Though it doesn't have a huge following in the States, Final Fantasy XI made it debut on the PS2 console in Japan and there is a rabid fanbase for the game there.

From experiance playing it, the game played pretty well, though you need to get a Keyboard to get the most out of it.

This day in age, it's hard to say. I really think PSO would do better now than it did before, but it's just too hard to say.

the biggest issue is not control at all. there is an easy way to figure that out. you have to or you have no game.
THE BIGGEST ISSUE IS customers are essentially hijacking the TV away from anyone else in the household for god knows how long. Sitting in front of the TV for hours on end just isn't possible without other bugging the crap out of the player to stop. On the computer you can hog it a little more. To be a MMO console game missions & such would have to be bite size like RPGs on PSP.

I think the biggest issue for MMOs are the user base. I dont think many people are willing to pay monthly to play a game that they paid full price for. Most people would say to look at WoW at how much money that made. Well, WoW was a computer game which I think makes it a lot different. Like previously mentioned you have more controls. I think the PC gaming crowd is probably older as well, and more open to paying a monthly fee to play a game. Consoles seem to appeal more to the casual gamers, who probably wouldn't want to pay per month for a game they arent really going to get into.

Obviously there are plenty of exceptions to the rules, as we are all pretty hardcore gamers and own and love our consoles. I think that MMOs could thrive on consoles, but it would have to be an original IP. There is just too much competition on the computer for a console MMO to compare unless it was something completely original. Even though it looks like a beefed up Planetside, I'm eagerly awaiting Huxley to see how that does. I'm very interested in picking that up.

Two things: A) I personally am still playing FFXI after five plus years on a console. So they can definitely thrive. B) Controllers work absolutely fine for MMOs. I ONLY use a controller in FFXI for navigation and spell casting. However, I do have a USB keyboard hooked up at all times. Chatting and macro building is the reason for this. After all that, though, I simply use my controller to do every single action in the game.

WoW also supports controllers for their controls. My buddy played it with his wired 360 controller and he said he loved it cause he could finally lean back in his chair and relax while playing, for once.