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General: Best New Game
Stradden
Managing EditorMember CommonPosts: 6,696
Every year, the lit of current MMORPGs grows. Every year, we hope to find the launch of the "next big thing" in our genre or maybe just the next big thing" for our tastes. Sometimes we're happy with the results and sometimes we're not.
This year, we decided to include a "none of the above" nomination in this category. This decision was reached after reading numerous comments on the forums that seemed to indicate that people were unhappy with the products released in 2008.
The Best New Game category was created in order to determine our readers' favourite game that has yet to celebrate its one year anniversary. In order to qualify for this category, a game had to be released in 2008. As always, the nominations were chosen by the MMORPG.com editorial staff.
- Age of Conan
- Atlantica Online
- Pirates of the Burning Sea
- Warhammer Online
- None of the Above
Vote for the Best New Game of 2008
Cheers,
Jon Wood
Managing Editor
MMORPG.com
Comments
It wasn't until I read the options that I realised what a slim year it's been.
Out of that list, only Atlantica has lived up to expectations, and that's depressing.
Oh well, here's to 2009 - the Year of the Indie!
The sad thing is, "None of the above" will probably win, regardless of the fact that the majority of people who will vote that way did not A) play all of the games listed or
play these games outside of the beta. There's too much whining on the site about MMOs not being creative, yet all of the titles introduce creative aspects to their game, or that it it had problems at launch, regardless of the fact that things have been added and things have been changed. It's like people get stuck in this "once burned, twice as angry" mentality where they're unable to accept that things sometimes do change for the better.
Hey Jon,
Love your polls, but I have to disagree with adding the "none of the above" option. If you don't have it for your other "best of" polls, it shouldn't be on this one either. If people didn't like any of the games released this year, they have the option of not voting.
This will only encourage anyone whose present game isn't on the list or a game they don't like on the list to vote "none of the above" and make it look like this year's games are less than appealing.
_________________________________
JonMichael
Currently: AION, an MMO Beta under NDA
Played: WAR, LOTRO, Hellgate: London, CoX, GW, SotNW, DAOC, EQ2, SWG, WoW, AO, Horizons, Second Life, There, TSO
Beta'd: There, Second Life, EQ2, DAOC:LotM, LOTRO, Tabula Rasa, Gods and Heroes, Hellgate: London, Requiem:Bloodymare, AoC, WAR, DDO, Fallen Earth
I voted none of the above simply because they are all equally bad.
MMO's have gone to hell in a handbasket.
The last choice option should be "Other"
Sure, all of these games have some aspect of fun to them, but they certainly may not be the Best New Game of 2008. The None of the Above option makes it sound like the voter thinks they all suck instead of none of them are the best. It's not the same thing.
And you played them all, I assume?
_________________________________
JonMichael
Currently: AION, an MMO Beta under NDA
Played: WAR, LOTRO, Hellgate: London, CoX, GW, SotNW, DAOC, EQ2, SWG, WoW, AO, Horizons, Second Life, There, TSO
Beta'd: There, Second Life, EQ2, DAOC:LotM, LOTRO, Tabula Rasa, Gods and Heroes, Hellgate: London, Requiem:Bloodymare, AoC, WAR, DDO, Fallen Earth
I'd agree, except that in this case, I've heard and seen so much response on the forums throughout the year that I felt that the "none of the above" category was totally warranted. For example, I didn't read post after post of folks complaining about there being "no good expansions" this year, nor did I see enough of it in terms of company, or even anticipated for next year.
All year long though, we've been hearing people voice that exact opinion about this specific category, that's why we chose to put it in there.
To the person who suggested that we nominate "other" rather than none of the above...
Those are two completely different things. While perhaps "other" is a category we will use in the future, we can't simply replace "none of the above" with "other". Other implies that there was another not-nominated game that people wanted to vote for, but couldn't, not that they were genreally dissatisfied with the crop of new games this year.
The "none of the above" option wasn't given lightly and it was given in this specific category for a very specific reason.
I hope that clears things up for you.
Cheers,
Jon Wood
Managing Editor
MMORPG.com
I think it will end up being "none of the above" to win, since it gives an oppurtunity to all those who think the MMOs are on a steep slide downwards to express their feelings and they are in numbers, at least on this site. This might give a signal to the industry that they have to do better, though I think the number of subscribers decides this and that these awards are most importantly are used for marketing purposes by the companies. Let's hope some of the games will be worth nominated for the "most improved game" category next year.
I have only played Atlantica of the four and has to base my choice on reviews, in game videos,discussions and the development on number of subscribers. At least WAR and AoC has kept the interest of the MMO community, so I guess that leaves PotBS out, people are indifferent to it, it seems. Atlantica is an ok "having-nothing-else-to do-game". I can't imagine it as any serious gamer's major title played. So I think it should be WAR or AoC if any. Since I am a fan of exploring stunning environment and FunCom tried to do something original with their AoC I think I would go for that game. The launch however was so bad so I think it is a bit strange to award it the"Best New Game" title. Has it improved enough since the miserable launch to get the award?
i voted aoc because of the 3 games i played from the list (war, aoc, attlantica) i liked conan the best personally
and just to annoy people this is the 5th or so post where im stating that i play chronicles of spellborne atm whitch would have made my no 1 choice if it were on the list
if your bored, visit my blog at:
http://craylon.wordpress.com/ dealing with the look of mmos with the nvidia 3d vision glasses
I couldn't vote for any of those games. A very sad year for MMO fans.
i said warhammer bc thats what ive been having the most fun in this year. and thats what we play videogames for right?
And you played them all, I assume?
I actually did and they all didn't deliver in my eyes.
Seeing the poor quality and scams (AoC) with this year new MMO launches then you can conclude it has been a very very bad year for MMO's.
So I think "None of the Above" is a very very valid option in this poll.
Cheers
None of the above.
In 2008 I started LOTRO and had a lot of fun, which slowly but surely peetered out to boredom. By the time the expansion had come, I had lost all interest. My account is still active though, which is more symbolic of a vote of confidence than a desire to play. They are a good company. Maybe I will return someday soon.
AOC looked great and that's about it for me. It ran horribly, launched with many things missing that were promised to be in at launch, and seemed to be more interested in spinning the truth than honesty. Highly instanced, small zones that make you feel claustraphobic, crappy gear and stats that don't matter. It was bad, just bad.
Warhammer Online had some great ideas, but then succumbed to game design choices and factional and class imbalance. Ultimately, in such a game where pvp is paramount, it was too much. Sub numbers dropped, and atleast on my server it began to feel like a single player game.
POTBS had laggy painful avatar combat, poor performance in towns (for me) and too many design decisions that seemed restrictive and just not fun.
Atlantica Online doesn't appeal to me at all. I think the art style is just a turn off. And beyond that I don't know. Probably being unfair to this game since I haven't played it.
2008 saw me finally return to WOW for the expansion and I ended up starting a new character on a new server and just starting fresh. New guild, new friends....and I'm having fun again. Although, getting sucked into the game is kinda scary. I don't want to get addicted and end up spending all my time there.
I don't like how they describe the "none of the above" in the options.
All of the games have "something" good in them, I mean lots of people worked on those titles and millions of dollars were spent... and spent not for nothing.
However, to be a nice game or "Best New Game" as they phrase it, there has to be more than just "good at this" or "good at that."
(I did vote for none of the above, even though I have not played all of them)
I'd agree, except that in this case, I've heard and seen so much response on the forums throughout the year that I felt that the "none of the above" category was totally warranted. For example, I didn't read post after post of folks complaining about there being "no good expansions" this year, nor did I see enough of it in terms of company, or even anticipated for next year.
All year long though, we've been hearing people voice that exact opinion about this specific category, that's why we chose to put it in there.
To the person who suggested that we nominate "other" rather than none of the above...
Those are two completely different things. While perhaps "other" is a category we will use in the future, we can't simply replace "none of the above" with "other". Other implies that there was another not-nominated game that people wanted to vote for, but couldn't, not that they were genreally dissatisfied with the crop of new games this year.
The "none of the above" option wasn't given lightly and it was given in this specific category for a very specific reason.
I hope that clears things up for you.
Jon,
To think that voters will actually abide by your rules to vote "none of the above" is pretty naive. Do you really think that so many people saw absolutely nothing good about this years games? I mean nothing? What kind of person is so negative that they will see not one good thing about a game? I don't think many of those people exist, especially in this genre full of trash, but people still play them. No, I think people will vote "none of the above" because they hated those games overall, even though they did like one or two things about the game. In fact, I bet a lot of people will vote "none of the above" even though they didn't play them.
I agree with the other poster that said there shouldn't be an option like this. Only people who played those games should be able to vote on which were best. Hell, the people who name games "Game of the Year" for console games may or may not like any of the releases that year, but they still choose the lesser of the evils.
I'm seeing some poor decision making skills with these polls, but that's just my opinion. Last years wasn't too good either. I hope one of these years you all will figure out a good way of creating a Readers Choice Awards while also minimizing the amount of influence trolls, haters, and fanbois have on it. After all, MMORPG companies display the fact they were voted #1 by the readers of this site on their websites and I believe boxes.
MMORPG's w/ Max level characters: DAoC, SWG, & WoW
Currently Playing: WAR
Preferred Playstyle: Roleplay/adventurous, in a sandbox game.
I considered "all of the above".
But since there were four games listed, I chose between those games. So WAR got my vote.
But frankly? None of those games offer enough to be "best" of anything.
And you played them all, I assume?
I actually did and they all didn't deliver in my eyes.
Seeing the poor quality and scams (AoC) with this year new MMO launches then you can conclude it has been a very very bad year for MMO's.
So I think "None of the Above" is a very very valid option in this poll.
Cheers
I don't doubt that you played all of the MMO's released this year. It's not hard to believe that people buy and play every new release these days, unlike how it was before WoW came out. However, I seriously doubt you found nothing good in any of this years releases. Are you telling me you didn't like the graphics of AoC, Tortelage, the combat system, the voice overs; what about the public quests in WAR, or being able to que up for scenarios from anywhere and after the scenario putting you back where you were? Or what about being able to earn points to buy RvR gear at all levels of the game and it being relatively accessible to all people?
I find a person who didn't like even one of those things to be a rather pessimistic person. Keep in mind that the "none of the above" option was for people that didn't like not even one feature in any of this years releases. I voted for WAR, because I did like a few of their features, but I play WoTLK. This is because I didn't like any of the games overall this year. I follow and respect the rules though, so I didn't vote "none of the above," since I liked at least 1 feature in one of those games.
MMORPG's w/ Max level characters: DAoC, SWG, & WoW
Currently Playing: WAR
Preferred Playstyle: Roleplay/adventurous, in a sandbox game.
It's just that "Best new Game" as an award feels veird to bestow upon a game so flawed at launch as AoC, even though the graphics undoubtedly are great. Best, though not necessarily in every aspect, reflects some kind of overall quality. So you do not need to overly negative, pessimistic or a troll to vote "none of the above", although I think there are quite a few that will grab that chance out of general negativity versus todays MMOs.
My question still is: " has AoC improved sufficiently after tha launch to be worth considering for such a title"?
(I haven't played it myself, never will, too much blood and gore to my taste, but I think that is irrelevant when it comes to the quality of the game. So if someone convinces me it deserves the title, I'll vote for it.)
If you need to have someone else tell you what to vote for, then don't vote.
If you need to have someone else tell you what to vote for, then don't vote.
Well, I would argue that there is a certain difference between "tell" and "convince".
If you need to have someone else tell you what to vote for, then don't vote.
Well, I would argue that there is a certain difference between "tell" and "convince".
And your argument would fall flat.
if you played the game, that should convince you one way or the other. If you didn't play the game, you have no right to an opinion of its worthiness for a title.
And since you state you never played AoC, you are asking for someone to tell you something to convince you of its worthiness. In other words, someone else gets to decide yourt vote for a game you never played.
Did you play any of the games on the list? If so, then pick the best from the ones you played. If you played none of them, then don't vote, as you have no valid opinion in this subject.
If you need to have someone else tell you what to vote for, then don't vote.
Well, I would argue that there is a certain difference between "tell" and "convince".
And your argument would fall flat.
if you played the game, that should convince you one way or the other. If you didn't play the game, you have no right to an opinion of its worthiness for a title.
And since you state you never played AoC, you are asking for someone to tell you something to convince you of its worthiness. In other words, someone else gets to decide yourt vote for a game you never played.
Did you play any of the games on the list? If so, then pick the best from the ones you played. If you played none of them, then don't vote, as you have no valid opinion in this subject.
If you think through what you just wrote you realize how akward it would be to apply the rule of first hand experience as a necessity to be able to have an opinion. Most of what you get through the media you have no first experince of yourself. I guess you have a lot of opinions about stuff you've just read about in papers or watched on TV. None of us would be able to vote in a general election if it was required first hand experience with all the issues. And noone gets to decide my vote. If I am not convinced by the arguments in favor of AoC as it is p.t. I will vote "none of the above".
You brought this thread far away from the topic. I wanted arguments in favor of AoC as it is right now, since the launch left me with many doubts. So if you have nothing to say about the quality of the game. I'll leave this dicussion here.
This one was easy... None of the above
Now I beg to differ, if you are going to include Atlantica, why in the world did you exclude f2p games like Perfect World?
In my opinion, Perfect World is so much better than Atlantica, there is just no comparison. Atlantica has that ancient turn based combat, which to many of us is just plain lame and it is a huge lagfest. I had a couple hundred people on screen the other day in Perfect World and only experienced mild lag.
Seriously if you are going to include the f2p games, then include them all. You can't justify excluding any when you include one of them.
Im sorry but 2008 was a horrible year for MMORPG's.... lets hope 2009 will be better with games like AION and Star Trek and Star Wars (if they come out in 2009 but unlikely) ect..