More About MMOs - Wizards and Warriors: Massively Multiplayer Online Game Creation - page 41

Realms
The term realm can mean a number of different things in MMOs. First, it can
mean a single server that contains the world. As MMOs can have hundreds,
thousands, or millions of players, it is sometimes impossible to fit them all onto
a single server. Each of these servers contains a version of the MMO running
independently of the others. In order for players to find their friends, they get a
list of realms to choose from when logging in.

Another term is RVR, realm versus realm, where the realm indicates a set group
of players, generally those within the same race of characters who fight globally
against another race for the spoils of war. This is different than general player
versus player, as it normally requires large groups of players from the same race
to attack a particular target or area. So while PVP can sometimes include small
groups of players battling each other, RVR normally signifies large-scale all-out
wars. Warhammer online uses both the PVP and RVR game-play mechanics
within the game. RVR requires that a particular set of players attack another
faction s home city. On success of this attack, the team might gain a number of

advantages such as cheaper equipment, more experience points, and so on.

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Instances
Because many MMO worlds are large and have many users, there is a risk that
too many players are in one area at a set time, which can have an impact on the
server s performance. A way of helping reduce this performance hit is to split

your users into smaller groups to prevent too many being in one place at one
time. This is very important when fighting with a large number of NPCs and a
lot of graphical effects are taking place. In most MMOs, there are certain quests
that are separated from the main game and are being played only by particular
group of players. There may be many groups playing the same quest, but they
will not interact with each other and will not see each other within that area of
the game. These groups of play are called instances.

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Summary
This chapter discussed some of the concepts and features that are available in
most MMOs. This will be useful as you start to learn about Realm Crafter and
implement your own in-game features. Making a good MMO is not an easy or