MMORPG Tycoon: a video game about running a video game company

MMORPG Tycoon sounds like a delightfully recursive video game -- you're in charge of tweaking the rules for a multiplayer online game like World of Warcraft, and you win or lose based on how many simulated players hang around and pay you virtual subscription fees.

The game involves setting zones with level ranges, trying to keep them distributed so your servers don't overload ("due to the coding practices of ShadiSoft"), making sure there are enough towns and respawn points, and trying to keep monster and class stats on keel. Your primary metric for success is your forum buzz, you want more positive posts than negative, and the main factor for this is how hard or easy the game is. Here's where the punchline starts getting set-up: no matter how well you do a portion of players will complain the game is too easy, and a portion will complain the game is too hard. However, as long as you've got some content in, and you've got a half-competent balance, people will play, get addicted, and you'll grow, even though your churn rate might only be slightly lower than your growth rate. And you'll make money. You only have to get the basics down and then just let the game run. The implication is that you don't need a good game, you just need an addictive game. It smacks you in the face with a procedural resonance, the derivative names of the rival MMOs are just icing on the cake.

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Discussion

Take a look at this

#1 posted by pineapplecharm , June 16, 2008 1:52 AM

Well, That didn't take long.

#2 posted by insect_hooves , June 16, 2008 4:38 AM

World of World of World of Warcraft. Hrm, Tycoon Game Tycoon?

#3 posted by Pasketti , June 16, 2008 5:35 AM

They need to take the logical next step and turn this into an MMORPG.

#4 posted by LogrusZed , June 16, 2008 6:07 AM

Reminds me of SYSOP Wars, where I would spend hours logged in to my local BBS managing my virtual BBS.

#5 posted by Enochrewt , June 16, 2008 6:28 AM

As a person that played WoW solely to manipulate and mold the in-game economy for my own personal profit, I might be very interested in this game.

And yeah, it'd be a real kick in the teeth if you had to pay a monthly fee to play this game.

#6 posted by zuzu

, June 16, 2008 8:18 AM

eXistenZ is paused!

#7 posted by Evil Trout , June 16, 2008 8:53 AM

I'm going to shamelessly plug my own MMO here because it's just as meta, but in a different way:

Forumwarz is an MMO about the Internet. You play as stereotypes of Internet users (Camwhore, Troll, Emo Kid) and "pwn" forums.

#8 posted by Melody Platz , June 16, 2008 8:57 AM

It's sad, but I would play a game about getting other people to play a game. I've played Lemonade Tycoon. For what reason, I can't tell you. I just know I spent at least one Saturday night clicking on virtual ice, inspecting fake weather reports and hoping the random computer customers would buy my lemonade. Like I said, it's just sad.

#9 posted by zuzu

, June 16, 2008 9:02 AM

So you've combined the frivolity of E/N with the inconsequence of gaming?

Is this actually a roach motel for boring people?

#10 posted by proto , June 16, 2008 9:47 AM

I can't wait for the TV news story reporting the internet coverage of this.

#11 posted by Greender , June 16, 2008 10:25 AM

You should really check out the other entries on tigsource's Procedural Generation Competition, there are some cool games there, not all of them, but some:
http://www.tigsource.com/features/pgc/

#12 posted by Evil Trout , June 16, 2008 10:39 AM

@Zuzu: Yes. Except I have no idea what you're talking about.

#13 posted by scribblescribble , June 16, 2008 11:31 AM

The Onion already covered this story!
http://www.theonion.com/content/video/warcraft_sequel_lets_gamers_play

#14 posted by Antinous , June 16, 2008 7:27 PM

ScribbleScribble,

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