What makes a good game?

There are countless online games for every taste in every genre. Most of them are exciting, challenging and you can lose yourself in them for hours with like-minded people, exchange ideas and, of course, play. However, we don't want to deny at this point that there are also some pretty lame and grotty games out there. But what actually makes a really good MMO or MMORPG? We have excluded card and gambling games from this article - for good reasons.

It's the taste that counts

In a nutshell, for most people, a really good game comes down to three criteria: Story, scope, playability and, as a bonus factor, the scope of the world. Then there's the quality (!) and originality of the game.

However, a gamer who prefers to play fantasy online role-playing games probably pays attention to different details than, for example, a gamer who mainly plays Counter Strike, i.e. first-person shooters.

These genres exist

Online games can be roughly divided into three categories.

First-person shooter

Let's start with the most controversial category: first-person shooters. In this type of game, you shoot your way through various worlds directly from your couch. This can be outer space, the "Wild West" or, quite simply, a war scene. The best-known examples are Doom, Battlefield, Call of Duty or Counter-Strike. However, first-person shooters are not always just about mindless shooting to kill your opponent as quickly as possible. The range is huge, from fast-paced shooters where you need lots of skills to infinitely large worlds and maps where you can only defeat your opponent by working together and using tactics. Battle royale games are a sub-category of first-person shooters. The best-known representative here is certainly Fortnite.

Sandbox games

This type of game is sometimes referred to as a non-game. Sandbox games are not about pursuing a specific goal, to put it bluntly. Quests and stories tend to take a back seat in this game category. Instead, this type of game allows you to let your creativity run wild. The basis for this is usually an open world. The best-known sandbox game is definitely Minecraft. Black Desert Online, on the other hand, is beautiful to look at. Here you can fight epic battles, simply explore the world or embark on a career as a craftsman. One of the classics is the space MMO EVE Online, where the world is almost completely in the hands of the players. Sandbox elements can also often be found in games in other categories, such as GTA V.

Role-playing games

This is probably the best-known category among MMORPGs. They originated from pen & paper role-playing games (for the younger readers: yes, in the past you actually used to play them manually with dice and imagination). Alone or together (keyword: guild) you can experience exciting adventures in MMORPGs, fight epic battles and build your chosen character into a powerful hero. The best-known representatives of MMORPGs are World of Warcraft and Elder Scrolls. However, countless new games have been added in recent years.

Action Adventure Games

As the name suggests, this game category combines the two genres of action and adventure. These games can vary greatly in terms of structure. Sometimes they offer you a gigantic open world, sometimes a cinematic story and often there are also role-playing elements. Survival games are a sub-genre of action adventure games. Your main task here is to ensure the survival of your avatar. These games usually have no clear beginning and no clear end. Instead, they are designed to encourage you to experiment. Well-known survival games are: ARK, Fallout 76 or Conan Exiles

But what actually makes a really good game?

Here we come to the crux of our question. What makes a really good game is still based on your personal taste. Some people prefer to plow fields in a farming simulator, while others prefer to throw themselves into epic battles.

For example, a good tutorial - the introduction to the game - is important for a good game. A coherent game design is also extremely important. There are actually people for whom the soundtrack of a game is important.

However, whether a game is good or not always depends on your own personal feelings. If it has a high fun factor for you, you've definitely found a good game.

The game server aspect

Especially for multiplayer games, it makes sense to use a game server. Such servers are even a must for MMOs, as an enormous number of players from all over the world play together on a daily basis - regardless of whether it is a free-to-play or paid game. The server itself consists of two components, the software and hardware part. When you start your game, the software establishes the connection and provides you with the game logic.

Public vs. private

In principle, you can distinguish between two different server types: public and private.

Public server

As the name suggests, these servers are public, which means that anyone can log in. The load is correspondingly high. In addition, you cannot expand the memory there - which can be difficult, especially with mods.

Private

With a rented, i.e. private server that you host yourself, you have considerably more options, for example you can install mods much more easily. If the storage space is not sufficient, you can book additional space.

The costs for such a game server depend, among other things, on the number of player slots and the performance you want your server to have.

Other advantages of a private game server are that you have full control over the gaming environment. You decide who gets access to your server. If you have cheaters or unfriendly gamers, you can simply kick them out of the game.

If you like playing older games, the official servers often no longer exist - because they are no longer financially viable for the developer studios. You can still continue to play multiplayer on your server.

However, the basic requirement for a private server is that the studio or the developers of the game also provide the server software.

However, you are not forced to rent a server once you have found your perfect MMO. But it is a good idea.

Game cucumbers

Now we come to another category of "What makes a good game". We'll call them game cucumbers. We're talking about games that are simply so bad that you regret having spent a single euro on them - or games that are so buggy that you want to throw the controls/keyboard against the wall.

What can I do to avoid buying a game cucumber

Firstly, of course, read the reviews of the game or watch it on YouTube/Twitch. Secondly, you should also take a look at the studio that developed your game. How are the games that were previously developed there? Are they any good or are they total garbage?