A gladius sequel better come out of this or I will destroy Houston!
Okay, but you'd totally miss Bioware's MMO division, which is in Austin, and you'd totally miss their actual headquarters, which is on the other side of the continent.
Maybe he just wants to destroy Houston. Hey, while you're at it, nuke the rest of Texas. I won't miss it.
Or did he mean "Who is Andrew Ryan?" like the phrase, "Who is John Galt?" from Atlas Shrugged?
But I digress, I am personally against a KOTOR MMO, simply because I can't afford to pay 15 dollars a month, and my PC is complete crap. I can barely even play Half-Life 1. I am also for KOTOR 3 because a huge part of what made KOTOR great was the storytelling, and there has not yet been a compelling MMO storyline.
More than that, I don't believe that it is possible to make an MMO that can have a real, compelling story. The basis of the MMO is that you do things repeatedly, simple tasks that take up lots of time. In doing so, you continue to pay the company, which continues to provide you with new tasks to repeat so that you can keep giving them money, etc. Making a story-driven MMO would require a massive investment. How many times would you be willing to sit through a single conversation? Usually, I skip through most of the dialog in games after my first playthrough, which means less time that I'm playing and less money going into the company when I get bored and cancel. Your development team would need to be incredibly massive, because you'd have to pump out at least another 10 or so hours of story every month to keep people interested. That means raising the cost per month to the consumer, and how much would you be willing to pay for 10 hours of story every month? The only real option would be to have repeated tasks mixed with storyline every few hours of playing, which doesn't really sound too much like a story driven game to me.
Asheron's Call. Which now that I think about it, the main story writer for it, Chris 'Stormwaltz' L'etoile, now works at Bioware. Not sure what project hes on though.
Oh shit. Someone needs to make a Zombie related MMO so HARD!!! I swear if someone/anyone made it... I would give them my bank account, because that's all I need.
Oh shit. Someone needs to make a Zombie related MMO so HARD!!! I swear if someone/anyone made it... I would give them my bank account, because that's all I need.
if there was a zombie MMO i would SO want it to be based off zombies ate my neighbors.
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Oh shit. Someone needs to make a Zombie related MMO so HARD!!! I swear if someone/anyone made it... I would give them my bank account, because that's all I need.
if there was a zombie MMO i would SO want it to be based off zombies ate my neighbors.
That would be completely awesome as well. But I'll settle for any Zombie MMO (that isn't text based).
Why not half-offline and half-online game? Like Freelancer or some shit?
If this is in regards to my Zombie MMO, it's because an MMO would be the ideal way of doing this. Making sure there were plenty of people around at all times (make it feel like the city was actually populated).
The problem is: You'd get one of those dicks who gets in early, scraps up all the supplies and hides out in the attic of a house and never does anything with them.
Weren't there a couple dream game making threads on the forum that threw around the zombie mmo idea? I'm pretty sure there was.
Too many to count, really (though on that note I suppose that one more can't cause any more signifigant damage unless there's a moratorium on the matter).
Am I the only person who doesn't want this to be KOTOR-based? Don't get me wrong, it's a great series - but there's just that certain something about Star Wars that's tied in with the original time period of I-VI. KOTOR certainely captures the Star Wars spirit of conflicts and other shit happening on both the individual and galactic level, which is essential for any game of this type - but on the other hand, Star Wars is just as much space opera as it is Star Destroyers and the Empire and all that, and it'd feel kind of pointless to go to the trouble of building a franchise MMO when it doesn't have many of the things that define the franchise in the first place (Jedi and other similar constants aside). Of course, hugging the details of the original era can be just as damaging as stripping out a lot of what people think of when they think of Star Wars, as SOE demonstrated (Oh, look, I bum a ride with the greatest heroes of the rebellion! I take my water cooler break next to the Lord of the fucking Sith! I seek out advice from the spirit of one of the most notable Jedi in history alongside four thousand other people! Blech.)
You ask me, the best way to do this would be to set it ~10 years before Episode IV. On one hand, you get the "Star Wars" setting that's the reason that most people would be playing such a game in the first place, so you get the casual folks who likes the films, the more invested players who check out the EU and all that stuff, and the TIE Fighter/X-Wing players who beat off to the YT-2000 or the R-41 Starchaser or some similar vessel from the games they loved the fuck out of. Then on the other, it being a relatively quiet time period (Luke's getting the shit beaten out of him for whining, Leah's doing princess-ly stuff, Han's getting his ass beaten in Imperial Boot Camp, Vader's off doing Lord of the Sith-ly stuff, the rebellion is pretty small) that means that the developers don't have to worry about conflicting with canon and developing their own shit, we don't get the shit that emerged from shoehorning in every fucking character from the franchise no matter how retarded it is, and you can then leave people to write their stories and escapades ala Tales of the Cantina/Bounty Hunters, a reak EVE-ish approach.
That's probably the best idea of them all. I'd play a KOTOR based game, don't get me wrong, but the "just before EpIV" idea seems like it would play really well, and also be flexible for players and writers alike.
Anyone notice how some things (mattresses and the copy machines in Highrise) are totally impenetrable? A steel wall, yeah that makes sense, but bullets should obliterate copy machines.
I don't know about you, but I always buy a bullet proof printer. Its a lot more expensive, but I think the advantages are apparent.
Weren't there a couple dream game making threads on the forum that threw around the zombie mmo idea? I'm pretty sure there was.
Too many to count, really (though on that note I suppose that one more can't cause any more signifigant damage unless there's a moratorium on the matter).
Am I the only person who doesn't want this to be KOTOR-based? Don't get me wrong, it's a great series - but there's just that certain something about Star Wars that's tied in with the original time period of I-VI. KOTOR certainely captures the Star Wars spirit of conflicts and other shit happening on both the individual and galactic level, which is essential for any game of this type - but on the other hand, Star Wars is just as much space opera as it is Star Destroyers and the Empire and all that, and it'd feel kind of pointless to go to the trouble of building a franchise MMO when it doesn't have many of the things that define the franchise in the first place (Jedi and other similar constants aside). Of course, hugging the details of the original era can be just as damaging as stripping out a lot of what people think of when they think of Star Wars, as SOE demonstrated (Oh, look, I bum a ride with the greatest heroes of the rebellion! I take my water cooler break next to the Lord of the fucking Sith! I seek out advice from the spirit of one of the most notable Jedi in history alongside four thousand other people! Blech.)
You ask me, the best way to do this would be to set it ~10 years before Episode IV. On one hand, you get the "Star Wars" setting that's the reason that most people would be playing such a game in the first place, so you get the casual folks who likes the films, the more invested players who check out the EU and all that stuff, and the TIE Fighter/X-Wing players who beat off to the YT-2000 or the R-41 Starchaser or some similar vessel from the games they loved the fuck out of. Then on the other, it being a relatively quiet time period (Luke's getting the shit beaten out of him for whining, Leah's doing princess-ly stuff, Han's getting his ass beaten in Imperial Boot Camp, Vader's off doing Lord of the Sith-ly stuff, the rebellion is pretty small) that means that the developers don't have to worry about conflicting with canon and developing their own shit, we don't get the shit that emerged from shoehorning in every fucking character from the franchise no matter how retarded it is, and you can then leave people to write their stories and escapades ala Tales of the Cantina/Bounty Hunters, a reak EVE-ish approach.
To answer your first sentance. Yes
Not really, but I want it to be, and that's all that matters.
Also, I know bioware is in Austin, I just wanted an excuse to destroy Houston. I just moved from Houston to Seattle.
That's probably the best idea of them all. I'd play a KOTOR based game, don't get me wrong, but the "just before EpIV" idea seems like it would play really well, and also be flexible for players and writers alike.
I dunno. It's not like I must have my KotOR MMO or anything like that, but I can't see any post-Republic setting working. It's a problem of factions, really. Ten years pre-ANH, the Alliance is pretty damned small, I think, and insanely hard to get into. Part of what makes the OT what it is is the whole David vs. Goliath aspect of the conflict. There's no way to capture that in an MMO though. Either the factions are balanced, in which case there's nothing cool about being a Rebel, or they aren't balanced. If they aren't balanced, then either the Empire is stupidly overpopulated and Rebel players won't be able to do anything, or Rebels are insanely overpowered and no single Imperial player would be able to go toe-to-toe with them.
The nice thing about the KotOR era is that there are so many more viable, open factions. Players can align themselves with the Republic, Sith, Mandalorians, Hutts, and who knows what else. Even though that time period is arguably the zenith of the Republic, the galaxy is still wide open and up for grabs. Once the Empire muscles its way in though, things become much less workable, I think.
Might be interesting to set it right after ROTJ. The Empire would still be strong, but off balance and leaderless. The Rebels would be militarily weak but have momentum. The sides wouldn't be equal, but they could be roughly even. And then they could trickle in elements of the EU every so often as game-wide events.
Might be interesting to set it right after ROTJ. The Empire would still be strong, but off balance and leaderless. The Rebels would be militarily weak but have momentum. The sides wouldn't be equal, but they could be roughly even. And then they could trickle in elements of the EU every so often as game-wide events.
Might be interesting to set it right after ROTJ. The Empire would still be strong, but off balance and leaderless. The Rebels would be militarily weak but have momentum. The sides wouldn't be equal, but they could be roughly even. And then they could trickle in elements of the EU every so often as game-wide events.
Fuck. I need to play bioshock. btw..."who is john galt"
heh.
Glad someone else on these boards has read Atlas Shrugged!
And about Asheron's Call as a good story in an MMO, I never really played it that much so I can't really make an informed opinion. But I agree that a good story in an MMO is impossible as long as MMOs are structured like they are today. For a truly good story to take place in an MMO, events must happen that cannot happen again and make an impact on the development of the game in whichever direction they turn out. The Matix Online, while not a good game if it is even alive anymore, had that potential but was killed by gameplay issues.
I thought the whole point in setting KOTOR and by extension a potential KOTOR MMO in the KOTOR universe was creative freedom.
You dont have any Skywalkers. No damn Han Solo handing out quests. No cliche ridden Original Trilogy references.
But you do have Lightsabers. And Sith. And things like Coruscant and all the samey things without being tied down to what has been a completely whored out universe.
Part of the reason KOTOR was so good was that Bioware were able to craft basically their own universe just in the context of the Star Wars canon. It worked great.
Setting is post ROTJ or anytime near the Original Trilogy would probably have more downsides than upsides, in that it would stifle a lot of the freedoms of the game and was a problem which stalked Galaxies so badly (other than its many other failings)
The thing I don't like about setting it up right after ROTJ is that you then have a whole bunch of EU stuff that takes place rather soon after which has anything from a minor to a massive impact on the galaxy, which Bioware might feel they have an obligation to introduce and thus sucking resources away from them creating their own material for the game (plus the can of worms that dealing with all the EU authors is bound to be). Since there ain't shit going on ~10 BBY and for at least several years down the line, Bioware'd be free to do their thing (Hell, they don't even really need to pay that much attention to the Empire/Rebellion whatnot: they could be all like "OK, here's Coruscant and Alderaan, ho hum - HEY! LOOK WHAT'S GOING ON OVER HERE!" and then have their niche of the galaxy that they create where shit is going down.)
The idea of an MMO-scale Galactic Battlegrounds/Battlefield game between the New Republic and the Empire is enticing, though.
I doubt it would be set between Episodes 3 and 4 unless they were working closely with the people who are doing the TV series set during the same period. Though it would be pretty cool to actually see the game world follow the events of the show as it aired if they could pull it off.
Why not half-offline and half-online game? Like Freelancer or some shit?
If this is in regards to my Zombie MMO, it's because an MMO would be the ideal way of doing this. Making sure there were plenty of people around at all times (make it feel like the city was actually populated).
The problem is: You'd get one of those dicks who gets in early, scraps up all the supplies and hides out in the attic of a house and never does anything with them.
That's when your guild makes a raid on his house, but somehow the zed get in and screw things up xD
If there's a star wars mmo it needs to involve the sith war.
METAzraeL on
dream a little dream or you could live a little dream
sleep forever if you wish to be a dreamer
Fuck. I need to play bioshock. btw..."who is john galt"
heh.
Glad someone else on these boards has read Atlas Shrugged!
And about Asheron's Call as a good story in an MMO, I never really played it that much so I can't really make an informed opinion. But I agree that a good story in an MMO is impossible as long as MMOs are structured like they are today. For a truly good story to take place in an MMO, events must happen that cannot happen again and make an impact on the development of the game in whichever direction they turn out. The Matix Online, while not a good game if it is even alive anymore, had that potential but was killed by gameplay issues.
Regarding Asheron's call:
There was a point in the game, Long ago, where the dark god (bael' something can’t remember his name) would roam around different towns and attack them. The God was played by a game master and was not a NPC. Part of the story for the game was that players had to PvP flag yourself and venture into a dungeon to destroy crystals that gave him power (something along those lines). It was a one time event that was never repeated, it only happened once on each server.
One of the big stories around this event was a guild that had decided to stand guard at the entrance of the dungeon and kill anyone attempting to complete the world event. Eventually Game masters spawned as the legendary heroes from the game and assisted in clearing out the dungeon.
AC was also infamous for destroying the most popular trading city in the game and I don't mean putting cracks in the building or sprinkling some NPC monsters in town. I mean straight up took the city and turned it into smoldering ground and didn't rebuild it for a year or so.
Ninja edit: My point being that they were able to make an MMO and have a dynamic story.
Witchdr on
"Look, all I know is that this cord was plugged into my house and your house was glowing like the freakin' sun. So, I put two and two together there and decided that you're pissing me off." -Carl Brutananadilewski
In regards to the advocates of his former empire: “I was going to have them all executed… the Royal Advocate talked me out of it.” -Shadowthrone (Emperor Kellanved)
AC really was ahead of its time. and no mmo seems to be willing to venture into that territory again.
you would think with the budget wow has they'd start doing amazing story events like that.
AC really was ahead of its time. and no mmo seems to be willing to venture into that territory again.
you would think with the budget wow has they'd start doing amazing story events like that.
Yeah, i'll never forget when GM controlled Characters would raid the trading areas and just wipeout everyone. Another favorite about that game, on darktide (the pvp server) GM's were also PvP flagged. There were occations of a GM caught in the open and killed.
Witchdr on
"Look, all I know is that this cord was plugged into my house and your house was glowing like the freakin' sun. So, I put two and two together there and decided that you're pissing me off." -Carl Brutananadilewski
In regards to the advocates of his former empire: “I was going to have them all executed… the Royal Advocate talked me out of it.” -Shadowthrone (Emperor Kellanved)
AC really was ahead of its time. and no mmo seems to be willing to venture into that territory again.
you would think with the budget wow has they'd start doing amazing story events like that.
I think the problem with them doing that in WoW is balance between the two factions. You can't delete the neutral towns, because they're integal points for travel (Gadgetzan is the only possible exception, though it holds key NPCs for Professions that require it to be untouchable.) You can't just delete a town from one side; you'd have to delete 2. And if you're going to delete 2, you'd probably need some common reason for the destruction of both, perhaps a meteor hitting one area. The problem with that is that in any given area, there isn't equal balance between the two factions; one side usually has a pretty substantial upper hand. And obviously it wouldn't be fair to delete an Alliance major city and a Horde mini base and call all things equal.
That's not to say it's impossible. It's just substantially harder to pull off when you have two groups of people yelling at you constantly for the slightest change.
Fuck. I need to play bioshock. btw..."who is john galt"
heh.
Glad someone else on these boards has read Atlas Shrugged!
And about Asheron's Call as a good story in an MMO, I never really played it that much so I can't really make an informed opinion. But I agree that a good story in an MMO is impossible as long as MMOs are structured like they are today. For a truly good story to take place in an MMO, events must happen that cannot happen again and make an impact on the development of the game in whichever direction they turn out. The Matix Online, while not a good game if it is even alive anymore, had that potential but was killed by gameplay issues.
Regarding Asheron's call:
There was a point in the game, Long ago, where the dark god (bael' something can’t remember his name) would roam around different towns and attack them. The God was played by a game master and was not a NPC. Part of the story for the game was that players had to PvP flag yourself and venture into a dungeon to destroy crystals that gave him power (something along those lines). It was a one time event that was never repeated, it only happened once on each server.
One of the big stories around this event was a guild that had decided to stand guard at the entrance of the dungeon and kill anyone attempting to complete the world event. Eventually Game masters spawned as the legendary heroes from the game and assisted in clearing out the dungeon.
AC was also infamous for destroying the most popular trading city in the game and I don't mean putting cracks in the building or sprinkling some NPC monsters in town. I mean straight up took the city and turned it into smoldering ground and didn't rebuild it for a year or so.
Ninja edit: My point being that they were able to make an MMO and have a dynamic story.
Damn! That sounds awesome, I really wish I had played it now. It almost perfectly matches my criteria for a good story in an MMO, a changing world that your actions effect. Especially like the fact that guilds attempted to break the game. I would love another MMO to do that.
You know, this would totally resolve the redundancy of characters created in an MMO. I look like every other Blood Elf Paladin with epic gear in WoW, but if we're all clones, it totally makes sense!
schmads on
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Maybe he just wants to destroy Houston. Hey, while you're at it, nuke the rest of Texas. I won't miss it.
Asheron's Call. Which now that I think about it, the main story writer for it, Chris 'Stormwaltz' L'etoile, now works at Bioware. Not sure what project hes on though.
I mean, in a game all about destroying stuff with massive force wang, making it satisfying to destroy stuff is a good thing.
It's pretty early, but the potential shows.
all I see there is a cinematic scene and some force pushing. all I want in a jedi game is the ability to slice through anything.
Oh shit. Someone needs to make a Zombie related MMO so HARD!!! I swear if someone/anyone made it... I would give them my bank account, because that's all I need.
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if there was a zombie MMO i would SO want it to be based off zombies ate my neighbors.
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But... he flings metal boxes and stormtroopers at a Tie Fighter.
While they're still alive.
That would be completely awesome as well. But I'll settle for any Zombie MMO (that isn't text based).
If this is in regards to my Zombie MMO, it's because an MMO would be the ideal way of doing this. Making sure there were plenty of people around at all times (make it feel like the city was actually populated).
The problem is: You'd get one of those dicks who gets in early, scraps up all the supplies and hides out in the attic of a house and never does anything with them.
Too many to count, really (though on that note I suppose that one more can't cause any more signifigant damage unless there's a moratorium on the matter).
Am I the only person who doesn't want this to be KOTOR-based? Don't get me wrong, it's a great series - but there's just that certain something about Star Wars that's tied in with the original time period of I-VI. KOTOR certainely captures the Star Wars spirit of conflicts and other shit happening on both the individual and galactic level, which is essential for any game of this type - but on the other hand, Star Wars is just as much space opera as it is Star Destroyers and the Empire and all that, and it'd feel kind of pointless to go to the trouble of building a franchise MMO when it doesn't have many of the things that define the franchise in the first place (Jedi and other similar constants aside). Of course, hugging the details of the original era can be just as damaging as stripping out a lot of what people think of when they think of Star Wars, as SOE demonstrated (Oh, look, I bum a ride with the greatest heroes of the rebellion! I take my water cooler break next to the Lord of the fucking Sith! I seek out advice from the spirit of one of the most notable Jedi in history alongside four thousand other people! Blech.)
You ask me, the best way to do this would be to set it ~10 years before Episode IV. On one hand, you get the "Star Wars" setting that's the reason that most people would be playing such a game in the first place, so you get the casual folks who likes the films, the more invested players who check out the EU and all that stuff, and the TIE Fighter/X-Wing players who beat off to the YT-2000 or the R-41 Starchaser or some similar vessel from the games they loved the fuck out of. Then on the other, it being a relatively quiet time period (Luke's getting the shit beaten out of him for whining, Leah's doing princess-ly stuff, Han's getting his ass beaten in Imperial Boot Camp, Vader's off doing Lord of the Sith-ly stuff, the rebellion is pretty small) that means that the developers don't have to worry about conflicting with canon and developing their own shit, we don't get the shit that emerged from shoehorning in every fucking character from the franchise no matter how retarded it is, and you can then leave people to write their stories and escapades ala Tales of the Cantina/Bounty Hunters, a reak EVE-ish approach.
That's probably the best idea of them all. I'd play a KOTOR based game, don't get me wrong, but the "just before EpIV" idea seems like it would play really well, and also be flexible for players and writers alike.
XBL: LiquidSnake2061
To answer your first sentance. Yes
Also, I know bioware is in Austin, I just wanted an excuse to destroy Houston. I just moved from Houston to Seattle.
heh.
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OUTLAWS MMO
Dyin's too good for all of 'em.
The nice thing about the KotOR era is that there are so many more viable, open factions. Players can align themselves with the Republic, Sith, Mandalorians, Hutts, and who knows what else. Even though that time period is arguably the zenith of the Republic, the galaxy is still wide open and up for grabs. Once the Empire muscles its way in though, things become much less workable, I think.
This.
Abso-fucking-lutely
Glad someone else on these boards has read Atlas Shrugged!
And about Asheron's Call as a good story in an MMO, I never really played it that much so I can't really make an informed opinion. But I agree that a good story in an MMO is impossible as long as MMOs are structured like they are today. For a truly good story to take place in an MMO, events must happen that cannot happen again and make an impact on the development of the game in whichever direction they turn out. The Matix Online, while not a good game if it is even alive anymore, had that potential but was killed by gameplay issues.
You dont have any Skywalkers. No damn Han Solo handing out quests. No cliche ridden Original Trilogy references.
But you do have Lightsabers. And Sith. And things like Coruscant and all the samey things without being tied down to what has been a completely whored out universe.
Part of the reason KOTOR was so good was that Bioware were able to craft basically their own universe just in the context of the Star Wars canon. It worked great.
Setting is post ROTJ or anytime near the Original Trilogy would probably have more downsides than upsides, in that it would stifle a lot of the freedoms of the game and was a problem which stalked Galaxies so badly (other than its many other failings)
The idea of an MMO-scale Galactic Battlegrounds/Battlefield game between the New Republic and the Empire is enticing, though.
That's when your guild makes a raid on his house, but somehow the zed get in and screw things up xD
If there's a star wars mmo it needs to involve the sith war.
dream a little dream or you could live a little dream
sleep forever if you wish to be a dreamer
There. That takes care of everything.
Regarding Asheron's call:
There was a point in the game, Long ago, where the dark god (bael' something can’t remember his name) would roam around different towns and attack them. The God was played by a game master and was not a NPC. Part of the story for the game was that players had to PvP flag yourself and venture into a dungeon to destroy crystals that gave him power (something along those lines). It was a one time event that was never repeated, it only happened once on each server.
One of the big stories around this event was a guild that had decided to stand guard at the entrance of the dungeon and kill anyone attempting to complete the world event. Eventually Game masters spawned as the legendary heroes from the game and assisted in clearing out the dungeon.
AC was also infamous for destroying the most popular trading city in the game and I don't mean putting cracks in the building or sprinkling some NPC monsters in town. I mean straight up took the city and turned it into smoldering ground and didn't rebuild it for a year or so.
Ninja edit: My point being that they were able to make an MMO and have a dynamic story.
In regards to the advocates of his former empire: “I was going to have them all executed… the Royal Advocate talked me out of it.” -Shadowthrone (Emperor Kellanved)
Handles: LoL-Emerging, BF4/Hardline-Whiskeyjack227, Steam-Fragglerock, HOTS/Blizzard-Whiskeyjack#1333, Life-Jason
you would think with the budget wow has they'd start doing amazing story events like that.
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Xbox360 Gamertag: Emuchop
Yeah, i'll never forget when GM controlled Characters would raid the trading areas and just wipeout everyone. Another favorite about that game, on darktide (the pvp server) GM's were also PvP flagged. There were occations of a GM caught in the open and killed.
In regards to the advocates of his former empire: “I was going to have them all executed… the Royal Advocate talked me out of it.” -Shadowthrone (Emperor Kellanved)
Handles: LoL-Emerging, BF4/Hardline-Whiskeyjack227, Steam-Fragglerock, HOTS/Blizzard-Whiskeyjack#1333, Life-Jason
I think the problem with them doing that in WoW is balance between the two factions. You can't delete the neutral towns, because they're integal points for travel (Gadgetzan is the only possible exception, though it holds key NPCs for Professions that require it to be untouchable.) You can't just delete a town from one side; you'd have to delete 2. And if you're going to delete 2, you'd probably need some common reason for the destruction of both, perhaps a meteor hitting one area. The problem with that is that in any given area, there isn't equal balance between the two factions; one side usually has a pretty substantial upper hand. And obviously it wouldn't be fair to delete an Alliance major city and a Horde mini base and call all things equal.
That's not to say it's impossible. It's just substantially harder to pull off when you have two groups of people yelling at you constantly for the slightest change.
Damn! That sounds awesome, I really wish I had played it now. It almost perfectly matches my criteria for a good story in an MMO, a changing world that your actions effect. Especially like the fact that guilds attempted to break the game. I would love another MMO to do that.
You know, this would totally resolve the redundancy of characters created in an MMO. I look like every other Blood Elf Paladin with epic gear in WoW, but if we're all clones, it totally makes sense!