and deep, dark dungeons -- can you tell me which MMO it is? If you answered RIFT, you're right. You're also right if you answered TERA. Or World of Warcraft. Or Guild Wars 2. Or Neverwinter. Or... you get the idea.

We're people who play MMOs. Our hard drives are practically bulging with games featuring wizards and warriors. We've plunged our swords into millions of orcs and gnolls. We've looted more imaginary copper pieces than anyone could possible imagine. We've even slain so many dragons that you have to wonder why dragons even bother showing up anymore.

It's not the gameplay but the setting that can make the whole exercise so soul-crushingly boring.

Continue reading The Soapbox: Seriously, we have enough fantasy MMOs

The Soapbox: Seriously, we have enough fantasy MMOs originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 03 Dec 2013 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Read More at: Massively.com

Could be fun if one day there was a sign saying "On Strike" where the dragon was supposed to be.

Interesting read.......I just don't get what the OP expects epic fantasy game designers to do?  Epic Fantasy is Epic Fantasy - there's only so much material in that genre to use before it's used up really lol.   <shrugs>  To each his own I guess.  I see the OP's point but i think it would be hard to add anything to a fantasy setting without ending up with a cross-genre game or mixed genre game.

Just my 2 coppers

I understand his point - but he needs to be realistic - until something other than Fantasy that "features magic, monsters, humans, and a vast fantasy world full of steamy swamps, grassy plains, and deep, dark dungeons" is made that is successful your going to be hard pressed to get a game developer to do much else.  Look at Matrix Online, SWG, SW:tor, TSW, EvE, and the list goes on and on... and while some of these have been profitable and mildly successful for a period of time - none have equaled the profit, player numbers, and longevity or the most successful high Fantasy with dwarves, dragons, and dungeons - and although many of those have also failed (Vanguard - anyone) there have been more successes than any other genre.

Personally, I would love a good ancient Samurai MMO - and you could even add in a few dragons if you like) but who wouldn't like swords, pole arms, monks, archers, ninjas or a good western MMO - Outlaw vs Goodguys factions  - but I would like the old west or frontier setting - you could have Lawman, Outlaw, Gambler (think Smuggler from SWG), Indian (yes I went there - The Indian doesn't have to be bad you know) Bounty Hunter, Cowboy, Gunslinger, Buffalo Hunter - the Outlaw and Lawman must go to their appropriate faction - but the others can choose their faction - and stick to it.  I would love to see PvP with protecting forts, protecting wagon trains, protecting the Outlaw hideout, river boats along the Mississippi, gunfights in the streets of Tucson, bank robberies, stage coach heists, ....

There are all sorts of genres to go into - until someone takes the leap of faith and does one - that is successful - going to be hard to get others to take the risk.

  clearly they need to make a Shadowrun mmo    best of fantasy and scfi ,      or  warhammer 40k .  would be fun 

I understand his point also, but in all honesty, I am looking for less flare with a fantasy MMO not more.  Everything seems to be rainbows and butterflies these days, and everything seems to have gunpowder or steampunk mixed in with the swords and magic.  Even The Elder Scrolls intellectual property, while dark and gritty, goes a little bit overboard with magic for my liking.  

Saturation of magic makes magic less magical, there is a reason the Balrog, Smaug and Gandalf were so epic in the Tolkien lore, because they were one of a kind or rarities at the very least, there is a reason the Sith, the Jedi and Mandalorian battle armour was so amazing in Star Wars, because they were few and far between.  They are cool, because they are unique, because they are not common.  Another thing I have notice a lot with fantasy MMO's over the years, is their aversion to making a lot of dungeons.  Not group instances, but actual dungeons, crypts and subterranean ruins.  Most MMO's I have played over the past 10 years have maybe one or two of each tile set, usually group only and also instanced.  What I really hope to see with Elder Scrolls Online, is lots and lots of undiscovered ruins, dungeons, crypts that I can just stumble upon like I did in Oblivion and Skyrim.  Rift, WoW and GW2 were cheap when it came to such things, whereas a game like Age of Conan had absolutely amazing atmospheric dungeons in abundance, and Dungeons and Dragons Online had some really good dungeons later in development.

I'm personally not that interested in non-fantasy MMO's.  I don't mind Sci-Fi, Cyberpunk or Steampunk style games, I just don't find them very appealing as MMO's, just like I don't really find High Fantasy overly appealing either, I only play High Fantasy MMO's like Rift, GW2 and Warcraft because there are no low fantasy alternatives.

I am not as opposed to magic as you are Elth, but I do think there are far too many rainbows in most of the games.   I like bows to look like bows - not a feather duster on steroids... a sword to look like a sword - not a pointy bettering ram that towers above the character - and a staff to look like a staff not a Christmas tree.  I also like armor to look like armor and I hope ESO keeps with their themes from their other games.

I'm not too opposed to magic, I just believe it would be a lot more interesting if it didn't saturate games so much.  Most of my favourite literature has magic in it, but it's more subtle.  Fritz Leiber, Robert E. Howard, Tolkien and Feist are the core of fantasy that I enjoy, I am utterly repulsed by Final Fantasy or Harry Potter style fantasy.  I think Elder Scrolls and Age of Conan are probably as close as I will get to my "preferred" style of fantasy though.

  yep of all the mmo`s   i`ve played since 1999  EQ was still the best when it came to  dungeons  they had some really great ones  .

   Upper and lower guk,  mistmoore, black burrow,  runnyeye,  unrest ,  Cazic thule,  Kedge keep, Sol a , Sol B,  Narenja , Splitpaww , old Seblis, Chardok , Kaseroa, City of mist , Temple of Veeshen, Howling stones ( STAY OFF THE RUGS !!)  

  All of those were freaking awsome to dungen crawl in and they were in the org and first expansion , they made a ton more  later on that were very fun too .

 Sadly games today the more they progress forward the more they regress  , games are dumbed down simplifed and  Even mob AI was better back in EQ then in games today ,  mobs would heal each other , fear you , debuff your group , charm your group members and make them attack you etc .

everything is  speeded up to make it easier a game to easy and dumbed down isn`t that fun to play 

I think a lot of it comes down to managing their resources.  So much emphasis is placed on the visual quality and keeping content under an hour that things like Mob AI and intricate details suffer in the compromise.  I never played Everquest but I don't think I would have liked being forced into groups to do the majority of content.  One of the reasons I played Neverwinter Nights persistent worlds for so long (and skipped EQ and DAOC) was because I could go spelunking in dungeons by myself at my own pace and in my own time, but still had the option to group up with people if I wanted to.  

 yep being grouped  made it diffcult at times when you didn`t have long to be on etc   but not every class had to  there were a few that soloed all way to endgame just fine some could solo named mobs that it took a  group or more to kill .

 but  most part about  games that  like you to group is thats half the fun is  grouping meeting new players if i just wanted a solo exp i wouldn`t bother playing mmos  hehe .

I suppose I see what the article is complaining about, but it's an odd gripe. Besides, of the fantasy mmos, most of them are mediocre or seriously sub-par. I found WoW to be rather boring due to short-cuts in world design and overall staticness. LotRO was better, but really just because the world was more interesting. SWTOR had some nice stuff in it, but it suffered from hotbar bloat and mechanics that just began to feel another copycat. The storylines were interesting and what kept me playing (though 8 may have been a bit much). I don't think this means no one should make anymore fantasy MMOs for the next decade, but they need to make their worlds engaging and mechanics interesting. I think ESO and Pathfinder are both trying to do those things. But the cheap to make FTP knock-offs that can be briefly popular (most in non-U.S. markets) and turn a quick profit w/o further development will keep popping up so long as they keep making money, so the authors point seems to boil down to "hey you business guys, quit making money off of things that I don't like."

Malthol, I think you hit it on the head. WOW is the epitome of generic MMOs, and while games like LOTRO have terrific atmosphere they offer little "surprise" for lack of a better term. I really enjoy GW 2 but even my current home game feels a little played out at times. My hope with TESO is that for once Ill be able to have an interesting living world to explore, in the same way I loved exploring Skyrim. 

What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.