I respect the work AoDC has put into this, but I'm still going to be harsh. I am a game fanatic. I know games. I know what makes them good and what makes the bad. Even taking into account that this game is an amateur game, there is a lot of improvement that could be had. I think I'm going to elaborate on some points here:
1)The HUD is far too obtrusive. It gets in the way. It covers exits. There are parts of some maps, specifically the bottom of the map, that you can never see because of the text box. Something needs to be done about that monster.
2)The graphics are sub-par. I'm going to get yelled at for saying this, but it is completely true. I hate the character sprites, being quite blunt. I'm not a graphic artist, so I really can't say exactly what is wrong with them, but they just don't feel right. There is also a lot of polish that could go into the graphical assets, the mapping, ect. I'm going to stick collision detection in here too. A lot more effort could go into getting it pixel perfect.
3)Combat is crud. And super glitchy. Those bats didn't even move. A ton of work needs to go into this. Maybe a complete rethinking of all the combat. Try to get it completely glitch free, and make it fun. That's important.
4)Grid-based movement? Ugh. Please, pixel-based is so much better. I could maybe even deal with the grid movement if the doors and some other objects actually lined up with that grid. Door, for example. You can't stand right in front of them, only over to the side a little bit. There are other objects just like that as well.
5)What's with the built-in Game Maker text boxes? Their horrid. Get yourself a real text engine.
6)There is no real direction or purpose to the game. So I start in a house and. . . what do I do? What is my purpose? Why am I there? What do I need to do? Does someone need my help? These are all things that should be answered. Quests are a good way to do this. Give the character something to do, give them a purpose. Also teach them to play the game. Teach them the controls and everything else they need in the game, not in a help file. Introduce them to it slowly, and build up to more complex concepts. Which leads to another point. . .
7)This game is ridiculously simple and easy. Make progression slower, and add some depth and complexity to things. Make the game fun.
8)I've kind-of said this already, but please make the game more user friendly. Teach the player to play the game in the game. Make quest givers obvious. Make the HUD intuitive. Make everything flow.
So yeah, there you go. Ultimately, I think you need to sit down with a couple of good MMOs and just play your heart out, and learn what makes them fun. Pay attention and you can learn a lot.
I'd like to compliment you on you clan battle stuff, though. It sounds like you've given that a bit of thought, although it could be fleshed out and redesigned to make it much, much better, though.
