I think it's become increasingly obvious what the majority mean when they use the term sandbox (no faction lock, more freedom etc.) even if it does not fit your definition. Why is it so hard to imagine a themepark with free roam and more personal freedom to choose how they want to approach the game, instead of being pigeonholed all the damn time. I would have much prefered a more pve focused game.
Originally posted by Kinchyle Honeslty asking....what MMO has ever been a widely played and popular "real" sandbox? I can't remember one that hasn't been a disappointment. Also, what about the ESO single player series falls out of the sandbox category? Isn't a sandbox where you can go anywhere at any time? Skyrim very much allowed this. Sure it had a storyline to follow, but you didn't have to follow it to explore the world.As far as the PvP goes...there again. What game has ever done it so the majority loved it (DAoC maybe)? All I ever see is whining about how a certain game or another failed at it. If DAoC did it right, is ESO going along the same lines with RvR? I actually only ever did PvP in DAoC a lot, so I kinda would like to know. Loved DAoC! Just questions...cause I guess I don't get everyone elses opnion of "sandbox" really.
TES games are quest driven. you can choose not to do them but you would be missing out on a huge portion of the game.in a sandbox game, there isn't quests like that, almost all the content is created by the players.that is why its been coined "sandbox" because you create the content, much like a sand castle in a sandbox.could you do that in TES games? other than crafting gear and potions no you could not (standard in any sandbox and themepark alike).does that answer your first question?
Yeah...I getcha. Makes sense in the full "sandbox" term. You are not just visiting another persons sandbox, you help define it.
In that case....I really have never seen a true sandbox MMO. Really can't see how any of these top tier MMOs could ever accomplish it either. One could hope though.
*Edit - Love how it mashed all the sentences together so I could respond to one part of your post. Awesome
Second Life and EVE Online are 2 large sandbox MMOs, probably the 2 most populated at any rate. Sandboxes, although there have been many released, just never seem to hold a steady or healthy population compared to themeparks.
Why do people constantly come up with these pointless polls? Newsflash... your little opinions don't mean crap to the developers. They have already set the course for the game and nothing is gonna change that. And they sure as hell not gonna take heed of anyone's poll at this site anyways. Now if it was an in depth discussion and trend on the official forums when they become available then they MIGHT listen but they sure as hell not gonna scrap their design.
I just watched that leaked video on that guys podcast and he makes an interesting point. Most TES fans were probably hoping and expecting for a Morrowind, Oblivion, Skyrim type game with the only difference being a large amount of people to play with. Given that I've played MMORPG's and other online games since 2002, there's no reason to think that this couldn't be done. In fact, that's what I actually wanted.
I like PvP, but PvP in MMORPG's usually means the homoginization of classes all in the name of balance. I'm the type that is fine with little to no balance or the rock>paper>scissors approach.
I think the problem with this poll is that it's too exclusive. I voted yes because I would prefer a more sandbox game, less restrictions on factions, no locks, no fixed clases and the limitations that implies. If it was PvE only that wouldn't worry me too much.
Here's the BUT. Why does it need to be PvE only? I don't see any reason why you couldn't make a TES MMO like the series, where players were free to start as any race they wanted, move freely to any region they wanted, and to be free to join any faction they wanted. They could also use a class template if they wished or alternatively, pick their own skills and still be free to develop other if they choose. All of this is good sandboxy type game design, allowing players freedom to play where and how they want.
The PvP could still be tied to those factions, it could still be a 3 faction RvR system. The big difference is that players would be free to choose if they a) want to join a faction and b) which faction to join. The current system is too much DAoC with it's 3 realms and the races etc locked in, including the PvE. I don't object to the 3 way RvR so much as the restrictions. If it was a player choice it would be more TES and less DAoC.
I think this is why you're seeing a lot of opposition to the current design, it's that lack of choice, something that was always very open in the TES games. Choices both for race/faction and class/skills and the choice to venture out and travel if you want. It's the main reason I've posted and voiced my negative opinions about the game.
if the game was to be like this I might reconsider and play it.
if this game was a sandbox, it wouldn't be like TES single player games.
i absolutely cannot stand when people say the single player games were sandbox games, its just complete ignorance to the subject.
again, just because you can explore at will in a game and decide what quests to do in what order you want to do them, doesn't make it a sandbox game.
it still is a quest driven game at its core, which makes it not a sandbox game and more of a theme park (if you want to use those labels for single player rpg's)
there is a main quest that you follow just like the single player games and there is also side quests that you stumble upon if you explore or talk to certain people, just like the single player games.
people assume many things with this game when we actually do not know exactly how it will be.
yet act like TES games were these sandbox games where you could build most of the content of the game void of any kind of questing element, which is standard in any sandbox game.
TES single player games did have some sandbox elements to them, just like the mmo will as well.
so honestly, i don't know what many of you expect, other than faction lock and being able to explore the entire world from level 1, what sandbox elements do you expect TESO to not have that the single player games did?
When I play TES games, I don't necessarily do the quests. I'll do some if they're good, and I'll follow the main storyline, but having OPTIONAL content does not take away from the sandbox elements. TES series are sandbox games. Most players think so and professional journalist (also game enthusiasts) think so. You don't get xp for completing a quest in TES series. You just get an item (maybe) and a bit of money. Most of your leveling is done through exploration of the game world and delving dungeons.
I dont know of many people asking for a "sandbox only" game.
We want a game with a sandbox BASE design, with some themepark.
Not a themepark design with some sandbox.
The difference between the two is very simple. A sandbox base design creates a LARGE open game with a great many possible gaming options, a themepark game like this one creates a very small game with a great deal of limitations.
Its sandbox vs small box. In a sandbox you can have everything from the small box without the limitations of it...the reverse cannot be said.
Originally posted by Kinchyle Honeslty asking....what MMO has ever been a widely played and popular "real" sandbox? I can't remember one that hasn't been a disappointment.
Also, what about the ESO single player series falls out of the sandbox category? Isn't a sandbox where you can go anywhere at any time? Skyrim very much allowed this. Sure it had a storyline to follow, but you didn't have to follow it to explore the world.
As far as the PvP goes...there again. What game has ever done it so the majority loved it (DAoC maybe)? All I ever see is whining about how a certain game or another failed at it. If DAoC did it right, is ESO going along the same lines with RvR? I actually only ever did PvP in DAoC a lot, so I kinda would like to know. Loved DAoC!
Just questions...cause I guess I don't get everyone elses opnion of "sandbox" really.
TES games are quest driven. you can choose not to do them but you would be missing out on a huge portion of the game.
in a sandbox game, there isn't quests like that, almost all the content is created by the players.
that is why its been coined "sandbox" because you create the content, much like a sand castle in a sandbox.
could you do that in TES games? other than crafting gear and potions no you could not (standard in any sandbox and themepark alike).
does that answer your first question?
as far as pvp goes, i am in the same boat. i loved Daoc pvp but its hard to say how long the pvp will keep me interested in TESO.
if there is no way to advance your character like you could in Daoc (realm points) then i would assume it wont last long for me.
i know there will be alliance points similar to realm points but i am concerned that it will just be cosmetic upgrades or other things that don't actually advance your character.
that was my main issue with GW2...well that and the fact that it was just a huge zerg fest and nothing more.
i like the fact that in cyrodiil, it acts as a full fledged pve zone as well.
that way people can hopefully still get the open world pvp feeling, even though it is still segregated from the rest of the world.
the area will be huge as well.
Dude, you're really full of shit. Come on now, how long have you been playing video games? No doubt, it hasn't been nearly as long as those of us who've been playing for decades and was around when the term sandbox was coined. You sound like you're taking a definition of it that was used well after the term was coined and twisting it from a purist sandbox POV.
UO, Saga of Ryzom, Fallout seris, TES series, Farcry series, Shadowbane, and I can go on and on. They're all considered sandboxes.
As for TES series, the majority of gameplay in TES is dependant on you. Meaning it's all about exploring the world and delving dungeons, not doing quests and following the main storyline. Hell, you don't even level up from doing any of the quests. They're completely optional.
I would rather the game be Skyrim or Morrowind Online (Oblivian wasnt as good IMO) with some of the features that wouldn't work culled from the MMO. Things like Stealing from PC's (NPC's are safe to be stolen from) or Killing other NPC's wouldnt work in an MMO. However there are things that would like:
Open PvP with full looting because the crime system is already in place, would just need to buff it and the town guards some. Open World Housing, but placed in and around the cities of Tamriel. Real Estate would be valuable and not everyone could own a house, but someone could take over a shack or mining point and make it their home, till some brave adventurer decided to take it from you.
However as it stands, I will play TESO but I have no allusions to it being anything other then "3 monther".
Second Life and EVE Online are 2 large sandbox MMOs, probably the 2 most populated at any rate. Sandboxes, although there have been many released, just never seem to hold a steady or healthy population compared to themeparks.
You act as if they are all equal.
From 1997 to 2004
Ultima Online, Star Wars Galaxies, Lineage were sandbox games and all three of them had more players than Dark Age of Camelot the very themepark this game is based off of...another sandbox, EverQuest also had more. Asherons Call and Anarchy Online were sandbox games, yet had fewer players than DaoC...yet City of heroes was a themepark and had a very low population.
All games are not equal, and TES is based off a themepark that FEW themepark players know, or like. They are used to games like WoW and Rift where even though there are factions, they can go anywhere in the world with those factions, including the other factions lands...and then there is the being funneled into the center of the world for PvP BS.
Sorry, but this is SWTOR #2. Many of the IPs fans will buy it and then quit when they realized they got suckered into buying because of the name...then the corporation running the show will not see the promised numbers, fire a ton of developers and the game will see a downward slide.
If you take on an IP, you are asking for more and more hurt with every change from the original you make.
IMO ESO should have focused squarely on what the ES IP does best. Thats a complex and sandboxy PVE world.
The focus on pvp is dumb, those who love pvp just hop from game to game, and pvp in tab target themeparks are all the same. its a constant issue with people who ignore pve and flood the forums for pvp changes. PVP changes get made and it wrecks pve balance ect.
To be honest, i really dislike zero risk themepark pvp other than for a side dish when im bored or need a change of pace.
I think this game would have been an epic game had they figured out how to have a fully interative world with tons of lore in a pve setting.
Though i will say that other games that ignored the non stop whine from pvpers got a lot of bad press from them (they torch and burn if you dont cave to them) TSW was the last game i remember having issues with people like this.
Wish the softcore pvp only players would graduate to full loot, aim target, or sandbox pvp games and let the themeparks do what they do best, and thats a pve game.
If you want PVE only content then wait for the next Skyrim expansion of a new installment of ES. This is an MMO and most MMOs have PVP in them. I look to play a MMO that has good PVP in it and I am hoping this game will have a nice balance for PVP, which means controlled faction choices. Not really as big a deal as many are trying to make it out to be. Most MMOs with PVP have those types of choices. WoW has faction controlled races yet people still play that game for PVP and PVE. If done well the cry babies will leave to bash a different game after a while and the true players will stick around and make the game great.
Originally posted by Margulis A lot of fans of the series seem to be unhappy with the game having a large pvp focus and not really staying true to the previous games in quite a few ways. Others have argued there would be no point to an Elder Scrolls mmo without pvp since it would basically be just another of the same game. So I figured I would make a poll to see waht the results looked like. If ESO was made into a purely PvE mmo much in the vein of the series (sandboxy), with all of the free choice of exploration and so forth, would you prefer that over the game they are currently making? Basically the same game as Morrowind - Skyrim, just developed for an online community (so group play vs. PvE, crafting, towns, economy, etc.)
ONE
TES games are not sandboxes, they are hybrids. The closest MMO to TES would be acherons call - which is a hybrid, bang in the middle of the themepark / sandbox spectrum.
TWO
of course its PVE only - ITS A SINGLE PLAYER GAME
I'm fine with your proposal to remove PVP if they also remove group dungeons, auction house, group finder, chat features and raids as they arent in TES either
TES games are not sandboxes, they are hybrids. The closest MMO to TES would be acherons call - which is a hybrid, bang in the middle of the themepark / sandbox spectrum.
Ah yes, but the CORE game in Asherons Call is SANDBOX, open world, open choices, story doesnt get in the way. The CORE game in TESO is THEMEPARK. Closed world, limited choices, story driven, funneled content on a guiderail all leading to the PvP center of the world...which is also behind a magical wall keeping your lands safe.
TES is core sandbox with themepark features so there is PLENTY for TES fans to be pissed about..hell, there is plenty for MMORPG fans to be pissed about, yet ANOTHER MMORPG trapped in a tiny little box.
TES games are not sandboxes, they are hybrids. The closest MMO to TES would be acherons call - which is a hybrid, bang in the middle of the themepark / sandbox spectrum.
Ah yes, but the CORE game in Asherons Call is SANDBOX, open world, open choices, story doesnt get in the way. The CORE game in TESO is THEMEPARK. Closed world, limited choices, story driven, funneled content on a guiderail all leading to the PvP center of the world...which is also behind a magical wall keeping your lands safe.
TES is core sandbox with themepark features so there is PLENTY for TES fans to be pissed about..hell, there is plenty for MMORPG fans to be pissed about, yet ANOTHER MMORPG trapped in a tiny little box.
if they copied DAOC more it would be less "themeparky"
DAOC always was the least "themeparky" of the themeparks.
sadly TESO will probably fall somewhere between WOW and SWTOR. This isnt like DAOC at all, DAOC would fall somewhere between AC and EQ. Yes DAOC is less themeparky than EQ, it doesn't have instances, it doesn't have a tiered item set grind, player actions effect the world (though in a more limited way thatn a sandbox like eve obviously)
IMO ESO should have focused squarely on what the ES IP does best. Thats a complex and sandboxy PVE world.
The focus on pvp is dumb, those who love pvp just hop from game to game, and pvp in tab target themeparks are all the same. its a constant issue with people who ignore pve and flood the forums for pvp changes. PVP changes get made and it wrecks pve balance ect.
To be honest, i really dislike zero risk themepark pvp other than for a side dish when im bored or need a change of pace.
I think this game would have been an epic game had they figured out how to have a fully interative world with tons of lore in a pve setting.
Though i will say that other games that ignored the non stop whine from pvpers got a lot of bad press from them (they torch and burn if you dont cave to them) TSW was the last game i remember having issues with people like this.
Wish the softcore pvp only players would graduate to full loot, aim target, or sandbox pvp games and let the themeparks do what they do best, and thats a pve game.
TSW might have had half decent PVP. During closed beta the usual EQ crew moaned like hell and we got the clusterfuck that is TSW pvp.
I felt that what most fans of TES series wanted out of an Elder Scrolls MMO was basically Skyrim / Oblivion / Morrowind but with groups. Meant a PvE focus, exploration / dungeon crawler with possibly some open world raids and a better crafting / housing system. What fans are getting is a PvP centric game that's trying to tack on enough PvE content to still try to appease the fans of the series.
I'm trying not to get my hopes up, but it's still going to be tough to stay away from an Elder Scrolls MMO...and that's probably why they went with the IP. I've been reading a ton about it lately trying to figure out if I wanted to dive in or not. While the overall game doesn't sound as appealing as what I had pictured an Elder Scrolls MMO to be, I'm finding a ton of like minded people already committed to playing. I'm just wondering if they'll have enough for us to stay interested for more than two months or so. EQN should be around the corner anyways, so I'm not sure if it'll matter too much. I hope not as much as I'd love to immerse myself in Tamriel in an MMO...I just find it tough to see myself doing.
Played: EQ1 (10 Years), Guild Wars, Rift, TERA Tried: EQ2, Vanguard, Lord of the Rings Online, Dungeons and Dragons Online, Runes of Magic and countless others... Currently Playing: GW2
Originally posted by Xepo If you want PVE only content then wait for the next Skyrim expansion of a new installment of ES. This is an MMO and most MMOs have PVP in them. I look to play a MMO that has good PVP in it and I am hoping this game will have a nice balance for PVP, which means controlled faction choices. Not really as big a deal as many are trying to make it out to be. Most MMOs with PVP have those types of choices. WoW has faction controlled races yet people still play that game for PVP and PVE. If done well the cry babies will leave to bash a different game after a while and the true players will stick around and make the game great.
If PvP is so important to MMO's why are PvP servers the smallest populations? Seems PvP'ers are the minority.
OP it does not matter the developers will not change their game from what they already have at this point. Its already too close to release and will not change their minds. Its sad because most Sandbox games right now are going FFA PVP with FFA loot which is a small part of the population.
if they copied DAOC more it would be less "themeparky"
DAOC always was the least "themeparky" of the themeparks.
No, DaoC was completely themepark in its base design.
Closed factions, closed faction lands, zones based on level all leading to the same place. PvP in a set location. All content directing the players to the same place, the PvP zones...it was so themepark that the developers even stated they felt they had to make sure each faction had different races to not only CREATE realm pride, but also so players wouldnt be confused by who the enemy was. That level of hand holding is pure themepark and it was the basis for the entire game.
Comments
Second Life and EVE Online are 2 large sandbox MMOs, probably the 2 most populated at any rate. Sandboxes, although there have been many released, just never seem to hold a steady or healthy population compared to themeparks.
I just watched that leaked video on that guys podcast and he makes an interesting point. Most TES fans were probably hoping and expecting for a Morrowind, Oblivion, Skyrim type game with the only difference being a large amount of people to play with. Given that I've played MMORPG's and other online games since 2002, there's no reason to think that this couldn't be done. In fact, that's what I actually wanted.
I like PvP, but PvP in MMORPG's usually means the homoginization of classes all in the name of balance. I'm the type that is fine with little to no balance or the rock>paper>scissors approach.
if the game was to be like this I might reconsider and play it.
Currently bored with MMO's.
When I play TES games, I don't necessarily do the quests. I'll do some if they're good, and I'll follow the main storyline, but having OPTIONAL content does not take away from the sandbox elements. TES series are sandbox games. Most players think so and professional journalist (also game enthusiasts) think so. You don't get xp for completing a quest in TES series. You just get an item (maybe) and a bit of money. Most of your leveling is done through exploration of the game world and delving dungeons.
I dont know of many people asking for a "sandbox only" game.
We want a game with a sandbox BASE design, with some themepark.
Not a themepark design with some sandbox.
The difference between the two is very simple. A sandbox base design creates a LARGE open game with a great many possible gaming options, a themepark game like this one creates a very small game with a great deal of limitations.
Its sandbox vs small box. In a sandbox you can have everything from the small box without the limitations of it...the reverse cannot be said.
Dude, you're really full of shit. Come on now, how long have you been playing video games? No doubt, it hasn't been nearly as long as those of us who've been playing for decades and was around when the term sandbox was coined. You sound like you're taking a definition of it that was used well after the term was coined and twisting it from a purist sandbox POV.
UO, Saga of Ryzom, Fallout seris, TES series, Farcry series, Shadowbane, and I can go on and on. They're all considered sandboxes.
As for TES series, the majority of gameplay in TES is dependant on you. Meaning it's all about exploring the world and delving dungeons, not doing quests and following the main storyline. Hell, you don't even level up from doing any of the quests. They're completely optional.
I would rather the game be Skyrim or Morrowind Online (Oblivian wasnt as good IMO) with some of the features that wouldn't work culled from the MMO. Things like Stealing from PC's (NPC's are safe to be stolen from) or Killing other NPC's wouldnt work in an MMO. However there are things that would like:
Open PvP with full looting because the crime system is already in place, would just need to buff it and the town guards some. Open World Housing, but placed in and around the cities of Tamriel. Real Estate would be valuable and not everyone could own a house, but someone could take over a shack or mining point and make it their home, till some brave adventurer decided to take it from you.
However as it stands, I will play TESO but I have no allusions to it being anything other then "3 monther".
SUP
You act as if they are all equal.
From 1997 to 2004
Ultima Online, Star Wars Galaxies, Lineage were sandbox games and all three of them had more players than Dark Age of Camelot the very themepark this game is based off of...another sandbox, EverQuest also had more. Asherons Call and Anarchy Online were sandbox games, yet had fewer players than DaoC...yet City of heroes was a themepark and had a very low population.
All games are not equal, and TES is based off a themepark that FEW themepark players know, or like. They are used to games like WoW and Rift where even though there are factions, they can go anywhere in the world with those factions, including the other factions lands...and then there is the being funneled into the center of the world for PvP BS.
Sorry, but this is SWTOR #2. Many of the IPs fans will buy it and then quit when they realized they got suckered into buying because of the name...then the corporation running the show will not see the promised numbers, fire a ton of developers and the game will see a downward slide.
If you take on an IP, you are asking for more and more hurt with every change from the original you make.
Hard to be immersed in a game when you're going to have naked Elves dancing on top of mailboxes...
You know what is funny about MMOs versus a single player RPG like Skyrim?
How stupid does it look that when you go into town, all the players are running around every which way (often on mounts) and no one is walking?
Most of the NPCs just stand there too.
At least in single player RPG, if I'm running through town all the NPCs are walking or mulling about more realistically.
Always a huge pet peeve of mine...
I'd love to see a MMO force players to walk while in town else they draw lots of negative attention from guards.
But also have horses and run speed out in the world realistically fast.
I'm pretty sure a horse can gallop a hell of lot faster than a 100% increase to my speed (twice as fast).
Thats why they changed the elves from Alienesque to a typical beautiful...so you can drool over them.
go play darkfall then
IMO ESO should have focused squarely on what the ES IP does best. Thats a complex and sandboxy PVE world.
The focus on pvp is dumb, those who love pvp just hop from game to game, and pvp in tab target themeparks are all the same. its a constant issue with people who ignore pve and flood the forums for pvp changes. PVP changes get made and it wrecks pve balance ect.
To be honest, i really dislike zero risk themepark pvp other than for a side dish when im bored or need a change of pace.
I think this game would have been an epic game had they figured out how to have a fully interative world with tons of lore in a pve setting.
Though i will say that other games that ignored the non stop whine from pvpers got a lot of bad press from them (they torch and burn if you dont cave to them) TSW was the last game i remember having issues with people like this.
Wish the softcore pvp only players would graduate to full loot, aim target, or sandbox pvp games and let the themeparks do what they do best, and thats a pve game.
ONE
TES games are not sandboxes, they are hybrids. The closest MMO to TES would be acherons call - which is a hybrid, bang in the middle of the themepark / sandbox spectrum.
TWO
of course its PVE only - ITS A SINGLE PLAYER GAME
I'm fine with your proposal to remove PVP if they also remove group dungeons, auction house, group finder, chat features and raids as they arent in TES either
Ah yes, but the CORE game in Asherons Call is SANDBOX, open world, open choices, story doesnt get in the way. The CORE game in TESO is THEMEPARK. Closed world, limited choices, story driven, funneled content on a guiderail all leading to the PvP center of the world...which is also behind a magical wall keeping your lands safe.
TES is core sandbox with themepark features so there is PLENTY for TES fans to be pissed about..hell, there is plenty for MMORPG fans to be pissed about, yet ANOTHER MMORPG trapped in a tiny little box.
if they copied DAOC more it would be less "themeparky"
DAOC always was the least "themeparky" of the themeparks.
sadly TESO will probably fall somewhere between WOW and SWTOR. This isnt like DAOC at all, DAOC would fall somewhere between AC and EQ. Yes DAOC is less themeparky than EQ, it doesn't have instances, it doesn't have a tiered item set grind, player actions effect the world (though in a more limited way thatn a sandbox like eve obviously)
TSW might have had half decent PVP. During closed beta the usual EQ crew moaned like hell and we got the clusterfuck that is TSW pvp.
I felt that what most fans of TES series wanted out of an Elder Scrolls MMO was basically Skyrim / Oblivion / Morrowind but with groups. Meant a PvE focus, exploration / dungeon crawler with possibly some open world raids and a better crafting / housing system. What fans are getting is a PvP centric game that's trying to tack on enough PvE content to still try to appease the fans of the series.
I'm trying not to get my hopes up, but it's still going to be tough to stay away from an Elder Scrolls MMO...and that's probably why they went with the IP. I've been reading a ton about it lately trying to figure out if I wanted to dive in or not. While the overall game doesn't sound as appealing as what I had pictured an Elder Scrolls MMO to be, I'm finding a ton of like minded people already committed to playing. I'm just wondering if they'll have enough for us to stay interested for more than two months or so. EQN should be around the corner anyways, so I'm not sure if it'll matter too much. I hope not as much as I'd love to immerse myself in Tamriel in an MMO...I just find it tough to see myself doing.
Played: EQ1 (10 Years), Guild Wars, Rift, TERA
Tried: EQ2, Vanguard, Lord of the Rings Online, Dungeons and Dragons Online, Runes of Magic and countless others...
Currently Playing: GW2
Nytlok Sylas
80 Sylvari Ranger
If PvP is so important to MMO's why are PvP servers the smallest populations? Seems PvP'ers are the minority.
I wouldnt say the ESO series is a full on sandbox,though it does have some elements.
I'd still want the MMO to be similar to the series however,which Im sure it wont be.
No, DaoC was completely themepark in its base design.
Closed factions, closed faction lands, zones based on level all leading to the same place. PvP in a set location. All content directing the players to the same place, the PvP zones...it was so themepark that the developers even stated they felt they had to make sure each faction had different races to not only CREATE realm pride, but also so players wouldnt be confused by who the enemy was. That level of hand holding is pure themepark and it was the basis for the entire game.