RIFT Impressions: Loving and Hating That New MMO Smell
Almost everyone likes new. In our culture, newness gets an undeserved sense of respect and cachet. There’s a sense of anticipation and mystique about an upcoming film, a new restaurant, …
Tag: Blizzard
MMOs Were Originally Designed to Be Shared Social Experiences
Most MMO enthusiasts have noticed a sharp decline in the quality of the WoW community of late. Cursing, nastiness, bullying and other forms of rudeness have now become endemic in …
Is Blizzard’s Cataclysm the Worst Expansion in MMO History?
There's an aging corpulent MMO dinosaur that is lumbering under the weight of its own arrogance and sloth. This MMO has grown too big for its environment and is due …
The Triumph of Personal Virtual Space in Social Games
There's a revolution going on in the video game industry. Each day hundreds of millions of players log on and experience the phenomenon called social gaming in games like Farmville, …
Identity of BlizzCon Red Shirt Guy Revealed
There’s more Red Shirt Guy news today. As well as the fact that the video of him asking that now famous question of the lore devs at BlizzCon has seen …
Tough Questions I’d Like to See Asked at BlizzCon 2010
As an observer of Blizzard for many years, I've noticed that they rarely engage or debate the public in open and independent forums. The Blizzard public relations machine runs a …
BlizzCon 2010 New MMO Announcement Speculation
Earlier this week, Blizzard released the Cataclysm cinematic to the public. I find this anti-climatic given the fact that BlizzCon is only a few days away. Perhaps this might …
Are Chatless MMOs a Precursor to Console MMOs?
At least for me, the big appeal of participating in a MMORPG was the fact that you could interact with other people online. Not only could you band together to …
The Great MMO Paradox: Why Success Keeps Trumping Quality
Think for just a moment, what would happen if we took the most classic sports and games of all time and asked two of today's most successful gaming companies Blizzard …
WoW Cataclysm Beta: Blizzard’s Lack of Respect for Customer Loyalty
Every two years as a WoW expansion draws nearer, it seems I have to write the same article questioning the validity of Blizzard's beta selection process. Despite pointing out …
Reflections on the Upcoming EverQuest Next
Over the years, I've spent spent too much time obsessing about my obsession for one particular MMO: EverQuest . What is it about this enigmatic game/experience/world that keeps haunting me? …
The Emasculation of MMOs: Part 2 – Fun is for Children, Adventure is for Adults
Something has changed about the MMO experience in the past six years. Chances are you probably haven't even noticed it but you can probably feel it just the same. MMO …