Most MMORPGs take place in fantasy worlds, and only rarely does a sci-fi MMORPG come out. Following in the footsteps of “Star Wars Galaxies,” MMORPG legend Raph Koster is now stepping forward with his new online role-playing game “Stars Reach.” In the presentation of the new project, Koster mentions several big games as inspiration and role models, including Minecraft, EVE Online, and even WoW.
Who is Raph Koster?
- Raph Koster (52) is an MMORPG sage who was involved in the creation of the “MMORPG” genre in the 90s: he was the lead designer of Ultima Online, the mother game behind sandbox MMORPGs.
- After Ultima Online, he played a leading role as creative director in the major failed MMORPG Star Wars Galaxies. Star Wars Galaxies is regarded as the one MMORPG that truly deserved much more success because it offered players so many freedoms, but it died too soon.
- Since 2019, he has been working at the new company “Playable Worlds” on a new MMORPG. It has now been presented as “Stars Reach.”
Everything in the world should be changeable
This is known about his new MMORPG:
- The goal of Stars Reach is to develop a sandbox MMORPG that offers players a living, breathing world.
- It is supposed to take place in a persistent world where everything can be terraformed.
- The MMORPG will be about players jointly colonizing a world and claiming it as their own.
This is what the developer says about his game:
We wanted to do for sci-fi what World of Warcraft has done for fantasy, making it colorful, inviting, and accessible. We think the real world is dark enough.
But Stars Reach is not only inspired by WoW but also by games like EVE Online: Stars Reach is supposed to operate on a single server, with various planets and stars.
The MMORPG will feature no classes but will rely on a skill progression system where skills increase as they are used.
This is a classless game where you can learn all kinds of abilities. We use a skill tree and no levels. In fact, your character does not become particularly strong over time; instead, it becomes more capable, because one of our core principles is: ‘Never prevent players from playing together.’
This is a cornerstone. This means that all gameplay options are equal, which is unusual for most MMO players.
According to Koster, while there is PvP in his MMORPG, the focus is clearly on PvE.
The combat system is supposed to feel “like an action RPG.”
Release is still at least a year and a half away
What happens next? Now, at the presentation of “Stars Reach” after 5 years in development, Koster has extensively introduced his MMORPG in long interviews with US sites.
As an MMORPG sage who has been accompanying and commenting on the development of the genre for 30 years, he has many ideas, opinions, and a lot to share.
Koster is not yet ready to talk about a release or an early access phase. He says that this can be expected no earlier than 2026 in interviews.
However, from now on, he wants to develop the game much more openly and keep players informed.
Is there going to be a big turnaround in the MMORPG sector after 20 years?
What’s behind this: MMORPGs as a genre were relatively open until 2005. There were two relatively equal strands:
- The theme park MMORPGs with a focus on quests, raids, and PvE – the story was written by the developers – the flagship here was Everquest.
- The sandbox MMORPGs with a focus on economics, housing, and PvP – the story was written by the players – the flagship of the sandbox MMORPGs was Ultima Online.
Koster has always been on the side of sandbox MMORPGs. However, Star Wars Galaxies, the great sandbox representative of the “new” generation, mercilessly went under against WoW. Theme park MMORPGs have dominated the landscape for 20 years, while sandbox MMORPGs, apart from EVE Online and Albion Online, play only a minor role.
Therefore, “Stars Reach” is a very important MMORPG and could significantly influence the genre. The last sci-fi MMORPG that sought to compete with WoW did not fare well, as we know: WildStar closes – The MMORPG that was supposed to kill WoW is dead.
