A Brief History
Written By: Lemming
Let's start off with a hypothetical situation. You're shopping for crackers. You walk into your local grocery store, head to the correct aisle, and lo! A box of your favourite brand of crackers is sitting on a shelf in front of you.
That's odd. It seems different. The packaging has changed. The colour scheme is outrageously catchy, and the box seems a little bigger (but naturally the contents seem to have diminished by a few grams). There is even a sticker pronouncing a "new and improved formula". When you get home and pop it open, though, you discover that you've been bamboozled yet again - they're just the same ol' munchies you used to eat back when there were good things to watch on T.V.
Believe it or not, in this case MMORPGs are a lot like crackers. The graphical exterior might change dramatically, and the contents may change slightly from generation to generation, but for the most part the core mechanics are still the same. You still kill monsters for loot and experience. You're still just one "hero" in a sea of them. The same contents still spawn over and over again for you to kill repeatedly, and you still follow the same linear path of achievement, in the form of an experience treadmill.
Of course, we all recognize these MMORPG characteristic from our favourite games in the genre, such as Everquest II or World of Warcraft. But as a matter of fact, they have existed in a relatively unchanged state since the creation of the first text-based online worlds in the late 1970's, called [URL=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MUD]MUDs[/URL], or Multi-User Dimensions.
It might be surprising to many of us to realize that these text-based MUDs remain popular in the age of polygons and pixel-shaders, and even can provide the same level of sophistication as any graphics-based MMORPG built today. For example, the concept for Dark Age of Camelot was created and tested as a MUD in 1989, long before it got its 3D wings. Player vs. player, high level dungeon raids, quests and NPC dialogue, GM events, and even tradeskills were all implemented in MUDs first. Even better, most MUDs are run as a hobby by folks like you and me, and don't have any subscription fees attached.
Even so, I don't know of any MUDs that have achieved the same kind of success as today's MMORPG giants. The reason for this seems clear. If you're like me, you've also been seduced by reflective metal armour, griffin rides, and spell effects (not to mention jiggle physics. *shifty eyes*). In fact, successful MMORPGs have generally had one or both of two very important factors - eye-poppingly gorgeous graphics and a tie-in to a popular franchise. In this way, the leap in popularity from Ultima Online to the original Everquest can be attributed to the fact that Everquest was the first MMORPG to have 3D graphics. I know that I was hooked from the instant that I witnessed my first snowfall in the Everfrost.
Still, while I look back at MUDs fondly, I think it's time we've learned our lesson as MMORPG players and designers. The MUD formula, still beating strong in every single MMORPG that has ever been created, is old. I simply cannot accept that with all the tremendous leaps in technology that are being made every year, the best core design that MMORPGs can aspire to is the same one that made text-based adventures tick in the '70s and '80s. Maybe there are new design choices that can be made, new possibilities that have been opened up within recent years that can change MMORPGs forever and provide a level of sophistication that would be ultimately more satisfying.
I mean, look at other genres. Compare Half Life 2 with the original Doom. The MUD formula has been around for longer than the First Person Shooter genre has even existed, but the advances that have been made in the production of a modern FPS game are dramatic when compared to advances in online world design. In a lot of ways, FPS games are transcending their arcade roots and are evolving into something more immersive - an experience that can almost be described as cinematic.
My questions for you are, "Can MMORPGs ever aspire to that level of immersiveness? What are the problems that need to be overcome before they can become a truly cinematic experience as well?"
Next week, I intend to discuss just that.
