Comments on: Can there be story in MMOs? Come to ION to find out! http://writerscabal.wordpress.com/2008/03/25/can-there-be-story-in-mmos-come-to-ion-to-find-out/ Tips, tricks, and unconscionable wastes of time for game developers dealing with writers or narrative Fri, 01 Jan 2010 10:30:59 +0000 http://wordpress.com/ hourly 1 By: Engaging players through story in MMOs - but which story? « Writers Cabal Blog http://writerscabal.wordpress.com/2008/03/25/can-there-be-story-in-mmos-come-to-ion-to-find-out/#comment-5548 Engaging players through story in MMOs - but which story? « Writers Cabal Blog Tue, 13 May 2008 23:31:27 +0000 http://writerscabal.wordpress.com/?p=215#comment-5548 [...] the context and meaning for your actions, can the social systems as well? What do you think? Our ION Game Conference panel at 3:30pm on Thursday addresses these very questions. Stay [...] [...] the context and meaning for your actions, can the social systems as well? What do you think? Our ION Game Conference panel at 3:30pm on Thursday addresses these very questions. Stay [...]

]]> By: Digital Hollywood: can content help online games? « Writers Cabal Blog http://writerscabal.wordpress.com/2008/03/25/can-there-be-story-in-mmos-come-to-ion-to-find-out/#comment-5532 Digital Hollywood: can content help online games? « Writers Cabal Blog Thu, 08 May 2008 20:18:36 +0000 http://writerscabal.wordpress.com/?p=215#comment-5532 [...] technology.  One panel particularly caught my attention We’ll be speaking next week at the ION Game Conference on a similar topic: “Innovation in Games, Game Networks and Social Gaming - Massive User [...] [...] technology.  One panel particularly caught my attention We’ll be speaking next week at the ION Game Conference on a similar topic: “Innovation in Games, Game Networks and Social Gaming – Massive User [...]

]]> By: writerscabal http://writerscabal.wordpress.com/2008/03/25/can-there-be-story-in-mmos-come-to-ion-to-find-out/#comment-5483 writerscabal Wed, 02 Apr 2008 02:45:42 +0000 http://writerscabal.wordpress.com/?p=215#comment-5483 Sounds good. I don't know which game it was, but I heard there was a time when a starting zone was attacked, and the players literally stayed up all night trying to defend it. From then on, the starting zone for that race was somewhere else. I've enjoyed the in-game events for many MMOs, and I agree that they should be more story-oriented. Clearly they have the capability to do events, they're just choosing not to make them story-driven for some reason. -Anne Sounds good. I don’t know which game it was, but I heard there was a time when a starting zone was attacked, and the players literally stayed up all night trying to defend it. From then on, the starting zone for that race was somewhere else.

I’ve enjoyed the in-game events for many MMOs, and I agree that they should be more story-oriented. Clearly they have the capability to do events, they’re just choosing not to make them story-driven for some reason.

-Anne

]]> By: Courtney http://writerscabal.wordpress.com/2008/03/25/can-there-be-story-in-mmos-come-to-ion-to-find-out/#comment-5421 Courtney Thu, 27 Mar 2008 17:26:47 +0000 http://writerscabal.wordpress.com/?p=215#comment-5421 I was actually just discussing this last night. I know White Wolf has a WoD MMO in the works and I'm really hoping they will target more of a niche market instead of trying to compete with mainstream. The WoD system is, more than d20 systems, a storytelling game. What I would love to see in an MMO is dynamic content and the game being more or less one huge tabletop experience. Players go through part of a campaign set up by the DMs (in this case, the development team) and content updates are made in response to player action. Obviously this would take a lot of resources and honestly I'm not sure it could be done successfully. But I suppose it's a thought. As for which MMOs have done it well... it's interesting to me that Blizzard was so known for creating great stories and rich lore and their game is not at all structured for roleplayers. Some quests follow a progression but they're made in such a way that player x is doing the exact same thing as player y - something that, in the real world, can't be accomplished by two people at once. It really breaks any sense of immersion when you have five people clambering around a quest NPC and he gives them all the same speech. For games to truly support the player's story I think they have to support roleplaying. SWG, while a failure as a game, to me, did this quite well. And I think the skill-based system has a lot to do with the success of that component. Because when people are rushing from level hub to level hub along the standard MMO treadmill, there's really no time for story. When it first started up, Everquest used to have GM events like the Battle of Bloody Kithicor. That zone (Kithicor Forest) was forever changed into a treacherous area in which players had to skirt the zone edges at night-time because of the undead skulking about from the battle fought there, and all because of the outcome of players' actions. And while this change for the zone was likely planned well in advance, having events like that made the player feel as though they played an important role in the changing of the world, and I think that is going to be the key to presenting story as anything more than sequestered single-player experiences in an MMO. I was actually just discussing this last night. I know White Wolf has a WoD MMO in the works and I’m really hoping they will target more of a niche market instead of trying to compete with mainstream. The WoD system is, more than d20 systems, a storytelling game.

What I would love to see in an MMO is dynamic content and the game being more or less one huge tabletop experience. Players go through part of a campaign set up by the DMs (in this case, the development team) and content updates are made in response to player action. Obviously this would take a lot of resources and honestly I’m not sure it could be done successfully. But I suppose it’s a thought.

As for which MMOs have done it well… it’s interesting to me that Blizzard was so known for creating great stories and rich lore and their game is not at all structured for roleplayers. Some quests follow a progression but they’re made in such a way that player x is doing the exact same thing as player y – something that, in the real world, can’t be accomplished by two people at once. It really breaks any sense of immersion when you have five people clambering around a quest NPC and he gives them all the same speech.

For games to truly support the player’s story I think they have to support roleplaying. SWG, while a failure as a game, to me, did this quite well. And I think the skill-based system has a lot to do with the success of that component. Because when people are rushing from level hub to level hub along the standard MMO treadmill, there’s really no time for story.

When it first started up, Everquest used to have GM events like the Battle of Bloody Kithicor. That zone (Kithicor Forest) was forever changed into a treacherous area in which players had to skirt the zone edges at night-time because of the undead skulking about from the battle fought there, and all because of the outcome of players’ actions. And while this change for the zone was likely planned well in advance, having events like that made the player feel as though they played an important role in the changing of the world, and I think that is going to be the key to presenting story as anything more than sequestered single-player experiences in an MMO.

]]> By: William Monroe http://writerscabal.wordpress.com/2008/03/25/can-there-be-story-in-mmos-come-to-ion-to-find-out/#comment-5405 William Monroe Wed, 26 Mar 2008 00:39:48 +0000 http://writerscabal.wordpress.com/?p=215#comment-5405 It seems to me that story in MMORPGs doesn't have anything inheirently preventing it, but most of the examples I've seen have been more or less dark tunneled-amusement rides. You move onto the next zone, and it treats the story as if you've accomplished all the important quests in the previous zone. (I'm thinking of the Alice in Wonderland rides here, the story seems to flow perfectly, as long as you never ever backtrack, and see everything the first time). I'd love to see something more complicated develop, but I haven't seen it yet. It seems to me that story in MMORPGs doesn’t have anything inheirently preventing it, but most of the examples I’ve seen have been more or less dark tunneled-amusement rides. You move onto the next zone, and it treats the story as if you’ve accomplished all the important quests in the previous zone. (I’m thinking of the Alice in Wonderland rides here, the story seems to flow perfectly, as long as you never ever backtrack, and see everything the first time). I’d love to see something more complicated develop, but I haven’t seen it yet.

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