Predictions For the 2005 MMORPG Market

MMORPGDot has whipped up an article entitled "Predictions For the 2005 MMORPG Market", in which they take a closer look at the current MMORPG market and speculate which directions games will be heading in 2005. A little something to get you started:
Because retaining subscriptions is such a large element of the MMORPG genre success, expect to see future technology advances to reflect less on the need for large scale interaction and more on story and character development. Instancing provides the genre with new possibilities in story telling. Technologies that allow better story management should be the next push on the backend. Instance management remains key in the long run. The MMORPG companies have a challenge in that they need to provide much more unique content to keep the subscriptions alive. This requires the formation of long term writing teams and instancing designers. It also includes the use of programmed dynamic storyline generators that create stories and quests that are much more than a simple assassination or fed-ex task. Investing in technologies that self manage storyline and character development is paramount to long term survival.