Good Riddance

bpharris9014

TR is going under for one reason: It was a terrible game. I played it in beta and it was a typical kill X to get Y grindfest, but with laser beams instead of swords. Aiming made a slight difference as I remember, but it didn't have the adrenaline of an FPS at all. It was a typical MMORPG except with a sci-fi bent, and -- in typical NCSOFT fashion -- a shit-ton of grind after a few easy early levels. And not many easy early levels either.

People who say the MMORPG community isn't open-minded enough to accept something different forget about EVE Online, Anarchy Online, and any number of non-elf-dwarf MMORPGs that've done great.

This game was pure crap, and the world will be better off without it. I don't know why they ever released it, and I'm thrilled that it's going away.

Bryan

Rokurgepta

Originally posted by bpharris9014


TR is going under for one reason: It was a terrible game. I played it in beta and it was a typical kill X to get Y grindfest, but with laser beams instead of swords. Aiming made a slight difference as I remember, but it didn't have the adrenaline of an FPS at all. It was a typical MMORPG except with a sci-fi bent, and -- in typical NCSOFT fashion -- a shit-ton of grind after a few easy early levels. And not many easy early levels either.
People who say the MMORPG community isn't open-minded enough to accept something different forget about EVE Online, Anarchy Online, and any number of non-elf-dwarf MMORPGs that've done great.
This game was pure crap, and the world will be better off without it. I don't know why they ever released it, and I'm thrilled that it's going away.
Bryan

 

I did not think it was grindy so much as the content was so limited that after you reached level 50 once there was very little new to run if you wanted to get an alt to level 50. The content was not good enough where running it multiple times was really much of an option either.

To me it was easy to level from start to finish and that was another weak point. You could solo to level 50 in a game supposed to be about a huge war. Receptive or not no one should be able to advance so easily.

Calintz333

Well...I would not say Good Riddance but I would say  "I expected it" The game itself is not great, its just not a fun enjoyable experience. I never found myself getting out of work saying Oh man I can't WAIT to get on Tabula Rasa today!" I felt this way with many mmorpgs FFXI, WoW, Hell even Guild wars, but not TR not at all not for one second. I played for 1 month, the free month then a week after that which I payed for the month, after a 5 weeks total playtime I could not handle it anymore I was just as bored playing this as I was playing Cabal online, or Ragnarok. This game is better than Korean grind fest games yeah but to me personally it was not more fun. I don't know why It just didn't make me want to play it more.

I think it should be dying. honestly, Its just not something that grabs you and makes you go OMG! i HAVE TO PLAY THIS ITS AWESOME! Its more of a Meh, ok its there, I may try it at some point kind of game, I guess people just didn't try it soon enough.

Every time games come out some have to fail some have to make it. Games like FFXI and EQ have lasted well over 5 years and are still strong and with a solid player community, games like TR and Hellgate London, died out , and you know what? It had to happen, some will win some will loose, Did TR deserve to loose, Imo, YES it did.

DillingerEP

Well, i wouldn't say it was a horrible game. If this game had a better dev team. This game could've went places. But it didn't, and the ones that made Tabula Rasa were lazy slackers. Whom never offered any real content for this game.

One thing this game really needed, CONTENT. Oh well, RIP TR.

Chlodwig

TR was a grind. But they managed to make the grind fun and entertaining, something very few MMOs managed to do. They gave you the illusion that you're not just statically standing there and delivering your spells or shots, but actually had some control over what damage you did and when.

TR was by no means perfect. Far from it. Very far indeed. But I think the idea itself was good. They managed to give you at least the impression that you have full control over your toon, unlike many other MMOs that are more a game of "put your toon here, pull a mob and whenever your skill/spell is ready, push the relevant button". Sure, it was the same with TR. But they managed to hide it cleverly to make you THINK you do more than press the right button at the right time. Stripping the fluff and all the "FPS-y" elements, you're back to the good ol' stand and deliver grind. A buff is a buff, a cooldown a cooldown and a shot is a shot. Here, in WoW, in EQ, in AO. Maybe with the difference that there is no auto-attack in TR.

Yet they managed to give you a good illusion that it ain't so. And personally, I think that's a good thing. The execution was lacking in many areas, but I like the idea itself.

Warbird1

TR was nothing more than a "Concept Car"

Looked nice.   Had some cool features, but wasnt road worthy and not fun on long trips.

 

bakkhai42

Originally posted by Chlodwig


TR was a grind. But they managed to make the grind fun and entertaining, something very few MMOs managed to do. They gave you the illusion that you're not just statically standing there and delivering your spells or shots, but actually had some control over what damage you did and when.
TR was by no means perfect. Far from it. Very far indeed. But I think the idea itself was good. They managed to give you at least the impression that you have full control over your toon, unlike many other MMOs that are more a game of "put your toon here, pull a mob and whenever your skill/spell is ready, push the relevant button". Sure, it was the same with TR. But they managed to hide it cleverly to make you THINK you do more than press the right button at the right time. Stripping the fluff and all the "FPS-y" elements, you're back to the good ol' stand and deliver grind. A buff is a buff, a cooldown a cooldown and a shot is a shot. Here, in WoW, in EQ, in AO. Maybe with the difference that there is no auto-attack in TR.
Yet they managed to give you a good illusion that it ain't so. And personally, I think that's a good thing. The execution was lacking in many areas, but I like the idea itself.

wow, i totally agree.

played the beta and thought this game was a great game as a single player in an MMORPG world.  I like to play along (since i afk a lot), but also like to know i'm part of a wider world.  This game was perfect for that, like SWG before it...  Finally after years of looking for that feeling again I chose EvE and have not looked back - except everyonce in a while to wonder how TR was doing.

Sad to see it go.  What you wrote is so spot on I can't add anything, lol.

 

levsix

It is interesting that a huge majority of the people who hate the game haven't played it in the last several months.

I loathed it at beta, hated it at launch. I had a lot of negative things to say for it.

The game has come a long way. I wonder why people get all furious and intensely angry at a video game. Some people like Hello Kitty. Some like playing Korean item mall games. Tabula Rasa in its current form is a good game, especially when contrasted with what is currently on the mmo market.

Does it have flaws? Yes. Could it have been better yes? Has it improved? Signficantly. Is it horrible? Not even close.

For each person that posts about how terrible it is, tell me your highest level character and when the last time you played was. Then let me know what game you consider to be amazing. All of those answers should help to get some appropriate context.

I, for one, am sorry to see it go. At least we still have WOW and all of those other amazing, original games left. If sales were a benchmark for creativity or the quality of a project, then by that very same logic Pink (or some other terrible top 40 musician) is much better than Bach.

Sevenwind

Originally posted by levsix


 If sales were a benchmark for creativity or the quality of a project, then by that very same logic Pink (or some other terrible top 40 musician) is much better than Bach.

 

Oh I like that quote! 

Broomy

Originally posted by levsix


For each person that posts about how terrible it is, tell me your highest level character and when the last time you played was. Then let me know what game you consider to be amazing. All of those answers should help to get some appropriate context.
OK Ill give it a whirl...level 48 Medic and I played TR as recently as 2 months ago.  Amazing game? Depends on what Im in the mood for.  PVE = WOW, Sandbox = EVE Online, Lore = LOTRO, RVR = WAR is pretty decent and has some interesting ideas but still needs work.  And there will be others that will come in and replace those as time goes by I am sure. 
The game was great fun to me initially, my system ran it smoothely and the action was great.  My main gripes with TR are lack of endgame PVE, lack of character customization and poor itemization.  In todays market, with fierce competiion, games have to have more to offer, TR simply didnt at a point of character development.  People got bored and left.
If sales were a benchmark for creativity or the quality of a project, then by that very same logic Pink (or some other terrible top 40 musician) is much better than Bach.
I dont see anyone saying that, but I guess it sounds good to throw it in  if it makes your argument more interesting. Sales are not a benchmark for creativity, however if your going to spend multi millions on a new project it will come time to pay the piper.  TR couldnt, didnt and hence its closing so they can take a loss.   The point people tend to forget with TR is the enormous amount of time and money that went into it.  This investment basically put TR in a position of having to succeed and succeed on a big scale.  TR was not some small, innovative project like EVE Online started out as...TR was a huge, splashy, heavily invested MMO with a very important name attached to it.  And who said Bach didnt do well for himself during his lifetime?  He got to work for Prince Leopold.  Can Pink make that claim?    
So yeah sales are not a benchmark  of creativity but on the flip side, as TR has now proven, huge multi-million investments aren't either!  Cheers!

 

indiramourn

Love your posts, Broomy!

olepi

What irritated me about the game was RG saying, in our local Austin paper, that TR "broke new ground", was "next generation", etc, etc.If they had said, "here try this little game, tell us what you think", it would have been different than "hey! this is the next generation, huge, and ground-breaking game! you will love it!"

I only played in beta, and hated it from the start. No worries there, I don't like a lot of games, But to be told by one of the "giants" of the MMO world that TR was the next great thing, and then to see what a pile it was, is irritating. That is why I have a special grudge against it.

Good riddance, TR and RG.

kinglee

 olepi--

 

You mentioned the Austin paper, probably the American Statesman.  The reporters there, especially the long-termer Lilly Rockwell, are frequent guests at Richard Garriott's lavish entertainments.   I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of "presents" came their way, as well.  He's had a lot of gaming media in his corner.   It helps to avoid criticism to really cultivate the media.  

olepi

Originally posted by kinglee


 olepi--
 
You mentioned the Austin paper, probably the American Statesman.  The reporters there, especially the long-termer Lilly Rockwell, are frequent guests at Richard Garriott's lavish entertainments.   I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of "presents" came their way, as well.  He's had a lot of gaming media in his corner.   It helps to avoid criticism to really cultivate the media.  

 

Actually, this was in the Chronicle. Point well taken anyway

kinglee

 http://www.austinchronicle.com/gyrobase/Blogs/Screens?oid=oid:705672

 

Here's what the chronicle had to say about the closing, and it wasn't a puff piece.   

Rokurgepta

Originally posted by levsix


It is interesting that a huge majority of the people who hate the game haven't played it in the last several months.
I loathed it at beta, hated it at launch. I had a lot of negative things to say for it.
The game has come a long way. I wonder why people get all furious and intensely angry at a video game. Some people like Hello Kitty. Some like playing Korean item mall games. Tabula Rasa in its current form is a good game, especially when contrasted with what is currently on the mmo market.
Does it have flaws? Yes. Could it have been better yes? Has it improved? Signficantly. Is it horrible? Not even close.
For each person that posts about how terrible it is, tell me your highest level character and when the last time you played was. Then let me know what game you consider to be amazing. All of those answers should help to get some appropriate context.
I, for one, am sorry to see it go. At least we still have WOW and all of those other amazing, original games left. If sales were a benchmark for creativity or the quality of a project, then by that very same logic Pink (or some other terrible top 40 musician) is much better than Bach.

 

My highest character was level 50. I lasy played in August after reading on PTR how much the game changed and how great it had become. So I had been gone about 4 months at that time. Fired it up and found the same game I had left. Skills were a little different but it was still the same lonely world and my new character was still killing bane left right and center.

Your comparing a musician from now to Bach is simplistic at best. Bach had a problem with sales back in the day due to no PR and limited technology to record his masterpieces. Not to mention a much smaller population in which to reach with his music. So the truth is there is no logic in your so called logic.

TR was not amazing and what little originality it had was destroyed by poor decisions and lack of content. This is not that the MMO world was not ready for a game like TR, TR was simply not readyh for release and might be about there now. Too bad they released such an unready product that it killed their chances of ever being moderately profitable.