Make your game then build a community.

The only reason to build a community first is if you're trying to build brand loyalty or something, which indicates that you're more interested in making money than making a game.

Also coding and actually running & maintaining an MMO are very different things. There's a reason why those things generally charge for subscriptions.

Quote:Original post by LTN
From our experiences with games, console & PC, we know what we like and we like to think we know what a lot of other people would like.

Sadly it takes a lot more than being an experienced gamer to make a good designer. All gamers believe they know better than the designers who made the games they play and think that they have the killer idea or featureset to make a game that is so much better, but they rarely recognise a number of important factors: what you find fun may not appeal to everybody (that is, a designer must design for the masses, not for themselves); making something awesome for one kind of player usually unbalances (and therefore make it not fun) the game for the rest; some cool ideas aren't actually(I mean, the technology doesn't exist) possible.

Finally, an idea by itself is worthless - the execution (or implementation) is whats of value. This doesn't just apply to game ideas, but all ideas (and I say this as someone involved in the startup scene) - so you shouldn't be so worried about people stealing your ideas. Everybody has killer ideas of their own anyway and would need to be persuaded to implement yours - they won't steal them.

Having said that, anything you produce is automatically copyrighted (you may need to have some kind of transferal of copyright contract with your forum members though). You do not need to register it (though doing so will help you prove its yours), BUT game ideas are easy enough to twist into something else to bypass the copyright (they just cant make an exact duplicate or derivitive of your work) and you cannot patent ideas.

Once you keep the above in mind, I would suggest reading Richard Bartles book Designing Virtual Worlds. Nobody should even attempt to design or implement an MMORPG or other online virtual world without having read this book at least twice, so if you really want to make an MMORPG, I'd urge you to read it. Its an exceptionally well written book, it covers a LOT of excellent material and is written by somebody whos been around from the very beginning of virtual worlds, MUD's and MMORPGs and has been active in the area from the start.


Keep in mind that making an MMORPG is very dificult, even for professional game developers. Making a successful MMORPG is even more dificult (and many professional developers have failed). Running an MMORPG is just as dificult (or perhaps even more so). Finally, running something of similar size and scale of the commercial MMORPGs is expensive.

Having said that, if you really want to make an MMORPG, don't let anything stop you. Be aware of the dificulties and problems you will encounter and persevere. It is very dificult, but it has been done. In any case, good luck.

ever thought of designing the game as a table top. Even though its a MMO, you can learn and develop the game through simple battles in situations. The stats of classes and create the rules. You can see how fun it is through that. The Dragonlance series and the world were created through playing a table top game. ;)

If you have something that is awesome such as a complete game that is unique and has a selling point, document all your work and such and share it with the world, pitch it to companies, get investors, you will have a table top version to show investors and companies.

good luck.

Make pacman first. Then make it multiplayer. Then ask yourself if you still want to make an MMORPG.

Setting up a website for your MMORPG would probably be unwise right now. Only because chance are high that you will let down all the people who you get to join your community by never releasing the game. Although, there is the possibility that your community members will be satisfied with just trying to help design a dream game, knowing it will never come to fruition.