What is the "generic hotkey based fantasy MMO"?

[LonestarHero]

By "hotkeys" are we talking about ability/spell bars typically mapped to the 1 thru = keys on the keyboard? I'm assuming that is the definition.

How else could an MMO be done without hotkeys? The only alternative I have seen is what DCUO did with mouse click combos for damaging abilities. But since key mapping is so flexible these days, couldn't one consider left, right, and middle mousebutton clicks as "hotkeys" now too?

Kudos to wombinator04 for exposing me to this term in the following thread!

http://www.mmo-champion.com/threads/...Opinion-Thread

[openair]

Every game. Every fantasy, every rpg, every shooter, every action game requires someway to trigger abilities by the user. Whether that is done by the keyboard or mouse is irrelevant, and should be left up to the end user (just as the idea of games being first or 3rd person shooters is increasingly irrelevant, with more and more games leaving that choice to the end user).

A non-generic mmo (specifically 'fantasy' is also irrelevant) would do away with ideas like targets being automatically aimmed (you would aim similar to a shooter, rather then only having to pick and face your target). Your melee swings would hit whatever was in the path of your weapon, rather than only requiring you be in melee range and facing your target.

AND/OR a different progression design (instead of levels, level cap, gear).

[Larynx]

I generally picture it as combat similar to WoW. Any game that deviates from this, such as Tera or GW2, would not be a "generic hotkey based fantasy MMO."

Really dislike the term though. Everything uses hotkeys. Every single game.

But basically, you have a hotbar, and when you press a hotkey, one of the abilities on your hotbar will be used and do something to your target. In something like Tera/Gw2, when you press a button you do not require a target, and you don't necessarily hit your target even if you do because of things like collision with some entity in the path of the ability, such as an arrow getting stuck in a tree, or because they're out of range/not in the hit detection arc of the ability (like for a melee swing)

I guess it just comes down to how much freedom the combat provides, really.

edit: Also yes, mouse buttons are hotkeys.