Insert Coin

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Insert Coin The Arcade has died and no-one seems to either have noticed or cared. Once a place where youths and adults would gather to play video games and interact with each other, this physical meeting place has moved online to a “Virtual Arcade”. The inherent replacement for the arcade were Multiplayer Online Games (MMOG), which seemingly were ushered in, as arcades were phased out, MMOGs allow many users (game players) sometimes in the 10s of thousands to connect and interact with each other at the same time. These games spawned from personal computers (PCs) and made their transition to home console (playstation, xbox and nintendo); games that have versions for both the PC and home consoles are called cross platformed. 85% of MMOGs are still based on PCs (windows based systems) with many popular MMOs cross plattforming to home consoles and Apple computers. Once looked at, as nothing more than a Fad or the next internet Trend, it is evident that MMOGs are here to stay. MMOGs can be divided into two separate categories, with the first being Pay to Play (P2P). These games usually require the player to buy the game at retail price ranging from $20-$65 and then pay a monthly subscription, typically between $10-$15 in order to play the game. The more popular P2P games are World of Warcraft (WoW) Final Fantasy XI (FFXI), Eve and Lord of the Rings Online (LoTRO). These games are more polished (term used to describe the overall experience and environment of a game, as a more finished product) and usually come from major game developers that can afford the lofty production cost for making these games. WoW cost a reported $15,000,000 to make, with LoTRO costing around $9,000,000 in production cost. The second category is Free to P... ... middle of paper ... ...th MMORPG, and MMOFPS have cross platforming in mind, almost from day 1 in the game’s development. MMOGs have come under scrutiny, with many critics saying they are a waste of time, and many game players find themselves so entranced with the games, that they put personal hygiene, work, school, friends and family behind game playing. Other critics say, that the random acts of violence that has happened worldwide (Columbine shooting, DC Snipers) are nothing more than re-enactments that were caused from extended game play. There are disclaimers that warn users that extended game play, can have adverse health effects and that you should not neglect friends, family, work or school. It is still up to the person to know when to say when. Personal computers and home gaming consoles MMOGs killed the arcade, if everything goes in cycles, what will kill MMOGs?

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