Potential DAoC Rival

You could say all online games are potential rivals to each other if you wanted, but soon we're going to have to start making categories for them, just like we do with everything else. Not very Zen Buddhist of us... but nevertheless it does help with some things. Anyway, the makers of Funcom's Anarchy Online have begun work on their next foray into MMOGing, a title they call Midgard.

Sounds familiar eh? It's based upon Norse legend, will be massively multiplayer, but sounds different than the rest in that it will be a smaller, more detailed world with a bit of resource management and strategy blended in. Here's part of the political scoop from a recent first look at the game by PC.ign:

In Midgard, players will not only build their own houses, but entire villages. When you start the game, you'll be born into a large pre-built town. While the town offers safety, you may feel a bit stifled having to live under someone else's rules. So what can you do to circumvent the laws of the town? Why not break out on your own, start your own tribe, and start a village of your own? There's certainly nothing stopping you if you can muster up enough followers. According to Ragnar, the person who starts a tribe will automatically be tribal chief, and can set laws, assignments, and the tax rate of the village. He or she can also appoint officers who can oversee the every day business of the town while the tribal chief looks at the big picture. All in all, Midgard sounds like it's going to have a pretty highly developed political system, especially for an online game.