Kudos, Dragonchaser!

Grid, I wasn’t intentionally talking about RPGs, but that’s kind of how it came out. Really I think the taxonomy could apply to any narrative-driven game. I can’t see it applying to, say, Madden, but I can see it applying to Gears of War.

I think I need to drop the “MMO” from the PvE and RvR stuff. So a shooter can be multi-player PvE when you’re playing Co-Op, and RvR when playing team-based modes.

Gwyn, I’m not sure I like the RP label just because as you point out, its very subjective, but how about Social vs Non-Social? On some level I RP every game I play, single or multiplayer. And someone else might never RP when they play. But to get that social experience, whether its an RP social experience or just a joking around social experience, obviously you need other people around.

Hmm, maybe “RP Potential” as a Pro for the multiplayer, and Non-Social as a Con for the single player?

Lars, I’m honestly not sure where Guild Wars fits in. It has a strong RvR component, doesn’t it? But your point about its Story is a strong one and I think I may be giving other MMOs short-shrift by discounting their stories. Maybe they don’t have 1 all-encompassing story, but they have lots of quest chains that teach attentive players about the lore of the game.

Tesh, maybe we split out “griefing” (though that indicates malice which isn’t always the case) from unpredictability?

The business model is trickier and really splits the multiplayer taxonomy in two. If, as Grid suggests, we include all multiplayer games rather than just MMOs… maybe we have 4 major categories. Single Player, PvE Multiplayer, PvP Multiplayer, PvE Subscription Multiplayer and PvP Subscription Mulitplayer?? Free to Play MMOs would end up in the same category as Call of Duty 4, but maybe that’s ok?

Hmm, I might work on this some more tomorrow at lunch. Thanks again for all the feedback and keep it coming!

Truth be told, I get more excited about these type of multiplayer experiences now than anything in the current MMO genre.

I’d also suggest the business model as a pro/con consideration. It’s a pro for those who play the game as much as a full time job, but for a casual player, the subscription model is a huge con, if not an outright barrier to entry. For either player, it’s also an albatross around the neck of game design, as design has to bend to the business demand to keep people playing as long as possible. This is why storytelling is so weak, player power over the world is so pathetic, and why the whole level/loot paradigm is the core of the game; it’s highly addictive.

In a console/single-player RPG, yes you’re guaranteed a good story (theoretically, that’s of course subjective) but it *is* a linear story. With few notable exceptions (Bard’s Tale!) the triumph of good over evil is fairly predictable, even if the story elements themselves are not. So for me, the presence of a linear story is debatable as a pro; it can just as easily be a con if you’re dedicated Role Player.

In PvE or RvR games, if one is a Role Player and can find a good RP group (two big ifs, to be sure), then I think RP becomes a dynamic and important concern in your MMOG categories. For the RP’er, that is — hardcore raiders might beg to differ, and find that a con. Me personally, I love that my characters stories can change in wildly different directions, or even span servers and groups, depending on how the social world is changing around them. Yes, the pixel content does remain static more or less, but the characters one meets are an ever-changing landscape.

Written quickly before a meeting… probably lots to pick apart there, not sure I presented my case all that clearly but can’t take time to edit.