Virtual world as platform

Virtual world as platform

5 September 2004

by Mike Rozak

In one of my previous articles I mentioned that I thought of virtual worlds as platforms. I thought I'd go into more detail:

Imagine creating a virtual world... some place with lush scenery that your character can walk around in. You spend all your time walking around looking at the picturesque trees and impossibly tall mountains. And when you get bored of that, your character finds other places to wander around in. And when you get bored of that?

Might as well at chat... You are no longer wandering around the world alone. You can see other people in the world and talk/type to them. You can even animate your character with emotes. This will keep you occupied for a bit longer, but eventually you will get bored. Now what?

How about providing some games to play with other people? Maybe allow people to fight, fly planes, or play virtual capture the flag... Will this keep you interested? Yes, for awhile, but even this will get boring.

Continue ad infinitum...

Virtual worlds by themselves quickly get boring. To make them interesting developers add sub-games and activities to them. The world is continually changing and growing (in size and number of sub-games and activities) to prevent players from getting bored and leaving.

Contemporary virtual worlds are almost all based off one major sub-game, the CRPG (like Morrowind or Neverwinter Nights). A few are based upon vehicle simulations, such as space combat. One, Star Wars Galaxies, even combines both into the same world. I predict that over time more and more virtual worlds will be based off several sub-games, just as Star Wars Galaxies is.

What sub-games can a virtual world include?

Single-player sub-games

Here are some single-player sub-games that can be added to a virtual world: (Note: Single-player sub-games are not ideal virtual world material because they don't encourage people to play together, see "What makes a good sub-game?")

• 
  Adventure and interactive fiction - Your typical adventure game.
  
• 
  Program NPCs - Players can try their hand at "programming" an AI.
  
• 
  Raise a pet - Very popular in virtual worlds.
  
• 
  Read a newspaper about VW events
  
• 
  Sit back and enjoy the scenery - VWs don't have good enough graphics and sound for this yet, but it's coming.
  
• 
  Stories - A user could connect to a virtual world and hear stories told by NPCs. With a 3D virtual world, players could even see them animated as cut-scenes.
  
• 
  Talk to NPCs - Most virtual worlds don't have NPCs worth talking to at the moment.
  

Some sub-games can either be played alone, or with a small group:

• 
  Create own mini-adventures - Players like to create their own adventures and/or "content" for the virtual world.
  
• 
  CRPGs - Kill lots of monsters, collect loot... your typical stuff. This is so standard that many people cannot imagine a virtual world without it.
  
• 
  Exploration - Wander around and enjoy the scenery, or figure out how the physics of the world work.
  
• 
  God games - Try to run your own city, similar to SimCity or Zoo Tycoon.
  
• 
  Produce a newspaper of VW events
  
• 
  Real-time strategy games - Control armies and send them into battle.
  

Some sub-games require a small group of people:

• 
  Cards - A classic game.
  
• 
  Chat - This is a given.
  
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  Chess and checkers - More classic games
  
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  Contests of skill - Archery, etc.
  
• 
  Debates - Probably not, but they're a possibility.
  
• 
  Face-to-face RPGs - Some virtual worlds like those form Skotos use "storytellers" to create a more traditional RPG feel.
  
• 
  Hide and seek - The traditional game, but in a virtual world.
  
• 
  Jousts - A variation of PvP combat.
  
• 
  Meet VW friends on the outside - This is always an interesting experience. It's not exactly a game, but it is part of the VW experience.
  
• 
  Organize events - Some people like organizing other people.
  
• 
  Player-vs.-player combat - Instead of killing monsters, kill each other.
  
• 
  Racing - Either on-foot, on horseback, or in a vehicle.
  
• 
  Scavenger hunt - The traditional game, but in a virtual world.
  
• 
  Trivia contests - Another classic game.
  

Some sub-games require a large group:

• 
  Capture the flag - The traditional game, but in a virtual world.
  
• 
  Economy (manufacturing) - A variation on the classic Lemonade computer game.
  
• 
  Economy (trading) - Buy items in one part of the world and sell them some place else for more.
  
• 
  Gossip - Hear what everyone is up to.
  
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  Guild-vs.-guild or realm-vs.-realm combat - Kill each other as part of a group.
  
• 
  Manage a virtual-world business
  
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  Sports (team) - Why not play sports in a virtual world?
  
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  Sports (watching) - Why not watch the teams compete?
  
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  Politics - Try to get yourself elected mayor of the city.
  
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  Role playing - A common sub-game in smaller virtual worlds.
  

The act of creating a virtual world is also a sub-game:

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  Create your own VW - Either to entertain yourself, your friends, or strangers.
  
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  Break the VW - Many people find it fun to hack the VW and find exploits.
  

While I listed quite a few sub-games, the list is certainly not complete. With a bit of imagination you can probably double their size.

What makes a good sub-game?

So what makes a good sub-game? I'm not 100% sure, but here are some general guidelines:

1. 
   It should be an activity that can be done on a computer.
   
2. 
   Most virtual world sub-games are inferior to their stand-alone counterparts. For a sub-game to work well in a virtual world, it should get some benefit from being multiple-player or integrated with other sub-games.

   Example: MMORPGs are based on CRPGs, but they make rather poor CRPGs. The reason they are successful is because MMORPGs provide a multiple-player environment and synergies with other sub-games (such as economics).

   
   
3. 
   The sub-game should be resistant to cheating. One of the problems with adventure games and trivia contents (listed above) is that they are easy to cheat on. If a player cheats on a single-player game they are only hurting themselves, but virtual worlds turn into competitions (for some people), so if they cheat in a virtual world, they get an advantage over other players.
   
4. 
   Small sub-games that can't be sold on their own, but which can be sold as part of a larger package.

   Example: Chat is a free commodity on the Internet. However, most people spend significant amounts of their time in a virtual world using (and paying for) the VW's chat.

   
   

Why would a business want to bundle a number of sub-games into a virtual world? Why not sell them separately?

1. 
   The whole is more valuable than the sum of its parts. (See "What makes a good subgame?")
   
2. 
   Players would rather pay one large monthly bill than many small ones. As a result, virtual worlds that offer more sub-games are more likely to acquire and retain customers. (Think of cable TV... you only have one cable TV provider, and only pay one bill for all 50+ channels.)
   
3. 
   One retail package for a host of games: Retail shelf space is expensive and difficult to get. Bundling a number of games into one box reduces the profit per box, but potentially increases subscriptions (which is where virtual worlds make their money).
   
4. 
   Brand names and ease-of-acquisition - If the customer wishes to play a genre of game, such as a racing game, they are more likely to purchase the game from a company they are familiar with. Furthermore, if the game is already part of their virtual world, they are less likely to buy a competitor's version.
   

Don't think of a virtual world as a single game. Think of it as a platform that can support many games and other activities.