Oshi~ rant incoming.

I agree with Alpha. I don't consider making local MMOs to be any significant step in the local gaming industry.

Why? Because practically any developer can shit out a half-assed Korean grindgrind MMO. Honestly, it isn't very hard to program for someone that has a reasonable programming background.

Just slap on some new skins, flashy spell effects, use the L2 engine, and voila, instant MMO. It may or may not make a profit, since the market is practically saturated with countless mediocre F2P MMOs.

They don't have to code complex AI like in FPS, or RTS. Since the enemies all have 2 types of AI:
1. I stand still for you to whack me. Then only I attack back.
2. I attack you as you get into my range.

So all that's left for them is to make is some different character/monster models, new animations, FLASHY ARMOR, WEAPONS AND SPELLS, ARGH. Basically, the design group has a lot on their hands.

What? Game battle system? Forget it, its all the same. Spam pots+press attack/skill butan on monster+kill monster+repeat. Maybe some unbalanced PvP where the person with the biggest epeen and time invested grinding will always win (Protip: This doesn't happen in Guild Wars PvP. Take that as an example for truly balanced PvP).

Oh yes. I forgot about one very, very important thing: The netcode. Even if your MMO is the most innovative one in the entire universe, it won't mean anything if the netcode is utter balls (not MMOs but just examples of games with shitty netcode: Rakion, Gunz, Warrock). I don't really know about this aspect, as I haven't played a local grind MMO in years, but you can evaluate it yourself.

"But oh Zephro, you are too demanding, what must a local MMO do to please you?"
Its simple. Stop perpetuating the Korean grind. Make something... INNOVATIVE and DIFFERENT. Maybe remake Ultima Online, for instance. Or make a MMO that's not in yet another goddamn medival fantasy setting. Or something that's not a MMO, for a start?
When they come up with one maybe I'll start paying attention.

The local gaming industry can take a leaf out from the book of indie programmers. Visit Game Tunnel or something, there are many sites out there.

The most profilic one I can possibly think of is Introversion. They made Uplink, Darwinia and now Defcon. They're only a group of 3 people. Yet their games have made it to online Steam purchases, quite possibly giving them a sizable income. I gladly paid 10USD for my preorder of Defcon, their latest game.

Why? Because their games are innovative, and fun. It also distinguishes them from countless other game rehashes from the common genres. Tell me, what distinguishes local MMOs from all the others out there? What will make them STAND out from the pack?
Same medival setting, same battle system, same lame PvP combat, same old crap everyone has seen a zillion times over.

But F2P may bring in more potential customers, you say. Yeah, maybe. I'm making an EDUCATED guess that 90% of the population of these games are unemployed students. Why play generic F2P MMO no.123 when you can play WoW or Guild Wars? Oh right, free.

But as usual, the only income of these games come from the ingame shop. Maybe a few bucks here for a special privilige, another buck there for a nice skin, etc.
Yeah, a profit can be turned out from this I guess. Nothing much to say as I'm not some economic hotshot.

On to my final statement. Will our local game companies get a name for themselves by making more MMOs? Will they be REMEMBERED? Like, someone just casually mentions the company name years later on some Internet forum, and people come out the woodwork to share their good memories with that game?
I don't know, I can't predict the future. But that's a statement worth thinking about.

And here ends my rant.
Feel free to ridicule every point of it.

Oh no, I wasn't stereotyping the industry as a whole. Sorry if I vaguely implied that. Wasn't trying to. Just directed to the local MMO producers/localisers/blah.

If the rest are doing something else then it's all good I guess.
Question is... what ARE they doing?
I'm still waiting for our local Introversion.
Maybe they can call it Extroversion.

Nival is pretty good, by the way. They made a Tactical RPG WW2 game called Silent Storm. Pretty awesome game. Ragdoll physics, destructible enviroments (blow up entire buildings with grenades!).
Pity the game was horribly unoptimized and buggy though.
Still, gaming gems come out of Russia occasionally.

But yeah I agree. Legit gaming purchases have still a long way to go in Malaysia. I myself just started buying legit games myself after.... 20 years.

Nice analogy.
Eh, thought Darkstar One was German.
But anyway, the Russkies made Star Wolves as well, another decent game.