07-23-2009, 10:07 AM
Goals are the difference between TF2, which we enjoy but quit after a month or two, or an MMORPG that we can play for 2 years.
Sure, TF2 or Battlegrounds can bring people together for a fun fight but I think it wears out pretty quickly unless you have some long term goal to shoot for. TF2 didn't have one, being just an FPS. WOW/WAR have you shooting for levels and loot as your long term goal. World War 2 Online has you looking to conquer the map as your long term goal (but then the map resets...)
I think this is a challenging aspect to come up with if you were going to design the "ideal Purge game". What's the long term goal? "Take over the world" is easy to say but what happens if you actually take it over, or reach the point where you realize the game is conspiring to make it impossible?
Maybe you can create two goals...
1) Take over the world (or as much of it as we allow)
2) Having done that, see how long you can hold out
#1 is like a lot of strategy games. At some point you simply win and the game starts over.
#2 is a lot like old arcade games. You never "won", you just tried to see how long you could hold out. In terms of an MMORPG it basically means that while you wiped out the major opposing powers to accomplish #1, there are always upstarts and revolutions and you can never fully "control" the world.
EVE almost has this, I think.
Where EVE fails, I believe, is that there is no real pressure for #1. Your neighbor doesn't have anything you don't have. There's no reason I know of to attack them other than for amusement. Small corps (like us) stand to gain by attacking big corps, but big corps don't seem to have a big reason to attack each other.
Sure, TF2 or Battlegrounds can bring people together for a fun fight but I think it wears out pretty quickly unless you have some long term goal to shoot for. TF2 didn't have one, being just an FPS. WOW/WAR have you shooting for levels and loot as your long term goal. World War 2 Online has you looking to conquer the map as your long term goal (but then the map resets...)
I think this is a challenging aspect to come up with if you were going to design the "ideal Purge game". What's the long term goal? "Take over the world" is easy to say but what happens if you actually take it over, or reach the point where you realize the game is conspiring to make it impossible?
Maybe you can create two goals...
1) Take over the world (or as much of it as we allow)
2) Having done that, see how long you can hold out
#1 is like a lot of strategy games. At some point you simply win and the game starts over.
#2 is a lot like old arcade games. You never "won", you just tried to see how long you could hold out. In terms of an MMORPG it basically means that while you wiped out the major opposing powers to accomplish #1, there are always upstarts and revolutions and you can never fully "control" the world.
EVE almost has this, I think.
Where EVE fails, I believe, is that there is no real pressure for #1. Your neighbor doesn't have anything you don't have. There's no reason I know of to attack them other than for amusement. Small corps (like us) stand to gain by attacking big corps, but big corps don't seem to have a big reason to attack each other.