   a different MMORPG Project
    There seems to be and endless stream of people wanting to start a MMORPG projects. I highly doubt that most of them will get off the ground due to improper planning and lack of understanding of the network requirements, but it is not an impossible task. Even many of the doubters don''t know what they are talking about because I''ve heard some rather ridiculous stuff. With that said, I''m looking to start a MMORPG project. As of now, I''m only looking for serious programmers who have a strong understanding of OOAD. The first phase in this project would be to write sequence diagrams and class diagrams using UML.  What makes this project different? This project is not intended to be the next Star Wars Galaxies or Everquest. The concept behind this project is to create a 3D application that brings back to life what made MUD games so popular; variety and community. The server would be designed to host only a max of 100 players. The server application would be released, allowing individuals to host their own MMORPG game, develop their own story line and create their own worlds. Content could be sold as additional packages.I don''t want to get too public with the details; I''m merely trying to generate some interest in other skilled developers who would like to be part of a well thought out and designed project that has a lot of potential and is achievable.For all the trolls out there, I am a professional application developer (of the database persuasion). I''ve been a hobby game programmer for over 12 years and looking to take a step to the next level. I would much rather work on amateur projects then have the fun zapped out by the overworked and underpaid professional game industry. I believe that shareware is very much alive and well, and this project would be well suited for that type of market. If you are at all interested, please email me at runionke@hotmail.com 
  *clap* *clap* finally someone has some intellegence to post a realistic mmo project, I wish you the best, and if you need a 3d artist in a few months contact me at greasley_paul@hotmail.com.Paul Greasley ;  I agree with Farmergnome! This sounds like a well thought out project that will actually do well. You have my best wishes and hope to hear more about your project.I would love to be a part of this project and have e-mailed you.- mongrelprogrammer ;  If you need a 3D artist then try out Planet Unreal and go to their forums and look for people there!Good luck..... ;  Thanks for the encouragement. I was bracing for flames but instead received a great positive response.I have received email from some talented individuals already, but we could still use a few more on the team.If anyone else is interested please email me, this is a good opportunity to work on a well organized project that will succeed. ;  Can you let us know the theme?  Just curious.  BTW, I think a small-scale persistent world game is very do-able as an Indie or small-market game.  In fact, I think it''s one of the more exciting types of projects.I never understood the need for 1000''s of players in a MMORPG when games with 10-100 are so much more intimate, fun, and easy to design.  ;  How do you find UML for modeling asynchronous processes? I''ve never seen it as very useful. Something like the good-old "spin" tool for protocol validation seems like a better match for the networked-distributed-asynchronous aspect of the software, to me. ;  It may be nice to make this post sticky so each aspiring newbie can understand what makes a realistic project and the GameDev fire brigade don''t waste their time flaming posts out of existance.// BobVYou may want to get hold of Ultima Online and look at the free shard community.  I have a friend that does a lot on that front and the shard idea may be comparable to what you want to do.   ;  I totally agree. I never understood the need to make super huge games. I enjoy persistent world games where everyone knows your name and you actually feel like there is a sense of community. Where striving to reach some sort of status means something to you and the players around you.There isn''t really a defined theme involved. Rather the content with the base package will be a combination of Fantasy and Sci-Fi elements. The idea is that the user or the owner of the hosted server can create areas and items using the content they have purchased with the system, and purchase additional content.For example, let’s say someone wanted to create a "lord of the rings" themed game. They could build areas that resembled lord of the rings. They could even make a limited item ring that gives the wearer invisibility but the inability to interact with the environment. All they have to do is setup attributes of the particular item based on a host of predefined properties and spell / skill type. They could setup MOBs with simple scripts that give clues to possible quests or hidden items. Set different starting points / spawn points based on player race and theme the game around total PKilling. The possibilities are endless but the design is rather simple.What will make such a seemingly large project much easier is the method in which it is designed. The key will be reusing as much of the code as possible; taking full advantage of OOP. Objects will react to real world events rather then the cheesy events we develop for most business applications. So development is very intuitive. The base class will be the same for most objects in the world and will define everything about how it interacts with its environment. Rainfall, footsteps, being thrown, or being dragged. A tree''s method would generate what sound is heard when it is hit by wind an rain, sounds created when it is hit by different material types. This allows for very diverse and interactive game that can be customized to a whole new level and be easily updated and changed.There are a lot of details that are left out till the end in poorly designed projects. Then by the time you get to the point where you want to make changes and add some of the good stuff, you are completely SOL. This project will not be rushed into a mad programming phase with nobody working together; nor will it be so slow that it never seems to get off the ground. Bi weekly milestones will be set with easily managed goals so that there will be a sense of accomplishment rather then the disappointment of working on a project that seems to get more and more boring as time goes on.;  I think that a lot of amateur devs shoot waaay too high in their goals and end up disapointing the team and then the team falls apart. My project isvery well documented and detailed and I am currently building using a world engine that supports zones. I chose to use zones due to several criteria but first and formost, they are way more feasable for amateur devs to work on. You can run them on cheaper servers with far less overhead and they require far less bandwidth to test than a full world server. If a zone is dormant ALL it''s AI processes can be set to "sleep mode" etc.. Very bandwidth friendly =)All the best on your project.Mark    Aakrana: The Forgotten LandsIf you have C++ experience and wish toassist in the alpha development of our networktransport using very easy middleware, please contact me.