Video Games

I used to love playing MMO games. But they all look and feel so old now... like they have been copy & pasting games from 2005 without much overhaul.

The newest and best looking one out there today is New World, but it's so deeply flawed and feels incomplete; beyond the visuals there's not much there.

I've wanted to go back and play some oldies that I never could, like Everquest or whatever, but there's no wonder left in those games, and they're just so clunky.

There are still some slick looking games out there, and there are a few smooth ones that are just solid games like Fortnite and Apex Legends, but then you end up playing the SBMM/"not" SBMM nightmare of a looter-shooter-battle royal. And while those are great for disposable time, they leave you empty, often agitated, and looking for something else.

I miss Star Wars Galaxies. If you missed out on the original release of that game, you have no idea what gaming today should feel like. It was literally everything all in one game: massive multiplayer, open world, pvp, building homes & ships, skill development was insanely tuned and super satisfying; it had career paths that required real time sacrifice of other in game skillz that were rewarding because others chose differently. Becoming a Jedi was rare and not the end goal of everyone because the game was balanced... Running into a guy (another player) of a different faction way out in the mountains and hearing that lightsaber fire up gave you a real life "oh shit!" moment that has never been recreated in games.

And then they gave up on it... idk I guess subs were low and money wasn't working out. Servers started being wiped, the UI was dumbed down, the  skill tree was erased and predetermined, character creation was greatly reduced, and everything was turned into that same clunky feeling that everything since has been.

The wonder was lost. Everybody had a lightsaber; no one had a house; pvp was effectively removed; planets got small and basically closed maps; it all just went to shit and then, just as quickly as it became everything in games, it became nothing, just a box with 6 compact disks full of what was forever gone.

Rumor was it still exists on private servers somewhere with an underground community. I hope that's true. I hope somewhere in the world, some one, and a group of friends, is enjoying it still to this day.

I also hope the industry pull their heads out of eachothers asses and makes something fun again, something that fills the player with wonder and joy, as well as that once in a while "Oh shit!" moment. I'd pay money for that. I'd subscribe to that. And I don't think I'm alone.

SWG was way ahead of its time back then. There was no streaming; there was barely youtube; the online gamer community wasn't so common as it is now, there wasn't the access or exposure that there is today for such a game; Content Creator wasn't even a possibility back then; but if ever there was one game designed for today's gaming community and todays content creator driven industry, it was Star Wars Galaxies.

I hope some one out there is building something as fit for today as SWG with updated artistry, graphics, mechanics, skill development, etc., etc. It's a billion-dollar idea, and the time is ripe.