My first experience with MMOs was Final Fantasy XI, and so it was weird to me when I started getting some experience in the wider MMO world and realized that the game’s global servers were not the norm. Indeed, most of the time a game from another part of the world will have locally configured servers for each reason, complete with its own localized times for server maintenance and the like. Square-Enix’s global option is actually the exception rather than the rule.
Of course, the benefit of regional servers is that you can tailor your maintenance around regional prime times and focus on a very specific section of your customer base. On the other hand, considering how often international games have wildly different timing on updates and improvements across different regions, sometimes it feels to me like having just one version worldwide has its own advantages in terms of general uniformity of experience. What do you think? Should international MMOs have global servers or separate regional servers?
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!
