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What's it like being stuck in the Japanese equivalence of a Korean cybercafe? Apparently, it's like hell, or at least it was for one gamer who wrote an article on Eurogamer discussing his several-hours within just such a place. We began reading the article with a twinge of inner pain as the place is described in such a way that would make anyone feel claustrophobic. Not very far into it though, you'll learn about some of the oddities of Japanese MMO players and their tendancy to be really, well, obsessive compulsive.

We're not gonna lie, the typical Japanese MMO game and player scares the living daylights out of us -- mostly because they seem like machines. And we all know what happens when machines start posing as humans, right? The entire world is either bombed, or the human race is enslaved and sent back into time repeatedly until a paradox destorys time itself. Bad stuff.

Throughout this year there hasn't really been an MMO released that's became a stand-in for my main game, which I actually don't even have as of right now. So with the summer's end nearing, I thought a look six or so months into the future releases would be an interesting topic. I know what some people may be thinking, Age of Conan did indeed come out just as summer was starting. While Funcom's newest game did hit rather recently, it just wasn't what I was looking for in a game overall. So if you're in the same boat as me, or just want to read about some of the upcoming MMOs worth playing, feel free to click the image above to start reading.

As a kid, I grew up on Star Trek: The Next Generation. Mostly because my parents watched it constantly, but also because I found that I enjoyed the show. Another staple of my nerd-influenced upbringing was a steady diet of Star Trek movies. Since those formative years I've also watched Deep Space Nine, Babylon 5, Voyager and more recently Battlestar Galactica. So it's safe to say I'm at least a casual sci-fi and space nerd. In fact, when I'm not entrenched in some form of entertainment, I tend to spend my extra time over at the official website of Astrophysicist Neil DeGrasse Tyson.

Of course Star Trek has never been purely about Science. It's always been -- to me, at least -- a mixture of social-political issues, engaging drama and several degrees of actual science. Different writers and directors have, over several decades, writ large their envisioned versions of Star Trek, with varying amounts of the three critical factors that make up a Star Trek experience. So, obviously, I now find myself wondering what Cryptic Studio's massively multiplayer online version is going to be like.

Almost every big MMO these days is a marriage between an established intellectual property -- such as The Lord of the Rings, or Conan -- and a proven development studio like Mythic or Cryptic. It seems like every setting is getting MMO-ized, from Star Trek to the DC Comics universe. But there are lots of worlds left to explore.

That's why we're asking you today what world you want to explore, and who you want to make it. In other words, which franchise and which developer would you like to see come together?Battlestar Galactica and Funcom? Lost and SOE? No idea is too crazy. After all, it's likely none of them will become reality anyway!

Please keep in mind that Hello Kitty Online has already been done! Sorry to steal your thunder, folks!

The countdown at the Champions Online website is beginning to dwindle down to zero, which begs the question: What do you think it's counting down to? There's been plenty of speculation, especially from our end (hint: Star Trek) but there's always the chance that we're completely wrong. It wouldn't be the first time our predictions haven't panned out.

So with that in mind we'd love to hear your take on the -- possibly -- big Cryptic revelation, even if it's some zany pie-in-the-sky sort of stuff. Actually, we especially want to hear it if it's anything like that. Do you think Cryptic is working on a retro-Battlestar Galactica turn-based card game-style strategy MMO? Let us know!

Trion World Network is quite a company -- without releasing a single game, they've put together millions of dollars in venture capital and compiled a staff list that's got team members from across the history of MMO games, from EverQuest and Ultima Online to World of Warcraft and City of Heroes.

This week, they sent waves through the MMO community by announcing that not only were they working on a fantasy MMO to be helmed by Jon Van Caneghem (original creator of the Might and Magic series of RPG strategy games and co-founder of the company along with Lars Buttler), but that they were forming a groundbreaking partnership with the SCI FI Channel to develop and publish and MMO to live alongside a television show. Finally, we had a small glimpse of just what Trion, with all of their money and experience, were up to.

To find out more, Massively sat down with Van Caneghem (a busy man since the news dropped on Monday) to chat about both the fantasy MMO and the SCI FI project, and what Trion's been working on since they formed. Van Caneghem told us why Trion wants to make a different kind of MMO, and how they'll balance an online game with a television series from the network that's running Battlestar Galactica. The interview starts right after you click the link below.

The Sci Fi Channel plans to air a TV series that simultaneously plays out as a massively multiplayer online game, the Los Angeles Times reports. This pairing of television writers with game designers will allow fans of the series to influence its story arc through their own actions in the virtual space. David Howe, president of the Sci Fi Channel, said, "This is the Holy Grail for us, without a doubt... this is groundbreaking, and I don't say that lightly."

The large and dedicated player communities attached to various titles in the MMO space are appealing to the Sci Fi Channel. "Bundling a World of Warcraft player community with a series and an on-line social community is something the Sci Fi Channel has tried to puzzle out for several years," according to the Los Angeles Times. The Sci Fi Channel's desire to tap into the MMO market led them to work with Trion World Network, a California-based game company with some major investors standing behind it. The hope is that together, they will achieve a first in interactive entertainment: create a hybrid television series and online game, where players affect or even determine the direction of the show. If successful, this will stand as a milestone in the history of both television and games.

EVE Online has made first contact with a whole new group of sci-fi fans, through some carefully chosen TV advertising. EVE's first TV ads were shown during the most recent Battlestar Galactica episode on the SciFi network. If CCP Games wanted to target the viewers who would be the most receptive to checking out EVE, they didn't go wrong by choosing Galactica fans. The TV ads were an unexpected move, and came as a big surprise to many EVE players. Ethic at Kill Ten Rats said: "My jaw hit the floor while watching the latest episode of Battlestar Galactica on SciFi tonight. There, before my eyes, was a commercial for EVE Online. Amazing. Nice work CCP!"

High visibility TV adverts for an MMO had previously been something only associated with Night Elf mohawks, Shatner, and a company with some rather deep pockets. EVE Online dev CCP Wrangler made a full announcement about the company's leap into prime time advertising.

Question: What's the difference between John Q. Public saying they "have a neat idea" for a Pokémon MMO and the maker of casual Wii title Pop saying the same thing? Answer: a foot in the door, and little else. That hasn't stopped nnooo.com from pitching the idea to Nintendo via their website, along with ideas for games based on the Battlestar Galactica, James Bond, and X-Men franchises. We're not saying they don't have the talent to back this claim, but a casual title is a far cry from a polished MMO -- and possibly Nintendo's first one, at that.

Even assuming this pitch had a chance to be taken seriously by Nintendo, it's highly unlikely the company would let a third-party develop it, judging by their existing Pokémon line's history. You know, if we're calling dibs, we've already pitched two of these ideas ourselves. Hmm ... Massively Games ... has a nice ring, doesn't it?

[Via NintendoLife]

	MMOGology: Gamerz is speshul Marc Nottke looks into research covering the social problems online gamers can face.
	Anti-Aliased: Gentlemen! Behold! Chocobos & Static Parties! Colin Brennan argues for the great possibilties offered up by Final Fantasy XI.
	MMOS X: A roundup of MMOs for the Mac Marc Crump runs down a list of MMOs compatible with Apple's slick-looking OS.
	Massively video exclusive: Villain epic archetypes Our exclusive video introduction to the City of Villains epic Archetypes.
	Massively Speaking Podcast Episode 1 The first episode of Massively's brand-new podcast is live!

Watching the final season of the new Battlestar Galactica the other night, and getting only a taste of the amazing, chaotic, shaky-cam ship-to-ship action left us wanting more. But even better than a full episode devoted to space combat would be an MMO based in that world. How would that work, you ask? We're glad you did! Keep in mind that this article assumes basic knowledge of the show universe and its characters. If you haven't seen it, get thee to a torrent, or a rental store immediately!

First, consider some of the great two-sided rivalries in MMOs: Horde vs. Alliance; AFS vs. the Bane; Humanity vs. Hell -- Mankind vs. the Cylons fits right in. In fact, since the show itself manages to portray both sides as sympathetic, there isn't too much storyline massaging to be done; the universe of Galactica is nicely morally ambiguous. All that really matters is survival.

I applied for, and received an invitation to 'An Evening with Will Wright and Friends', held in Mezzanine, a swanky club in San Francisco's SOMA district on Thursday evening. I didn't know what exactly to expect, but I knew two things: 1) It wasn't going to be about Spore, and 2) It was Will Freaking Wright. How did I know Spore wasn't on the offering? 'Cause we're all kind of Spore'd out, aren't we?

I was right about the lack of Spore, but was pleasantly surprised and gratified to hear Will speak on a variety of topics -- James Bond, cosmonauts, Gilligan's Island as the predecessor of Neil Gaiman's The Sandman comics, Godzilla, Care Bears, Lost, Walt Disney, Battlestar Galactica, Spiderman, and Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance -- before finally wrapping it all up with the observation that the stories that resonate with us are deconstructible; we can reduce them to components, and using those components, build our own stories.

Finally, accepting questions from the audience, I asked him what advice he'd give NASA as they create their MMO. His friends never showed up, but man, Will Wright is always worth a listen. He knows his stuff so well and is such a wonderful speaker ... check out the video I shot after the break, and you'll see what I mean.

Watch your head, you don't want it hit by return fire in the ever-present MMO blogosphere discussion of fantasy vs sci-fi. The most recent discussion started up with Massively's own Michael Zenke and his "Five Reasons Sci-Fi Pwns Fantasy" which prompted the return fire in question from Grimwell. Both of the posts are certainly worth reading, especially if you have any kind of lingering interest in the subject matter.

As far as we can see, there's truth to be had on both sides of the fence. However, we do have one point of contention to make with Grimwelll's argument. He states that the reason fantasy "pwns" sci-fi is that it's accessible, which is a constant argument on the matter. While we think he may have a point in that less people are inherently familiar with sci-fi, we very much disagree with his assessment that you need to be a math nerd to enjoy good sci-fi -- his example in this case being Star Trek and its now-infamous technobabble.