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Exclusive Features : Columns

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Title Date Game Overview Author
WoW Dishes Out Casual Epics 01/04/07 Casual Play Our chronic casual gamer Steve Wilson returbns this week with his weekly column. This time around, he;'s talking about World of Warcraft and the bility of casual players to gain epic gear. Steve Wilson
World vs. Game and the Worst Casual MOG Ever 02/15/07 Casual Play Steve Wison returns with his Weekly Casual Play column. This week, Steve weighs in on the world vs. game debate with a look back at his experiences in the original Ultima Online. Steve Wilson
World vs. Game 2: In a Galaxy Far, Far Away 02/22/07 Casual Play Steve Wilson continues his short series on the world vs. game debate by taking a look at his second game, Star Wars Galaxies. Steve Wilson
Why Game? 09/20/07 Community Forum Spotlight Community Manager Laura Genender explores the motivations behind MMORPG play in her most recent Community Forum Spotlight. Laura Genender
Where's the Wanderlust? 05/18/07 MMOWTF This week, in his most recent MMOWTF column, Staff Writer Dan Fortier tackles the idea of dynamic content and true MMORPG exploration. Dan Fortier
What’s the Score? Music in MMOs 09/28/07 MMOWTF MMORPG.com's own Dan Fortier uses his weekly column to discuss music in MMORPGs. Dan Fortier
What's in the News? 10/25/07 Community Spotlight Managing Editor Jon Wood fills in for the Community Spotlight today, taking a look at two of the hottest topics on our boards, the indefinite hold of Gods & Heroes and the rumored confirmation that BioWare's new MMO will be based on the Knights of the Old Republic franchise. Jon Wood
What's in a Name? 12/07/07 MMOWTF Weekly MMORPG Columnist Dan Fortier uses his time this week to gripe about naming policies in MMOs. Dan Fortier
What's in a Genre? 05/21/07 Community Spotlight This week, in a new Community Spotlight, MMORPG.com Managing Editor Jon Wood addresses a thread from our forums and tackles the question on genre in MMORPGs and Fantasy's place at the top of the mountain. Jon Wood
What's in a Game? 12/27/07 Community Spotlight - Forums Community Manager Laura Genender uses her Community Spotlight this week to talk about the different ways in which people can enjoy MMORPGs, and the ways in which some games are better suited to some play styles than others. Laura Genender
What MMOs Might Learn from Resident Evil 4 10/17/07 Beyond the MMORPG Today in his Beyond the MMORPG column, Managing Editor Jon Wood discusses Resident Evil 4, and suggests some of the ways that MMOs might capture that game's feeling of suspense. Jon Wood
What Makes WoW Dumb? 12/07/06 Casual Play Dumbed down, but can it still be fun? Steve Wilson
What Defines a Casual Player? 11/30/06 Casual Play Steve Wilson kicks off a brand new column that asks "what defines a casual player"? Steve Wilson
We're All Orcs? 11/12/07 Community Blog Spotlight In this week's Community Blog Spotlight, Laura Genender takes a look at a blog that asks what ever happened to feeling special and different in an MMORPG? Laura Genender
WAR, TR and EVE 11/03/07 Editor's Week in Review In this new column, MMORPG.com Managing Editor Jon Wood sums up his thoughts on some of the happenings around the world of MMOs in the past week. This week, he talks about Warhammer Online's release date being pushed back, Tabula Rasa and EVE Online. Jon Wood
Waiting for Lich King? What to Do? 12/12/07 Joe's World... of Warcraft In Joe Iuliani's World of Warcraft column this week, he discusses the feeling of futility that he is feeling in waiting for the new WoW expansion, and offers some suggestions to players of things to do in the meantime. Joe Iuliani
Vapor Where? 01/29/07 MMOWTF Dan Fortier returns this week to talk about his different categories of vaporare games. Dan Fortier
Trash Talking and More! 07/16/07 Community Blog Spotlight Every Week, Community Manager Laura Genender takes a look at one or more of the entries being created in our MMORPG.com blogs. This week, she looks at GMTristan's blog entry about trash talking in MMORPGs. Laura Genender
To Twitch or not to Twitch 07/27/07 MMOWTF Weekly MMORPG.com columnist Dan Fortier takes a look at the idea of using twitch-based combat in an MMORPG. Dan Fortier
Thrones of Chaos Returns Again 10/23/06 MMOWTF In his second column, Fortier takes aim at Thrones of Chaos. Dan Fortier
Three Years 11/28/07 Joe's World... of Warcraft In this edition of his bi-weekly column, MMORPG.com Staff Writer Joe Iuliani takes a look back at the last three years of World of Warcraft, including some of the changes and its influence on pop culture. Joe Iuliani
This Notion of Work 02/02/07 Casual Play This week, Steve Wilson tells us about the Casual Gamer's perception of MMORPGs as work. Steve Wilson
The Waiting Game 08/10/07 MMOWTF Weekly MMORPG.com columnist Dan Fortier talks about what happens to MMORPG players when we're waiting for our next big game. Dan Fortier
The Tedium of Being Evil 05/01/07 MMOWTF This week, Dan Fortier muses about the idea of playing a genuinely evil character in an MMORPG. Dan Fortier
The Rule of Simplicity 09/14/07 MMOWTF Weekly MMORPG.com columnist Dan Fortier talks about the idea of difficulty in MMORPGs from what we have, to Perma-Death to a difficulty system. Dan Fortier
The Gender Question 08/16/07 Community Forum Spotlight In the past here at MMORPG.com, we have run editorials on how our writers feel about real life gender in gaming and whether or not it is a factor. Today, Community Manager Laura Genender looks at what our community thinks about the subject. Laura Genender
The GAME 12/04/06 MMOWTF Dan Fortier discusses his own idealized MMO. Dan Fortier
The Future of MMOs 11/08/07 Community Forum Spotlight This week in her Forum Spotlight column, Community Manager Laura Genender takes a look at a thread that suggests that MMOs are dying. Laura Genender
The Future is Mod 04/27/07 MMOWTF Dan Fortier returns this week for a special Friday edition of MMOWTF. This time around, Dan tackles the idea of player created mods and the possibilities for MMORPG gaming. Dan Fortier
The Extinction of the Nerd? 04/09/07 MMOWTF This week, Dan Fortier waxes philospohical about the extinction of the "nerd" as he / she has always been known. Dan Fortier
The David Perry Project 02/27/07 Outside the Box This week, in Garrett Fuller's Outside the Box column, he takes a look at the recent Acclaim announcement that they would be holding a game design contest that could see an average gamer hold the title of Director on an unannounced MMOG.
The Console MMO Apocalypse 06/29/07 MMOWTF Weekly MMORPG.com columnist Dan Fortier muses on the subject of MMORPGs for the next-gen consoles. Dan Fortier
The “Solo Content” Debate 10/11/07 Community Forum Spotlight This week, Community Manager Laura Genender trawls the forums and comes out with a thread that focuses on solo play in MMORPGs. Laura Genender
Teh Grind 03/19/07 MMOWTF Dan Fortier returns this week to talk about the endless grind of some MMORPGs. Dan Fortier
Story - Smackdown vs. Raw 12/24/07 Beyond the MMORPG In this Christmas Eve edition of Beyond the MMORPG, Managing Editor Jon Wood uses Smackdown vs. Raw 2008 to discuss storytelling in MMORPGs. Jon Wood
Starting Over in WoW 10/29/07 Community Blog Spotlight Laura Genender returns with a new Community Blog Spotlight this week, highlighting Ceejay9's blog that details that user's experiences "starting over" in World of Warcraft. Laura Genender
Speed Leveling 07/04/07 Community Forum Spotlight Community Manager Laura Genender takes a look at what is being said on our forums about feeling pressure to level quickly in MMOs. Laura Genender
Something for Everyone? 10/18/07 Community Forum Spotlight Community Manager Laura Genender looks at the idea of trying to please everyone in MMO design as she examines a forum thread on the subject. Laura Genender
Solo Content Builds Communities 12/21/06 Casual Play Staff Writer Steve Wilson returns this week to discuss the ways that adding solo content to an MMORPG can expand communities, and not shrink them. Steve Wilson
Solo Content 12/20/06 Community Spotlight This week, Jon Wood returns with another Community Spotlight. This time around, Jon tackles the issue of solo content in MMOs. Jon Wood
Social Rewards in MMOs 03/20/07 Outside the Box Garrett Fuller attended a session at GDC hosted by Jack Emmert from Cryptic Studios. What Emertt did was prove that designers can also think outside the box.
Social Interaction 08/13/07 Community Blog Spotlight Every Week, Community Manager Laura Genender takes a look at one or more of the entries being created in our MMORPG.com blogs. This week, she looks at Jimmy_Scythe's most recent entry, and discusses the social interaction in MMORPGs. Laura Genender
Scary Things, Scary Day 10/31/06 Behind the Online In his Halloween column, Bonnewell wonders what is scarier: his column, Jack Thompson or zombie MMORPGs? Dave Bonnewell
Rise of Kunark 11/22/07 All Around Norrath In her weekly All Around Kunark column, Adele Caelia interviews players of EverQuest II in-game to find out their opinions on a variety of subjects. Today, it's the Rise of Kunark expansion. Adele Caelia
Restless Finger Syndrome 10/08/07 Community Blog Spotlight Each week, Community Manager Laura Genender takes a look at one of the MMORPG.com blogs. This week, she looks as a mock-ad about Restless Finger Syndrome. Laura Genender
Quitters Never Win, But Why Do They Quit? 01/22/07 MMOWTF Dan Fortier returns this week to talk about his take on why players quit their games. Dan Fortier
Questioning the Crutch 12/17/07 Community Blog Spotlight Over-powered skills and abilities in games are often referred to as "crutches". Today, Laura Genender takes a look at an MMORPG.com blog that brings the idea of "the crutch" into question. Laura Genender
PvP, Raids and Endgame 06/20/07 Community Spotlight Community Manager Laura Genender takes a look at one of our new User Blogs that deals with the idea of PvP and raids as endgame for MMORPGs. Laura Genender
PvP in MMOs: What Gamers Want 12/10/07 Community Blog Spotlight This week in her MMORPG.com Community Forum Spotlight column, Community Manager Laura Genender discusses a user blog involving PvP and what kinds of experiences players are looking for. Laura Genender
Public Raids 11/26/07 Community Blog Spotlight Community Manager Laura Genender takes some time this week to talk about the broader application of the WAR public quest system and whether or not, as a user blog suggests, it could be the basis of a game rather than as an additional feature. Laura Genender
Public Quest System 02/06/07 Outside the Box Garrett Fuler returns today with his Outside the Box column. Outside the box is designed to look at innovative and interesting choices being made by developers thorughout the industry. Today, Garrett talks about the Public Quest System in Warhammer that will allow players to cooperate without having to group.
Proper Treatment of an IP 02/21/07 Community Spotlight This week, Community Manager Laura Genender returns to highlight a conversation on the boards that focuses on major IPs and the ways that theya re turned into MMORPGs. Laura Genender
Previously Enjoyed 10/24/06 Behind the Online Gamestop and EB are getting together and Bonnewell isn't digging it. Dave Bonnewell
Premiere 01/23/07 Outside The Box Today, Garrett Fuller kicks off a new weekly column. Each week, Fuller will highlight new innovations in MMO gaming as well as smaller games that you may not be so familiar with.
Pre-Order Syndrome 11/23/07 MMOWTF This week in his MMOWTF column, Dan Fortier takes on the subject of pre-orders and whether or not we should be paying for them. Dan Fortier
Politics, Hypocrites and Tenacious Twits 11/14/06 Behind the Online Dave Bonewell looks at the politics of gaming in this week's edition of Behind the Online. Dave Bonnewell
Playing the Opposite Sex 01/24/07 Community Spotlight Community Manager Laura Genender returns this week to give us a brand new Community Soptlight. This time, she lets us in on why people might play their MMOs this way. Laura Genender
Players Vs. Devs 02/01/07 Community Spotlight Community Manager Laura Genender returns with a new Community Spotlight. This time, she's tackling the issue of what players want compared to what is possible for the developers to create. Laura Genender
Pirates of the Burning Sea: A Guided Tour 10/09/07 Pirates of the Burning Sea Community Manager, Laura Genender was in San Francisco recently, to attend Sony Online Entertainment's "Step Into Fall" event where she had the chance to take a guided tour of Pirates of the Burning Sea. Laura Genender
Perma-Death Becomes Her 02/16/07 Community Spotlight Each Week, Community Manager Laura Genender writes a column where she takes a look at an interesting topic that has recently cropped up on our boards. This week, her Community Spotlight shines on Perma-Death. Laura Genender
Patch 2.3 11/14/07 Joe's World... of Warcraft IN this World of Warcraft column this week, Jo Iuliani takes a quick look at patch 2.3 and gives his impressions. Joe Iuliani
Organize Before They Rise! 11/07/06 Behind the Online Dave looks at what he wants from a zombie MMO and some that already exist. Dave Bonnewell
Online Friends 01/03/08 Community Spotlight Community Manager Laura Genender takes a look at the concept of online friends and looks at a forum post that brings to question the concept of friendships in MMOs, and what communities best foster these long-lasting relationships. Laura Genender
One Shot Wonders: The Art of Stealth 09/21/07 MMOWTF This week, Dan Fortier takes a hard look at stealth in MMORPGs in the most recent incarnation of his weekly column, MMOWTF. Dan Fortier
OMG CSRs!! 10/30/06 MMOWTF Dan Fortier's latest column looks at customer service in MMORPGs. Dan Fortier
Neverwinter Nights: What's in it for MMOs? 10/23/07 Beyond the MMORPG This week in Beyond the MMORPG, Dan Fortier steps out of his usual mud-slinging role to talk about Neverwinter Nights and elements from that game that could be of use in the modern MMO. Dan Fortier
Nerfronomicon 06/15/07 MMOWTF Weekly MMORPG.com columnist Dan Fortier uses this week's edition of MMOWTF to talk about Nerfing in MMORPGs. Dan Fortier
My Ideal MMORPG 11/28/06 Community Spotlight Community Manager Jon Wood takes to the boards and introduces this weekly feature where he looks at what you - the community - has said. Jon Wood
More of the Same 01/25/07 Casual Play Steve Wilson returns this week to talk a little bit more about the topic that seems to be on the mind of many Casual Gamers, The Burning Crusade. Wilson gives us a breakdown of what this game has to offer a non-hardcore audience. Steve Wilson
Mob Mentality 11/30/07 MMOWTF In this week's MMOWTF, Dan Fortier tackles the issue of monster AI in MMORPGs. Fortier feels that monsters today just don't have the intelligence to pose a real challenge to human players. Dan Fortier
MMOWTF Awards 12/14/07 MMOWTF Dan Fortier, being the rabble-rouser that he is, has opened the voting on his own awards to coincide with our Reader's Choice Awards. The MMOWTF Awards celebrate and glorify all that you, the MMOWTF readers, hated about 2007. Dan Fortier
MMOWTF Award Winners 12/21/07 MMOWTF Last week, Dan Foriter opened up voting on the worst games of 2007. Today, he posts the results along with his own picks. Dan Fortier
MMOs Could Learn A Lesson From GTA 03/29/07 Casual Play Steve Wilson returns this week with his Casual Play column. Today, he tackles the successes of Grand Theft Auto, and looks at what the MMO industry could have learned from that hit game. Steve Wilson
MMO-holic: The Architecture of Addiciton 01/15/07 MMOWTF Dan Fortier returns this week to talk about his take on the idea of MMO addiction. Dan Fortier
Mature Ratings 10/26/07 MMOWTF In this week's MMOWTF column, Dan Fortier takes on the ESRB's "Mature" rating and suggests that there is very little mature about an M-rated game. Dan Fortier
Lowering the Bar 04/12/07 Casual Play This week, Casual Play's Steve Wilson talks about the idea of certain games "lowering the bar" for what we expect from an MMORPG. Steve Wilson
Lowbies of the World Unite 12/28/06 Casual Play Steve Wilson returns with his Casual Play column. This week, Steve talks about the "lowbie experience", not playing to max level, but playing a variety of characters to mid-level in an MMO. Steve Wilson
Lord of the Rings Online: Founder's System 02/20/07 Outside the Box This week in Outside the Box, Garrett Fuller looks at Turbine's Founder's System that has been put in place as a pricing system for their upcoming Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar.
Linear Systems 04/16/07 MMOWTF This week, Dan Fortier takes a look at linear systems as a trend in MMORPGs. Dan Fortier
Lessons Not Learned 10/16/06 MMOWTF In the first edition of a new weekly column, Dan Fotier looks at Dark and Light. Dan Fortier
Lax on the HaXzors? 03/12/07 MMOWTF Dan Fortier returns this week to talk about his opinions of MMORPG cheating. Dan Fortier
Keeping the Wow in WoW: Trapped in Outland 10/16/07 Joe's World... of Warcraft This week, Joe Iuliani sets his sights on on ways that Blizzard can get level 70 players back into their home areas. Joe Iuliani
Journeys and Destinations 11/29/07 Community Forum Spotlight In this Community Forum Spotlight, Community Manager Laura Genender takes a look at whether or not the art of the journey is lost in today's mad scramble to hit max level. Laura Genender
Joe's World... of Warcraft: Keeping the Wow in WoW: Seasonal Questing 10/10/07 World of Warcraft Each week, MMORPG.com writer Joe Iuliani gives us his thoughts on what's going on in WoW. Recently, he's been examining some of the things that keep players entertained in-game even after years of playing. This week, he looks at seasonal questing. Joe Iuliani
Joe's World... of Warcraft: Keeping the WOW in WoW 10/03/07 World of Warcraft This week, in his World of Warcraft editorial, Joe Iuliani poses the question: What keeps players interested in playing WoW and what draws new players to a game where so many people have already reached max level? Joe Iuliani
Joe's World (of Warcraft) - Shattrath 09/26/07 World of Warcraft MMORPG.com Staff Writer Joe Iuliani has been playing Blizzard's World of Warcraft since Beta. Today, we kick off a new weekly column focusing on all aspects of the game's past, present and future. In this edition, Joe talks about Shattrath. Joe Iuliani
It's the End of the World 12/28/07 MMOWTF In his MMOWTF column this week, Dan Fortier takes a look back at the year 2007 and some of the news stories that dominated MMO headlines. Dan Fortier
Interchangeable Alternate Lives and Stuff 03/26/07 MMOWTF Dan Fortier returns this week to talk about Alternate Accounts in MMORPGs. Dan Fortier
Instancing 07/18/07 Community Forum Spotlight Community Manager Laura Genender takes a look at a thread from our forums that discusses instancing in MMORPGs. Laura Genender
Insect MMO? 07/26/07 Community Forum Spotlight Community Manager Laura Genender takes a look at a thread from our forums that discusses the idea of an insect MMORPG, and the idea that the setting doesn't matter, it's features that are key. Laura Genender
Innovation in the Mainstream 10/01/07 Community Blog Spotlight This week, MMORPG.com's Community Manager, Laura Genender, takes a look at a blog that discusses innovation in MMORPGs. Laura Genender
Infamy in MMOs 08/17/07 MMOWTF This week in his MMOWTF column Dan Fortier uses a piece of fiction to punctuate his views on playing an infamous outlaw character in an MMORPG. Dan Fortier
I Have Dream 07/02/07 Community Blog Spotlight Community Manager Laura Genender takes a look at a blog from MMORPG.com user Vajuras, discussing “Appealing to the Hardcore PvP Crowd” and "Player Run Universes". Laura Genender
How to Kill a Giant 05/15/07 Mayson's Musings In this edition of his column, Keith "Mayson" Sarasin takes a look at how PvP could be used to try to kill the giant that is World of Warcraft with its 8 million subscriber base. Keith Sarasin
How Do You Like Your PvP? 08/03/07 MMOWTF Weekly MMORPG.com columnist Dan Fortier takes a look a subject near and dear to his heart... PvP. Dan Fortier
Horror 11/02/07 MMOWTF This week, Dan Fortier waxes poetic about bringing a truly scary MMORPG to the market and what that might entail from developers and players alike. Dan Fortier
Hitman: Blood Money 10/02/07 Beyond the MMORPG This week, Dan Fortier of MMOWTF fame takes the wheel on this just-for-fun column that takes a look at games that we wouldn't normally cover here at MMORPG.com. Dan's topic of choice? Hitman: Blood Money for the PC. Dan Fortier
Happy Newb Year 01/08/07 MMOWTF Dan Fortier returns today with his MMOWTF column. This week, Dan is making some predictions about the upcoming 2007 MMORPG releases. Dan Fortier
Happy Games Make Me Want to Kill 10/19/07 MMOWTF In this short-but-sweet edition of MMOWTF, Dan Fortier takes a swing at what he calls "kiddie MMOs", friendship meters, decorating contests and the like. Dan Fortier
Happy Anniversary... Belated 02/08/07 Casual Play This week's Casual Play sees Steve Wilson exploring the notion of Sony