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Would You Start An old Mmo? (POLL)
local93bc
Member Posts: 353
After how much time would you stop considering starting to play from scratch , a Mmo.
What are the biggest problems with starting a older Mmo in your Opinion?
Comments
How long would "To long" Be for coming back to reactivate old accounts on your old games?
I'd start any game that kept itself with the times. and might reactive if a game puts itself ahead of what I'm currently looking for.
I find it amazing that by 2020 first world countries will be competing to get immigrants.
I am an off and on MMO Gamer, I get into a game and after a few months I become insanely bored. I cannot bring myself to even log in. so I cancel... then a few months later I miss the game and come back. I've had a problem staying with games over the years since EQ1. The only ones to keep me help for more than 6 months of late.... Guildwars and FFXI. And I only play guildwars as FFXI is way too time consuming now.
Coming back to a game is a little different. If I have played a game and only left because I was bored... I will often reactivte. However if I left due to a percieved/real problem in the game.. I often stay gone. Ie. Horizons, while I felt it was an awesome game and I enjoyed it immensly, lied about what was in at launch. So I cancelled my account (2months after launch) and did not come back till management changed. Games like that though, I had hopes........
Now I am thinking about old times and old games... grr... might have to check some out again.
xXSeraphielX
I consider old games all the time.
I reactivate my old accounts only for 2 MMOs so far, it was EQ once or twice...and CoX over half a dozen times.
Basically, if I am bored with the game (see all, did all), I will reactivate it. If I am angry with the game, forget it. I never return to a game when I am angry rather than bored...unless the reason to make me angry is no more. For EQ, it is still raid-focused...so I would never return. For CoX, the nerfs are the cause of my angriness, if they bring new ATs (as epic villains), then my angry factor is non-existant from this character point of view (new set was never nerfed), however have also to consider how I felt about the game. I don't know if I would return to CoX for epic villains, this is hard to say, I know I would never return for any existing character unless they manage to make me happy about the game (still crying about IH...so...not going to happen, they stack ED and many more "subtlers" nerfs).
- "If I understand you well, you are telling me until next time. " - Ren
I'd play a game of any age. If its mechanics, story setting, and/or community appeal to me, not much can stop me from joining it.
If I reactivate an old account, chances are I'm back for at least three months.
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In memory of Laura "Taera" Genender. Passed away on August 13, 2008.
I only play a mmorpg if I play from launch on level system games because they are deeply flawed and once the game is 6 months old all the zones but the high ones are dead and you have to solo which sucks. EVE Online on the other hand has been fantastic for a old game because it doesn't have the content problem with levels and noobs are always welcome in corp fleets as that little bit extra dps or even being used at bait helps ALOT no matter how small always helps.
I'd try any game no matter how old it is.
But I won't deny that it is more pleasurable for me to play a game from Beta/Launch.
Also, I have reactivated a few MMORPG account that I've had before.. Sometimes out of insane boredom, sometimes just because I missed the game.. And how long I stayed on my 2nd visit wasn't always consistent. Sometimes I would find a renewed enjoyment for the game, sometimes not.
Maybe this would be different for some but my view is..
The reason I don't play UO (ultima online) isn't because its old... mostly was a 2D isometric game or that the "graphic update" didn't really look that much better.
I don't play because they changed the game.
I don't really like level based games... but I'd say.. *I* would rather play EQ1 than EQ2..
In fact after the graphical update I fully intend to play Anarchy Online (no idea when but they hinted this year I guess..).
In fact I pretty much decided to cancel my pre-order for AoC and wasn't going to play WAR anyway. So I do fully intent to be returning to an "older" game.
In fact I got sick of waiting and started playing again today. (oh and if that sounds odd.. I had been thinking about this for quite some time.. so I was representing the thought process I had been having for a while. Which maybe didn't flow because before I wrote this I had in fact already started playing AO again. It took me two days in emails to get my old account names mailed to me but I'm back in there).
So sick of fantasy games. Sci-Fi is a nice change.
Oddly at one time I don't think I would have considered playing the older games again. Yet as time has moved on.. the developers just keep moving farther away from what I found interesting at the start. So now I'm going back where I can.
If UO was still UO... I'd play that.
I reached my point yesterday... that I was just going to dump MMO's from my list of consideration.. so ya oddly I started playing a few olders ones again.
i'd play a game 30 years old if the producers dont decide the game is at the end of its life cycle.
For example - how much time and energy has SOE put into Eq1 over the last few years since EQ2? Granted they've pushed out some expansions and tweaked (nerfed?) the game play a bit ....but no real ground breaking innovations.
Games die to some extent because the producers let them die. Had SOE invested into EQ1 and released a brand new graphics engine, revamped the old world zones and itemization tables instead of stacking expansion on top of expansion it would still be a viable game.
Instead SOE has decided the product is at the end of its life cycle and has been letting the servers run on virtual autopilot for years now.
MMOS cost a crap load to build but once they are built and running the support costs are way way way way less.
So to answer your question: If i look at a game and it looks like the producer is spending time and energy in a real way on the game then i'd play it. If it looks like the game servers are sitting in a closet somewhere collecting cash from the diehards or fools then no i wont play.
I would only consider resubscribing to an older game if the reasons I left originally had been addressed and fixed and had nothing to do with it's overall appeal. It would require a fresh server launch though, as joining an established server is not desirable. Horizons is a game I would try again if they provided a fresh server start by wiping one of the current ones or launching a new one.
I would love to play classic EQ, but it no longer exists. The progression server failed to deliver by not following a historical time frame release of expansions but instead created an ego trip for uber guilds to rush thru content.
Every time a new expansion is released they try to revise some of the older game mechanics to use more current systems. Such things as the ability to track combat states, ooc regen, updated npc attack / mitigation tables, new developer tools for smoothing out npc pathing, new mechanics for spells and npcs, etc......
The tools for new character models were added with the launch of TSS and we do know that new elf models are currently being worked on as well, hopefully these will be released sometime soon. NPC models in old zones have been getting revamped for years now taking advantage of the capabilities of the new graphic engine.
The single largest issue with updating content in EQ1 is not the willingness of the developers, it is the unwilliness of the players. Any change, no matter how small, results in huge wars being waged in the forums between those in favor of and those opposed to. There is no winning for the developers on this front. If they do nothing they are criticized, if they make any changes it results in a small but extremely vocal minority who are vehemently opposed to all changes starting a flame war.
This, of course, has a demoralizing effect on the developers. You can only live with people constantly insulting your every decision for just so long. The result is, they can spend incredible amounts of time working on some of these revamps only to have them rejected by the community.
A good example would be the spell resistance system. As it currently stands it is being held together with duct tape. The system was designed around a level 50 cap and was never made flexible. People complain constantly about spell resist rate on higher level mobs when the core problem is the system was never designed around mobs being 15 levels higher than the characters (common on raids, which is the only place these issues exist but also where the most vocal of the complainers live) A new spell resist system was devised to deal with these issues and has been on test for a couple years now. Will it ever be implemented? The same raiders who complain about their spells being resisted threw tantrums like you would not beleive when the new system was implemented and beta and it meant they they were no longer capable of resisting everything being thrown at them outside of raids. They want their spells to land consistanly while having their own resistances block everything. The other downside is, of course, that raid mobs have spells that have long been desighed around the max resistances these people have as part of the duct tape holding this system together. The revamping of the spell resistance system neccessitates the revamping of the resistance modifiers on ALL of the old raid content.
Any fool can criticize, condemn and complain and most fools do.
Benjamin Franklin
I prefer to start on launch day.
But I have started older games on many occaisons.
I should have clarified - there is a big differnece between the devlopers of the game pouring their energy into a title and the game producers, their bosses, supporting them.
The graphics in the game engine have been updated the engine itself is still the same engine. Semantics i realize but the point is eq looks anything but modern. I think the devleopers have done a great job with what they have.
I am much more likely to resubscribe to an MMO if they start new servers. Even if they will eventually merge them. I played EQ1 for the progession. I like how WoW introduced new servers regularly although that is probably ending as population growth has stalled.
I started playing MMORPG's with DAoC in 2002 and it remains as my best game ever played. I played it for 3 years before exploring other games. So I did return to DAoC a few times to see if the game was the same and it wasn't. So I have moved on for good.
I started SWG in 2005, which was why I left DAoC. I quit that game everytime the Jedi grind got to me, and for good once NGE came out. I've tried it a couple of times since then, because I missed the game that much, but I will never touch that game again until they fix the Jedi profession.
I've also started CoH, WoW, EQ2, Vanguard and DDO and have returned to those games on a few occasions, but never stayed more than 2 months.
I am now playing LoTRO, which I started in August and quit, but now I plan to stay and complete the game this time.
The measuring stick I use to judge whether or not a game should be started or returned to is how lively the community is in lower levels and if the game still holds what attracted me to it in the first place. So top heavy games usually put me off. I've learned that is it best to start a game within its first 3 months and stick with it if it has any interest to you. Otherwise, you will be skipping content that the pioneers have already done and I hate skipping group content.
MMORPG's w/ Max level characters: DAoC, SWG, & WoW
Currently Playing: WAR
Preferred Playstyle: Roleplay/adventurous, in a sandbox game.
If you've given up a older MMO you've probably done it because you got tired of it and/or didn't like it, however if this wouldn't the case and you quit because of other reasons then I see nothing wrong in going back. If the game was fun before it will probably be fun now too, it's at least worth a try. If I would start playing a game I would probably reactivate my old account and start a new char on that account, however as I've not done that yet I choose the option "Other".
Im very suprised at how many players would be willing to jump into an old game.
I hate playing in a economie that has had time to inflate.
During the last 2 years, I have played a lot of older MMO's and had a ball. For example, Dark Ages of Camelot and City of Heroes were fun. Older MMO's have had time for most of the bugs to be removed and the game play fine tuned.
The only MMO I played from close to launch was Everquest 2. It is the only MMO (out of 9) that I disliked. From what I have read all of the game play issues I disliked have since been removed. The bugs at launch were also annoying.
The only game account I reactivated for a short time was Everquest. While I originally enjoyed this game immensely, revisiting it just confirmed that it was time for me try a different game. I doubt I will reactivate an account again with any MMO.
too narrow timeframe on poll. I think I'd easily consider a game up to 3/4 years old. WoW for instance was out in 2004? and new players still joining that. Games like UO, DAoC, Everquest and AC are a bit too old now though.(8 years old?)
I'd start an old game, in fact I love the good old mmos, the new ones just doesn't have the same kind of impact on me, I can't really connect to the new ones.. just my thought
Id play any good game where it is possible to find groups in midgame areas. I went back to eq1 and found that so much of the population was end game raiding that a new player would pretty much have to level solo to catch up. I got to level 40 then gave up. Trying eq2 now and having more luck grouping. I think the mentor thing helps alot for getting that last slot filled, plus there are more new people than in eq1.
I find it hard to get into a game thats old on age because there are not many new players to quest around with. Find that is my biggest drawback and will often quit within one month. I usually never resub on these games.
Others that I start from the beginning at launch, or ones (like WoW) that come out with new servers where new players my level will be I join often and stay for a long time. These I will often resub depending on where I got bored.
Id start at any time!
Tryed EQ1 last year for a while but couldnt get past the TERRIBLE graphics and clunky interface.
So although I would happily try any old MMO with a population. It must perform at a basic level I have come to expect from relatively recent mmos. Maybe a contradiction but I feel I am too long in the tooth to be making too many concessions on fundamental gameplay issues.
Take the Magic: The Gathering 'What Color Are You?' Quiz.
I would start playing an old MMO, I started playing EQ1 and as i played i got some mates in there and we played for a while then we moved on to WoW, lol now I am bored of WoW and I am waiting for both AoC but mostly, SGW- thats Stargate Worlds an upcoming tactical modern combat MMO
So basically, if the story is there, and it looks ok, with fine music then yes.