If you read our site a lot, you’re probably aware that I’ve been playing a fair bit of No Man’s Sky lately. This game has sucked me in with its Expeditions update, and I’m completely resold. It needed this feature sooner after launch because it’s a fantastic way for the community to come together and work in a small space as a unit. It fundamentally changes the feeling of loneliness that many players experience in the main game, and for that I’m am so incredibly thankful. Now though, I can’t help but think other games could benefit from a system like this too. Something that matchmaker you into an area with other players and forces you to cooperate in a shared space.
That might sound obvious, and I’m aware that other MMOs have similar co-op experiences, but not to this extend. Take Destiny 2 for example, the raids and strikes are co-op experiences in small areas, but you’re simply fighting from one room to the other. There’s never a chance for one player to help out every other player that will follow by placing a beacon, a building, or something else useful. Instead, it’s usually more about finishing as quickly as possible before complaining about the rewards.
Games like Destiny 2 could implement a similar feature to Expeditions in their shared world areas. These could have a similar set of objectives to complete and see players work together over the course of hours and days to complete a time-limited task. Currently, the only thing like this in Destiny 2 is when a super complicated puzzle or clue is left in the game for players to use to find something. Once there was a real-world reward for this puzzle. That doesn’t help those players who are in the game and want to experience that feeling with others in it as well.
In this way, many MMOs could benefit from a similar system. Warframe could fit it in, and there are countless other MMOs with massive open spaces that are just begging for this kind of content. Yes, I am talking about Final Fantasy 14. I suspect that as Expeditions become more popular, we’ll see something similar pop up elsewhere in other games.