Howdy, Stranger!
It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!
Quick Links
I'm looking for an in depth rpg..
Now before everyone comes in here and starts "reppin their hoods" (WoW, Vanguard, EvE etc) I would like to hear some unbiased reviews and opinions based not on popularity, because I could care less. But i'm looking for something with some sort of meat underneath the bread.
I played many MMO's including WoW Vanguard and EvE, and although they each had their good points they are not keeping my interest very long.. I was looking at Tabula Rasa, but it seems that the whole hood reppin' thing has taken over those forums as well and I cannot tell if I will be wasting my money or if it's a Vanguard-esque deal, where it is alot better than the public has led many to believe..
So, any ideas?
Comments
Well, if you intend to really Role-Play, then there are a couple of good options :
* Original EQ1 on the Fiorina Vie server and join a Heavy RP guild.
* Lort of the Rings Online on the Landroval server and join a Heavy RP guild.
If you are just looking standard RPG single person type game where you don't really Role-Play, but just play, then all MMORPGs are pretty much the same. So pick your genre and go with it :
* Planetside or Jumpgate for 1st Person Sci-Fi with Flight action.
* Anarchy Online (cannot beat the price; Free) for Sci-Fi ground action (Fantasy model with Guns)
* Any of the myriad Fantasy based ones; all are fundamenatly the same : EQ2, DAoC, V:Soh, etc.
Good Hunting
Tabula Rasa is not nearly as bad as people say. However, it's not the end all of games either.
I've played just about all of the MMO's out there today, so it pretty much depends on what you like.
I would say go with Tabula Rasa if you are looking for:
1) Something Different
2) Interesting Combat
3) Only Combat
4) Fast Paced Action
5) A Casual Game
I could also say the same thing about CoH/CoV except that theres a bit more to do then combat, but it's still a nice change from the basic fantasy MMO. The character customization is amazing though, you can spend hours just doing that, and believe me, I have.
Out of the Fantasy MMO's I recommend VG:SoH but you said you've tried that already. It's really the basic same old stuff, but with enough twists to make it interesting.
If you are looking just for an RPG though and nothing online I could recommend the following if you haven't played them.
1) Mass Effect
2) The Elder Scrolls Oblivion
3) Two Worlds
4) Mount & Blade
Good luck! Let us know what you end up choosing and if you like it!
Erm, 3 day free trial for TR, give that a go.
I agree with everything you said except two worlds. Instead of two worlds choose something like Kotor series ,NWN series, or the gothic series.
The Witcher and Vampire The Masquerade: Bloodlines are a must for any serious RPG addicts on the pc.
I really think the most in-depth RPGs are single-player.... sorry. But if I MUST suggest anything for an in-depth storyline I would say Tabula Rasa or LOTRO. I played Tabula Rasa in Beta until release (didn't really have the time for a new game) and even in Beta the game was 10x better than what the people on the boards would lead you to believe.
Recently I've been playing older games on my Wii via Virtual Console and some of those games I find much more entertaining than any recent MMO. Maybe I'm just showing my age
"They essentially want to say 'Correlation proves Causation' when it's just not true." - Sovrath
LOTRO and TR are deep? Lawl. Those are the most shallow of them all.
Try EVE.
-------------------------
I think you are looking for what most (including myself) want when you say RPG:
The above are the most important factors for me in addition to 4) varied content (solo, small group, full group) and 5) intense and fun combat.
I am playing Vanguard. I like EQ 2 a lot. LotR was way too limited for me. WoW has a bad community and the gameplay is too predictable and grindy. EvE... I disliked the most. I could not get into it, but I tried it a long time ago. DAoC is a game I like but I am really a PvE player.
I am excited about Elder Scrolls and AoC, but in the meantime I am in Vanguard.
-----
WoW and fast food = commercial successes.
I neither play WoW nor eat fast food.
Fixed.
--------------------------------------------------
Truenorthbg hit it on the head with what I am looking for.. Character customization is a biggie for me.. It was a toss up between staying with Vanguard (which I enjoy very much) or Anarchy Online (but I was unsure of the population levels)..
I really can't stand cookie-cutter games where all classes must end up the exact same reguardless of the direction YOU as the player want to take them.. Good examples of what I am reffering to is GW, RFO and others like it. Many asian rpg's fall into this category which totally turns me off..
But after much debate and testing of Tabula Rasa with 3 day trial, I have decided to stick with Vanguard.. I was having fun anyway.
As for EvE, I could never find the fun that everyone else saw in that game. I could never get into a corp and pretty much did missions all day while chatting about "WoW" and the likes in the chat ( can't escape it..EVER)..
I was going to try and go back to FF XI but I forgot my playonline stuff and customer service is of NO help when it comes to this. And since I have to go out and buy the collection again, i'm not sure if it is what I want.
EQ 2 was nice while I played it.. Was a tad cookie cutter before KoS, I hit max level and got bored lol.. Have yet to go back and try the Faydwer and Kunark expansions yet, maybe one day..
But, yep.. Vanguard wins.. Not sure what it is about that game, but it just steals my life.. Sure there are things that can be better but for what it's worth now, its a great game.. No instancing in dungeons is one of the main things I find so attractive I suppose..
I agree fully with this, but since you have already tried VG. Perhaps EQ1? If you want an MMO that is. Lotro is way too limited if you want some real immersion, same goes for Tabula rasa. EQ2 is a good game but, as WoW, feels very much like a game and not so much as a fantasy world (this is why I play VG, feels very much like a real world).
Single player rpgs, if you have not done so, you should try Gothic 1 and 2, Kotor and if you don't mind older games Planescape torment (the best of them all, oh how I love this game!).
edit: doh, just read your last post, welcome back to VG. But yes AO is also a great choice, I love their character customization system! Which is why I have some hope about Age of Conan.
GW has relatively freeform character creation because you're allowed to mix skills of two professions.
_______________________________
PM me when an MMO as good as UO was comes out.
When I say cookie cutter, I mean that even though you can mix classes in GW, they end up pretty much the exact same.. Anarchy Online was the best at preventing this by using a skill point system as well as perks and in AO, any class can use anything. There are really no set rules for creativity when it comes to strengths and weaknesses. I know this has been the mantra for most if not all new games coming out, but Vanguard I feel has captured this feeling (as well as immersion, although AO also has a really really good immersive world).
I guess the only thing that made me not give AO another try was the complex learning curve. I don't think I am ready to learn again another MMO world and mechanics. It's just too hard for me to jump in and out of them once I am locked into another.
Oh, and I also played EQ 1 back before SoL and I left about a month after LoK. Everquest seriously is to me the greatest MMO I have ever played. The immersion, the creation, the story, the massive array of items and spells. It was one wild ride, however I left because of a few "elite" guilds who wanted to FORCE my character progression onto me (AA's and such) in order to raid with them. And from what I hear this is the sad state of the game today. A bunch of elite guilds raiding all day, so I stay away.
EQ2 before Achivements and such was a very cookie cutter game also. Every class ended up the exact same, gear and skill wise. But with the Alternate advancement paths at least now you have some way to actually customize your skills and strengths vs. other people of the same class..