• 29Sep 09

  The Many Faces of a Gamespot Forum Thread

  Thought you all may enjoy this. I have collected the many forms of a Gamespot forum thread. These are the many paths that a forum tends to take, and it rarely strays. Hope you enjoy : ).

  Example #1:

  "Hey! I just got this game!"

  "No you didn't"

  "Pics or it didn't happen"

  *Topic creator gets annoyed*

  "Hey i'm just posting my basic opinion here, i have this game!"

  "No you don't, topic creator is fail"

  Example #2:

  "Wow this game is cool!"

  "Yeah I think so too"

  "Yeah if you guys think ______ and _______ is awesome *sarcasm*"

  "Hey shut it, we're just enjoying this game"

  "yeah, leave us alone troll"

  *sarcastic insulting of intelligence by troll*

  Example #3:

  "This game isn't as good as ________"

  "So? Who cares about your opinion? I like it."

  "I'm telling you this game isn't as good as _______ because of ______ , ______ , and ________."

  "Um, I still don't care what you say, i'm still gonna play it"

  "but I don't like it!"

  "then go somewhere else"

  *reported*

  Example #4:

  "Hey I really need some help figuring this out"

  "Screw you"

  "yeah newb just use the search function"

  "But it takes a while to do that! Can't you just answer my question?"

  "we've done this numerous times before, just shut it"

  "yeah, what he said, shut it"

  "Cmon guys, that's not very nice, here's your answer dude"

  "Thank you! : )"

  Example #5:

  "hey i've got a really good idea!"

  "That idea sucks"

  "That would be horrible, the game is perfect like it is"

  "Hey i just posted an idea, if you're going to tell me how horrible it is then give me some reasons"

  "We don't have to have reasons when something is so obviously stupid"

  "well excuse me for trying to determine what would be cool for DLC"

  "Fail Fa Fail Fail Fail"

  Example #6:

  *obvious question*

  "you know what I think? This topic is now about pandas"

  "pandas eat bamboo"

  "They are black and white, I hate them because I'm a bi-racist"

  Example #7:

  "Here is my opinion"

  "You're wrong"

  "how could I be wrong in my opinion?"

  "Because I'm intelligent and I say so"

  "You're not intelligent"

  *sarcastic quote by "intelligent" person, demeaning*

  *opinion giver gets annoyed*

  "Well you're a moron!"

  "I know you are, i'm intelligent"

  Example #8:

  "World of Warcraft"

  "World of Failcraft"

  "World of Warcraft"

  "World of Warhammer"

  "World of Warcraft"

  "World of Poopcraft"

  **banned**

  Example #9:

  "Hey guys check out my new review I just posted!"

  "you didn't mention _______ , ________, or ________."

  "I thought I summed it up pretty well though"

  "way to fail"

  "you're a horrible writer, *grammer police*"

  "well i'm not writing a college paper! this is just the internet!"

  "well you aren't looking very intelligent"

  Example #10:

  "Gamespot gave it a 6!?!?! Those morons!"

  "It's just one opinion, dont base your purchase off that; ______ gave it a higher score"

  "I'm not buying a game that got a 6"

  "But this game is really fun"

  "I used to think so! But not with a 6!"

  "Did you like Mario Kart 64?"

  "YES"

  "Then enough said....idiot"

  -This may not be all the forms one could take, but I doubt anyone that has been here as long as I have (since 2003) wouldn't recognize at least one of these forum types. Ahhh internet anonymity, how we love you.

  • Posted Sep 29, 2009 9:23 am PT
  • Category: Editorial
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• 31Jul 09

  MMO Developer checklist...

  Congratulations! You are an MMO designer, you have a long road ahead of you, so lets give you a list of what to remember when designing your fantasy world.

  1. Have a solid idea- Nobody likes a game where the designer doesn't know where to take it. If you want to make a fantasy game, don't come out with an expansion based in Africa (i'm looking at you Guild Wars).

  2. Don't be overly ambitious- It's good to start with some basic ideas of how you want gameplay to work and go from there, don't try to incorporate too many aspects of the game at once and just focus on how to make the elements you already have work together instead.

  3. Persistance- Make as much of the game persistant as possible, nobody wants to be living in a fantasy world and then see a loading screen.

  4. Usable graphics- Do NOT release a game that can't be played on anyones computer upon launch(Everquest 2). Instead, come up with a graphics style that is timeless and then work with it.

  5. Know when to listen to complainers- Many developers make the mistake of listening too much to the players. Players will always find something to complain about and if you get stuck into helping them all the time you will be forgetting to add new content frequently.

  6. ALWAYS give something to look forward to- A good developer will complete an activity online and already have one waiting for after it's over. If you continue to add a constant stream of online celebrations the gamer feels like they have something to continue playing (and paying) for.

  7. Anticipate low numbers- Even if you are anticipating a high amount of players make your amount of servers small. It is better to have a stable small number of servers than tons of servers that you will eventually have to delete.

  8. NEVER release player numbers- Don't do it! Not even when the game first releases. Instead, let the game speak for itself. For instance, if you mention your numbersas being 700,000 and then everyone quits it doesn't look good (age of conan). If you were to not release those numbers instead then people would have no idea how many people are playing.

  WHAT PLAYERS LOOK FOR:

  Here's a quick rundown of what a player will be looking for upon starting your game...

  Varied Customization options

  PvP as soon as possible

  Feeling like a hero (having a purpose)

  TONS of endgame content (do NOT forget extra places to adventure for PvE enthusiasts!)

  Extra things to do (cards, player housing, fishing, musicians, etc.)

  Usable environments (Every door must be open to enter, and every interior must be different)

  NO OPEN PLAINS! (Star Wars Galaxies made this mistake, do not have open plains that give the feeling of loneliness, every square acre must be covered)

  Stay away from boring quests as much as possible.

  and just have a brain.

  • Posted Jul 31, 2009 7:17 am PT
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• 31Jul 09

  The problem with having an MMO designer in your head...

  Every time I see a new MMORPG being released I can't help but think of all the different things that they could be doing right. Sometimes I even wish I could be there directing one with my own assistance, but I still find myself just sitting here being essentially an armchair referree as I watch game makers screw up over and over.

  What is it that makes a good MMO? An Imagination.

  The problem becomes that whenever a company goes to decide how to make an MMO, they forget to hire people with a creative vision. I'm not talking about the people drawing the concept art, i'm talking about people who are able to imagine entire worlds working together. That's why next up i'm going to write a list of what to remember when making an MMO.

  • Posted Jul 31, 2009 6:58 am PT
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