September

As someone who detests some of the most popular MMO and whose dear hope is that MMORPG improve vastly, I can only say that immense subscription is usually due to minor details.

We can say that presently WoW is a popular sports bar. We can also say that the second most popular bar is Runescape -- like a bar where non-alcoholic drinks are free or something. Just so that you know, Lord of the Rings Online isn't at all popular. It's dying. Turbine couldn't even keep Dungeons and Dragons alive. Both will soon be free to play. Hurrah for stupid people who can't do the two easiest theme games in the world?

Let us hope that Shadowrun Online and other MMO-RPG are well structured. Who knows, maybe some smart guys will do Advanced Dungeons and Dragons Online -- but they'll probably do Pathfinder or Mastercraft instead.

It appears to me that alot of people aren't really comprehending what an MMO-RPG can be. Alot of people don't understand how an RPG works and works well. Furthermore, the understanding of what makes a fun game objectively (and not just subjectively) is a bit skewed, but this is to be expected given that not everyone grows up reading concepts from novels like Dream Park and studied role-playing game books as these books came out in the seventies and eighties.

Now, we must understand that MMO-RPG are in essence what an RPG was without a referee; they might be considered similar to solo-adventures undergone by a group. Clever approaches in the game can't truly be had, no more than we can cleverly move a rook to "shoot a phaser at a boulder" over a pawn's head in a game of Chess. As such, only the more complex and thorough rules or simplest rules absenting independent approach can be brought into the game. The person who thinks that old RPG are all too simple should take a look at Rolemaster or Empire of the Petal Throne (fancy learning a complete language to play an RPG?) or Arduin Grimoire.

One thing that's often ignored in MMO-RPG is the boss monster that actually uses its resources. An AI opponent rather than a dancing graphical target. Scaling levels of AI tactical intelligence might provoke more interest in the game. And we must also have AI allies as well -- or better yet, have AI parties that may become allies or rivals however temporarily or long term or even chimerically.

Another issue ignored in MMO-RPG is that for a guild to be properly challenged, there should be competing NPC run guilds that function fairly much like a guild run by a player character -- and also NPCs that might join guilds, have needs, have demands, have usefulness. This could improve enjoyment when combined with wise and artistic game design.

Finally, we find there is a problem with ghost accounts. A person can purchase more than one account for themself in a game where such a thing is cheating (not all multi-player games are like this). And there are other forms of cheating that are difficult to prevent, even unto administrative corruption. There are guilds of hundreds composed of five people. It's almost as if the pressure to win (or boredom of life) forces many to compete unfairly for a fictional reward.

All considered, more enjoyable games might mean better interactions with others in the game. Life is composed of many things, games can be a rewarding portion of life.