If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!

Gaming is big business - millions of dollars ride on it. Gaming is also not static. Every day, new games are being introduced, for all audiences - children, teenagers and adults. Two of the most popular types of games are RPG, or Role Playing Games, and MMP, or Massive Multi-Player games. There are different kinds of RPG - single player versions and multiplayer versions. As the name suggests, MMP have only multiplayer versions.

A Role Playing Game, as the name points out, lets you become a fictitious character of some sort. Once you become that character, the storyline of the game changes according to your actions. Of course, every game has its set of rules that you have to follow, but within that framework, you will have the freedom to choose your actions. A certain amount of improvisation is allowed and expected.

Role Playing Games are a lot of fun and can even help people forget about winning and form teams, and work together, which makes them very different from arcades, puzzles and card games.

A role playing game can be played against your own computer or actual players in a network. They are played in sequence, somewhat like how television shows have episodes, role playing games also have sessions for play. Completing each session can take weeks or months, depending on the game and how you play it.

These role playing games always have specific characters and a developing plot, usually spanning over all the related sessions. New characters can be introduced as you go to higher levels in the game and the play intensity will grow too. Some RPG are based on creative imagination, such as Dungeons & Dragons, while others are sophisticated simulations of real-world happenings, such as Call of Duty.

All characters in a RPG are predefined and act in a certain way, with specified abilities. If you take a game such as X-Men, you’ll notice how the characters show exactly the same abilities as in the comic book. You can only choose a predefined number of characters and use their abilities accordingly. Interaction is very much a part of every role playing game.

With Massive Multi-Player Games, you need more than hundred people to play, and the games, rules and plots are a lot more complicated. There are much bigger challenges to get through, and the levels and level of competition and interaction are much higher.

The biggest differences between RPG and MMP are the number of players, subscriptions involved and the fact that you must be online to play MMP games. EverQuest, a popular MMP game, is a 3D fantasy game based in an alternate universe. MMP games are also commonly known as MMORPG or Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games.

Tags: Online Games

Share This