How do you judge an mmo as "Great" ?

George_Black

My reasons

Primary:
classes and abilities
weapon choices
PvP structure (reasons to pvp)
Land control (castles, sieges)
armor looks
crafting and economy

Secondary:
raiding structure (open world raids, instanced raids, hardcore zones needing grouping)
gathering professions and materials
lifeskills
Naval content and swimming on masses of water
ability to attack and steal loot from players


What about you?

McShave

On general terms, an MMO would be considered great if I spend every moment not playing the game wanting to play it. This is usually done by having many different things I can do to enhance my character, such as:

- grind for better gear so my combat numbers are higher
- grind for more gold so i can buy things
- level up professions so that I can help out my guild or make money
- defeat difficult bosses in chance of rare items
- practice my PvP (for fun mostly, but ashes will be PvX so maybe this will be important)
- level an alt to expand my capabilities in the game
- try to improve my character's combat build so that i can do more damage, or heal more, or survive longer, etc.

The more things in the game that I can do, while not being forced to do them like retail wow at the moment, the more i want to get in the game and do those things.

CROW3

Primary:
An immersive world worth exploring
Rewarding exploration experience
Interesting classes
One toon can learn to use many weapons
Combat system
Crafting professions / gathering
Story

Secondary:
PvP
Economics
Group PvE content
Housing
Boats!
Compulsive collecting

Azherae

I was contemplating if to even answer because I know I'd just end up wanting to say 'FFXI' and leave it at that, but that helps no one understand, it's just a nod to those who already played it.

I'll just list a bunch of things it does correctly instead. Bear in mind that the game's PvP is extremely limited and not connected to basically any aspect of what I list here.

1. Lateral/Horizontal Progression, I like the longevity and the feeling of getting gear that helps even a little
2. Powerful team coordination. Skillchains and Magic Bursts are still the best mechanic.
3. Good classes, class balance. They took a while on that 'balance' part but only in terms of party invites.
4. Diverse enemies with decent/strong mechanics. When some other game catches up to it, I'll play that.
5. A 'meter' system to go with autoattacks. I mentioned skillchains before, TP (Meter) attacks are the prereq.
6. Different performance per weapon type. Whether that's different TP attacks or attack speed.
7. Proficiencies in combat/weapon skills. They can be a pain to build up sometimes, but it's still nice to feel.
8. Sense of scale and others in the world. Beastmen 'civilizations' add a real sense of dynamism.
9. Soft competition for territory. Conquest War was moreso a race and didn't matter a lot, but it still did things.
10. Ability to subclass meaningfully. Combined with weapon proficiency, this led to some variation.
11. Immersive cooking and food systems. Just bugs me when games don't have this somewhere.
12. Inability to level all crafts to max. Increases interdependence and gives something to associate for.
13. Relatively difficult crafting at high level. At least in terms of raising it, it was interesting.
14. Specialization in crafting. This was moreso about making High Quality versions. Level 2+ crafts for 1 item.
15. Level capped areas/Bosses. They added Level Sync later too, so friends could play together more
16. Dynamic class roles. The result of the combination of stuff above, encounter shifts, so do you.
17. Enemies sharing classes with players. Makes them easier to understand and balance, helps some design.
18. Open World PvE Sieges, Infiltrations and WarZones. Added later. Fun immersive content even if repeating.
19. Customizable/enchantable armor. Added later, effects are small, but can push your build any way you like.
20. Balanced economy. I wrote a paper on it in college as the final requirement of a course. Easy A.
21. Good macros and targeting system. '/ma "Cure IV" <laststpc>' has saved many a wounded soul.
22. Chocobos. I love chocobos. Raising 'em, racing 'em, riding 'em. Horses are ok. Mount rearing is fun.
23. Good gardening and fishing systems. One of the best things to pass time doing while waiting for group.
24. Limited fast travel. Actually negated/removed later on, but not so much that you never walk anywhere.
25. Ability to freely trade with players. Can't believe I have to say this, but there are games without it.
26. Different enemy aggro, strong enemies in lower zones. Until max level, most places are a little dangerous.
27. Lower reliance on consumables. I just prefer magic over potions in fantasy games, and I'm an Alchemist.
28. Lots of gear slots. Played a lot of MMOs with less than 16 and always felt lacking.
29. Diverse zones and biomes. Desert, snow mountain, forest, jungle, plains, highlands, canyons...
30. Diverse player race cultures. With some variation. Intriguing, makes the setting feel better.

Eh, thirty is enough...

I'm picky. Every MMORPG since FFXI has been missing something (or lots of things), so I never left it. Ashes might someday catch up. I'll hope so. Then there will be two great MMORPGs I've played instead of one.

I've been told I should have played Runescape.

truelyyy

I could give a long list of features but for me to judge how good it is, it's a game I keep wanting to go back into play and feel immersed, always having something fun to do and something to progress towards. The fun is almost always tied to playing with other players in the game in different capacities.

daveywavey

In general:
- if it's successful
- if it has a lot of players
- if it's been going for a long time
- if it's well thought of in the gaming community as a whole

For me personally:
- if it's enjoyable
- if it has lots of intricate systems that are easy to learn but take some time to perfect
- if it has an in-depth lore and an engaging storyline
- if there are plenty of opportunities for interaction with other players, but also enough places for me to be by myself
- if it has an in-depth and varied skill-set where the skills I choose for my skillbar actually feel like they have an impact on my gameplay
- if it has a good mix of challenging content and ways for me to goof around when I fancy


I'm sure there are more, but those are the ones I can be bothered thinking of right now.

HazardNumberSeven

When an MMO doesn't cater to the lowest common denominator in hopes of just getting as many players as possible (selling out, ie WoW). It needs to have a social aspect. It needs to be multiplayer, and not just superficially. That's what would make an MMO great. Haven't played one of those in a very long time. Ever since that game came out the entire genre has been dead.

HumblePuffin

My biggest thing is having interesting classes that offer a wide variety of paths to be successful. I enjoy meta gaming and playing with skill calculators so I can find that fun viable build that no one is using that fits my playstyle. I’m a bit of a hipster when it comes to playing a class. The class system in this game is one of the biggest reasons I’m so invested in it, and my “archetype” choice will be heavily influenced by which one has the most “classes” I would want to experiment with.

Below that, in order but all fairy close to importance for me:
-well done PvP content including arena style matches and quality owpvp preferably
-engaging combat system that feels responsive, and fluid
-solid profession system that doesn’t just feel like a boring chore. My definition of what feels like a chore is pretty hard to pin down because I enjoy gathering quite a bit which can be pretty mindless but not boring to me if it’s done right. Once again feeling fluid, where I can get in a groove, and not realize I just spent an hour+ partaking in the profession.
-gear system that is impactful and can be tailored to your playstyle but not the only reason you win battles.
-interesting PvE content that feels different encounter to encounter. I prefer to want to do PvE content because it’s fun not because I feel obligated because I want the loot(not that loot can’t be a factor in it).
-quests that are both engaging pieces of story that I want to know what happens next, while also being fluid. I prefer when I’m able to complete “kill/gather x” quests while traveling to other more story/experience driven quests.

Some take aways I had from writing this, I enjoy viably customizable, fluid systems, that make me feel like I accomplished something. That accomplishment can vary between actual progression, to just enjoying what I did. When I log out I want to feel like I did something. This is another reason I’m invested in this game; so many different planned systems that can contribute to a feeling of accomplishment.

Percimes

Fun to play.

Marcet

EPIC.

Moments, people and interactions you remember your whole life.

Hard, with a legendary endgame wich if you complete it means you are crazy, and if you don't you are just in awe of how far the horizon is and the people that made it there.

Fun and familiar, you can always go and play some PvP or clear some dungeon.

Comfy to play, hard to master, with a lot of build variety and real freedom to do whatever you want in the world.

Lots of secrets.

Noaani

By it surviving 10 years.

Such games may not be games that I consider worth playing, but there is no denying that an MMO that is live for 10 years or more is indeed great.

George_Black

Noaani wrote: »

By it surviving 10 years.

Such games may not be games that I consider worth playing, but there is no denying that an MMO that is live for 10 years or more is indeed great.

With new servers every now and then

Vhaeyne

What I look for:

Developers with a clear passion for the game they want to make.

I can get behind a number of game styles personally. Anything from pure instanced based PvE to pure open world sandbox PvP. If the developers are passionate and honestly making a game they would like to play. Chances are, others would like to play it.

Ramirez

Great open danger world content both pve/pvp that bring competition but at same time cooperation