As I remember, the conversation went not entirely unlike this:

"You've got to try this, you'll get addicted for sure."

"No, thanks. I'm not a MMORPG type of guy."

"Seriously, you can't resist! You'll fall under its spell just like everyone else has!"

"I really think I can resist, actually. Look, this is me, resisting."

"Look, woooo, it's calling your name. Come play me, Azakir, you know you want to."

"Stop waving the disc at me, it's not saying anything."

"I'll just load it up. You'll see."

"... Actually, that does look kinda pretty."

"So it does. I'll give you a cookie if you try playing."

"I'm there!!"

That's how the combined efforts of three Normalcraft 'addicts' made me actually try this very popular MMORPG. For those out there who don't know what an MMORPG is, let me explain. The acronym stands for Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game.

The basis behind this sort of game is as follows. It involves a server somewhere (or lots of them for something as popular as this) creating a 'persistent' game world, which people then log into and play in. Because there's one game world that everyone logs into, there can be lots of people in the same place at once, playing together and interacting, hence 'Massively Multiplayer'. And because it's online, and is always in use, the game world doesn't disappear when you switch off - there are still other players playing in the same world.

There are many different worlds across which MMORPG style games have sprung up. Science fiction spacescapes and fantasy realms are the most popular two, but Buzzard Entertainment wanted to something different, and in that, at least, they have succeeded.

Welcome to the latest evolution of the MMORPG genre. World of Normalcraft, the first Massively Multiplayer Online Reality Playing Game.

Not Just Your Average Joe

The title screen loads up, and one of the possible in game characters, a black-suited businessman with a seriously unhealthy choice of shirt and tie combination, watches intently as account details for the online player are entered. Upon acceptance of the account details, the game displays a number of slots, in which are displayed all the characters that have been created on that account. The game allows up to eight characters per account, just in case the player has a bout of schizophrenia, or just wants to try something different. In this case, starting afresh, selecting a blank spot brings up the character creation screen.

Now, before going any further, in order to understand exactly what kind of character is being created, it's probably prudent to try and explain just what World of Normalcraft attempts to portray.

World of Normalcraft contains an extension of the world created in the popular real-time strategy games of the same Normalcraft brand, in which plucky bands of heroic administrators and everyday employees attempt to finish their works every day and get promoted up the corporate ladder. The main difference is that the world here has been expanded out of the purely office-based scenario, and built into a fully working world. The tagline for the game was 'if you can do it here, you can do it there'.

Yes, that's right, Buzzard Entertainment have effectively created a real-life simulator. Anything that could be accomplished in your normal life can be done here, but that also means you have responsibilities and such to attend to as well.

But before getting too deep into that, now the outline of the world has been laid out, back to the character creation.

Firstly, there are a number of grand-scale categories to choose from. The top of the list is nationality. Depending on which is chosen, a number of starting bonuses to the statistics of the character are awarded. For instance, those choosing 'English' are awarded a +10 to 'Tea Drinking' and a point in 'Upper Lip Stiffness', whereas selecting German gives a +15 in 'Ruthless Efficiency', Japanese gives +10 in 'Dance Dance Revolution' and the skill 'Photo Frenzy', and Americans get a +15 in 'Big Cars', and a +5 in 'Hamburgers', but also a -10 in popularity.

The next category allows you to select your character class. Classes define both your starting equipment and clothes, and also give specific development paths that can be followed. For example, the class 'Office Admin', gives the character a number of cheap but cheerful suits that can be taken as starting attire, and awards bonus points to 'Administration', 'Office Gossip', and 'Pencil Wielding'. On the other hand, someone choosing 'Shop Assistant' will have a limited choice of corporate uniforms, but get an automatic affiliation to a chain of shops, and also bonuses in 'Product Locating', 'Cheesy Grin' and 'Speed Checkout'.

After defining these two categories, and picking from a number of male of female faces, hair types, and the clothing selection limited by the class chosen, it is time to get down and dirty with individual character statistics. Twenty five points are awarded to add to individual categories of statistic so, if it is so desired, an Egyptian bus driver who just happened to be an excellent jazz musician could be created, or a Polish delivery boy who was skilled in metallurgical analysis. The choices are myriad in their possibilities, and no two characters are ever likely to look or act the same.

Once the character is complete, it's time to unleash them on the world of Normalcraft.

A World of Possibility

As the game connects to the central server on which the world of Normalcraft is stored and maintained, new characters are introduced to the history of the chosen nationality, as the graphics engine displays and pans through a real-time view of the capital city for that nationality, where all new characters start. Rhetoric about alliances and enemies of that country are explained, the virtues of the character's country are extolled, and finally, after a couple of minutes, the view pans down to a view just behind the character's shoulder, and the game begins for real.

The graphics in Normalcraft are nothing short of astounding. Brightly painted cities roll into lush landscapes and vibrant environments that really feel alive, or as alive as a computer-generated approximation could ever be. Credit has to be given to the designers; sometimes it feels like everything down to the smallest blade of grass has been specifically created and placed, just in case someone ever stumbled across it. True, it requires a high-end computer to render to that level of detail and 'niceness', but if anyone is going to spend the length of time necessary to get on in this game, it would be worth it to invest in such a machine. Otherwise it would be akin to playing a text adventure, and only reading the first line of each description given.

Literally anything that could be done in real-life can be accomplished in the world of Normalcraft. However, just as in the real world, anything really interesting will require some cash to attain. Hence, after wandering around in awe at the pretty locations for a while, most people will find that their first stop is at the local 'job centre' to acquire a job.

Workin' Nine to Five?

In order to keep the flow of the game moving quickly in these initial stages, the task of finding an initial job is not so hard. Once at a job centre, a list of possible job types are listed, and a basic new job from any of the options can be selected and started straight away. It is possible for a 'taxi driver' class character to choose 'cabaret singer' as a job, but it will be much harder to advance in the position until plenty of experience has been built up to improve the relevant skills. So the early on advice is 'stick to your character class'.

Working is also made a little easier in the Normalcraft world. Upon reporting to the chosen place of employment - an office, perhaps, or some other workplace - a computer-controlled character will offer a task that needs to be completed. 'File these papers' or 'deliver package A to place B' are not uncommon in some lines of work.

Once the task is complete, a 'wage' is awarded in the local currency, and more tasks become available if they are desired. This is both a weakness and strength of Normalcraft; characters don't have to work set hours, like in the real world, but the length of any tasks that give appreciable rewards or experience tend to be very long winded. If any progress is to be made in this game, it needs to be played for hours at a time, which is something the casual gamer is just not likely to be able or willing to afford.

Once certain levels of experience are gained, and a suitable reputation with the company in question has been gained, a promotion may be awarded to a new position, offering more difficult tasks, possibly of a more varied type, but which will offer more rewards in return. Future expansions offer the possibility of even becoming the manager of other characters, which would be a rather interesting experience. Time will tell if that new piece of gameplay works out, but for the time being, climbing the corporate ladder, or whatever type of ladder is chosen, can be a diverting and rewarding experience, but again, it will take much time to accomplish anything of a grand scale.

The Spoils of Normal

Once enough money has been collected, a character can go out and enjoy themselves. Chilling out and enjoying the world can take several forms. It is entirely possible for a character to go out and get drunk with some friends on the same server, or it is possible to travel between countries and take a holiday of sorts. If the company the character works for operates in different countries, it is even possible to become a travelling worker, picking up assignments in different areas.

Shopping is also a major pursuit for many World of Normalcraft players. There are many shops around that will sell more basic items, but for interesting equipment and other goodies, it is always advisable to check out the auction house, where other players sell their goods, which they have either been awarded at work, or have created themselves. This is where most of the really nice clothing and equipment can be bought, although prices can be very variable - this is an auction house, after all.

Leisure activities are available in their entirety, such as football, cricket, baseball, ten-pin bowling, swimming, and a host of others. Each is governed by a number of statistics, and should any character become good enough, they may even be invited to join an official team, which can be another way of earning a living, potentially a very affluent one.

If enough money is acquired, transportation can be bought in all forms, from pogo sticks and bicycles, to supercars, speedboats, and private jets. But these all cost money to run and maintain, otherwise they have to be left somewhere until money is paid to refuel and fix them. Fortunately, it is not possible to steal player objects such as vehicles, so at least the world is a little more secure that it would otherwise be. Unfortunately, though, while most areas are accessible by foot or public transport, to get a lot of real exploring done, a vehicle of some sort is pretty much a necessity at some point.

Experiencing Life, Experiencing Experience...

Everything a character does in the Normalcraft world garners experience. Go for a walk, get experience in 'walking'. Read the newspaper, get experience in 'current affairs'. Tour a new city, get experience in Touristing'. There really are a myriad of different experience categories, and they can all be levelled up to gain different skills. It also opens up new and interesting career options.

For instance, acquiring the job of 'newscaster' requires at least 45 points in 'current affairs'. At that level, the ability of 'poignant reference' becomes available, which is a diplomatic skill of being able to reference relevant events in current affairs that effectively add points to any interaction involving persuasion or diplomacy.

By deliberately levelling up skills that are relevant, any career path or selection of skills can be acquired. But again, this is both a high and low point of the game, in that any advancement takes a while, and with so many skills, it is a very long-winded process to advance in all the skills that may be desired. This is a game that could potentially suck days and weeks, possibly months and even years of time away from a player, as well as requiring a great amount of patience.

Escaping From Normalcraft

Having experienced this incredibly detailed world, it is a little more easy to understand why stories occasionally arise of player becoming addicted to games of this type. The exploration or the world is certainly intriguing, and the career and experience advancement aspects do invoke a kind of 'one more task' feeling, driving the player to play more and more of the game.

It is fairly certain that no single player will ever see absolutely everything the game has to offer, even without the added expansions that hover enticingly in the future, waiting to be purchased. But the whole idea of expansions is a little off putting. If a monthly subscription fee is already being paid on top of the full price of the game to see more than one person is ever going to experience, then who would want to pay even more to access an even greater world with even more options? Well, given the popularity that Normalcraft has acquired, the answer is sure to be 'a whole lot of people'.

Even so, I have to conclude that I already have my own life, with its pitfalls to be avoided and its rewards to be gained, and given that, I don't really need another life in another, computer generated world, as I have enough on my plate dealing with the day-to-day issues in this one! That, added to the lack of any grandiose story (Yes, I like saving the world lots), leaves me with a rather pressing point. There is no end to this game. A character can reach the highest experience levels available after a long time, and have a position of power and respect, but is that really an end? There is no set goal, or finish line, and because of that, it is all too easy to fall into this time sink, but feel mildly unrewarded at the end of it.

However, the popularity of this genre, and this game in particular, is undeniable, and it would appear that I lie in a minority of sorts, as many friends and associates lose themselves in this enormous artificial world.

Just remember to eat and sleep, okay? In the real world, I mean.

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