Two MMOs are going to be launching in September 2009 that I’ve been beta testing: Champions Online and Fallen Earth. I’ve already written up a long, rambling review for ChampO, but I’d like to use a punchier system for use in reviews.
It struck me that MMOs can be broken down into main systems through the use of the letter ‘c’. Or at least words starting with the letter ‘c’. Stop looking at me like that.
There’s combat, crafting, communication, content, collectables, competition and contingencies.
Combat – the straight forward killing-of-stuff.
Crafting – trade skills, converting components into items and back again.
Communication – the ease of getting in contact with other players, perhaps to group or as a guild.
Content – the amount and quality of stuff their is to do in-game.
Collectables – loot and extra things (e.g. badges, achievements, etc) there are to find and / or unlock.
Competition – player vs player in different aspects of the game … but probably mostly about beating the stuffing out of another player.
Contingencies – anything else not covered above.
For both ChampO and FE I think I can use the above model to create some punchy-yet-thorough reviews. However, if there is a ‘c’ I’ve missed, I’d love to hear it.
World Class Villains 
As an update: I did think of two other ‘c’s – character and community.
Character – character advancement and customisation.
Community – how good / bad the community is.