Life After Warcraft?
As smash hit World of Warcraft approaches its third anniversary, we look forward at what may take its place.
By YVG Staff
Characterized by vast online worlds, player-driven economies, and life-demolishing addictiveness, the massively multiplayer online game (MMOG) went from geeky fringe pursuit to the most popular PC game genre with the release of Blizzard Entertainment’s World of Warcraft in 2004. But players of World of Warcraft, who currently number some two million in North America alone, are sure to be looking for their next fix at some point. Find out which upcoming games are vying for a chunk of Warcraft’s action.
Gods & Heroes
Thanks to the recent rash of historic movie epics, ancient cultures are big news right now. What better time to release an MMOG focusing on the antics of the Romans? Gods & Heroes combines historically accurate elements of Roman life with classic period mythology. So not only will players have to contend with rampaging Gauls, Visigoths, and Carthaginians, they’ll also have to handle Gorgons, Minotaurs, and Furies — and the ever-changing will of the gods.
Gods & Heroes sports a unique “minion” system, giving players a team of additional characters they can take with them into battle. Minions can perform useful tasks like casting spells, healing, and attacking — and you’ll gather your own army as your character progresses, although you’ll only be able to take four with you at any time. Does that remind anyone else of Nintendo’s smash hit Pokemon series? Hey, what’s good for the goose is good for the gander, and with around 130 minions to gather, the system should add plenty of variety to Gods & Heroes’ combat.
Slated for release in early 2008, Gods & Heroes has the backing of EverQuest creators Sony Online Entertainment, but it’s actually in development at indie San Fran studio Perpetual Entertainment. With a setting as sexy as this — and plenty of distinctive features to set it apart from the MMOG pack — we’re positively salivating at the thought of taking our place in the mighty Roman Empire.
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Age of Conan
Crush your enemies. Drive them before you. Hear the lamentations of their women. Dust off your best Arnie impressions, because classic ’80s action movie Conan the Barbarian is making its way onto the MMOG scene in March. Well, strictly speaking Age of Conan draws its inspiration more from the pulpy 1930s short stories on which the Arnie movie was based. Still, one look at the graphical style, fast paced combat, and blood-splattering violence should make fans of either source equally at home. In development at Anarchy Online studio Funcom, it’ll feature a combat system that has more in common with console fighting games than the Dungeons & Dragons-esque system on which most other MMOGs rely.
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Pirates of the Burning Sea
Another Sony Online Entertainment release, Pirates of the Burning Sea takes its players to the volatile world of the Caribbean, circa 1720. Pirates takes a reasonably realistic approach to its popular subject matter, including tactical ship-to-ship combat, skill-based mano-a-mano dueling, and a detailed economy that lets players harvest raw materials produce finished goods, and transport and ultimately sell them to other players.
No firm release date for Pirates of the Burning Sea has been announced, but last we heard it was expected sometime this year. It’s currently in closed beta, with a controlled and selected group of players testing the game — but we wouldn’t be surprised to see it slip into 2008.
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Pirates of the Caribbean Online
But if all that sounds a little too serious, Pirates of the Caribbean just might be up your… er… ocean. Bringing all the excitement of your favorite theme park ride turned movie to your PC screen later this year, Pirates promises characters straight out of the films, easy-going nautical action, player-versus-player duels, and (presumably) numerous buckles just waiting for someone to give them a good swashing. Oh, and best of all, it’ll be free.
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Tabula Rasa
In development for some six years, Tabula Rasa is the creation of Richard Garriott, the famed designer of PC classic RPG series Ultima. Perhaps surprisingly, Garriott isn’t following in the footsteps of most MMOGs by taking design inspiration from classic RPGs like his Ultima games. Instead, Tabula Rasa is a futuristic, action-heavy offering that shares more with first-person shooters like Halo than it does with his earlier works. Tabula Rasa also innovates with its character class system. While most MMOGs lock you into the choices you make as your character develops, Tabula Rasa allows you to change your mind. If you’re curious, you’ll be able to get your hands on it very soon indeed.
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