The Gun Fighters is a MMORPG idea that I came up with that delves into the fascinating period of American history known as the Old West. Unlike other games on the market, GF would be one of a kind, the first and only MMORPG of the genre. I am neither a programmer or a dev, however I have extensively thought out this idea and have a complete game project in mind. The basic objective of the game, like other MMORPG's is to succeed and have much fun in the process. Quest in and explore the untamed wilderness of the old American West, both in a historical and fictional setting, full of rich story lines, tall tales, in the midst of a living, breathing world. Players would have a choice of nationalities, instead of races- ie. American, Mexican, Native American Indian, etc. each with it's own unique passive "racial" skills as seen in other MMORPG's. The real fun however comes with the expansive and diversified selection of class choices. For example, you could be a Native American warrior, an outlaw, bandit, Texas Ranger, peace officer, sherrif, US Marshal, U.S. army soldier, Confederate raider (special outlaw), home steader (settler), merchant, cowboy, etc. Then to flavor add in professions, such as bounty hunter, engineer, bounty hunter, hired gun, rancher, under taker, medicine man (magic), and many more, all with unique abilities, advantages and disadvantages. The possibilities are endless and the potential scope and scale of the game is massive (or could be small, would work well even then). The game map would stretch from Kansas to California and be dotted with cities and areas like Dodge, Carson, Tombstone, Black Hills and San Francisco. Unlike other MMORPG's there would be no numbered "levels", per say, but instead titles, ie. apprentice, veteran, expert, etc. etc.. In order to earn these titles players must gain experience, complete quests and other things- such as arresting outlaws, collecting bounties...killing.... and the like. Again, its too much to go into detail here but I do have the information- all of it as a matter of fact. The time line would be the late 1860's-1880's era, right after the end of the American Civil War, during the reconstruction era and the "golden age" of the American old west- all rolled into one world. Gold, silver, trade goods, ancient and holy relics from Imperial Spain or old Indian civilizations to be used to battle the undead- yes, I didn't mention that- but there would be a supernatural twist to the whole game as well. complete with ghosts and whole armies of say, undead Confederate soldiers that enjoy to raid towns at night for fun. *smiles* Historical persons would play a role as high level NPC's or bosses, ie. William H. Bonne aka Billy the Kid or Wyatt Earp, the ghost of Coronado who protects the treasure of the Seven Cities of Gold, etc. The centerpiece of the game would of course be PvP, but PvE would be just as important and exciting. I hope that you have enjoyed my game idea. I wish I possessed the technical know how to make it a reality but I do not, so perhaps some one else can because I'd really like to play it!

ok corral

This seems like a pretty broad idea, without enough detail to really stimulate a discussion on the boards. The Wild West has been increasingly interesting to me, and I remember ages ago there was an interesting project codenamed Black Hat, Silver Spurs that I followed, but I don't think it amounted to anything.

I'm not sold on your "classes". They seem more like jobs or career paths or quest trees than character categories. What does a bandit do, on the character level, that a Texas Ranger doesn't do? Does he have a moveset or something that's distinct? Does he have a higher resistance to badges? Is it just a team you can join for PvP purposes? Will I be locked into the bandit role and unable to do law-abiding things?

The idea seems vague and emaciated, not suited for a video game, much less a multiplayer or MMO game.

Paragraphs. Pretty please?

I think, what you're in danger of doing is dumbing down the Wild West.

Before there was Vegas, there was the Wild West. Anything a man desired was for sale, America belonged to man and God was just a word.
There was only man's law.

You can go the Cowboys vs. Indians route, sure, but I think you could make this game much more compelling and interesting if you went the way of APB and had an Outlaws vs. Enforcers style, where characters create their own factions internally from there.

It could play in the Third Person Shooter style with PvP anywhere outside of seperate designated zones (in the form of fortified cities) and a dynamic quest system.

Personally, I think the weapons and player's skill should determine who's better. Horesback riding and shooting in such a literal sandbox would be pretty fun and challenging.

I think with so much real world history and such a broad variety of landscapes it'd be a waste not to make the gameplay as wild and visceral as the place you're intending to represent.

That's just my thought. I guess if you're going to go more political you can go for the civil war era style.
It'd probably go better for the game you're proposing.