Moorgard made an interesting post today regarding the notion of delivering regular short burst content on a frequent basis such as weekly or bi-weekly as opposed to the currently popular method of having a bunch of static content, then providing overwhelming mounds of additional content in the form of expansion packs. He also touches upon the fact that current methodology is really based on the desire to have as much content available as possible so that the gamer who is able to play for 30-40 hours per week won’t get bored and un-subscribe. It’s really an interesting read, so go check it out.. Here’s my two copper thus far..

I absolutely believe there is a market for such frequent quick-blast content delivery. I’d personally like to see entire areas phased in and out as part of an ongoing storyline that all players can partake in. It can be driven by moon phase, calendar, or even better.. dynamic elements directly resulting of the actions of the player-base.. such as mood in a particular location.. balance of good vs. evil.. %# of a certain quest line completed towards a particular goal.. that sort of thing.

So, there could be a “constant” game which is sort of a revolving/evolving epic battle of good vs. evil, with benefits and consequences tied to the outcome of that given period.. then there would be weekly/bi-weekly creative quest lines to partake in that guide you deep into the REAL epic nature of the story and make you salivate for the next in the series. Like a graphic novel on crack

Seriously though, players already look forward to patch days just like they do episodes of “Lost” or “Heroes” on TV. The draw is already there for patches, upgrades, and the “what will they do next?” factor. Introduce a steady stream of limited-time content into there and you’ve got yourself a winner. How about in-game trophies of sorts for those who have participated in certain storylines (incentives to keep your account active and not miss a week/two-week period of play)? Once you open that can of worms Danuser, the ideas pour out like.. err.. well.. like worms I guess.. hrmph.. ok let’s say they pour out like a can of CHILI instead.. they’d pour out like CHILI, OK? =P

mmm…chili!