I'm getting old.
Looking back on how long I've been around on GameSpot (I missed my decade anniversary, happy birthday to me), I've been able to witness the slowly changing tastes of gamers and casuals alike. Between the RTS heavy early 00's; to the never ending tirade of Gears of War clones; to the rise indie horror games (a la Slender Man), and finally the rebirth of FPS games like Rainbow Six Siege, I've been able to witness the changing dynamics of needs and wants of my fellow gamers. This however, leads to me one genre that I feel as though needs a new renaissance lest it decay to the likes of the "Point and Click" adventure platform: MMOs.
I recently watched a Funhaus video (link later), in which they also discuss the idea that MMOs are a genre in decline. They made a good few points, that the genre has had to try and compete with others by offering F2P, blending it with other genres (Destiny) or add a yearly update to stay relevant (WoW). However, I believe that the idea that consumers are dealing with MMO-fatigue is a good and strong revelation. It's the reason why consumers didn't fight for games like The Old Republic, or why WoW is bleeding users weekly. They can try and add a short-term incentive, but ultimately the users consume that new gameplay and when they're done, they yearn for something else. It's the same reason why the Elder Scrolls Online did not ultimately take off as well as people would have hoped; it wasn't a bad game, it just wasn't what people wanted at the time.
As I stated before, I believe that the MMO genre is going to have to go through a complete renaissance in order to fight back the aging process. We're going to need a one-two punch in order to get back the player base of the Golden Age of WoW. In the same Funhaus video, the guys also mentioned their disappointment in another well-known game: Fallout 4. They lauded the game's visual art style, combat, and design, but ultimately felt like the game was still lackluster in it's game play resemblance to earlier Fallout titles. Commentator Bruce Greene mentioned that he would love to see an online component to Fallout in the future, and this comment sparked an idea that has already been well validated by a game released just over two years ago: Grand Theft Auto 5.
I'm starting to see why Grand Theft Auto has continued to have such a well founded appeal even at this time, because the game has conventionally turned the MMO world upside down without even realizing it. By providing players with a well segmented, and entirely separate single-player game, they have allowed themselves the freedom of producing a secondary MMO game with their GTA Online. The online component of GTA allows the players the large scale community, with the character customization, wanton destruction and PVP mechanics they crave, while allowing other players the freedom to invest themselves in characters they care about in their own private time. By integrating single-player NPCs into missions online, and by blending simple things like vehicle combination to be the same on both online and off-line situations, they allow the users to feel already integrated into the online world. They have managed to create for themselves two games and keep a healthy player base for the foreseeable future.
This strong combination of single player and online world; this blend of focused story, and non-linear freedom; this revitalization of personal space, mixed with a unique sense of community, is how the MMO genre is going to have to cater to less it fall into irrelevance. With new games like Tom Clancy's The Division; updates to existing games like WoW's newest expansion Legion; and even Fallout's newest announced DLC, maybe I'm barking up the wrong tree. Maybe I'm becoming too jaded and cynical, borne from a world where everyday I see fewer of my friends make the time for games that they could've loved.
Or maybe I'm just a father figure, hoping that the genre that has been molded by people like me, by gamers like me, will be able to adapt to the new future that my uncontrollable tastes and unconventional needs has wrought.
Comment, discuss, prove me I'm just jaded.
Funhaus Dude Soup Podcast #60:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IFjJWLE96sk