The Golden Age of Virtual MMO Games

I'll proudly admit that there was once a time I'd be happy spending a whole weekend binging games like Habbo Hotel from the comfort of a dark and dingy room with nothing but a six-pack of Fanta and an illuminated monitor.

Those were the days, eh? The era of virtual worlds, edgy chat bubbles and sketchy microtransactions. The active years between 2000 and 2007 to be precise; where everyone who was anyone was about and willing to dive into the pixelated madness at the touch of a button.

Back when games like Habbo Hotel first launched way back in 2000, most people hadn't the slightest clue as to what it was all about. And if a promoter laid out a speech advertising it, you'd more than likely shrug and discard it as some sort of scam or practical joke.

'Create an avatar,' they'd say.'Meet other real humans over a game of FALLIN' FURNI.'

Yeah, alright. Jog on you nutcase. But as it goes, curiosity can be a bitch, and like most people, once I descended down that mosaic hole, I couldn't for the life of me remember the route back up

Around the summer of 03, I had been plunged into the world of MMO gaming. And I wasn't coming back up anytime soon, either.

It all seemed pretty charming and innocent at first. You know, create a little avatar and have your own little room with default furniture to place down wherever your heart desired?That was all great, and like everybody else, I thrived off of having my second little virtual life away from reality; in a secluded place where I could be anybody I wanted to be. *Cough* BlackBeast94 *cough.*

Now, it's worth mentioning here that back in say, 03, I wasn't exactly swarming with friendship circles and girls trembling at the knees or anything. I was just a kid who had a long fringe, a Fanta addiction, and a Habbo avatar on a fourteen-inch Packard Bell monitor.

Like a lot of people, I found comfort in travelling to these virtual worlds after school, where nobody could tell me what to do or who to be. Because it was my choice and a second little life that I had free-reign over.

I realise now that it sounds crazy, but back then it felt as real as anything else going on in my life. And by being this avatar, I was able to alternate to a whole other personality where nobody could judge or isolate me from a crowd. And with a name like BlackBeast94, everybody wanted to know who I was and what I was all about.

I only figured out why everyone was so interested in me about ten years later when I wasn't so damn naive. Assuming I was being an edgy kid with attitude problems, I liked to believe having both 'black' and 'beast' in a name would be rad as hell.But looking back now? Man, I was an idiot.

So, there I was with a hundred thousand other people from around the globe. I had my avatar. I had my room. I had a certain level of confidence that allowed me the freedom to say 'hey bby, wuu2, LOL!' without feeling weird about it. So what else was left to do? How much deeper could I submerge into this virtual fantasy of mine?

Of course, second lives don't usually come cheap. Or at least, good second lives, anyway. And by that I mean if you wanted the swankiest pad in the lobby or most beautiful bling in the club, you had to of course make those pivotal upgrades.

Oh, I remember it well, alright; the first day I clocked on to the fact I had to spend actual money in order to purchase virtual coins for new room decor or special items.

Any grown man would have scoffed and closed the browser immediately, of course. But I wasn't a grown man in 2003. I was a kid. A very stupid and naive kid. And I wanted those damn mode chairs for my room; even if it did cost my Nan three quid. I fell victim to the system of sparkling upgrades and pointlessyetpersuasive add-ons. And before long I was rocking the best room in a spool of about twenty lobbies or so....After I had 'borrowed' about forty quid from my Nan that was.But there I was: the king of a domain and a self-proclaimed pioneer of the 'mode room of Habbo.' With enough furniture to fill a room twice over and a constant flow of visitors, I was at the pinnacle of the complex and at the peak of my virtual career.

Sadly though, all great things must come to an end. And by the summer of the following year, I had the honour of watching everything I had worked so hard to fight for all dissolve in a matter of minutes.

Like I said I was naive. So when a stranger came along and convinced me I was eligible for an upgrade to become a Habbo admin, I was stupid enough to buy in and hand over my damn email address and password.

Five minutes later, I logged back on, and what'd you know? It was all gone.

Goodbye, Habbo. Thanks for that.

As the years pressed on and games like Habbo became more renowned within the gaming community, other contenders began stepping up to the plate in hope of claiming the throne.

A popular one I fondly remember is Coke Music; the Habbo-Esque virtual world where you were able to act out your fantasies of becoming a famous DJ.

With a virtual world, room, avatar, music mixer, community hub and portal to endless possibilities, there was no doubt it'd succeed in the suddenly thriving market for MMO games.

Coke Music launched in 2002; two years after Habbo's initial release.

As Habbo fell through to the backburner for me, I began enrolling into new games. Take this Coke Music for example; now that was a breath of fresh air after being betrayed by those Habbo hackers of mine.Similar in views to my younger self, I still wanted to have that second life that I could portray when the working day was done. I wanted to be the cool avatar I had created online and open up to a whole new world of opportunities at the click of a button. Only now, I wasn't just a slick avatar who could pull in a crowd... I was a DJ, baby.

Of course, another high-end apartment meant another crack in the grandmother's savings account. But that was alright, because, in my mind, it was worth every one of her pennies.I was back. And I was loving every inch of this new life I had built around me.

I had a catalogue of banging tunes that I'd play like a recurring DJ at a local venue. I had a steady flow of money coming in courtesy of Nan; who was probably unaware at the time. I had the bling, the decibels, the friends, everything I could ask for when establishing my newfound presence amongst the community.

The virtual world had pulled me in deeper, and by the age of fourteen, I was lost beyond repair.

Admittedly, I did try to invest a little time into other MMO games across the web. One that caught my eye, in particular, was the up and coming IMVU; the virtual dating site.Similar in mechanics, IMVU offered its players the ability to live out their wildest fantasies. Only, their focal point was more centred on the dirtier parts of a relationship. Or, at least that's what I assumed at the time. And being a fourteen-year-old kid who chose avatar names like 'BlackBeast94', I was almost guaranteed a spot of attention or two. Still not understanding why, of course.

I wasn't overly ambitious when it came to finding the love of my life through a fourteen-inch monitor from a dark room in England, though. And like a few other certain MMO games, IMVU sort of levitated on a shelf somewhere where'd I'd probably forget at some point.But in 2005, IMVU, along with several other new contenders, all came up to bat and hit a home run when reaching for those exaggerated sales figures. And by the year 2007, our whole world had been dominated by the MMO galaxy. IMVU became the face of virtual dating, and every lost soul searching for love had been inducted into the fold before years end.The MMO platform was finally being recognised like never before. And by 2006, everyone who owned a computer wanted a slice of that sweet pixelated pie.

Club Penguin. Bin Weevils. Webkinz. It was all there; plastered over the internet for the whole world to absorb. Like a toddler that won't quit pestering you for your phone, it kept pushing and pushing until you couldn't resist anymore.Come mid to late two-thousands, I was sure most people I knew had installed at least one of the mentioned games above. And just like that, the whole of the human population had been chained to one another through a keyboard and an avatar.But I'm not saying it was a bad thing. Not at all. In fact, I made some great friends through the power of petty messaging and ludicrous mini-games over the years. And honestly, I wouldn't trade any of those days in for the world.It's kind of hard to believe that we spent so many hours slaving away on virtual domains, doesn't it? But, it happened. That's really all I can say. Whether you were just like me or just wanted to simply research a game or two for old times sake, you can't deny the fact that MMO's were a great thing back in their golden age between 2000 and 2007.

Fast-forward to present day and you'll still notice an immortal game or two. Like Habbo for example; that's a game that'll probably never die. Because although I personally have learned to accept that there's more to life than a virtual world inside a computer screen, I know for a fact that there are still millions of others who are still enjoying the transition altogether.With 4K graphics, VR headsets and billion-dollar developers, it's no surprise the media turn down the opportunity to cover the classics these days. And like most things, phases do eventually burn out and crumble beneath a shell of distant and happy memories.I don't think MMO's will ever die. In fact, I think they'll continue to thrive and conquer a specific market for a long, long time. And although we never really hear from them anymore, we can assure ourselves that they are definitely still out there somewhere between the billions of cloud servers and more than likely making many people's fantasies come true, too.The golden age of MMO's may be over. But they are VERY much still alive and kicking. That I'm certain of.

- J Tury - BlackBeast94

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- J Tury