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Suggestion for a new player to mmorpgs
-Goth-
Member Posts: 2
I am new to mmorpgs and are currently playing COH. I am really enjoying it but am interested in all the up and coming mmorpgs out there. I thought maybe some of you with more knowledge could help direct my search for the next mmorpg I buy based on these preferences I am looking for in my next game.
1. A fantasy, tolkien, dungeons and dragons, medieval type of setting.
2. PvP on a scale resembling wars, where cities, castles or whatever can be invaded or where battles can take place on fields of war.
3. Social aspects of the game require (or are incouraged) that you can't be a one man army. You may need to go to a person (not a npc and actual player) to seek their aid or expertise. Maybe they are a weaponsmith or a politician.
4. A game world that you can affect. Such as taking over strongholds and maybe even renaming them.
Anyone have any advice on what I should look into?
Comments
The two big games, and I mean huge, that are coming out .. well soon, hopefully, are World of Warcraft and Everquest II.
Both games come from strong player bases and previous games. World of Warcraft is set in, funnily enough, the world in which the previous offline Warcraft games were set. Everquest 2 is the sequel to the highly successful MMORPG - Everquest.
www.worldofwarcraft.com and www.blizzard.com/wow are both WoW official sites. They contain quite a lot of information on the game.
www.everquest2.com (EQ2s officical site) has very little information on the game, so this third party fansite: http://clanwhitestorm.com/eq2info/index.htm is extremely good for reading up about all things EQ2.
Just a bit of game background - WoW is already deeply in its closed beta stages. If you havent played many MMORPGs then you might not understand what this is. When an MMORPG (and indeed any game) is made, first it is Alpha tested by the programmers and dev team. Then it is tested by a closed group of company employees in 'Closed Beta'. Then it is tested by a closed group of players, selected by the devs, this is also Closed beta. Then it is tested by anyone who wants to, which is called 'Open Beta'. Then beta ends and the game is shipped .. in theory
. WoW is currently in closed beta, with players selected by the devs play testing. EQ2 is meant to enter into that stage very soon.
So, to answer you specifications, I will attempt to delve into my shallow knowledge of both games:
1. Both are fantasy worlds. Elves, swords, magic etc. I think EQ2 is a little closer to Tolkein's 'high fantasy'. The medieval setting is there in both, but for some reason, WoW decided to let certain races and classes make us of limited fire arms (rifles). This isnt done in a hugely destructive way, or so I hear, so it should mess up the fantasy feel too much. EQ2, equally oddly, decided to have 'googles' which in some cases just look like shades. Use is limited to only 2 races I believe, and WoW also has goggles. Overall, both are still very fantasy.
2. PvP. Hmm, well eq2 isnt meant to be geared as a PvP game, though I believe you can PvP if you want to. The game is set around two cities, so there is a lot of rivalry there, and PvP encouragement I should think. WoW isnt hugely a PvP game either, thouhgh all races are divided between two factions, which again allow for rivalry. In WoW there are zones where you can go and fight for your faction. In neither game is a PvPer rewarded much at all
3. Social aspects? Well EQ2 is very heavily focused on guilds, which of course means lots of interaction. The two factions, each holding one of the captials also promotes unity amongst the faction and therefore encourages social interaction. Hunting in groups is definitely encouraged, and there has been hints that a balanced group and good tactics will be essential if you are to win some of the more challenging fights that you might come across. WoW doesnt do guilds very well, but is very quest based. This means you will need a group to help you out, and stick together to pull tasks off, which will of course mean teamwork and interaction.
4. I would love a world that players can totally effect, but I don't think that EQ2 or WoW hosts this to any large degree.
Other games which I was too lazy to write lots about include Lineage 2 (out now). Its heavily PvP, and there is a lot off unfairness floating around, due to lack of restraints when it comes to features such as 'ganking' which is when you kill someone as they are spawning or portaling into somewhere and cannot fight back. Dark and Light, which isnt out yet (sometime next year it will be I believe) hosts good PvP, and an interactive world (taking forts and towns etc.)
Thats it from me, if you have any questions about what I have said, then just ask!
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MMORPGs: Treadmills that make you fatter.
www.silkyvenom.com <-- a good site for Vanguard information
EverQuest 2 and World of Warcraft have all those things included what you are seeking for, well at least a limited version of it. The game Guild Wars which maybe should not be called a "mmorpg" but what is called "corpg" competitive online role-playing game). If you look on the name Guild Wars you can see that it has to do with guilds. These guilds will fight for territory and a city in the control of a guild will probably have their banners all over the place. The game focus on PvP and even playing cooperative with other players. Create a party and enter the Tombs of Khuda (I made that up) or fight back the undead invading the city. The game is free from any monthly fee that has become a trend in mmorpg's. But i think EQ2 or WoW draw the longest straw.
The only games that fit your criteria are the upcoming Dark and Light, and Darkfall. Both seem to have been somewhat delayed due to the complications of getting dynamic loading to work (dynamically allocating CPU loadings equally throughout the game's server cluster). Dynamic loading is a new technology for seamless land games but it is essential for preventing server side lag for any large scale battles where the location of those battles is unpredictable.
Both aim to have large PvP battles but of the two Dark and Light seems to be more social and less hardcore (that is all the time in your face) PvP. Dark and Light has a feudal social structure in which only two sides can fight each other. Players take over fortresses from the opposite alignment in order to expand and develop their territory and to gain access to resources. The fortess owners elect their baron and so on all the way up to king. So each player will be a part of a player formed clan, a feudal organization, a professional guild (fighter, explorer, crafter, etc), and a religion since god faction is also important. The more followers a god has the more powerful he becomes so religions will be competing with each other as well. The social interaction designed into this game is simply awesome.