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The Daily Grind: What's your current MMO-related desktop?
I typically roll with game-related desktop wallpapers on my computers, and those wallpapers relate to something I'm currently playing (or wishing I was playing, in the case of Star Citizen). Sometimes I go with concept art, sometimes I go with developer- or community-created wallpapers, and sometimes I even go with a screenshot I took myself. That's rare, though, because I'm not much of a photographer. Anyway, what about you, Massively readers? What sort of MMO-related badassery do you currently have on your desktop? 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!
The Daily Grind: Would you like community filters in your MMO?
I was browsing the Elite: Dangerous forums the other day when I came upon this ad for a PvE-only private group. It's a good idea in theory, as it's a way for a large, dedicated community to insulate themselves from griefers and other undesirables while still playing an online multiplayer title. I'm not sure if the functionality is a net positive for games with player-run economies and the like, but it's an interesting option for developers to consider going forward. What do you think, Massively readers? Would you like similarly large-scale ignore options and community filters in your MMO? 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!
The Daily Grind: What does MMO fantasy need?
A lot of times when we look at the proliferation of fantasy in the MMO industry and the community's apparent fascination with it, we often take a negative view in criticizing it. We pick out the well-worn tropes, the absurd elements, and the lack of distinction between fellow titles. But today I'd like for us to be more constructive with our analysis. My question for you today is, "What does MMO fantasy need?" It's a pretty open-ended question that invites you to share ways that you think MMO designers could strengthen their fantasy brands, differentiate themselves from the competition, and add original substance instead of rehashed ideas. What do you think? 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!
The Daily Grind: What's an underrated MMO feature that needs love?
Lost now to the ages (at least until player teams finish rebuilding the game) is the crafting system of Glitch, a wee and sunsetted indie MMORPG dismissed out of hand by those who cluelessly believe browser-MMOs without ultrarealistic gore are for grandmas. But Glitch's crafting system was way ahead of its time, with hyperlinking inside every crafting panel so that you never, ever needed to fumble and backtrack or switch tools or count mats to make anything. Hardcore crafters might not have been entirely impressed with the economy, but the crafting process itself was damn smooth. I can think of lots of underrated features in some other MMOs. City of Heroes' sidekicking has trickled into a handful of games, for example, but its group-and-instance difficulty scaling feature has seldom been seen since. Yet it ensured that groups of all sizes and class-makeups and skill-levels could always tackle content. It was a brilliant way to capture a varied playerbase ranging from casuals to powergamers, and yet no one else is even bothering to try it. What other underrated MMO features really deserve some love and copypastaing in the genre? 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!
The Daily Grind: Is $10 a good price for a monthly MMO sub?
TERA's $10 subscription offer ends today, and that gives me a good excuse to talk about business models in this morning's Daily Grind. In case you missed it, En Masse's Elite option has been on sale for five dollars off the regular rate, and the firm is also allowing players to lock the $10 monthly fee in place going forward as long as the sub is maintained. What about the number, though? Assuming you're not allergic to subscriptions, is $10 about right, or do you think sub games should go lower (or higher)? 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!
The Daily Grind: Does your WoW garrison feel like home?
I've been a fascinated outside observer in regard to World of Warcraft's recent expansion and its much-touted garrison feature. I have no doubt that garrisons have filled a lot of purposes and gone all-out on functionality. It's certainly been a powerful carrot for Blizzard to wave in front of players. But what I've been wondering is whether garrisons are so functional that they forgot to be personal. In other words, do garrisons feel like "home" in-game even if you can't decorate and customize them the way that you can in other MMO housing systems? Has your character finally set down roots or does this feel like just another mission hub? 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!
The Daily Grind: Does your MMO guild use social networking tools?
The apparent popularity of ZergID, the most recent social network and online gathering spot for MMO players and guilds, made me wonder just how many gamers actively use these types of tools. I can remember them at least as far back as the early 2000s, when ezBoard was king (remember ezBoard?!). More modern versions, like Enjin, expanded on the message board format to include profiles and calendars and even DKP. But my guild has shied away from most such tools. We've always had a custom-built website with our own tools, some purchased software and some handcrafted just for us. I wouldn't want to risk losing data on another network, and truthfully, most of my guild's communication is done through other outlets anyway, like Steam, voice chat, and text-based chat channels. What about you folks? Do you use ZergID, Enjin, or other sites to organize or track your friends and guildmates online? 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!
The Daily Grind: How do you define triple-A?
Triple-A is a label you hear quite often in MMO discourse. Like most MMO terms -- and even the term MMO itself -- AAA seems subjective or somewhat ill-defined, at best. Does it mean "not indie?" Is it related to pretty graphics or production quality in general? Does it denote a certain budget? If so, what's the magic number? What do you think, Massively readers? How do you define the term triple-A? 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!
The Daily Grind: Have you played Shroud of the Avatar yet?
I'm itching to play Shroud of the Avatar. I haven't yet, and every time I see a related news blurb I feel a tiny bit guilty because it's a sandboxy title from one of my favorite developers. I'm keeping it at arm's length, for the moment, mainly because of the pre-beta fatigue brought on by my way-too-early experiences in Landmark, Star Citizen, and other titles that currently feel more like work than play. What about you, Massively readers? Have you tried SotA yet? If so, what did you think? 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!
The Daily Grind: What would you like Massively to cover in 2015?
Ahh, did you get a whiff of that new year smell? Mmm. Wish I could bottle that up. There's so much to do, so many lands to visit, and so many virtual boars to kill for their valuable livers. Since it's still early in 2015, I'll toss out an interesting question for our readership: What do you want Massively to cover this year? Is there a game, a topic, or a focus that you'd love to see get some extra attention? Do you have the most awesome idea ever for an article? Hit us up in the comments below! As a post-script, don't forget that you can always contribute to the site by sending in news tips, podcast emails, or One Shots submissons! 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!
The Daily Grind: What's the last team-oriented goal you accomplished in an MMO?
MMORPGs have gotten pretty solo-friendly over the years, but a few of them still boast challenging content for groups, raids, or whatever you'd like to call a team of players. I tend to play solo more often than not, but all of my memorable gameplay moments from the past 15 years happened while I was part of a team. What about you, Massively readers? Do you have any favorite teamplay anecdotes? What's the last team-oriented goal you accomplished in an MMO? 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!
The Daily Grind: Where are all the mobile MMOs?
So here we are in 2015, several years after the mobile rush that was going to lay waste to all genres everywhere. Everyone's going to mobile! they all said. Desktops are doomed! Angry Birds is the future! Flee your traditional gaming studios; all the money is on phones and tablets! Some of us bemoaned a future in which our favorite MMORPG platform might be supplanted by tiny screens that fit into our jeans' butt pockets. Others embraced the idea of being able to escape to an MMORPG paradise while stuck on grimy public transport. And then... Well, nothing. Pocket Legends and its spinoffs were a thing, true. There was Vendetta Online and Chaos Heroes and Order and Chaos Online, the last of which even had a subscription for a while. A lot of MMORPGs promised mobile integration, at the very least, though most of them haven't yet delivered. But most of the MMORPGs that actually work on mobile are small in either population or scope. They're not really what MMORPG fans would call a core or AAA MMORPG. We're mostly offered online ARPG, TCG, MOBA, ARG, and RTS titles. All of this led our former mobile columnist to declare a year ago that mobile MMOs were at a standstill in the West. So what happened? Is it technically impossible or financial infeasible to run a "real" MMORPG on mobile? Is PC elitism partly to blame? Is the revolution yet to come? Where are all the mobile MMOs? Because I kinda want one. 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!
The Daily Grind: What MMOs will you be playing in 2015?
This is it, folks, the end of 2014. As we count down the final hours and minutes of the year, 2015 looms ahead of us full of possibilities and potential. So we might as well ask, what MMOs will you be playing next year? Maybe you'll continue your journeys in your current favorite games. Maybe you'll be looking at accomplishing goals in other MMOs. Or maybe you'll be anticipating diving into one of the newer titles that are on the way. What do you think you'll be doing come 2015? 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!
The Daily Grind: Have you ever been hacked in an MMO?
The Massively tip line frequently receives notes from MMO gamers who are upset about being hacked in one MMO or another. Sometimes it's the result of a serious security flaw in the game, but sometimes it's just a lapse in a player's personal security. One way or another, it sucks. I've never had an MMO account of mine hacked, but a guildie or two of mine has in the past, which has resulted in our guild vault being cleaned out. Fortunately, the studio (Blizzard, in this case) restored the accounts and every scrap of loot and gold that was taken. But I know not all studios respond that way when it's not their fault but ours, and some folks find they've lost their accounts and characters forever. Have you ever had an MMO account hacked? How did the studio handle it? And what did you do to safeguard yourself afterward? 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!
The Daily Grind: What add-ons can you not live without?
I recently installed VoiceAttack, and while I played Elite: Dangerous for a couple of weeks without it, I'm not sure how I managed! VA is basically a third-party app that translates commands spoken through your microphone into various key presses. For a flight sim like E:D, it's invaluable since it allows me to keep both hands on my HOTAS setup while simultaneously managing other ship systems. It's also pretty immersive in a far-future sci-fi setting like Elite's, because who wouldn't want to talk to a spaceship and have it follow your commands? What about you, Massively readers? What game add-ons can you no longer live without? 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!
The Daily Grind: Are you keeping up with your current MMO's lore?
I just finished reading all of the entries on the Elite: Dangerous GalNet news page. It's a sort of in-character feed service that keeps pilots up to date with lore and associated happenings around the Milky Way in the year 3300. The lore doesn't impact my gameplay at all, but it's kinda fun to peruse the headlines while docked at an in-game station in between trade runs. What about you, Massively readers? Are you keeping abreast of the lore in your current MMO? Why or why not? 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!
The Daily Grind: How much time do you spend playing MMOs per week?
I haven't managed much MMO time this week, unless you count the five-odd hours I spent running around in Elite: Dangerous. Between Christmas, work, and single-player games, there just haven't been enough hours in each day, you know? What about you, Massively readers? How much time do you typically spend on MMOs in a single week? 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!
The Daily Grind: What's the ideal crafting style for an MMO?
There's a lot of hate for "clicky" crafting in MMOs -- you know, the old "click a button, crafted item pops into your bag" trope. I'd call it the World of Warcraft style, but MMOs all the way back to Ultima Online did crafting that way. And this might sound crazy, but even as a hardcore crafter, I don't actually mind it. Everything in a video game comes down to clicking or mousing or typing. What matters to me is whether the crafting itself matters in the game. Even though the final combine in Star Wars Galaxies amounted to clicking a button and having something pop into my bag, there was a whole chain of resource collecting and experimentation and component creation and luck along the way, and since the economy was player-driven, most of what I was making had relevance to other players. Personally, I'll take that plus simple clicking over a time-wasting, irritating minigame-style of crafting any day, but I'd love to see innovation in how we craft too. What do you think -- what's the ideal crafting style for an MMO? 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!
The Daily Grind: Did you get any good gaming gifts this week?
In both real life and in MMOs, gifts have been flying back and forth at such an astonishing rate that you might think that there's some sort of holiday going on or something. While I haven't had time to "work" for rewards in seasonal events, I've been more than happy to take in-game gifts that several titles, including Marvel Heroes and RIFT, were willing to give to me. So as you're sitting there in an eggnog haze, do you have any gaming gifts that you'd like to boast about this week? They could either be things you've gotten in MMOs, digital gifts, or real-life goodies. Spill! 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!
The Daily Grind: Why should I play your favorite MMO?
A lot of times when I read through comments, forum posts, and the like about MMOs I'm not playing, I'm subconsciously seeking the answer to the unspoken question, "Why should I play this game?" Or, more accurately, "Please convince me to play this game, as I'm a stubborn gaming donkey in need of some prodding by positive testimonials." So look at your current favorite MMO(s) and answer me this, why should I -- or others reading your answer -- play that game? 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!
