Game Analysis: DotA 2 and MOBAS

     When I first started playing DotA 2, I had no idea what a MOBA (Multiplayer Online Battle Arena) was. I had never played any Warcraft and I definitely wasn't analyzing the game design of it back then. Now, I often think about how certain genres of games came about. Naturally, I think about the game type I play the most, MOBAs. I realized that they have another name, ARTS (Action Real-Time Strategy) games. Of course that means that they were sprung off from the RTS genre, but who came up with the idea and why is it so successful?

     

     In 1998, the year I was born, a Starcraft player created the first MOBA in his game Aeon of Strife, a modded Starcraft map. Then in 2002 following the release of Warcraft 3, a map that was based off of Aeon of Strife was created and called Defense of the Ancients. Eventually other modders started inheriting DotA when the first modders left, and as time passed DotA ended up in the hands of a modder named IceFrog. IceFrog added a lot of new mechanics and created a much more complex game than before. During IceFrog's time modding DotA, the player base reached as high as 1 million, and this was in the year 2005.

     

     When I think about it, the idea that players can choose one of their favorite heroes and battle other players is an amazing idea. Whenever some popular movie, book or TV show is around, the fans often create fiction like what if "Who would win if X fought Y?". A MOBA allows the players to choose to be one of their favorite characters (In DotA, these are their favorite Warcraft characters), and in a way simulate these fantasies they have. It is my opinion that ideas like that were what founded the first MOBA Aeon of Strife.

     Today, the MOBAs are a lot more complex than just being able to be your favorite characters. Many players don't even know the lore behind the heroes (or champions for you LoL players). I think this transition came about when IceFrog made the game more about the mechanics and gameplay than about the actual characters. Now most if not all MOBAs are all modeled around the orignal Warcraft 3 mod of DotA. But why are MOBAs so appealing and why are they most popular game genre today?

     There are many factors that motivate people to play MOBAs. People enjoy playing with their friends, and considering MOBAs are free to play (for the most part), this allows for easy access for a group of friends to play together. Even when you are playing a terrible game (and MOBAs are by no means terrible), when you're with friends everything seems fun. Another thing is that MOBAs can be extremely competitive due to the very high skill ceiling. This allows for professional electronic sports  (e-sports) competitions to arise. Knowing how many people watch professional football or soccer or whatever sport they like, people who play games can now share the same fandom, but with their favorite video game team. If you imagine how many people play sports, it's no surprise that there are that many people that play MOBAs. It's fun to play and easy to get into. Very low machine specifications, being free to play and also highly competitive are very desirable game qualities, and this is what the MOBA genre excels at.
     However, like any game genre, the MOBA phase will eventually pass. The most important thing now is to analyze the past and try to create a new game genre that can be as successful as the MOBA genre. It's not an easy task, but the gaming industry will only grow, and the rewards are there for the reaping.

I am a game designer

   The first video game I ever played was Putt Putt Enters the Race. I remember this game because of the joy it gave me when I would complete some sort of mission and receive a bottle. I would recycle these bottles, and eventually I would get enough to join the race through recycling enough of those bottles. This system gave me an incentive to keep playing and try to get as many bottles as possible. I became so absorbed with collecting bottles I don't think I really cared about the race, which was the whole point of the game. I believe the mechanics of this game were what kept making me come back to play more. As a little kid, I couldn't explain why but I got some sense of fulfillment from collecting the green bottles and recycling them.
   Another game I used to play was Pokemon on my Nintendo DS. I played Blue Mystery Dungeon the most, and I can vividly remember sitting in my room playing that game for hours. I enjoyed the story and I wanted to get my Pokemon to high levels so I could beat the game. I wanted to beat the game not just for the sake of beating it, but for the sake of satisfying the story and seeing what happened in the end. I didn't ever beat the game, but I still have fond memories of it.
   The last game I have chosen from my childhood would have to be Cooking Mama. I still smile every time  think of the memories. I used to play this game with my sister all the time when I was bored or she wanted to use the Wii. Just the sheer aspect of being a competitive game can draw kids into it despite not really having a story or much appeal. Just racing to chop onions or grind meat is entertaining as long as you are playing against someone else. If I could pinpoint one thing from the Tetrad it would be Aesthetics because I loved when the eggs would break and splatter everywhere. Otherwise, it was just the mere opportunity to compete versus someone else.