This is a little idea I've been toying with - Yeah, I'll admit I'm not the keenest MMORPG player (grinding gets on me a lot - More or less the reason I ditched Pokemon, but not the point) around, but lots of my irl friends all play 'em, - mostly the Korean ones, fittingly enough - and I've actually played a few of them with them.
Well, with that said, let's take a look into what thos MMOs are like and then discuss what should be done to make Sonic into an MMO! (Note: I'm taking the ROG part of the term out specifically because frankly, I don't thnk that aspect of MMOs are compatible with Sonic.)
So there's a lot of games out there, and many with a unique style... What should we get into first? Hmm... Well, let's start with what most (if not all) MMOs worth their salt has: Grinding and Levels.
Levels are a feature in most RPGs - In ERPGs at least, that have a limited amount of gameplay tied to the story with most being unable to revisit after clearing the game, levels are to divide players: if everyone can have different stats against thesame enemy, it's rather like other games, where it's dependent on your playing skill - but there's a catch. It's actually depenent on your playing time.
This is no less true in the MMOs I know - every one of them has a minimalist plot (except MapleStory which is just a massively bloated cliche, and even then it doesn't even matter in-game if you're playing as... Well, almost anything) and a massive world, leaving you to supposedly "Adventure in this Massive world!" - but as a sad single guy driving a sad single c- I mean, tiny nublet that intentionally nerfs much of what you can do, even if you're a veteran player at said game who accidentally forgot his password. This means that if you want to do anything in-game, you'll have to grind for levels or money. (since there is no story, there's no flow into when and what you can do, and no subtle enemy progression leading you further into the levels for taking down bosses) This also means that for the most part, how good you are at in MMOs dependent on how long you've been playing as a single character. It also means that (as long as there's none of that missing attacks completely due to low level stuff) how good you are in an MMO is how low your level is when you have accomplished a task - struggling with a self-given challenge, much like the famous Nuzlocke Challenge.
Now, when you first take a glance at Sonic (especially Unleashed-Colors-Generations-Rush-RushAdventure - pretending Lost World doesn't exist for a sec.) gameplay, you might think "Yeah, but how could this be an MMO?!" - a valid thought. But true to Can of Nothing tradition, we're going for the unconventional: (ironically conventional to Sonic) taking the good features of MMOs and bending them to fit Sonic. This means that my suggestion is a potentially unmarketable disaster with virtually no appeal but is also a large innovation as far as I know.
This is very slightly inspired by a certain Korean MMO called Crazy Arcade BnB: an MMO Bomberman clone. While it's impossible to call the game 'original', it shows that an 'Arcade' style game can work as an MMO - and that people can and will like it. (People may know the series better with KartRider - a Mario Kart ripoff that has a free iPhone app - KartRider Rush - albeit with in-game purchases for most of its content.)
First off, let's decide what we want to keep from MMOs. Here's a list:
Levels: Intergrated into ranks - heavily modified to promote skill over playing time
Character classes: Non-permanent and based off your playing style
Customizable moveset: Intergrated into the Skill Shop - limited amount of moves, as well as limited "points" per se
Customizable character appearance: Taken 100%! This would be a fancharacter creator's dream - and while it wouldn't do anything to help the F Yeah Bad Sonic Fancharacters blog, (or it might?!) it might still attract a handful of thos fancharacters - especially newbie hackers that just hack their fancharacter over Sonic or the ones that are in the fanbase just for the fancharacters.
In-game purchases: A neccesary sin - but absolutely optional. The game will be playable without the custom equipment - just that that jacket would look fantastic on your fancharacter there~
...wait, that's it? Oh well, now let's get crackin'!
Imagine a White Space of sorts: a 2D hub world that leads to the levels that the game has to offer. The first time you play, you're taken to a tutorial level, and as soon as you know how to play.. Another tutorial level?
This is necessary, however, to determine the player's play style: whether they're more akin to Sonic, taking for the fastest path, be there goodies or not, like Knuckles, taking a combat-oriented (yes, it's back, but... Imagine Rayman Origins with SSB-esque combos, will ya) path, taking a bit longer than the other paths for the added price of the points making up for it, or Tails, choosing a heavily platforming-style path, later to get the ability to fly. After this is done, you can choose between the levels - as well as the option to play against someone or just to go on your own. Little to no interaction is done in the levels - the main part of that is taken place in White Space. Levels are gone and replaced with Ranks - your rank on every level combined (Stages that aren't cleared are on Z by default) and placed on an average scale ranging from A to Z. (thus removing S's significance) Based on your rank and playing style, there will be a wide moveset given to you: including the Boost, Drift and Homing Attack for Speed, a hover, double jump and flight for... Well, Flight, and... Uh... A werehog-esque homing attack punch that targets an enemy near you (but not necessarily dragging you towards it) and.. Uh, Knuckles' SA2 moves? - for Power.
That is what I think an MMO in the gameplay style of Sonic could be - a nice progression (albeit 2D) of Modern Sonic's gameplay. I'm sorry if this all doesn't make sense - I typed this on an iPad for about an hour or so. @_@
So... What do you guys think? Is my suggestion okay? Do you have a better idea? Any general comments?
This is a little idea I've been toying with - Yeah, I'll admit I'm not the keenest MMORPG player (grinding gets on me a lot - More or less the reason I ditched Pokemon, but not the point) around, but lots of my irl friends all play 'em, - mostly the Korean ones, fittingly enough - and I've actually played a few of them with them. Well, with that said, let's take a look into what thos MMOs are like and then discuss what should be done to make Sonic into an MMO! (Note: I'm taking the ROG part of the term out specifically because frankly, I don't thnk that aspect of MMOs are compatible with Sonic.) So there's a lot of games out there, and many with a unique style... What should we get into first? Hmm... Well, let's start with what most (if not all) MMOs worth their salt has: Grinding and Levels. Levels are a feature in most RPGs - In ERPGs at least, that have a limited amount of gameplay tied to the story with most being unable to revisit after clearing the game, levels are to divide players: if everyone can have different stats against thesame enemy, it's rather like other games, where it's dependent on your playing skill - but there's a catch. It's actually depenent on your playing time. This is no less true in the MMOs I know - every one of them has a minimalist plot (except MapleStory which is just a massively bloated cliche, and even then it doesn't even matter in-game if you're playing as... Well, almost anything) and a massive world, leaving you to supposedly "Adventure in this Massive world!" - but as a sad single guy driving a sad single c- I mean, tiny nublet that intentionally nerfs much of what you can do, even if you're a veteran player at said game who accidentally forgot his password. This means that if you want to do anything in-game, you'll have to grind for levels or money. (since there is no story, there's no flow into when and what you can do, and no subtle enemy progression leading you further into the levels for taking down bosses) This also means that for the most part, how good you are at in MMOs dependent on how long you've been playing as a single character. It also means that (as long as there's none of that missing attacks completely due to low level stuff) how good you are in an MMO is how low your level is when you have accomplished a task - struggling with a self-given challenge, much like the famous Nuzlocke Challenge. Now, when you first take a glance at Sonic (especially Unleashed-Colors-Generations-Rush-RushAdventure - pretending Lost World doesn't exist for a sec.) gameplay, you might think "Yeah, but how could this be an MMO?!" - a valid thought. But true to Can of Nothing tradition, we're going for the unconventional: (ironically conventional to Sonic) taking the good features of MMOs and bending them to fit Sonic. This means that my suggestion is a potentially unmarketable disaster with virtually no appeal but is also a large innovation as far as I know. This is very slightly inspired by a certain Korean MMO called Crazy Arcade BnB: an MMO Bomberman clone. While it's impossible to call the game 'original', it shows that an 'Arcade' style game can work as an MMO - and that people can and will like it. (People may know the series better with KartRider - a Mario Kart ripoff that has a free iPhone app - KartRider Rush - albeit with in-game purchases for most of its content.) First off, let's decide what we want to keep from MMOs. Here's a list: Levels: Intergrated into ranks - heavily modified to promote skill over playing time Character classes: Non-permanent and based off your playing style Customizable moveset: Intergrated into the Skill Shop - limited amount of moves, as well as limited "points" per se Customizable character appearance: Taken 100%! This would be a fancharacter creator's dream - and while it wouldn't do anything to help the F Yeah Bad Sonic Fancharacters blog, (or it might?!) it might still attract a handful of thos fancharacters - especially newbie hackers that just hack their fancharacter over Sonic or the ones that are in the fanbase just for the fancharacters. In-game purchases: A neccesary sin - but absolutely optional. The game will be playable without the custom equipment - just that that jacket would look fantastic on your fancharacter there~ ...wait, that's it? Oh well, now let's get crackin'! Imagine a White Space of sorts: a 2D hub world that leads to the levels that the game has to offer. The first time you play, you're taken to a tutorial level, and as soon as you know how to play.. Another tutorial level? This is necessary, however, to determine the player's play style: whether they're more akin to Sonic, taking for the fastest path, be there goodies or not, like Knuckles, taking a combat-oriented (yes, it's back, but... Imagine Rayman Origins with SSB-esque combos, will ya) path, taking a bit longer than the other paths for the added price of the points making up for it, or Tails, choosing a heavily platforming-style path, later to get the ability to fly. After this is done, you can choose between the levels - as well as the option to play against someone or just to go on your own. Little to no interaction is done in the levels - the main part of that is taken place in White Space. Levels are gone and replaced with Ranks - your rank on every level combined (Stages that aren't cleared are on Z by default) and placed on an average scale ranging from A to Z. (thus removing S's significance) Based on your rank and playing style, there will be a wide moveset given to you: including the Boost, Drift and Homing Attack for Speed, a hover, double jump and flight for... Well, Flight, and... Uh... A werehog-esque homing attack punch that targets an enemy near you (but not necessarily dragging you towards it) and.. Uh, Knuckles' SA2 moves? - for Power. That is what I think an MMO in the gameplay style of Sonic could be - a nice progression (albeit 2D) of Modern Sonic's gameplay. I'm sorry if this all doesn't make sense - I typed this on an iPad for about an hour or so. @_@ So... What do you guys think? Is my suggestion okay? Do you have a better idea? Any general comments?