Slashdot Mirror
Setting a Learning Curve In MMOs
Ten Ton Hammer has an article looking at the learning curves of modern MMOs. Many of the more popular games, such as World of Warcraft, go to great lengths to make learning the game easy for new players. Others, such as EVE Online, have had success with a less forgiving introduction. But to what extent do the most fundamental game mechanics limit the more complex end-game play?
"The current trend in MMOG's appears to be make the game so easy and interest-grabbing right out of the gate that even a person with the attention span of a monkey chewing on a flyswatter will be able to keep up and get into the swing of things. Depth of game mechanics is still possible with a system like this, but it needs to be introduced not only clearly, but later in the game, after a player has played enough to be hooked and is willing to put in some extra time to learn about the more intricate game mechanics available to them."
Eve is perfectly happy without you. The brutal introduction is specifically designed to weed out fools, weaklings, idiots, and children afflicted with ADHD.
So feel free to play WoW all you like. The adults will continue playing Eve to the tune of 40,000+ people in the same persistent universe at the same time.