Space MMoRPG: is a "gate" system the only way?

shaunathan

Anyone else just wish there was a space MMo that was not based on the gate concept found in EVE and Jumpgate? 

 

It seems to me that the gates take action away from where action normally takes place in say a sci fi movie...  normally you see the greatest action near a space station or planet. *shrug* IF someone knows of a space mmo that isn't based on the gate concept please post it's site here.

 

 

Shownder

Well, although there isn't a huge amount of info yet, Star Trek online looks like what you might be looking for.

Apperently you serve aboard a ship with other people, and explore space. Just like the show.

Elnator

Well SWG uses a "hyperspace" system. No gates. But you still "zone" when you hyperspace. Star Trek will use the "warp" system where you can warp from any system to any other system but I suspect it will still have to "zone" in the process.

The problem is that there isn't a server that would be affordable to run an MMO on that could handle realistically depicting the scope of a galaxy (or even just a few solar systems) without some kind of zone system to cut out the dead space between star systems.

But if you just mean not having to fly to a gate? Star Wars Galaxies already got rid of that silliness and Star Trek won't have it either.

Copeland

Well most pvp action in EVE takes place at gates, stations and planets.. same difference if you ask me.

hornplayer

The problem is that without the gates you can't skip the boring parts that the movies skip: the three weeks it takes to travel between systems.  I don't think many people would be willing to log on, point their space shuttle at the planet they want to go to, and watch travel take place for three weeks.

Elnator

I think he means having to warp at a gate point. SWG doesn't do that you can hyperspace out from anywhere in a sector.

Crabby

Freelancer, although not a full-blown MMO, did it great.  While it did actually have system "load gates" it allowed you to freely warp anywhere you desired.  There were also a sprinkling of "warp lanes" to offer even faster in-system transportation, but this form of travel could also be interrupted by pirates, or player to suit their needs (such as camping somewhere along the lane and hijacking a convoy). 

If you ask me, someone should just take that system and slap a persistent-state world on it.  Also keep the arcade-style combat while you're at it. 

Crabby

Double-post glitch.

Elnator

Freelancer was fun but I'm not sure it would translate well to an MMORPG without a LOT of tweaking.

Crabby

But notice how I was only referring to the travel mechanics of the game.  Other parts of the game would obviously not work well at all for a real MMO, especially the trading system.  Way, way, way too simplistic. 

In an unrelated note, it can be turned into a "persistent" multiplayer session with a dedicated server but that is obviously not a full-conversion.  It still would have made for some fun times if the developers supported some official ones. 

Elnator

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Originally posted by Crabby
But notice how I was only referring to the travel mechanics of the game. Other parts of the game would obviously not work well at all for a real MMO, especially the trading system. Way, way, way too simplistic.
In an unrelated note, it can be turned into a "persistent" multiplayer session with a dedicated server but that is obviously not a full-conversion. It still would have made for some fun times if the developers supported some official ones.

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I agree, I really liked the travel system in Freelancer, it was pretty original though the 'highways through space' was kind of odd it did make for some interesting pirating opportunities. There were a couple really good persistant servers out there about 6 months ago that I frequented but unfortunately the game doesn't have the depth of an MMO so I wound up growing tired of nothing but PVP.

But those space lanes were awesome for knocking ships out of the lane to pirate them for their cargo... that WAS fun.

Bhazir

Hmm I fail to see that much difference between travel in Freelancer and in Eve.

Freelancer has systemgates you need to use for travelling between systems. Freelancer has the highwaysystem, wich is a fast traveling method in a system. The warp wasn't realy warp, just doubled speed and no weaponfire .

In Eve you also got the systemgates you have to use to travel between 2 systems. Eve doesn't have the highwaysystem, but has the warp. You can warp from point A to point B, this is the fasttravel mode in eve. Then you have the AB (if you equip them) or the MWD that can be translated into the warp of Freelancer, only thing is you can fire you weapons.

Now I hear also in Freelancer that you could errupt the spacelanes, and in Eve you got the nice warpbubbles they call them. If placed right they will disrupt every warpsystem that passes through the field. The only difference is that the spacelanes are static in place and in Eve you can warp from every point so it is hard to find a good spot to put a warpbubble and is mostly used at gates to make sure none can warp away from a camp Also stations are camped, at least that is the last I have noticed.

I'm not sure how SWG had done it, quited it just before the expansion. But as far as I have heard they just added a spacesim in it and it doesn't have to do much with roleplay and building your character. At least not in depths like the groundbased system.

So if the OP knows any system that would work (without the heavy load on server) without any gate I would love to hear it as well. But I think you need chokepoints, especialy when you got open PvP. And space is big so those acceleration gates are nice

Elnator

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Originally posted by Bhazir
Hmm I fail to see that much difference between travel in Freelancer and in Eve.Freelancer has systemgates you need to use for travelling between systems. Freelancer has the highwaysystem, wich is a fast traveling method in a system. The warp wasn't realy warp, just doubled speed and no weaponfire .In Eve you also got the systemgates you have to use to travel between 2 systems. Eve doesn't have the highwaysystem, but has the warp. You can warp from point A to point B, this is the fasttravel mode in eve. Then you have the AB (if you equip them) or the MWD that can be translated into the warp of Freelancer, only thing is you can fire you weapons.Now I hear also in Freelancer that you could errupt the spacelanes, and in Eve you got the nice warpbubbles they call them. If placed right they will disrupt every warpsystem that passes through the field. The only difference is that the spacelanes are static in place and in Eve you can warp from every point so it is hard to find a good spot to put a warpbubble and is mostly used at gates to make sure none can warp away from a camp Also stations are camped, at least that is the last I have noticed.I'm not sure how SWG had done it, quited it just before the expansion. But as far as I have heard they just added a spacesim in it and it doesn't have to do much with roleplay and building your character. At least not in depths like the groundbased system.So if the OP knows any system that would work (without the heavy load on server) without any gate I would love to hear it as well. But I think you need chokepoints, especialy when you got open PvP. And space is big so those acceleration gates are nice

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As you said you haven't played SWG's space expansion so it's best if you don't comment on it at all. It's obvious you don't play it and haven't even bothered to research it because your statements about it, while limited, are all incorrect.

1) The pilot professions are very well fleshed out and add a lot of fun to the game.
2) Space is huge in SWG, not the scope of EVE's space but still plenty large and very fun to explore in. Not to mention beautiful.
3) The game has many missions that combine space and ground now so yes, space affects your character.
4) Mining space asteroids yields resources that are required for making parts for spaceships which, again, affects your character.
5) PVP in space is far more fun than PVP in space in any other game (imo) because it's more like the movies. It takes mere seconds to die in a PVP fight in space so you HAVE to keep your wits about you. If you snooze for even a moment you WILL get spaced. It takes about 5 shots to kill even the most heavily shielded player ships in SWG if the pilot isn't paying attention. (Freighters can sustain a bit more since they have much more mass and can have larger shields and armor but not much. Capitol ships will be able to sustain tons more once they're implemented).
6) Space PVE content is very well done and a lot of fun. I have far more fun in space in SWG than I ever did in EVE. The PVE content is very reminiscent of the X-Wing and Tie-Fighter single player games but with co-operative missions and such it's much more fun.

Also, SWG doesn't use a gate system at all. You can enter hyperspace from anywhere in a system. It's on a timer though so if you get jumped by someone it takes about 2 minutes for the calculation to jump to hyperspace to complete so you can't just hyper away the instant you come under attack.

There's no 'warp' type system in SWG like in EVE or Freelancer but you can equip boosters that will increase your ship's velocity for a short period of time or you can get droid/flight computer programs that will boost your engine's output to make you go faster. (or both).

Combat, especially once you get top end ships, is VERY fun and very realistic. Dogfights, like in the real world, don't take long at all between players. Against AI it's longer because AI ships shields are powered up and their guns are powered down so that the fights are longer and more interesting. Though if you go up against lower tier targets than yourself you can smoke 'em pretty fast.