1. #1
    The Patient
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    Have MMOs just changed?

    There is a lot of debate with SWTOR on features, each really seems to just beg the question if MMOs just changed and some of the player base hasnt/dosent/wont recognize it.

    There seems to be a split of MMOers that have experience with EQ or other say "traditional" MMOs and those that come from WoW where it moved from a "traditional" style MMO to a very convenience based MMO. While the growth of the player base has been very large due to WoW (and probably that convenience) it also seems that there are factions of:

    A) MMOs are grindy in nature; it should require effort to do A, B, etc...
    B) MMOs are a game in nature; A, B, etc.. should be available to me when I want them

    Both have their up or down side; however it seems over the past few years that MMOs are putting in more items to appeal to the "B" type player. Am I off on this? Will or could a MMO succeed by keeping "traditional"?

  2. #2
    I think there can be a balance. I was a pretty casual player and never raided anything above Kara/ZA in TBC, but I still loved that expansion. I know alot of hardcores that also liked TBC. There were harder raids like BT and Sunwell for them and more casual raids like Kara/ZA for the rest of the us, as well as badges. I was fine with that. Does this mean I did not get to see some content? Sure, but if I really wanted to see it I would make time....

  3. #3
    Of course they have changed because the player base that is able to play MMOs has increased dramatically/exponentially.

    In the early days of MMOs online access and capable "family" PCs were less common than now. The early MMOs also stuck closely and appealed largely to mathy/high involvement players of older PC RPGs where complexity and difficulty were the main motivators.

    We will never see an MMO closer to Ultima Online or Shadowbane in the popular market again.

    That type of game design is flatly, out of fashion.

    TL;DR-- MMOs used to be smaller market for a niche type of gamer. That market has grown to include just about anyone interested in any playstyle nowadays.

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