Massively multiplayer online game
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- MMO redirects here. For other uses of MMO please see MMO (disambiguation).
A Massive Multiplayer Online Game (also called MMOG or MMO) is a computer game which is capable of supporting hundreds or thousands of players simultaneously, and is played on the Internet. Typically, this type of game is played in a giant persistent world. Many argue why small player count games with 200 and under players online are called massive multiplayer online games.
MMOs can enable players to compete with and against each other on a grand scale, and sometimes to interact meaningfully with people around the world. Most MMOs require players to invest large amounts of their time into the game. Most MMOs require a monthly subscription fee, but some can be played for free.
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[edit] Overview and History
The most popular type of MMOG, and the sub-genre that did much to pioneer the category, is the massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG). MMORPGs descend from university mainframe computer MUD and adventure games such as Rogue on the PLATO System and Dungeon on the PDP-10 that pre-date the commercial gaming industry.
The first graphical MMOG, and a major milestone in the creation of the genre, was the multi-player flight combat simulation game Air Warrior by Kesmai on the GEnie online service, which first appeared in 1987.
Commercial MMORPGs gained early acceptance in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The genre was pioneered by the GemStone series on GEnie, also created by Kesmai, and Neverwinter Nights, the first such game to include graphics, which debuted on AOL in 1991.
As computer game developers applied MMO ideas to other computer and video game genres, new acronyms started to develop, such as MMORTS. MMOG emerged as a generic term to cover this growing class of games. These games became so popular that a magazine, called Massive Online Gaming, released an issue in October 2002 hoping to cover MMOG topics exclusively, but it never released its second issue.
The debuts of Meridian 59 (The first 3D MMOG), Ultima Online, Underlight and EverQuest in the late 1990s popularized the MMORPG genre. The growth in technology meant that where Neverwinter Nights in 1991 had been limited to 50 simultaneous players (a number that grew to 500 by 1995), by the year 2000 a multitude of MMORPGs were each serving thousands of simultaneous players.
Despite the genre's focus on multiplayer gaming, AI-controlled characters are still common. NPCs and mobs who give out quests or serve as opponents are typical mostly in MMORPGs. AI-controlled characters are not as common in action-based MMOGs.
The popularity of MMOGs was mostly restricted to the computer game market until the sixth-generation consoles, with the launch of Phantasy Star Online on Dreamcast and the emergence and growth of online service Xbox Live. There have been a number of console MMOGs, including EverQuest Online Adventures (PlayStation 2), and the multiconsole Final Fantasy XI. On PCs, the MMOG market has always been dominated by successful fantasy MMORPGs.
Science fiction has also been a popular theme, featuring games such as Anarchy Online, Eve Online, Star Wars Galaxies and The Matrix Online.
World of Warcraft currently leads the game playing charts in America by a large margin, courtesy of its playerbase of 8 million active accounts.
- See also: List of MMOGs
[edit] Blurred Boundaries
MMOs (or MOGS, MMORPGs, etc) often blur real and virtual worlds resulting in Virtual Economies interacting with Real World economies. This practice (Economy Interaction) is most seen in this genre of games[citation needed]. The two seem to come hand in hand with even the earliest MOGs such as Ultima Online having this kind of trade, real money for virtual things.
[edit] Comparing MMOGs to other computer games
There are a number of factors shared by most MMOGs that make them different from other types of computer games. MMOGs create a persistent universe where the game continues playing regardless of whether or not anyone else is. Since these games strongly or exclusively emphasize multiplayer gameplay, few of them have any significant single-player aspects or client-side artificial intelligence. As a result, players cannot "finish" MMOGs in the typical sense of single-player games. Some MMOGs, such as Star Sonata, do have an end condition that includes awarding a "winner" based on a player's standing in the game at the finale.
Most MMOGs also share other characteristics that make them different from other multiplayer online games. MMOGs host a large number of players in a single game world, and all of those players can interact with each other at any given time. Popular MMOGs might have thousands of players online at any given time, usually on a company owned server. Non-MMOGs, such as Battlefield 1942 or Half-Life usually have less than 50 players online (per server) and are usually played on private servers. Also, MMOGs usually do not have any significant mods since the game must work on company servers. There is some debate if a high head-count is the requirement to be a MMOG. Some say that it is the size of the game world and its capability to support a large number of players that should matter. For example, despite technology and content constraints, most MMOGs can fit up to a few thousand players on a single game server at a time.
To support all those players, MMOGs need large-scale game worlds, and servers to connect players to those worlds. Sometimes a game features a universe which is copied onto different servers, separating players, and this is called a "sharded" universe. Other games will feature a single universe which is divided among servers, and requires players to switch. Still others will only use one part of the universe at any time. For example, Tribes comes with a number of large maps, which are played in rotation (one at a time). In contrast, the similar title PlanetSide uses the second model, and allows all map-like areas of the game to be reached via flying, driving, or teleporting.
MMORPGs usually have sharded universes, as they provide the most flexible solution to the server load problem, but not always. For example, the space sim Eve Online uses only one large cluster server peaking at over 32,000 simultaneous players.
There are also a few more common differences between MMOGs and other online games. Most MMOGs charge the player a monthly or bimonthly fee to have access to the game's servers, and therefore to online play. Also, the game state in an MMOG rarely ever resets. This means that a level gained by a player today will still be there tomorrow when the player logs back on. MMOGs often feature ingame support for clans and guilds. The members of a clan or a guild may participate in activities with one another, or show some symbols of membership to the clan or guild.
However, the boundaries between multiplayer online games and MMOGs are not always as clear or obvious. Neverwinter Nights (2002) and Diablo II are usually called online role-playing games, (RPGs) but are also sometimes called MMORPGs (a type of MMOG).
[edit] Types of MMOGs
There are several types of massively multiplayer online games.
[edit] MMORPG
- Main article: MMORPG
Massively multiplayer online role-playing games, known as MMORPGs, are perhaps the most famous type of MMOG. See list of MMORPGs for a list of notable MMORPGs.
[edit] BBMMORPG
Browser Based Massive Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games, also known as PBBGs or browser games are MMORPGs played through an internet browser, saving the developer the hassle of creating a client for its game, and the players the hassle of downloading one. They usually use browser plugins and extensions, along with server-side scripts such as PHP or Perl and are typically driven by database systems such as MySQL or PostgreSQL. Typical BBMMORPGs have 2D graphics or are text-based. The most popular BBMMORPG is the Java-based RuneScape.[citation needed]
[edit] MMOFPS
Several MMO first-person shooters have been made. These games provide large-scale, sometimes team-based combat. The addition of persistence in the game world means that these games add elements typically found in RPGs, such as experience points. The first MMOFPS was probably 10SIX (now known as Project Visitor) released in 2000. World War II Online, released in 2001, is often quoted with the same honor, because it more closely fits the traditional FPS mold, and was more widely published. Another popular MMOFPS game is Sony Online Entertainment's PlanetSide.One of the latest MMOFPS games is WarRock released by K2 Network. For building one's own MMOFPS, there are now free MMOG game engines.
[edit] MMOR
Massively multiplayer online racing. Massive online versions of racing games. Currently there's only one: RaceLands. The Trackmania series comes close to being a MMOR. Although Auto Assault and Darkwind: War on Wheels are more combat based than racing, they are still considered a MMOR. "Test Drive Unlimited" is also considered a MMOR.
[edit] MMOTG
Massively multiplayer online tycoon game. Online versions of tycoons games. Mainly all browser based however there are two client based games, Starpeace and Industry Player.
[edit] MMOSG
Massively Multiplayer Online Social Game focuses on socialization instead of objective-based gameplay. There is a great deal of overlap in terminology with "Online Communities" and "Virtual Worlds". Examples of Massively Multiplayer Online Social Games include Habbo Hotel, Furcadia, Xivio, and Club Penguin.
One example that has garnered widespread media attention is Linden Labs' Second Life, emphasizing socializing, world-building and an in-world virtual economy that depends on the sale and purchase of user-created content. It is technically an MMOSG by definition, though its stated goal was to realize the concept of the Metaverse from Neal Stephenson's novel Snow Crash[citation needed]. Instead of being based around combat, one could say that it was based around the creation of virtual objects, including models and scripts. In practice, it has more in common with Club Caribe than Everquest. It was the first game of its kind to achieve widespread success (including attention from mainstream media); however, it was not the first (as Active Worlds was released in June 1995). Competitors in this relatively new subgenre (non-combat-based MMORPG) would come to include There, Entropia Universe and Dotsoul.
MMOSG may also represent Massively Multiplayer Online Sports Game (i.e. Shot Online or Ultimate Baseball Online) or Massively Multiplayer Online Strategy Game (examples include Dark Galaxy and The Mafia Network). [1]
Before the RTS games appeared, strategic games, like Empire, were turn-based and offered PBeM modes to compete with others. Nowadays turns can be processed on central (web)servers, allowing massive amounts of players. Unification Wars is a good example which relies heavily on diplomacy and player interaction. Instead of quickly mouse-clicking units into action RTS style, players carefully plan their moves.
[edit] MMCAP
Massively Multiplayer Collaborative Art Projects are typically browser based. Recent MMCAPs do not require any browser plugins or extensions. In contrast to traditional MMOGs, MMCAPs place an emphasis on creative collaboration. Examples of MMCAPs are Magnetic Ajax and TheBroth, an Ajax-based real-time mosaic application.
[edit] Real-world simulations
Some MMOGs have been designed to accurately simulate certain aspects of the real world. The MMOG genre of air traffic simulation is one example, with networks such as VATSIM and IVAO striving to provide rigorously authentic flight-simulation environments to players in both pilot and air traffic controller roles. In this category of MMOGs, the objective is to create duplicates of the real world for people who cannot or do not wish to undertake those experiences in real life. For example, flight simulation via a MMOG requires far less expenditure of time and money, is completely risk-free, and is far less restrictive (fewer regulations to adhere to, no medical exams to pass, and so on).
[edit] Others
A large amount of games categorize under MMOBBG (very similar to MMOBBRPGs), having the entire game primarily made up of text and descriptions, although images are often used to enhance the game. One of the games that set the precedent for these (many elements can be seen as similar) was Archmage.
Most other MMOGs are apparently simulation games, such as Motor City Online, The Sims Online (though this is often called an MMORPG), Ace of Angels, and Jumpgate.
In April 2004, the United States Army announced that it is developing a massively multiplayer training simulation called AWE (asymmetric warfare environment) that was expected to begin operation among soldiers by June. The purpose of AWE is to train soldiers for urban warfare and there are no plans for a public commercial release. Forterra Systems Inc. is developing it for the Army based on the There engine. [1]
Alternate reality games (ARGs) can be massively multiplayer, allowing thousands of players worldwide to co-operate in puzzle trails and mystery solving. ARGs take place in a unique mixture of online and real-world play that usually does not involve a persistent world, and are not necessarily multiplayer, making them different from MMOGs.
Considered by some to be a MMORPG, Castle Infinity was the first MMOG developed for children. Its gameplay, however, is somewhere between puzzle and adventure, making it more like a massively multiplayer platformer than a MMORPG.
'Quick Fix' MMOGs, such as Racing Frogs are MMOGs that can be played with only a small amount of time every day.
There are also Massively Multiplayer Collectible Card Games: Magic: The Gathering Online, Astral Masters and Astral Tournament, sometime abbreviated MTGO or MODO. Other MMOCCGs might exist (Neopets has some CCG elements) but are not as well known.
MMO: Also can mean Maintenance Management Office.
[edit] References
- ^ "What does MMOSG stand for?". TheFreeDictionary.com. (2005). Farlex. Retrieved on 2006-08-06.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Online Sport Managers - A chart of online sport managers (MMOGs), based on their number of users.
- TSOZone.com - A large free community of MMOG fans where you can meet the real person behind the characters they play.
- / Video Interview - An Interview With Shavaun Scott Psychotherapist About MMOs Part 1 of 2
- / Video Interview - An Interview With Shavaun Scott Psychotherapist About MMOs Part 2 of 2
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