MMO Genre is Capable Of More

We took part in the End of Nations beta this weekend, and while I can’t speak too much on it (it’s under an NDA) I think I can say that it’s made me rethink exactly what the MMO genre is capable of. There was a time when playing any massively multiplayer game meant creating a vaguely elven looking character and venturing out into the world without as much as a goal or purpose. Now the MMORPG genre has evolved to the point where quests and instances rule, but the idea behind it hasn’t changed all that much and when you think about MMOs, that’s probably the sort of game that you think about. That’s changing though, the genre is rapidly expanding and developers are working to create new and exciting challenges the likes of which couldn’t have been imagined even a decade ago.

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Action-MMORPG

Take for instance the likes of Dynasty Warriors Online or the like, a game that’s almost exactly like its offline counterpart but much, much bigger. Or TERA, a game that allows you to dodge around an enemy to avoid attacks – quite a coup in the world of MMOs. They’re small improvements on the tried and true format, but they’re important in that they’re doing something different. No longer are you expected to just hit the hotkeys and watch as your character performs the same move he or she has performed a million times before. As the genre grows further, you can expect games to take advantage of the latest processors and have even more going on, a medley of blood, massive powers and complete and utter action.

Other Genres, Online

It’s not just the MMORPGs that are evolving, but the entire MMO genre. Sports games have always had a place in the massively multiplayer world, but they’re becoming more advanced and more social. Even the FIFA series allows huge groups of players to take control of just a single player in an online match so that you’re playing as part of a real, human team. The same can be said for other sports and in games that take far less of an investment than FIFA, sometimes they’re even free. Playing your favourite sports, perhaps even as a part of your favourite team, with 10 other individuals whilst surrounded by thousands of adoring fans is about as close as the majority of us are going to get to actually living that dream, and MMOs are making it possible on a daily basis.

More than that though, the strategy genre is evolving as well. Where at one point the best  you could expect from a MMORTS was a lot of waiting and unintentional frustration, now you can play a game that actually puts you into the action, offering Command and Conqueror but with thousands of other people online. The prospect is hugely exciting, especially as pioneering men and women continue to build upon the foundations already in development right now.

MMO Redefined

We’ve spoken before about how the MMO genre is so difficult to pin down. For the most part it seems that an MMO is just a game that the developer says is an MMO, but in reality the definition is wide enough that you could include everything from Call of Duty to the aforementioned FIFA. That line of definition is going to become even more blurred as time goes by, even more difficult to describe. Is it enough that lots of players are playing together and can interact with one another? Is it about the numbers? Is MAG only an MMO because of the amount of players in a single match and, if that’s the case, will it need to be reclassified when every FPS released will be able to support that amount of players at the same time?

Not only will we have to look at ourselves in a different light, but people unfamiliar with the genre will have to start reconsidering what they think of us as well. RTS players who have no interest in MMOs may be tempted by End of Nations despite the fact that it is an MMO and it represents significantly better value than its full-price equals. Mass Effect and Skyrim fans might love their massive offline games, but what will their reaction be when a similarly large universe with similar gameplay but with thousands of other players becomes available? They might not like the idea of paying a subscription to World of Warcraft, but perhaps they’d be more tempted by a massively multiplayer RPG with real-time action elements?

Getting a (Second) Life

For some, the idea of socializing online has and will always be the act of someone desperate for friends. It’s an odd view that I’ve never quite understood. A regular user of chat rooms at the turn of the century and as somebody who has friends around the world, I’m not sure how my life could be improved by selecting my acquaintances purely based on the fact that they live close enough to me that I can walk to see them. Even though Facebook has done a lot to fix this strange opinion, the MMO world will always be seen, by some, as a collection of “nerds.” It doesn’t matter that MMOs will catch up to what offline gaming is capable of, a lot of these people would rather play alone in a dark room than give into the communal nature of any massively multiplayer game.

Conclusion

There’s a running theme throughout all my articles here at DevilsMMO, and it’s that we’re on the cusp of a new generation of MMOs. More so than the next-gen of console gaming, the big leap in tech will come from the games we play, the games we enjoy. We’re already seeing the first signs of that leap. I can’t wait to be able to share with you my thoughts on End of Nations and on the good and the bad in the game but, put it like this, it’s something that we’ve never seen before. It’ll be built upon, improved upon, but whether you love it or hate it, you’ll see something you’ve never seen before; sometimes that’s all it takes.