Comments on: What Can MMOs Bring to the Table? http://girlsdontgame.com/2008/09/15/what-can-mmos-bring-to-the-table/ Everyone knows girls don't play video games. Wed, 07 Jan 2009 14:15:11 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.1.2 By: The Wicked Crow http://girlsdontgame.com/2008/09/15/what-can-mmos-bring-to-the-table/#comment-9591 The Wicked Crow Tue, 16 Sep 2008 11:55:40 +0000 http://girlsdontgame.com/2008/09/15/what-can-mmos-bring-to-the-table/#comment-9591 Very nice post. Very nice post.

]]> By: Jacob http://girlsdontgame.com/2008/09/15/what-can-mmos-bring-to-the-table/#comment-9613 Jacob Tue, 16 Sep 2008 18:05:10 +0000 http://girlsdontgame.com/2008/09/15/what-can-mmos-bring-to-the-table/#comment-9613 This was great stuff, Gloria. :) My company is moving in the direction of building MMOs soon, and I sent this article to my boss as a "checklist" of sorts. Great stuff! You make a lot of good points. It's true, the MMO market is overcrowded, but these are some great ideas on how to stand out...or at least make the player's purchase worth their money. :P This was great stuff, Gloria. :) My company is moving in the direction of building MMOs soon, and I sent this article to my boss as a “checklist” of sorts. Great stuff! You make a lot of good points. It’s true, the MMO market is overcrowded, but these are some great ideas on how to stand out…or at least make the player’s purchase worth their money. :P

]]> By: Katherine http://girlsdontgame.com/2008/09/15/what-can-mmos-bring-to-the-table/#comment-9632 Katherine Tue, 16 Sep 2008 22:45:10 +0000 http://girlsdontgame.com/2008/09/15/what-can-mmos-bring-to-the-table/#comment-9632 Of course the main thing for any game: know what your target audience is. If you try to appeal to everyone, you have to compete with all the other MMOs out there that are already doing just that. For mass market appeal you will have to be able to pull people away from whatever it is they are already playing. If you go after a niche and aim for your game to be the best that it can possibly be at the one or two things that appeal to that niche (unique combat, hardcore pvp, roleplaying environment, whatever) you might be able to get a strong core following that will play for a long while, as they are sick of skipping from game to game in search of something that will grip them. I might be rambling, but there are a lot of mediocre games out there that try to do things that they just dont manage to pull off. Successful games (I believe) know what they can and cannot achieve and who their market will be (if you can't compete with WoW for mass market appeal, then don't try.) Oh and they never promote their game as the best game ever, this just leads to shattered expectations. So many gaming bloggers post their idea of 'the perfect MMO", they are always very different from each other. Game designers should realise this and not try to please everyone, the scope for the project will just be too big. Of course the main thing for any game: know what your target audience is. If you try to appeal to everyone, you have to compete with all the other MMOs out there that are already doing just that. For mass market appeal you will have to be able to pull people away from whatever it is they are already playing.

If you go after a niche and aim for your game to be the best that it can possibly be at the one or two things that appeal to that niche (unique combat, hardcore pvp, roleplaying environment, whatever) you might be able to get a strong core following that will play for a long while, as they are sick of skipping from game to game in search of something that will grip them.

I might be rambling, but there are a lot of mediocre games out there that try to do things that they just dont manage to pull off. Successful games (I believe) know what they can and cannot achieve and who their market will be (if you can’t compete with WoW for mass market appeal, then don’t try.) Oh and they never promote their game as the best game ever, this just leads to shattered expectations.

So many gaming bloggers post their idea of ‘the perfect MMO”, they are always very different from each other. Game designers should realise this and not try to please everyone, the scope for the project will just be too big.

]]> By: Katherine http://girlsdontgame.com/2008/09/15/what-can-mmos-bring-to-the-table/#comment-9633 Katherine Tue, 16 Sep 2008 22:46:00 +0000 http://girlsdontgame.com/2008/09/15/what-can-mmos-bring-to-the-table/#comment-9633 That said, I'm always interested in a new approach to MMOs. Even if it doesn't appeal to me, I'm glad to see there is diversity in games. That said, I’m always interested in a new approach to MMOs. Even if it doesn’t appeal to me, I’m glad to see there is diversity in games.

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