Warhammer by far, although AoC is very close behind.
Warhammer just had so much potential and as a beta tester I could see it. There was so much creativity and innovation behind that game but it all seemed lost in the shuffle to make a rather mundane EQ/WoW clone. WAR had a chance, the IP allows for a rather diverse gameplay and Mythic decided to just follow what the industry (many thanks to World of Warcraft) had already laid out. Sure there were some new features, public quests were a great idea. Its just that the game is so linear and so....repetitive (all mmos are though) that it was not enjoyable.
I expected so much and Mythic let me down. WAR is a decent game, I guess. Mindless PvP is great fun for a little while, but in the long term I need some meat to my game.
------------------- If ever there was a time to rise if ever there was a time to join hands with our brothers that time is now. At this exact junction in history we have within our grasp the means to loosen our tormentors hold and win freedom for our kin. Opportunities are there to be taken.
For me, the biggest disappointment was Age of Conan by far. From following the development of the game for years before launch, the game that Funcom released bore little resemblance to what they had been hyping all that time.
Of course, it was unbelieveably buggy and broken at launch, much more so than the average MMO. Just about every major system in the game was either broken or missing right from the start.
Much more than that, however, was how shallow an experience the game is - far from the PvP-centric, guild versus guild focused game they talked about for years, AoC is much more of a stripped down WoW-clone than it is anything innovative. From all the FC "square wheel" MMO ideas, to the horribly shallow character development available, AoC became boring in record time, and just wasn't any fun.
Bugs can be fixed, but the poor overall gameplay and shallow feel is from a bad foundation which will likely never be completely corrected.
I loved the combat system, probably not ideal for PvP, but for PvE melee, for me its clearly the most enjoyable game out there in that regard. The casters were good also (such as they are, hybrids really). It's also the most pretty. Ok i know it doesnt mean much, but at least it wont look dated in a couple years from now. That is one advantage it has going forward.
Some extremely well done DX10 trailers, and some heavy promotion on the fixes they have done/will be doing "might" see the game come back from the dead. I still hold out hopes for it. At least they have kept AO going years after its original failure, and its seen by many as class leading now (sci-fi mmo's). Unfortunately I think they were looking for AoC to bankroll them in the future, and instead they have had to put more and more cash into it - staff, promotion and marketing just to keep it above water. The managment, since launch, up until very recently has been the worst I have seen. For god's sake remove the "Death has never looked so hot" advert..come up with something new.
It could have been 2nd to WoW in the Western Market....instead its embarrassing right now.
Im not sure WAR should be on the list. I think they have a semi decent launch tbh, and the subs are holding up reasonably well. It doesnt stack up against the other disappointments you have listed.
Warhammer gonna have to say i didnt think a mmo's could be dummbed down any further, then this steaming pile of over hyped shite came out a brain dead hamster could play this game.
You want to know the biggest disappointment in '08, and the one which people should be pissed off at the most? Gaming sites! Most of the disappointments of '08 got rave reviews from MMO sites, including THIS one. They were having a "J*** in my Pants" moment with AoC. Warhammer still has a high rating by this and other sites, yet garners the biggest disappointment rating in this forum. Tabula Rasa garnered great reviews for its "innovative concept." Even Hellgate London had good reviews and hype up to release.
Maybe we should ask theguys who review these games to quit smoking the crack that developers hand out to them and give a critical eye to such things as basic combat mechanics, content, and storyline.
Thanks to these hype machine supporters, the only way you can have even an idea about the game is to pay 50 bucks and play it, adding to the hype with sales figures. "Objective" is not a word in a reviewer's vocabulary.
I remember talking to my friends about how fun it was going to be running around, sneaking about the woods, raiding castles... but apparently Funcon screwed us over and gave us a less than half assed game... except for Tortage, that place was very cool.
You want to know the biggest disappointment in '08, and the one which people should be pissed off at the most? Gaming sites! Most of the disappointments of '08 got rave reviews from MMO sites, including THIS one. They were having a "J*** in my Pants" moment with AoC. Warhammer still has a high rating by this and other sites, yet garners the biggest disappointment rating in this forum. Tabula Rasa garnered great reviews for its "innovative concept." Even Hellgate London had good reviews and hype up to release. Maybe we should ask theguys who review these games to quit smoking the crack that developers hand out to them and give a critical eye to such things as basic combat mechanics, content, and storyline. Thanks to these hype machine supporters, the only way you can have even an idea about the game is to pay 50 bucks and play it, adding to the hype with sales figures. "Objective" is not a word in a reviewer's vocabulary.
Indeed apart from the obvious candidates, the websites living on mmorpg's should reconsider their positions.
These websites thrive on mmorpg products and they think by supporting every developper blindy, they contribute to the industry.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
The last new MMORPG launches (lets begin with Hellgate and ending with Spellborn and everything in between) were very much bleak copies of what's in existence for years now. Not only this, but they were unfinished, unpolished and what was perhaps the most important factor: they lacked gameplay.
So I agree : the biggest disappointment is the ever growing number of websites of "mmorpg's" while the genre lacks the talent of producing even basic decent games. The reviewers give these hyped products "excellent" ratings - even before launch -....
... creating a very bad feeling with the guys churning up 50 bucks with every new release.
Guess what will happen for the next releases: people don't wanna loose another 50 bucks...
I know I'll skip 2009 launches, and believe me I am not the only one.
Gaming sites are in their pockets and are forced to give great reviews... sort of like GM/car industry not switching to eletctic cars because of their close ties w/ oil companies (symbiosis is the key to corrupt capitalism)
"If you've been to McDonalds for four or five years, and had your burger and your coke, sometimes it's great to just have a great steak and a glass of good wine," Godager told Eurogamer in a recent interview.
Signed, Gaute is an idiot and was half the reason this game was so overhyped and pure garbage at release.
"Well let me just quote the late-great Colonel Sanders, who said…’I’m too drunk to taste this chicken." - Ricky Bobby
You want to know the biggest disappointment in '08, and the one which people should be pissed off at the most? Gaming sites! Most of the disappointments of '08 got rave reviews from MMO sites, including THIS one. They were having a "J*** in my Pants" moment with AoC. Warhammer still has a high rating by this and other sites, yet garners the biggest disappointment rating in this forum. Tabula Rasa garnered great reviews for its "innovative concept." Even Hellgate London had good reviews and hype up to release. Maybe we should ask theguys who review these games to quit smoking the crack that developers hand out to them and give a critical eye to such things as basic combat mechanics, content, and storyline. Thanks to these hype machine supporters, the only way you can have even an idea about the game is to pay 50 bucks and play it, adding to the hype with sales figures. "Objective" is not a word in a reviewer's vocabulary.
Indeed apart from the obvious candidates, the websites living on mmorpg's should reconsider their positions.
These websites thrive on mmorpg products and they think by supporting every developper blindy, they contribute to the industry.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
The last new MMORPG launches (lets begin with Hellgate and ending with Spellborn and everything in between) were very much bleak copies of what's in existence for years now. Not only this, but they were unfinished, unpolished and what was perhaps the most important factor: they lacked gameplay.
So I agree : the biggest disappointment is the ever growing number of websites of "mmorpg's" while the genre lacks the talent of producing even basic decent games. The reviewers give these hyped products "excellent" ratings - even before launch -....
... creating a very bad feeling with the guys churning up 50 bucks with every new release.
Guess what will happen for the next releases: people don't wanna loose another 50 bucks...
I know I'll skip 2009 launches, and believe me I am not the only one.
You know what's funny is that hellgate was one of the few games I saw get crappy reviews (1up and IGN said it sucked....) And the irony is that it's actually fun to play, and I play that more then War or AoC... and yet the greater irony is that HGL is shutting down their servers on Jan 31, while the games I no longer touch (AoC andWAR) survived.
Age of Conan for a ton of reasons. Firstly, as a beta tester trying to tell them about something they did that I thought was bad for the game, having like 8 people agree, and then a mod coming in and basically saying "shut up we aren't changing it back", was enough for me to not like the team. Then all the promises they made that they couldn't keep such as 500 man battles and things not in or not working killed it for me. At least in WAR you could fight over keeps and fortresses even at launch. Those things were unplayable in AoC for quite a bit of time.
You want to know the biggest disappointment in '08, and the one which people should be pissed off at the most? Gaming sites! Most of the disappointments of '08 got rave reviews from MMO sites, including THIS one. They were having a "J*** in my Pants" moment with AoC. Warhammer still has a high rating by this and other sites, yet garners the biggest disappointment rating in this forum. Tabula Rasa garnered great reviews for its "innovative concept." Even Hellgate London had good reviews and hype up to release. Maybe we should ask theguys who review these games to quit smoking the crack that developers hand out to them and give a critical eye to such things as basic combat mechanics, content, and storyline. Thanks to these hype machine supporters, the only way you can have even an idea about the game is to pay 50 bucks and play it, adding to the hype with sales figures. "Objective" is not a word in a reviewer's vocabulary.
I agree but the prob is reviewing a mmo is not the same as reviewing a lets say fps/rts game etc
you cant just play it one or two days and base your whole opinion on that with mmo`s (look at Aoc for example...the lvl1/20 starting area Tortage was fking great! but after that the game gets worse and worse)
And i think thats the prob review sites have and thats why this games are high rated (ofc $$ plays a big role in this aswell..but ya)
Ah yes Warhammer the biggest dissapoitment of the year, wait doh!Q!!
PC Gamer 86 / 100
GamersHell 8.5 / 10
PC Format UK 87 / 100
Game Informer 8 / 10
PC Zone UK 92 / 100
Fragland 80 / 100
GamingTrend 89 / 100
gamesTM 8 / 10 Computer Games RO 85 / 100
Total PC Gaming 8 / 10
Gamers Temple 92 / 100
Gaming Target 8.8 / 10
PALGN 8 / 10
Game Chronicles 9 / 10
GamerNode 8 / 10
GameZone 8.8 / 10
AceGamez 9 / 10
UGO A
Jolt UK 8.7 / 10
AtomicGamer 88 / 100 Armchair Empire 8 / 10
Gamervision 8 / 10
Game Revolution A- IGN 9 / 10
Gameplayer 8.5 / 10
1UP B
GameShark A-
G4 - X-Play 5 / 5
GameSpy 5 / 5
Cheat Code Central 4.7 / 5
Gameplanet 8 / 10
PC Gamer UK 88 / 100
Eurogamer 8 / 10
Others have already said it, but I still can't help myself: It amazes me that people still take stock in game reviews with the blatant bias for advertisers. 7fold should be ashamed of himself for even thinking anyone gives 2 shits about what gets an "8/10" or what that number even means.
and 7fold, if you dont already, please start reading Penny Acade, I'll get you started:
Comments
Warhammer by far, although AoC is very close behind.
Warhammer just had so much potential and as a beta tester I could see it. There was so much creativity and innovation behind that game but it all seemed lost in the shuffle to make a rather mundane EQ/WoW clone. WAR had a chance, the IP allows for a rather diverse gameplay and Mythic decided to just follow what the industry (many thanks to World of Warcraft) had already laid out. Sure there were some new features, public quests were a great idea. Its just that the game is so linear and so....repetitive (all mmos are though) that it was not enjoyable.
I expected so much and Mythic let me down. WAR is a decent game, I guess. Mindless PvP is great fun for a little while, but in the long term I need some meat to my game.
-------------------
If ever there was a time to rise if ever there was a time to join hands with our brothers that time is now. At this exact junction in history we have within our grasp the means to loosen our tormentors hold and win freedom for our kin. Opportunities are there to be taken.
Brothers, we must rise.
-Malaetu Shakor
For me, the biggest disappointment was Age of Conan by far. From following the development of the game for years before launch, the game that Funcom released bore little resemblance to what they had been hyping all that time.
Of course, it was unbelieveably buggy and broken at launch, much more so than the average MMO. Just about every major system in the game was either broken or missing right from the start.
Much more than that, however, was how shallow an experience the game is - far from the PvP-centric, guild versus guild focused game they talked about for years, AoC is much more of a stripped down WoW-clone than it is anything innovative. From all the FC "square wheel" MMO ideas, to the horribly shallow character development available, AoC became boring in record time, and just wasn't any fun.
Bugs can be fixed, but the poor overall gameplay and shallow feel is from a bad foundation which will likely never be completely corrected.
Hell hath no fury like an MMORPG player scorned.
AoC.
I loved the combat system, probably not ideal for PvP, but for PvE melee, for me its clearly the most enjoyable game out there in that regard. The casters were good also (such as they are, hybrids really). It's also the most pretty. Ok i know it doesnt mean much, but at least it wont look dated in a couple years from now. That is one advantage it has going forward.
Some extremely well done DX10 trailers, and some heavy promotion on the fixes they have done/will be doing "might" see the game come back from the dead. I still hold out hopes for it. At least they have kept AO going years after its original failure, and its seen by many as class leading now (sci-fi mmo's). Unfortunately I think they were looking for AoC to bankroll them in the future, and instead they have had to put more and more cash into it - staff, promotion and marketing just to keep it above water. The managment, since launch, up until very recently has been the worst I have seen. For god's sake remove the "Death has never looked so hot" advert..come up with something new.
It could have been 2nd to WoW in the Western Market....instead its embarrassing right now.
Im not sure WAR should be on the list. I think they have a semi decent launch tbh, and the subs are holding up reasonably well. It doesnt stack up against the other disappointments you have listed.
The only reason I didn't vote AoC is that I saw it coming a mile away so I wasn't disappointed. It had been shady for a long time.
Warhammer gonna have to say i didnt think a mmo's could be dummbed down any further, then this steaming pile of over hyped shite came out a brain dead hamster could play this game.
Had to lol at this comment.
Anyway Voted for WAR, was looking forward to a deep pvp game and got the most shallow MMO in the market instead. Pretty sad.
You want to know the biggest disappointment in '08, and the one which people should be pissed off at the most? Gaming sites! Most of the disappointments of '08 got rave reviews from MMO sites, including THIS one. They were having a "J*** in my Pants" moment with AoC. Warhammer still has a high rating by this and other sites, yet garners the biggest disappointment rating in this forum. Tabula Rasa garnered great reviews for its "innovative concept." Even Hellgate London had good reviews and hype up to release.
Maybe we should ask theguys who review these games to quit smoking the crack that developers hand out to them and give a critical eye to such things as basic combat mechanics, content, and storyline.
Thanks to these hype machine supporters, the only way you can have even an idea about the game is to pay 50 bucks and play it, adding to the hype with sales figures. "Objective" is not a word in a reviewer's vocabulary.
Aion.
Hackers / Grind PVP for points / Non equal PVP / Boring content.
I voted Age of Conan...
I remember talking to my friends about how fun it was going to be running around, sneaking about the woods, raiding castles... but apparently Funcon screwed us over and gave us a less than half assed game... except for Tortage, that place was very cool.
I voted for Warhammer, but basically it was a tie with AOC. (two votes please!!).
Indeed apart from the obvious candidates, the websites living on mmorpg's should reconsider their positions.
These websites thrive on mmorpg products and they think by supporting every developper blindy, they contribute to the industry.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
The last new MMORPG launches (lets begin with Hellgate and ending with Spellborn and everything in between) were very much bleak copies of what's in existence for years now. Not only this, but they were unfinished, unpolished and what was perhaps the most important factor: they lacked gameplay.
So I agree : the biggest disappointment is the ever growing number of websites of "mmorpg's" while the genre lacks the talent of producing even basic decent games. The reviewers give these hyped products "excellent" ratings - even before launch -....
... creating a very bad feeling with the guys churning up 50 bucks with every new release.
Guess what will happen for the next releases: people don't wanna loose another 50 bucks...
I know I'll skip 2009 launches, and believe me I am not the only one.
Gaming sites are in their pockets and are forced to give great reviews... sort of like GM/car industry not switching to eletctic cars because of their close ties w/ oil companies (symbiosis is the key to corrupt capitalism)
Signed, Gaute is an idiot and was half the reason this game was so overhyped and pure garbage at release.
Indeed apart from the obvious candidates, the websites living on mmorpg's should reconsider their positions.
These websites thrive on mmorpg products and they think by supporting every developper blindy, they contribute to the industry.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
The last new MMORPG launches (lets begin with Hellgate and ending with Spellborn and everything in between) were very much bleak copies of what's in existence for years now. Not only this, but they were unfinished, unpolished and what was perhaps the most important factor: they lacked gameplay.
So I agree : the biggest disappointment is the ever growing number of websites of "mmorpg's" while the genre lacks the talent of producing even basic decent games. The reviewers give these hyped products "excellent" ratings - even before launch -....
... creating a very bad feeling with the guys churning up 50 bucks with every new release.
Guess what will happen for the next releases: people don't wanna loose another 50 bucks...
I know I'll skip 2009 launches, and believe me I am not the only one.
You know what's funny is that hellgate was one of the few games I saw get crappy reviews (1up and IGN said it sucked....) And the irony is that it's actually fun to play, and I play that more then War or AoC... and yet the greater irony is that HGL is shutting down their servers on Jan 31, while the games I no longer touch (AoC andWAR) survived.
Ahah god i hate irony...
Age of Conan for a ton of reasons. Firstly, as a beta tester trying to tell them about something they did that I thought was bad for the game, having like 8 people agree, and then a mod coming in and basically saying "shut up we aren't changing it back", was enough for me to not like the team. Then all the promises they made that they couldn't keep such as 500 man battles and things not in or not working killed it for me. At least in WAR you could fight over keeps and fortresses even at launch. Those things were unplayable in AoC for quite a bit of time.
What he said above
MAGA
WAR because it just has no soul, so generic and the combat and animations sucked.
everything is a let down these days but i'd say biggest let down for me was AoC.
how would you know?
I have yet to see a game out worth a shit since AC...
I voted for WAR, because that was the game I was hyped about. I'd say 2008 was a tremendously disappointing year for MMO players.
Both Aoc and War.
But if i had to chose one id go with War the game was hype like a mofo and it just did NOT deliver...
Both AoC and War, but I voted for AoC because AoC promised sssssoooo much!
When the war of the beasts brings about the worlds end,
the goddess descends from the sky, wings of light and dark spread afar.
I agree but the prob is reviewing a mmo is not the same as reviewing a lets say fps/rts game etc
you cant just play it one or two days and base your whole opinion on that with mmo`s (look at Aoc for example...the lvl1/20 starting area Tortage was fking great! but after that the game gets worse and worse)
And i think thats the prob review sites have and thats why this games are high rated (ofc $$ plays a big role in this aswell..but ya)
Others have already said it, but I still can't help myself: It amazes me that people still take stock in game reviews with the blatant bias for advertisers. 7fold should be ashamed of himself for even thinking anyone gives 2 shits about what gets an "8/10" or what that number even means.
and 7fold, if you dont already, please start reading Penny Acade, I'll get you started:
www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2008/11/24/
------------------------------
"Everything is awesome. Fundamentally."