So many choices

[Mjölnir]

There are four main mmorpgs all expected to be released soon. These include WoW, EQ2, Mythica, and UXO possibly even Guild Wars. With all of the new mmorpgs coming out very soon, what game do you think will have the best following? Do you think there is enough of a playerbase to support four major titles?

First off, WoW is made by Blizzard which almost assures they will have a good playerbase. Blizzard makes quality games that have few bugs, also they are well liked in Korea, and as we all know Koreans love online gaming.

EQ2 is the wildcard in the situation. EQ currently has over 480,000 subscribers; However, SOE has made some unsavory choices that have alienated several customers. I currently only know a few people that are playing EQ that plan on moving to EQ2, but simply because it holds thr EQ name they will probably have a good marketshare.

This brings me to Mythica. Being made by MS is a blessing and a curse. It means almost limitless funds but also means you get a lot of anti-MS flack. Lets face it, MS doesn't have a good recoed with mmogs. The failing of AC2 may only hurt the sales of Mythica, but Mythica has gottn some good press so I guess time will only tell

Ahh UXO, I have no idea what to think about this one. There are a lot of exUOer's, but AoS alienated lots of people. I haven't heard much about Guild Wars so I can't comment.

Is there enough mmo lovin to go around?

[Jotun]

There are stll more "major" titles, such as D&D Online, MEO, and Lineage2. There are also new genres coming soon, such as Pirates of the Burning Sea and City of Heroes.

[JonnyG]

Apparently a lot of people think so, or they wouldn't be making so many. Thats why you'll see a lot of the games trying to get the casual gamers, have to go for the bigger market. So far MMRPG's have not catered to casual gamers at all.

And your statement about funding at MS is wrong. Mythica has a set budget and would need to go get more funding if they needed it. Something that would be frowned upon by the powers that be.

[Mjölnir]

I realize that they have a budget I juse meant that MS has more than enough funds to produce an epic title.

I forgot about lineage 2. They will probably compete with WoW in Korea, as both are well liked companies in Asian nations.

[Taedrun]

Aye Lineage 2 should do just fine, even if only in Korea. Alot of US online gamers seem to think that EQ is the largest MMORPG in the world... they'd be wrong by a long shot.

Its true that EQ is the biggest here in the US and a near half million subscribers is one helluva cash cow, not to mention Lineage didn't debut here well at all. Still, Lineage is by far the largest concurrently subscribed online game in the world. Korea comprises the majority of its 3-4 million players, but it is quite popular in other asian markets as well.

As far as MMORPGs are going here? I think theres enough of a market for more, as alot of people will migrate from older games to newer ones, and others (though I don't know how they can do it so adeptly) play several online games at once. Ideally, as the "2nd/3rd generation" games become more evolved and improved from their predecessors, we will have games that appear, look, and feel different enough from each other to warrant attention as a unique experience not gotten elsewhere. Where as right now -atleast IMO- most games feel so similar that its like playing the same game with a new skin or mod.

Hopefully the future of MMOGs is alive and well, and we can all play Mythica well into the future :)

[Azgorath]

Out of those, I foresee the major contendors in the next-gen MMORPG race will be Mythica and WoW. Pirates of the Burning Sea won't reach a wide audience, but I'm hoping what it brings to the table will allow it to pursue even grander releases.

The rest will fare well and EQ2 will be an initial hit, but it should most likely spell the downfall of the series.

Lineage 2 is guaranteed to do well, but it's hardly innovative and worthy of a next-gen title.

[Leoghan]

Of those listed I am only really interested in UXO and Mythica. EQ2 intrigues me, but I just don't know how to feel about it. If it is just a clone of the level tread-mill of EQ than I have no interest in it at all. Lineage has an interesting background story, but it looks like it adds nothing new to the genre.

Mythica may not get the initial success of some of the other games, but after reading everything I have I am confident in saying that it will be the one seen as most appealing when the 1st year anniversary hits. They are offering enough to keep this genre of MMORPG alive and creative.

As for the other two mentioned Pirates of the Burning Sea and City of Heroes, I am interested. I am also interested to see what happens in this genre now that it is competing with twitchy games like Battlefield 1944. For instance Lucas Arts has announced work on a Star Wars game based on the same design as Battlefield 1944, and this too me seems like they must have some hope to blend it with SWG in some way.

What I really want to see is a game that does something different for setting. Pirates of the Burning Sea and City of Heroes are doing that and Mythica is to an extent as well. Look at UXO, EQ2, WOW. They all have they own feel, but they are all the same LOTResque worlds. I want a fantasy game that does something different. There is a game Ryzom, that looked slightly different, but not enough for me. I want a new world to explore one that is unlike any other, but that's just my desire to have more choice and more content ;)

[Yigg Yous]

I remember Mythica getting the Most Anticipated Game or something like that. That is gonna get some publicity. Each day we keep getting more and more users. I think that as well the budget will allow us to have better graphics, sounds, and ideas implemented into the game. So I bet some people are gonna come from that.

The rest I think comes from mags. I hope and believe that Mythica will win some awards for best MMO or coolest <insert something awsome>. Im sure that mythica will do fine though, and I think that we will have a firm member base to kick off the game with. Alone, we have a lot of people here, and I know that VN boards and Stratics and the Warcry site have a lot of people also hooked.

[Azgorath]

Aye, I know how you feel.

I long for the days that twitch-gaming is integrated into a fantasy MMORPG akin to Rune, if you've ever played that. They're all sorely lacking with their stat/item/skill based systems. I want to kill something with *my own* skill as a player.

[Taedrun]

Also I haven't seen anyone mention Dragon Empires. I know its in the first stages of beta as we speak (I've been on the beta list since 12/18/01, don't know why they opened sign up so long before the actual beta testing stage tho:ponder: ), and I am currently awaiting acceptance to make any judgement as to whether I'll play it or not. Looks interesting at the very least, and should prove to be a nice time filler until I can get in on the Mythica action ;)

[Yigg Yous]

I heard it wasn't gonna be that good. Who knows though? Im just waiting for mythica beta and making my participation better, and working on my guild site (does that add to participation?)

like you said:

Looks interesting at the very least, and should prove to be a nice time filler until I can get in on the Mythica action

[esion]

I agree that there are a lot of good games comin out and I think that the mmorpg market is getting kinda flooded and only the really "good" games are really going to be able to make it.

I believe that EQ2 will make it just based on the fact that its SOE and they already have a ton of people that LOVE the original, and a new beginning is probably very appealing to lots of those subscribers.

I know Mythica will make it just based on intrigue, uniqueness, and backing company. It is true that MS has had a very blunders in the past, but even the blunders still did very well in comparison to other mmorpgs on the market.

As for WoW, Lineage2, UXO, Guild Wars, as well as all the current games, I think that the games are only going to due well if they start to lower prices, and increase the "fun factor." I know it sounds absurd to decrease the prices on games, but I think that it is soon going to be like the music industry...a fad comes up and the market gets flooded until it falls...but in this case it really cant fall, but companies can start to out bid each other on prices. I know that if a good mmorpg was going out and it had a lower price per month than another..even if it wasnt as good I would go with the cheaper of the group just because its still a good game.

The problem really lies on the amount of companies that are comin out that are tossing so much money into these games and they put out a terrible game and lose money. The key is to great a game that has repeatablitiy, fun factor, immersion, and a decent price per month. It might sound wierd to lower the price but over time the money will accumulate and make back the initial investment capital in time, and you will have a larger subscriber base.

[Mjölnir]

I'm currently waiting for Mythica and WoW betas. Both games look great. I love the cartoony graphics of WoW. I'm glad they didn't try to go to realistic with them. Mythica has a richer backstory. Plus I'm a nut for mythology.

[Taedrun]

I heard it wasn't gonna be that good. Who knows though?

I'd like to know how you "heard" DE wasn't going to be "that" good. First off, it's back story is being written by Piers Anthony, so its story depth should be top notch if nothing else, and story goes a long way in my book. Secondly, it's still in beta phase 0 (as far as they have updated us in the newsletter), so it's probably got a very selective few who have actually played its current form to make that kind of judgement on anything but speculation and released info. Thirdly, still being so early in development/beta means alot can change, and even a modest sized overhaul can change the core aspects of a game drastically. Such changes can overcome alot of pitfalls and make a "not that great" game into a much funner experience. Finally, that viscious NDA beast that lingers over the few people who are testing it currently, should be sufficient cause for people to not leak info, and such accusations of a game going to suck should be squelched accordingly.

While there is a wealth of info already released about the game, I try not to jump to conclusions about a game and its relative "suck-ness" until its planned to ship in an obviously under developed, less than gold worthy state. Boards and forums of people flaming a game saying its going to suck just because it doesn't appeal to them, or because of such-and-such elements rarely sways my judgement until I try it out myself. This goes right along with me never listening to movie critics, because they rarely if ever are correct in their understandable (given their profession) but over-critical statements about most movies.

Just my 2 bits, as I want to try out DE before passing along a death sentence. It doesn't appeal to me nearly as much as WoW or Mythica, but it looks to be fun in its own way.

-Just as a footnote, another MMOG I am following is called Exarch (http://www.exarchonline.com/) and with the acquisition of famed comic book artist Joe Madureira, has excellent concept art, and will be published by none other than NCsoft- the same company that publishes Lineage.

[Elvis]

Let's not forget True Fantasy Live Online (http://www.level5.co.jp/english/products/new/tflo/index.html).

[Mjölnir]

I still don't think consoles are that great for mmogs. FFXI was developed for the PS2 and thusly has a horrible gui. Plus games just will never look as good in the NTSC or PAL formats.

[BigJonno]

The one that no-one ever remembers is Warhammer Online. Maybe because it's (the wargame and pen 'n' paper RPG) never been as big in the US as it is in Europe. It's looking damn good and certainly the best of the licensed MMORPGs coming out. A lot of people have said they want different fantasy settings, I would suggest they take a look at WO as the Warhammer world is very different to a typical Tolkienesque setting.

[Elvis]

Originally posted by Mjölnir
I still don't think consoles are that great for mmogs. FFXI was developed for the PS2 and thusly has a horrible gui. Plus games just will never look as good in the NTSC or PAL formats. That's a matter of opinion. Sometimes, IMO, UI can get in the way of gameplay. Do you have a HUD when you walk around and talk with people? ;)

What I've seen of this game makes me want to play it, and makes me want to play it now.