QUOTE (JaydePhoenix @ Sep 14 2010, 01:54 AM)
It's really not that much more work to build the maps in 3D, though, if you're looking to make a Nexus-ish game. In fact, it could very well be faster and easier, depending on the modeler. The same goes with objects.
I would use 3D cell shaded characters against hand drawn /pre-rendered 2D backgrounds as a style choice to make the game more visually interesting (Square was very fond of the technique in many of their PS1-PS2 titles). Interactive objects like chests and stuff would need to be 3D. I hear the technique also has the advantage of being less RAM / bandwidth heavy than the backgrounds being 3D, which helps since MMORPGs are played over the net and PVP events can be really RAM / bandwidth intensive.
QUOTE
I've toyed with the idea of using the UDK or something similar to build a game that's sort of a cross between Nexus and Ultima Online in the past, but it always seems a daunting task to take on when I look at my lack of free time, or suitable spare cash flow. The other problem, of course, is reigning in the urge to keep adding more to the design all the time.
The best way to handle "design bloat" is to plan out the releases years in advance. Basically, treat it like TSR / Wizard treats new versions of D&D; you start with the basic, minimum amount of rules needed to play. Then you release a supplement book with a bunch of new classes, items, and misc. systems, and the periodic release of new adventure modules. That's the model MMORPG expansions descend from.
I have a tabletop RPG I've been working on for a couple years. It started as an SRD based version of NexusTK, but it's now a heavily modified OGL game that uses 2d6, has an NPC scaling system (similar to Oblivion), a point buy system for item construction, and character classes with a talent system. Distance is abstract, not unlike Mutants and Masterminds (so it doesn't require maps and minis; I wanted the game to be forum play friendly), but parties are based in Formations (like, say, earlier FF games) and there are benefits for characters who occupy certain positions in a formation. The party itself is also treated as its own entity; it can gain experience and players have the option to invoke party skills. There is also tons of flavor text things because the default setting is based on a novel I wrote.
Anyway, the full rule book would be over 600 pages. I've cut the rules into separate books; Beginner's Handbook, which has rules for characters 1-5; Advanced that has rules for 5-20 (basically the skills for 5-20 and optional Flaws / Defects for customizing characters, along with new races and classes); and the Monster / NPC Book. I also have a GM's Handbook, because my game is targeted at middle schoolers / high schoolers who may have never played this type of game before and will need a guide specifically for DMing.
But I know what the content all will be from the start. I have a folder called "expansions" which includes my notes for new setting info, classes, misc. systems and adventure modules. None of it is fleshed out; I'll get to it later once the most vital things are completed. The important thing is that I know where the design is going and what steps to release content in. It also means the "intro" stuff will be more focused for new players and be representative of the gameplay they will have. It's nice to have lots of systems but overwhelming players with options from the start just makes the game harder to learn. (Actually one of the big things stopping me from releasing it is trying to find someone to make online tools for the game; I think to succeed in the tabletop rpg market today you need to supply the players with free digital tools for rolling new characters, building npcs, items, random loot tables, random encounters, etc etc. Since 4th edition D&D the expectations have raised considerably).
If I was to design a fantasy MMORPG, I would have the level 1-99 content (which would be quest-driven leveling, not grinding on trash mobs), the first endgame raid, and one guild PVP event as the launch content. The game would be designed with a reincarnation system not unlike Ragnarok Online, so the level 1-99 content remains relevant and repeated-able, though new releases would have some new reincarnation-only character dungeons and quests.
Anyway, the next release patch would be new endgame raids that build on the first, additional pvp events which build on the first, and clean up any design flaws from the 1-99 content. And I'd basically just keep building new content on top of the existing content, so endgame players transition from the older content to the new, while that older content remains required for new players to consume as they climb up the ladder. Eventually the game has all the things you wanted it to have.