More About MMOs - Wizards and Warriors: Massively Multiplayer Online Game Creation - page 32

The Character Creation Screen
In every MMO, the players need a character that they can control and send out
into the dangerous world that you have created. Players need an interface that
they can use to create their characters; this part of the MMO is called the
Character Creation screen. Here the players select a particular type of

character and then select the types of clothes,

the look and color of the hair, and even perhaps the eye color and nose shape.

— perhaps Orc, Human or Elf —

Character creation is considered a very important part of setting an early quality
stake in the ground. The Character Creation screen sets the tone for the rest of
the game, and a Character Creation screen with few or no options will not fill
the player with the initial confidence of what is to follow. Neither do you want a
Character Creation screen with so many options that the interface is too busy or
confusing. This does not mean you have to sacrifice the number of options that a
player can have to customize their characters. Games such as City of Heroes have
thousands of combinations, but in a very easy-to-use interface. The player can
easily spend lots of time just in the Character Creation area of an MMO, making
their characters.

It is common for MMOs to allow the players to create multiple characters within
a game, but most limit the number to around 6-10 characters. Normally they
provide enough character slots to allow players to try all of the different types of
characters available in the game.

Note

Some games, especially free-to-play games, will give you an initial number of character slots, and
you need to pay a small amount of money (a micro transaction) to add other characters.

Guilds and Groups
Many MMOs have a lot of complexity and depth, and as you progress through
the game, the quests become more complicated and increase in scale. Some
quests are extremely difficult to complete without the aid of other people. This
could mean joining a group to achieve a quest with people you have just met, or
getting help from friends who you have played with before.