MMO technology
by Mare Kuntz · in Game Design and Creative Issues · 02/10/2007 (12:52 am) · 0 replies
Okay, MMOs are one of the most technically difficult kinds of games to design - generally they have to run on multiple operating systems, be resistant to hacking and botting, cope with sometimes overwhelming player demand, and a host of other problems that single-player game design does not have to deal with. I realize this, and that, not being a programmer at all, I am clueless and unqualified to choose how to tackle these problems. But I have an MMO idea which just won't leave me alone. So, I'd just like to hear some general opinions from people who have some technical expertise in MMO programming:
1. Is there any significant disadvantage to using 2D art instead of 3D art? I'm thinking that character creation would involve a paperdoll system where the user would arrange various transparent layers on top of a base (The clothes and base would both be sprite sheets with all necessary poses, although the user would only see one or two poses in the character creation window, and the system would automatically flatten these layers into a custom sprite.) Would one method require significantly more processing or bandwidth than the other?
2. Web-based with flash, or client? I've played MMOs which work well using both of these structures - what's the difference from a developer's point of view?
1. Is there any significant disadvantage to using 2D art instead of 3D art? I'm thinking that character creation would involve a paperdoll system where the user would arrange various transparent layers on top of a base (The clothes and base would both be sprite sheets with all necessary poses, although the user would only see one or two poses in the character creation window, and the system would automatically flatten these layers into a custom sprite.) Would one method require significantly more processing or bandwidth than the other?
2. Web-based with flash, or client? I've played MMOs which work well using both of these structures - what's the difference from a developer's point of view?
