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Working As Intended: The unfortunate conflation of sandboxes and PvP
A certain perplexing belief about sandboxes pervades the blog comments, forums, and general chats of MMOs: All MMO sandboxes are free-for-all PvP games. If it doesn't have free-for-all PvP, it's by definition not a sandbox because sandboxes let the players make all the rules and decisions. Free-for-all PvP adds the necessary spice to keep you on your toes and keep a game fresh. Without it, you may as well be playing The Sims. All of these statements are wrong.
The Daily Grind: What upcoming MMO are you giving a second look?
Up to this point I've been pretty meh about Camelot Unchained. It's nothing personal, I always enjoy Mark Jacobs' game development perspectives, but to be frank neither Warhammer Online nor Dark Age of Camelot held my attention for more than a month. Blame Star Wars: Galaxies, I guess. Then I started reading some of these "batshit crazy" CU reveals and now I'm thinking that this game might be for me. I'm saying "might" because I've followed this genre long enough to take grandiose design docs with a grain of salt. But hey, at least I'm hooked and will keep reading, right? What about you, Massively readers? What upcoming MMO are you giving a second look? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Leaderboard: Will you be trying ArcheAge?
ArcheAge's closed beta is coming in a couple of weeks, and if Trion stays on schedule, the long-awaited sandpark's western launch will happen some time prior to year's end. The only real question, then, is will you be playing. There's clearly a lot to like about the game in terms of features, but there's also the specter of open PvP, which has traditionally hamstrung MMO sales and retention figures in the West. So, how about it, Massively readers? Will you be trying ArcheAge despite (or perhaps because of) its PvP? Ever wish that you could put to rest a long-standing MMO debate once and for all? Then welcome to the battle royal of Massively's Leaderboard, where two sides enter the pit o' judgment -- and only one leaves. Vote to make your opinion known, and see whether your choice tops the Leaderboard!
Defining sandparks within the MMORPG space
One of the most common subjects of debate and conversation on Massively focuses on sub-genres. While I think we can all agree on what the letters in "MMORPG" superficially mean, things become a little muddier when we talk about the different types of MMOs and what falls where on the MMO spectrum. There are MMORTS titles, MMOs that offer city-building and massive strategy, and MMOFPS titles, shooters that host thousands of players, for example. We even talk about MMO-like games, or games that are multiplayer but not massively concurrently multiplayer, like MOBAs. And what about games that toe the line between sandbox and themepark, games that offer a bit of sand in their parks or linear questing in their virtual, open worlds? Themeboxes? Sandparks? Let's talk about what makes these MMO mutts so important and so fun to play. I'll list some examples of games that could fit the hybrid definition, but feel free to chime in with more.
The Repopulation will feature both standard and PvP servers
The Repopulation's going to have two distinct server rulesets when it eventually launches. Option one will be a standard PvE-focused environment with optional PvP and associated flagging mechanics. "The standard ruleset should be suitable for most types of players. You have a full compliment of resources and PvE tiers available in protected areas," explains the latest Repopulation dev diary. If that doesn't sound like your cup of tea, Above & Beyond Technologies is also hosting an open PvP ruleset with corpse looting, friendly fire, and EVE-like security sector mechanics. Some of the details are still being ironed out, but you should definitely read the lengthy new dev diary that lays out the particulars for each rule set.
Some Assembly Required: Pre-NGE SWG's proper sandbox PvP
A few weeks ago I ranted at indie sandbox devs who continue pumping out poorly conceived FFA PvP games. I didn't have any wordcount left at the end of that novella to propose any solutions, so I'm going to do that today. And hey, it's pretty simple, at least conceptually. All a dev team needs to do is iterate on Star Wars: Galaxies' pre-NGE PvP system.
Stick and Rudder: Five reasons Star Citizen isn't a dedicated PvP game
Is it just me, or does a new PvP-vs.-PvE fight break out on the Star Citizen forums every five minutes? In fairness to everyone involved, the jousting we've seen over the past few months is pretty typical of every early adopter MMO community. There's plenty of preening, pseudo-intellectualism, and outright trolling on both sides of the aisle as two player groups make their preferences known early and often in a blatant attempt at influencing game developers to develop something more to their liking. With Star Citizen, though, and with the all-PvP-all-the-time crowd in particular, I'm constantly left wondering whether these people have bothered to research the game they're backing.
Albion Online dishes out details on the game's mechanics
Albion Online has some pretty ambitious design goals as a top-down multi-platform MMORPG with free-for-all PvP. A few players have gotten a chance to try the earliest testing build out, and there were some obvious questions, enough for the development team to post several answers. While the game is still early in alpha testing, it's an interesting look at the design philosophy and how harsh the environment really will be. The core of Albion Online is that characters don't have specific levels or stats raised via levels; instead, everything comes down to what you can craft, which is increased as you gain more fame. According to the answers, unarmored characters will all have about 1000 life points. Items constantly degrade and can be looted by other players in combat, which means that there's always a drive to get more items, but finding more valuable materials will require a trek to more dangerous parts of the world. Check out the full list of answers for more details on how the designers look to keep the game lively and interesting. [Source: Sandbox Interactive press release]
EVE Evolved: Designing EVE Onland, part 1
When I'm not playing or writing about EVE Online, I can usually be found huddled over my computer typing lines of code into a compiler and chipping away at bugs that make varying degrees of sense. Designing my own hardcore space game is a really fun challenge and very fulfilling work, but I have a dirty little game dev secret: I've actually always wanted to make a fantasy game. While the budget and personnel required to take on a project the scale of an MMO remain quite far outside my grasp for the moment, it's still fun to think about how I might design such a game if the opportunity arose. The MMO genre seems to be heading for a sandbox revolution this year, and there's no bigger sandbox than EVE Online, but could all of EVE's gameplay translate to a fantasy game? EVE is probably the most atypical MMO out there, maintaining a subscription-based single-shard PvP sandbox in a genre that's typically headed in the exact opposite direction. There are several new sci-fi sandboxes on the way that may or may not qualify as massively multiplayer titles, but the vast majority of MMO gamers still prefer to keep their feet on the ground in fantasy lands. I often find myself wondering how much of EVE Online's core gameplay is possible only because of its setting -- and how much could actually be applied to a fantasy MMO. Not only should it be possible to adapt most of what makes EVE great to a modern land-based game, but many of the mechanics sandbox gamers now attribute almost solely to EVE actually started life in classic fantasy MMOs like Ultima Online. In this week's unusual EVE Evolved, I'd like to start a game design thought experiment as I delve into the hypothetical world of EVE Onland.
Some Assembly Required: Yet another FFA PvP sandbox
I dabbled in yet another alpha-state indie sandbox game this week. As you'd expect, the title is rough around the edges. Also as you'd expect, it boasts FFA PvP and the correspondingly godawful community for whom the game's "do whatever you want" mechanics immediately translate to "kill everything that moves first and ask questions later, if at all." Since it's still alpha, there's plenty of time for the devs to correct this unfortunate bit of business and separate this particular game from the legions of crappy FFA-PvP-with-zero-consequences titles clumping together in the vast litterbox of bad MMO ideas. Will they do that? Probably not, but at least I'll get a good rant out of it.
Hands-on with Darkfall's Japanese open beta
I'm not very good at aiming. I prefer third person to first person view. Nintendo consoles and games are my drug of choice when I'm not on a PC. I hate duels and arenas. I tend to spend my time gathering resources or crafting and want to kill only mobs or players if I must. On the Bartle test of gamer psychology, I'm 60% Explorer/Socializer and 40% Achiever/Killer. And I loved Darkfall Online. Aside from Aventurine's little, ah, "delays," Darkfall was always a lot of fun for me, even though the guild I joined was established years before I met its members. However, when I moved to Japan, I was region-locked out of the game and unable to check out the revamped Dark Fall: Unholy Wars until recently when the Asian open beta began. I've done my best to keep up to date on the game, but reading information and playing the game are two different things. This was not so much a welcome home for me as it was a returning to my hometown after a few years to find that the buildings and local language have changed. That may sound negative to some people, and it could be, but for me, it was an adventure, which has always been something DF offers me that other games struggle to match.
Leaderboard: Why do you avoid sandboxes?
I'm pretty excited about Black Desert. It's a sandbox, for one thing. It's gorgeous, for another. Unfortunately I'll probably be playing it sans my usual MMO friends because it features open PvP. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a fan of the lazy, toothless PvP implementations that typify sandbox MMOs, but I also don't avoid interesting games because of them. What about you, Massively readers? Is there a certain feature that keeps you from playing or enjoying sandbox MMOs? Vote and discuss after the cut! Ever wish that you could put to rest a long-standing MMO debate once and for all? Then welcome to the battle royal of Massively's Leaderboard, where two sides enter the pit o' judgment -- and only one leaves. Vote to make your opinion known, and see whether your choice tops the Leaderboard!
Black Desert's open PvP detailed
Steparu's back with another look at Black Desert's Korean closed beta test. This time the focus is on guild-vs.-guild events and PvP. There's the usual video content as well as an accompanying article which mentions the game's seamless open world and it's open-world PvP. While the systems are subject to change given that this is an early beta test, Steparu says that right now Black Desert's PvP is pretty unforgiving due to its free-for-all nature and the possibility of item and XP loss. Click through the links below for the full article, and don't forget the videos after the cut. [Thanks bdo!]
Rise and Shiny: Revisiting Salem
A few months ago, I dived into Salem, a hardcore sandbox MMO that promises actual permadeath. That means if your character is killed while in game, he or she stays dead and loses everything. Not of your possible scores of skills are passed on, all items are lost and your homestead -- similar to a deed in Wurm Online -- can be destroyed. Heck, your homestead can be destroyed even if you're not dead. People can literally block your path, call you names, and attack you over and over. It makes me cry! Nah, it's not as bad as it sounds. It never is. If there is one thing I have learned over the years, it's that you should really try a game for yourself before you believe everything you hear about it. Don't worry about trolls or griefers because the worst that can happen to you is that you end up leaving the game to find a better one. That's why we're called gamers. Salem is actually about 50% killer and 50% silliness. I don't want to describe the killer part as "bad" because there is something the game is offering that so many others are not, and that's real danger and actual permadeath.
Wizardry Online explains permadeath specifics
Our knowledge of SOE's upcoming Wizardry Online is growing by leaps and bounds. A little later today, the official wiki will be rolling out a huge info update that will include specifics on many of the game's systems, including the ever-so-popular permadeath and PvP. Some of the interesting tidbits that we've learned include the fact that resting in inns is essential to leveling you up, enemies can and will attack specific parts of your body, the game has a pretty traditional skill tree, and you'll be unable to move if you exceed your carrying weight capacity. Permadeath can happen only if your character meets several criteria: You've reached soul rank two or higher and you've failed two revive attempts in a row. Likewise, the game's free-for-all PvP might not be as harsh at it initially sounds. If you're killed in PvP, you have a much greater chance of being revived, and player killers (PKers) will become criminals who can have bounties placed on their heads. If you're curious about Wizardry Online, why not read our hands-on with the title?
The Firing Line: Star Citizen shouldn't be EVE with joysticks
I've been spending a lot of time on Star Citizen's forums of late. And when I'm not doing that, I'm replaying Wing Commander, Wing Commander II, and Privateer (thanks GoG) and generally wetting myself with excitement for Chris Roberts' newest space sim. The one thing that gives me pause, though, is the unsavory player type that SC is already attracting. You know the guys I mean. They're PvPers, which is great, but they can't type a sentence on a message board without using the word carebear a minimum of three times while making sweeping generalizations about the playstyles, sexual orientation, and parentage of any and all who dare to disagree with them about what makes gaming fun. That said, I like PvP and plan to engage in Star Citizen's version of it. I'm not naive enough to think that the no-holds barred nonsense being advocated by some in the game's pre-release community will result in anything other than a niche title, though.
Rise and Shiny: Darkfall
I've played Darkfall several times since launch, and each time I've remembered how good the game can be and how bad it sometimes is. Good and bad, I thought it a good idea to record the Darkfall that exists now so that I can compare it to the Darkfall that will be open after an upcoming relaunch, one that promises to change quite a few key features. Will it be a better game? I hope so. Either way, during my week with this free-for-all PvP MMO, I was able to hook up with a newbie-friendly clan relatively quickly but spent most of my time running to the city where the clan took up residence. Same old Darkfall, really, but there were some truly hilarious and truly fun moments all the same.
Rise and Shiny revisit: Dark Age of Camelot
About once a year I like to take a look back at Dark Age of Camelot, the classic PvP MMO by Mythic Entertainment, just to reassure myself that older MMOs are still some of the best around. Dark Age of Camelot comes from that older crop of titles like Asheron's Call and EverQuest, games that still shine despite their age. Of course the next logical question is, "If these games are still so good, why aren't more of us still playing them?" There's an easy answer, really. First of all, we don't spend time sitting around listening to our favorite albums or watching our favorite movies constantly, but we still appreciate them, possibly more than we did when we first found them. Next, all games are finite for us as individuals. There is no MMO that offers endless content if we take away the endless player-made content that comes from roleplay or exploration. No matter how good a game like Dark Age of Camelot was and still is, many of us have already experienced it quite a bit. It's only human to become slightly bored with something we've played with time and again. But once again, I've spent a week in a game that shows it's always a good thing to check back on our favorites. They just might surprise you all over again.
Rise and Shiny: Mortal Online
There are so many issues and subjects to cover this week, thanks to the limited time I spent in Mortal Online, a free-for-all PvP sandbox by Star Vault. I've played my share of MMOs that are similar to Mortal Online, games like EVE Online, Darkfall, Ultima Online, Wurm Online, Salem, and others. Essentially the idea is to set players loose in a massive, open world that is closer to "realistic" than standard themepark MMOs. Players might spend time farming or fishing or hunting down other players or mobs. It's generally a good idea to prepare yourself for a lot of running around, hiding, and slowly figuring out what to do when playing a FFA PvP sandbox. Games like Mortal Online provoke questions like "Why is nudity an option at all?" and "Why is there stamina (and other realistic features) alongside magic and no permanent death?" I've learned to forget those questions and just take each specific FFA MMO as it is. Mortal Online stands alone in many ways. Unfortunately, being known as a buggy mess is one of those. I've played many buggy MMOs in my time but have enjoyed myself immensely in some of them (remember, I hosted an early Vanguard: Saga of Heroes podcast!), so I wasn't scared of jumping into an MMO that was supposed to be rough to say the least. What did I find? Well, I found a ton -- and I mean a ton -- of bugs. But I also found a pretty cool community (yes, I just said that) and some grand adventure. Let me break it down. %Gallery-167722%
MMO Blender: Bree's big-budget sandbox
Writing MMO Blender feels like getting three wishes from a magical lamp and having to think very, very carefully about what you ask for. You have to word it just right and ponder the consequences of each wish on the others because you just know that Genie's going to screw with you. If I were stronger, I'd reject the wishes (here, the 1000 words) outright, knowing they're a trap, but I just can't resist a turn at this column. I want a new sandbox. A good one, not one made by gank-obsessed fanboys on a shoestring budget. I don't think sandboxes are dead; I just know it takes money to make money, and modern indie sandboxes are forgetting that rule. Fortunately, I don't need money for this column. I'll take my MMO Blender wishes and build a sandbox that's more than just a pile of sand and an empty box.
