Developer Blog: What Is A Hybrid?

By Kevin A. "Silverwolf" McKee.

So you may ask, what is a "Massively Multiplayer Online Hybrid Game," as Sacred Chronicle is described as. An MMOHG is to my knowledge a new style or subgenre of MMO. But before we get to what's new or different about it, let's talk for a moment about traditional MMOs before getting to that point.

MMOs have to this point been primarily various forms of role-playing game (MMORPG), such as Everquest or World of Warcraft. There have been a few odd first-person-shooters (MMOFPS) here and there - Planetside pops to mind. Admittedly there have been numerous subgenres and variations on the MMORPG theme - there exist MMORPGs in a range from classic-fantasy (Lord of the Rings Online) to modern-fantasy (such as Hellmouth: London) to science fiction universes including Stargate and Star Wars. MMOFPS games are a bit more limited; and rightly so. Shooter implies guns, and obviously the newer, bigger, and flashier guns have more appeal than an ancient Colt from the Civil War, however badass it may be to charge up Gettysburg in a game.

Developers of these various games also tend to have their own style. So-called "Korean MMOs" infamously have many of the same features and visual styles, feeling much like clones of each other. This clone effect can even be continued through to the more mainstream MMOs. Games such as Everquest, World of Warcraft, Lineage, and Age of Conan all have a lot of bleed-through. There are still quests tell you to go kill X numbers of fish-like creatures because some magician or scientist or hunter somewhere wants you to, and being the cold-blooded mercenary you are you'll do it for a few gold coins and a chunk of a mystical quantity known as "experience."

These games are all wildly popular, drawing in hundreds of thousands of dollars (if not more) for their developers and publishers. People complain less about the homogeneity of the games they play and more about what developers do or don't do to their favorite class or playstyle. There are Player vs. Environment experiences, which usually take on the form of both leveling/questing content and instance runs which allow everyone the ability to kill the dragon without needing a line you stand in until it's your turn. They also have a crafting minigame whereby everyone can feel useful by contributing to the phantom in-game economy, and a Player vs. Player function to let gamers feel competitive and flex their e-peens.

A few games mix it up from time to time. A notable example I can think of quite easily is the Opening of the Gates of Ahn Qiraj, of World of Warcraft fame. This massive server-wide event allows everyone the opportunity to contribute directly to a war event, to open the Gates of Ahn Qiraj and kill the Old God, C'thun. The epic quality and cooperation inspired among the player body is marred only by the failure of any consequences if the player body does NOT complete the event. It just sits there. There's no consequence to leaving C'thun to stew amongst his insect worshippers, despite assurances by the Bronze Dragonflight that the world is in peril.

So, to bring back to the point of the post, what IS an MMOHG? I define a hybrid game as utilizing aspects of numerous genres of games, and blending them all into a cohesive whole which tells a story. I have seen a number of hybrid games for singleplayer, or limited multiplayer, but never a massively multiplayer version. Although I am reticent to reveal too many details this early in the game's life, with almost a year and a half until the beta is scheduled for release, Sacred Chronicle will involve elements of a FPS, an RPG, a real-time strategy game, a "Myst"ery game, and several other gameplay elements from yet other genres. Player consequences are also introduced into the mix, giving the world of Sacred Chronicle a serious feel. To my knowledge, Sacred Chronicle is the first such game to be developed, although I may well be wrong on that. Regardless of whether it iss the first or the last, me and my team intend to mix things up with this game, and create an enjoyable experience for all. I'll leave it to you, the readers and fans, to determine if we're successful or not, and to the game reviewers and pontificates to figure out who was first.