How Casual/Hardcore are these games?

Kyleran

CoH - I was able to complete all content (large group missions) in COV in less than 3 hours, I assume COH is similar.

DDO - never played it

EQ2 - never played it

FFXI - never played it

LoTRO - Seems like most content can be managed in 3 hours or less, but I only played up to 30 in the first few months...they are adding new stuff every month that might change that.

Vanguard - Played this the first month it came live, got to level 21...can't offer an opinion.

WoW - I was a member of a guild who never ran a raid more than 3 hours long, and only 3 days a week, and they cleared BWL.  I know of a guild on KT that followed a similar strategy, though they regularly raided 4 nights a week and made it through AQ 40 and well into Naxx so it can be done.  That said, most of the raid guilds I belonged to had no problem raiding for 6 hours at a crack and I lost a ton of sleep.

 

 

Shijuki

Originally posted by reetin

FFXI: one of the best MMOs out there, best ui i have ever played with


 
 

I stopped reading there.

Cabe2323

Originally posted by JK-Kanosi


I am currently looking for a fantasy MMORPG to commit to. I'm going to give you a list of games that I have bought and will be willing to play again if they fit within my parameters. I am asking you, the readers, to lend me your expertise on whether or not these games fall into my parameters. I am not asking for your personal opinion of the game, just factual information concerning my parameters for playing it. I am looking for a fantasy game that allows me to play all content in that game with my play style. My play style doesn't allow me to commit more than 3 hours in a row to a game. If I am going to pay a company $15/mo for their game, I better be able to play ALL of their content with my play style. So out of the games below, please tell me which I can play their longest content in under 3 hours. Thank you.
CoH
I always got extremely bored with this game.  Best part was the costume design at the beginning.
DDO
This game would be perfect for you, if you had a static group that you played with.   The game is designed to be played by a group of friends who get together and play at the same times to do dungeons.
EQ2
Probably the best PVE game here on the list.  I got up to about 38 and then just lost focus and a drive to play.  I think that I am done with PVE games as they do not compell me to complete the game anymore. 
FFXI
I couldn't stand the UI, Graphics, Movement, Animations, pretty much anything about this game. So I can't really help you here.  I actually returned my copy to the store because I thought it was that crappy. 
LoTRO
I thought this would be the one to hold me for awhile, but something about it just left me with a feeling of not wanting to play.  I think it was the same thing that stopped me from playing EQ2 as well.  I think I am done with any games that are not based around RVR. ( which means WAR will probably be my next game)
Vanguard
I really tried to get into it, but the bugs killed it for me.  I think my highest level character was in the teens.  The game had a lot of promise and had some really neat ideas.  But once again the bugs just destroyed the rest of the game.
WoW
 End game will not fit your playstyle at all.  If you want to be on the cutting edge of the raid content (which sounds like you do because you want to be able to see all of the content) the guilds have raid schedules of like 7pm to 12am 6 to 7 days a week.  Even if you want to be a casual raider those guilds still usually play for 4-5 hours 2-4 nights a week for raiding purposes.  I was a raider on this game when BWL was the top level content.  I completed BWL and then I quit the game due to boredom.  I tried to give it another go with TBC, but I found the content pretty boring and the graphics seemed worse after playing LOTRO and EQ2. 
 
Now if there is a fantasy MMORPG that I did not list, that falls within my parameters, please let me know. Chances are, I probably left it off the list due to it being too old to start in fresh. I consider games in DAoC's generation to be too old, since that is the game that brought me into the genre in 2002.
Thanks for the help people.

I have played all of these games and I have seen endgame in WoW and LOTRO (well close enough I was in my upper 40s when I quit).