You can try the stress test, but you are not supposed to talk about the game itself if you do. There is the NDA involved. I am in the stress test right now. But I will not post my thoughts about the game, good or bad.
I was really looking forward to D&D:Online. But I recently tried the stress test, and to keep this post short, the game is terrible. Not one thing about the game is actually "fun". The way they implemented the D&D experience into this game makes it completely boring and pointless. I managed to keep the game installed for about 6 hours...which is pretty incredible considering how bad it is.
Once again...I have been let down. I hope Dark and Light doesnt turn out to be trash as well
*EDIT* Oh, and the quests... are extremely pointless. This game probably has the worst questing experience I have ever been subjected to. I know you all will probably just think im some flamer whining, but I really was looking forward to this game, I thought it would be pretty good. Once you guys play the game, you'll see for yourselves.
After playing the stress test, I have to agree with the OP. OK game, ten times better than GW, yet no where near being an mmorpg. Dungeons are a bit boring, GAME is too DARK, I hate the combat, and I seriously see no need to pay a monthly fee. Ahh well, so much for this overhyped game(just like GW) hopefully MEO will satisfy what I want.
I share the same opinion as the OP. I have always said GW wasnt a mmorpg and was more like Diablo. heh.. a network multiplayer game. When I heard DDO was going to use the same idea.. I said "well thats another game i'm not buying". and sure as heck wouldnt pay monthly for a network game. I wont even buy GW..
BTW Tabula Rasa I believe is heavy instanced too. *checks that game off my list* Lord British should know better! shame on him.
Ah let em cry they show they are not true d&ders hell d&d was introduced before 99% of us where even born.I think the game is gonna rock instanced or not instanced hell let the crybabys bicker about it .Just means less annoying people ingame.
Instancing has little to do with good or bad... It's the decisions that goes with them and how well the game is actually made...
Without Instancing:
- You can't have real ambushes
- There would be thousands of players spamming attacks on the boss
- Hardly any tactics would exist
- Enemies tend to be just fluttering about
- etc...
With Instancing:
- Depends on the amount of instancing which may affect immersion
- (That's about all I can think of... problems associated with Instancing usually can be resolved)
Anyways, as for DDO being instanced... It makes sense for DDO to be instanced... How much other MMORPGs allow the players to sneak/hide? How many other games has ambushes without instancing? etc...
As for the choices taken for DDO by the devs... Well, it's not looking very bright for me...
Well, I played the Stress Test, and I am not afraid to voice my opinion.
You can't have a MMORPG without "massively". I tried to play this game for about 10 hours. This game offers nothing to this old D&D player. By the way, I am 41 years old, and have been playing D&D for years. This game does not hold true to D&D at all.
More importantly, it is not a MMORPG. You simply can't have that many instances and expert to maintain any kind of immersion level.
This game will sell a lot of copies, but I fear that not many will play it past the 30 days they initially receive.
Simply put, if you love Everquest 2, you will most likely enjoy D&D Online. I don't really see that much in common with Guild Wars . . . as Guild Wars has an extremely low level cap (20) and lots of PvP.
People who have played real MMORPG's in the past will be bitterly disappointed. People who have never played a MMO and are D&D fans will also likely enjoy this game for a while.
i thought it sucked... but then again i didn't like guild wars either, nor am i a fan of instancing. but for those people out there that love instancing and wouldn't mind paying a sub for guild wars set in d&d universe it's for you.
btw- i agree ddo is not a mmorpg... think the same with gw. doesn't feel like one and the instancing kills the community feeling you have in games like wow, eq2 etc.
Originally posted by Kelsonmac Well, I played the Stress Test, and I am not afraid to voice my opinion.You can't have a MMORPG without "massively". I tried to play this game for about 10 hours. This game offers nothing to this old D&D player. By the way, I am 41 years old, and have been playing D&D for years. This game does not hold true to D&D at all. More importantly, it is not a MMORPG. You simply can't have that many instances and expert to maintain any kind of immersion level. This game will sell a lot of copies, but I fear that not many will play it past the 30 days they initially receive. Simply put, if you love Everquest 2, you will most likely enjoy D&D Online. I don't really see that much in common with Guild Wars . . . as Guild Wars has an extremely low level cap (20) and lots of PvP. People who have played real MMORPG's in the past will be bitterly disappointed. People who have never played a MMO and are D&D fans will also likely enjoy this game for a while.
I agree with your post almost completely. The thing I don't understand about the devs is what niche they are building the game for? It's not for the vast majority of MMORPG fans, the game is lacking far to many elements to be a competitive current generation MMORPG. It doesn't even have appeal for the vast majority of PnP DnD fans, based on the opinions I have seen from many DnDers who have tried the stress test. It's not a game that would appeal to Guild Wars players, not even a game that would have appeal for Diablo Players. Not for solo RPG fans, since the game takes major steps to make soloing even to level 2 nearly impossible. What the heck niche are they targeting?
The game play in quests reminds me most of an action/adventure game in the image of Tomb Raider, but the RPG stats part of the game is too complex and confusing for the adventure gaming market.
The MMO part is pretty useless with eveything, including city streets, shops, taverns etc... being instanced. The game is definitely not a viable MMORPG and for PnP DnD fans, Neverwinter Nights 2 looks a hundred times more promising and has some very nice net play features.
I think Turbine has totally lost it's compass, AC2 is shutting down and DDO looks to be a bigger disaster than AC2. Doesn't give me much hope for LotR Online, which is a real shame.
hell yeah.. i always go into a dragons nest and find 500 new freinds lined up in there. or woah 300 people running around like chickens in the dark forest screaming and shouting. where is the realism in such things. i like the idea that in ddo you go to tavern to meet freinds or in the city. who the hell go to a monster infested place to find freinds in real life? :P
Originally posted by Kelsonmac Well, I played the Stress Test, and I am not afraid to voice my opinion.You can't have a MMORPG without "massively". I tried to play this game for about 10 hours. This game offers nothing to this old D&D player. By the way, I am 41 years old, and have been playing D&D for years. This game does not hold true to D&D at all. More importantly, it is not a MMORPG. You simply can't have that many instances and expert to maintain any kind of immersion level. This game will sell a lot of copies, but I fear that not many will play it past the 30 days they initially receive. Simply put, if you love Everquest 2, you will most likely enjoy D&D Online. I don't really see that much in common with Guild Wars . . . as Guild Wars has an extremely low level cap (20) and lots of PvP. People who have played real MMORPG's in the past will be bitterly disappointed. People who have never played a MMO and are D&D fans will also likely enjoy this game for a while.
I agree, almost completely.
I've played D&D (still do) for more than 20 years now, and have played all of the CRPG's that have spawned from it... good and bad. Especially bad, because that's unfortunately how most of them have really turned out.
I will say that I DID like EQ2 a great deal for a period of time, but this does nothing for me. It does remind me of Guild Wars, that also did nothing for me once I ran a few missions; no incentive to do more quests, no incentive to repeat the ones you've already done, and so on.
It's very pretty unless things are moving and you see the astoundingly craptacular animations they provided. It was definitely boring, though, with a feeling more like "click this, click that, go there, click that, kill this, collect xp" than exploring and adventuring. The problems aren't so much with the idea, but with the design... clumsy and clunky, something that I think is a signature of Turbine anymore.
Not abysmal, just cripplingly mediocre and lifeless to the point of making me wonder if it was intended to be.
Originally posted by LordDarkmist A game with traps, obstacles, challenge... Why does the devs advocate static? static doesn't work with traps,obstacles,challenge,etc especially when there's repeatables... I want dynamic damn it... Dynamic!!!
Yeah this is one thing I hope they change eventually. Would be wonderful to see random placement of traps and such.
I have been totally hyped for this game, but this very thing is the one specific thing I was fearing. Static quests is a no-buy for me most probably. Dynamic = 100x the replayability compared to static. If the quests truly are purely static, in my humble opinion, that's nothing short of completely stupid...
But in every other aspect, I welcome them doing something out of the cookie-cutter norm.
"(The) Iraqi people owe the American people a huge debt of gratitude." - George W Bush. Oh. My. God.
If you want DnD gameplay, just buy the diamond set of Neverwinter Nights, all the expansions, tons of mods are out, and you can have 32 people on a server I believe. The best part is, it has everything DnD:O has and its free online! Not to mention the players can create their own worlds. Neverwinter Nights > DnD online.
Originally posted by Havoc11 If you want DnD gameplay, just buy the diamond set of Neverwinter Nights, all the expansions, tons of mods are out, and you can have 32 people on a server I believe. The best part is, it has everything DnD:O has and its free online! Not to mention the players can create their own worlds. Neverwinter Nights > DnD online. Link to NWN:D http://www.ebgames.com/ebx/product/259021.asp Also NWN2 is coming out soon, keep an eye out.
Neverwinter night is 1 of the 2 D&D computer product I never buy because they betray D&D too much and didn't offer me much of what I expect, I rather replay BG again than waste my time in NWN as far as my taste are concerned.
DDO is doing every mistake Neverwinter Night does + many others.
The other D&D product I never buy is Dragonshard, but that is simply because I am allergic to real-time strategy and a fan of GBT, however Dragonshard seem to be a very nice game, just not for me and not for many D&D fans.
Instancing is a blessing however, I dunno what folks complaining are complaining about, the limit of 1k players per server is a curse, a very nasty curse, but instancing itself is a blessing.
- "If I understand you well, you are telling me until next time. " - Ren
Originally posted by bakakaka hell yeah.. i always go into a dragons nest and find 500 new freinds lined up in there. or woah 300 people running around like chickens in the dark forest screaming and shouting. where is the realism in such things. i like the idea that in ddo you go to tavern to meet freinds or in the city. who the hell go to a monster infested place to find freinds in real life? :P
How about going to a bar to meet friends? Seems like a monster infested place...
Originally posted by Havoc11 If you want DnD gameplay, just buy the diamond set of Neverwinter Nights, all the expansions, tons of mods are out, and you can have 32 people on a server I believe. The best part is, it has everything DnD:O has and its free online! Not to mention the players can create their own worlds. Neverwinter Nights > DnD online. Link to NWN:D http://www.ebgames.com/ebx/product/259021.asp Also NWN2 is coming out soon, keep an eye out.
Neverwinter night is 1 of the 2 D&D computer product I never buy because they betray D&D too much and didn't offer me much of what I expect, I rather replay BG again than waste my time in NWN as far as my taste are concerned.
DDO is doing every mistake Neverwinter Night does + many others.
The other D&D product I never buy is Dragonshard, but that is simply because I am allergic to real-time strategy and a fan of GBT, however Dragonshard seem to be a very nice game, just not for me and not for many D&D fans.
Instancing is a blessing however, I dunno what folks complaining are complaining about, the limit of 1k players per server is a curse, a very nasty curse, but instancing itself is a blessing.
Betray D&D? How so? They are using a ruleset of D&D(Forget which, D20 or something), I don't think they changed any of the rules. Unless you think D&D games should be turned based and slow, then ya, it isn't.
I have to agree Never Winter Nights is the better game..even with its long outdated game engine. What I always loved about NWN was its so open ended with plenty of servers around for every style of gameplay.
DDO should have went that route, lots of different types of servers (pvp , RP , RPpvp , pve , hardcore etc).
In the end what will keep me away is the instancing and the piss poor XP/quest system. No way id pay for Guild Wars v2.0 with a DND tag.
Right from the start I have to tell you, I like D&D, and I like this game.
Now here's how I see things. In game mechanics terms this game will be nothing new, afterall as it has been stated many times before, it is based on a 30 year old game. Honestly speaking however, from an MMO point of view, what is being attempted here is completely new. When I first heard about the instancing, XP/dungeon system, I really got scared....I mean could this be the fate of my most beloved game? It only occurred to me when I played the Stress Test, that I was indeed mistaking. They decided to try and stick to the rules, instancing was a must, and they knew this brought a serious issue: drafting a team. So what they made, was a real wasy-to-use group finder system, by far better than any I've seen before, so good, that it never took me more than 5 minutes to find a team for myself, or form one, and this was on level 3, where most peaople were already taken. They were real clever on this one.
About combat: It is different. Now i played a lot of WoW, and i got bored of summon pet, attack, whatch, damn!, RUN! then run screaming for help for 2 miles until two friendly orc bystanders kill the pack of hounds, before finishing me off. Seriously, this combat is tactical, it is very important that you time every spell and every skill. Also you have to pay great attention to your teammates, that is what the game is based upon. I played as a cleric, and It was engaging, it wasn't just boring click, and wait for what is about to happen thing, it actually captivated me. We played most dungeons on hard, and one mistake was enough to kill the team, so everyone had to play his specific role, not anything else. This game offers more role-play during combat than any other out there. There is no mana and health regen, which adds to the tactical nature of the combat.
For a conclusion I say give this game a chance, they hardly believed Einstein's theories were correct for a long time after it's disclosement, maybe the case is similar.
ergg, it is very annoying that half of this thread is about DDO, and the other half is a split between all the games its being compared to. DDO is not Guildwars, despite the ONE similarity you people can't get out of your heads. It isnt WoW or any other game either, its just DDO, a brand new and innovative way of taking a decades old PnP game to our PCs. Please treat it as such.
If you think DDO is going to be a terrible game because YOU didnt like GW, thats just a stupid attitude. Clearly the people who say and think things like this are only interested in playing mindless clones of old greats. Because thats the way they are treating every game that comes out. Its annoying.
Originally posted by Ogrebum ergg, it is very annoying that half of this thread is about DDO, and the other half is a split between all the games its being compared to. DDO is not Guildwars, despite the ONE similarity you people can't get out of your heads. It isnt WoW or any other game either, its just DDO, a brand new and innovative way of taking a decades old PnP game to our PCs. Please treat it as such. If you think DDO is going to be a terrible game because YOU didnt like GW, thats just a stupid attitude. Clearly the people who say and think things like this are only interested in playing mindless clones of old greats. Because thats the way they are treating every game that comes out. Its annoying.
Brand New and Innovative? Please explain your reasons for that statement.
Originally posted by Ogrebum ergg, it is very annoying that half of this thread is about DDO, and the other half is a split between all the games its being compared to. DDO is not Guildwars, despite the ONE similarity you people can't get out of your heads. It isnt WoW or any other game either, its just DDO, a brand new and innovative way of taking a decades old PnP game to our PCs. Please treat it as such.
There is nothing new or innovative being down with DDO that hasn't been done before. You may not have seen the combat system in an MMO but there are hundreds of games that are just like it.
Combat system aside, the game feels like City of Heroes. Nothing but instanced combat, oh and the really, really fun smashing crates to get loot
Alright OP, so you're saying everyone should avoid DDO because you played guild wars for 5 months and didn't make any friends? There's some forum logic for ya.
I can tell you that its not impossible to meet people and make friends in DDO, in fact, its easy. I've played both stress tests and have met some interesting characters who I plan to play with at release. You claim that "due to heavy instancing ... impossible to meet other people and form new friendships", but its pretty obvious you haven't even tried. You base you entire argument on your experience in guild wars, which is hilarious, to say the least.
And then there's your assumption that dungeons won't be 10% as good as baldur's gate dungeons, based no doubt on pure speculation. I can tell you that the dungeons I've seen are impressive and just as good, if not better than anything any current MMORPG can offer in terms of fun, gameplay, graphics, and D&D feel.
Its pretty obvious from your other comments that you think the sprawling, sparsley decorated outdoor environments in WoW (which are populated by instances of the same couple monsters) somehow cater to roleplaying and meeting people.
When you get down to it, the meet of the WoW game is in the INSTANCES. 90% of the time you play WoW you're cut off from the rest of the server in your own copy of a dungeon, which you will no doubt have to grind 30+ times to get all your items.
You also ASSUME that NO D&D fans are looking for action oriented combat, which is just rediculous. Maybe you can speak for your circle of friends, but I can tell you personally as a PnP player that this style of combat is refreshing, interesting, and above all exciting. The same can hardly be said of the sleep inducing combat style of WoW and other EVERQUEST CLONES. I think most fans of PnP D&D would agree if they actually tried it instead of just reading the assumptions of a jaded WoW player posted as flame bait on MMORPG.com.
You based your entire post on your half ass assumptions, made a bunch of weak claims based on hearsay, and for what purpose? What grudge do you have against this game you haven't given a chance?
People like you should stick to bashing games they know at the very least, if not fuck off completely.
If I may answer your question instead, then like I have previously stated, from a game mechanics point of view the game is nothing less of a good, stable D&D ruleset based game, but if we choose to analyze it from an MMO point of view. it is innovative and daring, I simply blame fear for so many gamer's opinions about the game, they are afraid of something which is out of the ordinary and risky, such as DDO, but only with great risk can great goals be achieved!
Comments
You can try the stress test, but you are not supposed to talk about the game itself if you do. There is the NDA involved. I am in the stress test right now. But I will not post my thoughts about the game, good or bad.
I was really looking forward to D&D:Online. But I recently tried the stress test, and to keep this post short, the game is terrible. Not one thing about the game is actually "fun". The way they implemented the D&D experience into this game makes it completely boring and pointless. I managed to keep the game installed for about 6 hours...which is pretty incredible considering how bad it is.
Once again...I have been let down. I hope Dark and Light doesnt turn out to be trash as well
*EDIT* Oh, and the quests... are extremely pointless. This game probably has the worst questing experience I have ever been subjected to. I know you all will probably just think im some flamer whining, but I really was looking forward to this game, I thought it would be pretty good. Once you guys play the game, you'll see for yourselves.
After playing the stress test, I have to agree with the OP. OK game, ten times better than GW, yet no where near being an mmorpg. Dungeons are a bit boring, GAME is too DARK, I hate the combat, and I seriously see no need to pay a monthly fee. Ahh well, so much for this overhyped game(just like GW) hopefully MEO will satisfy what I want.
I share the same opinion as the OP. I have always said GW wasnt a mmorpg and was more like Diablo. heh.. a network multiplayer game. When I heard DDO was going to use the same idea.. I said "well thats another game i'm not buying". and sure as heck wouldnt pay monthly for a network game. I wont even buy GW..
BTW Tabula Rasa I believe is heavy instanced too. *checks that game off my list* Lord British should know better! shame on him.
---
Xen of Onslaught
1. Limited instancing can be good -- I think Blizz did a GREAT job in that area. SOE did a horrible job in that area.
2. I pay $15 a month for imersion and wonderng what copy of a town my mate is in is no good.
3. Hurry up Brad - its all on you now.
Instancing has little to do with good or bad... It's the decisions that goes with them and how well the game is actually made...
Without Instancing:
- You can't have real ambushes
- There would be thousands of players spamming attacks on the boss
- Hardly any tactics would exist
- Enemies tend to be just fluttering about
- etc...
With Instancing:
- Depends on the amount of instancing which may affect immersion
- (That's about all I can think of... problems associated with Instancing usually can be resolved)
Anyways, as for DDO being instanced... It makes sense for DDO to be instanced... How much other MMORPGs allow the players to sneak/hide? How many other games has ambushes without instancing? etc...
As for the choices taken for DDO by the devs... Well, it's not looking very bright for me...
Well, I played the Stress Test, and I am not afraid to voice my opinion.
You can't have a MMORPG without "massively". I tried to play this game for about 10 hours. This game offers nothing to this old D&D player. By the way, I am 41 years old, and have been playing D&D for years. This game does not hold true to D&D at all.
More importantly, it is not a MMORPG. You simply can't have that many instances and expert to maintain any kind of immersion level.
This game will sell a lot of copies, but I fear that not many will play it past the 30 days they initially receive.
Simply put, if you love Everquest 2, you will most likely enjoy D&D Online. I don't really see that much in common with Guild Wars . . . as Guild Wars has an extremely low level cap (20) and lots of PvP.
People who have played real MMORPG's in the past will be bitterly disappointed. People who have never played a MMO and are D&D fans will also likely enjoy this game for a while.
http://aion.24-hrgaming.net
well said Rattrap!
i thought it sucked... but then again i didn't like guild wars either, nor am i a fan of instancing. but for those people out there that love instancing and wouldn't mind paying a sub for guild wars set in d&d universe it's for you.
btw- i agree ddo is not a mmorpg... think the same with gw. doesn't feel like one and the instancing kills the community feeling you have in games like wow, eq2 etc.
I agree with your post almost completely. The thing I don't understand about the devs is what niche they are building the game for? It's not for the vast majority of MMORPG fans, the game is lacking far to many elements to be a competitive current generation MMORPG. It doesn't even have appeal for the vast majority of PnP DnD fans, based on the opinions I have seen from many DnDers who have tried the stress test. It's not a game that would appeal to Guild Wars players, not even a game that would have appeal for Diablo Players. Not for solo RPG fans, since the game takes major steps to make soloing even to level 2 nearly impossible. What the heck niche are they targeting?
The game play in quests reminds me most of an action/adventure game in the image of Tomb Raider, but the RPG stats part of the game is too complex and confusing for the adventure gaming market.
The MMO part is pretty useless with eveything, including city streets, shops, taverns etc... being instanced. The game is definitely not a viable MMORPG and for PnP DnD fans, Neverwinter Nights 2 looks a hundred times more promising and has some very nice net play features.
I think Turbine has totally lost it's compass, AC2 is shutting down and DDO looks to be a bigger disaster than AC2. Doesn't give me much hope for LotR Online, which is a real shame.
Want to know more about GW2 and why there is so much buzz? Start here: Guild Wars 2 Mass Info for the Uninitiated
hell yeah.. i always go into a dragons nest and find 500 new freinds lined up in there. or woah 300 people running around like chickens in the dark forest screaming and shouting. where is the realism in such things. i like the idea that in ddo you go to tavern to meet freinds or in the city. who the hell go to a monster infested place to find freinds in real life? :P
I agree, almost completely.
I've played D&D (still do) for more than 20 years now, and have played all of the CRPG's that have spawned from it... good and bad. Especially bad, because that's unfortunately how most of them have really turned out.
I will say that I DID like EQ2 a great deal for a period of time, but this does nothing for me. It does remind me of Guild Wars, that also did nothing for me once I ran a few missions; no incentive to do more quests, no incentive to repeat the ones you've already done, and so on.
It's very pretty unless things are moving and you see the astoundingly craptacular animations they provided. It was definitely boring, though, with a feeling more like "click this, click that, go there, click that, kill this, collect xp" than exploring and adventuring. The problems aren't so much with the idea, but with the design... clumsy and clunky, something that I think is a signature of Turbine anymore.
Not abysmal, just cripplingly mediocre and lifeless to the point of making me wonder if it was intended to be.
I have been totally hyped for this game, but this very thing is the one specific thing I was fearing.
Static quests is a no-buy for me most probably.
Dynamic = 100x the replayability compared to static. If the quests truly are purely static, in my humble opinion, that's nothing short of completely stupid...
But in every other aspect, I welcome them doing something out of the cookie-cutter norm.
"(The) Iraqi people owe the American people a huge debt of gratitude." - George W Bush.
Oh. My. God.
If you want DnD gameplay, just buy the diamond set of Neverwinter Nights, all the expansions, tons of mods are out, and you can have 32 people on a server I believe. The best part is, it has everything DnD:O has and its free online! Not to mention the players can create their own worlds. Neverwinter Nights > DnD online.
Link to NWN:D http://www.ebgames.com/ebx/product/259021.asp
Also NWN2 is coming out soon, keep an eye out.
lol
lol on you all
lol
Neverwinter night is 1 of the 2 D&D computer product I never buy because they betray D&D too much and didn't offer me much of what I expect, I rather replay BG again than waste my time in NWN as far as my taste are concerned.
DDO is doing every mistake Neverwinter Night does + many others.
The other D&D product I never buy is Dragonshard, but that is simply because I am allergic to real-time strategy and a fan of GBT, however Dragonshard seem to be a very nice game, just not for me and not for many D&D fans.
Instancing is a blessing however, I dunno what folks complaining are complaining about, the limit of 1k players per server is a curse, a very nasty curse, but instancing itself is a blessing.
- "If I understand you well, you are telling me until next time. " - Ren
Neverwinter night is 1 of the 2 D&D computer product I never buy because they betray D&D too much and didn't offer me much of what I expect, I rather replay BG again than waste my time in NWN as far as my taste are concerned.
DDO is doing every mistake Neverwinter Night does + many others.
The other D&D product I never buy is Dragonshard, but that is simply because I am allergic to real-time strategy and a fan of GBT, however Dragonshard seem to be a very nice game, just not for me and not for many D&D fans.
Instancing is a blessing however, I dunno what folks complaining are complaining about, the limit of 1k players per server is a curse, a very nasty curse, but instancing itself is a blessing.
Betray D&D? How so? They are using a ruleset of D&D(Forget which, D20 or something), I don't think they changed any of the rules. Unless you think D&D games should be turned based and slow, then ya, it isn't.
I have to agree Never Winter Nights is the better game..even with its long outdated game engine. What I always loved about NWN was its so open ended with plenty of servers around for every style of gameplay.
DDO should have went that route, lots of different types of servers (pvp , RP , RPpvp , pve , hardcore etc).
In the end what will keep me away is the instancing and the piss poor XP/quest system. No way id pay for Guild Wars v2.0 with a DND tag.
Right from the start I have to tell you, I like D&D, and I like this game.
Now here's how I see things. In game mechanics terms this game will be nothing new, afterall as it has been stated many times before, it is based on a 30 year old game. Honestly speaking however, from an MMO point of view, what is being attempted here is completely new. When I first heard about the instancing, XP/dungeon system, I really got scared....I mean could this be the fate of my most beloved game? It only occurred to me when I played the Stress Test, that I was indeed mistaking. They decided to try and stick to the rules, instancing was a must, and they knew this brought a serious issue: drafting a team. So what they made, was a real wasy-to-use group finder system, by far better than any I've seen before, so good, that it never took me more than 5 minutes to find a team for myself, or form one, and this was on level 3, where most peaople were already taken. They were real clever on this one.
About combat: It is different. Now i played a lot of WoW, and i got bored of summon pet, attack, whatch, damn!, RUN! then run screaming for help for 2 miles until two friendly orc bystanders kill the pack of hounds, before finishing me off. Seriously, this combat is tactical, it is very important that you time every spell and every skill. Also you have to pay great attention to your teammates, that is what the game is based upon. I played as a cleric, and It was engaging, it wasn't just boring click, and wait for what is about to happen thing, it actually captivated me. We played most dungeons on hard, and one mistake was enough to kill the team, so everyone had to play his specific role, not anything else. This game offers more role-play during combat than any other out there. There is no mana and health regen, which adds to the tactical nature of the combat.
For a conclusion I say give this game a chance, they hardly believed Einstein's theories were correct for a long time after it's disclosement, maybe the case is similar.
ergg, it is very annoying that half of this thread is about DDO, and the other half is a split between all the games its being compared to. DDO is not Guildwars, despite the ONE similarity you people can't get out of your heads. It isnt WoW or any other game either, its just DDO, a brand new and innovative way of taking a decades old PnP game to our PCs. Please treat it as such.
If you think DDO is going to be a terrible game because YOU didnt like GW, thats just a stupid attitude. Clearly the people who say and think things like this are only interested in playing mindless clones of old greats. Because thats the way they are treating every game that comes out. Its annoying.
Brand New and Innovative? Please explain your reasons for that statement.
There is nothing new or innovative being down with DDO that hasn't been done before. You may not have seen the combat system in an MMO but there are hundreds of games that are just like it.
Combat system aside, the game feels like City of Heroes. Nothing but instanced combat, oh and the really, really fun smashing crates to get loot
Alright OP, so you're saying everyone should avoid DDO because you
played guild wars for 5 months and didn't make any friends? There's some
forum logic for ya.
I can tell you that its not impossible to meet people and make friends
in DDO, in fact, its easy. I've played both stress tests and have met
some interesting characters who I plan to play with at release. You
claim that "due to heavy instancing ... impossible to meet other people
and form new friendships", but its pretty obvious you haven't even
tried. You base you entire argument on your experience in guild wars,
which is hilarious, to say the least.
And then there's your assumption that dungeons won't be 10% as good as
baldur's gate dungeons, based no doubt on pure speculation. I can tell
you that the dungeons I've seen are impressive and just as good, if not
better than anything any current MMORPG can offer in terms of fun,
gameplay, graphics, and D&D feel.
Its pretty obvious from your other comments that you think the
sprawling, sparsley decorated outdoor environments in WoW (which are
populated by instances of the same couple monsters) somehow cater to
roleplaying and meeting people.
When you get down to it, the meet of the WoW game is in the INSTANCES.
90% of the time you play WoW you're cut off from the rest of the server
in your own copy of a dungeon, which you will no doubt have to grind 30+
times to get all your items.
You also ASSUME that NO D&D fans are looking for action oriented combat,
which is just rediculous. Maybe you can speak for your circle of
friends, but I can tell you personally as a PnP player that this style
of combat is refreshing, interesting, and above all exciting. The same
can hardly be said of the sleep inducing combat style of WoW and other
EVERQUEST CLONES. I think most fans of PnP D&D would agree if they
actually tried it instead of just reading the assumptions of a jaded WoW
player posted as flame bait on MMORPG.com.
You based your entire post on your half ass assumptions, made a bunch of
weak claims based on hearsay, and for what purpose? What grudge do you
have against this game you haven't given a chance?
People like you should stick to bashing games they know at the very
least, if not fuck off completely.