Lighthammer:
an mmporg is a social game and they are not letting us play with our friends…….
good job to who ever thought that up.(he can obviously drink more than me)

Jabone:
long-time communities plan on migrating to this game come release and now you’re forcing those multinational groups to be split up? this has to be the most crack-smokingest thing i have ever heard.

Vanessa:
Isn’t World of Warcraft supposed to be social heaven? Our guild is splitting just because of this :(

Sony:
Sony Online Entertainment (SOE) would like to reiterate that (as announced in the European Beta press release dated 9/7/04), players in Europe will be able to play on any of SOE’s EverQuest II servers, including those servers based North America (and vice versa). There will be no server lock-outs based on location. European and North American players will be able to play with their friends on the server of their choice.

Send:
Wise troll says: “This is bad juju.”

Jeepers:
Blizzard… How can being forced to split up from your friends possibly make my gaming experience better?

Dmitri:
I am very sad about this. To Turaglun of Denmark, Sonic the Bard of France, Semien of the Czech Repub, to all of Vane (the best competition on E’Ci to my guild) from Japan. To the many Israeli’s and Arabs I played with. TO the Russians who asked whether my name (Dmitry) meant I was Russian too. To the hundreds of people I chatted with and played with in DAoC and EQ that were from other parts of the world.

I am really gonna miss yah.

I want you to know that I am not for a SECOND fooled by this horse poopy about lag.

Mouyrningstar:
I am new to mmorpg’s (having only played one other) but one of my favorite things was meeting new people from around the world. I work nights so on my days off my peak playing hours are from about 10pm to 5am pacific time. My groups would usually consist of people from Australia, Europe and a few other night people from North America.

This is really going to leave my on some lonely servers. A majority of players in my region are going to be asleep when I play most. The social gaming experience of WoW is a huge aspect of my overall enjoyment of the game.

Sarinna:
Like many others, I have friends and guildmates in other countries. I’ve known some of them for years. Do you seriously believe that I’m going to abandon them? I mostly play MMORPGs for the social aspect, so this policy will play a major role in my future gaming decisions.

Krups:
i don’t really understanding the reasons behind limiting by geographical region. I’d much rather they just capped server populations. why? generally, i play off hours and it’s nice to have europeans that are prime time when i’m on.

Foozle:
I have never been in a MMORPG guild that didn’t have at least a few non-Americans in it. One of the coolest things about these games is the way they can bring together different people from all around the world in order to pursue a common goal. This is clearly a rookie mistake from Blizzard.

Squaresoft:
FINAL FANTASY XI provides players with a rousing, non-stop 24-hour gameplay environment. As I’m sure you’ve noticed, you are apt to find the Worlds of FINAL FANTASY XI bustling and active with players, no matter what time you enter the game. This is the result of the FINAL FANTASY XI Global World concept, which has not only melded the PlayStation 2 and Windows PC into a multi-platform environment, but has also successfully bridged continents together while breaking down language barriers between players. Previously, MMORPGs have always had “on” and “off” peak times, which could make finding a fellow adventurer to party or trade with quite difficult. The Global World concept has provided a solution to this issue, and was devised as a means to avoid the depopulation of minor Worlds (servers), which can occur when smaller Worlds are created in different regions around the world.

Lum:
And now we come back to MMOs, where their particular form of pattern involves other people being involved. If you ask any dozen MMO enthusiasts which MMO they prefer the most (or, depending on how jaded, despise the least) and you will get a dozen different answers. Because the dirty little secret that designers don’t want to admit is that the actual game is completely irrelevant! No one cares, really, how well the pattern is crafted. Because what brings people back to MMOs isn’t the game, but the people within. No computer can come up with AI unpredictable enough to emulate your average bazaar shopper. Which is why, if you ask those dozen people which MMO they prefer, you get a dozen different answers. Because it’s where they are from.

So what does all this have to do with anything? Well, reading the links I started with, I read a great deal about the minutae of design theory. Gamers want their games to be hard! No, they want them to be easier! More casual friendly! More aimed at the core!

No, gamers are going to be bored. Because these things run on computers, and no matter how many pixels you cram into the pixel people, they’re still just pixels. Now, the community behind the games – they’re not quite as pixilated. And maybe perhaps that’s where we should be focusing.