MASSIVELY MULTIPLAYER ONLINE RPG'S - THE SCOURGE OF RPG'S

The internet has truly added another dimension to gaming - multiplayer interaction across great distances, a capability that was never before possible, profitable, or prolific in the industry as it has become today. The fact of the matter is, online gameplay has it's foothold on the PC platform, with more and more developers jumping on board, and with home video game system consoles soon to follow. While this is good for gamers, and can provide added challenge, excitement, and competition to gameplay, it still has disadvantages, most specifically toward the progressive evolution of the Pure RPG genre. Many will take arguement with what I am saying, but the way I've seen things change, the Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game is more or less a way to financially plunder the genre and cheapen the artistry of it.

Mind you a First Person Shooter game like Quake, a Football Game, or Real Time Strategy gain large advantages by being online, and in many ways being online is vital for the game to continue to be fun and challenging. When you apply the concept to an online Role Playing Game, you get essentially a giant Dungeons and Dragons Style digital free for all where the only the fittest survive i.e. those with the fastest computers, a broadband connection, the best hacks, and the least social life.

My personal definition of the RPG genre follows this concept. You become a character, you engauge a compelling storyline, you uncover more information and history about various other characters you encounter or join up with during the game, you go on an epic quest discovering history of the setting and culture, go up against an opposing force, experience dramatic changes, and in the end when you complete your task the story is concluded. While doing this you are serenaded by incredible musical score and dazzled with vivid graphics. It is my belief that the true art of an RPG lies in the storyline, the dialogue, and the character development. The best RPG's manage to create an experience that emancipates the player from reality and takes them on an adventure for at least a little while.

The trouble with MMORPG's is that more attention is paid to collecting items, increasing abilites and levels, that any storyline there is, pretty much takes a back burner for the competition aspect of this type of game. Psychologically people like to be noticed, and like attention for their accomplishments. A player with a pumped up character feels he has greater honor amongst his peers. And thus such players often find themselves willing to crush lesser players for the sport of doing it. Such games are paradoxically social and antisocial. Players of a games like Everquest spend many hours trying to better their character rather than enguaging any substantial storyline elements. Mind you, I personally don't care how a gamer get's his fix, but this type of gaming is not artistic, rather functional and often satiates a lacking.

I've talked to some MMORPG junkies, and they claimed almost 1000 hours put into a character, on the persuit of rare items, training magic, and raising of levels. While this is indeed impressive, I can't imagine spending that much time on such an empty gaming experience where I monotonously hack and zap so many creatures and characters.

The one thing I worry about as a big OFFLINE RPG fan is that developers will move away from this aspect of RPG gaming and focus more toward Multiplayer. MMORPG's provide the developer with added bonus income above and beyond the margin gained from sale of the video game title in the form of monthly service fees, thus they are very attractive from a profitability standpoint. I've seen a few MMOPRG's that look interesting, some already released, some in the pipeline, however most of them require a service fee. If I were to pay a service fee for every game I wanted to play, I would be broke sooner or later, and I don't see this as being a feasable and long-term source of revenue for developers. Many gamers are teenagers, or even kids, who don't have credit card numbers, and truly can't afford multiple service fees beyond the cost of their ISP. I don't see parents actively jumping on board either. There will be die hards, for sure, but I can't see developers gaining too many members beyond their core audience at any accellarated rate. Even worse are the Multiplayer games that will require a broadband connection. As much as Microsoft and Sony would want otherwise, there just isn't that substantial a user base for broadband connections. At $50.00 a month for broadband service many people are content to stay on dial up 56k modems.

I was happy knowing that MMORPG's were limited to the realm of the PC, but developers are trying to tap the console gaming market with this scourge genre, and this worries me. I fear that more focus will be put on MMORPG's than the Traditional RPG style and the genre will suffer from another drought, like what preceeded Final Fantasy VII. I love the Final Fantasy series, but I'm a little sour to Final Fantasy XI being an Online RPG, and having to pay a service fee to play it. I find doing so unacceptable. Star Wars Galaxies looks inticing, but again, a service fee is involved even after you purchase the game, and it's another MMORPG

Developers are smart enough to know that if you make a game that creates an atmosphere of competition and a ardiously convoluted gameplay element, they will keep people playing. The longer they keep playing, the more money they attain from addicted gamers. This is what is called a, "good business," model. In essence, they are raping the RPG (I would only classify MMORPG's in the sub-genre class of Adventure RPG anyway) genre for what ever dollars they can recieve without stimulating the player's mind with actively unique storyline or dialogue.

Some gamers like MMORPG's for the unending gameplay they provide, however a well planned and executed storyline based RPG can provide an excellent amount of gameplay, and at least when finished you can truly say that you have "completed" this game. It doesn't ever seem that you can complete a MMORPG. There are RPG's that I can truly say that I hold warmly inside my memory, like Secret of Mana, Xenogears, Chrono Cross, and the Final Fantasy games. These games had a soul to them, and represented incredible efforts by the writers and the developer to create something unique and inspiring.

There is still a lot of room out there for innovation. For instance, I applaud Morrowind, for creating a truly Massively Offline Adventure-RPG. I can play this game at my own pace, do what I want to do, be who I want to be, but I don't have a Lvl 57 Dark Mage with a Staff of Choas Reckoning chasing me down like a dog over his dedicated Broadband Trunkline, so he get more Exp. Morrowind contains very addictive gameplay, but I know that eventually I'll do everything in the game, be the head cheeze in many of the factions and Houses, defeat Dagoth Ur, and be done with this game. I've played the game for a month and only uncovered about 40% of the Map, and probably about 10% of the secrets. Morrowind's storyline is less narrative and more dialogue based, as most PC Adv-RPG's are, but nevertheless this game has a lot to keep it fresh.

I'm certainly interested in hearing my readers thoughts on this, considering Online Multiplayer gaming will affect the course of the industry over the next several years.

GreenRunnerD Wrote: Today I listened to theWorld of Balance Theme from Final Fantasy III. That was my first Final Fantasy. I almost broke down. The loss of Final Fantasy to online play is like having a loved one die. Final Fantasy and I have shared so many moments. I just can't afford all that stuff. Even if I could I'm not too fond of MMORPGs anyway. I'd just be beat up and/or killed by some 25 year-old with no job who lives in his parent's basement. My hope is that Square is just hoarding the funds up in prep for Final Fantasy XII. I also hope Final Fantasy XII would be your standard Final Fantasy, maybe a feature to take your party online would be alright. I hope on this hope being placed well, and that Final Fantasy XII will have all the money and talent behind it to make it the greatest Final Fantasy ever. Those are my thoughts.