The Think Tank: Consoles and the future of MMOs
Destiny might not be a pure MMO, but its huge launch on the fringes of the MMO space this week has prompted us to ponder whether the future of core MMOs lies in the console market. In this week's Think Tank, I polled the Massively writers about just that.
@ceruleangrey: I played my first MMO, Final Fantasy XI, on a console. Even though I bought it fairly soon after the North American release, the hardware was already hard to find and outdated, and as time went on "Playstation 2 limitations" became both an in-joke and a frustrating reality. Square Enix was limited by what it could do with FFXI on the PS2, but dropping PS2 support would reportedly mean shutting out a huge number of Japanese players. The second online game I picked up was Phantasy Star Universe, which I also played on the PS2 until I finally got a computer capable of handling games.
I probably wouldn't have gotten into MMOs when I did if they hadn't been available on console. I was very poor at the time, and my PS2 was one of my only sources of entertainment. Once I tried PC gaming, I didn't want to go back, and I'm wary of running into 2014's version of "PS2 limitations" again, but I can't exactly say, "Bleh, MMOs on consoles suck!" when they were my gateway to the whole thing.
@nyphur: My gut says no, but there are actually some compelling arguments for this. The latest consoles definitely seem to be more open platforms and the plethora of cheap game engines make them a lot easier to develop for, so we're naturally going to see a larger variety of games released on them. And since digital distribution has gained market acceptance on console and on-the-fly patching of games is now as routine as it is on PC, we'll certainly see a lot more games that were previously too difficult to cram into a disc or that didn't fit well with the console game life cycle. In that sense, there are definitely fewer barriers to releasing an MMO on consoles now.
The console manufacturers and game publishers have also failed to convince consumers that always-online DRM should become accepted practice, so the primary defense they have against piracy and pre-owned sales will continue to be online play and subscription-based business models. That will certainly mean the continuation of things like season passes for DLC, but it also makes subscription MMOs or account-based games a really good match for consoles right now. That should make online-only games like MMOs and MOBAs more likely to attract the attention of a publisher.
I'm still not convinced that most PC MMOs as we know them would do well on consoles as they're typically much more complex than console games and require much larger time commitments, but I'd love to be proven wrong on that. While I think we'll definitely see more multiplayer-only titles that rely on persistent online gameplay as a form of always-online DRM, at this point I wouldn't bet on many taking on the scale of a full-blown MMO.
@nbrianna: I think the future of a lot of genres is with consoles (and mobile), maybe even "MMOs" as a generic moniker for big multiplayer games. I've certainly seen plenty of legit MMOs, not just pseudo-MMOs, do well on consoles -- DC Universe Online leaps to mind, as SOE has more than once said the larger part of its playerbase plays on console. But I'm not really worried about the MMORPG genre as I know and love it; they just don't play the same on consoles even if the market is there. At best, I think consoles are a gateway drug to richer gaming on PC, so the more people they attract to gaming in general, the better.
@jefreahard: It's probably too early to tell. The Elder Scrolls Online's console launch should give us a clearer picture of mainstream demand, but who knows. I played DUST 514 and DCUO pretty extensively on the PS3, and both were highly detached experiences that were prone to interruption and not very involving (i.e., they were basically the opposite of why I play PC games in general and MMOs in particular). I'm sure industry suits desperately want the future of MMOs to be on consoles because it is a bigger market and it's another layer of DRM and the associated loss of end-user control.
That said, I'm not an anti-console guy; a couple of my favorite all-time games are console-only, but I doubt I'll ever be able to take console MMOs seriously unless the Morpheus or similar tech allows for something more immersive than what I've experienced so far.
@Sypster: Personally, I hope not. Consoles still throw up a number of limitations and restrictions for MMOs, and while certain types of MMOs thrive there, not all work well on those platforms without severe restructuring. PCs simply offer more control, more options, and more room for technological growth. I also don't get as engaged with games when I'm sitting back on a sofa looking at a TV than when I'm sitting forward at a computer. However, I would sincerely love to see more MMOs designed for tablets and smartphones. I think there's a wide-open field of potential there for games specifically designed to fit.
@MikedotFoster: I don't think the future of anything lies on consoles. PS3 had an eight-year run. Xbox 360 went nine. That may have worked in the last decade, but in five years your iPad will be more powerful than your PS4. Console life cycles can't match the current pace of tech innovation. Building a PC is easier (and cheaper) than ever. I wouldn't be surprised if this were the last true console generation. If nothing else, the next decade should bring us many more options besides a binary choice between two nearly identical DRM-laden platforms.
Not to say that consoles will vanish. I just think their reign as the main attraction in gaming is edging ever-closer to its end. Microsoft already seems aware of this shift and is beginning to merge the Windows OS into Xbox, which I presume will lead to an eventual combination device that's basically a home entertainment PC. Valve is trying to lead the charge on this with Steam Machines, but at the moment I think most would find their costs prohibitive. Nintendo will keep doing its own thing because that's what Nintendo does. Sony's big hope is probably Morpheus or an expansion of Vita/PS4's remote play into a new hybrid system.
As for the current crop of systems and games? Who knows. Any game could potentially be the next big thing. I'm convinced no one in the games industry or beyond has any idea what makes a hit. Something clicks with players and off it goes. See: World of Warcraft, Minecraft, DayZ, etc. The worst way to make a genre-defining game that survives for years is trying to design with the accountant's ledger in mind. The last 10 years in MMOs has been weighed down by cynical piles of trash designed to walk in WoW's footsteps; the next 10 will probably be the same story with "WoW" replaced by "League of Legends." But somewhere in there someone will take a chance and make something that sings, and it won't matter much which platform it's on. Publishers follow the people, and people follow the games. Never the systems.
And as an aside, I can't play MMOs on a console because I can't read text on the TV screen unless I sit directly in front of it on the floor.
@MJ_Guthrie: All I can say is I certainly hope not. On a personal level, I am just not a fan of playing on MMOs on consoles. If an MMO is console only, I probably won't play it; I'm not a fan of the controls (and that's totally personal preference, not a judgment!). As for MMOs turning more and more to courting both consoles and PCs, I can say I am not in favor. It's not that I don't want the games to reach a broader audience; rather, I really dislike how it often means the game's community is splintered with no hope of interaction. With so many MMOs now to choose from, anything that divides an already smaller community is not ideal in my mind. MMOs are still about the community to me, so it saddens me to see playstyle preference dictate whom I can play with. I know that integrating PC and console games to be truly cross-platform is massively problematic for most games, but that would still be my happy ideal.
What do you get when you throw the Massively writers' opinions together in one big pot to stew? You get The Think Tank, a column dedicated to ruminating on the MMO genre. We range from hardcore PvPers to sandbox lovers to the most caring of the carebears, so expect more than a little disagreement! Join Editor-in-Chief Bree Royce and the team for a new edition right here every Thursday.
