There was a great roundtable today at AGDC addressing the grind in MMOs. That’ll make it up on Massively soon, early next week most likely. In the meantime it’s set me to thinking about solving player frustrations ala Cameron/Silentstephi’s race/class conversation. Combine that too with the other day’s discussion of the 1-60 game and this is what I come up with:

• Players are required to level a character class ONLY once. When you reach max-level with a class, you ‘unlock’ it across all servers, both factions. Have a max-level priest? Now you can roll a new priest on a new server at a higher level.
• ‘Instacharacters’ should have level-appropriate gear, ala the DK.
• I’d suggest starting that level at 55, ala the DK. This level should scale as the game does. IE: Whenever World of Warcraft: “The Emerald Dream” comes out and raises the cap to 90 ‘instacharacters’ should start at 65 instead of 55.

I remember a few years back when Luke Smith suggested Blizzard letting folks just buy 60s after they’d already maxed one out, and being all scoffish. Yeah … actually that sounds like a great idea now.

I am here to tell you, regardless of what anyone says, that Bruce Sterling’s keynote today was freaking awesome. He talked about the ubiquity of computing and technology in only the weird, bored, quirky way that a sci-fi writer can – fantastic stuff. You can read a full transcription over at Raph’s blog.

Hello, thanks for having me into your event today, and thanks for that intro. Though there is a problem with that, I am not Bruce Sterling. He couldn’t make it, he sent me instead.

The reason he couldn’t make it is that in 2043, Bruce is 89. Dr. Sterling is too frail to get into a time machine to talk to game devs, so he called on me to do it. I am one of his grad students. I volunteered, sort of, to journey back in time using some of our new technical methods. It wasn’t exactly easy, and I am here and fully briefed.

Before I get started about computer entertainment 35 years from today, even though that is a very interesting topic and I am writing my thesis about it, I think I should level with you. I should tell you a few things first confidentially.

Meanwhile GameSetWatch has analysis of the event – Christian didn’t dig it as much as I did, but he has some valid points in there just the same. On futurism!

I’m right there with Cameron on his commentary about WoW’s 1-60 content. Blizzard has made their decision about what that stuff ‘means’ in the overall Warcraft experience, and now they’re going to build on the 60+ gameplay in future expansions. If the rumormill is to be believed, within a few years we’ll be talking about the level grind to 100; just imagine how fast the experience of playing from 1-60 will be at that point!

I join Cameron, too, in saying that while it’s not how I would have liked them to do it, I certainly can’t fault them. After a lot of work on a Wrath-related feature, I’m now more excited than ever about the possibilities coming up in the next expansion (due out on the 13th doncha know).

With AGDC this week I’ve also had the chance to have my viewpoints forceably moved around. Damion did that for me this morning with his elder game talk; I was pretty well oriented in the direction of ‘elder game is good’ when he specifically called me out. Okay, well, not me, but he said something like “all the armchair designers that think lower level content should be expanded have never played in an endgame.”

Burn.

Of course, he’s right. And it’s definitely one of the reasons I’ve so enjoyed having a max-level character. I’m in a guild, I have a fun character that I’m really going to enjoy leveling through the 70-80 zones … good times. I’m especially looking forward to dungeons like Nexus and Utgarde. 5mans ftw.

I’m actually really pleased with how the next few months are going to go, gaming-wise. I’ve got two months of fun time in WAR, and plenty of time to easily finish my quest for an epic flying mount. That plus regular gaming nights with the DDO / Shortiez crew will make for some good gaming.

Here’s hoping you’re having some good gaming as well.

If I were at home today instead of traveling to AGDC, I’d be able to get going on WAR because of my CE headstart. Instead I’m in the Denver airport making sad faces to myself.

Still, if you’re interested in joining myself and folks like Cuppy. Darren, and Shwayder, here are the servers you should be interested in:

• Destruction: Volkmar Thorgrim
• Order: Averheim

I’m actually going to be playing on both. My primary solo character will be a Goblin Shaman. I’m going to be playing with Darren whenever I get the chance to. On order side I think I’m going to be the Shammy’s karmic doppelganger, the Archmage.

With Norrath behind us the Shortiez guild has set out on the road to high adventure. We’ll be exploring a multitude of virtual environments, and I’ll do my best to offer my thoughts on ‘the places we’ll go’.  Our first new port of call: the multiplayer strategy title Bang! Howdy.

… okay, yes, I know it’s not an MMO. But Brian really wanted to try it out so … there we were.

B!H is a western-themed game, with ‘yee-haws’ and ‘pardners’ from here to the horizon. In actual play you control a small group of tactically unique units, pitting your skills against a number of AI or human opponents. There are a number of different game types, requiring you to do various western-y things like brand cattle or collect gold nuggets.

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I leave for AGDC on Sunday at the very respectable hour of 9am. It sounds like … despite some worries … Ike will be kind to the conference. So, as I tend to do, I want to share with you my list of ’stuff what I’m going to go see’. I’m even in one of these – again. Eddiemae with Triplepoint asked me to sit in on a panel about PR and MMOs. I guess I probably know a thing or two about that now. It’s at 9:30 on Wednesday, and I promise not to be too boring. I also promise to be awake. Unfortunately, that’s about all I can promise.

Check out the list after the cut.

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