Howdy, Stranger!
It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!
Quick Links
DDO's Targetted Audience
nthnaoun
Member Posts: 1,438
DDO was designed to target the pnp audience. The pnp audience were a small group of friends, hence group play in DDO. The pnp audience played at most a few times a week, hence the limited content at launch. This game is 20 hours or less a week casual friendly. The only game targetted to that audience in the MMO genre. So it is my opinion that they deserve their own MMO without people complaining about it all the time.
DDO devs plan to add content and updates at a pace that will satisfy the above targetted audience. In other words if you decide to play this game in a way that it wasn't designed, then you have no reason to complain. All this was laid out for people to see before the game goes live. I don't see the point in complaining about it.
So to you newcomers that are wandering if this game is for you, well I offer the above two paragraphs as a truthful answer to that question. For all the complainers and the rest of the people that have something negative to say about this game, it was all revealed to you before you decided to give it a try. They are offering everything they said they would. There is no reason to complain over that. This game gets an A+ from me for fullfilling the needs of who their targetted audience is and not worrying about the audience who they are not targetting. I'm really sorry if your not part of that audience, but I assure you that there are many MMO's out there that do target you and many more soon on the way that you will like...or find something to complain about.
Comments
Tell me, if all that you say is true, then WHY is there so much repetitive content, even to the point where different quests have in some cases identical (and in many others, very similar) look and design. Could you EVER imagine a "LIVE" GM preparing the SAME dungeon for his group of players, just because he couldn't be bothered designing a new one? And, if he did, how long would those players stay playing with that GM?
I don't know mate, but I smell blood in the water...the diehard DDO fans are already scared that there'll be no one to play this game with them in 2 months or so, and are desperately trying to convince newcomers to dismiss the valid problems brought up by those that have actually PLAYED the game, so that they'll still plonk their money down and provide some sort of continuing community to play with.
(For DDOers I hope that it does succeed, but I really think it doesn't deserve to! It's time we taught all these dodgy MMO companies that trying to push unfinished stuff on the community is WRONG and we should vote with our wallets, or more precisely, by witholding our wallets.)
Well, all I can say is by your logic, the game is targeted at me. And I certainly didn't find it overly enjoyable. Matter of fact, I found it so lacking that I've cancelled my preorder.
I think this game will have a market and be successful. But by the same token, when you take a game license as iconic as D&D and make it a niche game, expect alot of complaints. It will not come close to being a smashing commercial success like WoW. But after the dust settles it should be able to have over 250k subscriptions which should give turbine plenty of revenue to support the game with plenty of staff.
To stay true to D&D is really tough to do in the MMORPG field. I really want to see how this game evolves after 6 months and what direction it takes.
I think at first there will be alot of unhappy gamers that buy this thinking that this will be a much better version of WoW. For some reason alot of people who play WoW are looking for a better game to flock to. When they realize that DDO is completely different they either love it or hate it. After the first few months DDO should settle in nicely and have a very good solid community. I think in many ways it will brain drain alot of the current WoW subscriber base just on community alone. This game should appeal to the older, casual gamer that is looking for a game to play as a hobby and not as a nightly grind to compete with other players. I posted before that this is the exact demographic that SOE seemed to not want when they revamped Galaxies. In my opinion this demographic will be key for DDO's success, as they are more patient and tend to keep their accounts subbed even when not actively playing.
I'd just bought WoW and was looking forward to getting stuck in (I'd just cancelled EQ2 and fancied a change, WoW was highly reccommended). I'd been enjoying WoW for about a week when my DDO beta key arrived. I haven't touched WoW since then.
For a start, I didn't start enjoying WoW until I'd turned off the local chat channel, and this was on a so called RP server.
Therefore, I guess that I'm one of the people that DDO is aimed at.
Apologies, I may have not made myself clear before. I mentioned that I may be the sort of person that DDO is aimed at, which is why I'm enjoying it so much. First thing I did was find a guild of like minded players (mature players from the UK who have RL commitments that can take precedence) and never looked back.
Taking time through the dungeons, enjoying the atmosphere and roleplaying. There really is no pressure to reach the next level like in other MMO's, the reward is in the group gaming.
There's no chance of DDO failing and it will probably pick up some virgin MMO players because of it's style. As long as the content is updated, the community will be happy.
It took me a few months to reach the level cap of CoV (and great fun it was too). However, the missions were repetetive from the off and had little replay value. I've played some of the longer dungeons in DDO and still enjoyed them.
Aircool
I tend to agree with nthnaoun. My roots are PnP, but I still enjoy the current online gaming goodness.
For me, it will boil down to what I wanna do when planning my gaming evening or weekend.
If my co-workers start talking excitedly about running a 20 man instance (or 40 with the help of another guild), I'll most likely head to Azeroth and start blasting away with my hunter. AQ is opening on our server Friday night!! AQ20 here we come.
But if I'm looking to group with a few old high school buddies (back in Texas, sniffles), I'll venture into Eberron and run a couple quests. Nothing overly long, but something challenging with a sense of accomplishment at the end.
IMO, it's a good time to be a gamer. Lots of choices, just pick what suits your play style.
Does it really matter if Turbine has "officially" said this? And I'm speaking in regards to casual players.
If a group of friends plan on questing less than 20 hours a week, I think it's appearent (from the content I've seen in beta) they'll be able to quest without getting bored.
For the hardcore types who will spend everyday in DDO, it most likely will turn into a repetitive grind. I think those types of players have a right to complain, but as in all things - buyer beware. I'd also like to make the point that repetitive grind isn't new. All mmorpgs have it. Some gamers just have more of a stomach for it.
Does it really matter if Turbine has "officially" said this? And I'm speaking in regards to casual players.
If a group of friends plan on questing less than 20 hours a week, I think it's appearent (from the content I've seen in beta) they'll be able to quest without getting bored.
For the hardcore types who will spend everyday in DDO, it most likely will turn into a repetitive grind. I think those types of players have a right to complain, but as in all things - buyer beware. I'd also like to make the point that repetitive grind isn't new. All mmorpgs have it. Some gamers just have more of a stomach for it.
Yes it does really matter... Your original post stated...
DDO was designed to target the pnp audience. The pnp audience were a small group of friends, hence group play in DDO. The pnp audience played at most a few times a week, hence the limited content at launch. This game is 20 hours or less a week casual friendly. The only game targetted to that audience in the MMO genre. So it is my opinion that they deserve their own MMO without people complaining about it all the time.
So you are saying that this is what Turbine is aiming at. I doubt very much that this was what Turbine was aiming at. The PnP player...Yes... But I doubt that turbine was aiming at a player who would only play a few times a week. And for only a couple of hours.
You said that this was the target audience, I dissagree.
So, basically what you're saying is that you are in the same situation as I was after I played for 2 or 3 days in the stress test. I've said it before...I loved the game after playing it for those 2 or 3 days! It was only after playing it for 2 weeks (in the Euro Beta) that I came to the opinion I have now. All I can say is in retail, when you realize after 2 weeks how limited the game is, you'll be kicking yourself that you didn't listen to the kind people here at MMORPG.com (like myself) who try to warn others not to waste their money on an inferior game.
Plus, where'd you get the idea that I flame most games I play mate? There's only ONE game that I have really spoken out against on here and that's EVE (and even that, I've acknowledged the good points of it). With DDO I haven't flamed it either, all I've said is that the developers have lazily underproduced it. I've also said at other times that I've really enjoyed playing it, which I have. As for my supposed flaming of MOST games I've played, well that's just garbage. I think Guild Wars, WoW & EQ2 which are the 3 games I've played most are all very good, well produced and content-rich, and haven't hesitated to say it. I save my so-called flaming (or what I call constructive criticism) for games that deserve it, like DDO. Just as I said in another thread, one-eyed DDO fans seem to want to demonize those who don't like it into rabid flaming anti-fanbois. But this is just not the case! Particularly with me.
Plus your original post is wrong anyway. Turbine has NEVER said that they aimed it at casual players, in fact they justified their move of making the 10 levels into 50 (adding the 4 mid-level enhancements or "advancement moments") by saying that people playing it for hours on end would have the game last longer. Unfortunately they DIDN'T BACK THESE EXTENDED LEVELS UP with CONTENT!! Just think when they expand the levels to 20, each level requires much more xp to reach. They'll find it very difficult IMHO to keep up with the content required to get from level 10 to level 20, and if levels 1 to 10 are any indication, they'll just stick in repetitive stuff and expect the players to repeat most of the missions 3 to 5 times each.
If the only way you can defend your game is by targetting the detractors, you're in deep trouble. Try giving us some reasons why the game is good. Or maybe try answering the point I made in my first post in this thread.
I believe the game was designed for those that like the design of the game. PnP experience doesn't mean you're going to prefer instancing or be cognizant of the fact that it's an MMO and every mission isn't built with "my" character in mind. In other words, it's not going to be PERFECT and no MMO is ever going to win the heart of every MMO gamer. Some people expect 3.5 rules no variant. Others allow for a certain amount of variant but may or may not feel that Turbine went over their threshold. Still, others may just be happy playing a game that is based off a game they very much enjoyed and can separate themselves from too high of expectations and enjoy what they have.
Me, I'm easily entertained but also easily distracted. I go for the shiny thing and right now DDO is the shiny thing. Who knows how long it will last and how long I'll enjoy it. But I know I really had a good time in beta and pre-order and I expect to have that much fun tomorrow and all weekend. It's more fun than I would have had if I were still playing WoW -- that's not a jab at WoW either.
so...
Does it really matter if Turbine has "officially" said this? And I'm speaking in regards to casual players.
If a group of friends plan on questing less than 20 hours a week, I think it's appearent (from the content I've seen in beta) they'll be able to quest without getting bored.
For the hardcore types who will spend everyday in DDO, it most likely will turn into a repetitive grind. I think those types of players have a right to complain, but as in all things - buyer beware. I'd also like to make the point that repetitive grind isn't new. All mmorpgs have it. Some gamers just have more of a stomach for it.
Yes it does really matter... Your original post stated...
DDO was designed to target the pnp audience. The pnp audience were a small group of friends, hence group play in DDO. The pnp audience played at most a few times a week, hence the limited content at launch. This game is 20 hours or less a week casual friendly. The only game targetted to that audience in the MMO genre. So it is my opinion that they deserve their own MMO without people complaining about it all the time.
So you are saying that this is what Turbine is aiming at. I doubt very much that this was what Turbine was aiming at. The PnP player...Yes... But I doubt that turbine was aiming at a player who would only play a few times a week. And for only a couple of hours.
You said that this was the target audience, I dissagree.
I think a better way of looking at it is this. Turbine is not targeting players that like to play 20+ hours a week in a mmorpg with DDO. If they were, they would have made the world much bigger with much more content. Im guessing the typical WoW player that plays 20+ hours a week will not be impressed with DDO after playing it a month. They will have pretty much max lvld a couple of chars by then and not have much else to do. Nothing wrong with either playstyle but Turbine doesn't have that kind of budget like Blizzard does do make that kind of game. They Turbine devs have stated that directly that there are plenty of other games that offer that kind of entertainment and they will not be doing that with DDO. It will be more focused on casual players enjoying the ride vs power gamers trying to reach the end as quick as possible. 6 months after launch we will be able to see if they are able to satisfy their core audience.
Actually, I didn't make the original post. I commented on your comments of the post.
My point was that I didn't think it mattered to casual gamers. Regardless of what Turbine says, the game in it's current state will fit well into the play style of a group of casual PnP'ers.
To be honest, who gives a toss really. I was in beta, I've pre-ordered the game and, like every other game I buy, I'll play it until I'm bored or find something new to play. My desk and shelves are piled high with games, some have been played extensively whereas some have been played very little. Each time though I've had fun playing the game. Even if I get no more than 20 hours play out of a game, as long as I've enjoyed it, it's been worth it. CoD2 for example. I can't stand the single player game (I though shooters on rails were a thing of the past) and the multiplayer has even less to it than the original CoD with the expansion. Still, I can get a couple of hours of fun a week out of it, and probably will do for at least 12 months.
Computer gaming has got to be one of the cheapest forms of entertainment. Compare it to going to the movies or even hiring a DVD, you get an awful lot of fun time for the amount of cash you pay.
If DDO gets boring and runs out of content after I've played it for 2 months, then at least I've had 2 months of fun out of it. Anyway, Oblivion looks like a corker so I'll need time to play that at sometime.
Actually, to be honest, I never really expect to be still playing a game a few months after I've bought it.
At the moment, DDO is my thing, just like Planetside was 2 years ago and EVE before that. I'm sure by the time I'm bored of DDO, there'll be something else for me to get stuck into.
Aircool
I just can't bring myself to pay a monthly fee as high as the top mmos out there for DDO (which has such tiny amounts of content).
Well the target audience I assume is also a more mature one, old PnP players and not only DnD PnP but a lot of other PnP games thare have a lot in common with DnD.
Most of the people in that audience are people with jobs and a steady income and a 40-50$ payout to try something and decide for themself is not all that big of a deal.
If I can get more then 30-40 hours of play out of it then it still beats most SP games on the market, if it lasts me longer then another 15$ a month is hardly that expensive, that is one movie or a couple of beers tops, and this once a month, even if I were in a tight spot I could forego thoose things for a lot more entertainment per hour per dollar then any of thoose other things.
And until someone else makes a DD online there will be no real alternative, comparing it with GW and thus arguing no monthly fee is mooth, they are extremely different games with really only one thing in common, the instancing.
That hardly make them clones.
WoW and GW are much much more alike if you want to compare.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Originally posted by Jerek_
I wonder if you honestly even believe what you type, or if you live in a made up world of facts.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The PnP target audience is not specifically enjoying ACTION games.
Do not be lured by false promise, this is Sonic ultra mega adventure a LOT more than D&D PnP in any form.
- "If I understand you well, you are telling me until next time. " - Ren
This game will be a hit.
Finally, a MMO for the casual. Get a group of good pal (a guild preferably) and do some dungeons. It's fun, challenging and somewhat tactical.
The dungeons are similar because we haven't leave town yet ? so we still have to fight in sewers ?
i donno... i'm just lvl 2.
eqnext.wikia.com
NWN2 will provide a more satisifying experience for the true pnp'er.
small party of friends? check
customized content? check
no monthly fee? check