Monday, February 26, 2007
The MMO Bill of Rights
This list is designed specifically for MMO games. Other player rights such as being involved in the game rather than forced to watch an hour of cut scenes still apply. These are based not on any specific MMO but from my experience of a number of games, such as World of Warcraft, City of Heroes, Final Fantasy XI, Guild Wars and EVE online. I have tried to give examples that would be applicable to most people’s experiences of MMO games.
1. No character choice should be significantly stronger than others.
If a player chooses to be, for example, a fighter it is reasonable to assume that he will be physically stronger than a caster or healer character. However the make up of the character must balance weakness and strength to avoid the fighter winning every fight. The skill of the player should be the deciding factor in the player’s success.
2. No character class should make another class redundant
If an MMO includes both a healer class, and a fighter class and a hybrid healer/fighter class, it is important that the hybrid will still have something unique to contribute to a party. The hybrid could easily become overlooked if they don’t serve a useful purpose in the presence of one of the other classes.
3. Players should be encouraged towards multiplayer situations, not forced.
MMO games are designed for teams of players, and it is reasonable to expect that there will be content included specifically for teams. However, if a player cannot find a suitable team there should be other avenues open to them to progress. It would be unfair to expect a player to wait indefinitely for a team to get to the next area of the game.
Preferably there should be a mechanism for the player to return to any skipped or missed multiplayer content later.
4. Progress through the game should not require unreasonable grinding.
It is accepted MMO practise to hare rare items dropped occasionally by enemies. This should not impede progression to an unreasonable extent. If a player needs ten Boar tusks to move forward in an important story arc he should be expected to kill a lot of boars to get them, but if the drop rate is 0.1 then the task will become tired and pointless.
5. Lower level players should not be victimised by more experienced players.
First impressions count for a lot, perhaps more so in MMO’s than other games. New players should have time to understand they play mechanics and rules of the game. This learning curve should be protected from higher level players, either through placing the new players in safe zones or imposing a system of penalties on players who choose to persecute lower levels.
6. In game economies need to be monitored and regulated enough to allow players reasonable access to the game’s content.
In-game economies built through auction houses or other means need to be kept in check the same as any other economic system. Allowing players or groups of players, to create monopolies on key items and artificially inflate prices will lead to players leaving the game, not experiencing content or possibly buying in-game currency from internet traders. None of these are desirable for the long term stability of the game.
This list is designed specifically for MMO games. Other player rights such as being involved in the game rather than forced to watch an hour of cut scenes still apply. These are based not on any specific MMO but from my experience of a number of games, such as World of Warcraft, City of Heroes, Final Fantasy XI, Guild Wars and EVE online. I have tried to give examples that would be applicable to most people’s experiences of MMO games.
1. No character choice should be significantly stronger than others.
If a player chooses to be, for example, a fighter it is reasonable to assume that he will be physically stronger than a caster or healer character. However the make up of the character must balance weakness and strength to avoid the fighter winning every fight. The skill of the player should be the deciding factor in the player’s success.
2. No character class should make another class redundant
If an MMO includes both a healer class, and a fighter class and a hybrid healer/fighter class, it is important that the hybrid will still have something unique to contribute to a party. The hybrid could easily become overlooked if they don’t serve a useful purpose in the presence of one of the other classes.
3. Players should be encouraged towards multiplayer situations, not forced.
MMO games are designed for teams of players, and it is reasonable to expect that there will be content included specifically for teams. However, if a player cannot find a suitable team there should be other avenues open to them to progress. It would be unfair to expect a player to wait indefinitely for a team to get to the next area of the game.
Preferably there should be a mechanism for the player to return to any skipped or missed multiplayer content later.
4. Progress through the game should not require unreasonable grinding.
It is accepted MMO practise to hare rare items dropped occasionally by enemies. This should not impede progression to an unreasonable extent. If a player needs ten Boar tusks to move forward in an important story arc he should be expected to kill a lot of boars to get them, but if the drop rate is 0.1 then the task will become tired and pointless.
5. Lower level players should not be victimised by more experienced players.
First impressions count for a lot, perhaps more so in MMO’s than other games. New players should have time to understand they play mechanics and rules of the game. This learning curve should be protected from higher level players, either through placing the new players in safe zones or imposing a system of penalties on players who choose to persecute lower levels.
6. In game economies need to be monitored and regulated enough to allow players reasonable access to the game’s content.
In-game economies built through auction houses or other means need to be kept in check the same as any other economic system. Allowing players or groups of players, to create monopolies on key items and artificially inflate prices will lead to players leaving the game, not experiencing content or possibly buying in-game currency from internet traders. None of these are desirable for the long term stability of the game.
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
Colossal Cave Adventure is an abstract game, by any standard. Its mixture of pop culture references, humor and high fantasy put it firmly in the realm of the post-modern. The game gives a great deal of space which the player can assert their own imagination and persona in. We are never handed (in my experience of the game) any information about the protagonist allowing us to fill the role ourselves.
Text based games have fallen under the heading of interactive fiction. I don’t see text based games as any more interactive than modern adventure games, such as Final Fantasy. Text is more comparable to literature, though, because your imagination, not the games visuals, provides your picture of the world.
Text based games could find a place in today’s gaming world. I can envision PDP devices, or mobile phones playing host to games such as Adventure, taking full advantage of our mind’s eyes.
Matt STone
Text based games have fallen under the heading of interactive fiction. I don’t see text based games as any more interactive than modern adventure games, such as Final Fantasy. Text is more comparable to literature, though, because your imagination, not the games visuals, provides your picture of the world.
Text based games could find a place in today’s gaming world. I can envision PDP devices, or mobile phones playing host to games such as Adventure, taking full advantage of our mind’s eyes.
Matt STone
Thursday, February 15, 2007
Games designed pre 1990 are often seen as inferior, due to the limitations of their technology. But is the experience of a game limited by the amount of resources available to its creators? Games design students on the post graduate program at MIT have to create an 8-bit game to help focus their design skills. I spent two nights in the company of games from the 1980s to see what they offered me.
The first few games I tried I found a little disappointing. Alpine Ski and Arabian Magic were games that left me wanting something with more substance. These seemed to be great ideas for games that had been watered down by constraints of time and resource. Space invaders DX kept me going for a while, but I never had much patience for games that were repetitive without reward.
The breakthrough came with Puzzle Bobble 2. This is a game that is fun, challenging and compelling. I played on and off for three hours. None of these games felt addictive to me, but then I remembered I brought Tetris and my first ever gameboy with me to university. I settled in for the evening, not even thinking about Neverwinter Nights 2
The first few games I tried I found a little disappointing. Alpine Ski and Arabian Magic were games that left me wanting something with more substance. These seemed to be great ideas for games that had been watered down by constraints of time and resource. Space invaders DX kept me going for a while, but I never had much patience for games that were repetitive without reward.
The breakthrough came with Puzzle Bobble 2. This is a game that is fun, challenging and compelling. I played on and off for three hours. None of these games felt addictive to me, but then I remembered I brought Tetris and my first ever gameboy with me to university. I settled in for the evening, not even thinking about Neverwinter Nights 2
Sunday, February 04, 2007
Games from previous eras are often dismissed as being unsophisticated, lacking the visual flare of more recent offerings. But these are games that have held their audiences rapt and had reviews claiming that they have revolutionised the entire industry. So is it possible to look at games from the 70’s and 80’s now and appreciate them for their own inherent worth?
When we look at games from previous era’s we need to remember their context. Look at graphics and sound in terms of what could be accomplished with technology at the time. Aspects of the game that were limited by technical constraints should be judged within their technical constraints, and praise given for games that found new ways to show us what they were.
Also it is important to look at the aspects of design that were implemented. If someone showed us a new idea, a fantastic vision, or introduced us to a way of telling their story we hadn’t seen before, we should respect that.
Lastly, and most importantly, games should be judged on how well they involve their players, how fun they are. This is a criterion which is not diminished by the presentation, but remains constant whatever the year.
When we look at games from previous era’s we need to remember their context. Look at graphics and sound in terms of what could be accomplished with technology at the time. Aspects of the game that were limited by technical constraints should be judged within their technical constraints, and praise given for games that found new ways to show us what they were.
Also it is important to look at the aspects of design that were implemented. If someone showed us a new idea, a fantastic vision, or introduced us to a way of telling their story we hadn’t seen before, we should respect that.
Lastly, and most importantly, games should be judged on how well they involve their players, how fun they are. This is a criterion which is not diminished by the presentation, but remains constant whatever the year.
