The Reigning Computer Gaming Classifications – RPG & MMP
Computer and online gaming are extremely popular now – so much so that they have become huge multimillion dollar businesses. There are different games for different audiences – for children and for adults – and new games are being designed every day. The two main kinds of games are Role Playing Games, or RPG – they can be played by a single player or a number of players, depending on the features of each game – and Massive Multi-Player Games, which are played by many players.
A Role Playing Game, as the name points out, lets you become a fictitious character of some sort. Once you become that character, the storyline of the game changes according to your actions. Of course, every game has its set of rules that you have to follow, but within that framework, you will have the freedom to choose your actions. A certain amount of improvisation is allowed and expected.
Role Playing Games are a lot of fun and can even help people forget about winning and form teams, and work together, which makes them very different from arcades, puzzles and card games.
You can play a Role Playing Game against other people, other player who are in the network, or you can play against characters already programmed in the computer. Either way, these games progress, like a television show does through episodes – you have to play through sessions, which might take anywhere from weeks to months to complete.
Again like a TV show, the plot as a whole will evolve over several sessions. There will be twists and turns along the way. As you advance through levels, you will find new characters being introduced, new angles – the works. Different Role Playing Games are different: ones like Dungeons & Dragons are very imaginative and creative, while others like Call of Duty are based on simulated versions of real life.
Even though you can choose who you would like to be in an RPG, you have a set of characters to choose from, each with characteristics and abilities that are predefined. Let us take X-Men, as an example – you can be any of the X-Men, but, just like in the comic, each character’s abilities are already decided and you cannot change them or invent new ones.
Compared to RPG games, Massive Multi-Player Games (MMP) need hundreds and thousands of players to achieve the game objectives. Complex and highly challenging, these MMP games are definitely not for individuals or two players.
The biggest differences between RPG and MMP are the number of players, subscriptions involved and the fact that you must be online to play MMP games. EverQuest, a popular MMP game, is a 3D fantasy game based in an alternate universe. MMP games are also commonly known as MMORPG or Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games.

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