EVE Online at Ten Ton Hammer - Taking MMOG Gamers to the Next Level!

3. Open PvPers Love the Challenge - As we’ve written about on Ten Ton Hammer over the last few weeks, many online gamers are looking for the game that stops the hand-holding and lets them go into the world to discover things on their own. In these games, the learning process becomes part of the game itself. On top of that, players that learn through trial-and-error often feel invested in their game to the point that once they’ve given a solid chunk of hours, there’s no going back. Open PvP ups that ante tenfold. Even with a “safe zone” available in many open PvP games, players still feel that the challenge of open PvP forces them to dedicate themselves to their game. Even though I haven’t had an opportunity to jump into Darkfall yet, I feel an almost gravitational pull towards the game simply to see if I can be savvy enough to work my way up in their world without falling prey to another character. Even if it did happen, I know I would do my best to track that person down once I’ve reestablished my character in the world.

Mortal Online looks to provide phenomenal visuals for its players.

4. Roleplayers Love Open PvP – Wait, wait, wait. Before you all start jumping up and down and waving your arms in the air like you just don’t care, let me explain myself. While it may not be necessarily true that “roleplayers love open PvP,” I think it is true that roleplayers love the idea and expanding boundaries of open PvP. Think about it for a second: Roleplayers are all about freedom and creativity. While many games offer a nice framework for RP options in their game, nothing seems quite as honestly limitless and “creative” as open PvP. Although their may not be hundreds of active roleplaying guilds scrambling to get into games like Darkfall, I think there are a number of roleplayers on the forums of these games, and these roleplayers tend to be very, very vocal. I know there’s a fairly large contingent of roleplayers in EVE Online, and there were plenty of RPers in the RPvP servers in Age of Conan. Don’t believe me? Just ask these girls.

5. It’s a Fad – Just like the fashion industry, the massively multiplayer online gaming space is just as susceptible to fads as the next arena. While it may take developers several thousand times longer to create a working MMO than it takes fashion designers to create the next “hot” t-shirt, players can certainly be swayed into buying and participating in games that they might not have had any interest in a few years ago. A little more than six months ago, no one had heard of Mortal Online and even fewer people had any interest in Darkfall. Yet here we are at the start of 2009 and players are clamoring to get into Darkfall and drooling over the premise of Mortal Online’s open PvP. Not only that, but EVE Online is heading up their biggest marketing push to date, re-releasing the game in stores and hoping that their open PvP ideals take hold. These communities are coming together simply to embrace this growing fad. While the excitement may or may not last forever, it is certainly causing quite the stir.

No where can I get in line to get a copy of Darkfall?

Agree with me? Disagree? Let me know on the forums or simply drop me a line via email. Otherwise, keep your head low because you’re In the Trenches.