Howdy, Stranger!
It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!
Quick Links
MMORPG for casual family gamer ?
Tuneran
Member Posts: 2
Was wondering if there was (will be?) a MMORPG a casual gamer can play.
I was addicted to EQ until 6 months ago when Baby set an end to it all, now I try to treat my addition with non online games but ... it just lacks the fun of live players.
So finally was wondering about a casual gamer's MMORPG.
Guess that includes : ability to solo, ability to play without "hardcore" hours, game based on exploration/questing instead of raid/fight encounters etc ...
Any advice welcome :-)
Comments
Just about every new mmorpg (including EQ2) claims to cater to casual gamers, because they of course know there is a huge demographic to tap into who have the cashflow to pay for a subscription but not enough time to keep up with the hardcore players. Unfortunately the whole idea of casual gaming is anathema to a persistent world environment where you achieve goals and level primarily by "putting in time". I have yet to see a system which could allow a casual gamer to keep up, or even really mitigate the difference. If it happened, what would keep the hardcore players coming back ? One nice idea I have seen is a server dedicated to casual players ie max of 20 hours a week per character, I think this might been implemented but can't remember where. . .
Now that I read your last line though, looks like maybe you arent too concerned with levelling and more with solo, exploration, and questing ?
A fronte precipitium a tergo lupi
EQII
Requiiem, Templar
Neriak
The concept of having a casual MMO seems like a good one but, I don't think it would work because
1.) The game would have to easy to level which= no hardcore gamers.
2.) Without any hardcore gamers there would be no one to play with.
3.) It doesn't seem to me like MMOs have the big advertisment that other games have so there demograph of players is not large enough to NOT have hardcore gamers.
4.) I'll get back to you on 4 i need to think more.
You could keep an eye on a pretty new game. www.diverseempires.com
It's based a lot on exploration and quests. Devs are nice too, beta will be coming out soon.
Runesoul
--------------------------------------
This allot like saying. "I'd like to golf with the pro's, but I don't have the time to devolp the skills. What course should I play?".
The answer: Any course your willing to pay for.
The answer to your question: Any MMORPG you are willing to pay for.
MMORPG's are NOT made for "casual" gamers. (I haven't figured out what that means yet) MMORPG's are a hobby. Just like any hobby if you do not spend allot of time doing it, you won't be very good. Just like golf.
If you are willing to accept you won't be very good, then you can be happy in any game. Just as you can be happy playing golf and having a score that's 45 over par.
If you can not, then I suggest you play a number of wonderful games for the PS2 and GameCube.
-=-=-=-=-
Make no mistake, MMORPG's are not games, they are hobbies. If you have a job, you'll need to give up watching TV in order to play one. You'll be better off for it.
Bartle: A: 93% E: 55% S:3% K: 50% The Test. Learn what it means here.
-=-=-=-=-
Achievers realise that killers as a concept are necessary in order to make achievement meaningful and worthwhile (there being no way to "lose" the game if any fool can "win" just by plodding slowly unchallenged). -bartle
Bartle: A: 93% E: 55% S:3% K: 50% The Test. Learn what it means here.
I think DAOC can work for a casual gamer. I only play an hour or two a night. I can't keep up with the hard core gamers, but a casual gamer never will. You can log in for a few hours get something done, have fun and log out. The key is picking a class which can solo when groups are sparse. I cannot really compete in the high level PvP but there are low level battle grounds to play in.
However, DAOC is pretty matured (ie not a lot of new players)and I would wait for WOW and try it. WOW looks like it is aiming for casual gamers.
The day a game can cater to both the casual and hard core gamers as long term customers, the game will have achieved nirvana.
Take a look at A Tale In The Desert. bit different from most Theres no combat or fighting whatso ever. No levels or Grinding. You will b ebetter joining a Guild as you can use all the resources etc already in place without using your wown. Theres countless things to do such as breeding beetles for exotic patterns and colourings , its very good family entertainment and good fun.
In the upcoming ultima x, the devs say that they will try to make the game as casual gamer as possible. http://ultimax.ogaming.com/content/interviews-joncalandryllhannauxoogaminginterviewpa.php
I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed or numbered! My life is my own!
UXO guild-http://scottishguardians.guildwizard.com
--------------------
"Those who sacrifice liberty in the name of security deserve neither"- Ben Franklin
"Unlike me, many of you have accepted the situation of your imprisonment and will die here like rotten cabbages."- Number Six's speech from "Free for All"
I've gone through various life changes since becoming "addicted" (hey, I could always quit if I wanted to...really) to UO when it appeared. Went through the obligatory EQ hardcore period where career and family suffered, and entered the AC era fairly "clean." Maxed out a couple of characters in DAOC (hated the grind but loved the community and RvR), cruised past AC2 just shy of maxing out a couple of characters and hit SWG at second beta and into release (still can't quite figure out why it's so boring). I did most of this, except UO and EQ as a fairly "casual" player (couple of hours a night..long absences while on trips). The only game that I've gone back to, and the one that I find to be most friendly to my casual game, is Anarchy Online. I was there for the horrific launch, stuck it out. Pulled out when DAOC came out since it had one of the cleanest take offs among the new MMORPGs and although AO was getting better, it still had problems months into launch. Anyway, I've returned to my AO account since and I find the missions plus the new dungeons plus the community to be very friendly to my casual game style. I like the feel of it and soloing was a possibility from day one. Now I'm exploring new games at the beta stages but nothing fits quite right atm. Just my opinion. Enjoy
I really think you could have a MMORPG for the casual gamer (me). I am not hardcore enough to max out charagters in any MMORPG yet. I dont have the time for it (nor would i want to spent that much time).
The devs would have to take the focus of the gameplay away from the level grind and put it somewhere else like quests and boss hunting. It should require alot less time to gain levels and there should be alot more quests and bosses and items to hunt for along the way, and make it so doing these other things dont halt your xp gain.
im your daddy
im your daddy
There is only one Massively Multiplayer Online game that I can think of that a Casual Gamer can survive well in, with decent subscriber numbers -- and it's not an RPG. It's Planetside.
Planetside is the only MMO I've seen where, even at Battle Rank 1, you can compete just fine with a top-ranked player. The differences are in the natural skills of the player -- the Battle Rank simply lets you expand how many different roles your character is allowed to take.
That's not to say I'd fully recommend Planetside, as arguably you could get almost the same thrill from say, Call of Duty, for much less money over time. But unfortunately, that's the only MMO with a decent subscriber base that's truly "casual friendly"
Other than that, I would listen to Clever Glove's advice -- MMORPGs are hobbies.
A good game for *casual* will have:
- Strong edge for every class, so a casal player of the right class is better then the most hardcore of any other class.
- A progression where you can reach *TOPS* whatever they are, levels(can have fixed amount to reach even if the system is unlimited in order to achieve or beat a precise thing), gear, AAs, whatever, as long as the game work it out so a casual can reach some of those *Casuals TOPS*, but even a casual will be bored with a game if nothing else remain to be done after reaching those *TOPS*, this is why, they need to always have more stuff to do.
- Althought it will not be focused on this to be done, a system where the most casuals and the most hardcores advanced player can work together and both benefit from this symbiosys, not a parasith-like system like most games have atm(or even worser, pure exclusion).
ATM, I think the best games for casuals are those with strong differents class, even if they lack on all the rest as far as I experienced them, at least, they got the first fondation, to bad you only have mud to work on top those fondations, yet, this is a start!
- "Coercing? No no, I assure you, they are willing to bring my bags and pay public transportation just to help me, it is true!''
- "If I understand you well, you are telling me until next time. " - Ren
Try A Tale in the Desert. ATITD is a great game, whether your a solo'er or you can join an unlimited amount of guilds. Really though, joining guilds is so fun to talk and work with people, and your not forced to do anything. It's strictly a non-combat system, where you work on projects. Say you want to build a new machine to build that new pyramid for your test. It might take you weeks or months to do it, the tech tree is amazing and a lot of fun. But you usally work together with other people, but you can do it yourself. It can be done at your pace too, there's no need to rush. It's truly a "casual" to "hardcore" gamers paradise. My good friend in my guild played 20 hours a day, while for me whenever I had time I'd play if I felt like it. Sometimes this could be for 15 hours straight, or just 10 minutes... You can even logoff, and come back months later and pickup where you left off. I was in a big guild I created myself, and it was really fun to see a newb like me create a gigantic guild which was a major player in the gigantic Egyptian world. Made a lot friends, to bad I had to leave them all and search for a new mmorpg. The second telling for ATITD is starting soon, so I'd check the site out. I might even go back, though I doubt it... But it really was a fun game, and I doubt I'll ever see such a wonderful game again.
-Tom
Well, I have played all the big/and many niche mmorpg games that are out and here is my recommendation:
a) DAOC you can solo and level up quickly at your time pace. You will miss out on big raids or rvr, ML levels, but most of those are done on weekends during the day. So, you can set a few hours a week for them. You can pretty much level solo without much pain if you don't pick classes like healers, bards, or assassins.
b) AO has an excellent solo abilities. You only nead groups for special level 150-200+ missions. You will level faster in groups, but you can pretty much do it all solo, no matter your class.
c) AC, if you can get over the graphics, this is an awesome solo game. Sadly, it is due to all the buffbots situated at guild mansion housing. Buff, buff, buff and shoot those level 80 zombies down (at 20) and see your xp going up-up-up. I left because 7/10 of the people I was playing with were bots, but you can still enjoy the game and once in a while meet new people to level with. It isn't a time sink like other games.
So, there you have it. For casual solo gaming, AC ranks first, then AO, and then DAOC. You may want to wait for games like guild wars coming out or just do the nwn route (not really a mmorpg though). My recommendation is to have two games you really like. Play one for 1-2 months and then switch. The regular switching between them: a) keep you happy without getting too addicted to one game or another, b) keeps your gaming fun and exciting, c) deals with the boredom of playing a game for very long and it becoming work, d) keeps you going casual. You realize your only going to be on for a month or two at a time, so why bother loosing your job for that rare virtual drop that will not help you when your electricity bill is cut and you can't log-in game
Everyone else is mentioning big games and such but none of them will truly cater to the posters true desires..
The one that will/can is Guild Wars. It's a MMORPG but slightly different. Read the FAQ on their webpage it will explain a lot, much better than I ever could.
I guess it's not all about leveling.. as you get offensive/defensive skills at level 10.. that you will still need and use at level 50.. or 60.
Not only will it cater to the casual gamer but to the full time gamer as well. It supports solo play, team work in parties.. and (as the title states) guild wars.
The best aspect that you might find interesting is that it is free! There is no monthly fee. They plan to bring out optional expansion packs every 6-8 months and believe that will replace the monthly fee. It's a bit of a gamble. But I think it will pay off as many more people will flock to it. If you choose not to get an expansion pack then you can still play with those that do have the exansion packs. It's all about if you have the money and want to spend it.
PS. The graphics are outstanding!!
Well as far as mmorpg go there is none that you be on par with a hardcore gamer.
However if you take the attitude that you don't mind been behind you can play virtually any mmorpg.
You can try one where you can solo easy if you have no group.Like try the necromancer in DAoC.Or play any class in horizons.
If you are into FPS you can try planetside which you though has BR you can casually get thru them in a few weeks and since its a FPS you can actually be ready for battle right out of training and do good dmg.It is a MMOFPS so you will find loads of crowds to play with.
I have been playing Eve since June 2003 on a casual basis(less than 10 hours per week...usually approx 5 hours per week). What I like about Eve is that a character can advance while offline. Eve is skill based as opposed to level based. Training a skill in Eve takes real time...once you set a skill to train, it continues training while offiline! My character is just as tough/formidable as a character from a powergamer!
Solo play is also possible...the quest system(agent missions) give good rewards...Npc hunting is also fun & another source of good rewards(drops)...and mining asteroids is a very good source of income. Research & manufacturing(crafting) is extremely important & popular but I have chosen not to take part in this aspect of the game.
Of course, one of the main draws of Eve is the PvP aspect(it is VERY fun). When I say PvP, I mean more than just combat...the player created political intrigue is amazing!
You should try it out...the bottom line is that Eve is FUN, even for casual players!
I've been to many places, i've seen so many faces...
Yeah, it seems to me that the new generation of MMOs are all about this Casual Gaming demo -- I mean, WoW and UXO are both aimed at this casual user (investments of 30 minutes to 2 hours are normal) so, don't worry, your calls have been heard.
The more I think about MMOG's, the more that I think that Clever_Gloves is bang on the money: what is the difference between MMOG's and single-player boxed games? That's right: the multi-player aspect.
If you haven't time to dedicate to the multi-player aspect, and it's not all about levels, hardcore play etc, but actually interacting with your fellow players - haven't got time to interact? Why play a MMOG then .. why not play a single player game. Come back to it whenever you like.
Of course, some MMOG's have a longer curve to do ingame activities than others but the -real- time-sink is devoting to the social side. If you haven't got time (like myself) then stick to single-player.
Even community based MMOG's are time-sinks i.e. driven by interacting with the community.
This is why I've currently re-installed Baldur's Gate, and will check out all those single-player RPG's that I've missed over the last few years. Like GTA series I can play incessantly, than not play for a couple of months then go back to it. Unfortuntely, in a persistent world, the virtual lives of other players will continue without you.
A MMOG for a casual player is a contradiction in terms purely because MMOG's are by and large multi-player. If you do not possess the time to devote to the community aspect than you're missing out.
Regards,
Riotgirl
P.s. I'm single and I struggle with time! I hate to think about the time pressures that you must face with a family ..
"she's like this cleavagey, slut-bomb walking around going 'oh, check me out. i'm wicked cool. i'm five by five'."
"If you think I'm plucky and scrappy and all I need is love, you're in way over your head. I don't have a heart of gold or get nice. There are a lot nicer people coming up. We call them losers."
I would agree that Clever_Gloves was correct with the analogy to golf. I can never compete with a professional (unless we use a handicap system) and I dont want too, it is waste of my time and his. However, I still can and like to play golf and know what my expectations are. I think the analogy is prefect for a MMORPG (although the scores are extreme).
I respectfully disagree with Riolgirl when she says that a person should not play a MMORPG if they cannot devote time to the community. If a game attracts a good population of casual gamers then they will play together and grow together in the game. I also think that a casual gamer can join a guild, make friends, and meet new people in pick-up groups. A casual gamer may not have a core group of friends which they play will the time, but they still meet other players and have fun in the game.
Also, I think MMORPGs are not the same as single-player boxed games. Single-player boxed games have a shorter playing time compared to a MMORPG and this has a lot of appeal to a person, for me anyways. I found I prefer playing one MMORPG then several single-player boxed games over the course of a year (it is also cheaper).
If a game can cater to casual players, then these types of players will end-up finding each other, making friends and can enjoy playing the game, they just cannot compete with the hard core gamers head to head. Unless someone comes up with a fair handicap system, a class distinction will exist.
hmmm where to begin, let's start here...
I would agree that Clever_Gloves was correct with the analogy to golf. I can never compete with a professional (unless we use a handicap system) and I don?t want too, it is waste of my time and his. However, I still can and like to play golf and know what my expectations are. I think the analogy is prefect for a MMORPG (although the scores are extreme).
Unfortunately the Golf analogy simply doesn't hold up for a mmorpg.
How about this scenario instead: two golfers with exactly the same athletic ability (in a mmorpg everyone starts with the same potential). Golfer A stand around on the golf course all day long practicing, the other Golfer B practices only when he has a chance.
Now our two golfer are ready to play a head-to-head match.
So Golfer A turns to Golfer B and say, "I get to start at 15 under par because I spend more time on the Golf course then you"
Golfer B, "wtf, if your better show it with your game let's play start with both scores even."
Golfer A, "NO! that wouldn't be fair, see I've EARNED the right to start at 15 under par because I spend all day on the golf course. I've got mad golf skillz."
Golfer B, "If you've got mad skillz, prove it. Let's start the game and you can beat my BY PLAYING BETTER."
Golfer A, "NO, NO, NO, I have earned the right to 'be better' then you because I put more time in, I don't actually have to play the game better. I get to have a better score, I've earned simply because I spend more time at it then you."
Golfer B, "So, even though you practice more then I do, your not willing to play a game of golf with me unless you get to start with a better score too?, wtf man I think I'll go play basketball."
Every notice how people simply want to BE better because the play all the time, instead of actually having to PLAY better?
---------------------------------
Killer 80%|Achiever 53%|Socializer 46%|Explorer 20%