Typically, I spend 5-8 hours a week gaming. Sometimes it’s more, like when I binge-played Uncharted. Sometimes it’s less.[quote=“gurugeorge, post:17, topic:129545”]
Social gameplay in a persistent world.
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This is a big one. Back in Wrath, I needed a guild to get stuff done. Now, with LFR, not so much. I can’t tell if this helped or hurt the game. I liked that if I have two-three hours, I can do an LFR and easy mode the content to see the story.
Social gameplay in a persistent world is exactly what I love about Everquest TLP servers. There is a new one opening up in about a month, with a great ruleset. I can’t wait. Early everquest, especially on a new TLP is all about grouping, it’s fantastic. The difficulty of the game, really means you need to cooperate with other people. I’ve been harping on the “let’s make MMOs easier and more solo friendly” as the downfall of the MMO for years.
MMOs are inherently boring, because there is a lot of repetition that is built into them by necessity. Without social interaction, they all become old very quickly.
Regardless of what you think about the gameplay, if you have a bunch of good friends, a couple drinks, and spend hours laughing your ass off via skype/mumble or whatever, you’ll keep coming back. All of the fun I’ve had in MMOs, is because I hit a time period where I was acquainted with some fun people.
The last fun I had in a social setting and where I actually met some people was the TLP servers for Everquest. Make sure to flag me when the new one opens, @Ultrazen. I am curious what the new ruleset is.
I’m going to have to check this out. Do the TLP servers at least have the new models? I might roll a Troll SK and start again.
Damn you.
the genre is dead until they have an evolution in the formula
and subs are so 2004 its not even funny
having said that, I’d pay 50 bucks a month for a real 3rd person mmo in the fallout universe
LOTRO and ESO are the only MMOs I have bothered with in the past few years. Both are very casual friendly, which is why they have stuck with me. I don’t have a ton of time to game, between work and my kids I get maybe an hour each night to devote to personal downtime, including gaming. Both LOTRO and ESO are very story driven, taking your character from one are to the next based on quests that build on one another and make it feel less like you’ve “outleveled” a particular area and more like you’ve finished your story there and are ready to move on. Sure, there is plenty of “kill 10 bears” involved, but it’s mixed with enough atmosphere, history and flavor that I don’t mind. In both games there are times when a small group is a necessity, and when that happens I’m often pleased with the results and come away with a new addition or two for the friends list.
All that said, I do play the games like very long versions of single player RPGs. I don’t know if I could get into an old-school fully social MMORPG like the original Everquest anymore. While I LOVED the social aspect of the early MMOs, they were a huge time sink, and if you didn’t play regularly you risked ruining the social aspect because your friends/guildmates/groupmates would outlevel you and leave you behind. It always became more of a chore, an obligation of sorts, to play, and not as much a joy. I DON’T miss that.
Found this:
Check it out, @Mark_Crump
Sounds pretty cool actually. Locked at the best part of the game (or just after), modern conveniences, instanced raids. Sign me up!
I’m almost more interested in the new EQ2 server that’s similar. Launching “this summer.”
The new TLP for Everquest is called Agnarr. It’s locked at Planes Of Power (after which to me, the game goes way downhill). The exp rate isn’t nerfed like it is on the previous TLP, so it’s possible to roll alts and not go crazy from the horrible grind. It’s also a “truebox” server, which means you can only run one account per computer. This puts a real dent in peoples ability to box, which means that most of the groups you get into are actual people playing.
The new character models are available, but you’re a horrible person for wanting to use them :P The old character models and animations are awesome.
I love this server being locked at PoP, because doing things that require quite a bit of effort, like your epic quests, are actually worth doing, as they will forever retain their usefulness. Nothing worse than spending a month doing an epic, and having it replaced by a random group drop in the next expansion.
PoP is also the sweet spot, for a number of classes I love. Monks, Enchanters, and Rangers, are all really really good in PoP. Just doing those 3 and gearing them out will easily last me a couple of years of play probably.
Once Agnarr drops, I doubt I’ll ever set foot on a live server again. I just don’t like Everquest post about level 70 or so, the entire balance and feel of the game goes out the window in GoD onward.
I’ll be on there as Ultrazen, or Megazen if I can get the names. I’m rolling either Chanter or Druid first.
P.S. Sorry to hijack your ‘I’m bored with MMOs’ thread, with how excited I am about an MMO lol.
I stopped playing at PoP for a lot of the reasons you mentioned. I’d be even more interested if it locked at SoL since I didn’t even like PoP.
Is EQ still pretty much a game of grinding? Does this have any of the new conveniences like not having to max sense direction?
Oh yah, there is a ton of modern convenience. No more corpse runs, no sense heading (there is a compass at the top of the UI), maps, quick regen out of combat…/mel for bards so no twisting…there is a quite a long list of improvements if you haven’t played since the sense heading days.
As a general rule of thumb, anything that got added to the game as an upgrade/quality of life, and not specifically for an expansion is more or less in. There is some wiggle room on that, but it’s a guidline.
I thought I was done with MMOs a long, long time ago and just recently was attracted by what I’d heard about Albion Online. I guess it’s what they call a ‘sandbox’ MMO; no quests and virtually everything player farmed and crafted. It’s still in beta and launches in July with supposedly one final wipe. Anyway, what I like about it is that it doesn’t have bleeding edge system requirements; anything but. It’s the old isometric; no first person. It’s big; really big. I like to explore. And it’s all in on a single server a’la Eve. Also there’s full loot PvP toward the end game but you’re very safe early on when you want to be; again like Eve’s space security. It’s geared toward end game Guild v Guild, taking territories, forming alliances, what have you. Hard to explain the leveling system, what they call the Destiny Wheel but if you’ve got the time and motivation you are not locked out by taking and advancing on any path of weapons, armor, or crafting. ‘You are what you wear’ and are judged by the quality of it; 8 tiers in all I think.
The biggest downside, as always, are the people. All I want is an MMO without other people is that so much to ask?
Ever tried Kingdoms of Amalur Reckoning? Very much like an MMO but in a single player game.
Albion looks interesting. Another that I’m waiting to see if Crowfall. The only time I play WoW any more it seems is in the month or 2 before and after the release of a new expansion. I should jump back in to GW2 and spend more time with it.
God damn so would I. We’re so weak.
No way, Jose. Roll Dark Elf Necro!!!
Long live Haytred Incarnate.
I miss EQ. :(
i mained a gnome necro. I didn’t realize it at the time but it was a close to a faction dream as possible, at least for a necro.
I reinstalled EQ and logged in for a bit tonight. Man, I just can’t do it. I never really liked the ‘new’ interface. The graphics in the old zones are really looking their age. I’d think if the progression servers but they require a sub. If I’m going to pay for a sub, I’d probably just keep WoW or SWOTOR going.
I loved EQ for what it was back in the day. I remembered why when EQ2 came out I actually preferred it a bit over WoW at launch. The new EQ2 progression server coming out this month is almost enough to make me think of subbing.
I’ve got a lot of good memories from EQ, but I’m just not sure I can go back to it.
The only MMO i spent any significant time in was DAoC and it was due to the PVP. Have not had an experience like that again. But i stopped trying…I refuse to fall into that addiction again. I spent way too many hours playing and posting on guild/class forums when not playing.
Miss my Warden and Valewalker, though. And late night/early morning relic raids.
I consider MMOs a lower class of entertainment. They are rarelly “good”. A MMORPG is generally in all aspects inferior to a RPG except size.
But I play MMO’s when I feel that ich. I think the reason we play MMO’s is because we are humans, and a human is a social animal, we like to hunt with other hunters.
Theres also something to say about the richness of a experience. Singleplayer games are very rich very detailed worlds handly crafted by a artist or many. But they are closed world, all you can learn or experience from a RPG is from the start, they don’t evolve or can teach you anything that was not already in the box. MMOs have people, and by interacting with people you very life can change, potentially. It generally do nothing, but can be.
So I think the conclusion is MMORPG are bad games that call something on us, and contain people and have potential to be worse or better than solo games, generally they are less than solo games.
All MMOs I tried bored me to tears after a few hours. I don’t understand how people get addicted to them.