My opinion on most import part of an online game

[Zyviel]

I would say it is developing community / camaraderie in the game. I know that the game needs to be fun and nice graphics are important as well, but I really believe friendships in the game can create the strongest bond to a game for a player.

To create a community the game needs to encourage players to interact. Here are some examples of community building features that I can think of:

Allowing players to form groups to work together on a mission.
Allowing players to join guilds or alliances to be part of an organization.
Chat boxes for communication.
Allowing players to give items and money to each other.
Allowing players to help each other in battle.
Crafting.

If anyone has any other ideas on how to encourage player interaction and community, I would love to hear them. Also, if you feel like some other attribute of a game is more important that would be great to hear about as well.

[Achilles]

PVP.
Player versus player combat usually allows a great deal of discussion with builds, tactics, and so on.
A little rivalry is healthy for the competition

[Zyviel]

PVP.
Player versus player combat usually allows a great deal of discussion with builds, tactics, and so on.
A little rivalry is healthy for the competition

Achilles,

I agree. PVP is something I need in a game also. Games without pvp don't seem to have enough suspense or thrill to them. I do want to keep the pvp interesting for all and give even new players the chance to participate early on in the pvp.

I believe in a very gentle sloping power curve for the time put in. I don't want players who put in huge amounts of time to crush new players or more casual players just because they have accumulated more i win buttons to use. As you stated in your post, I want the pvp to rely more heavily on tactics, builds and skill more than time put in. Also, pvp can help build camaraderie and community since people have to work together to survive in a pvp world.

[davidc088]

I think alot of good games use online voice chat. It makes the game seem more real.

[Zyviel]

I think alot of good games use online voice chat. It makes the game seem more real.

Hi davidc088 and thanks for the suggestion. I agree that voice chat can be useful in games and can be useful in building community and camaraderie. I know many people like the online voice chats in games but I really prefer the chat box you type in.

I think its easier for social conversations to take place in an old school chat box. The online voice chat is good for situations where one person is talking and giving orders but for me its just like in face to face conversations if too many people are talking its hard to follow what people are saying. If people are typing in a chat box its much easier to follow multiple conversations.

Luckily gamers can provide their own voice chat servers with all the free voice chat software available, even if a game doesn't provide voice chat.

[davidc088]

I see your point.. It really depends on the type of game you are creating. If it is a fps online shooter then I highly recommend voice chat. However It does sometimes get annoying lol. The only reason I was saying voice chat is because of the ability to push one button and talk without having to stop playing the game and shooting. I have played online fps's before and I used the chat box and got shot lol. I do think both are great though. Each have their pros and cons.

[Zyviel]

I agree when speed is important like in a FPS, a voice chat program is far superior to typing in a chat box.

[Achilles]

On top on PVP, I would also like to mention that balance is a critical aspect to the game.
One single class or player should not be able to destroy everyone in the server - that would make it pointless to play.
The game should give the opportunity for a new player to have the chance to beat any player with a small amount of time. However this can be fixed if players can only attack others of the same level or status (ie. Rank)

[davidc088]

Yes, if players with a high rank just beat up all of the new players. There will be no new players.

[Zyviel]

On top on PVP, I would also like to mention that balance is a critical aspect to the game.

I agree. I feel like every class should have a specific set of abilities that make it needed and useful. The four main base class types I can think of are Warrior, Cleric, Mage and, Rogue. I want each of these classes to have specific necessary functions to perform so that there is a good reason to play all the classes.

Yes, if players with a high rank just beat up all of the new players. There will be no new players.

IMO, this is a huge problem and a big reason games die. That is why I advocate a very gradual power gain for players so that the gulf between old and new players does not get too big. To use an analogy, the veteran player would be the power equivalent of Batman while the new player would be power equivalent of Robin. The veteran would be more powerful but the new player would be strong enough to jump in and contribute as well.