Features that only game X has that more MMOs should have.

[Rithrin]

For instance, playing from third person in nearly any game with PvP is ideal over first person for the simple reason of range of view. In most games, playing from third person is significantly better in PvE as well, because it allows you to assess the larger situation more easily. I would like to see a game that imposes first person perspective as a limitation on players ability to omnipotently fly behind their characters and assess everything around them. I feel that it helps immersion in ways that no amount of books or lore can even touch, and it's generally fun to play from the eyes of your own character.

Well, of course people switch to third person for better view of their surroundings. Especially because first-person view in video games is usually terrible. In reality, sitting right in front of your computer screen you can have just about 180 degree view from left to right. In a most video games, that perspective is somewhere along 90 - 100 degree view from left to right. So naturally people will switch to a third person view that's backed up a little further to try to compensate for that.

That aside, I do think it would do the genre good to make a first-person only game as long as they can get the perspective correct. Though I'm not opposed to having a third person as long as its fixed, as to not give an unfair advantage. I can't tell you how many people I've caught in WoW trying to come up behind me while I had my camera reversed from where my character was looking.

[Telemediocrity]

Trippy, there are several big differences.  In games like that, melee is generally a secondary ability given to all competitors, rather than a primary class for one player.  Second, in FPS'es you're generally using sound as well as visuals to track incoming enemies, which works because.... third, the level designs are usually very much on the restrictive side, in the sense that there are a limited, finite number of spots from which an enemy might be firing on you at any given moment.

By contrast:  In MMOs, melee is the primary attack ability of many players.  Sound as an indicator of nearby movement is, at present, ubiquitous in FPS'es but not in many MMOs.  Areas of battle in MMOs tend to be largely out in the open.

[Trippy]

By contrast:  In MMOs, melee is the primary attack ability of many players.  Sound as an indicator of nearby movement is, at present, ubiquitous in FPS'es but not in many MMOs.

I can't think of any major MMORPG released in the last couple of years that doesn't have footstep sounds. And if you want to talk about sound try playing Quake or QuakeWorld where players don't make any footstep sounds. That'll keep you guessing where they are coming from :-D

Areas of battle in MMOs tend to be largely out in the open.

And they aren't in, say, Unreal Tournament Onslaught mode?

[damijin]

The only MMO I've played for the last year or so was Lineage 2, which has sounds. In fact, the sounds of players using buffs, spells, or hitting monsters are often an indicator of their location when ganking in a dungeon and occasionally in the open world. There is no reason why sounds can not indicate locations.

And to say that most MMOs are outdoor locations well... why? Obviously a game designed from the first person would be significantly different in a few ways from a game in third. Perhaps this game would have an equal focus on indoor as well as outdoor environments, and advantages to different classes in those places. Personally, I'm used to melees being gimp because that's how it's always been in L2 and you just deal with it. Melees and Range are only equal in efficiency in close quarter fighting, and melees are significantly disadvantaged in outdoor fighting (slow spells have like 100% land rate, kite ftw). But hey, games don't have to be fair to be fun. To be honest though, I would try to disadvantage ranged classes when fighting in close range. The fact that an archer can shoot a melee who is standing right in front of him beating on him with a sword is pretty dumb IMO.

[Telemediocrity]

And they aren't in, say, Unreal Tournament Onslaught mode?

Never got much into UT - when it comes to FPS'es, I only go for things firmly in the 'Counter-Strike-y' mold.  I'll take your word for it on that.

I imagine you could have an FPS that was wide-open with no footstep sounds, but I can't imagine the combat being very appealing.

As for footstep sounds in MMOs, AFAIK those tend to be client-side only.  Also, assuming your game has runspeeds appropriate for PvP (AC1 was good about this - one thing I instantly hated about WoW and DAoC was how my characters ran slow as molasses), you'd either have to be able to even hear player footsteps from far off in the distance (Which would mean an annoying amount of false positives as people passed within range but were not intercepting you), or they wouldn't work so well as an early warning device.

I do, however, still think that the secondary nature of melee in FPS'es is a significant variable.

[damijin]

And they aren't in, say, Unreal Tournament Onslaught mode?

Never got much into UT - when it comes to FPS'es, I only go for things firmly in the 'Counter-Strike-y' mold.  I'll take your word for it on that.

I imagine you could have an FPS that was wide-open with no footstep sounds, but I can't imagine the combat being very appealing.

As for footstep sounds in MMOs, AFAIK those tend to be client-side only.  Also, assuming your game has runspeeds appropriate for PvP (AC1 was good about this - one thing I instantly hated about WoW and DAoC was how my characters ran slow as molasses), you'd either have to be able to even hear player footsteps from far off in the distance (Which would mean an annoying amount of false positives as people passed within range but were not intercepting you), or they wouldn't work so well as an early warning device.

I do, however, still think that the secondary nature of melee in FPS'es is a significant variable.

I agree with you on some points, but the hurdles are not too high to overcome.

As far as melee goes, if you were to limit melee into 2 general categories (which could be broken down more specifically with class-tree-branches or something), you would do fine with a tank and a rogue.

Rogues could be either fast enough to avoid a lot of slow moving arrows and magic projectiles, or possess stealth abilities to close in the distance.

Tanks have shields, raise the shield, block stuff. Sounds good enough to me. Besides, a whole row of tanks holding up shields with archers behind them lobbing arrows at their foe sounds kind of cool, doesn't it ;)

[sinij]

I personally disappointed that very few mmorpgs don’t have more complex attack/defense combat where you can combine attacks and combine counters to attacks. Sadly simple model of DPS (damage) vs. –DPS (healing) with occasional tricks thrown is the norm.

[Sunbury]

Third person view also simulates not only the wider field of vision in real life vs First person in game, but the ability to glance with the eyes or turning the head, which also is not provided in first person views.

I always feel like I'm controlling a disembodied floating eyeball with a cardboard tube taped to it with any first person view, FPS or RPG.   

The one feature I wish all 3rd person views added was to show your own character as fairly transparent.  Its odd that you can't see though yourself from yourself.   Third person views today is really simulating a magic viewing carmera that floats along behind and above you and you are wearing goggles that see from its view.  (Or if magic, its a magic wisp and you have a remove viewing spell cast).     I'm not a lore person, but it would be fun if they build the concept of 3rd person view into the lore, and even had related skills and buffs.