MMO Magic Tricks

After having one too many deep thoughts about MMO's today, I came to thinking about some of my usual frustrations with MMO, namely their over reliance on compelling mechanics, rather than depth or storytelling.

I thought about how best to explain something like this to the more laid back MMO gamer, who doesn't get all this 'mechanics' mubo jumbo.

This is the analogue I came up with.


Think of it as a person trying to get attention, magic tricks are a rather easy way to impress people who aren't overly familiar with how they work. They can stagger people and give them a much higher opinion of the person doing the magic tricks without really knowing anything about them.

These are your 'run-of-the-mill- MMO's.
But like magic tricks, if you know how their done, or have seen the same tricks being played 4 or 5 times, they become a lot less impressive and get old quick.
Sure there might be the occasional bout of novelty, and some people will remain fooled no matter what, but eventually most will realize that the magician is just hiding the fact that he's just got nothing worthwhile to say.



But take Guild Wars as a different example. It's more like an attractive member of the opposite sex, pretty and charismatic, and willing to engage you in a lengthy conversation.
Sure it may not be as immediately impressive, and the conversation may end up being little more the idle chatter, but at the end of the day you walk away with a much more pleasant experience, that doesn't really diminish with time.

Guild Wars 2 on the other hand is like her charming, sexier, older sister.
Not only has she learned from her mistakes, but is otherwise much more worldly and experienced in life, to make her a much more rounded person.

The conversations are likely to be even more engaging and entertaining, than with that of her sibling. But most importantly, by being such a diverse and entertaining as a person as she is, she really doesn't need to use magic tricks to impress people, listening to her talk is plenty enough.


And maybe, just maybe, after listening so her speak and seeing the attention she brings, the magician might realize that it's time to put away the cards and wand, and just start talking to people.

~Yoh

The Mechanics of Selfishness

Yesterday I did something that's unusual for me, and that was have a conversation with several people about games. Namely on the Guildcast podcast, with Shawn and Rubi, and 3 other people.

It was fun, and while I don't think I made the most intelligent arguments ever, we did stumble upon the topic of gaming communities, and how games like Rift and World of Warcraft have douche baggery communities, where as games like Guild Wars and even Starcraft 2 have in fact, really pleasant communities with a ton of helpful people everywhere you go.


Now I'm not big on talking about community and people, because that's more Rubi's shtick, but this got me thinking after the time I had this morning with the new Starcraft 2 community I was introduced to on the show.
Basically the people from the Starcast community we're friendly and helpful to me, which made me ask the question why.


Why is it that Guild Wars and Starcraft 2 can bring out the best in people and make such friendly communities despite being so different?
You'd think that a game revolving around hardcore PvP like Starcraft 2 would have terrible community if conventional wisdom was true, which again in this case it's evidently not.

So where do game like Rift and WoW go wrong, and generate a community with such selfishness at every level of play?

Well, the short answer is because their STRUCTURED that way.
It is the very mechanics of the game that either incentivize altruism and cooperation, or selfishness and greed.

As to how they do this, well this is where we get into the weeds a bit.



Incentive to be Selfish
Now I don't think I need to make the argument that WoW's community has some less then desirable fellows playing the game, look at local chat any day of the week.
And Rift's community seems to be showing early signs of asshattery and abuse.

But why? Is there really that many assholes in the world, and they all just so happen to like these games?

No, it's the games who are making people act like this, as well as attract people who want to act selfish and prickishly. It in effect turns people who otherwise wouldn't act this way under different circumstances, act like selfish pricks.
Now the idea of this doesn't go down well with a lot of people, but let's take a look at how these games work before reaching for your flamethrower.


Levels and Loot
First off these game prioritize levels and gear over anything else, you don't have to be any good at the game to win, you just need to be a higher level, or just have better stuff.
Everything can be solved with better stuff.

Which, at it's core, is just a factor of time.

Ninja looting and Kill stealing
Who honestly likes being on the receiving end of this? Your just finish killing off a boss just to have some asshat steal your loot.

That's because the game allows them to do it, and there is really is nothing you can do about it.
And because the game only rewards who hits first, or grabs the loot first, with an empathies on loot and EXP being the end all be all, there is a strong incentive for people to act this way.

Ganking and Griefing
Now why would anyone want to spend their time, ruining the time for others?
Simple, because they can.

While limited, both Rift and WoW allows for freeform PvP as well as to allow players to take actions that either directly or indirectly negatively impact on almost any other player they meet, with very little in the way of consequences for doing so.
With nothing to lose and fun at others expense to gain, maybe even a bit of loot, there is no reason not to...... besides ethics that is.

If there are no consequences, then it must be OK.


The long short of it is this, the reason people act selfishly, is because the game rewards them being selfish. If they are selfish they will get more loot, and that means they win.
Allowing people to not only be selfish but also having little to no consequences, is there little wonder why people act like flaming jackasses?



Now let's look at the opposite example and see what we can learn.

Clean and Simple
So what makes Guild Wars and Starcraft 2's communities so, well, peaceful?
Well you know how I was going on about how WoW and Rift not only allows for asshattery, but incentivize it through their mechanics?
It's because Guild Wars and SC2 do not allow you to be, nor do they incentivise it, but in fact they go in the other direction with their mechanics.


Skill and Assigned Loot
In both games, levels and gear are virtually meaningless, literally so in SC2.
It doesn't matter what you have, only how you use it. You can't buy your way to success either.
In PvP, you win on your skill alone, and if you play with a team, you either win together, or lose separately.

Guild Wars also goes one step further in PvE with assigned loot drops. Not only are random players just not able to take your loot, because of the instancing, but this also makes it clear and unambiguous as to who gets what.
And it's looking like Guild Wars 2 is going to continue this tradition.

There is just no room for being an ass here, it just doesn't work.

Fair and Balanced
Another strong point in these games favor is their empathies on fair and balanced PvP, and keeping PvP and PvE separated by a raw iron fence....... made of tigers.

When you go into a match in either game both you and your opponents have the same tools and resources to work with, no one is favored, no one has an inherit advantage.
It's all down you how you execute your build, and your ability to make decisions, multitask, and pure personal skill and experience.

Teamwork Works
Because the currency of success in these games in either PvE or PvP is skill, teamwork becomes a integral feature in these games. Where as you CAN play by yourself and do very well, working with others will get you there a whole lot quicker, and you'll likely have a grand old time doing so as well.

In SC2 even though your own personal skill determines your success rate, it's only given meaning in light of other people. Playing with people is the best tool in your arsenal to get good at the game.

There really is nothing more to gain by going it alone. You'll be no better off, there is no incentive.


Overall the reason these games have great communities is because they:
A. Don't incentivise mechanics that gives you any kind of advantage over anyone else.
B. Keep interactions between people both fair and consenting.
C. Reward teamwork and share rewards as equally as possible.



In closing what I've come to think is this.
If you want people to act in a certain way, it's all about incentives and disincentives.
Reward someone for acting like an asshat, and soon enough everyone will.
But if you reward working together, personal and collective skill, then people will do it, and it will be great for everyone involved.

As well as make the developers time a whole lot easier.


~Yoh

Guild Wars revisited

Well, it's the new year..... and I haven't blogged in a long while.

Over the holidays, and still to some extent I got back into Guild Wars, despite not having played it in a year.
Part of that being that it is so accessible. I can come a go from it when I please, where as with EVE, I just can't bring myself to resub.

Made some new friend with the Veritas Invictus (TRUE) guild, one of which is Rubi Buyer from Massively. Currently I've opted to put my art skills to usage for my guild, as to get back into the habit as the holidays ruined it.


But I must say, even after all these years, Guild Wars is still fun. You can always find something to do, even for a little while. Although there isn't much in terms of long term appeal, It's great for those of short attention spans like myself.

Although I'm not playing it much nowadays as most of the guild are off playing DDO and other games, but we still chat from time to time, and that's nice.
Currently entertaining myself with Monster Hunter Freedom Unite, on my PSP.
Having a lot of fun with that.

Kinda wish someone in my guild was playing it so that we could play co-op. Oh well.



All in all, I've enjoyed my little trip down memory lane with GW. It's been fun.
Hopefully the guild will be able to transend the game onto GW2, or anything else for that matter.

And I hope I can find the energy to blog more..... I've been slack.



~Yoh

The Three Foundations of Society

After having an extended conversation on the Shut Up, We're Talking discussion thread on Virgin Worlds, and thinking further on my previous post, I've come to a series of interesting questions.

What makes society, society?
Or rather, what makes it work?
How does it have such power to bring people together for mutual interest?
And how can we mimic this with in MMO's?

This is my attempt at an answer to these questions.



The Three Pillars

There are three components that make up a functioning society. (more or less)
A: Social interaction and integration of the members of said society.
B: Economy and shared resources, coupled with personal wealth of each member.
C: Infrastructure, rules and regulations.

Remove one, and the whole thing collapses.
You need all three to some extent, which can vary.


I'll go over each one in order, explain them in more detail, and link them to game mechanics that work in favor or against said component.
This could take awhile, make yourself a coffee.



Social I.I.

Now what the bloody heck am I talking about here?

Interactions
Interaction is obvious. People need to be able to talk to each other, and construct relationships.
If someone wants or needs something, they need to communicate that effectively.
Say, if someone needs medical attention, and if no one knows, then guess what?
That's probably one less member of that society. And of course on a larger scale, you just can't get things done that way.

But this is easy. People talk. You can hardly shut them up at times.
In game, at the very least you have chat channels.
The more specific, the better.

But chat is slow, and in the heat of battle, you just can't type as well.
The answer? Is voice chat. Duh!


However, while we are mostly familiar with third party chat programs by now, they are a bit of a hassle, and hardly seem worth the trouble at times.
Which is why inbuilt game voice chat is preferred..... if it actually works.

And then there is in game mail, allowing contact even when two or more players are not normally on at the same time.

Bottom line, the easier you can make it for people to communicate their wants and needs, the better your society will be.


Integration
Second, integration.
By this, it means for each member to fill a role within the society by in large, with preferably mutual interest as the net result.

ie, I work, this work provides service or produce to other members in my society, and I get money in return, which is in turn used to keep me feed with a roof over my head, hence I survive.
It is in my best interest to help others in my society.

But people have to be able to fill the needs of society. If a car breaks down, we need a mechanic fix it. If there are no mechanics, someone either fills the role, or we're fucked.


How this fits into MMO's, is that by limiting roles to preconceived notions, you ultimately cripple yourself in the long run.
In traditional level and class based games, where you pick you role right at the beginning, usually before you know how anything works, once you get into a group with certain requirements to be met, you either fit, or you don't. Often the latter.

It's the square peg, round hole dilemma. We've all seen this.
This system is too rigid, and as such when people need things, things just don't get done 9/10 times.

However, if it's sane we're talking about instead, round hole, square hole, it's doesn't matter.
Sand can change to fill whatever niche it comes in contact with.


And in MMO's, players have to be able to change as the situation dictates.
As such, sandbox style or classless systems are preferred here.
But also, the tools to change and meet a wide array of needs.

People can change, and their tastes and moods change often.
You are X just doesn't cut it anymore.



Economics and Wealth

Still with me? Haven't fallen asleep yet have you?

Economics
Economics in short is things need value, and things of value are exchanged between members of a society or between societies, for mutual gain.
As such, we come to rely on each other for goods and services that we just don't have the time of day in order to get ourselves individually.

If we each had to get our own food only, then we would do nothing but, just to stave off starvation.

It's much better for the society for a few to create a overabundance of a valued good, such as food, to provide for everyone else. This frees everyone else up to spend their time creating other goods and services, which a greater portion of society can utilize.
Hence, this improves the overall health of a society.


How this works in game, is that players obviously need to be able to trade things, first and foremost. And again, the easier you make it, and the wider audience you can reach, the better.
As a consumer, between ebay and the newspaper, which allows you to find what you need the quickest and easiest?

Ebay right.

As such, just direct player to player trading isn't enough.
Auction houses work so some extend. But it gets a bit cluttered, and is difficult to compare prices at times.
Region wide markets on the other hand, such as in EVE, work very, very well.
Allowing not only to reach a wide numbers of players, as well being hands off enough that you don't have to be online for things to sell, but also allow for real competition to creep in.

All it needs is branding and advertising, then it will be set.


However, mechanics that work against this are item drops, NPC rewards, and having a low number of constant requirements.

In most MMO's, you kill stuff, and they shit equipment. And when you only need weapons and armor for the most part, and one or both drop from enemies or are crafted via NPC's, with quality equal or often greater then player crafted gear, then this circumvents the entire player crafted economy.

If you could kill your neighbours cat, and it would drop a brand new pair of shoes once in awhile, then respawn 15min later, why would you ever go spend money for the same exact item?


For economy to work properly, you have to have sources of goods and services be mostly, or to some extent, player driven.
Again, in EVE, ships are a good which you use regularly, and it is required to play the game.
You cannot get ships by any other means, except via other players (or yourself) building them first and selling them to you.
As such, ships have value, and the resources that are used to build ships are valued.

Money makes the world go round.


Personal Wealth
As such, personal wealth is equally important.
For two reason, personal health and well being, and motivation.

Having stuff makes us happy. But it also allows us to micromanage our lives as we know best, making us more productive members of society.
If it was the duty of a handful of people to make sure everyone else was feed at a given time, a great deal of people would starve to death.

It's much more beneficial for society if we each took it apon ourselves to keeps ourselves healthy, happy, and therefore productive. Therefore we need stuff.


But also, having stuff and getting more stuff can be used to motivate us to go out and do things, things we may otherwise not do.
Say you want a new car. You currently may not be working a whole lot due to low expenses, but at the same time you are not saving anything either.
So in order to safe up enough to buy this new car, you either try to get a better/extra job, or get a raise or promotion within your current job.

Normally you wouldn't bother, but you want more stuff. And as such, you work more, and this means more productivity for society.


In game, just having your armor and weapons usually isn't enough. You have to have other things in which you can buy, or the currency becomes superfluous.
Houses, jewelry, pets, land, mounts, fluffy items, so on and so on.
The more stuff you can potentially buy, the more motivated you are likely to become.

Esp in the case that they are consumable items, that you need to replace often.
ie, Ships in EVE. When you die, you lose your ship, then have to buy another, and so you are motivated to stockpile cash and replacement ships.


And thus, you have supply and demand.
The foundation of economics.



Infrastructure and R&R

Bored yet?
Prepare to be catatonic.


Infrastructure
In order to be a healthy, productive, and growing society, we need infrastructure.
Building, pumping and sewer systems, power plants and lines, roads, etc etc.

Without clean water being pumped into our houses each day, we can't drink or have sanitation, and we would all die after a couple of days if we didn't have water storage.
Or die sometime later due to disease or sickness.
Infrastructure keeps us clean and healthy.

But also, we need to be able to build infrastructure as our needs and numbers grow.
If for some reason we could only have a town or city with 100 houses max, we would quickly overpopulate beyond the means of those houses to provide shelter, and thus not only would large number of people roam the streets homeless, but each house would likely be packed.

Extrapolate that out further, and everything thing begins to fall apart with strict population controls.


Growth
Growth is important.
And in game, where 99/100 content and thus infrastructure is static, you regularly find locations where people a packed on top of each other, in a big, unorganized cluster fuck.
So finding the right people for the right job becomes endlessly more difficult.
Just getting things done become downright painful as your words get lost in the squawks of endless chatter.

People need space, and lots of it.
But they also need to be able to make use of that space, so the others know that their there, and to manage there own needs as they see fit.

If you we're to go into a zone or area, and there are lots of people running about trying to sell something to you, and in the center of the area there is a building that looks like a shop, which are you more likely to buy from?
The shop right?


You need places to store your stuff, and places to get certain things done.
You can't just fix a car in the middle of the street. (well you CAN, but it's a bad idea)

Personal storage chests and the like in games are a start, however these are usually located in static towns and outposts. And when your in the middle of nowhere, at war with another group, last thing you want to do is go back to town for a quiver of arrows and to repair your gear.


But to be able to build a base of operations with your guild or group, so as to supply you with what you need and storage for what you don't need at that minute, is important in a world in which distance matters.

In short, to have a proper in game society, you need lots of space which players can claim and occupy, with resources that can be made use of, and for infrastructure to be built to meet the groups needs.


Rules & Regulations
But of course, there is more to it then that.
You need rules and regulations to manage people, so that they can work together constructively, and not steal from and kill each other.
While in group rules are usually easy enough to mimic in games, where guild members just don't tend to screw each other over (provided there is good leadership), mechanically it is just made impossible to attack someone in your own group.

Which isn't always the best idea.
But that's something else entirely.


You need to be able to set rules that everyone can agree to, and be able to enforce them when there broken.
Again, EVE does a decent job at this.

In high sec, at any time you are ABLE to go and shoot someone in the face, however doing so will incur the wrath of CONCORD, which will promptly blow you up.
As such, even thou you can be an asshat, it is very rare to be attacked in high sec.
(unless you are at war)


However, in most other games, the rules or engagement vary between complete non-engagement, to lacking at best.
ie, In Guild Wars, there is no PvP outside of the PvP arenas.
And even within these arenas, you always know how many enemies your going to face, and basically what to expect.
This is canned PvP, and it's not very exciting.
Good for casual practice thou.

In Runes of Magic however, rules are piss poor. If you do stab someone, the guards will be angry with you, and glare at you from a distance.
Seriously, I've never seen NPC's guards actually do anything. And besides being red to other players, there is really very little stopping you from being a ganker/asshat.

0.0 in EVE is sort of like the latter there. No rules, no protection.
However, rules are generally, and informally set by thou's who inhabit the area.
Which is usually, not blue = shoot it.

Anyone surprised there isn't a rush to go down there?


Enforcement
What a functioning society in a world where there is nothing physically stopping from attacking people at random, like 0.0 sec in EVE, is for thou's who own the area to be able to publicly set the rules in a way in which all who enter their space can understand.

But, also allow for them to effectively enforce such rules.


For example, you and your guild/corp own a section of land/space, and your group decides that you don't want anyone within your area that is not apart of your group, to attack anyone else within your area. (regardless weather they are a part of your group or not)

And through mechanics, or a building with preset roles, you can set member of your group as 'enforcers'. As soon as someone breaks the rules, you know who they are, where they are, and what rule they broke.

Then the enforcers in the area can the enforce the rules as they see fit.
(and of course there would be some way of distinguishing them as enforces for thou's not within the group)


This way, players can set the rules for the area, and enforce them.
As such, thou's who abide by the rules set can have peace of mind, and are more likely to come and interact with you and your group if they feel safe.

Safety is important. People are less likely to deal with you if they feel unsafe.


All in all, you need not only to be able to provide buildings in order to organize and mange peoples needs, but also a framework of rules which all can agree to, in order to provide safety and security.
And most of all, rules must be enforced.
It's the only way to being order from disorder. (aka chaos)



Cliff Notes

Now that I've gone over in extensive detail what makes a society, and roughly how this fits into MMO's in the grand scheme of things, heres a short list of what mechanics promote in game societies, and which inhibit them.


What doesn't work:

Level/class based roles - Square peg, round hole.
Several severs - Segregating people is always a bad idea.
In game chat Only - Hard to communicate effectively.
Itemized drops - Circumvents player created goods, removing value.
Only non-consumables required - Stifles value in player created goods. Loss of motivation.
Few useful items - No motivation to get more stuff.
Only static infrastructure - Cluster fuck. No growth. Stifles productivity.
No rules - Ganking and asshattery. Lack of safety.
Too strict rules - No competition. Boredom.


What works:

Sandbox, defining your own role - Can change to met needs of the whole.
Single server - Lots of people. Single economy.
Inbuilt voice chat - Quick and efficient direct communication.
Mail system - Effective indirect communication.
Large usage of player created goods - Supply. Resources are valued.
Regular consumables - Demand. Money has value.
Lots of stuff to buy - Motivation.
Lots of space that can be claimed - Room to grow.
Player built infrastructure - Promotes growth. Allows greater organization.
Enforced rules - Safety and piece of mind.
Player generated rules - Allows for complex social interactions.


In Closing
Of course none of these are set in stone, however, it's just a good idea if your goal is social in nature. And because we are talking about MMO's here, social interactions are always going to be a large part of it.

A good in game community makes a healthy MMO.


Look at EVE, it has many of the right ideas and few of the bad, and it has by far one of the strongest, most lively communities I've ever seen in a game.
In terms of social and economic simulation, it is ahead of the pack by a country mile.
There is just nothing else like it, or even comes close.
(besides real life)

Not perfect, but any MMO's worth their salt should take a good hard look at it.


Because at the end of the day, it's people that make MMO's fun.

~Yoh

RMT in the Future of MMORPG's

After a comment by BeauTurkey on the Massively Speaking podcast, episode 64, it provoked me to write something on my views of RTM now, and in the future are.

BeauTurkey is in favor of RTM's, as they have gained some ground in MMO's over the last couple of years, and are becoming more accepted. (why they were looked down in the first place I can't get my head 'round)

RTM are they way of the future, in essence is what he advocates. I don't agree.


Is there money in it? Counter intuitively, yes it seems.
Does 'free to play' bring in people? Clearly no argument there.
Can an RMT model game be a big budget AAA MMO? I don't see any reason why not.

So where is my point of contention? It has to do with gameplay.


The RMT model centers around being free to play, and getting you to spend money on their online store for 'stuff'. Now this doesn't necessarily mean content, but it does almost always involve ascetic items.

So how do you get people to by your online stuff? Easy, make things either difficult or dull for them, or both, in order to gently force their hand. Of course you can pander to their sense of greed, but that doesn't work on everybody.

Runes of Magic for example: Considered a full fledge MMO by most people.
Traveling in this game can be a pain in the arse at times. While you can teleport to major cities, you still spend an awful lot of time running around.
And of course the game has mount to make things 'easier', if your willing to fork up 10$ that is.
.... Not exactly what I would call micro, but ok.

Then there is the gear, which for the most part if fairly generic. Some if it is nice thou, don't get me wrong. But should you dare want to customize it, hahahahaaa.... no. Fork up please.

And on and on it goes. Either fork up, or things are going to feel like cardboard for you.
It feels like they are always holding back on you, doesn't it?


Well as you can tell, this way of running a MMO doesn't jive well with me.

I say full throttle. Either do it and go all the way, or don't. Don't hold back.
I want my customized gear, I want every scrap of content at the get go, I want to feel like the game isn't playing favorites by who has the deepest wallet.



Now that isn't to say RMT doesn't have a place. Sure it does. Just not as the main means of payment.
Otherwise it the game just feels second best.

I see the future of RMT working as a great supplement to subscription-like models, such as the P2P model Aion is currently implementing (massive kudos btw), as it is far more flexible and overall cheaper then the run-of-the-mill subs. This way the game can go full throttle, and have extras over and above as nice little bits and pieces, sort of like how Guild Wars handled it.

But the first step to getting people to use RMT, besides getting them into the game, is getting them to ENJOY the game. And that doesn't really work when you water down the game, and almost go so far as to coerce them into it.


Just my take on it.

~Yoh