In preparation in my new gig here as a wodnews.net blogger, I looked over and read many of the articles. One particular piece of material caught my eye and struck a chord with me. It was a quote I found on the wiki page by CCP Chris during is Interview by Machinima Realm. The quote was as follows:
"LARPing is fundamentally MMO (...) players getting together in a sandbox style of play"
To me this seems an incredibly accurate assessment and one that bears more examination. Mind's Eye Theatre (MET) LARPs in particular have a very obvious analogous relationship to MMORPGs. Both games feature large numbers of players(MET can range from a dozen or so to hundreds in a convention setting.), and have very active and often passionate player bases. Players in both games can get very attached to their characters, and its common in LARPS for someone to play a single character for years.
So what lessons can World of Darkness Online take from LARPing?
1.The game should be based on social interaction.
Mind's Eye Theatre games are based heavily on interaction between players. It can often be difficult or frustrating to “go solo” and players are always encouraged to find a group to work with. Mainstream MMOs seem to be heading in the opposite direction, the most recent example being Star Wars: The Old Republic. Don't get me wrong I'm a big fan of SWTOR but it is largely a solo game. As of this writing, my primary character is level 31 without ever needing to join up with other players. Yes I did skip several of the “Heroic” (group based) missions but despite that I had little trouble finishing the main story based content of the game (at least so far).
The world of Darkness is a dangerous place and a single Vampire (or mortal) should have a hard time surviving on their own with out help from their clan or other allies. The WOD should encourage players to work together and thankfully they seem to agree as by all accounts it seems that they have made social interaction between players a priority.
2. Player Consequences
Actions have consequences in LARPS. If a player starts killing in the streets its only obvious that the local law enforcement will be tracking down those responsible. Set up a shop and own a business? If it does well expect to increase your dots of resources. In a LARP, actions have meaning. Every thing you do has some small effect on the setting, sets some ripple going across the water.
This is certainly not the case in most MMOs. It doesn't matter how many times I kill the Dragon, that damned thing will be back 15 minutes later as if it never happened. Actions don't really have much meaning. Every great deed you've done, every heroic act, or terrible atrocity committed, someone has already done. Worlds never stay saved, villains never stay dead, and nobody will ever know you did a damned thing.
This should not be the case with WOD. If its as player driven as we hope it is then everything you do will send echoes throughout the setting. CCP did well with EVE Online in this regard, going as far as to make several trailers showing how your actions can have huge consequences. I trust CCP will take what they've learned with EVE and apply it to World of Darkness.
In short, I want to be able to log off of WOD and know that the trouble I just stirred up in my enemies territory has caused an increase in police activity and made it more difficult for her to feed.
3. Immersion
This to me, is perhaps the most important element of any RPG. Whether its a PCRPG, CRPG, MMO, PnP, or LARP. Immersion should be what makes you almost believe the illusion. You should feel like your character really is part of the setting, and that you're just a small part of a much greater story. A story that is written by you, and millions of others.
I'd like to see the UI to be a subtle as possible. CCP has already stated that names over character avatars will be optional, but more can be done. As its not a combat focused game a skill bar should be easily hidden and able to be summoned at a moments notice. I'd love it if all you typically saw what the game and a chat window.
Emotes should be easily accessible as well. Not just with text commands but perhaps the ability to create shortcut key as well (a social skill bar anyone?), Basically if socialization is to be the focus of the game, then the UI needs to reflect this.
Immersion is much more than a computer interface. Its also, the style, atmosphere, and music of the game. I have little doubt that the folks at White Wolf/ CCP will nail that on the head and it already seems (from what we've seen) that the game is indeed headed in the right direction.
So all that being said..
What do YOU think that the World of Darkness can learn from LARPing?