Each player could have his own one-seat fighter ship as default, and then as a bonus a bigger ship with a variable number of crew-members if he bought one. A group of friends would all have to go to whathever port it was stationed at and their fighters would dock inside the big ship.
The owner would then control the main steering and the others would control turrets or whatever.

There's a good balance in this: these ships are much more powerful than the other ones, but they cost a lot and you need to have your friends there to help. A nice toy for the powergamers when they need to throw a bigger punch :)

I agree with Jotaf. That seems like a really neat idea. When you start the game, you start off with a really weak, one seater ship. As it goes on, you can get more powerful ships or just choose to upgrade your original. When you reach the level cap, you can pilot your own Starcruiser or whatever you want to call it, which would basically be a mobile base, and the missions you play throughout the game will be the same ones everyone else on the cruiser has. Planets could be done not as individual worlds but, instead, more like dungeons. You fly down and play each one with your individual away teams, Star Trek style. The actual "world" you explore is space, although some planets could be done just as like individual cities you can resupply at if no stations are around to dock at.

In order to prevent the Starcruisers from getting boring, not only could they go much MUCH faster than regular, individually piloted ships (we're talking hyperspace here) but you could also upgrade it to add in different rooms, like Holodecks where you can level up your character, or have message boards with job listings to see if there are any freelance jobs available in the current sector.

You could also just play the game as an individual, which would be much harder but you'd reap more rewards since you don't have to share them with anyone, versus living on a Starcruiser which would afford you more of a community experience and allow you to visit more worlds than you could just playing as an individual.

Just some thoughts.

Here's an interesting model for your game as an MMORPG. Why not split your game into two versions, starship version and player version. Its a slightly different business model, which affects game play as well.

So, if you want to play the game, you have two options. You can go out and buy the full version, which basically let's you own anf command a starship. The "starship" version will come with a registration code for your ship, which you design and register with the server when you start up. However, you can't do much with your starship as long as a the number of crew members is below a certain number. This is where the "player version" comes in. The player version can be downloaded for free. When you sign in with the player version, you create a character and sign on to be aboard some starship. You can always transfer later. Once signed on to a starship, the captain may assign you a position(s) and give you resources you need as seen fit, like weapons, etc.

Now, here's where it gets interesting. The monthly fee for the "starship version" and the "player version" are different. The fee for the player version is relatively low, while the starship version has a higher monthly "starship registration fee". However, if your starship has enough crew member, the monthly fee will drop proportionally till it hits the same level as the standard player version. The starship/player system actually turns into a guild like situation and really encourages you to only get a starship if you know people are going to sign on to you. Also, gives you the chance to advertise your ship.

Now, for the gameplay. When you register your starship, you choose a faction or side you fight for. Of course, you can switch sides if you satisfy certain conditions, but you'll gain alot of bad rep. As a starship captain, you can then request resources from home or central command. You can request items, provisions, weapons, even help from other ships. Based on your track record for the side you choose, you will get the provisions, even upgrades, you request for. Once you have the stuff, you then give it out to your crew members as see fit. So, the captain has to do some micro-management.

....this post is getting pretty long....but just a bit more.....

On the game side, the ship will be travelling through space to try and claim unclaaimed planets, gather resources and intelligence, destroying enemy outposts, supply runs, quests, and even engage in ship to ship combat. Alot of this can only happen when a certain number of crewmen are logged into the game. So, generally, if too few people are logged in, the ship will be on auto-pilot. The captain designates flight plans, say from system to system and planet to planet. Once a ship reaches a planet it automatically goes into orbit. At this point, any crewmen with the right rank or gear may go to the surface at will. But in general, it is a very strong group oriented game.

The whole thing just kind of blows up from there......

....sorry, i think i went on a tangent....thoughts ran away....

The same thing they want out of life.

A standing testament of their existance. A monument. A pyramid. A statue. A blown up mountain. A canal.

A dynamic environment that changes. He wants towns under his control, people under his rule. In the real world, we have these silly motivators called hunger and thirst. But in the MMORPG, even when programmed in, it isn't synthetic enough.

Cater to the real ambitions of why people partake in a virtual environment. Provide a limitation of universal access to that system, and watch human beings do what they do best: create social networks.

Gear-dependant games are capitalist in nature, so people gear up to cover themselves. However, this is only partially reflective or real life. In the real world, people increase their material possessions to help establish influence over each other, but the big one that matters the most is *LAND*.

You should check out an old game called Allegiance. I think it's somehow similar to your ideea.

I had a friend a while back who was telling me about this game called puzzle pirates. It sounds like it works similar to something you want to build. In it, there was a captain, an engineer, a tatical officer, etc... and they all had to work together to compete against another team. The engineers of the two ships competed in a game (something similar to dr. mario or tetris), and the engineer that was playing better made his ship go faster. The two tatical officers also competed (in a different game), and whoever was doing better made the puzzles easier for his teammates. Then, the two captains competed in the sea race, and their speed was determined by how well the engineer was doing. He really enjoyed it, so hopefully you can use that idea to your advantage.