This is a break-off thread from the FFXIV thread to prevent mucking it all up.
The question proposed is whether there is a difference in development from MMO's and "normal" video games, and if there should be a difference.
Taking the position of MMO's being different from "normal" video games is yours truely, and taking the position of no difference is BRP.
I assert that MMO development is dynamic both in creation and communication, meaning that there is and should be interaction between the player base and the development team, even if it is just to have the development team tell the players that what they want is wrong.
Lokim pretty concisely explains that players don't know what they want, but they do know what they don't want. Meaning, the best improvements that the developers can make and the best advice they get from players is where the problems exist in MMO's and specifically. There are specific places where it is obvious that the FFXI development team has listened to player concerns and improved the game while still ignoring the specific suggestions made by the players. Also, the more that the developers have listened to the players, the better FFXI has become.
While I will concede that a lot of the time the developers have a better idea on how to fix problems, a lot of times they need player input on knowing where the problems are, and the more they focus on fixing those problems the better they can make the game.
Oh yes, I dared!