More on RP support in MMORPG design
I’ve had some really interesting discussions recently with a friend from SWG regarding MMORPG design. To be fair, we’ve had these discussions for a long time, but the recent conversations have really hit some hot buttons for me.
What is unique about SWG that causes so much angst among RPers? This is a MMORPG where roleplayers have developed alternate combat and Force systems, and constantly plot ways to simulate playing other races or create items that aren’t in the game. Given the huge amount of character customization and uniqueness of the player housing system, this seems oddly ironic. Hypotheses after the jump.
Part of SWG’s problem lies in its biggest asset, the Star Wars license. The blessing of a known IP is simultaneously its curse. We each have pre-conceived notions of what a SW game should entail, and no one game can possibly match all of those. Many players and observers (and designers) fundamentally disagree about what should a SW MMOG should simulate. For example, should Jedi be alpha (better than all other classes)? From a mechanical design perspective, this choice leads to tremendous problems. But from an immersion perspective, many players have that precise expectation.
The NGE over 2.5 years ago fundamentally changed the game, but many of the players from before that development still subscribe. The expertise system (like WoW’s talents) allows for some difference between characters of the same class, but not to the degree the old skill system did.
So the core mechanics present lots of cognitive dissonance to many of the players, especially those that have played for a long time. This becomes particularly true when these mechanics are compared to the environment. As my friend said, “if the mechanics are solid and immersive… the environment is icing. Icing, though, is important. It is what makes the cake.”
On the one hand, the guts are important: I want it to be skill-based, not entirely focused on combat, and the combat to be much more tactical (like pre-NGE SWG and EVE Online). On the other hand, so is the skin: Indoors environments, urban locations, lots of the scum-and-villainy stuff like Han Solo and Jabba, or the smuggler in KOTOR 2. And SWG is really EQ or even WoW with a different skin now, with that level-and-raid design.
Over time, SOE has given ground to the “make everything easier” crowd, and I don’t think they can back away from that at this point. In reality, they can’t unmake what they have made, just like they can’t roll back to pre-NGE. They’re stuck.
There are a lot of things that could hold me back from another SW MMO, whether or not the developers base it in the “Old Republic” timeframe. For example, I would like an Old Republic game… not a Knights of the Old Republic. It can’t be solely about Jedi versus Sith.
SWG focuses way too much on outdoors environments, not the blend that the movies have. I want Nar Shaddaa or Coronet. Dark, gritty, urban environments represent something of a sine qua non for Star Wars, that “used future” aesthetic. Watch this space closely.
EVE Online, with the upcoming “walking in stations” feature, might present a decent test lab for these hypotheses. Will we see some of the same issues as SWG? After all, the fictional universe is nowhere near as well-known and well-developed as Star Wars. And we’re not going to see any pre-existing combat system obviated by this push. So will we see endless emote fights punctuated by canon debates?
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