Now that I've played for a while and have researched others opinions, I plan on taking this discussion and writing an academic research paper about it. Because the thought of Oblivion becoming a massively multiplayer online game (or MMO) set so many fans into a frenzy, I figured it would make sense to research and come to a more definitive conclusion on whether or not Oblivion would benefit from becoming an MMO. I obviously would include a lot of the sources I already used to pull quotes on what major fans would think of this change. However, alongside this would be a lot of rational thinking and comparing the game to other popular MMOs.
This will actually include comparing to MMOs that aren't just fighting such as World of Warcraft or RuneScape but also Club Penguin and Webkinz. Both are popular children's MMORPG that draw in a younger audience of gamers (example: in Webkinz, kids purchase a Beanie Baby-like stuffed animal that comes with a code to play with it online). By looking at all different types of MMOs, I should be able to research the basic reasons why MMOs are addictive, fun, and creative, or how they take away from certain classic game elements - things that Oblivion fans love and don't want to sacrafice.
The paper will most likely be split up into a basic introduction, list of pros to making Oblivion an MMO, list of cons to making Oblivion an MMO, a paragraph that grapples with the ultimate goal or result, and then the conclusion that states the ultimate finding. All of this will be based off of research from multiple games, websites, fans, and game creators.
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Week 5: From RPG to MMO
After looking into it further, I still don't really know if Oblivion would work better as a multiplayer game or as the regular Role Playing Game (RPG) it is now. If it were to become a Massively Multiplayer Online game, or MMO, there are some obvious pros and cons.
For starters, having Oblivion become an MMO would allow for you to play online with your friends whenever and wherever. Issues with weather, driving, and time would no longer stop you from playing your favorite video game with your friends. If it were an MMO, then you could play together with your friends as a team whenever. As one gamer said online, he and his friends are "always making each other laugh during D&D night, so I wanted to do it virtually" (The Nexus Forums). A number of Oblivion-users agreed that if the numbers were limited to small groups in one world online, then it would be much more manageable. "Small scale co-op multiplayer could work in a game like Oblivion, and it would probably help keep me on track with my quests too," one user said. "I get so easily sidetracked in this game, having a friend or two there to keep me on track would be handy!" (Steam). Just the image of teamwork in a game with such well set up tasks and goals is enough to get gamers thinking about the possibilities. "Just imagine a 40 man raid (wow reference) storming into and oblivion gate," (GameFAQs) one fan said.
But then again, these very same tasks and quests could be ruined by too many people roaming around at once, each with a human brain driving it instead of a computer's. As one user began to explain: "[Oblivion is] all about roughing it, living off the land, and making a reputation for yourself with the local population. I don't think any of these aspects would be reflected well with multiplayer" (Steam). The individualized focus of the game would lose a great deal of its weight and importance once the player is able to rely on others to move along and figure out how things work. Just look at my first run in with civilization. I picked items up in stores, not realizing that it would qualify as me "stealing," despite placing the items back down in a matter of seconds. If I were to play in a multiplayer mode, I could easily watch someone else make this mistake and avoid doing it myself, or just have a friend quickly tell me before I even get three steps into the city. Then there's the whole problem of playing with others who may or may not be on the same experience level as you. "It could get annoying for people who play legit, and people like me, who can't be killed by Mehrunes" (GameFAQs), explains one gamer.
So it's safe to say while people can find reasons to love Oblivion as an MMO, it still would work best as how it was created: an in depth RPG. One fan even offered the idea of a spin-off. Very little would be considered," he said, "but making it an official TES game might tick off the current fanbase (look at what happened with Final Fantasy XI)" (GameFAQs). Which is a very good example indeed. In the end, Oblivion is not about multiplayer and most likely should not be. "It is supposed to be an open ended, open world, highly non-linear, single player game series," says one fan, and he seemed to have nailed it on the head. "I'd like to see this in an Oblivion-esque game, but not in Oblivion itself. Something to dream about in the next game maybe... Which btw, when the hell is that?" (Steam).
For starters, having Oblivion become an MMO would allow for you to play online with your friends whenever and wherever. Issues with weather, driving, and time would no longer stop you from playing your favorite video game with your friends. If it were an MMO, then you could play together with your friends as a team whenever. As one gamer said online, he and his friends are "always making each other laugh during D&D night, so I wanted to do it virtually" (The Nexus Forums). A number of Oblivion-users agreed that if the numbers were limited to small groups in one world online, then it would be much more manageable. "Small scale co-op multiplayer could work in a game like Oblivion, and it would probably help keep me on track with my quests too," one user said. "I get so easily sidetracked in this game, having a friend or two there to keep me on track would be handy!" (Steam). Just the image of teamwork in a game with such well set up tasks and goals is enough to get gamers thinking about the possibilities. "Just imagine a 40 man raid (wow reference) storming into and oblivion gate," (GameFAQs) one fan said.
But then again, these very same tasks and quests could be ruined by too many people roaming around at once, each with a human brain driving it instead of a computer's. As one user began to explain: "[Oblivion is] all about roughing it, living off the land, and making a reputation for yourself with the local population. I don't think any of these aspects would be reflected well with multiplayer" (Steam). The individualized focus of the game would lose a great deal of its weight and importance once the player is able to rely on others to move along and figure out how things work. Just look at my first run in with civilization. I picked items up in stores, not realizing that it would qualify as me "stealing," despite placing the items back down in a matter of seconds. If I were to play in a multiplayer mode, I could easily watch someone else make this mistake and avoid doing it myself, or just have a friend quickly tell me before I even get three steps into the city. Then there's the whole problem of playing with others who may or may not be on the same experience level as you. "It could get annoying for people who play legit, and people like me, who can't be killed by Mehrunes" (GameFAQs), explains one gamer.
So it's safe to say while people can find reasons to love Oblivion as an MMO, it still would work best as how it was created: an in depth RPG. One fan even offered the idea of a spin-off. Very little would be considered," he said, "but making it an official TES game might tick off the current fanbase (look at what happened with Final Fantasy XI)" (GameFAQs). Which is a very good example indeed. In the end, Oblivion is not about multiplayer and most likely should not be. "It is supposed to be an open ended, open world, highly non-linear, single player game series," says one fan, and he seemed to have nailed it on the head. "I'd like to see this in an Oblivion-esque game, but not in Oblivion itself. Something to dream about in the next game maybe... Which btw, when the hell is that?" (Steam).
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Week 4: From Solo to Group Effort
"Just imagine...
You've come upon the strange door, part of you wants to step in and take a look, but another part of you is fearful and wants a companion. NPC companions bore you, you want something with a little more life to it. through a microphone, you call to your friend playing on the same co-op server as you to come over and venture these missions with you. you both step into the door, and venture forth into the shivering isles."
A user on Steam proposed this idea of multiplayer game-play on one of the forums in 2009. Steam not only allows its users to download various games, but is a popular places to discuss games, play, codes, and ideas. Naturally, this message sparked a number of responses. While this isn't the first time players have considered what the game would be like with a multiplayer option, it still provokes a strong response from both sides of the argument. After playing the game, imagining it as a multiplayer is just as hard to picture as it is easy. And, not to mention, it's an incredibly interesting proposal.
While I have been playing the game for over a month, it would require even more game-play hours to figure out if a multiplayer setup would be more beneficial to the game than harmful. But even with that additional game-play, I would need to look into all the different reactions from the Oblivion community. Looking at just one fan site's responses to this idea are not enough to explore this idea. Steam will be the first step, but I would need to look into other forums, both on sites focused on Oblivion (such as the Elder Scroll Forums) and those that are just online for general gaming (like GameSpot). There are many more outthere that I'll need to explore to see if they have a thread about players' opinions on what Oblivion would be like if a multiplayer setup were included.
Personally, I don't know if I would be for or against it. People are already discussing how it would make it too similar to World of Warcraft, with people possibly relying on the work of others to move father into the game with group hunts (or they just don't want to bring Oblivion into the WoW realm, in general). One user claimed it would "rock" to share the "beautiful world they (the engineers/artists) spent so long creating" with other live players. Then there are those that take the neutral decide, believing it would be fine as long as it was a choice for the player, but that gets into whether or not you could start one game and switch the multiplayer mode on and off or if you would need to start two separate games, one where you play in a multiplayer world and the other where it's just solo. As long as it's an option, multiplayer is fine. After researching some more, hopefully I'll find out if that really is the answer to upgrading (or possibly ruining) Oblivion.
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