Champions Online Developer Diary
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Role-playing, to some extent, exists in practically every videogame. A lot of people may not think of themselves as role-players, but whether kicking alien butt as Master Chief or rocking out in Guitar Hero, players are becoming another persona in a simulated environment -- roleplay, basically.
At the other end of the roleplaying spectrum is the desire for a fantastically complex and immersive world where player stories are unique and every action has a consequence that impacts the persistent world. It's here that "sandbox" and "interactive storytelling" get tossed around (both are excellent goals to strive toward, but very difficult to achieve in the MMO-space).
EVE Online is a great example of a successful sandbox MMO with real consequences associated to player actions. But, lots of roleplayers may not consider that title accessible because of its steep learning curve and lack of personal avatar interactions. Fable 2 and Fallout 3, on the other hand, feature interactive storytelling and incorporate consequence into the ongoing storyline -- but both of these titles are single-player games where a developer does not have to worry about how an individual action can impact the story and gameplay experience of many other players.
