Retro MMO

SEANMCAD · June 2017

31 years later, groundbreaking MMORPG Habitat is coming back online

http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/299211/31_years_later_groundbreaking_MMORPG_Habitat_is_coming_back_online.php

For all those who are highly interested in all things nostalgic you might find this interesting.

Kyleran · June 2017

Thanks for sharing this, I never knew about this title and it does appear to be the earliest MMORPG I've seen so far.

I read more about the creators design concepts particularly regarding player interactivity which I feel are so spot on and can't believe the direction these titles ended up taking.

Had to laugh when I read they started with a player run world and one of their first challenges was to deal with rampant player killing which lead to the creation of laws and even an enforcement avatar. (humans are and always have been arses when ever presented freedom with no restrictions.)

Look it up on wikipedia if you want a good read.

Tiller · June 2017

Wow interesting stuff. This predates the forming of Lucas Arts Entertainment Company. Back in the day Lucas Arts was always pushing the boundaries of game development when they did everything in house; now we get EA overseeing what gets developed in the name of Lucas Films. Sad days xD

Gamer54321 · June 2017

Whenever I think of "retro mmo" I imagine some single guy that happens to like programming, and then he makes games that are terrible, and try find excuses for producing the most shallow and inane stuff possible.

Po_gg · June 2017

Gamer54321 said:

Whenever I think of "retro mmo" I imagine some single guy that happens to like programming, and then he makes games that are terrible, and try find excuses for producing the most shallow and inane stuff possible.

Maybe it's time to readjust your thinking, then?

Habitat is pretty famous, when MUDs started to rise and shine in the early and mid-'90s I was always a bit jealous when someone said he was in Habitat before... I have no personal experiences sadly, it was never available in the Eu.

(not that I could afford it anyways, as a kid

I barely had the pocket money to get a C-64, let alone pay the phone bills for the connection)

13thBen · June 2017

Wow its like the great grandpa of MMO's. Thanks for sharing

Dibdabs · June 2017

I was there at the time and using the term "retro" simply means, to me, "primitive game lacking in features dragged kicking and screaming into the 21st Century purely out of a sense of misguided, rosy nostalgia."

Kyleran · June 2017

Dibdabs said:

I was there at the time and using the term "retro" simply means, to me, "primitive game lacking in features dragged kicking and screaming into the 21st Century purely out of a sense of misguided, rosy nostalgia."

Except that game appears to have features missing from many MMOs today.

Go figure.

Elsabolts · June 2017

Folks need to remember Lucas Arts and George Lucas did in Star Wars Galaxies, he who has the best and most lawyers wins.

SEANMCAD · June 2017

clearly the contents of the entire article is only in the headline of the OP

Distopia · June 2017

Kyleran said:

Dibdabs said:

I was there at the time and using the term "retro" simply means, to me, "primitive game lacking in features dragged kicking and screaming into the 21st Century purely out of a sense of misguided, rosy nostalgia."

Except that game appears to have features missing from many MMOs today.

Go figure.

And I'm sure it's missing many features of modern games. Like most 2d vs 3d game comparisons.

Kyleran · June 2017

Distopia said:

Kyleran said:

Dibdabs said:

I was there at the time and using the term "retro" simply means, to me, "primitive game lacking in features dragged kicking and screaming into the 21st Century purely out of a sense of misguided, rosy nostalgia."

Except that game appears to have features missing from many MMOs today.

Go figure.

And I'm sure it's missing many features of modern games. Like most 2d vs 3d game comparisons.

I was referring to the interesting social interaction designs which clearly could be part of modern games, had devs not lost their way.

Distopia · June 2017

Kyleran said:

Distopia said:

Kyleran said:

Dibdabs said:

I was there at the time and using the term "retro" simply means, to me, "primitive game lacking in features dragged kicking and screaming into the 21st Century purely out of a sense of misguided, rosy nostalgia."

Except that game appears to have features missing from many MMOs today.

Go figure.

And I'm sure it's missing many features of modern games. Like most 2d vs 3d game comparisons.

I was referring to the interesting social interaction designs which clearly could be part of modern games, had devs not lost their way.

I just figured you meant deep RP systems like early CRPGs had... A lot of features were handled through calculations in the background, then represented mostly in a text based delivery, rather than actual options to experience in the game world. A lot of people mistake their absence for laziness, when it's more of a cost effective dilemma in bringing that stuff into the living experience..

That said, Sure some social function has been lost, some for the better some for the worst. Still we don't need to go back to the stone age to experience a lot of that.

SWG EMU and Project 1999 are there after all. AS well as DAOC and a few others.

Kyleran · June 2017

Distopia said:

Kyleran said:

Distopia said:

Kyleran said:

Dibdabs said:

I was there at the time and using the term "retro" simply means, to me, "primitive game lacking in features dragged kicking and screaming into the 21st Century purely out of a sense of misguided, rosy nostalgia."

Except that game appears to have features missing from many MMOs today.

Go figure.

And I'm sure it's missing many features of modern games. Like most 2d vs 3d game comparisons.

I was referring to the interesting social interaction designs which clearly could be part of modern games, had devs not lost their way.

I just figured you meant deep RP systems like early CRPGs had... A lot of features were handled through calculations in the background, then represented mostly in a text based delivery, rather than actual options to experience in the game world. A lot of people mistake their absence for laziness, when it's more of a cost effective dilemma in bringing that stuff into the living experience..

That said, Sure some social function has been lost, some for the better some for the worst. Still we don't need to go back to the stone age to experience a lot of that. SWG EMU and Project 1999 are there after all. AS well as DAOC and a few others.

I had no intention of giving this a try, I'm already stuck back in the "Dark Ages" which is as far back as I'm willing to go.

13thBen · June 2017

Distopia said:

Kyleran said:

Dibdabs said:

I was there at the time and using the term "retro" simply means, to me, "primitive game lacking in features dragged kicking and screaming into the 21st Century purely out of a sense of misguided, rosy nostalgia."

Except that game appears to have features missing from many MMOs today.

Go figure.

And I'm sure it's missing many features of modern games. Like most 2d vs 3d game comparisons.

Still it was the first MMO. Why compare it to this generations MMO? Lets just leave it there. and accept the fact that todays MMO are just successors of this game

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Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions. Pvbs 18:2, NIV

Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions. Pvbs 18:2, NIV

Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions. Pvbs 18:2, NIV

Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions. Pvbs 18:2, NIV

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Retro MMO

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Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions. Pvbs 18:2, NIV

Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions. Pvbs 18:2, NIV

Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions. Pvbs 18:2, NIV

Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions. Pvbs 18:2, NIV