Sadly, I think one of the things that discredits almost ALL positive comments regarding the game is the fact that Brad has repeatedly and openly expressed his use of viral marketing tactics.
Think about it. I'd go out on a limb and say 80% (totally imaginary estimate) of the people who post on this board have at least tried Vanguard at one point or another. Most didn't like it, and are not ashamed to give you detailed lists as to what they disliked about the game. The summarized list is usually... 1) Performance issues.
2) Crap release.
3) Empty worlds/long travel times.
4) Bugs, CTD's.
5) Missing promised content months after release.
6) The fact they nerfed classes before they fixed performance issues. Those are some of the common ones, but obviously there are plenty more problems I've failed to document. But, just as sepher said, and even if you just observe the boards enough, you notice certain trends. Every 2 weeks or so, there seems to be some new wave of tactics promoting the game's greatness. At first, it was just the downright, blatant lying (This game has no performance issues, it runs perfect, don't listen to anyone who says it doesn't! Try VG!). Then it went to the try-it-for-yourself. (No one's opinion should matter but your own. That's why you should buy and try before making an opinion on the game). After this, Brad wrote his first apology, similar to a Smedley style thing. (We made some mistakes, but Vanguard is still the best game out there...and you should try it...please?). Then came the discredit approach. (Don't listen to the stupid haters, they're just mad it's not WoW, and bitter SWG vets) Now we've moved onto the convert approach. (Vanguard once sucked, but I've given it another try and welcomed it into my life, and it's absolutely amazing! You should see how much better it's gotten since release!) It's not so much that people are posting positively, but there are suspect factors. The posting styles seem to mimic one another. They're often done by new accounts (How often do you see a 1000+ poster account preaching of Vanguard's greatness?) or lurkers who have less than 20 posts total. Specific examples are almost never given as to what has improved, but it's just "better" all around. Then, of course, there's the fact Brad announced a more aggressive viral marketing campaign. So forgive me if I take many positive comments with a grain of salt, but when you know there's someone paying people to hype a game, it's much more difficult to take things for face value. I think the gameplay needs to speak for itself; people will find out on their own from close friends if a game is truly awesome long before they take a completely random, unestablished person's word for it.
Oh come on.
It's not enough that you discredit a posters opinion because he doesn't have 1000+ post counts, you have to make an unsubstantiated claim as the one I highlighted?
So you know this to be a fact? And if you do know it to be a fact then you can prove it, right?
Granted we have had our disagrements over your posts, and I wont get into that, but man, this is really hitting below the belt.
Way to foster a friendly, inviting atmosphere for potential new members of MMORPG.com. Knowing now that I can't have a valid opinion, or not be an empolyee of Sigil unless I have 1000+ posts may I have my old forum name back then?
It's a real shame that people can't except that others are returning to the game, and enjoying it.
I'm just curious about the sub 1000 posters that bash the game? Are they not equally guilty of being paid posters for Vivendi/Codemasters/EA, or whoever?
So, if I have it right, if you like the game, but have under 1000 posts, you're a schill. If you dislike the game, and have less than 1000 posts, you're just a disgruntled customer that got ripped off?
Personally, I think some of you people just have to much faith in humanity to accept the simple truth that there are just people that are that damn... stupid about whatever thing it is that they currently focus their life on at the moment, be it Vanguard, LotRO, George Bush, Bud Light, or whatever.
That makes me want to quit playing Videogames all together. For a while it was speculated that some video game sites like Gamespot were on Blizzard's payroll because it was the only PC game they talked about and praised. Now we are saying that Fanbois can be in someone's pocket and that even Trolls can be in someones pocket. Damn! How do you get a "real" opinion on a game anymore before you buy it????
Yup .. just like the title states . Lost it all in one big bang playing eve last week and decided to throw in the towell and re-try Vanguard. Talk about a great decision. A lot of what i read on these boards almost prevented me from returning but im glad common sense prevailed and i decided to ignore what ive read and re-try it out for myself. Have a level 13 Orc Shaman on the team PvP server (yea i know, still a noob) but im having a ball on him . The graphics were choppy at first but the game seams to cache itself as you play or something ,.. it runs smoother as you play/relog into the same areas. All in All the performance has improved greatly and i think im gonna stick it out for the long haul =D.
If your considering checking it out for the first time or even comming back for a second look I highly recommend you do so . Ignore all the "pissy hate folk" that are still beating on it. I think thier just toting about a grudge from that craptacular release that the game had. Felt so strongly about this that i opened an account here just to throw in my 2 bits. Peace =D
There is a lot of moaners on this forum, they dont like VG cos you have to work for everything.
Hence why games like LOTR where there is no challenge get high ratings.
I thought LOTRs got higher ratings because it is actually a playable polished working game with graphics that work on most peoples systems?
That dosent change the fact that for some of us LoTR sucks, same as WOW get over it some of us dont like that type of game
Sadly, I think one of the things that discredits almost ALL positive comments regarding the game is the fact that Brad has repeatedly and openly expressed his use of viral marketing tactics.
Think about it. I'd go out on a limb and say 80% (totally imaginary estimate) of the people who post on this board have at least tried Vanguard at one point or another. Most didn't like it, and are not ashamed to give you detailed lists as to what they disliked about the game. The summarized list is usually... 1) Performance issues.
2) Crap release.
3) Empty worlds/long travel times.
4) Bugs, CTD's.
5) Missing promised content months after release.
6) The fact they nerfed classes before they fixed performance issues. Those are some of the common ones, but obviously there are plenty more problems I've failed to document. But, just as sepher said, and even if you just observe the boards enough, you notice certain trends. Every 2 weeks or so, there seems to be some new wave of tactics promoting the game's greatness. At first, it was just the downright, blatant lying (This game has no performance issues, it runs perfect, don't listen to anyone who says it doesn't! Try VG!). Then it went to the try-it-for-yourself. (No one's opinion should matter but your own. That's why you should buy and try before making an opinion on the game). After this, Brad wrote his first apology, similar to a Smedley style thing. (We made some mistakes, but Vanguard is still the best game out there...and you should try it...please?). Then came the discredit approach. (Don't listen to the stupid haters, they're just mad it's not WoW, and bitter SWG vets) Now we've moved onto the convert approach. (Vanguard once sucked, but I've given it another try and welcomed it into my life, and it's absolutely amazing! You should see how much better it's gotten since release!) It's not so much that people are posting positively, but there are suspect factors. The posting styles seem to mimic one another. They're often done by new accounts (How often do you see a 1000+ poster account preaching of Vanguard's greatness?) or lurkers who have less than 20 posts total. Specific examples are almost never given as to what has improved, but it's just "better" all around. Then, of course, there's the fact Brad announced a more aggressive viral marketing campaign. So forgive me if I take many positive comments with a grain of salt, but when you know there's someone paying people to hype a game, it's much more difficult to take things for face value. I think the gameplay needs to speak for itself; people will find out on their own from close friends if a game is truly awesome long before they take a completely random, unestablished person's word for it.
Oh come on.
It's not enough that you discredit a posters opinion because he doesn't have 1000+ post counts, you have to make an unsubstantiated claim as the one I highlighted?
So you know this to be a fact? And if you do know it to be a fact then you can prove it, right?
Granted we have had our disagrements over your posts, and I wont get into that, but man, this is really hitting below the belt.
Way to foster a friendly, inviting atmosphere for potential new members of MMORPG.com. Knowing now that I can't have a valid opinion, or not be an empolyee of Sigil unless I have 1000+ posts may I have my old forum name back then?
It's a real shame that people can't except that others are returning to the game, and enjoying it.
I'm just curious about the sub 1000 posters that bash the game? Are they not equally guilty of being paid posters for Vivendi/Codemasters/EA, or whoever?
So, if I have it right, if you like the game, but have under 1000 posts, you're a schill. If you dislike the game, and have less than 1000 posts, you're just a disgruntled customer that got ripped off?
Personally, I think some of you people just have to much faith in humanity to accept the simple truth that there are just people that are that damn... stupid about whatever thing it is that they currently focus their life on at the moment, be it Vanguard, LotRO, George Bush, Bud Light, or whatever.
That makes me want to quit playing Videogames all together. For a while it was speculated that some video game sites like Gamespot were on Blizzard's payroll because it was the only PC game they talked about and praised. Now we are saying that Fanbois can be in someone's pocket and that even Trolls can be in someones pocket. Damn! How do you get a "real" opinion on a game anymore before you buy it????
While it is unfortunately true that there are"marketters" that post on boards like this, it is also true that players still post to share their thoughts and feelings about a new game. How can you tell whose who? You can look for marketting "scripts" in the posts for one. Cymdai actually does a nice job of highlighting some of these. I like reading the rating section comments on this site for an idea of new games. I like to see the user ratings and the MMORPG ratings and reasons given. Still, over and above this, I like to hear from people I know and trust. Their reviews are credible because I know the people. Additionally, I like games that offer a free trial. If I try something out, I can really tell if it's a buggy piece of crap. Marketting posts won't convince me otherwise.
Yup .. just like the title states . Lost it all in one big bang playing eve last week and decided to throw in the towell and re-try Vanguard. Talk about a great decision. A lot of what i read on these boards almost prevented me from returning but im glad common sense prevailed and i decided to ignore what ive read and re-try it out for myself. Have a level 13 Orc Shaman on the team PvP server (yea i know, still a noob) but im having a ball on him . The graphics were choppy at first but the game seams to cache itself as you play or something ,.. it runs smoother as you play/relog into the same areas. All in All the performance has improved greatly and i think im gonna stick it out for the long haul =D.
If your considering checking it out for the first time or even comming back for a second look I highly recommend you do so . Ignore all the "pissy hate folk" that are still beating on it. I think thier just toting about a grudge from that craptacular release that the game had. Felt so strongly about this that i opened an account here just to throw in my 2 bits. Peace =D
There is a lot of moaners on this forum, they dont like VG cos you have to work for everything.
Hence why games like LOTR where there is no challenge get high ratings.
I thought LOTRs got higher ratings because it is actually a playable polished working game with graphics that work on most peoples systems?
That dosent change the fact that for some of us LoTR sucks, same as WOW get over it some of us dont like that type of game
Your entitled to not like it. However doesn't change the fact that it launched as playable unlike Vangaurd. The more people support the launches like the one Brad did, (after spending fucking 30 million BTW! The fact that the MMO industry allows you to spend that much on a project, launch it half-assed on impcomplete, admit that you did so, and then still allows you to be in charge of this project or any MMO, is beyond me) the more developers will think its okay to feed the market crap.
I'd rather support the games that launch properly, are playable, and actually deliver what their developers claim they were going to.
I've played both Vangaurd and LOTR. I didn't like either, but the one I would recommend is LOTR EVERY time.
That makes me want to quit playing Videogames all together. For a while it was speculated that some video game sites like Gamespot were on Blizzard's payroll because it was the only PC game they talked about and praised. Now we are saying that Fanbois can be in someone's pocket and that even Trolls can be in someones pocket. Damn! How do you get a "real" opinion on a game anymore before you buy it????
LOL, these games cost 50 bucks or less. Just buy them, play them yourself for a month or so and form your own opinion, that's what I usually do. (or make sure to get in the open beta or a free trial when offered if you really can't afford the game)
Reading reviews and other peoples opinions about a game can only provide you with some basic insight to how the game plays, but in the end, only you can decide whether you'll like a game or not.
Just trying to live long enough to play a new, released MMORPG, playing New Worlds atm
Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions. Pvbs 18:2, NIV
Don't just play games, inhabit virtual worlds™
"This is the most intelligent, well qualified and articulate response to a post I have ever seen on these forums. It's a shame most people here won't have the attention span to read past the second line." - Anon
If you think we are " pissy hate folk" Look up Tbox on the vg players site. I was in a guild that was a top guild of Tharridon. LvL 50 cleric was my char. I quit and having put 12 days of played time in has justified the importance of my Insight to give to the reader. This game is fun at first but it slowly wears into you. Everything is a time sink and pvp is down right horridly implemented. It might be fun for the first week but I can assure you . Chances are you will become board. For example my 24 person guild called Conflict all quit when the adverage lvl in the guild was 49. The end game blows you are playing pretty much the same game at 10 as you do at 50. They dont even have raiding in yet. Its a fucking joke. Honestly its like a shitty try at copying wow. I would if you must play a mmo with simular concepts just play WoW. Its a better choice SADLY. I dont hate vanguard becuase I am a mean person its just well the game is bad.
Didnt follow the development of this game, didnt play beta, was burnt by NGE after 2.5 years of swg, but found myself in need of a world to get lost in, and i dont count wow's levels as a world. i have an old machine xp3200 32 bit, 7600 512 and 2 gig and its playable, and getting more so as time gos by, do i crash? yes but it seems worse from area to area and not everytime i play, usual 4-5 hours logged in. do chunks take a few secs to load? first time yeah. am i having fun? yes, but this has more to do with discovery exploration that both myself and my guild are doing, the fights are different and actually enjoying my ranger, after playing mostly ranged class is swg.
I have been watching these forums since i first came here to check out the game when i discovered it was lauched, and found differing opinion, and theres nothing more opinionated than a beta tester, i know done a few myself, JTL for one. But have gradually seen this forum degrade into the type of almost open warfare, that saw the SWG forum divided, maybe same is needed here? possibly. you kids cant seem to play nice:)
I know i have a low post count but i didnt register yesterday, take from that what you will, but for a tenner a month UK Sterling or £2.50 a week, half a packet of tabs, im quite happy with my sub, now for olny a pre-cu or cu swg server id go station pass.
That makes me want to quit playing Videogames all together. For a while it was speculated that some video game sites like Gamespot were on Blizzard's payroll because it was the only PC game they talked about and praised. Now we are saying that Fanbois can be in someone's pocket and that even Trolls can be in someones pocket. Damn! How do you get a "real" opinion on a game anymore before you buy it????
LOL, these games cost 50 bucks or less. Just buy them, play them yourself for a month or so and form your own opinion, that's what I usually do. (or make sure to get in the open beta or a free trial when offered if you really can't afford the game)
Reading reviews and other peoples opinions about a game can only provide you with some basic insight to how the game plays, but in the end, only you can decide whether you'll like a game or not.
True, but I have a wife and a 3 year old which isn't exactly a formula for "rolling in free-spending cash". After a while $50 begins to add up. My shelf now is littered with EQI, EQII, COH, Vanguard, Auto Assault, Shadowbane, DAOC etc etc . It becomes a dissapointment after a while to try "yet another MMORPG that I will only stick with for a month" because of whatever reasons. I'm actually being hypocritical in that I had said to myself that if VG didn't work out that I was done with wasting time with MMORPGs but when I said that I didn't imagine VG would be down and out in less than a month.
Now we are saying that Fanbois can be in someone's pocket and that even Trolls can be in someones pocket. Damn! How do you get a "real" opinion on a game anymore before you buy it????
By offering a free trial. Simple as that. And the fact that there is no free trial of VG speaks volumes to me. No free trial means that SoE feels they will lose more potential customers by letting them try VG for free than they will gain.
I don't even need player reviews to help me decide whether or not to buy VG. The fact that there is no free trial of the game says, "Don't buy me!" in big flashing letters.
Originally posted by Abraxos True, but I have a wife and a 3 year old which isn't exactly a formula for "rolling in free-spending cash". After a while $50 begins to add up. My shelf now is littered with EQI, EQII, COH, Vanguard, Auto Assault, Shadowbane, DAOC etc etc . It becomes a dissapointment after a while to try "yet another MMORPG that I will only stick with for a month" because of whatever reasons. I'm actually being hypocritical in that I had said to myself that if VG didn't work out that I was done with wasting time with MMORPGs but when I said that I didn't imagine VG would be down and out in less than a month.
I've been seeing a lot of this lately. Mid-30 somethings, been playing mmos for a while, usually starting with UO/EQ/AC, some starting as far back as muds. Played all the current crop, and either found the game lacking(DDO, CoX, AA), or they played it for a year+ and are bored or burnt out(EQ, DAoC, WoW). They generally seem to be looking for the same thing. A deep, and engaging world, decent storytelling so as to at least somewhat cover up the fact that we're just doing more kill x of y quests, low barrier to entry(chess would be a good example of this. Anyone can learn to play chess in 5 minutes, but to master chess? Some people spend their entire life trying to attain that. This is patently different from wanting ones hand held, TYVFM) with high(er) soloability coupled with the ability to accomplish something within an hour or two. Sort of a cross breed of SWG's gameplay combined with the lore and content of EQ, if you wanted to oversimplify things.
As for the "It's totally different, try it again" crowd. I have, I'm in the midst of doing so now.
I can't rightly judge performance, because I wasn't really having any issues with performance before. But, the places where I did have issues, namely cities and a few other areas, I still have the same problem.
I have noticed a few new spell effects. Granted, thusfar it's all been at a low level, so perhaps they get more interesting as you move up the ladder(The Sorcerer's AC buff is the one that I noticed first, and it's beaten by DAoCs caster AC buff, which is like 5-6 years old?) , but all in all, I'm a bit underwhelmed. Wouldn't stop me from playing the game, as I'm not a graphics junkie. To the extent that I've been (re)playing a number of the old Infocom text games recently.
As far as the XP boost? Can't say, as I've gotten about 8 hours /played between two characters so far. However, my rogue has crossed the level 10 mark, so I should be getting to the part where things start to slow down shortly. We'll see how that shakes out.
Gameplay seems the same, overall. Mobs seem to hit a bit harder, but are easier to kill than I remember previously with a rogue.
The biggest problem I've faced, and the one most likely to prevent me from resubbing, is the population, or more specifically, the lack of. It's pretty frelling dead. Even at peak times, the best I've seen is a couple servers at Medium, and usually only for an hour or two. Despite a few people claiming that the population is the highest it's ever been, it's not. They need to consolidate some of the servers, and badly.
As far as bugs go, I haven't CTD, though, like performance, I never ran into that problem. The biggest annoyances I've run into in the last two or three days were 1)While harvesting, I had to type /e each time, as it was giving me the "Can't harvest this resource" msg every time. 2) Still getting hit by mobs 30+ yards away. Even died to one that had supposedly leashed back to it's spawn point. Kept hitting me, though it showed nothing in my combat log. I had no poisons, spell effects, dots, or anything else on me, but yet, I died. 3) I had to kill some 3 dot bird for a quest, and I kept having to back up constantly, as I would start getting the no line of sight type error. I don't know if this problem is unique to the particular mob, as I don't recall getting it from other "flying" mobs. This one was flying at a point on the Z axis that was above my head, however, compared to the other flying mobs I've fought that were lower than head level.
Lastly, the Ra'Jin dungeon still does not connect to the terrain on the left side of the entrance. If you are unfortunate enough to step in the wrong spot, you get stuck. Been this was since at least beta 3. Not a earthshattering issue, but it is annoying. And somewhat funny too, as it's not a small gap between the terrain, and the building.
And speaking of the Ra'Jin, the lack of people to group with means I will pretty much have to skip that area, and likely the Magi Stronghold as well. And that sucks, as I happen to like the Ra'Jin dungeon a lot, and wouldn't mind doing the Magi Stronghold at least once at some point. Yeah, I can still level just fine, but it rather sucks having to miss out on a good percentage of the games content because it's artificially gated to a group that I can't get.
Coldmeat is spot on. VG's bugs and such were annoying but the lore, the art, the NPCs, the villains, the gods (were there gods?), and in general the world was generic and cold. EQI lacked alot of content but a week into that game I knew that I was a Dark Elf, I knew I was a twisted version of Elves created by the evil god of hate, Innoruuk and I knew we we're the sneakiest evil bastiches on the planet. I grinded for years because my imagination was sparked and I cared about Neriak and my character. I felt pride.
Thats what Brad especially but also other developers should get but they miss it. When going back to the well that is EQI, don't get the unfinished content or the exploitable bugs or the grind and hardships. Get the lore and the living breathing world. I even heard EQII is finally getting it and bringing back Kunark and has already released a polished Faydwer. Lore might not be WOW's strongsuit but good lore and a polished game could gain some of that bunch that like me is looking for something more serious and realistic.
I would give the game about a year. I think the relaunch is set for the fall and I imagine that's why my guildies all said they would come back then but it's a MASSIVE world. I'm not sure if they will get all the content in or the content and gameplay will be better then.
I don't mind paying to help them invest more into the game. It's a hell of a base and mostly I mean Telon. I think the environment graphics are great and if they have enough players to increase content, it will only improve. I have started to see some new high level(45-50 6 dot) mobs in lower level areas. I saw a level 39 dragon flying way up in the air on Kojan. I think they are nice additions and add risk if you aren't paying attention. They should have had those in game on release but they didn't.
I think it's good news that it sounds like SoE is going to invest. It's better than thinking that Vanguard today will be all there is too it. I think the game has a lot of potential if continued investment for development is a possibility. I hope that is what comes out of the SoE/Sigil deal. A better game.
Cym, I am sorry but you are wrong in saying the bashing and hate is because they did not get a satisfactory experience. Hating on a game for years Star Wars, and over a few months Vanguard on the same old forum is hate.
Also if someone makes a post that says don't believe the haters, they mean haters. If you come to the post and bash him or talk hate on the game, you are a hater.
If I go into a store and steal something I am stealing and it is that simple. I can say "I was just borrowing till i got bored of it then I will send it back." but I am still a thief.
If ya post hate on a game board for months when not many new people show up to it, your just bashing a game. You won't make the hardcore people leave the game its obvious by the posts. So who you making leave with your "unsatisfactory bashing to save people from VG" no one is the answer. Your pushing out more anger and hate wasting more of your emotions and time on something that is so small and trivial. Go enjoy a f2p or an MMO that you don't want to bash or hate on. It is a ton more fun I assure you, it also does not hurt peoples feelings.
The simple truth in the reason why what i say wont fly here is that I am being level headed. I am not bashing, I am not hating and I am not a fan, I am a third party trying to calm all the anger and hate. The rest are clouded by either hate, anger or both. This goes for both sides, the defenders that loose venom and hate and the attackers that do the same.
Perhaps the game should never have been released in the first place, then your precious little eyes wouldn't have to suffer from all the 'hate' on mmorpg forums.....
Sigil should have swallowed it all and said, we think Vanguard will never be ready, due to funding, so we are going to have to abandon it; instead of taking the SOE route and releasing a broken game, expecting the playerbase to pay for the continued beta testing and to pay for the staff to finish the rest of the content that should have been in launch.
This is a horrible buisiness practice, perpetuated by greedy companies (SONY).
Anyways, we all live in the real world, not your sugar coated one, so ppl tend to have thicker skins.
Don't like what is being said here? Buh bye, don't let the forum post hit yer ass on the way out....
Cym, I am sorry but you are wrong in saying the bashing and hate is because they did not get a satisfactory experience. Hating on a game for years Star Wars, and over a few months Vanguard on the same old forum is hate.
Also if someone makes a post that says don't believe the haters, they mean haters. If you come to the post and bash him or talk hate on the game, you are a hater.
If I go into a store and steal something I am stealing and it is that simple. I can say "I was just borrowing till i got bored of it then I will send it back." but I am still a thief.
If ya post hate on a game board for months when not many new people show up to it, your just bashing a game. You won't make the hardcore people leave the game its obvious by the posts. So who you making leave with your "unsatisfactory bashing to save people from VG" no one is the answer. Your pushing out more anger and hate wasting more of your emotions and time on something that is so small and trivial. Go enjoy a f2p or an MMO that you don't want to bash or hate on. It is a ton more fun I assure you, it also does not hurt peoples feelings.
The simple truth in the reason why what i say wont fly here is that I am being level headed. I am not bashing, I am not hating and I am not a fan, I am a third party trying to calm all the anger and hate. The rest are clouded by either hate, anger or both. This goes for both sides, the defenders that loose venom and hate and the attackers that do the same.
Perhaps the game should never have been released in the first place, then your precious little eyes wouldn't have to suffer from all the 'hate' on mmorpg forums.....
Sigil should have swallowed it all and said, we think Vanguard will never be ready, due to funding, so we are going to have to abandon it; instead of taking the SOE route and releasing a broken game, expecting the playerbase to pay for the continued beta testing and to pay for the staff to finish the rest of the content that should have been in launch.
This is a horrible buisiness practice, perpetuated by greedy companies (SONY).
Anyways, we all live in the real world, not your sugar coated one, so ppl tend to have thicker skins.
Don't like what is being said here? Buh bye, don't let the forum post hit yer ass on the way out....
Your solution to vanguard was shutting it down cause it wasnt ready befor eit released? Losing 30 mil? Years of development? It is quite obvious you don't own your own business then.
I heard a lot of people blame SoE for releasing the game too early. I didn't think it was their game to invest in. It's surely not what the players wanted but it was funny how the blame was so quick to catch on. I imagine if it was a little bit better and was able to hold the following that it had Sigil may have been in a better position. I'm not really sure catering to raiders and not putting in raid content was bright. Might have been all that was needed with more high end content. Seems easy to me. I'd like that 30 million. I mean... I play MMOs.
True, but I have a wife and a 3 year old which isn't exactly a formula for "rolling in free-spending cash". After a while $50 begins to add up. My shelf now is littered with EQI, EQII, COH, Vanguard, Auto Assault, Shadowbane, DAOC etc etc . It becomes a dissapointment after a while to try "yet another MMORPG that I will only stick with for a month" because of whatever reasons. I'm actually being hypocritical in that I had said to myself that if VG didn't work out that I was done with wasting time with MMORPGs but when I said that I didn't imagine VG would be down and out in less than a month.
I've been seeing a lot of this lately. Mid-30 somethings, been playing mmos for a while, usually starting with UO/EQ/AC, some starting as far back as muds. Played all the current crop, and either found the game lacking(DDO, CoX, AA), or they played it for a year+ and are bored or burnt out(EQ, DAoC, WoW). They generally seem to be looking for the same thing. A deep, and engaging world, decent storytelling so as to at least somewhat cover up the fact that we're just doing more kill x of y quests, low barrier to entry(chess would be a good example of this. Anyone can learn to play chess in 5 minutes, but to master chess? Some people spend their entire life trying to attain that. This is patently different from wanting ones hand held, TYVFM) with high(er) soloability coupled with the ability to accomplish something within an hour or two. Sort of a cross breed of SWG's gameplay combined with the lore and content of EQ, if you wanted to oversimplify things.
As for the "It's totally different, try it again" crowd. I have, I'm in the midst of doing so now.
I can't rightly judge performance, because I wasn't really having any issues with performance before. But, the places where I did have issues, namely cities and a few other areas, I still have the same problem.
I have noticed a few new spell effects. Granted, thusfar it's all been at a low level, so perhaps they get more interesting as you move up the ladder(The Sorcerer's AC buff is the one that I noticed first, and it's beaten by DAoCs caster AC buff, which is like 5-6 years old?) , but all in all, I'm a bit underwhelmed. Wouldn't stop me from playing the game, as I'm not a graphics junkie. To the extent that I've been (re)playing a number of the old Infocom text games recently.
As far as the XP boost? Can't say, as I've gotten about 8 hours /played between two characters so far. However, my rogue has crossed the level 10 mark, so I should be getting to the part where things start to slow down shortly. We'll see how that shakes out.
Gameplay seems the same, overall. Mobs seem to hit a bit harder, but are easier to kill than I remember previously with a rogue.
The biggest problem I've faced, and the one most likely to prevent me from resubbing, is the population, or more specifically, the lack of. It's pretty frelling dead. Even at peak times, the best I've seen is a couple servers at Medium, and usually only for an hour or two. Despite a few people claiming that the population is the highest it's ever been, it's not. They need to consolidate some of the servers, and badly.
As far as bugs go, I haven't CTD, though, like performance, I never ran into that problem. The biggest annoyances I've run into in the last two or three days were 1)While harvesting, I had to type /e each time, as it was giving me the "Can't harvest this resource" msg every time. 2) Still getting hit by mobs 30+ yards away. Even died to one that had supposedly leashed back to it's spawn point. Kept hitting me, though it showed nothing in my combat log. I had no poisons, spell effects, dots, or anything else on me, but yet, I died.
3) I had to kill some 3 dot bird for a quest, and I kept having to back up constantly, as I would start getting the no line of sight type error. I don't know if this problem is unique to the particular mob, as I don't recall getting it from other "flying" mobs. This one was flying at a point on the Z axis that was above my head, however, compared to the other flying mobs I've fought that were lower than head level.
Lastly, the Ra'Jin dungeon still does not connect to the terrain on the left side of the entrance. If you are unfortunate enough to step in the wrong spot, you get stuck. Been this was since at least beta 3. Not a earthshattering issue, but it is annoying. And somewhat funny too, as it's not a small gap between the terrain, and the building.
And speaking of the Ra'Jin, the lack of people to group with means I will pretty much have to skip that area, and likely the Magi Stronghold as well. And that sucks, as I happen to like the Ra'Jin dungeon a lot, and wouldn't mind doing the Magi Stronghold at least once at some point. Yeah, I can still level just fine, but it rather sucks having to miss out on a good percentage of the games content because it's artificially gated to a group that I can't get.
I was able to finally resub today!
I'm one of those 30's guys, and you got it spot on.
Your analysis of VG is also spot on.
Games not perfect but I don't believe any MMO is. For me it just comes down to what do I want to do in a game. I'm also a graphics junkie.
Seamless, check
Fantasy, check, until a good Sci-fi game comes out.
Sandbox, check
Easy to play with a touch of complexity, check.
Enough time sinks to keep me busy, check
Pretty, my opinion of the graphics, check
PLAYABLE, check, check, check
Do I connect with my character, check
The game is OK. It's not great, it's not horrible. It's just OK.
If you have a sytem that can handle it, or If how the game looks isn't important to you, hey, if you can play AO or the original EQ, then you wont mind VG with the settings turned down. If you enjoy a slightly more traditional MMO, think time sinks (grinds for rep, coin, mats, leveling some of the more tedious aspects of the game, ie crafting, gear), and can deal with the lower populations for the moment. Then you MIGHT like VG.
The biggest downer for me is the lack of people my own level to group with. If I were 20+, I'd be ok, but in my low teens, I'm pretty much stuck soloing, and forced to skip all the group content, especially dungeons. And that makes me a sad panda., as it's a well known fact that pandas enjoy frequenting dungeons.
If only they'd consolidate the servers, I could be a happy panda again.
I'm playing on Varking and I'm seeing a bunch of people with fresh toons. I jumped on Theridon to play with my 13 druid and saw a bunch of guys in the mid teens. Grouped with one guy who wanted to kill random trash around lvl 16 and 17. Got me killed a few times and decided it was dinner time.
Saw a couple people tonight looking for people between ll and 17 to do some stuff to.
My problem with grouping is mostly myself. I'm a loner so I wont start a group, and I have to be the boss during the day so I don't want to lead; wich always leads to me not being very proactive in game. I wanna group, but I don't wanna try to group. Something wrong with me.
But, yeah, I'd love to see a server merger or two.
And just think, they already got the servers so if they merge a few they would have extras to start fresh with when the subs pick up. That's assuming Sony is willing to let a few servers sit for some time.
Cym, I am sorry but you are wrong in saying the bashing and hate is because they did not get a satisfactory experience. Hating on a game for years Star Wars, and over a few months Vanguard on the same old forum is hate.
Also if someone makes a post that says don't believe the haters, they mean haters. If you come to the post and bash him or talk hate on the game, you are a hater.
If I go into a store and steal something I am stealing and it is that simple. I can say "I was just borrowing till i got bored of it then I will send it back." but I am still a thief.
If ya post hate on a game board for months when not many new people show up to it, your just bashing a game. You won't make the hardcore people leave the game its obvious by the posts. So who you making leave with your "unsatisfactory bashing to save people from VG" no one is the answer. Your pushing out more anger and hate wasting more of your emotions and time on something that is so small and trivial. Go enjoy a f2p or an MMO that you don't want to bash or hate on. It is a ton more fun I assure you, it also does not hurt peoples feelings.
The simple truth in the reason why what i say wont fly here is that I am being level headed. I am not bashing, I am not hating and I am not a fan, I am a third party trying to calm all the anger and hate. The rest are clouded by either hate, anger or both. This goes for both sides, the defenders that loose venom and hate and the attackers that do the same.
Actually, I'd like to believe I'm very civil and collected in my posts. I have a few moments of weakness every now and again, but I generally think I handle myself in an organized, responsible manner.
The thief analogy doesn't make sense though. I don't think posting my personal distaste for the game has anything to do with stealing. I don't come out saying "lolvgsux" and then pretend I like the game. In fact, one thing a lot of the users seem to dislike is that I make my stance very clear in regards to Vanguard.
Besides, if I really wanted to bash Vanguard, I'd just come out and do it. However, I think the fact that the game is going on it's 4 month, and there are already talks of a merger due to it's failure, well, it's doing a good enough job of bashing itself.
I've enjoyed Vanguard over the last four months. I'm the first to admit the problems the game has but if you wanna know why most of us that enjoy the game don't bother to post over here any more its simple, these boards have such a negative nature now, that why bother. Why should I waste my time making a post just to have it flamed to death by people that in many cases haven't played since month one?
For the last year I've posted on this site frequently but frankly I'm tired of the constant barrage of combative people that spend all their time trying to discredit a game and try to keep everyone away from it. Let me ask you, would you bother making post on a regular basis somewhere if all it leads to was personal attacks, flaming and people acting like a bunch of children? I'm gonna wager probably not, those of us that enjoy the game find other places to discuss things pertaining to Vanguard.
The biggest problem with these forums is the lack of real information that you can get from the forums. Go into any game section and try to find something in particular about the game you play and I'd wager it would be tough to find it. You simply don't see guides or quest help or anything of real help in the game specific areas. What you generally do find is many people arguing over petty things and flaming each other with little moderation over the discussion. Frankly I don't care, I carry myself in a well spoken and mature manner and often would try to help by reporting those that decide to act like asshats for the sake of getting a rise out of people, at one point or another I came to the realization that why should I bother. For every couple mature and well spoken individuals there are a plethora of hateful and immature people that run wild throughout these threads.
That my friend is the main problem with the Vanguard forums here, someone post that the game is improving and he is instantly called a shill or a SOE employee or Brad in disguise its laughable. Well here ya go I will vouch that the game has made improvements as far as performance, content and stability. The game still has a long way to go but I have a 35 dread knight and a 24 ranger/15 blacksmith so I have experienced much of what the game has to offer. I'm currently playing with the largest guild on the RP server(Stormhaven) and we have over 160 unique players and well over 360 including alts. The world is what you make it, we have guild events frequently and enjoy doing the various dungeons together. Is the duping issue still in the game? most likely but most games have had a dupe issue at one point or another(EQII, SWG, etc) so like many things it will be worked out in the coming months. I will deal with these issues for a game that doesn't take the safe path and make a clone of every game to predate it.
I respect the opinions of those that respect mine, but there in lies the problem, there is no respect from many of those that hate the game and yes they often will blatantly lie about things. If you haven't played since the first month then how do you know it isn't improving. When someone says the game is crap that is opinion but if I say the game is pretty good I'm flamed and basically told that I'm wrong and yes I have been told that I'm lying to myself and couldn't be having fun.
Thanks guys glad to see others speak up as well. I have loved coming to these forums over the last year but lately... its just very frustrating wading through the pages upon pages of flames and arguments in order to find an enjoyable thread. With SWG I understood, heck I was one of those that was screwed by SOE when NGE hit. It made since that people would be upset with such drastic changes, but with Vanguard it has always been what it is design wise. If you read about it during beta or played beta 5 then bought it and decided to wage a war on SIgil I have to ask why? Did you think that between beta 5 and launch the performance would magical be fixed? They are now optimizing the game and their work shows. Should it have been done pre-release? of course but what is important is the steady improvement the game is making and honestly thats all you can ask for in the MMO that you play. Anyway thanks for the support I just had to get that off my chest.
Glad you three are having fun, I am leaning on the edge of getting a video card to run better games. I would say vanguard would run pretty nice if I got it, specially with performance being fixed.
Be cool to people, and try and stay cool that way you never have to regret making someone feel bad. Don't take what ya got granted because some people never get to feel happy. We get to play these great MMOs and surf a good site. Be thankful for what ya got and next time ya feel down imagine a fat sea otter waddling with a pillow and a night cap. Bam! smiles!
Instead of just being able to adjust the render quality, you can now adjust texture quality and partical effects for yourself, NPC's, PC's and something else. Beeing able to do this is very nice, and allows you to tweak the video setting much better then you could before.
Maybe someone can post a pic of the options tab as it looks now. I'm to lazy and not sure how to get pics up without a link.
Comments
Oh come on.
It's not enough that you discredit a posters opinion because he doesn't have 1000+ post counts, you have to make an unsubstantiated claim as the one I highlighted?
So you know this to be a fact? And if you do know it to be a fact then you can prove it, right?
Granted we have had our disagrements over your posts, and I wont get into that, but man, this is really hitting below the belt.
Way to foster a friendly, inviting atmosphere for potential new members of MMORPG.com. Knowing now that I can't have a valid opinion, or not be an empolyee of Sigil unless I have 1000+ posts may I have my old forum name back then?
It's a real shame that people can't except that others are returning to the game, and enjoying it.
I'm just curious about the sub 1000 posters that bash the game? Are they not equally guilty of being paid posters for Vivendi/Codemasters/EA, or whoever?
So, if I have it right, if you like the game, but have under 1000 posts, you're a schill. If you dislike the game, and have less than 1000 posts, you're just a disgruntled customer that got ripped off?
Personally, I think some of you people just have to much faith in humanity to accept the simple truth that there are just people that are that damn... stupid about whatever thing it is that they currently focus their life on at the moment, be it Vanguard, LotRO, George Bush, Bud Light, or whatever.
That makes me want to quit playing Videogames all together. For a while it was speculated that some video game sites like Gamespot were on Blizzard's payroll because it was the only PC game they talked about and praised. Now we are saying that Fanbois can be in someone's pocket and that even Trolls can be in someones pocket. Damn! How do you get a "real" opinion on a game anymore before you buy it????There is a lot of moaners on this forum, they dont like VG cos you have to work for everything.
Hence why games like LOTR where there is no challenge get high ratings.
I thought LOTRs got higher ratings because it is actually a playable polished working game with graphics that work on most peoples systems?That dosent change the fact that for some of us LoTR sucks, same as WOW get over it some of us dont like that type of game
Oh come on.
It's not enough that you discredit a posters opinion because he doesn't have 1000+ post counts, you have to make an unsubstantiated claim as the one I highlighted?
So you know this to be a fact? And if you do know it to be a fact then you can prove it, right?
Granted we have had our disagrements over your posts, and I wont get into that, but man, this is really hitting below the belt.
Way to foster a friendly, inviting atmosphere for potential new members of MMORPG.com. Knowing now that I can't have a valid opinion, or not be an empolyee of Sigil unless I have 1000+ posts may I have my old forum name back then?
It's a real shame that people can't except that others are returning to the game, and enjoying it.
I'm just curious about the sub 1000 posters that bash the game? Are they not equally guilty of being paid posters for Vivendi/Codemasters/EA, or whoever?
So, if I have it right, if you like the game, but have under 1000 posts, you're a schill. If you dislike the game, and have less than 1000 posts, you're just a disgruntled customer that got ripped off?
Personally, I think some of you people just have to much faith in humanity to accept the simple truth that there are just people that are that damn... stupid about whatever thing it is that they currently focus their life on at the moment, be it Vanguard, LotRO, George Bush, Bud Light, or whatever.
That makes me want to quit playing Videogames all together. For a while it was speculated that some video game sites like Gamespot were on Blizzard's payroll because it was the only PC game they talked about and praised. Now we are saying that Fanbois can be in someone's pocket and that even Trolls can be in someones pocket. Damn! How do you get a "real" opinion on a game anymore before you buy it????While it is unfortunately true that there are"marketters" that post on boards like this, it is also true that players still post to share their thoughts and feelings about a new game. How can you tell whose who? You can look for marketting "scripts" in the posts for one. Cymdai actually does a nice job of highlighting some of these. I like reading the rating section comments on this site for an idea of new games. I like to see the user ratings and the MMORPG ratings and reasons given. Still, over and above this, I like to hear from people I know and trust. Their reviews are credible because I know the people. Additionally, I like games that offer a free trial. If I try something out, I can really tell if it's a buggy piece of crap. Marketting posts won't convince me otherwise.
Arc
There is a lot of moaners on this forum, they dont like VG cos you have to work for everything.
Hence why games like LOTR where there is no challenge get high ratings.
I thought LOTRs got higher ratings because it is actually a playable polished working game with graphics that work on most peoples systems?That dosent change the fact that for some of us LoTR sucks, same as WOW get over it some of us dont like that type of game
Your entitled to not like it. However doesn't change the fact that it launched as playable unlike Vangaurd. The more people support the launches like the one Brad did, (after spending fucking 30 million BTW! The fact that the MMO industry allows you to spend that much on a project, launch it half-assed on impcomplete, admit that you did so, and then still allows you to be in charge of this project or any MMO, is beyond me) the more developers will think its okay to feed the market crap.
I'd rather support the games that launch properly, are playable, and actually deliver what their developers claim they were going to.
I've played both Vangaurd and LOTR. I didn't like either, but the one I would recommend is LOTR EVERY time.
Reading reviews and other peoples opinions about a game can only provide you with some basic insight to how the game plays, but in the end, only you can decide whether you'll like a game or not.
"True friends stab you in the front." | Oscar Wilde
"I need to finish" - Christian Wolff: The Accountant
Just trying to live long enough to play a new, released MMORPG, playing New Worlds atm
Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions. Pvbs 18:2, NIV
Don't just play games, inhabit virtual worlds™
"This is the most intelligent, well qualified and articulate response to a post I have ever seen on these forums. It's a shame most people here won't have the attention span to read past the second line." - Anon
If you think we are " pissy hate folk" Look up Tbox on the vg players site. I was in a guild that was a top guild of Tharridon. LvL 50 cleric was my char. I quit and having put 12 days of played time in has justified the importance of my Insight to give to the reader. This game is fun at first but it slowly wears into you. Everything is a time sink and pvp is down right horridly implemented. It might be fun for the first week but I can assure you . Chances are you will become board. For example my 24 person guild called Conflict all quit when the adverage lvl in the guild was 49. The end game blows you are playing pretty much the same game at 10 as you do at 50. They dont even have raiding in yet. Its a fucking joke. Honestly its like a shitty try at copying wow. I would if you must play a mmo with simular concepts just play WoW. Its a better choice SADLY. I dont hate vanguard becuase I am a mean person its just well the game is bad.
Didnt follow the development of this game, didnt play beta, was burnt by NGE after 2.5 years of swg, but found myself in need of a world to get lost in, and i dont count wow's levels as a world. i have an old machine xp3200 32 bit, 7600 512 and 2 gig and its playable, and getting more so as time gos by, do i crash? yes but it seems worse from area to area and not everytime i play, usual 4-5 hours logged in. do chunks take a few secs to load? first time yeah. am i having fun? yes, but this has more to do with discovery exploration that both myself and my guild are doing, the fights are different and actually enjoying my ranger, after playing mostly ranged class is swg.
I have been watching these forums since i first came here to check out the game when i discovered it was lauched, and found differing opinion, and theres nothing more opinionated than a beta tester, i know done a few myself, JTL for one. But have gradually seen this forum degrade into the type of almost open warfare, that saw the SWG forum divided, maybe same is needed here? possibly. you kids cant seem to play nice:)
I know i have a low post count but i didnt register yesterday, take from that what you will, but for a tenner a month UK Sterling or £2.50 a week, half a packet of tabs, im quite happy with my sub, now for olny a pre-cu or cu swg server id go station pass.
Reading reviews and other peoples opinions about a game can only provide you with some basic insight to how the game plays, but in the end, only you can decide whether you'll like a game or not.
True, but I have a wife and a 3 year old which isn't exactly a formula for "rolling in free-spending cash". After a while $50 begins to add up. My shelf now is littered with EQI, EQII, COH, Vanguard, Auto Assault, Shadowbane, DAOC etc etc . It becomes a dissapointment after a while to try "yet another MMORPG that I will only stick with for a month" because of whatever reasons. I'm actually being hypocritical in that I had said to myself that if VG didn't work out that I was done with wasting time with MMORPGs but when I said that I didn't imagine VG would be down and out in less than a month.
By offering a free trial. Simple as that. And the fact that there is no free trial of VG speaks volumes to me. No free trial means that SoE feels they will lose more potential customers by letting them try VG for free than they will gain.
I don't even need player reviews to help me decide whether or not to buy VG. The fact that there is no free trial of the game says, "Don't buy me!" in big flashing letters.
I've been seeing a lot of this lately. Mid-30 somethings, been playing mmos for a while, usually starting with UO/EQ/AC, some starting as far back as muds. Played all the current crop, and either found the game lacking(DDO, CoX, AA), or they played it for a year+ and are bored or burnt out(EQ, DAoC, WoW). They generally seem to be looking for the same thing. A deep, and engaging world, decent storytelling so as to at least somewhat cover up the fact that we're just doing more kill x of y quests, low barrier to entry(chess would be a good example of this. Anyone can learn to play chess in 5 minutes, but to master chess? Some people spend their entire life trying to attain that. This is patently different from wanting ones hand held, TYVFM) with high(er) soloability coupled with the ability to accomplish something within an hour or two. Sort of a cross breed of SWG's gameplay combined with the lore and content of EQ, if you wanted to oversimplify things.
As for the "It's totally different, try it again" crowd. I have, I'm in the midst of doing so now.
I can't rightly judge performance, because I wasn't really having any issues with performance before. But, the places where I did have issues, namely cities and a few other areas, I still have the same problem.
I have noticed a few new spell effects. Granted, thusfar it's all been at a low level, so perhaps they get more interesting as you move up the ladder(The Sorcerer's AC buff is the one that I noticed first, and it's beaten by DAoCs caster AC buff, which is like 5-6 years old?) , but all in all, I'm a bit underwhelmed. Wouldn't stop me from playing the game, as I'm not a graphics junkie. To the extent that I've been (re)playing a number of the old Infocom text games recently.
As far as the XP boost? Can't say, as I've gotten about 8 hours /played between two characters so far. However, my rogue has crossed the level 10 mark, so I should be getting to the part where things start to slow down shortly. We'll see how that shakes out.
Gameplay seems the same, overall. Mobs seem to hit a bit harder, but are easier to kill than I remember previously with a rogue.
The biggest problem I've faced, and the one most likely to prevent me from resubbing, is the population, or more specifically, the lack of. It's pretty frelling dead. Even at peak times, the best I've seen is a couple servers at Medium, and usually only for an hour or two. Despite a few people claiming that the population is the highest it's ever been, it's not. They need to consolidate some of the servers, and badly.
As far as bugs go, I haven't CTD, though, like performance, I never ran into that problem. The biggest annoyances I've run into in the last two or three days were 1)While harvesting, I had to type /e each time, as it was giving me the "Can't harvest this resource" msg every time. 2) Still getting hit by mobs 30+ yards away. Even died to one that had supposedly leashed back to it's spawn point. Kept hitting me, though it showed nothing in my combat log. I had no poisons, spell effects, dots, or anything else on me, but yet, I died.
3) I had to kill some 3 dot bird for a quest, and I kept having to back up constantly, as I would start getting the no line of sight type error. I don't know if this problem is unique to the particular mob, as I don't recall getting it from other "flying" mobs. This one was flying at a point on the Z axis that was above my head, however, compared to the other flying mobs I've fought that were lower than head level.
Lastly, the Ra'Jin dungeon still does not connect to the terrain on the left side of the entrance. If you are unfortunate enough to step in the wrong spot, you get stuck. Been this was since at least beta 3. Not a earthshattering issue, but it is annoying. And somewhat funny too, as it's not a small gap between the terrain, and the building.
And speaking of the Ra'Jin, the lack of people to group with means I will pretty much have to skip that area, and likely the Magi Stronghold as well. And that sucks, as I happen to like the Ra'Jin dungeon a lot, and wouldn't mind doing the Magi Stronghold at least once at some point. Yeah, I can still level just fine, but it rather sucks having to miss out on a good percentage of the games content because it's artificially gated to a group that I can't get.
Coldmeat is spot on. VG's bugs and such were annoying but the lore, the art, the NPCs, the villains, the gods (were there gods?), and in general the world was generic and cold. EQI lacked alot of content but a week into that game I knew that I was a Dark Elf, I knew I was a twisted version of Elves created by the evil god of hate, Innoruuk and I knew we we're the sneakiest evil bastiches on the planet. I grinded for years because my imagination was sparked and I cared about Neriak and my character. I felt pride.
Thats what Brad especially but also other developers should get but they miss it. When going back to the well that is EQI, don't get the unfinished content or the exploitable bugs or the grind and hardships. Get the lore and the living breathing world. I even heard EQII is finally getting it and bringing back Kunark and has already released a polished Faydwer. Lore might not be WOW's strongsuit but good lore and a polished game could gain some of that bunch that like me is looking for something more serious and realistic.
I would give the game about a year. I think the relaunch is set for the fall and I imagine that's why my guildies all said they would come back then but it's a MASSIVE world. I'm not sure if they will get all the content in or the content and gameplay will be better then.
I don't mind paying to help them invest more into the game. It's a hell of a base and mostly I mean Telon. I think the environment graphics are great and if they have enough players to increase content, it will only improve. I have started to see some new high level(45-50 6 dot) mobs in lower level areas. I saw a level 39 dragon flying way up in the air on Kojan. I think they are nice additions and add risk if you aren't paying attention. They should have had those in game on release but they didn't.
I think it's good news that it sounds like SoE is going to invest. It's better than thinking that Vanguard today will be all there is too it. I think the game has a lot of potential if continued investment for development is a possibility. I hope that is what comes out of the SoE/Sigil deal. A better game.
Sigil should have swallowed it all and said, we think Vanguard will never be ready, due to funding, so we are going to have to abandon it; instead of taking the SOE route and releasing a broken game, expecting the playerbase to pay for the continued beta testing and to pay for the staff to finish the rest of the content that should have been in launch.
This is a horrible buisiness practice, perpetuated by greedy companies (SONY).
Anyways, we all live in the real world, not your sugar coated one, so ppl tend to have thicker skins.
Don't like what is being said here? Buh bye, don't let the forum post hit yer ass on the way out....
Sigil should have swallowed it all and said, we think Vanguard will never be ready, due to funding, so we are going to have to abandon it; instead of taking the SOE route and releasing a broken game, expecting the playerbase to pay for the continued beta testing and to pay for the staff to finish the rest of the content that should have been in launch.
This is a horrible buisiness practice, perpetuated by greedy companies (SONY).
Anyways, we all live in the real world, not your sugar coated one, so ppl tend to have thicker skins.
Don't like what is being said here? Buh bye, don't let the forum post hit yer ass on the way out....
Your solution to vanguard was shutting it down cause it wasnt ready befor eit released? Losing 30 mil? Years of development? It is quite obvious you don't own your own business then.
I was able to finally resub today!
I'm one of those 30's guys, and you got it spot on.
Your analysis of VG is also spot on.
Games not perfect but I don't believe any MMO is. For me it just comes down to what do I want to do in a game. I'm also a graphics junkie.
Seamless, check
Fantasy, check, until a good Sci-fi game comes out.
Sandbox, check
Easy to play with a touch of complexity, check.
Enough time sinks to keep me busy, check
Pretty, my opinion of the graphics, check
PLAYABLE, check, check, check
Do I connect with my character, check
The game is OK. It's not great, it's not horrible. It's just OK.
If you have a sytem that can handle it, or If how the game looks isn't important to you, hey, if you can play AO or the original EQ, then you wont mind VG with the settings turned down. If you enjoy a slightly more traditional MMO, think time sinks (grinds for rep, coin, mats, leveling some of the more tedious aspects of the game, ie crafting, gear), and can deal with the lower populations for the moment. Then you MIGHT like VG.
Only you would know.
The biggest downer for me is the lack of people my own level to group with. If I were 20+, I'd be ok, but in my low teens, I'm pretty much stuck soloing, and forced to skip all the group content, especially dungeons. And that makes me a sad panda., as it's a well known fact that pandas enjoy frequenting dungeons.
If only they'd consolidate the servers, I could be a happy panda again.
What server you on coldmeat.
I'm playing on Varking and I'm seeing a bunch of people with fresh toons. I jumped on Theridon to play with my 13 druid and saw a bunch of guys in the mid teens. Grouped with one guy who wanted to kill random trash around lvl 16 and 17. Got me killed a few times and decided it was dinner time.
Saw a couple people tonight looking for people between ll and 17 to do some stuff to.
My problem with grouping is mostly myself. I'm a loner so I wont start a group, and I have to be the boss during the day so I don't want to lead; wich always leads to me not being very proactive in game. I wanna group, but I don't wanna try to group. Something wrong with me.
But, yeah, I'd love to see a server merger or two.
And just think, they already got the servers so if they merge a few they would have extras to start fresh with when the subs pick up. That's assuming Sony is willing to let a few servers sit for some time.
Playing on Flamehammer, as it was one of the handful of servers that had a medium population.
The thief analogy doesn't make sense though. I don't think posting my personal distaste for the game has anything to do with stealing. I don't come out saying "lolvgsux" and then pretend I like the game. In fact, one thing a lot of the users seem to dislike is that I make my stance very clear in regards to Vanguard.
Besides, if I really wanted to bash Vanguard, I'd just come out and do it. However, I think the fact that the game is going on it's 4 month, and there are already talks of a merger due to it's failure, well, it's doing a good enough job of bashing itself.
I've enjoyed Vanguard over the last four months. I'm the first to admit the problems the game has but if you wanna know why most of us that enjoy the game don't bother to post over here any more its simple, these boards have such a negative nature now, that why bother. Why should I waste my time making a post just to have it flamed to death by people that in many cases haven't played since month one?
For the last year I've posted on this site frequently but frankly I'm tired of the constant barrage of combative people that spend all their time trying to discredit a game and try to keep everyone away from it. Let me ask you, would you bother making post on a regular basis somewhere if all it leads to was personal attacks, flaming and people acting like a bunch of children? I'm gonna wager probably not, those of us that enjoy the game find other places to discuss things pertaining to Vanguard.
The biggest problem with these forums is the lack of real information that you can get from the forums. Go into any game section and try to find something in particular about the game you play and I'd wager it would be tough to find it. You simply don't see guides or quest help or anything of real help in the game specific areas. What you generally do find is many people arguing over petty things and flaming each other with little moderation over the discussion. Frankly I don't care, I carry myself in a well spoken and mature manner and often would try to help by reporting those that decide to act like asshats for the sake of getting a rise out of people, at one point or another I came to the realization that why should I bother. For every couple mature and well spoken individuals there are a plethora of hateful and immature people that run wild throughout these threads.
That my friend is the main problem with the Vanguard forums here, someone post that the game is improving and he is instantly called a shill or a SOE employee or Brad in disguise its laughable. Well here ya go I will vouch that the game has made improvements as far as performance, content and stability. The game still has a long way to go but I have a 35 dread knight and a 24 ranger/15 blacksmith so I have experienced much of what the game has to offer. I'm currently playing with the largest guild on the RP server(Stormhaven) and we have over 160 unique players and well over 360 including alts. The world is what you make it, we have guild events frequently and enjoy doing the various dungeons together. Is the duping issue still in the game? most likely but most games have had a dupe issue at one point or another(EQII, SWG, etc) so like many things it will be worked out in the coming months. I will deal with these issues for a game that doesn't take the safe path and make a clone of every game to predate it.
I respect the opinions of those that respect mine, but there in lies the problem, there is no respect from many of those that hate the game and yes they often will blatantly lie about things. If you haven't played since the first month then how do you know it isn't improving. When someone says the game is crap that is opinion but if I say the game is pretty good I'm flamed and basically told that I'm wrong and yes I have been told that I'm lying to myself and couldn't be having fun.
To each his or her own
Regards
Trey
Very well written Trey; couldn't agree with you more.
Anyone considering playing the game, I say give it a go.
eqnext.wikia.com
Regards
Trey
Glad you three are having fun, I am leaning on the edge of getting a video card to run better games. I would say vanguard would run pretty nice if I got it, specially with performance being fixed.
Be cool to people, and try and stay cool that way you never have to regret making someone feel bad. Don't take what ya got granted because some people never get to feel happy. We get to play these great MMOs and surf a good site. Be thankful for what ya got and next time ya feel down imagine a fat sea otter waddling with a pillow and a night cap. Bam! smiles!
Btw, if you don't know.
Instead of just being able to adjust the render quality, you can now adjust texture quality and partical effects for yourself, NPC's, PC's and something else. Beeing able to do this is very nice, and allows you to tweak the video setting much better then you could before.
Maybe someone can post a pic of the options tab as it looks now. I'm to lazy and not sure how to get pics up without a link.