New player debating this...questions...

Xerek

Hi, I've run the gambit of MMOs, and have really had trouble settling.  I tried UO back in the 2nd Age, but quit after tech issues w/i five days (turns out there were issues with Cyrix processors).  I also tried the trial a year or so ago (KR), but I was lost, and the interface was counter-intuitive.  I'm debating giving the trial another go.  I am a long time Ultima fan, cutting my teeth on Ultima IV.  Here are the following reasons and questions, please help me decide if this is right for me.

1) I *hate* PvP.  I know this will draw stares, but I am a casual player, and one major issue I had with UO: SA was getting ganked, on day one, ten feet from town.  I don't care if there are seperate PvP zones (I hear one world is PvP, the other mirror of it is not?)...I'd just prefer to play without fear of a better twinked out player ganking me for fun.

2) I love community and RP.  I hate to solo, for me it defeats the point of playing an MMO.  I'd like to RP in a living world, and the ability in UO to setup a home, tradeskills and such seem to fit.  Would be nice to just be chatting away while smithing or the like.

3) I hate button-mash combat.  Most games feature mana and a skillbar.  Combot comes down to an insane game of Simon, mashing buttons, usually in the same mind-numbing order.  WoW and EQ2 are good examples of this, whereas FF XI did not feature it.

4) I like a sandbox world.  It seems odd to be confined to one zone, work all quests, move to next zone, depending on an arbitrary limit (levels).  I can understand if road travel can be a bit dangerous, and certainly dungeons would have increasing difficulty.

5) Are there quests?  By that I mean, and it's hard to put into words, a few specific things to do?  I understand this is more expansive then 'kill ten orcs', but I don't mind supply runs, dungeon quests looking for items, etc.  Just a LITTLE direction.  Can other players offer their own 'quests', such as material gathering?  If so, do they?

6) How well do parties work?  I hate playing alone.

7) Can you play casually?  Most days I can only be on an hour or two, while I can on longer maybe one night a week.  Can I actually accomplish something in that time?   Can I have fun in that small an period.

8) I hate powergaming, I hate grinding.  I am not one to grind for elite items, and I don't care about beefing myself up to god on two legs.  For me the fun is in the social, and the adventure.  I prefer storyline and atmosphere to powermodding my character.

9) Am I able to start now?  Is it still a good place for absolutely new players to jump into?

Given all of this, is UO right for me?  If so, I may plow through the initial learning curve.  No modern MMO has scratched my MMO itch.

Advice?

-Xerek

Carna

Well, I have been through all the usual "modern" games, the wow's, aoc's, WAR etc...Looking through various sites, I see UO is one of the few games that still gets alot of love. I managed to find a free shard to play on and just started yesterday actually :P



The game has the aspects of crafting/being a trader you are looking for...it seems like runescape in the fact that unlike most other MMO's at present its not all about combat, pve or pvp. You can go pick your trader skills and not have to touch a weapon if you want to.



All I can say really is give it ago and see what you think! #theuoproject on irc might be a good place to find out more info, thats where I'v been getting tips from! GL

Zanazaz

You no longer have to worry about getting "ganked" in UO, unless you are in Fel, or a guild.  There are plenty of quests,  check out one of the many UO websites, like UO Stratics.  Trust me, I played casually, and still had plenty of fun.  I think it's fun to build your character up, from hardly being able to handle a mongbat, to being able to go toe to claw with a dragon.  This can be done fairly quickly, or at a leisurely pace. Guilds are a lot of fun, and there are RP guilds, and hunting guilds.  From what I remember the party system worked fairly well.

I haven't played in a while, and plan on returning in a month.  Give it a try!