Meridian 59
| Meridian 59 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Studio | Archetype Interactive (1995) Near Death Studios (2002) Open Source (2012) |
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| Publisher |
 The 3DO Company (1996–2002), Near Death Studios (2002–2010) Anja Oster MDO Entertainment (until 2009) |
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| Erstveröffent- lichung |
December 15, 1996 1997 |
||
| platform | Windows | ||
| genre | MMORPG | ||
| Game mode | Multiplayer PvP PVE | ||
| control | Keyboard , mouse | ||
| system advantages preconditions |
486 processor with 33 MHz clock frequency, 32 MB RAM, VGA graphics card, 130 MB hard disk space, at least 14.4 kbit internet connection | ||
| medium | Download | ||
| language | German English | ||
| Age rating |
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||
| information | Players online on one server at the same time: max. 250 | ||
Meridian 59 is an online role playing game . It was launched by 3DO in 1996 and has been open source since 2012 . It is considered to be the first massively multiplayer online role-playing game ( MMORPG ) with 3D graphics .
It offers a persistent world and a 3D graphics client for displaying the game world. The number of players per server is still relatively small at 150 to 180 players, but Meridian was the first 3D massively multiplayer game ( 3D - MMORPG ) to be presented to the public and thus began a triumphal march through the still young Internet world.
Game mechanics
description
In Meridian 59 , the player moves in a three-dimensional environment. Players, opponents and moving objects are represented as two-dimensional sprites .
In the event of death, the game character loses one life point, which can take up to an hour to be recovered. Furthermore, in the event of the death of the game character, there is a possibility that each skill known to the game character will deteriorate the effectiveness in using the skill. With the result that well-developed characters suffer significantly more disadvantages when they die than less well-trained ones. To fully compensate for these losses in a fully trained character, an additional hour or more of game time may be required.
Another special feature is that characters drop all their belongings when they die, which can then be picked up by other players. They can return the items to the deceased player, but they can also keep them. If a player is not seen by a third player when they are picked up, the deceased player cannot immediately determine who has picked up his possessions. This principle is only limited by the fact that there is a spell that can be used to bind objects to a specific player, as well as by the fact that game characters must have reached a certain minimum level in order to be able to take possession of a deceased player. However, since the spell to bind items is very expensive and requires the help of at least two other players, it is rarely used, so that if a player dies, they usually have to expect to lose all of the items they carried.
In order to avoid the drastic penalties in the event of the death of the game character, early program versions of Meridian 59 made use of the player's option to log out immediately (e.g. by forcibly closing the program via the operating system). The character was actually immediately removed from the game world and further damage prevented. An additional advantage was that a character that was then logged in again could not become the target of monsters until the character was first moved, even if they were very close by.
Since this option was also used by almost all players in player-against-player (PvP) combat , a certain displeasure gradually spread in the community about the fact that a winning duel in which the opponent closed could almost never be counted as a success Death came. Rather, it was considered a success if the opponent was forced to log out.
In later versions, a process was therefore introduced that is a special feature in all its facets and is still part of the gameplay today. After that, a player who logs out outside of a secure area, such as an inn, is not immediately removed from the game, but is replaced by a so-called log shadow. This log shadow itself is not vulnerable and persists for a certain time. Initially it was 20 minutes, later the time was reduced. If the player logs in again within this time, he will not be penalized. However, if he does not come back into play by the deadline, he will be punished.
The size of the penalty depends on the frequency of this behavior and the player's status in the community. No penalty is imposed if the player logs out very rarely; on the other hand, in extreme cases the penalty can be much more severe than it would have been if the player died. A possible punishment is that the player drops individual objects from his inventory, which the shadow leaves behind when he disappears and which can be picked up by the players around.
Although this concept was introduced to prevent players from withdrawing from a PvP battle by logging out and instead fighting until a decision was made, little changed in the gameplay. Players are still logging out and the displeasure in the community has increased since then because additional time has to be invested to guard the log shadow.
Since players know exactly when they can expect a higher log penalty, many of them avoid leaving safe places during the "cooldown" and risking severe penalties. As a result, the number of characters remaining in restaurants sometimes significantly exceeds the number of those who solve quests in unsafe locations or fight monsters and other players.
So that the community, which is somewhat restricted in terms of their PvP activities, can occasionally let off steam, a so-called "frenzy" is held every three weeks. The current state of the server is completely frozen and restored unchanged after the two-hour event. Everything that a character has gained or lost during the frenzy is then undone. In addition, all players are equipped with plenty of magic ingredients and excellent weapons and armor at the start of a frenzy. During a frenzy, players typically engage in an uninhibited PvP game and the city centers end up being littered with corpses. Some players die much more often in the two hours of a frenzy than in the three weeks between frenzies.
Punishments instead of rewards
In the beginning of the entire gaming segment, i. H. Even with the MMORPGs from other providers, the developers' own influence on the behavior of the players, their dislikes and preferences, was greatly overestimated. Most developers had very specific ideas about how the game they offered was to be played so that it would be as fun as possible. Players who did not adhere to these, partly obvious, partly hidden, guidelines were punished. The punishment usually consisted of a penalty in the experience gained, an increased risk for the character and other disadvantages. In the case of Meridian 59 , the unsuccessful attempt to force the player to fight in PvP until the decision is made must be considered. For other game elements, too, the focus was on penalties instead of rewards. So z. B. in the event of node attacks, unsuccessful completion of tasks or failed attempts to register with a magic school. After that, the player often faced a punishment that was not dramatic but still frustrating. As a result, many gamers lost their interest in restrictive games and turned to the growing market of MMORPGs that worked with rewards instead of punishment. With these MMORPGs, players no longer receive a penalty if they do not participate in events or ignore recommended ways of playing. Instead, rewards are given to those players who behave as requested by the provider.
schools
Weapon Skills - physical combat, including dodging, parrying, weapon skills, archery, shields, and disarming.
Shal'ill - is a very defensive school. You have the possibility to heal yourself and others, to teleport yourself out of dangerous situations and also to stop the fight in an area. Shal'ill offers very useful spells and is a comparatively cheap school. You need positive karma to buy the sayings and do magic. Circle 1 requires a karma of +10, circle 2 a karma of +20, etc.
Kraanan - a karma-neutral school that mainly teaches spells for protection and defense. Kraanan's spells are a must have for every warrior. Kraanan is perhaps the most important magic school that Meridian has to offer. In addition to the popular repair spell , which can be used to earn a lot of money, and the spell Kraanan's power , which is the only spell that increases the basic stats, Kraanan offers protective spells against all types of attacks and the popular magic dissolve illusions , which the portal into the orc- Caves opens.
Qor - highly effective spells that also require a lot of karma. Assassins and murderers receive further training at the school of Qor. Qor offers spells that are particularly useful in player versus player combat. Even strong opponents can be defeated by such spells as paralyze , weaken or vampire grip . You need negative karma to buy and cast spells.
Faren - utterly chaotic, barely controllable spells with absolutely no karma focus. Faren has good attack spells that can be used from a great distance. However, many Faren spells make you unpopular with other players if you use them.
Riija - Riija mainly offers illusion magic. There are no real attack spells, but when combined with other spells, the wizard's identity can be hidden. Riija works well for confusing other players.
Jala - Jala is the school of the bards in Meridian . It differs fundamentally from other magic schools, because you need a lute to be able to "sing" Jala magic. As you sing, the magic drops. When the magic power is used up, the magic ends.
history
Meridian 59 was developed by Near Death Studios and launched in the USA in 1996 by the 3DO Company . From October 1997 the game was offered in German, fully localized. From 2000 the offer was discontinued due to the bankruptcy of the operator. However, an older copy of the Renaissance server was packed onto their FTP by a 3DO employee, which was then operated freely accessible in Russia by a person who called himself Devil.
Unofficial servers
After the leak of the server software by one of the developers shortly after the shutdown of 3DO, unofficial, so-called “pirate servers” were created in addition to the official Meridian 59 servers. These originally only featured the Renaissance server, later also the Resurrection server. These servers were original software, i.e. the same software that was also used by the official providers to run the game. Allegedly the Renaissance server software was put on an FTP server by a 3DO employee and offered for download. A server belonging to the German-speaking operator MDO was allegedly hacked in the Resurrection software. The heyday of the pirate servers was the years 2000–2004. However, there was always a small community, so that by 2009 there were three different pirate servers.
Republication
In May 2002, however, the game was released again with a new operator MDO Entertainment and the lead gamemaster Merrit, who was already active in Meridian. In 2004 there was a considerable graphic update, which also presented the old game in a better visual way. The provider Anja Oster MDO Entertainment stopped operating the last two German servers on December 31, 2009. However, the game can still be played for free on official US servers.
Extensions
Since the game was launched in 1996, there have been several expansions, each with its own name. With each version, parts of the game were added or fundamentally changed.
| Extensions | |
|---|---|
| April 27, 1996 | Meridian 59 (beta) |
| September 27, 1996 | Meridian 59 (release) |
| March 18, 1997 | Vale of Sorrows |
| June 19, 1997 | Revelation |
| March 16, 1998 | Renaissance |
| August 1, 1998 | Insurrection |
| January 26, 1999 | Dark Auspices |
| July 6, 1999 | Liberation |
| June 13, 2002 | Resurrection |
| October 31, 2004 | evolution |
The commercial development was stopped.
Vale of Sorrows
A dense forest area was added with new monsters and a mana node, which - and this was new for this segment - could only be developed through the cooperation of many players. In addition, the battle zones in the sewers under the cities of Barloque and Jasper have been expanded.
Revelation
The game has been expanded to include an entire continent with a multitude of new zones, 20 new monsters and two new schools of magic. The new continent was connected to the old world by an underground tunnel system with sometimes very dangerous monsters. The tunnel system had to be opened from the old world side with a new spell. This expansion presented the server operators with a number of challenges. Due to a lack of thought on the part of the developers, the magic ingredients for opening the tunnel system were only available on the new continent, which made it impossible for players to open it alone and therefore required the help of bards and admins. Furthermore, the first version of the server software was very unstable and caused numerous server crashes.
Renaissance
In addition to the addition of further combat zones, especially for high-level players, the main change in this expansion was the introduction of a new faction system: hunters or necromancers. Both factions were hostile and a player could only belong to one of the two factions at the same time. Members of both factions were given significant reinforcements in their combat strength, especially in the fight against members of the respective opposing faction. At the same time, membership in one of these groups was associated with a high level of risk. Was z. B. the Queen of the Necromancer (an NPC / monster) killed, all members of this faction died at the same time, even if they were not online. Overall, this created strong new incentives for PvP battles.
Insurrection
A flag system was introduced. Flagpoles were set up in many zones of the game, which could be captured on behalf of a faction and then waved under the flag of that faction. Thereafter, players who belonged to the ruling faction there received special reinforcements of their combat strength while they were in this zone. In contrast to the Jäger / Necromancer faction system, this expansion could only significantly increase the players' PvP activities for a short time. Later, flag conquests were mostly only carried out when a good opportunity happened by chance.
Dark Auspices
The main novelty was the introduction of private rooms in various restaurants. There you could rent a room, set it up with the help of an NPC and even set up up to two boxes in which objects could be stored. There were different keys that you could use e.g. B. could also pass it on to friends, who could then visit the owner "at home". Shrines were also distributed across the country that could be consecrated for the improvement of certain skills. Wands, magical scrolls and potions were introduced especially for warriors, which enabled them to use magic in some cases.
Liberation
Officially, this expansion primarily addressed the diverse wishes of the players. The entire combat system has been reworked, with more focus on skills and spells and some of them drastically strengthened. The interplay between the players should also be improved with these changes. In addition to the changes in the game, it was possible for the first time to play the game with a monthly flat rate for a fixed price, regardless of the intensity of one's own gaming activity.
Resurrection
This first version of the new developers after the closure of all servers due to the bankruptcy of the previous owner was completely revised. In doing so, emphasis was placed on error-free and stable operation of the server, which was also implemented. In terms of content, most of the elements of the previous versions have been adopted, but there have been extensive changes in detail, e.g. B. which spells belong to which school and what can be learned from a character. New spells have also been added, some old ones deleted. The Jäger / Necromancer system was completely removed from the game, out of consideration for server stability, because the new developers classified it as a "bug ruin" that could hardly be repaired.
evolution
This update contained extensive refinements and enhancements to the graphic display in Meridian 59 . The aim was to modernize the somewhat nostalgic appearance so that the game can better compete with the providers of newer programs in this segment. Although a considerable improvement was actually achieved, the second goal could not be achieved. Meridian 59 was too far removed from the graphical possibilities of modern MMORPGs.
Source code approval
The source code has been available as free software under GPLv 2 since September 15, 2012 , with the exception of the game content, i. H. Graphics, audio material, the description of the game world, etc.
Web links
- Official website
- Source code repository at Github
- Meridian 59 at MobyGames (English)
- The making of Meridian 59 , video on Gamasutra (English)
Individual evidence
- ^ Message about the discontinuation of the game on golem.de
- ↑ a b c d e f [1] Meridian 59 on giantbomb.com
- ↑ [2] The Dark Auspices expansion in PC Action Magazine from August 1999
- ↑ Archived copy ( Memento of the original from March 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Info on Liberation expansion on prnewswire.com
- ↑ Andrew Kirmse, Chris Kirmse: License for Meridian 59 v1.0 . github.com. September 15, 2012. Retrieved October 8, 2013: “ This source code is distributed under the terms of the GNU General Public License with the following special exception. As a special exception, the copyright holders of this program give you permission to link this program with the accompanying files wrap.dll and waveplay.dll. "
