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Questions about DAoC
linuxgamer
Member Posts: 126
I am looking for something to play until Warhammer is out. I am going to try the DAoC demo again, but it will not give me enough time to answer these questions. I got bored with WoW and I am looking for a new game to play.
-Is DAoC mosly raid content after the highest level (similar to WoW post-60) ?
-Is there solo-able content at the highest level?
-Do you need to be a member of a large guild to get anything done at highest level?
-Is there PvE only servers or is everything PvP?
-What do solo players do when they hit the highest level?
-Is DAoC mosly raid content after the highest level (similar to WoW post-60) ?
-Is there solo-able content at the highest level?
-Do you need to be a member of a large guild to get anything done at highest level?
-Is there PvE only servers or is everything PvP?
-What do solo players do when they hit the highest level?
Comments
1. Not unless you want there to be, it is mostly PvP.
2. Yes and no, if you're a stealth class you solo RvR, you can do quests, explore the game, ect; alone though, PvP and most things are grouping though.
3. Nope, but it certainly helps.
4. Co-op servers are PvE only, but i've never played on one.
5. Farm, explore (beleive me it is enjoyable), sometimes PvP.
Why do you care so much about solo play?....mmorpgs are about playing with actual people.
Grouping is nice on occasion, but the 40 man Raids in WoW became a grind fest and the game lost its appeal it had pre-60.
There are many more aspects to an MMORPG that I enjoy and grouping is not at the top of that list, but other people being in the game gives me that feel of realism you cannot get in a single player game.
Discussion of solo in MMORPG comes up again and again and the usual question is, why play a social game solo?
I think the OP did a good job of explaining what is likeable about solo play in MMORPGs here. Basically, there are no other game worlds like them in scope and depth and evolving worlds. And there are no games like them, which are populated with other real people throughout the virtual world.
It is in fact, very fun to be in this space while enjoying the solo game and that is why so many players ask for this in MMORPGs. The most successful games today listen to this large group of players and deliver the goods.
The question is a very valid one. I myself enjoy playing solo in a world filled with other real people playing vs being in a world populated by npcs alone, in which you truly are alone. No amount of imagination ever gets you past that fact in a game such as say, Oblivion even as good as it is for what it is.
Personally, I do enjoy playing with others a lot and I like raiding too, but on a sane schedule now as I like to have some kind of real life outside of my love of gaming on the PC and in particular, in MMOs. I like all three kinds of play and I believe a good MMO should offer them all with no compromises for any group of players. In other words, don't let me get to the end game and force me to raid or leave, ala WoW as it stands today.
It sounds to me like ToA forced raiding and high playtimes to remain competitive in RvR upon players when it came out and as a group, the majority seems to have soundly rejected that and I don't blame them. Therefore, I went classic server. I have read they toned that down a lot and that is good but I'd guess it is too little too late to make people want to revisit ToA now.
I don't understand why MMORPG developers as a whole do not get the idea it seems, that the enormous and largely untapped market for MMO players is comprised of what I will for lack of a better term call "normal people" who have active real lives outside of virtual worlds and cannot give enormous amounts of time to them. Filling these games with endless timesinks, etc. as EQ say, is famous for (EverCamp) is what turns this huge potential market of players off and away. At this point, it is not rocket science to see that the next generation of games that will be most successful needs to give players what they are asking for namely:
Solid PvE and PvP play without requiring enormous amounts of raiding to compete.
Progression at a pace that is reasonable for those with real lives and also permits people to enjoy playing multiple classes over time and have all of thier toons actually get somewhere in the game.
Good quest systems and support for all three kinds of play: solo, group and raid and this needs to persist all the way to the end game for a given character.
Those I think are they key points. Lastly, a crafting system that is engaging, actually fun to do and not tedious and most importantly, yields satisfying returns on effort from the start. I believe a good crafting system should all those who put time into becomiing master artisans to craft gear and weapons that compete favorably with the best in the game. Why not? Why not let players be able to craft the best level gear and sell it to others, particularly say, those who don't have time to raid but would love high quality upgrades to enhance thier solo adventuring experience and give them something to work for in a way that works for them.
In other words, I see no problem allowing people to farm, etc. and earn high quality gear that allows them to compete with people who have the time and enjoy raiding to get similar level gear. Doing this does not diminish the accomplishments of those who like to raid, but it does give an alternative route for those who cannot raid, will not raid or simply do not like to raid. It also makes crafting a whole lot more worthwhile and fun if the end result of working one's way to mastery is being able to make items commensurate with the effort it took to get there.
I began a trial of DAoC too and to the OP, so far I would have to tell you: go for it. This game has a nice community of players I think, at least the ones I have met here certainly have been so far and better still ingame when I began and had some noob questions on Gareth server, the response was a warm and very helpful one. You can't ask for better than that particularly in such a great game as this with three entire worlds within one world, arguably the best pvp of any MMORPG created to date, and a solo friendly world from all I have read thus far.
I know I have just begun here, but so far I am very impressed with DAoC and today ended my last EQ acct and I played that game for nearly 5 years so I have at least some basis for making a judgement about games of this sort. I've played Asherson's Call (my first one and I loved it back in the day), Asheron's Call 2, Anarchy Online, Planetside (don't laugh!), The Matrix Online (don't sneer!), EverQuest II (pretty, pretty disappointing too), D&D Online Stormreach (lots of potential not realized, hope they fix it), Final Fantasy (not my cup of tea at all) and I forget what else now. Having seen all of those however, I like what I see so far in DAoC more.
I would like to try WoW just to see what all the fuss is about but I have a real hard time getting by the lore and cartoony toons. I know Blizzard crafts good games and I have read about the many things they have gotten right in WoW but I'm not sure I could get past my revulsion for the world the game takes place in.
Sorry to have wander off topic at length there but the whole why play solo question got me to thinking about what these games need to provide a fun experience for everyone. It does not need to be a cookie cutter thing where you fit some mold to fit in. It can easily be many things to many people, moreso than it already is today.
He who hesitates is lost.