At first glance, Erenshor‘s description sounds like an immediate contradiction: how can an MMORPG be single-player? Plenty of single-player games borrow MMORPG elements, and there are single-player titles like Kingdoms of Amalur that began as MMORPG projects, but few games can be adequately described as “single-player MMORPGs.” Erenshor is a unique case in that it doesn’t merely borrow MMORPG game mechanics, it also simulates the genre’s defining social component.
At the foundation of Erenshor is its SimPlayers: as the name suggests, these are simulated players that convey the illusion of being part of a tight-knit MMORPG server. Erenshor developer Brian “Burgee” has handcrafted these SimPlayer; he’s written unique dialogue for their chatting, given each of them a distinct personality, and they even have differing playstyles in group content. Since player interaction is a critical element of MMORPGs, Game Rant spoke with Brian about his approach to developing SimPlayers and making Erenshor feel like a lived-in MMORPG.
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Erenshor Interview: Developer Talks Making A ‘Single-Player MMORPG’
Game Rant sits down with the developer behind Erenshor, a unique single-player MMORPG populated with interactive simulated players.
Erenshor’s SimPlayers Make The Game Feel Alive
Brian is a longtime MMORPG fan himself, with his stint as an EverQuest player inspiring both the game’s systems and his approach to the personalities of SimPlayers. He noted that the SimPlayers are each modeled after a real player he met in online games; Erenshor players will encounter the archetypical “server jerk,” keen role-players, and players with massive egos. These are familiar personality types to anyone who has played an MMORPG, and the variety of SimPlayers goes a long way toward approximating a real online community.
Every one of the characters in the demo is a recreation of someone I used to play with long ago. I took their personalities to a tee. You know, like the guy who refers to himself in the third person and role-plays all the time or the guy who’s a jerk and even puts it in his character bio that he hates someone else—they’re all based on real players I’ve met.
For the folks who have access to the full beta build, there are a little over 100 SimPlayers in their game. Most of them are set up with a personality type and draw from a dialog pool so they speak appropriately.
Thankfully for fans hoping to escape the toxicity of the more popular MMORPGs on the market today, Erenshor‘s SimPlayers never lean too far into unpleasantness. There’s somewhat of a reputation system underlying SimPlayers where they may like or dislike the player depending on their actions, but SimPlayers will never refuse a party invite or send a curse word-ridden private message. Brian intends for Erenshor to be an MMORPG that can be accessible even to children, so it’s probably for the best that Erenshor doesn’t get too realistic on that front.
Erenshor’s SimPlayers Are Mostly Good MMO Gamers
On the gameplay side, SimPlayers will form groups, complete quests, level up, and acquire gear independently of the player–but also never progressing too far ahead. Brian has programmed them with numerous variables to keep them feeling distinct and interactive, but as he explains, total realism is not always the most desirable approach. After all, it’s no fun when an hours-long World of Warcraft raid comes to a screeching halt because the healer’s cat decided to unplug their modem.
There are a lot of behind-the-scenes variables I set for the SimPlayers—like how greedy they are when loot drops, how long they wait before they start casting a heal spell, and things like that.
It’s funny, though, because one of the most commonly requested features is to make them more realistic. People ask for things like making the SimPlayers go AFK without telling anyone or getting mad and letting you die. I started implementing some of that stuff for the testers, and they reported it back as bugs. They’d say, “Hey, my SimPlayer isn’t healing,” or, “Hey, my SimPlayer is just staring at the wall.”
For as much as folks like the idea of realism, the whole point is to get away from those MMO hassles, right? All the SimPlayers are pretty proficient in how they play.
Instead, SimPlayers will largely play well–though not perfectly–and won’t suddenly disappear from the keyboard. During group content, they’ll also coach the player on boss mechanics in a manner reminiscent of Final Fantasy 14‘s Duty Support system. Once players reach the endgame, Brian revealed to Game Rant that Erenshor players can lead raids comprising SimPlayers and give them commands just like a real raid leader. Except in Erenshor, nobody will pull all the whelps Leeroy Jenkins-style and wipe out the team.
The free Erenshor demo is available now on Steam.