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Massively multiplayer games
In gaming circles there is some debate as to who started the multiplayer phenomenon. Many gamers, mostly those who have a passion for FPS games, credit id Software's Quake as being the game that started it all. In the RPG world of games, however, you'll find that the credit going to Origin for opening the Ultima Online alpha test in 1996.
MMOGs (Massively Multiplayer Online Games) and MMORPGs (Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games) hit the scene and gamers quickly adapted to the concept of purchasing a game and then paying monthly for a subscription to keep playing the game. MMORPGs take place in a persistent game world, where the gameplay and game world itself is constantly evolving and changing. To this end, the game developers will continue to update the game servers and gamers pay the price of this persistent world through additional monthly fees.
MMOGs are truly massive and allow thousands of gamers to join the game world and simultaneously interact in that game. When you join the game you continue playing, regardless of who else is on at the same time you are. Unlike most games, MMORPGs do not offer an ending. Your goal is not to play the game to beat it. Instead it can be compared to a never-ending world which, if the game survives in the market, you could literally play for years with the same character. A character that grows, learns new skills, and acquires new items for as long as you play. Each game server in a MMORPG usually holds at least a thousand players and the server runs the environments for a particular part of the game world. Good MMORPGs will be made of of several servers, each providing a part of the world and will allow gamers to traverse between the servers in essence, allowing gamers to travel to different parts of the game world.
Much like the forming of clans for the popular multiplayer shooter games, the community aspect of MMORPGs is brought together through gamers creating guilds and making alliances and friends within the game. The heart of an MMORPG is based around a social aspect and the games will often offer additional support and help for clans and guilds which form in these games. The roots of MMORPG and MMOGs are believed to have stemmed from MUDs, Multi-User Dungeon and browser-based multiplayer games.
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