I think the future of the mmo industry may be in like indie companies with lots of creativity and as they say http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=617lGZjYyNo.

I agree, true innovation will come from the independent companies. However the minastream MMO developers will continue to have much better implementation

What left is there to be creative about? What is left to innovate? All companies can do is improve on whats already out there.

I wouldn't say they lack the ability to be creative, it's just the suits that hold them back.

Originally posted by SlyLoK

What left is there to be creative about? What is left to innovate? All companies can do is improve on whats already out there.

Yep, because we know that there is nothing more that can be done with the video game medium.

/sarcasm off

Just like any product or process created that is successfull, there will be companies that jump on the bandwagon to both copy and improve what was done in the past.  If there is the potential for profit.

Improvements and changes and inovation come along at a snails pace.  Risk vs Reward is not just a game rule.  It works as a business model as well.

Originally posted by Czzarre

I agree, true innovation will come from the independent companies. However the minastream MMO developers will continue to have much better implementation

True innovation?

Let's see what the indy guys are up to these days-

Darkfall/Mortal Online - Same game systems as UO with Oblivion esque graphics/combat.... not new at all
Earthrise - see above but replace Oblivion with Fallout 3... not new at all
EVE - economics/math simulator + same open rules as UO + space!zomg! not new at all, it's like Privateer without the good space combat action

Pretty much, even they are copying from others just from the less popular ones that came before them instead of all based on EQ like most of the mainstream MMOs.

The mainstream MMO developers are actually being a lot more innovative these days

SW: ToR - story story story and largest VO ever
FF XIV - no traditonal experience point system

and I would bet money the new Blizz MMO is going to be something crazy and interesting.

The big mainstream MMO companies can afford innovation due to financial resources and name recognition, people will take a chance on a new feature never done before from a company like Bioware/Blizzard/Square Enix before they will take that chance on a small indy product that you can gaurantee won't have the polish and implementation.

I never understood the pull of Indy stuff... a few Indy movies/games/etc. succeed and everything gets on the Indy train and sucks off any indy product yet 99% of them are terrible and so low budget and low quality you just laugh and go back to the mainstream

Originally posted by johnspartan

Originally posted by Czzarre

I agree, true innovation will come from the independent companies. However the minastream MMO developers will continue to have much better implementation

 

True innovation?

Let's see what the indy guys are up to these days-

Darkfall/Mortal Online - Same game systems as UO with Oblivion esque graphics/combat.... not new at all
Earthrise - see above but replace Oblivion with Fallout 3... not new at all
EVE - economics/math simulator + same open rules as UO + space!zomg! not new at all, it's like Privateer without the good space combat action

Pretty much, even they are copying from others just from the less popular ones that came before them instead of all based on EQ like most of the mainstream MMOs.

You left out:

Love

Puzzle Pirates

Dofus

Sociolotron

Golomizer

It's funny, I don't see anything too cookie cutter in that list....

The mainstream MMO developers are actually being a lot more innovative these days

SW: ToR - story story story and largest VO ever
FF XIV - no traditonal experience point system

Yep single player DIKU sure is innovative....

and I would bet money the new Blizz MMO is going to be something crazy and interesting.

Really, because Blizzard has a history of not doing anything original. Blizzard's calling card has always been refining the mechanics of other games and repackaging it. That's not exactly a bad thing though. Hell, Diablo was just a more accessible version of NetHack, maybe their next game will be a more user friendly version of Dwarf Fortress set in the Warcraft univers.

The big mainstream MMO companies can afford innovation due to financial resources and name recognition, people will take a chance on a new feature never done before from a company like Bioware/Blizzard/Square Enix before they will take that chance on a small indy product that you can gaurantee won't have the polish and implementation.

I think you're confused. The more money you spend on development, the more you have to make after release to just break even. Two guys in their basement with one server can recoup their loses a lot quicker than a team of 100 people who spent fifty million. What's more, two guys in their basement can make much wider profit margins on a much smaller subscriber base than EA can.

I never understood the pull of Indy stuff... a few Indy movies/games/etc. succeed and everything gets on the Indy train and sucks off any indy product yet 99% of them are terrible and so low budget and low quality (low budget does not equal low quality) you just laugh and go back to the mainstream

That's your opinion. I personally spend more time playing games on XBLA than buying AAA stuff for the 360. I spend more time playing games like Tremulous and Cave Story than Call of Duty 4 or Super Mario Galaxies. To each their own.

Is creativity limited by financial responsibility in large mainstream AAA companies? I'm sure it is.

Is creativity limited by financial limitations in small Indy companies? I'm sure it is.

A good idea is a good idea, no matter where it comes from.

I'd put my eggs in the mainstream MMOs basket because I KNOW they'll have the resources to take that good idea and implement it well, where as with the Indy guys it could be the most amazing idea ever and never see the light of day.

Originally posted by johnspartan

Is creativity limited by financial responsibility in large mainstream AAA companies? I'm sure it is.

Is creativity limited by financial limitations in small Indy companies? I'm sure it is.

 

Actually it's a little more complicated than that. It seems to me that the lower the production values, the more ambitious your project can be. Even though I've mentioned it already, Dwarf Fortress is probably the deepest game ever created. For those of you that have actually played this game, you know that is no overstatement. The was made by one guy and instead of graphics, everything is represented by ASCII characters. Even so, Tarn Adams was able to single-handedly accomplish what no other developer(s) has been able to.

You're also forgetting that I, as a consumer, take much less of a risk with indie titles. The majority of indie titles are free and those that aren't have demos that let me try before they buy. Yeah, most AAA titles have demos as well, but not all (Neverwinter Nights 2, Demigod, etc.). Finally, indie games are one hell of a lot cheaper than AAA titles. If I buy a AAA title, I'm looking at $30 to $50 dollars that may not be worth it. If I buy an indie game, I'm probably going to spend less than $20. Hell, you can get Braid for $15 or Geometry Wars for $5 on XBLA. I'm not going to spend a lot of time thinking about $5 dollars, but $50 will definitely give me pause.