If by the golden age you mean we will see an MMO on CNN, that will only happen if they make more money than playstation, XBox and apple. How they make that money is up to us and what we buy in to.
When I first started to play MMOs I had an AMD K6-2 450 MHz PC with a 64 mg graphics card and 256 Ram, a 6 GB Hard drive. Now I have a 3000 MHz dual core computer with 1024 Mhz graphics, 8X as much Ram and 1500 times as much hard drive. Have games improved that much? Not even close. We can render real people on a TV, been doing it for 50 years but we can't render animations.
Eventually there will be a break through in how we render and process video game information that isn't related to the more, more, more power plan and when that happens we will be in a 'golden age' of video game.
I don't live in America so i don't really understand the significance of an MMO being on CNN but over in Britain World of Warcraft has been on talk shows and on BBC news, which is national television. Not only that but as you know WoW has been in all sorts of pop culture like South Park, and just about everyone, even people who don't play WoW know about Leeroy Jenkins. Granted its only one game, but its introduced people to an aspect of gaming that they didn't realize was so big. I believe Star Wars TOR is going to do the same.
Originally posted by dreamsofwar With many games turning to a F2P model and seeing an increase in their player base and profits and the much discussed and eagerly anticipated launch of Star Wars: The Old Republic do you think we will see a new era for the genre?...Or with any luck, the theme park dominated market may encourage developers to bring us a solid sandbox that some of us have been waiting for?
Yes, the major trend is F2P model but SWTOR simply cannot launch as F2P, it would not pay off.
You got it the other way round, I think.
If there is a strong market trend in 'themeparks', it will encourage developers to bring us a solid 'themepark' MMO - and that is exactly what happened with SWTOR.
With many games turning to a F2P model and seeing an increase in their player base and profits and the much discussed and eagerly anticipated launch of Star Wars: The Old Republic do you think we will see a new era for the genre?
...
Or with any luck, the theme park dominated market may encourage developers to bring us a solid sandbox that some of us have been waiting for?
Yes, the major trend is F2P model but SWTOR simply cannot launch as F2P, it would not pay off.
You got it the other way round, I think.
If there is a strong market trend in 'themeparks', it will encourage developers to bring us a solid 'themepark' MMO - and that is exactly what happened with SWTOR.
I agree that it wouldn't, but many people consider TOR worth paying for. The difference between TOR and games that have gone F2P is that until they went F2P they were not considered by many people beyond their small player base. What the F2P model has done is bring more people to the genre which i think will have a positive impact.
Originally posted by dreamsofwar I agree that it wouldn't, but many people consider TOR worth paying for. The difference between TOR and games that have gone F2P is that until they went F2P they were not considered by many people beyond their small player base. What the F2P model has done is bring more people to the genre which i think will have a positive impact.
F2P focus on getting audience as large as possible while making very low profits per playing customer.
If you wanted to generate revenue that would be needed to pay off for budget spent on SWTOR, you would need unrealistically high player base.
Will SWTOR go F2P at some point? Probably.
It's all business and money. My bet is that they will pay off their development just from pre-orders.
The game is absolutely fantastic and perfectly hitting what players, the market want. For most developers it is very hard to compete with WoW directly because Blizzard got years to develop their game. EA and BioWare made it - they made a game that at release contains what most games need years to develop into.
I hate to say it, but I think if SW:TOR was successful it would bring about the opposite of a Golden Age for the MMO industry. While it is in no way a bad game, it's not exactly teeming with innovation. I think we are at a point where World of Warcraft brought in as many mainstream gamers as is likely ever going to be brought in by a single MMO, and we're seeing a drop off in subscription numbers because even these mainstream gamers are starting to clamor for something truely unique. SW:TOR will do well, but I'm actually betting against it and hoping it doesn't do as well as other titles in the next year. Sorry Bioware, I love your games, but I just don't think you are going in the right direction with this one.
It's definitely looking like the Golden Age of MMOs could be coming soon, but not because of the F2P trend or SW:TOR. In the next year or two there is a decent selection of innovative titles coming on the market. Guild Wars 2, The Secret World, Archeage, TERA, Firefall, Defiance, Planetside 2, EQ Next, etc.; while all these are titles aren't heavy on sandbox elements we haven't such diverse options in years and almost all these titles at least have the potential to be hits whether they are cult or mainstream.
Guild Wars 2 has the most potential in my opinion. The main reason is that they are shying away from the sub based model. A lot of people simply aren't willing to pay for a subscription to a MMO, especially if they are already currently subscribed to another MMO they enjoy.
The Secret World I'm a little worried about. Like most Funcom games there are a lot of really fantastic ideas right now. I was really excited about this game when I first heard about it. My excitement is lessening though as they seem to be making mistakes already and we all know Funcom's track record. I feel Funcom has great ideas, but poor execution. Will definitely be keeping an idea on the title. If Funcom can get it right it's going to be a huge hit and a very unique title.
Archeage and TERA may not see a lot of popularity here in the West; however Archeage offering a good mix of old school sandbox elements with some modern themepark questing mixed in might generate a bit of interest and there is a blend of mechanics here that really hasn't been done in any other MMO before. Of course we have TERA's combat system bringing in a more action RPG oriented feeling to the MMO genre.
EQ Next promises to bring back that old school EQ feeling, for those longing for the good ole days of MMOs. I'm also hoping Sony can deliver on this without making it too unforgiving like EQ was, but at the same time maintaining all the great mechanics that I feel have been lost over the decade in the sea of WoW clones.
And then we have games like Firefall, Defiance, Planetside 2... which aren't MMORPGs, but can be great MMO titles. I'm betting at least one of them will be a success. It's definitely an untapped market there as only Planetside managed to grab a few and we haven't seen a AAA title attempt blending MMO with any other genre in a long time.
There are also a few wildcards out there that I feel haven't released enough information that they'll probably wind up being a 2014 or later release anyway. A few I didn't mention here like Blade and Soul, World of Darkness Online, and Copernicus for example.
I can't see how anyone can't be hopeful. We really haven't had this variety of solid (AAA) innovative (being the keyword here) titles coming soon ever in the genre.
Originally posted by Magnum2103 we're seeing a drop off in subscription numbers because even these mainstream gamers are starting to clamor for something truely unique
There really is no popular sandbox options out there (other than EVE)
There hasn't been anything new or exciting created recently (unless you count a 'billing model' as new)
SW:TOR (I'm almost certain) will be labeled a flop; it falls well short of most people's expectations
Perhaps I'm just saying this because I'm not interested in any MMO right now...GW2 couldn't come soon enough!
I wouldn't say SW:TOR will flop because what other option do Star WArs fans and KOTOR fans have? SWG didn't shut down for nothing.
Now, if you look at satisifying gamers as being a flop, then yes, maybe. But if you're talking about satisfying SW fans, then that's a guaranteed non-failure. Some people will pay 15/month for a good story that you can interact with.
we're seeing a drop off in subscription numbers because even these mainstream gamers are starting to clamor for something truely unique
Source? Proof? Reasoning?
Compare console multiplayer numbers over the last 3 years, vs the MMO population. Plus there's plenty of information about most played PC titles. World of Warcraft often topped the list, but the only other MMO to really show up has been LotRO. FPS and adventure games have risen while MMO subs over all have declined.
On top of that look at the games closing.
I used to play MMOs like you, but then I took an arrow to the knee.
With many games turning to a F2P model and seeing an increase in their player base and profits and the much discussed and eagerly anticipated launch of Star Wars: The Old Republic do you think we will see a new era for the genre?
Hear me out, if F2P models are earning more for companies it gives them a chance to increase the quality of their content, if Star Wars is highly successful it may also inspire a new generation of high quality MMO's. Also, with World of Warcraft releasing its newest expansion next year Blizzard may be forced to increase the quality of their content depending on the success of Biowares venture into the genre in order to keep their large player base and majority share in the market.
Or with any luck, the theme park dominated market may encourage developers to bring us a solid sandbox that some of us have been waiting for?
First of all, what do you consider to be the old 'Golden Age' of MMOs? Some people see it as '00-'04. Some people see it as '05-whenever. Some see it as the late '90's...
Wikipedia breaks it down into three "generations" so to speak - First, Second, Current. Basically '90's, '00-'04, and '05 onward.
Personally, I tend to go with '00-'04...though, I suppose it does come down to definition of 'Golden Age' as well as when it took place...
...that being said:
It appears that the core of your discussion is in regard to "quality of content" in MMORPGs. So at some point, you believe it was better than now. You're wondering if current and upcoming changes could bring about a change in that quality so that it returns to a time of quality.
I dislike the Freemium/F2P model. I should get that out of the way. My personal dislike has no bearing on my thoughts on the possibility of increased quality of content. Though, some may disagree with that as I say this: while it may increase the quantity of content, that does not mean there will be any increase in quality.
To be honest, I have mixed feelings on the quality of the content in SWTOR. No doubt the interactive scenes are awesome. Yet, after you spend that short amount of time doing those...you basically run off and do the standard content you see in any other game. So perhaps it may increase the quality of interaction with quest givers, it's not really doing anything about actual content.
If you feel that the quality of content was better at some point than it is now, I'm afraid that you're going to be looking back on those days as the 'Golden Age'... with the change in the MMORPG market/playerbase, I can only see the quality of content staying the same or getting worse.
I miss the MMORPG genre. Will a developer ever make one again?
Archeage and TERA may not see a lot of popularity here in the West; however Archeage offering a good mix of old school sandbox elements with some modern themepark questing mixed in might generate a bit of interest and there is a blend of mechanics here that really hasn't been done in any other MMO before. Of course we have TERA's combat system bringing in a more action RPG oriented feeling to the MMO genre.
.
I plan to get Tera just for the eye candy assuming they don't gut it like a fish first. Either way I know better than to put it up on a pedastal like some are trying to do with SW-TOR. Painting it as the second coming can only lead to unrealistic expactations. SWG immediately after the NGE launched was also a crosshair target game but it didnt have a snowballs chance in hell because of the whole NGE effect and an auto attack was added within a week. Tera isn't the same because the specials in Tera were made to suit the target system but I will be leveling to see specials animations and skimpy armors and that's something I haven't done in a long, long time in video games. It's been 5 years of min maxing and grinding levels for end game. I look forward to simpler days. Level 3 Ice specials in FF7 or the Odin attack with 3D barbie dolls? I'll take it, thanks.
I think it's hard to say what is a "Golden Age" until some time has passed and you are able to look back at it and assess it. There certainly are some exciting MMO's hitting the stage lately like SWTOR, FireFall, and Planetside 2. However, we won't be able to see how the next round of MMO's compare to other generations until a generation or 2 later. Part of what makes an MMO great is its longevity.
Originally posted by PukeBucket You want one solid number without looking at all the numbers? You're part of that +/- % in most statistics. It's all relevant because the population of gamers isn't a very dynamic number oddly enough. It grows, but it has a solid exponential.
Again, you are missing the topic.
Read the post I was replying to in order to comprehend what is being discussed there.
Yea. It feels like MMO genre freeze in place. Themepark dominates the market and set the pace for other games.
2012 might bring a fresh elements, but it still will a lot of well know old stuff.
I can name Tera for example, since I played it on koreans server I would say it has evolved combat from a standard 1-2-3 face roll in themeparks to dynamic and unpredictable experience.
TSW brings levelless experience.I'm not in beta, but I hope they deliver that mechanic. Many of us PvPers would love to skip all that level PvE grind just to be able to participate in PvP.
GW2 with dynamic events. Thats something WAR and then Rift tried to deliver. Hopefully ArenaNet get this right, so we can enjoy as large or small team and not bunch of Soloers.
"Don't argue with dick-heads, they will drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience"
I see the opposite. I certainly see a transformation in the landscape of the MMO genre, but it's not a shift that I like. What I see is death of the truly epic, deep and community based MMO. I doubt we'll ever see anything as great as EQ1 or Vanguard again and that the amusement park, linear MMO will become the norm
Why? Because it's more profitable.
See the picture below? That was after our Vanguard guild built our guild hall after several weeks of combined effort through adventuring, diplomacy and crafting. It was/is an epic game that has the best community I've ever seen in an MMO.
Sometimes I think the next quality MMO is going to be 2D and on our phones. The budgets for the AAA MMORPGs on PC are just so high now that nobody is willing to take a risk and make a sandbox.
That is a shame because a polished AAA sandbox would get a lot of players.
And still could on a phone.
Platform doesn't really detract.
A lot of players are waiting for that ".hack" world where the players build pretty much everything. We just want some quality behind it.
But we're seeing it's easier to make an oil painting than a marble statue is all.
I agree 100%, but I really want to see some decent graphics too, it doesn't hurt. And phone games bug me... Too many limits to the touch screen.
I appreciate boojiboy's comments about Vanguard. What a great example of a game that was overlooked despite being amazing... In a lot of ways the players are to blame. We've let the coorporations dictate which games are popular by giving into their marketing. And we ignore games that are even 6 months-1 year old because we'd rather look at the newest MMOs.
The only mistake VG made was not having a bigger budget- It released somewhat early and had very little marketing. That should not spell doom for a MMO... Being the same, linear, unauthentic, cookie-cutter MMO SHOULD SPELL DOOM for a game... But instead we reward these MMOs and punish ones that make small mistakes like VG has.
That is why I would never buy a game like Rift or SWTOR. These developers do not deserve my money or yours.
I hate to say it, but I think if SW:TOR was successful it would bring about the opposite of a Golden Age for the MMO industry. While it is in no way a bad game, it's not exactly teeming with innovation. I think we are at a point where World of Warcraft brought in as many mainstream gamers as is likely ever going to be brought in by a single MMO, and we're seeing a drop off in subscription numbers because even these mainstream gamers are starting to clamor for something truely unique. SW:TOR will do well, but I'm actually betting against it and hoping it doesn't do as well as other titles in the next year. Sorry Bioware, I love your games, but I just don't think you are going in the right direction with this one.
It's definitely looking like the Golden Age of MMOs could be coming soon, but not because of the F2P trend or SW:TOR. In the next year or two there is a decent selection of innovative titles coming on the market. Guild Wars 2, The Secret World, Archeage, TERA, Firefall, Defiance, Planetside 2, EQ Next, etc.; while all these are titles aren't heavy on sandbox elements we haven't such diverse options in years and almost all these titles at least have the potential to be hits whether they are cult or mainstream.
Guild Wars 2 has the most potential in my opinion. The main reason is that they are shying away from the sub based model. A lot of people simply aren't willing to pay for a subscription to a MMO, especially if they are already currently subscribed to another MMO they enjoy.
The Secret World I'm a little worried about. Like most Funcom games there are a lot of really fantastic ideas right now. I was really excited about this game when I first heard about it. My excitement is lessening though as they seem to be making mistakes already and we all know Funcom's track record. I feel Funcom has great ideas, but poor execution. Will definitely be keeping an idea on the title. If Funcom can get it right it's going to be a huge hit and a very unique title.
Archeage and TERA may not see a lot of popularity here in the West; however Archeage offering a good mix of old school sandbox elements with some modern themepark questing mixed in might generate a bit of interest and there is a blend of mechanics here that really hasn't been done in any other MMO before. Of course we have TERA's combat system bringing in a more action RPG oriented feeling to the MMO genre.
EQ Next promises to bring back that old school EQ feeling, for those longing for the good ole days of MMOs. I'm also hoping Sony can deliver on this without making it too unforgiving like EQ was, but at the same time maintaining all the great mechanics that I feel have been lost over the decade in the sea of WoW clones.
And then we have games like Firefall, Defiance, Planetside 2... which aren't MMORPGs, but can be great MMO titles. I'm betting at least one of them will be a success. It's definitely an untapped market there as only Planetside managed to grab a few and we haven't seen a AAA title attempt blending MMO with any other genre in a long time.
There are also a few wildcards out there that I feel haven't released enough information that they'll probably wind up being a 2014 or later release anyway. A few I didn't mention here like Blade and Soul, World of Darkness Online, and Copernicus for example.
I can't see how anyone can't be hopeful. We really haven't had this variety of solid (AAA) innovative (being the keyword here) titles coming soon ever in the genre.
This is a great read!
I just want to add that I don't think we've had that many solid titles released, but I think we have seen times when that many were 'coming soon'. The problem is that not all of them ended up coming... And that is probably the case here too. I am sure a lot of these titles will be cancelled.
I see the opposite. I certainly see a transformation in the landscape of the MMO genre, but it's not a shift that I like. What I see is death of the truly epic, deep and community based MMO. I doubt we'll ever see anything as great as EQ1 or Vanguard again and that the amusement park, linear MMO will become the norm
Why? Because it's more profitable.
See the picture below? That was after our Vanguard guild built our guild hall after several weeks of combined effort through adventuring, diplomacy and crafting. It was/is an epic game that has the best community I've ever seen in an MMO.
What is Vanguard like these days? I am currently looking for an MMO that i can call home, and for that to happen i need to find a community. I was playing LOTRO in Summer but i find the classes and combat do not appeal to me.
Comments
I don't live in America so i don't really understand the significance of an MMO being on CNN but over in Britain World of Warcraft has been on talk shows and on BBC news, which is national television. Not only that but as you know WoW has been in all sorts of pop culture like South Park, and just about everyone, even people who don't play WoW know about Leeroy Jenkins. Granted its only one game, but its introduced people to an aspect of gaming that they didn't realize was so big. I believe Star Wars TOR is going to do the same.
Golden Age of MMO's?
MMO's - yes possibly
MMORPG's - not really - imo there will be decline here in medium-term.
Yes, the major trend is F2P model but SWTOR simply cannot launch as F2P, it would not pay off.
You got it the other way round, I think.
If there is a strong market trend in 'themeparks', it will encourage developers to bring us a solid 'themepark' MMO - and that is exactly what happened with SWTOR.
I agree that it wouldn't, but many people consider TOR worth paying for. The difference between TOR and games that have gone F2P is that until they went F2P they were not considered by many people beyond their small player base. What the F2P model has done is bring more people to the genre which i think will have a positive impact.
F2P focus on getting audience as large as possible while making very low profits per playing customer.
If you wanted to generate revenue that would be needed to pay off for budget spent on SWTOR, you would need unrealistically high player base.
Will SWTOR go F2P at some point? Probably.
It's all business and money. My bet is that they will pay off their development just from pre-orders.
The game is absolutely fantastic and perfectly hitting what players, the market want. For most developers it is very hard to compete with WoW directly because Blizzard got years to develop their game. EA and BioWare made it - they made a game that at release contains what most games need years to develop into.
I hate to say it, but I think if SW:TOR was successful it would bring about the opposite of a Golden Age for the MMO industry. While it is in no way a bad game, it's not exactly teeming with innovation. I think we are at a point where World of Warcraft brought in as many mainstream gamers as is likely ever going to be brought in by a single MMO, and we're seeing a drop off in subscription numbers because even these mainstream gamers are starting to clamor for something truely unique. SW:TOR will do well, but I'm actually betting against it and hoping it doesn't do as well as other titles in the next year. Sorry Bioware, I love your games, but I just don't think you are going in the right direction with this one.
It's definitely looking like the Golden Age of MMOs could be coming soon, but not because of the F2P trend or SW:TOR. In the next year or two there is a decent selection of innovative titles coming on the market. Guild Wars 2, The Secret World, Archeage, TERA, Firefall, Defiance, Planetside 2, EQ Next, etc.; while all these are titles aren't heavy on sandbox elements we haven't such diverse options in years and almost all these titles at least have the potential to be hits whether they are cult or mainstream.
Guild Wars 2 has the most potential in my opinion. The main reason is that they are shying away from the sub based model. A lot of people simply aren't willing to pay for a subscription to a MMO, especially if they are already currently subscribed to another MMO they enjoy.
The Secret World I'm a little worried about. Like most Funcom games there are a lot of really fantastic ideas right now. I was really excited about this game when I first heard about it. My excitement is lessening though as they seem to be making mistakes already and we all know Funcom's track record. I feel Funcom has great ideas, but poor execution. Will definitely be keeping an idea on the title. If Funcom can get it right it's going to be a huge hit and a very unique title.
Archeage and TERA may not see a lot of popularity here in the West; however Archeage offering a good mix of old school sandbox elements with some modern themepark questing mixed in might generate a bit of interest and there is a blend of mechanics here that really hasn't been done in any other MMO before. Of course we have TERA's combat system bringing in a more action RPG oriented feeling to the MMO genre.
EQ Next promises to bring back that old school EQ feeling, for those longing for the good ole days of MMOs. I'm also hoping Sony can deliver on this without making it too unforgiving like EQ was, but at the same time maintaining all the great mechanics that I feel have been lost over the decade in the sea of WoW clones.
And then we have games like Firefall, Defiance, Planetside 2... which aren't MMORPGs, but can be great MMO titles. I'm betting at least one of them will be a success. It's definitely an untapped market there as only Planetside managed to grab a few and we haven't seen a AAA title attempt blending MMO with any other genre in a long time.
There are also a few wildcards out there that I feel haven't released enough information that they'll probably wind up being a 2014 or later release anyway. A few I didn't mention here like Blade and Soul, World of Darkness Online, and Copernicus for example.
I can't see how anyone can't be hopeful. We really haven't had this variety of solid (AAA) innovative (being the keyword here) titles coming soon ever in the genre.
Source? Proof? Reasoning?
I wouldn't say SW:TOR will flop because what other option do Star WArs fans and KOTOR fans have? SWG didn't shut down for nothing.
Now, if you look at satisifying gamers as being a flop, then yes, maybe. But if you're talking about satisfying SW fans, then that's a guaranteed non-failure. Some people will pay 15/month for a good story that you can interact with.
Compare console multiplayer numbers over the last 3 years, vs the MMO population. Plus there's plenty of information about most played PC titles. World of Warcraft often topped the list, but the only other MMO to really show up has been LotRO. FPS and adventure games have risen while MMO subs over all have declined.
On top of that look at the games closing.
I used to play MMOs like you, but then I took an arrow to the knee.
No, I won't because it is irrelevant. We are talking about people who have an interest into MMO, not those who do not...
First of all, what do you consider to be the old 'Golden Age' of MMOs? Some people see it as '00-'04. Some people see it as '05-whenever. Some see it as the late '90's...
Wikipedia breaks it down into three "generations" so to speak - First, Second, Current. Basically '90's, '00-'04, and '05 onward.
Personally, I tend to go with '00-'04...though, I suppose it does come down to definition of 'Golden Age' as well as when it took place...
...that being said:
It appears that the core of your discussion is in regard to "quality of content" in MMORPGs. So at some point, you believe it was better than now. You're wondering if current and upcoming changes could bring about a change in that quality so that it returns to a time of quality.
I dislike the Freemium/F2P model. I should get that out of the way. My personal dislike has no bearing on my thoughts on the possibility of increased quality of content. Though, some may disagree with that as I say this: while it may increase the quantity of content, that does not mean there will be any increase in quality.
To be honest, I have mixed feelings on the quality of the content in SWTOR. No doubt the interactive scenes are awesome. Yet, after you spend that short amount of time doing those...you basically run off and do the standard content you see in any other game. So perhaps it may increase the quality of interaction with quest givers, it's not really doing anything about actual content.
If you feel that the quality of content was better at some point than it is now, I'm afraid that you're going to be looking back on those days as the 'Golden Age'... with the change in the MMORPG market/playerbase, I can only see the quality of content staying the same or getting worse.
I miss the MMORPG genre. Will a developer ever make one again?
Explorer: 87%, Killer: 67%, Achiever: 27%, Socializer: 20%
You want one solid number without looking at all the numbers? You're part of that +/- % in most statistics.
It's all relevant because the population of gamers isn't a very dynamic number oddly enough. It grows, but it has a solid exponential.
I used to play MMOs like you, but then I took an arrow to the knee.
I plan to get Tera just for the eye candy assuming they don't gut it like a fish first. Either way I know better than to put it up on a pedastal like some are trying to do with SW-TOR. Painting it as the second coming can only lead to unrealistic expactations. SWG immediately after the NGE launched was also a crosshair target game but it didnt have a snowballs chance in hell because of the whole NGE effect and an auto attack was added within a week. Tera isn't the same because the specials in Tera were made to suit the target system but I will be leveling to see specials animations and skimpy armors and that's something I haven't done in a long, long time in video games. It's been 5 years of min maxing and grinding levels for end game. I look forward to simpler days. Level 3 Ice specials in FF7 or the Odin attack with 3D barbie dolls? I'll take it, thanks.
I think it's hard to say what is a "Golden Age" until some time has passed and you are able to look back at it and assess it. There certainly are some exciting MMO's hitting the stage lately like SWTOR, FireFall, and Planetside 2. However, we won't be able to see how the next round of MMO's compare to other generations until a generation or 2 later. Part of what makes an MMO great is its longevity.
Again, you are missing the topic.
Read the post I was replying to in order to comprehend what is being discussed there.
Yea. It feels like MMO genre freeze in place. Themepark dominates the market and set the pace for other games.
2012 might bring a fresh elements, but it still will a lot of well know old stuff.
I can name Tera for example, since I played it on koreans server I would say it has evolved combat from a standard 1-2-3 face roll in themeparks to dynamic and unpredictable experience.
TSW brings levelless experience.I'm not in beta, but I hope they deliver that mechanic. Many of us PvPers would love to skip all that level PvE grind just to be able to participate in PvP.
GW2 with dynamic events. Thats something WAR and then Rift tried to deliver. Hopefully ArenaNet get this right, so we can enjoy as large or small team and not bunch of Soloers.
"Don't argue with dick-heads, they will drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience"
I see the opposite. I certainly see a transformation in the landscape of the MMO genre, but it's not a shift that I like. What I see is death of the truly epic, deep and community based MMO. I doubt we'll ever see anything as great as EQ1 or Vanguard again and that the amusement park, linear MMO will become the norm
Why? Because it's more profitable.
See the picture below? That was after our Vanguard guild built our guild hall after several weeks of combined effort through adventuring, diplomacy and crafting. It was/is an epic game that has the best community I've ever seen in an MMO.
I agree 100%, but I really want to see some decent graphics too, it doesn't hurt. And phone games bug me... Too many limits to the touch screen.
Play as your fav retro characters: cnd-online.net. My site: www.lysle.net. Blog: creatingaworld.blogspot.com.
I appreciate boojiboy's comments about Vanguard. What a great example of a game that was overlooked despite being amazing... In a lot of ways the players are to blame. We've let the coorporations dictate which games are popular by giving into their marketing. And we ignore games that are even 6 months-1 year old because we'd rather look at the newest MMOs.
The only mistake VG made was not having a bigger budget- It released somewhat early and had very little marketing. That should not spell doom for a MMO... Being the same, linear, unauthentic, cookie-cutter MMO SHOULD SPELL DOOM for a game... But instead we reward these MMOs and punish ones that make small mistakes like VG has.
That is why I would never buy a game like Rift or SWTOR. These developers do not deserve my money or yours.
Play as your fav retro characters: cnd-online.net. My site: www.lysle.net. Blog: creatingaworld.blogspot.com.
This is a great read!
I just want to add that I don't think we've had that many solid titles released, but I think we have seen times when that many were 'coming soon'. The problem is that not all of them ended up coming... And that is probably the case here too. I am sure a lot of these titles will be cancelled.
Play as your fav retro characters: cnd-online.net. My site: www.lysle.net. Blog: creatingaworld.blogspot.com.
What is Vanguard like these days? I am currently looking for an MMO that i can call home, and for that to happen i need to find a community. I was playing LOTRO in Summer but i find the classes and combat do not appeal to me.