Another very niche activity, but one easily as important as end-gaming raiding or PvP, Crafting is a concept straight from the MUD days. In fact, in some ways crafting is the ultimate connection between the MUD experience and modern MMOs: rare is the case where the modern player creates instead of destroys. The iterations on this concept in graphical games have been as endless as they have been innovative. The 'bad old days' of combines in EQ and early DAoC recipes have given way to the one-click instant satisfaction of titles like Lord of the Rings Online. Along the way there have been numerous different interpretations of this hobby. Pre-NGE crafting in Star Wars Galaxies was probably the finest moment player crafting will ever have in an online world. Your fellow players were the only source of weapons and armor, with items available solely through the player-driven economy. A grand experiment and one that, for the most part, worked well while it lasted. Today the future of crafting is somewhat in limbo. Despite swiftly approaching release dates neither Conan nor Warhammer have paid even the smallest amount of lip service to crafters. The next innovation in making things in an online world will come, I expect, from the likes of The Agency - offline crafting for the win?
Lord of the Rings Online
12/03/08
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