MMO Atmosphere: 2012 vs 2005

[Zenko]

http://pc.gamespy.com/articles/122/1225088p1.html

"At this point, I'm convinced this lack of fulfillment springs from generational differences rather than the design of the games themselves. I'm not saying that younger players can't enjoy or even love MMORPGs, but I do believe the modern gaming world lacks the precise conditions that famously made us slaves to the WoW/EverQuest model in the last decade."

I never read GameSpy articles but I happened to Stumble this and I thought it was worth a gander. He basically goes on about how integrated modern gaming is versus the unique experience that WoW and older MMOs used to offer. It's much easier nowadays to find a niche online game to spend your time on.

He pretty much sums up how I feel about MMOs nowadays. I'm only 23 but I've been playing MMOs since I was 14. I want to play but there are just so many distractions. Having said that, I will play MoP and I will play Guild Wars 2. I don't think we've seen a true 'next-generation' MMORPG since the early 2000s. Guild Wars 2 might fit the bill, but I'm not holding my breath.

[Kalyyn]

I don't think we'll ever see a "next-gen" mmo. MMOs change gradually. Everquest, WoW, Aion, Rift, Tera, GW2. Consider all of these games.

If you compare EQ to Vanilla WoW, they are very similar. Compare WoW to Aion, also very similar, and so forth. Tera is similar to Aion and Rift, but very different from EQ. That is because MMOs change gradually. You see, the only companies that can afford to make dramatically new and different MMOs won't. Why? Because even though they have to money to do so, they aren't willing to risk that money. They take the "safe" formula and tweak it slightly. The companies that are young and agile enough to take those kinds of risks can't afford to. The "next-gen" mmo has likely been born and died dozens of times already. It was a game you never heard of, and it never got off the ground because it's creators couldn't fund it.

That being said, look into a game called StarForge. I'm skeptical of all indie projects, but if this one actually releases it'll be something amazing.