Nintendo should do a Hyrule MMORPG

Just imagine the sheer volume of fans that would love to live in Hyrule and take part in their own adventures. The land is just so rich with history and locations that it could really be done to a grand scale. Hyrule field could be vast with acres of fields and the majestic woods in the distance. Places like the Goron kingdom and Zora domain wouldn't be tiny dungeon sized areas but entire cities with inhabitant NPCs and players. The Lost woods could be so vast that it takes hours to explore and areas wouldn't be open to you right away because of the Kokiri.

But when would be a good point in Hyrules history for an MMO? Personally I think right after the end of the Fierce Wars when the races and lands are new to the peace. It has a nice atmosphere of delicate relations between the races but enough interaction to be interesting. Naturally there would be those with strong feelings about the peace enough to keep things spicy with the occasional renegades holding grudges.

Drawing from existing fantasy MMOs you could have a number of races open to players. Gorons, Hyrulians, Hylians, Zora and of course the Gerudo. I doubt the Kokiri would be part since they have restrictions upon them as spiritual entities of the forest. You would have all the well known characters from OoT at this point, Ganondorf wouldn't be up to his old tricks yet but would be leader of the Gerudo so you could actually perform quests for him. Link would be very young and living with the Kokiri.

The potential for such an MMO would be huge and the popularity of Zelda would have fans flocking to it don't you think?

The only problem is that Nintendo doesn't go online and I doubt they will go the PC route. Your best bet for that is that the new system will go online. But your idea sounds really awsome.

Moved to Future Zelda.

Oh, and mutiplayer Zelda would cheapen the series as far as I'm concerned. We don't need more spin-offs and gimmicks.

I find the very idea... nauseating. I've already had to see my second-favorite franchise taken down the MMORPG road, and I would hate to see it happen to Zelda.

It may sound good on paper, but ALL of the things that make Zelda good would be lost.

- A good story wouldn't work, obviously.

-I don't see the Zelda style of gameplay working well, either. It's based around dungeons and exploration, not boring collection quests. There is no way in hell that the developers could possibly mass-produce enough dungeons to work in an MMORPG, and even if they could, without a good story, they'd be little more than irrelevant sidequests.

-No Link. Or even worse, an NPC Link.

-As with every single MMORPG on the planet, the entire focus of the game would end up being centered on the goal of strengthening your character. That is very contrary to the Zelda series.

-If they use a gameplay and control system similar to that in existing Zelda games - say, they take the control and combat scheme from tWW, for instance - then they would have to carefully create every area. Games like World of Warcraft get away with such large worlds because things like good design are irrelevant to the gameplay. In a Zelda game, though, they would have to carefully craft each area, to avoid the glitches that would result. This means that there would either be a huge amount of poorly done, glitchy areas, or not enough areas to support an MMORPG.

-MMORPGs are boring, repetitive, and crap. I have played several, and I tried very, VERy hard to like the World of Warcraft. But they're boring. It's just little quest after little quest, level up after level up, find this item or that armor, a boring, poorly constructed, pointless cycle that is repeated ad nauseum.

An MMORPG would kill whatever credibilty the Zelda series has left, in my mind.

The only online Zelda game I see possible would be a Four Swords type(which btw, I was not a huge fan of the Four Swords as is), where you go, there is a server, you join a game, wait for others to join up to 4, and start. But as LoS says, an MMORPG would be a very bad thing for the Zelda series.

Another wasted thread we all come to the contution it will kill the franchise

No, it shouldn't be. Online play is not something that Nintendo is good at, nor is making Zelda multiplayer. Lets leave the MMORPGs to computers shall we?

Originally Posted by Soulpwner

No, it shouldn't be. Online play is not something that Nintendo is good at, nor is making Zelda multiplayer. Lets leave the MMORPGs to computers shall we?

Well, if nintendo were to make a MMORPG, they should use original characters.or, how about a pikmin MMORPG wouldnt be too bad, eve a pikmin online part where you could download levels, expansions, play against/with other people online.

That could work.

A zelda online MMORPG couldn’t. nintendo could make a good game with it, but it would grow thin, as there is only so long a game can go for before getting boring and repetitive. freshness does not last forever.

incorporating online elements into zelda could work though. imagaine doing a similar kinstone swapping thing like on tMC except online, trading with other players of the game. sort of like collecting cards or when you find someone with the other half of the stone/card you get an upgrade or item or something.

or how about, inside your event items bag (I'm going to use this, as its a good idea from tWW) you can store various goodies bought from shops. when you enter a shop, you can purchase what they ahve there, or you can ask the shopkeeper to check for any new items, at which time he leaves and the game uplinks to the server, where any new items (obvious novelty, they arent needed, but might make things easier, add some more fun) get uploaded to the GCN's Hard DRive (yes, it would need one) and so you have a constantly growing list of shop items. when the maximum allowed amount of disk space is used by shop items, the shopkeeper will ask you if you will "help him sort out/ get rid of old stock" at which time you will delete any unwanted, unneeded or unused items from the shops list of goodies.

another aspect is minigames. when entering the ranch, link could download new minigames for him to use the horse. moreso than that, when he checks his scores, he could select to see who else in "Hyrule" played that game, and what scores they got. so in essence, not only could you get new games, but you constantly have a challenge at the ones you already own.

there could be some sort of fighting ring in the game where link can go to, and if you want to spar against someone, you can view a list of others who want to play against you, and ask them if they would like to battle you. now, you could see all their stats and such, so that you dont end up playing against someone with 10 more hearts than you. also you can see who ranks where.

now, these ideas could be great. they would add virtually endless replayability to a zelda game without making it as crap as an MMORPG. it would be exactly the same game it always was, no online elements would be needed to complete the game. same zelda adventure, but with the trading, sparring, and high score competition, as well as other things i could think of, it would have more of a community feel to it.

dont feel like passing the fifth dungeon? check to see what new games are available, or see if your top score for hurdles has been beaten yet. Even check if any of your friends are on, and have a chat.

Most have already been said, though I would like to add:
If Nintendo decides to make an Mmorpg they should NOT base it on an already existing franchise. Most of their series (Mario, Zelda... etc) are character based, that's simply impossible to make in an mmorpg. Secondly we need some originality, they cant keep milking out of their most loved series.

Online play is not something that Nintendo is good at...

What exactly are you basing that on?
I can't recall a single online game made by them. Or are you're talking about their poor online support for Gamecube?

10 years from now when PC's are incredibly faster and more powerful and more can be done with them, maybe then.

As things are now it would just suck. Too little exploration, no real ability to create a storyline, it just wouldnt work and it would break my heart to see a Zelda game be so bad.

i cant see zelda as an mmorpg. i could see the concept of running around hyrule and killing things and stuff like that but i cant see them incorperating (sp) link or zelda in it at all. they only way this could be done is if you were actually link or zelda and then it be like a zelda game so there would be no point of it actually being an mmorpg. now imagine if you were a charactor that you made up and you were running around hyrule can you pic link standing somewhere in hyrule and you going up to him and trying to have a conversation bc lets not forget that link doesnt exactlly talk now does he so he could only shake his head yes or no . so i say no to mmorpg!

-No Link. Or even worse, an NPC Link.

It could have player Links. It would be called "The Legend of Zelda: Sideways Eight Sword"

But seriously, no I don't think it could work out in the Zelda Universe. Good Idea though.

Yeh that sound kinnda cool, but not for Zelda. I am with everybody else when I say that I hope that Zelda with never go in that direction.

it can work out but not in the Legend of Zelda sereis. Multiplayer and Zelda just don't go together especially online. The idea is fair but could use a bit of work and a new sereis rather than putting one on Zelda.

well thats why we play other games and spread zelda around to get more ppl to play so we play games like MU and World of warcraft and lineage and lineage2 chotic chonicles.by da way great idea but it would not happen .it have to be like a nintendo live! like xbox live! that would be cool, kill each other with your own chares in hyrule.and ya can go any ware nice idea huh? well mabye not what you guys think?

apart from my rant i have put up that nobody seems to acknowledge (thanks, i put a lot of thought into that ) i would have to say that if a zelda MMORPG were to exist, it would, rather than be a zelda game that is played online, be a game based on the legend of zelda universe.

say you have the light world and dark world. there are 6 different races in each. you pick a race (all of which have various strengths/weaknesses) and just venture around your land. while you are in your own world, you can team up with other players and go on dungeon adventures, which are randomly generated dungeons with treasures hidden throughout, youc an trade, barter, shop, all sorts of rpg things. when you jump with your party into the other world, it becomes a warzone, where you and your team set yourself goals.

for example, lets say my part consists of 2 zoras, a deku shrub, a goron, 3 hylians and 1 sheikah, and we have caught wind on the chat boards that there are a group of dark-worlders that have gotten a rare and powerful item from a dungeon, for getting an uber-high score. we find an open portal, and jump into the dark world. while here, we sneak around trying not to get the attention of all the dark worlders who outnumber us. we sneak around before getting spotted (thanks goron) by a couple of mad scrubs, 3 moblins, a darknut and a gerudo. a battle breaks out. all kills get added and a halo type stat board is kept, so each side (light/dark) will alwayshave a best soldier, best theif(stealth expert) best everything.

as far as story goes, its the imprisoning war.

That would be cool but you forgot that Nintendo isn't in touch with 21st century gaming. They think the world isn't ready for onlnie gaming... is that why Halo 2 is selling go well? The only chance of us getting a online Zelda game would be Four Sword Online. Which would suck.

if nintendo did an mmorpg, it would take forever, y would you want that, i would like 1 too, but i wouldnt want to wait 7 years (*cough* half-life 2 *cough*) for it to come out tho...