MMOs are one of the most popular genres in gaming today. They have the unique ability of sucking in millions of gamers to play and explore together at the same time. The worlds are absolutely huge and there are numerous possibilities as far as customizing what your character looks like and plays like.

These are wonderfully deep and complex games that make the player feel like they are a part of this world. Why is it then that no MMO in the market today is able to pull me in story-wise?

I downloaded the trial edition of the Spore Creature Creator yesterday. It is in a word, fun. I've never been one to be big on creating my own characters in games. It's a nice feature when it's there but it has never been top of my must have features in games. Yet when I played around with the trial, I couldn't help but be amazed at the technology behind it.

The game is somehow able to take into account all the features that you can put on your creature and make them work in a real-world setting. My friends and I took turns trying to come up with the most improbable designs imaginable (one arm, one leg, spikes everywhere else) and the game still made them work. This little experience with the game convinced me to slap down the 10 bucks for the full version so I could play around with more of the parts.

It should be noted that before I was able to play, I had difficulty getting it to start. It would show the EA logo then immediately kick me out to my desktop. I tried everything I could think of until my one friend who knows computers a lot better than me. All he did was reinstall it and the game immediately started up. So when I downloaded the full game, I thought it would work. Unfortunately, it's back up to its old tricks and I can't get the damn thing to work. My computer meets the system requirements (it can handle Half-Life 2) and I'm pretty sure all my drivers are up to date. If anyone can help me out with this problem, I'd be eternally grateful. Also, have any of you guys had the chance to try it out?

For the first time, I am giving you guys a completely original post rather than transplanting it from my other one. I enjoy looking back at all the original IPs that companies have created, many of which have been forgotten in this day and age. So, after a request from Avril, I've decided to take a look back at Blizzard.

Originally founded in 1991 by Michael Morhaime, Allen Adham and Frank Pearce as Silicon & Synapse, Blizzard originally focused on ports for other systems for other companies. They didn't begin developing their own games until the release of RPM Racing for the SNES. The company only found modest success until the release of their breakthough hit, Warcraft. Blizzard now has some of the most widely recognized IPs in the world. We'll begin with RPM Racing and see how well each new game sold and led to sequels

RPM Racing
In reality a remake of the Commodore 64 program, Racing Destruction Set, which was originally developed by Electronic Arts, RPM Racing is known for being the first American racing game developed for the SNES. The game was simple in that it had a regular season and a single race, but it was unique due to giving the players the ability to build their own tracks. The tracks could be oval shaped, curvy, or even filled with hills and other obstacles. A pseud-sequel was made in the form of Rock and Roll Racing.

The Lost Vikings
A side-scrolling puzzle/platform game for the SNES, The Lost Vikings featured three Vikings who were kidnapped by aliens and must find their way back home. The player could switch between the Vikings at any time in order to utilize their special abilities to progress through the level. The game was noted for its unique humor and sold well enough for several remakes and ports (the most recent on the GBA). The Vikings have also made several cameos in other Blizzard games, appearing as mobs in World of Warcraft in the Uldaman dungeon and racers in Rock and Roll Racing.

Blackthorne
A 2D platform game similar in style to the Prince of Persia, Blackthorne was developed for the SNES. Rather than swords, combat took the form of gunplay and a unique feature was the abilty to prone against the wall and dodge incoming bullets. Of course, the enemies were able to do this as well making it difficult for beginner gamers. Another ability, though less useful, was the option to fire blindly behind your back giving the main character some attitude. No sequel has ever been made though a remake appeared on the GBA.

The Death and Return of Superman
A beat-em-up sidescroller for the SNES based on the infamous comic, the game played like any other of the genre. The ability to fly was given though enemies still had to be defeated to move on to the next area. There were five playable characters: Superman, The Cyborg, The Eradicator, Superboy, and Steel. The game only received lackluster reviews, garnering an average of 69% at Gamerankings. No sequel has been made.

Warcraft: Orcs and Humans
The game that put Blizzard on the map, it was a hugely successful real time strategy that pioneered the road for the genres popularity. 2 sequels, an MMO, and 4 expansion packs have made this one of the most recognized IPs in the world.

Justice League Task Force
A fighter for the SNES featuring characters from the Justice League, it featured Aquaman, Batman, The Flash, Green Arrow, Superman, Wonder Woman, Cheetah, Despero, and Darkseid as fighters. It was essentially a Street Fighter II clone. It was panned for a lack of depth and terrible character balance. No sequel was ever developed.

Diablo
Diablo is the second of Blizzard's "Big Three" games, and for good reason. It is one of the most well-known games in the action RPG genre and features a random level and monster generator. There are also multiple paths that can be taken so that no two playthroughs are exactly alike. It was awarded Gamespot's Game of the Year in 1996. A sequel and three expansion packs helped keep this one of Blizzard's top games.

Starcraft
The final of Blizzard's "Big Three," Starcraft is a sci-fi real time strategy that featured three sides to play as. The game's story and multiplayer were highly lauded and helped make it the best selling game of 1998. Starcraft has sold 9.5 million copies worldwide with 4.5 million of that number being in South Korea alone. While it has had several expansion packs and the oft-rumored and put on hold Starcraft: Ghost, a sequel was only recently announced in 2007 and is one of the most anticipated games.

And that's it. Not many IPs were created by Blizzard but they really didn't need to. Rather than come up with new one's, they've opted to perfect their existing ones and it is working out well for them. World of Warcraft is one of the biggest games in the world and the advent of Starcraft 2 will likely bring even greater sales to them.

Thoughts? Suggestions of another company? Thanks for the input!

So why is my friend a lucky guy? Well, James is studying level design and general game development in a college in Arizona. Two years ago, back in 2006 during the last true E3, he told my group of friends and me about how he and a couple buddies would take the week off and go since one of his professors was able to secure the entire class tickets to the event. So they made a road trip of it and began making a list of things that they wanted to do since they had the itinerary of what was going on that year.

Together, they decided that they were going to hit on as many booth babes as possible, check out a few of the developer booths, and check out a lecture that was going to be given by Peter Molyneux, head designer of classic games like Black & White and Fable. There were other things that they planned out but those were the main ones. James also decided to make a bet with his friend. He bet that if met Peter Molyneux he was going to ask him to be the voice of his voicemail for his cell phone.

Well, E3 came and he went to Molyneux's lecture (he said it was excellent) and after it was over there was a chance for a Q & A session with Molyneux where people could line up behind a microphone and ask him whatever they felt like. James decided to do it and when he reached the mike, he asked Molyneux about the chances of B.C. ever coming out. Molyneux basically commented that he couldn't believe that people still remembered the game and let him know that it was still in development. James thanked him, watched the others give their questions, then went to leave as the lecture was over.

It was at this point that Molyneux came up to my friend and commented about what a good question he had. Needless to say, James was floored but he kept his cool and talked about game design with Molyneux. After a while, Molyneux had to get going but James asked if it would be alright if he gave him his resume. Molyneux, unfortunately, had no place to put it for the rest of the day. So, instead, he gave James his business card. (It was at this point of James's story that he pulled out the business card. There it was, Lionhead Studios with the company's address and phone number along with Molyneux's personal number.)

But that's not the end of it. James also made one last request, asking if Peter Molyneux could do the voice mail message on his phone. James had a big smile on his face as he pulled out his cell, had one of us call his phone, and when the voice mail started, there was a distinctly British voice saying, "Hello, this is Peter Molyneux and you've reached James ****'s phone. He's not available at the moment but if you leave your information he'll call you back as soon as possible."

Holy...fricking...crap. It was at this point that my entire group of friends lost it (we were sitting at a diner at the time). If he hadn't had the proof to back up all his claims, I wouldn't have believed but there it was in front of me. It's truly amazing how freaking lucky he was.