MUDs (or any of the other MU* designations) were in essence MMORPGs in the days before graphic integration. They were interactive stories, playable solo or in a group with elements that were conducive to actual roleplay. In a good MUD story was the focal point, with social interaction spinning off plot with a life of its own.

In some cases MUDs were exactly like stepping into the pages of a book. Take into consideration my favorite MUD, one I still play on occasion, Discworld MUD. Discworld is based entirely on Terry Pratchett’s rich fantasy-slash-comedy novels. It’s stunningly detailed and unbelievably customizable, with every aspect of life in game up to the players. (There are rules, of course, but like any stellar game, the bulk is self-policing in the spirit of roleplay and character development.)

Readers of this blog know that I’m sort of…well…shall we say, down on MMORPGs. I’ve yet to find one in all my years of trying that offers a truly satisfying roleplay experience. So much of them seem dedicated to senseless PvP (which has its place, but not in excess) and mindless leveling, which on any scale grows intensely boring after a short period of time.

And there are idiots in MUDs, too. I can remember days spent playing Avalon, one of the oldest text-based games on the ‘net, when I couldn’t catch a break for the challenges to PvP that would be lobbed my way, typically when I was right in the middle of something time-consuming and precision-oriented, and not desiring the constant distraction in the least. But for the most part the spirit of MUDs seems to be very much about creating and adhering to a character, and facing consequences of your actions. Something that unless rules are severely violated doesn’t seem to be much of a concern in present-day MMORPGs.

The most common complaint by anti-MUD crowds is that play is often repetitive, and it can be. How many times can one type (or macro) “map” to pull up an ASCII map before one’s eyes blur? There’s a lot of “look east” and “drink potion” and such commands to daily life in MUDs. Some combat systems are a back and forth blur of text and numeric stats, confusing to the uninitiated eye. But get past the somewhat clunky limitations that MUDs’ fairly primitive coding imposes and you’ll find game worlds with little to no limit on imagination. You can only draw so many pixels in one scene, but you can paint a thousand portraits in the descriptions you assign to any given location.

If I sound overly-enthusiastic, I perhaps am. I was part of a development team for a highly addictive commercial MUD for several years. And the roleplay I enjoyed as a deity in that game, coupled with the expansive creative freedom the medium provided in actual game creation, cemented the common MUD’s place in my heart.

So, typewriter that plays Zork, I lift my glass in toast to you for bringing back to mind the good old days, when I didn’t have to look very far to find someone IC, OOC was not a condition of life, bashing was actually fun, and game worlds were limited only by the vision of the creators.

Now this is all very flashy and impressive with first person shooters, because FPS are pretty much what’s hot in new releases these days. So, the litmus test for a gaming machine would have to be how well it performs in FPS action.

But I’m not such a big fan of FPS. I can tolerate them. Heck, I even loved them once upon a time. But nowadays I find myself pining more and more for the golden era of RPGs – when compelling stories were told without the need to go all MMORPG instead of a plain old, good clean fun single player campaign.

It truly is increasingly difficult to find a good single player RPG because of the jungle of MMORPGs one must hack a path through along the way. There are some pretty MMORPG worlds out there, and indeed, some have quite addicting gameplay. But if you’re looking for the RPG aspect one would expect to find in most massively multiplayer roleplaying games, you’re more or less stuffed. MMORPGs are more about bashing NPCs and randomly engaging in mindless PK than actually roleplaying, or making roleplay-oriented, strategic decisions.

So what am I doing? I’m moving backwards in time. Beginning with Oblivion, and traveling all the way back to the Might and Magic days, I’m actually stepping so far back in time that my machine’s amazing specs are completely wasted. All because I can’t find a decent RPG that’s not overrun with 12 year old hack n’ slash aficionados, as too many MMORPGs seem to be.

Thus I am posing a question to you, as someone who’s more than likely been around the gaming block. What good quality RPGs do you recommend? What’s the most eye-catching? What has a gripping story? What will simultaneously take advantage of my machine’s 100% pure grade A win and provide an old fashioned RPG thrill? Is there such thing as a freshly-released RPG that’s not a MMORPG?

Suggestions will be deeply appreciated. Please, help give my gaming machine a reason to live.

In a bid to make its games more readily accessible, NCSoft has joined a growing number of publishers who are now using Valve’s Steam digital distribution platform. NCSoft said that it will make available a number of NCsoft games and expansions. Specifically, the following games and expansions will be added: Linage, Lineage 2: The Chaotic Throne, Guild Wars Game of The Year Edition, City of Heroes Architect Edition, Guild Wars Nightfall, Guild Wars Faction, and Guild Wars Trilogy. NCSoft also announced that its soon to be released MMOG Aion: The Tower of Eternity will also be added to the service when it is released in North America and Europe later this year.

As a way to entice users to buy from Steam, Valve and NCSoft are offering various deals, like a 50 percent discount on Lineage 2 and a 10 percent discount on Guild Wars: Game of The Year Edition.

I have to say that I’m surprised about Steam’s performance. When it was first released, it gained a lot of negative feedback and not a few critics even predicted that it won’t last. Now, it seems like Steam is becoming an increasingly popular platform for game distribution.