Most important aspect of an ORPG

[TorenRenne]

I wanted to find out what everyone thinks is the most important aspect of a game. (Relating directly to ORPG's)

Story - Is immersion and a good story the most important thing for you?

Graphics - Is it all about the looks?

Gameplay - Does everything pale in comparison if its got good gameplay?

Features - Needs something cool/unique?

Good multiplayer aspects - Is it better if its team orientated?

Other - something else?

Obviously its a balance, but what is the most important thing for you?

Feel free to divide up your view (obviously making 100%)

EG: (Mine)

Story (25%)

Graphics (15%)

**GamePlay (40%)**

Features (10%)

Multiplayer (10%)

IMO, Gameplay trumps all, followed by the Story.

[cheatking]

For an ORPG aren't GamePlay, Features & Multiplayer basically the same thing?

[TorenRenne]

Features are unique things, such as being able to reverse time, or manipulate projectiles after firing, stuff that is unusual. Timesplitters had vortex grenades which slowed everything caught in the explosion. etc…

Gameplay is about how fun it is to play. A game could have loads of "features" but stink gameplay wise. (Is it balanced etc...)

Multiplayer, yes it sounds odd, but you can solo ORPG's, I mean how important is it to you to do "group quests", "Raids", Guilds etc... E.G: WoW, you can play alot of the game solo, but you can also do the group quests/raids etc...

[Boynaar44]

We are in 2012, things are no longer the same.

People mostly skip the story, they just play the game.

Graphical features, like no animation lagg or no frame skips, or everything is smoothly moving and a graphic style what makes an ORPG unique from other ORPG's, I would prefer playing an ORPG with very good graphical features than one with a lot of cool game features.

Story (5%)

Graphics (50%)

GamePlay (15%)

Features (20%)

Multiplayer (10%)

[Guest]

I think the most important thing is the level of social interaction. The only reason I kept playing WoW (I know it isn't an ORPG but it still applies) back in the day was because I had loads of people that I knew and talked to on a regular basis. Content and regularity of updates is very important too.

[Dark Crusade]

> Story
>
> Graphics
>
> GamePlay
>
> Features
>
> Multiplayer

I could delve into each category in depth, everything is important, however also depends on the project scope, the genre, and how everything functions together as a whole. Story in my opinion is overrated in most mmos. Personally I'm fed up with persistant multiplayer worlds where every player is individually up to different parts of a dynamic storyline that should be affecting the world and other players. Some particular important aspects to me include player socialisation, if it's a multiplayer online world, interaction, competition and co-operation should be encouraged. A lot of games ignore this however, and most 'guilds' and other multiplayer features become mostly for show, and most players just end up grinding through sub quests and a main plot line which otherwise damage the 'online and social' presence in the game.

[Draken]

A good Community or your game will fail, no one likes playing a game with a bunch of a holes that just want to make you angry.

[Mal]

Functionality: If it's plagued with bugs I won't play it; this extends to game play (control, utilization, etc). Without fluid and seamless functionality you might as well not even release it.

Content: Without content you don't have a game; this includes graphics, sound, theme, and other things associated with bringing the game to life. Without it, functionality means nothing.

Tidbits/Features: There is a thin line when it comes to what is and what is not enough as far as loading a game with features goes; the overall importance of this is to make the experience better for the consumer. Features should not be defined as content; they should be nothing more than tools to aid the consumer in completing a required task. A good example of what is NOT a "feature" is a guild system. If there are too few then the game could be monotonous and boring; too many and you could be endangering the content of your game by making the functionality far too complex to be enjoyable.

In my opinion, they're all equally important and vital; you cannot have one without the other, and it all boils down to base functionality in the end.

[Richy420Rich]

Story (35%)

Graphics (15%)

GamePlay (35%)

Features (15%)

Multiplayer (0%)

Story - I like me a good story.. I need to feel my character as my virtual life, and my journey needs to be worth my doing.

Graphics - Nice graphics are nice, but it's not a necessity to me. I've played and loved some old ass games in my day.

Gameplay - Mechanical balance and overall client performance is also one of my highs, though I can play an off beat and laggy game but it's not going to keep me happy in the long run.

Features - Nice features are nice, but it's not a necessity to me.

Multiplayer - Probably one of the few that would say 0% here, because I prefer single player games and when I do play a multiplayer game, I usually like to take my journey head on solo.

[TorenRenne]

Interesting view points and I'm taking them all on board, would like to get more point of views as well though.

[Murdoc]

> A good Community or your game will fail, no one likes playing a game with a bunch of a holes that just want to make you angry.

You cant control the personality of your playerbase.

On topic:

I'll throw in my two cents. I think gameplay is most important. Does it capture your attention and hold it? If not, its a fail. Id say features are equally as important as they are a big factor in gameplay. However, I think some people think if theres a lot of features a game is suddenly better. This is not always the case. The features should be unique and give the game a sense of originality. If the systems that control the features are the same as every other Orpg then there is a lack of creativity on the creators' part. I feel graphics would be of third importance. Not that I dont like nice graphics, but 16bit or 32bit graphics that are done well (I emphasize well) can be nostalgic and fun. However, If theyre done poorly it takes away from everything else in the game because you're mind will keep drifting to how shitty it looks. Story line is obviously important. But with the plethora of rpg (online and otherwise) that have been made its not exactly easy to come up with a totally unique idea, without confusing people with strange names and places and mind-numbing world history that noone will even read. In an online game its even less important in my opinion, whereas its value goes up in a single player game to hold attention.

Having said all that, it's still always a case of what you're aiming for with your game. Some games will be aimed more towards a story than features, or graphics over gameplay. I think whats more important than all of these is learning to think outside the box. Do you want your game to be like every other, and have it put on the backburner because someone else has all the same features but better graphics? People swarm to play unique, innovative games like Haven and Hearth, Minecraft etc.. because they got away from the strict guidelines of following a specific genre, like making a 2d version of WoW.

So, I would add say originality actually tops all of these elements, if you want to make a game that stands out.

[cheatking]

> You cant control the personality of your playerbase.

With strong moderation you can.

[Dark Crusade]

> With strong moderation you can.

And also encouragement and incentives. Rewards for co-operation, partying together, socialisation, and maybe even being helpful can help. Combine that with fair moderation and regular events and you can help sculpt a better player base.

[Saga]

**Story (25%)

Graphics (30%)

**GamePlay (25%)**

Features (30%)

Multiplayer (/%) Idk what you mean, maybe playerinteraction?**

[BeNjO]

GFX and game play..

[Synergy]

I think storyline is important if it's a more "soloable" ORPG, where you might take the time to listen to characters and such.

If it's like WoW, then the storyline is pretty irrelevant.

The biggest factors have got to be gameplay and multiplayer. The way I see them slightly overlap. I think gameplay is key; it's got to be fun and enjoyable.

I also think the multiplayer aspect is key; it is an online game, after all

[Zopto]

Story (10%)

Graphics (25%)

**GamePlay (Social)(35%)**

Features (30%)

[Growlith1223]

**Story (10%)

Graphics (0%)

GamePlay (0%)

Features (0%)**

lol

Reason: i am still working on a alpha client and server x3(creating it from scratch)

[Kusy]

COMMUNITY. Boom! Headshot!

Your project just failed. Go home.