"You can't go home again"

pierth

It's come to the point that I'll likely go back to one of the MMORPGs I've subbed to in the past (not WoW ) as the newer games out today just aren't doing it for me anymore. For some reason I've been uneasy about going back to older games and I can't quite put my finger on it.

 

Has anyone taken a break from a particular MMORPG for several months or years and come back to it and had a good experience? I'm wondering if I should leave my older games as rose-colored memories.

TdogSkal

This might or might not help you.

My Roommate and I both stopped playing EQ1 over 2 years ago, both decided to give it another go a few months ago.

He is still playing and loving it.  I stopped again after a few weeks because I felt like I just did not know what was going on in game anymore and was not having fun playing "catch" up.

Maltese

Personally, I would say, go back. It's the best way to get it out of your system. Chances are you wont be staying there long anyway.

If you don't, you run a serious risk of just becoming one more of the seniles touting day in and day out on 'those great old days' when 'games were so much better'. Going back will help you remember why you left in the first place.

servedogg

Depends on the MMO you want to go back to and how much it has changed over the years. 

I'm not sure about many of the other MMOs of the past, but I went back to FFXI and its a completely different game than it was when it was first release. They completely removed all that was good about it, so I stayed for a month and quit.

Ryukan

You have nothing to lose by going back to an older MMO. Instead of sitting around worrying about going back to an MMO, just do it. Even if the experience ends up not being that good, it won't be the end of the world.

Dru72

I started out with EQ when it first came out. The only reason I quit back then was due to the whole plethora of 'new wave' games that came out after EQ. I never imagined myself going back to it in all honesty, but several months ago I did. After a break of over 5 1/2 years from Everquest has been like a breath of fresh air.

Go back to your original game, what harm can it do? if you feel you don't enjoy it like you did the first time you can always quit. Doesn't hurt to try again

Good luck and have fun

pierth

Thanks for the replies and input. I'm thinking of heading back to EQ1 (or a version of it, anyway) although I'm also keeping my eye on CoH for when F2P begins. Those are the last two games I can say I really enjoyed without it being completely dependent on having RL friends subbing as well.

marowit

I'd say go back but before you do.

How long have you been away from that mmo?

Because if you have only been away for a few months the things that go you to quit in the first place will surface up even faster. Or maybe they changed what anoyed you, it never hurts to take a look at the games forums before going back in.

Kyleran

All depends on the state of the game and why you left.

I tried going back to DAOC after a 2 or 3 year hiatus, and although they resolved some issues (taking away hated TOA) in the end it really wasn't the same game I knew and loved (and my favorite server Mordred was long since dead) so I only stuck around about 4 or so months.

Now in the case of EVE, I was a little burned out, took a 6 months break, came back and am going strong.

Nothing about the game had really driven me off, so returning wasn't a problem.

Antarious

If you are tempted to go back... you should.   Nothing anyone says is really going to answer your question.   You will always wonder unless you go back.

 

Personally I've never really gone back to an MMO and enjoyed.   Which has more to do with the fact it changed and that's why I left to begin with.

 

Tho I guess when they launched the DAoC classic servers... I did go back and really enjoyed it.. until they took them away.   At which point I left and never looked back. 

 

However... you will never know what your experience would or will be.. until you try it.

DarLorkar

Umm the main question you need to answer, is were you social in the game? IE: were you in an active guild and had lots of friends? Or a soloer?

 

If you had lots of people to play with and talk to and go back to an empty game, then most likely you wont be there long alone.

 

Lot of the good times people had in games back a few years ago were tied up with the peple they played with. So, kinda the rose colored glasses you mentioned when they try to go back alone or try to make new friends in games that are low numbers and mostly maxxed characters running around.

Loke666

I have been taking long breaks from Guildwars, the longest over a year and it is always fun to go back to it (I have other stuff to play as well).

But generally it is often a dissapointment.

Doesn't hurt to try though.

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arieste

for me, it really depends on what the game was doing for me...

 

i went back to LoTRO years after buying it when the F2P model came out.  i knew that LoTRO had a really great immersive world for soloing through and partaking in story, so i went back for it and i got exactly what i wanted.

 

i've tried going back to AoC a few times, but just couldnt, because ultimately the reason i left (too much pvp-focus) was still very much there...

 

EQ2 i left and came back a couple of times over the years.  Again, the reason i play EQ2 is for great grouping and raiding and that's always there, so if i leave, i know that i can find that when i get back.

helthros

Isn't that the name for one of the best DJ Shadow songs?

Palebane

The only real pleasant experiences I had was chatting with old friends and revisiting some of my favorite haunts. The content was just too different for me to really get along with. Just not the same anymore.

Scrogdog

I think the OP hit the nail on the head with the title.

You can never go home.

Even if I play the EQ progression server.  Even if SWG was re-released in a pre-CU condition, it would not be the place that I remember.

pierth

Thanks again for all the input, I've been away from EQ1 since '02 and CoH since late '04. One of the things on my mind is that older games probably don't draw the new crowd like new MMORPGs do, and that may be a way to escape the community pitfalls I find.

 

The other choice is to pick up another F2P. I already have my PvP fix in FPS so I'm not too worried about missing out on that, however I do enjoy it so perhaps I may give AoC a go. Despite having sub time left Rift is just  boring to me at 50 and I'd like to have some good times gaming before fall semester begins. I'm a very much pro-grouping person but I tend not to bother in games that don't encourage it- TBH I don't really want to play games that don't encourage grouping which is another reason I look back to older games instead of newer ones.

AlBQuirky

I think I see your conundrum, Pierth. You view the old game in a certain nostalgic way, like your first love. If you go back and the change is dramatically for the worst, your memory of it will be tainted.

EQ1 was my first MMO. I have thought about going back every now and then (it's been 8 or 9 years since I last played) but have resisted the urge. I don't want to spoil the memory I have of it

MMOExposed

Originally posted by TdogSkal

This might or might not help you.

My Roommate and I both stopped playing EQ1 over 2 years ago, both decided to give it another go a few months ago.

He is still playing and loving it.  I stopped again after a few weeks because I felt like I just did not know what was going on in game anymore and was not having fun playing "catch" up.

same here. In WoW I left, and by time I came back, I was in a different gear tier, both PvP and PvE.

 

PvE was boring, I like PvP, and there was no way for me to catch up with PvPers in BG, since I didnt have real life friends to Arena with. it was impossible, so I left and came back for CAT, and leveled to max and quit again

AIMonster

Going back to MMOs is a healthy practice.  As mentioned here already you'll remember why you left in the first place so you won't get caught up in nostaligia and become a bitter person wanting newer MMOs to cater to the old glory days as you remember them.

It also helps to remember what made those MMOs so much fun too.  I went back and played various MMOs myself:  Everquest, FFXI, Guild Wars, World of Warcraft, and Age of Conan.  All of those a got a bit more enjoyment out of, but it helped remind me why I like the genre and the little improvements made over the years that I think a lot of people don't realize unless they go back and play their old MMOs again.

It's silly how many posts there are on these forums that complain why more MMOs can't be like whatever old school MMO they played in the past, when that MMO they tout so highly is still available to subscribe to and play.

jpnz

You definitely can not. I was 'asked' in a very 'normal manner' (uhh.. what's this Cata box sitting on my desk? And why does it have a WoW time card in it?) by a few of my RL friends to go back to WoW.

While I wouldn't say it wasn't 'fun' I just didn't have the focus to play all that much. I feel my time in WoW is past and look forward to some different games like PO/EVE/LoL.

Palebane

Originally posted by Magnum2103

Going back to MMOs is a healthy practice.  As mentioned here already you'll remember why you left in the first place so you won't get caught up in nostaligia and become a bitter person wanting newer MMOs to cater to the old glory days as you remember them.

It also helps to remember what made those MMOs so much fun too.  I went back and played various MMOs myself:  Everquest, FFXI, Guild Wars, World of Warcraft, and Age of Conan.  All of those a got a bit more enjoyment out of, but it helped remind me why I like the genre and the little improvements made over the years that I think a lot of people don't realize unless they go back and play their old MMOs again.

It's silly how many posts there are on these forums that complain why more MMOs can't be like whatever old school MMO they played in the past, when that MMO they tout so highly is still available to subscribe to and play.

You can't go back to those games and experience them the same way because the gameplay mechanics have changed so much in most cases. The old school gameplay does not exist, even if you can still pay for the games and play them. It's the same reason you hear players wanting Vanilla WoW. Saying it's just nostalgia is a huge cop-out. Just because you do not enjoy that type of game anymore is no reason to say that because other people do still want a taste of it that they are just being nogstalgic. It's not simply nostalgia, its completely different gameplay.