My fellow Poxer, Raven, recently gave a shout-out to Massively's visual history of MMOs Part I. Massively's slideshow might be a nice trip down memory lane for some or make the rest of ya shudder at the pixelated "eye-strain inducing" graphics. And frankly, although I loved me my Pac-Man, those graphics didn't allow me to lose myself in the early games. Great fun but I was always aware that I was playing a game. WoW's environments are another matter. I can lose myself in the game. Start to care about my character and what they are doing (and I don't even need Molyneaux's puppy dogging my heels for that to happen).
However, Raven did remind me that my first online MMO (actually, I think it was a MOO and not in the Tauren sense) was a text-based game. I got online 'round-about 1997 via AOL. AOL took me in and let me play in their walled garden before I knew that they sucked. Forgive me, I was young, easily impressionable and the garden sure was purty. And at that time, AOL supported Modus Operandi, an online MMO (MOO?) that let you play around in a Miami-Vice meets hard-boiled film-noir kind of world. But it wasn't the vibe that got me so much but the lack of visuals. Yup, I said it, the lack of visuals rocked my gamer socks off. You had to imagine everything. I can still "see" the city streets in that game. It combined the immersive quality of reading coupled with an online community. Oooh I thought it was so cool.
However, Raven did remind me that my first online MMO (actually, I think it was a MOO and not in the Tauren sense) was a text-based game. I got online 'round-about 1997 via AOL. AOL took me in and let me play in their walled garden before I knew that they sucked. Forgive me, I was young, easily impressionable and the garden sure was purty. And at that time, AOL supported Modus Operandi, an online MMO (MOO?) that let you play around in a Miami-Vice meets hard-boiled film-noir kind of world. But it wasn't the vibe that got me so much but the lack of visuals. Yup, I said it, the lack of visuals rocked my gamer socks off. You had to imagine everything. I can still "see" the city streets in that game. It combined the immersive quality of reading coupled with an online community. Oooh I thought it was so cool.
And do you know, Modus Operandi is still around? Well I didn't. I thought it had died out about the same time AOL had to dismantle its walls. I'm a bit afraid to venture in. Don't want to ruin a good memory. Can you go back to puppy love after you are all grown up and in Outland? I don't think so. Plus they charge $14.95 a month to play. I like my nostalgia served up a bit cheaper...as in free.
But thanks Raven for sparking my look back and getting all stupidly sentimental.
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