design
Vague Patch Notes: Early access is just game development as performance art
I was reminded recently about Valheim. I do not own the game and thus have not played it; I cannot tell you if it...
Vague Patch Notes: What City of Heroes Homecoming means for the wider MMORPG industry
As you have probably noticed from the fact that I have been writing about City of Heroes nonstop since the Homecoming server got its...
Vague Patch Notes: The real question every MMO has to answer
Why am I here?
A lot of times I will slow-roll my column and lead to something unexpected, something that I am sure you are...
Vague Patch Notes: MMOs are still just games you rent
When I was a teenager, I accidentally stole a few games from a video rental place. You might wonder how you accidentally steal something,...
Vague Patch Notes: The ever-changing costs of playing an MMORPG
It was a pretty big deal back when I had first started working at original Massively when the trend started, and I can still...
Vague Patch Notes: It’s never cheating in MMOs when you do it
My friend from Final Fantasy XI was, understandably, upset. He had just been suspended for a week, and he had been warned that continued...
Vague Patch Notes: What you can’t forget in MMOs
Years ago, I had a relationship with someone I met in Final Fantasy XI. It wasn't a good or solid relationship by any stretch...
Vague Patch Notes: Waiting for the MMORPG endings that are never coming
It took some real courage for Naoki Yoshida to get up and announce that Final Fantasy XIV was ending. After an enormously successful run,...
Vague Patch Notes: MMO gameplay by enhancement
A while back, I was talking in the comments of an article about how bad The Secret World's combat was. It was the game's...
Vague Patch Notes: The myth of the ‘first’ MMORPG
One of the things I like to joke about every so often is various myths about the history of MMOs, and a lot of...
Vague Patch Notes: How does an MMORPG studio rebuild trust it shattered?
Earlier this week, Pantheon cancelled its intensely stupid extraction shooter mode. Now, I don't say that it's intensely stupid because I dislike this sort...
Vague Patch Notes: BlizzCon 2023 wasn’t a disaster, but it needed to be better
The last live BlizzCon in 2019 was not a great show, but it was fundamentally a hype festival for Blizzard just like they've all...
Vague Patch Notes: So what are MMORPGs meant to be?
I don't know exactly why I've spent so much time this year fixating on the question about what MMORPGs are meant to be and...
Vague Patch Notes: Default MMORPG genre features change over time, and that’s OK
I want you to picture a nonexistent MMO in your head right now. Not one that hasn't released yet; one that hasn't even been...
Vague Patch Notes: Pivots don’t work with MMOs
So we can pretty much confirmed now that Pantheon's goose is thoroughly cooked. Yes, I know, the folks at Visionary Realms are claiming that...
Vague Patch Notes: Why procedural generation doesn’t solve the content problems of MMOs
Just yesterday, MOP's Justin ran down the various features that the long-canceled EverQuest Next promised before its demise - including the promise of all...
Vague Patch Notes: Why people can’t just ignore things they don’t want in MMORPGs
As I often do, I'm going to start this column with a bit of history. But in this particular case, it's a bit of...
Vague Patch Notes: The games industry arrogance cycle, in MMOs and elsewhere
Unity has fallen. Oh, sure, the company has rolled back the worst parts of its incredibly boneheaded "give us money for your successful game"...
Vague Patch Notes: So what actually kills MMO communities?
Since we're busy getting a front-row seat to World of Warcraft adding the dungeon finder again, only this time it's WoW Classic, we are...
Vague Patch Notes: I don’t know what the deal is with Throne & Liberty
Let me just state this outright: What in the absolute heck is supposed to be going on with Throne & Liberty at this point?...
