When I look at the current crop of top MMORPGs, I’m dismayed to realize that not a single one of them has anything significant in the way of player-generated content inside the game. Sure, people roleplay, and a few of them have relatively limited prefab housing, but if you’re looking for something structured like a Foundry, Chronicles, Dimensions, or Architect Entertainment system? You have to look into older MMORPGs for these types of systems, sometimes significantly older, and sometimes off the books. Even some of those have been sunsetted – I know many of you are still mourning the Foundry specifically.
But games just outside the “traditional MMORPG” genre, from Roblox to Conan Exiles, are positively thriving not just offering but focusing on what the players can do, which in my mind all but nullifies the typical arguments that PGC is bad since most players are bad at creating it. It seems like such a waste: MMOs are happy to use players as the content in PvP, even when most of that PvP is terrible. There’s no reason not to give PvE players the functional equivalent.
How important is player-generated content to you in MMOs?
Every morning, the Massively Overpowered writers team up with mascot Mo to ask MMORPG players pointed questions about the massively multiplayer online roleplaying genre. Grab a mug of your preferred beverage and take a stab at answering the question posed in today’s Daily Grind!
