Hello there, my name is Thim and I'm 15 years old. My dream job is to become a Game Designer and I'm about to make my first game design to increase my experience. My plan is to make a design for a MMORPG, since that's what I'm most intrested in. So what I want you to do is to write down about 5 things that you like most in a MMORPG, for example: 1. PvP 2. Quests 3. Instances 4. Exploring 5. Leveling And if you got anything else to say, please say it since I need all the information possible, thanks.

I'm afraid you might not get a very welcoming reception mate, as MMORPG's are a tiny bit too big too realistically design and accomplish in any depth and the level of MMORPG discussion in many game dev forums is rife and generally seen as an impossible fad. I'll give it a go though:

1. Symbiosis of individual actions with doing things as a group.
2. Idea that you can be powerful within the game - i.e. god complex.
3. Being able to serve others.
4. Being able to draw pleasure out of life simulation - i.e. guild politics, deception.
5. Being able to exercise a second life.

Quote:

Original post by Thim Hello there, my name is Thim and I'm 15 years old. My dream job is to become a Game Designer and I'm about to make my first game design to increase my experience. My plan is to make a design for a MMORPG, since that's what I'm most intrested in. So what I want you to do is to write down about 5 things that you like most in a MMORPG, for example: 1. PvP 2. Quests 3. Instances 4. Exploring 5. Leveling And if you got anything else to say, please say it since I need all the information possible, thanks.

I like reborn level 99 super-novice dual-class battle acolytes/archers.

No, what I really like is the fantasy/2nd life/evolving universe/great graphics/exploration/politics aspects of Eve Online.

Let's just say I like good games.

Quote:

Original post by Thim Hello there, my name is Thim and I'm 15 years old. My dream job is to become a Game Designer and I'm about to make my first game design to increase my experience. My plan is to make a design for a MMORPG, since that's what I'm most intrested in. So what I want you to do is to write down about 5 things that you like most in a MMORPG, for example: 1. PvP 2. Quests 3. Instances 4. Exploring 5. Leveling And if you got anything else to say, please say it since I need all the information possible, thanks.

None of those sound fun to me really, except maybe if there was a decent action system for PvP instead of "select fight option from menu, see little number subtracted from other little number, repeat until someone wins".

Quote:

Original post by Thim So what I want you to do is to write down about 5 things that you like most in a MMORPG.

If you really want to become skilled at design, then the first thing I recommend is to stop relying so much on outside opinions. The true objective in design is to build something great that no one would have thought could be great until you designed it. Just about all innovative leaps forward in history were met on the outside by negative criticism, and not by helpful ideas that helped to construct them.

Play games, study your own enjoyment, and build ideas based on that. If you don't already have a great grip on what makes gaming fun, or you don't trust your own judgement of fun, then why do you want to design games in the first place?

Anyway, here's my list:

1) Taking on challenges that the game doesn't expect anyone to win
2) Fighting nearly impossible battles against nearly unstoppable opponents
3) Dying, recovering, then struggling to fight better the next time
4) Role playing as the underdog - a grunt instead of a hero
5) Exploring / treasure hunting

This is a little off of what your asking but ill give you what I like in MMOs.

1. Randomly generated armor with randomly generated stats. Nothing gets more stale and annoying (im looking at you Final Fantasy XI) then having people check your gear and not invite you to a party cause you dont have the latest and greatest. Not to mention it gives you no other reason to battle other then XP if theres not some nicely generated armor you can pick up as well.

2. You need to have the ability to play solo or in a party as there are plenty of players who enjoy both. Some games (Final Fantasy I see you again) force you to play as a group, worse yet they force you to have very specific groups to be successful. Its no fun waiting hours and hours just to hunt a few monsters.

3. Alot of good lore. Lore being tied in with your story. Asherons Call is a great example of use of lore (and a great loot system.)

4. Dont horribly punish the player for dying.

Thats all. I would suggest though starting to learn some programming :D

Designing an MMO can be an educational thought exercise and practice creating documentation and possibly concept art, as long as you don't care that its impossible to implement.

I like:
- MMOs which have only one server, where the developers watch for economic imbalances and player complaints and suggestions and actually respond to them,

- A built-in forum system, including private forums for roleplay (with no rating censorship), and a fanfiction and fanart archive.

- Hard enough that you die sometimes and have to think of a smarter way to do it, but death doesn't make you lose xp or gear or anything else too annoying.

- An actual linear/branching interactive story which develops the world and npcs and gives the player an opportunity to develop their avatar. Bonus points for courtable npcs.

- Realtime gamepad-driven combat where the player must use strategy to select between several actions, and different monsters require different strategies. These actions should be earned or purchased by the player and able to be rebuilt by the player at any time, basically resulting in custom classes.

- No classes (unnecessary with the above), although races can be cool if they are mostly cosmetic.

- Clothes are chosen for looks not stats, if you want armor with stats it should be optionally covered up by clothes.

- Lots of crafting and sim and speedpuzzle minigames

- Either no levels or pvp is somehow handicapped so players of any level can fight each other on an even footing.

- A single character can do all possible kinds of crafting

- Can go afk at any time without worrying that you will be dead when you come back

- Cheap and easy travel through the game, excluding areas that require making further progress through the plot to unlock

- Automated sortable worldwide marketplace

- Offline pm and money/item shipment system

[Edited by - sunandshadow on February 3, 2008 2:08:16 PM]

Quote:

Original post by ThimMy plan is to make a design for a MMORPG, since that's what I'm most intrested in.

In that case, you might learn more from making a design for a single-player game. Make something different than what you've already played to death.
(And then there's the significant bonus that you increase the likelihood of ever getting your game made by a factor 20)

And if you want to actually create games, professionally or otherwise, you should probably learn some other skill in addition to design. Because no one are going to let you be "the guy who comes up with ideas" if that's all you can do.

Quote:

1. PvP

Oh yes, I enjoy competing with other players. Like in Transport Tycoon, Doom or Dawn of War.

Quote:

2. Quests

Yeah, I prefer games where I have some sense of purpose too. Where I do stuff for a reason. Definitely an advantage when games have that element.

I could go on with the rest of the bulletpoints you mention, but what'd be the point?
If you want to make a game, MMO or otherwise, you might want to start by looking past the buzzwords.
What do you mean when you say PvP? Show me a game that doesn't have an element of that. (Tetris keeps track of your scores so you can compare and compete with others. That's PvP too, even though Tetris is a singleplayer game)

In short, I expect the same from a good MMO as I do from every other game I play. Challenge, fun, some element of competition, an immersive setting, a sense of progress while playing it, and so on. A MMO is nothing special. It's a good game when it delivers good gameplay, just like GTA or TF2 or any other game you care to mention.

So here's my advice:
1: Stop focusing on other people's opinions. How are you going to design a game if you don't know what *you* want?
2: Stop focusing on buzzwords that are pretty much synonymous with *one* specific gameplay mechanic. (When you say PvP, we all know exactly what you mean, because every game that claims to have PvP does the same damn thing, and jumps straight into the same mistakes and flaws. When you say MMO, we all know you mean a WoW-clone, or if you'd been a few years older, an EQ or UO clone. Is your greatest ambition really to design a game that's already been made?
Make the game you want to play, and don't worry about whether the "PvP" or the "MMO" sticker applies to it.

I'm only going to say one thing, but it's something I think is very important:

Make individuals weak. Make groups strong.

Encourage people to join groups. Give each person (class?) a clear role(s) which they NEED to perform to help out. I'm not saying that you should take away the freedom of choice, but you should enforce clear differences.

Example: Team Fortress 2. Not an MMORPG, but the principle remains. The classes are set up so no class can survive on it's own for long (except maybe the spy, but that's a different story). Teamwork should almost be enforced, sort of as it is in Left4Dead when it comes out.

This is already in place in most MMORPGS, but not to a great extent. You need to avoid restricting the players too much, though.

How about top 5 hates?

1. People.
2. Recurring Costs.
3. Broken Economies.
4. PvP.
5. Tedium.