The cause
For some time now I have been playing MMORPG, though never as fervent as some and never really to my satisfaction. I have been pondering why the games lure me in but never really deliver on their promise. 
Speaking for myself, I have decided that it is the channelled way of progression that sooner or later takes the fun and energy out of the game. Once the pattern is recognised it makes for a dreary path towards the endgame, which is only fun for a certain type of gamer. 
So I wondered: “what kind of game would entice me for a long period of time and satisfy this need in me?”
The answer for me was variation and unpredictability. I do not claim to have made a brilliant discovery with this;  I can see how this is the main focus for the developers of all current MMORPG’s.
The trouble with most games is that they try to capture these elements in creative designing and PvP  battles. The problem with the first being that there is no way you can keep the questing towards lvl 60 (depending on the game, of course) creative if all you use is prefab programming.  The problem with the second is that it is aimed at a very specific kind of player, the endgame battle player, the raider.  In itself there is no problem there, but this ignores a, in my opinion, large potential fan base  that is not interested in grinding to get that final bit of special equipment that will make you the envy of the masses. 
The solution: real working social structures.
The synopsis: the small hamlet of Racethrough
The basics of the idea are really simple. Take any of the major gaming world. Instead of having all the major position in the world filled out by NPC develop a system where these can be occupied by players or more specifically; their avatars.
This may appear daunting, but could be managed quite in a quite simple way by designing a law system. In this was the MMORPG becomes a crossover between ‘The Guild’ (by JoWood) ‘Crusader kings 2 (by Paradox Interactive) and the original world/game.  Please allow me to take you on a trip:
Let’s say I have been playing the game for some time now. I’ve advanced to lvl 30 and have amassed a small amount of personal wealth. I will be looking for both a place to rest my feet and a ‘club’ to call my own. 
In this world of working social structures there are several cities, towns, townships and hamlets, all ruled by a player. 
Underlying the governing system is a intricate system of laws that governing officials (read players) can modify to their liking. For example: the mayor of a city could adjust laws on the following issues:
* Who can buy a house in the Hamlet
* Who can build a new house 
* Hamlet taxation
* Communal defence measures (hired NPC’s, defence towers, walls/moats even castles later on etc)
* Decision making in the hamlet (absolute rule, town council, democracy)
* Deciding on issues of war vs. Factions or settlements etc. 
Aside from the lawgiving parts of his job, the mayor could also hand out quests through his representatives (read: NPC’s).  Examples:
* Deliver wood/iron/hides etc. to the market (resulting in stockpile available for building houses en defensive structures and dictating local prizes)
* Eliminating enemies of the hamlet or of the ruling faction
* Close lucrative trade deals or settle disputes with other factions or cities
Quest takers will  receive XP, funds and/or favour.  The monetary rewards will either be funded from the hamlet coffers of from the personal coffers of the mayor. All quests state the limit of reward funding. These quests are of course in addition to the main game ‘grinding and level raising’ quests. 
This will give this mayor a lot of power in the game, but also a lot of responsibility. The challenge would be to allow these governors a great deal of power to fill the office in a way they see fit and let the players settle the balance. They want to impose a city levy of 50% on all goods bought and sold within the city? I’d like to see the ensuing run on the next city market ;-)
A mayor (and supporting council, if any) would be held accountable for the hamlet’s laws, but also for the wellbeing of the citizens. For this to have any real value, there needs to be a potentially destructive element in the game. In other words; a city needs to fear the outside world with reason. This would mean that is should be possible for a rivalling faction to actually invade the city and damage or destroy they player built structures (private houses, defensive structures even municipal buildings?) or raiding resources. 
But one does not simply become mayor of the hamlet of Racethrough!
And here comes the punch...
The world doesn’t end in the small hamlet of Racethrough. The hamlet is part of a larger county, belonging in turn to a Duchy, maybe. Could be even a king lords it over the dukes, all avatars. Each on their own level they decide how their fief is reigned, with one major exception to the Mayor’s rule: they decide how the titles of their underlings are divided. Maybe  the king rules that only he can award ducal titles so he can keep the inner circle close to him. Could be that the duke allows all claimants with enough favour to make a bid for the counties. 
Also, the higher levels of government  decide what privileges the lower level has. Can the mayor of the small Hamlet of Racethrough indeed set a high market tax or does county or ducal rule prevent him to do so? 
The finesse in this would be to let players organise the world. True, there will be players who will be bashed out of their house and who will see their livestock raided. This will fuel their drive to either organise defence or to add to the organisation of a strong alliance. Imagine the glory of an alliance headed by a king that has the organisational level to keep an entire city secure even though the resources present are very tempting indeed. Who wouldn’t be willing to contribute to the cause of keeping a city like that safe en prosperous? 
Just think of all the developers we would need!
 No, you wouldn’t... The beauty of this concept is that the complexity of the world mirrors the complexity of the player base and that is virtually unlimited!
Sure, there will have to be some designing. But building houses, mansions and even castles (guildhalls etc.) are incorporated in almost all MMORPG. It is just that usually these player owned structured are set completely apart from the actual game world, losing the ability to flaunt your power and influence in the ‘real’ world (get it?). 
So basically, you will need to develop two facets: a laws system designed to allow players to rule the world and spaces in the existing world to build the player owned building. This last element will need to be expandable to municipal buildings and defence structure. 
Why would I even consider this huge experiment, MMORPG are making millions as it is?
You would know this better than I do ;-) The fact remains however, that MMORPG’s are aimed at a specific kind of player, leaving a global fan base of thousands or even millions of people that enjoy building an ingame powerbase, but get no satisfaction in following the predetermined path of the game designer. So, corporate profit would be a very enticing reason ;-) Why would this game sell, you ask? I’ll give you a good reason:
Imagine you are well immersed in this game the conventional way. Around the time you start looking around to see if there is anything other to do than quest grinding and crafting, a clan mate or friend points you in the direction of a new mayor that is looking to consolidate his power and needs active players to do so. With some effort and more persuasion you manage to end up in the counsel of a small hamlet named Racethrough. Since the fresh Mayor has decided to allow his counsel a great deal of room, you have a lot of say in the quests, wars and erected buildings in the hamlet. You may even play a role in petitioning the local count for support in the build-up of the frontier town.  Give it time and dedication and maybe you will be mayor one day. After that, who knows... Would you quit?
I’m guessing you see a lot of quitting 3-month long players in any MMORPG. Long enough to get the game mechanic, maybe even get a top level character, but it gets old real soon for most players after that point. It’s these players I’m targeting. Give them a home away from home and a group to actually build a society with and they will stick around. 
And the best part? If players think this is all a big fuss and real life is difficult as it is? Then don’t govern... Just play the game, be the cog in the machine, enjoy yourself. There will always be those with great ambitions. I’m guessing there will be many...
Isn’t this a big bet, designing a MMORPG just for this purpose?
It is, so don’t ;-) Develop the adjustments in an existing game. Run a separate server (like RPG server). The popularity of the servers will soon enough show how much extra development should be allocated to these servers.  That way the extra governing component doesn’t have the compete with the awe-inspiring other mechanics of the existing and future MMORPGs but instead adds to their strength.
Interested? I know I am
I have no other aim in mind then stimulating the development of a game that encompasses all I’ve described above. So no claim whatsoever. You like it, you build it.
Of course I would be willing and very happy to assist in  developing these mechanics in any way should you decide to explore the possibility.
Kinds regards,
Reinier van Eck
The Netherlands
Europe