Can you learn and master all skills in the game with your one avatar, and if not are you able to drop some skills to learn or advance in others? Being able to learn everything and max every skill would be one example of freedom in developing your character. Is that present in this game? Precu SWG used a skill based point system but there was a max on the points.
Also I read that you only get one character per account? Is that true? If you can learn and master every skill that wouldn't be such a huge drawback, but it does limit one's roleplay possibilities. I usually like to have one female and one male avatar.
And lastly, it's kind of tiring these wierd releases lately. I wanted to play Aion, Spellborn and maybe try this game. But they are released in some places and not others it seems. If it's released I just want to walk into a store and pick up a box. I'm tired of hearing about games that are released but not really.
Although this is theoretically possible in Darkfall, I feel it is detrimental to the overall playabilty of the game.
I also feel that multiple characters per server facilitates role-playing, just by being able to make an easier distinction between each "role".
Does this game really need a 10 part write up about it? Out of all the games posted in the Games List, what makes DF so deserving of a freaking 10 part write up. Why is this site, a gaming site for the players, writing 10 part reviews of a game that has amounted to so many issues, ingame and out of game. I won't even comment on the rest of this thread or Straddens replys because hes the boss, heh. But seriously, if you can't write up a review of this game in say 3 parts, then the other 7 are not going to help. I look forward to reading these opinonated reviews though, should be comical at best.
So i ten part review of a game you belive is worthless, and you dont get interested??? What if you are wrong? Maybe there is more to this game then what the trolls are admitting? Why do they wanna hide it from you?
Begin to ask some questions! Dont be a mindless slave and listen to the trolls. Think for yourself.
Although this is theoretically possible in Darkfall, I feel it is detrimental to the overall playabilty of the game.
I also feel that multiple characters per server facilitates role-playing, just by being able to make an easier distinction between each "role".
Thats why Darkfall is a bit harder than most mmorpgs to distinguish... primarily because there are no "roles". Your role is whatever you want it to be. If you want to heal someone, then nuke someone, then pull out your sword and wail on someone, you are free to do so and without any penalty whatsoever. If you wish to murder naked harvesters and steal their hard earned resources as your only form of income you are free to do this as well. If you choose to hunt down murdering red PKs in the name of honor, then so be it. Having only one character allows others to recognize you in the game world by name, and more importantly, reputation alone.
-Andy Cormier
The contents of this post do not necessarily reflect the views of MMORPG.com and its management.
The Darkfall forums have over 400,000 registered users, and was sitting as the most hyped game on MMORPG for some time. I have followed mmorpgs for nearly a decade now, and the biggest "hyped" game I can remember in recent years was in fact Dark and Light. Dark and Light was released nearly 3 years ago (June 2006). So again, Darkfall has been the most talked about mmorpg in recent years. The other notable of course being Age of Conan. And although many of you pointed out Star Wars Galaxies, all of the talk was centered around changes made to the game years after it was released. At any rate, for those of you looking for more info on the game from someone who actually plays , I hope you enjoy the 9 parts soon to come.
-Andy Cormier (aka Rogan Blackheart)
I too have been following MMORPGS for nearly a decade, and again, I disagree. It may be the most talked about game in a small cross section of the MMORPG gaming community, but that doesn't make it the most talked about game in recent years (400K on the Darkfall forums and those registered here -- many of whom probably also constitute some of the numbers of the DF forums -- do not constitute enough of the mmorpg community as a whole to make anything the most talked about). I won't run down my list of reasons again, so I guess in the end, we will just have to agree to disagree, and I will let the issue drop there.
Look forward to reading the rest of your overview.
Simply put, if its the most talked about mmorpg in recent history on mmorpg.com, then its the most talked about mmorpg in recent history period.
I think you're vastly overstating mmorpg.com's place in the world. This used to be a fantastic site to come and talk about mmorpgs but since it has become a mouthpiece for developers like SOE it has gone downhill quickly. It's become *very* obvious that advertising dollars are way more important to this site than its users.
Luckily for mmorpg fans there are better places on the internet to discuss games that aren't bought and paid for by marketing departments.
Although this is theoretically possible in Darkfall, I feel it is detrimental to the overall playabilty of the game.
I also feel that multiple characters per server facilitates role-playing, just by being able to make an easier distinction between each "role".
Thats why Darkfall is a bit harder than most mmorpgs to distinguish... primarily because there are no "roles". Your role is whatever you want it to be. If you want to heal someone, then nuke someone, then pull out your sword and wail on someone, you are free to do so and without any penalty whatsoever. If you wish to murder naked harvesters and steal their hard earned resources as your only form of income you are free to do this as well. If you choose to hunt down murdering red PKs in the name of honor, then so be it. Having only one character allows others to recognize you in the game world by name, and more importantly, reputation alone.
-Andy Cormier
I really don't know how to respond to this, considering you left out the relevant part of the quote of the person I was responding to.
The part in cyan was in response to being able for a single character being able to learn every skill there is, without any limits except time. What this eventually leads to is a single "class". Without predefined limits(say a skillcap), then everyone will eventually migrate towards the same "build". I'm sorry, but I just can't see that this leads to any kind of accomplishment.
Take UO, pre-pub16, for example. With a skillcap in place, the jack-of-all-trades could not exist. In my opinion, this lead to a more diverse population. This would lead to more interesting encounters, because you truly didn't know what type of character you were meeting. You could not be a Man-at-Arms and also be a Blacksmith at the same time. Well, you could, but you would never be 100% efficient at either. I think you can see the point I am trying to convey.
Now, your response above is accurate, and does have a certain amount of charm to it. But can you really call it freedom, if everyone is basically the same?
As far as only one character, what you stated above can be done regardless if you have one or ten characters.
Anyway, I've always felt that too much freedom only leads to chaos. Just take a look at Somalia, for example.
Well about "The concept is really so simple I often scratch my head as to why we have not see this in years. You increase your sword skill by (you guessed it) swinging your sword.", do not have to scratch head .... is something Warcraft already have .... you have to use your weapons to become better and better. At lv. 80 starting with 2H axe you have never used before you do no damage. Hower is true this to not hold for casting.
What about "freedom" as in "Darkfall has promised one thing that very few if any other MMORPGs in history has been able to deliver: freedom. Freedom to develop your character in any way shape or form as you see fit. Freedom to kill anyone, nearly anywhere, for any reason.....". Well ... if this is freedom any1 seek ... I'm not among that kind of players. This kind of game imo can be magnet also for all kind of psychos (in real life).
Game has no levels? Oh, give me a break. Of course have LEVELS, only that they are regarding skills. But still levels. Without actually
If there would be at least some trial version ... MAYBE I would try such game .... but not paying for it.
If game is aimed to real hard core gamers, "Rambos" of gaming ... then one very important feature is missing .... permanent death. Only such game would be for "real" gamers.
Hmm ... posted to fast by mistake, before rewieving my entire post .... but however would like youst to add to:
Game has no levels? Oh, give me a break. Of course have LEVELS, only that they are regarding skills. But still levels. Without actually LEVELING skills you do nothing in this world. The only good thing with such sistem is you can decide to be i.e. half warrior and half caster .... while in other games all this is predefined. But still anyone is limited. Having skill system of course does not mean at all you can be good warrior + healer + dps + .... You could never achieve all this.
But getting your next level, with all fanfare, with great (or less great) new spells, feels so great .... I would never like to not have.
I guess Jon has left this thread now but what's going on here? Is this paid advatorial? Or does a free lunch do the job? Why the grossly dis proportionate coverage? Is it really that hard to find contributors?
I have always liked MMORPG as a portal for my MMORPG news and views it just seems MMORPG are 'getting it wrong' more and more. You are doing your readers a dis service imho........10 parts /boggle.
I guess Jon has left this thread now but what's going on here? Is this paid advatorial? Or does a free lunch do the job? Why the grossly dis proportionate coverage? Is it really that hard to find contributors? I have always liked MMORPG as a portal for my MMORPG news and views it just seems MMORPG are 'getting it wrong' more and more. You are doing your readers a dis service imho........10 parts /boggle.
And is not Darkfall a MMORPG? What is wrong about MMORPG.com writes about MMORPGs?? Cant understand why it should be "wrong".
What exactly is the the reasoning behind doing a 10 page preview on what basically amounts to failure?
Am I missing something here? It would be one thing if they actually PAID to do this but for mmorpg.com to actually WANT to do it? Uhhhhhhhhhhhh WHAT???
The game is a totally amateur at best production all around. It's featureless and contentless and its production quality is terrible. You can't even buy the fucking thing for christs sake because they can't even properly support themselves or their subscribers.
There is not one major gaming mag or gaming site that has even cared about reporting on this game let alone giving it a 10 page anything because they know what it is -- crap.
So basically mmorpg.com is wasting their time covering crap. Are you guys really that hard up to find something to write about?
Why don't you write a 10 page spread on Dark and Light while your at it?
What exactly is the the reasoning behind doing a 10 page preview on what basically amounts to failure? Am I missing something here? It would be one thing if they actually PAID to do this but for mmorpg.com to actually WANT to do it? Uhhhhhhhhhhhh WHAT??? The game is a totally amateur at best production all around. It's featureless and contentless and its production quality is terrible. You can't even buy the fucking thing for christs sake because they can't even properly support themselves or their subscribers. There is not one major gaming mag or gaming site that has even cared about reporting on this game let alone giving it a 10 page anything because they know what it is -- crap. So basically mmorpg.com is wasting their time covering crap. Are you guys really that hard up to find something to write about? funny shit
So because you belive its featureless, contentless and "amateurish"......no one should talk about it? Maybe you have missed something after all, as you say : )
And maybe we should wait until Aventurine begin to make adds for DF. Would the game be more ok if they did hype it? As Funcom did with AoC. Let the game speak for itself.
If you don't like the fact that MMORPG.com are publishing articles about Darkfall then don't read the article. It really is that simple. Darkfall has been talked about in games I have played and still play as being the answer to good PVP. The developers in question are clearly having issues meeting demand. I am not sure why or to be honest I don't particularly care why. If the game is something I want to play I will find a place in it. If not I am not I'm going to loose any sleep.
It seems to me that some people think this game owes them something. At any time if you are unhappy with the game or the service you can vote with your feet and stop paying a subscription or don't pick one up in the first place. Moaning about it achieves absolutely nothing especially in a forum that has no bearing on the games actual development.
I hope the original author of the article continues despite the negativity displayed here. I'd like to think most people who read anything are mature enough to make up their own minds about the content of the article. Still it is worth noting if you have nothing constructive to say then please find another place to say it. I'd imagine the comments section is a place where you can offer your own insight in to an article a place to ask questions for up coming ones and a place to make CONSTRUCTIVE criticism.
Give it a chance, see the whole series of articles, read them all or not if you are interested enough. Choice is yours but be respectful.
Darkfall gets the coverage because dispite it's many flaws in execution it's different from just about everything else in what it attempts to do. Love it hate it or whatever you feel about the game and or the company producing it it's the only game that offers the full pvp full loot set in a fantasy setting.
My major disagreement is I would hardly call it an evolution of UO. I would call it an evolution of Shadowbane with devolved UO concepts based on a medievil fantasy FPS engine to tie it all together. The few things it takes from UO are open PvP, Full loot PvP hard to argue about that apart from the implimentation of the alignment system that appears to be full of more holes than a sieve a pretty small step backwards from UO kill another player get flagged pker.
The giant step backwards from UO is the poor implimentation of the skill system instaed of small increases of effectivness of skill over many potential levels we have mediocre increases of effectivness over a few real levels. By this I mean in UO if you gained a level in a skill your effectiveness went up a small amount. In Darkfall there is no improvement in gaining a level. Level 1 has the same effectivness as level 24 at level 25 you get an improvement which basicly means that everyskill has 4 effective or real levels you just have to wade through 96 other levels that mean nothing to get the meaningful ones. Hardly a case for evolution.
Sure it has 3D graphics over UO's 2D and if all you played UO for was the open PvP/full loot then just maybe thats enough to call it an evolution but UO did so many more things than Darkfall better that I can't bring myself to agree with the idea that Darkfall is an evolution of UO.
The lesser of two evils is still evil.
There is nothing more dangerous than a true believer.
A 10 part overview?!?!?! Wow sorry, but Darkfall does not deserve a 10 part overview, played the game for a month in a big guild and still found it to be boring and severely lacking. The combat was less than the revolutionary, excitement I thought it would be...personally I found the PvE combat to be about as dynamic as the PvP combat, which amounts to either A) trading ranged shots or Mana Missile back and forth or melee which basically amounts to people running around like cracked out chickens with their heads cut off...yes very realistic and exiciting (/sarcasm). The only thing I found I lied about it in the end was the skill based character development system, but I'll wait for a more enjoyable game that has this feature minus the huge amount of grind and the rampant hacking and cheating. Best wishes to those who enjoy the game though and I hope the fraction of the MMO community that plays this can keep it up and running.
Can you learn and master all skills in the game with your one avatar, and if not are you able to drop some skills to learn or advance in others? Being able to learn everything and max every skill would be one example of freedom in developing your character. Is that present in this game? Precu SWG used a skill based point system but there was a max on the points. When it comes to skills such as magic, using weapons, mining, and logging any race can level them up. Max level is 100, though I believe there is a 'soft cap' for some skills. Skill levels only matter when they reach 25, 50, 75, and 100. At these increments the skill becomes either faster or more powerful. A few crafting skills are race based only. For instance, Mahirim can make a two handed sword specifically for their race, but cannot make a similar sword that is for Alfar. You can use any type of armor or weapon if you buy it or loot it. But if your skill in that area is not high enough the item will degenerate faster than normal. I think altogether any person can skill up over 95% of skills in the game. The only ones you can't are the ones that are race specific for other races. Once you learn a skill it does not go away. You do not have to delete any skills to be able to start a new one. For example at first i was concentrating on armor smithing so I could create my own armor instead of having to buy it from others. When I joined the clan I am in one of the members had higher skills in that department than me. I switched to weapon smithing and have been leveling that skill up. When someone in the clan needs weapons made they come to me, when they need armor made they go to the other person. A few others have been working on archery. One person catches fish, gathers herbs, and makes food for nourishment. Some of us have bought the skill to be able to make mounts. With different people concentrating on different crafting skills it allows us to not have to craft all day long. We have time to explore, go on raids, and kill enemies. Also I read that you only get one character per account? Is that true? If you can learn and master every skill that wouldn't be such a huge drawback, but it does limit one's roleplay possibilities. I usually like to have one female and one male avatar. Technically it is one player per server. However, since they only have one EU server open right now than yes, you can only create one character on your account. From my understanding once they open up a NA server we will have the option of transferring your character over to that server or simply creating a new one. Most people plan on transferring, so as not to lose all the skills they have gained so far. And lastly, it's kind of tiring these wierd releases lately. I wanted to play Aion, Spellborn and maybe try this game. But they are released in some places and not others it seems. If it's released I just want to walk into a store and pick up a box. I'm tired of hearing about games that are released but not really. I like the game, and I am happy I was able to get a copy, but the release was terrible to say the least. I personally feel that Adventurine had just about run out of money, and they needed revenue, so they released the game prematurely because it was either sink or swim. I threw my $50 at it knowing I was taking a gamble. Worst case scenario was that the company took my money and ran. Luckily that did not happen. Best case scenario - and what many critics have stated - is that people were paying to play a beta. I completely agree with that. Many features (such as the Mahirim race I play being able to run on all fours) have not been implemented yet. My biggest grief is that there is still a lot of server instability, The server unexpectedly crashes quite often, and larger battles are nothing but a lag fest. In Adventurines defense I will say over the course of the last month stability has increased significantly. I think in another months time they will have most of the kinks worked out. Hopefully by than more servers will open up.
--------------------------------- Mean People Suck
I find it hilarious to see SO many critics show up and bitch about all the publicity Darkfall gets. Than ALL the rabid fanbois get on and call the critics trolls. As a result, the vicious circle of Darkfall hype continues. It's a self fullfilling prophecy from both sides.
I see tons of articles on this site about Eve Online all the time. I don't see people slamming this site over it's coverage of that game. Just an observation...
I'm sure some hater of the game will state that because I like Darkfall I must be a basement dwelling fanatic who worships Tasos as God and therefore I don't know anything about reality and I should get my head examined for liking such a pile of shit game and blah blah blah...
The truth is, I don't care. I'm gonna log out of here, log onto Darkfall, and enjoy my Saturday afternoon. I am going to kill some enemies. I am going to loot their bodies. I am going to get pk'd and looted, and I am going to enjoy every minute of it!
Later.
--------------------------------- Mean People Suck
I think people gave of mocking the site bout how according to this place, Eve is the greatest MMO ever, even though no one wants to play it. Its become a joke. After Eve won an award for best PvE of the year, among other catagories it has no business even competing in, this site isn't taken too seriously.
I guess Jon has left this thread now but what's going on here? Is this paid advatorial? Or does a free lunch do the job? Why the grossly dis proportionate coverage? Is it really that hard to find contributors? I have always liked MMORPG as a portal for my MMORPG news and views it just seems MMORPG are 'getting it wrong' more and more. You are doing your readers a dis service imho........10 parts /boggle.
I'm still here.
Honestly, I regret labelling this as a ten part overview. This is a Correspondent article, like any other correspondent article on the site. Numerous games have articles written about them, published on a weekly basis through our Correspondent program. Andy submitted a proposal to write ten about Darkfall. Given that he's the Darkfall Correspondent, that makes a lot of sense. Other writers have written close to ten articles on the games that tehy are covering. It's really that simple and isn't actually disproportionate. I'm not going to publish all ten parts simultaneously, they will be spread out in the same way thata ll other Correspondent articles are.
Ok, now I'm going to address some of the points in the thread:
First, and I can't say this clearly enough: THIS IS NOT A REVIEW. This is a CORRESPONDENT OPINION PIECE, no more, no less. It doesn't pretend to be anything more than that either. You'll know a review when you see it on the site because it will be labelled REVIEW and will have a score associated with it. Not every article put on a gaming website, anywhere, is a review.
Second - Darkfall articles produce hits. Hits are the bar by which I judge the popularity of articles. it's not disproportionate coverage so long as people are reading it. If people stop reading it, we'll stop running it (of course this isn't a cover-all rule, but in terms of determining what articles to run and when in a general sense, it applies). Right now, quite honestly, Darkfall articles are some of the most widely read articles that we run.
Third - If you feel that a game isn't getting enough Correspondent coverage, become a Correspondent yourself or encourage someone else that you know who plays the game in question to become a Correspondent. All you have to do is email virtuaz@mmorpg.com.
I think people gave of mocking the site bout how according to this place, Eve is the greatest MMO ever, even though no one wants to play it. Its become a joke. After Eve won an award for best PvE of the year, among other catagories it has no business even competing in, this site isn't taken too seriously. Its coverage of Darkfall is just another nail.
So, just so that we're clear on your facts:
Yes, EVE did win a number of awards one year in questionsbale categories. First of all, those were reader voted awards, the management and editorial staff of this site had NO input on who won those awards. That year, we had decided to open up the voting in every category to include every game... The result saw one game win in categories it shouldn't have. We learned something that year, and that's the reason that we do editorial nominations now (and by the way, we still get complaints from people about that as well), so we don't have a repeat of that. This isn't something we've hidden and in fact it's something we've been pretty open about admitting we were wrong about.
Just trying to provide you with all of the information.
Originally posted by Stradden Second - Darkfall articles produce hits. Hits are the bar by which I judge the popularity of articles. ... If people stop reading it, we'll stop running it
As a local sports talk radio host puts it: "If you want to kill my show stop complaining about it!"
Feedback (aka buzz good or bad) is the metric by which management measures reader interest.
If you want to kill DarkFall coverage, and hopefully DarkFall itself (yeah i'm a Hater shutup), don't click on the article reviews / overviews.
Comments
Although this is theoretically possible in Darkfall, I feel it is detrimental to the overall playabilty of the game.
I also feel that multiple characters per server facilitates role-playing, just by being able to make an easier distinction between each "role".
DarkFall FAQ - Read then Question with Boldness
So i ten part review of a game you belive is worthless, and you dont get interested??? What if you are wrong? Maybe there is more to this game then what the trolls are admitting? Why do they wanna hide it from you?
Begin to ask some questions! Dont be a mindless slave and listen to the trolls. Think for yourself.
LOL, i couldent resist.
Thats why Darkfall is a bit harder than most mmorpgs to distinguish... primarily because there are no "roles". Your role is whatever you want it to be. If you want to heal someone, then nuke someone, then pull out your sword and wail on someone, you are free to do so and without any penalty whatsoever. If you wish to murder naked harvesters and steal their hard earned resources as your only form of income you are free to do this as well. If you choose to hunt down murdering red PKs in the name of honor, then so be it. Having only one character allows others to recognize you in the game world by name, and more importantly, reputation alone.
-Andy Cormier
The contents of this post do not necessarily reflect the views of MMORPG.com and its management.
-Rogan Blackheart
I too have been following MMORPGS for nearly a decade, and again, I disagree. It may be the most talked about game in a small cross section of the MMORPG gaming community, but that doesn't make it the most talked about game in recent years (400K on the Darkfall forums and those registered here -- many of whom probably also constitute some of the numbers of the DF forums -- do not constitute enough of the mmorpg community as a whole to make anything the most talked about). I won't run down my list of reasons again, so I guess in the end, we will just have to agree to disagree, and I will let the issue drop there.
Look forward to reading the rest of your overview.
*shakes head
Amazing ....... this thread that is. The majority of the posts sound like something that a teenage drama queen would write ...... Thanks for that.
The overview was a good read as well, looking forward to the next one.
~Hairysun~
http://www.straightdope.com/
I think you're vastly overstating mmorpg.com's place in the world. This used to be a fantastic site to come and talk about mmorpgs but since it has become a mouthpiece for developers like SOE it has gone downhill quickly. It's become *very* obvious that advertising dollars are way more important to this site than its users.
Luckily for mmorpg fans there are better places on the internet to discuss games that aren't bought and paid for by marketing departments.
Thats why Darkfall is a bit harder than most mmorpgs to distinguish... primarily because there are no "roles". Your role is whatever you want it to be. If you want to heal someone, then nuke someone, then pull out your sword and wail on someone, you are free to do so and without any penalty whatsoever. If you wish to murder naked harvesters and steal their hard earned resources as your only form of income you are free to do this as well. If you choose to hunt down murdering red PKs in the name of honor, then so be it. Having only one character allows others to recognize you in the game world by name, and more importantly, reputation alone.
-Andy Cormier
I really don't know how to respond to this, considering you left out the relevant part of the quote of the person I was responding to.
The part in cyan was in response to being able for a single character being able to learn every skill there is, without any limits except time. What this eventually leads to is a single "class". Without predefined limits(say a skillcap), then everyone will eventually migrate towards the same "build". I'm sorry, but I just can't see that this leads to any kind of accomplishment.
Take UO, pre-pub16, for example. With a skillcap in place, the jack-of-all-trades could not exist. In my opinion, this lead to a more diverse population. This would lead to more interesting encounters, because you truly didn't know what type of character you were meeting. You could not be a Man-at-Arms and also be a Blacksmith at the same time. Well, you could, but you would never be 100% efficient at either. I think you can see the point I am trying to convey.
Now, your response above is accurate, and does have a certain amount of charm to it. But can you really call it freedom, if everyone is basically the same?
As far as only one character, what you stated above can be done regardless if you have one or ten characters.
Anyway, I've always felt that too much freedom only leads to chaos. Just take a look at Somalia, for example.
DarkFall FAQ - Read then Question with Boldness
LOL, 10 parts? I played for my month - the game will be on the scrap heap before he finishes part 6.
Well about "The concept is really so simple I often scratch my head as to why we have not see this in years. You increase your sword skill by (you guessed it) swinging your sword.", do not have to scratch head .... is something Warcraft already have .... you have to use your weapons to become better and better. At lv. 80 starting with 2H axe you have never used before you do no damage. Hower is true this to not hold for casting.
What about "freedom" as in "Darkfall has promised one thing that very few if any other MMORPGs in history has been able to deliver: freedom. Freedom to develop your character in any way shape or form as you see fit. Freedom to kill anyone, nearly anywhere, for any reason.....". Well ... if this is freedom any1 seek ... I'm not among that kind of players. This kind of game imo can be magnet also for all kind of psychos (in real life).
Game has no levels? Oh, give me a break. Of course have LEVELS, only that they are regarding skills. But still levels. Without actually
If there would be at least some trial version ... MAYBE I would try such game .... but not paying for it.
If game is aimed to real hard core gamers, "Rambos" of gaming ... then one very important feature is missing .... permanent death. Only such game would be for "real" gamers.
Hmm ... posted to fast by mistake, before rewieving my entire post .... but however would like youst to add to:
Game has no levels? Oh, give me a break. Of course have LEVELS, only that they are regarding skills. But still levels. Without actually LEVELING skills you do nothing in this world. The only good thing with such sistem is you can decide to be i.e. half warrior and half caster .... while in other games all this is predefined. But still anyone is limited. Having skill system of course does not mean at all you can be good warrior + healer + dps + .... You could never achieve all this.
But getting your next level, with all fanfare, with great (or less great) new spells, feels so great .... I would never like to not have.
I guess Jon has left this thread now but what's going on here? Is this paid advatorial? Or does a free lunch do the job? Why the grossly dis proportionate coverage? Is it really that hard to find contributors?
I have always liked MMORPG as a portal for my MMORPG news and views it just seems MMORPG are 'getting it wrong' more and more. You are doing your readers a dis service imho........10 parts /boggle.
And is not Darkfall a MMORPG? What is wrong about MMORPG.com writes about MMORPGs?? Cant understand why it should be "wrong".
it's the disproportionate level of coverage and the dispraportionatly positive coverage that I don't understand.
What exactly is the the reasoning behind doing a 10 page preview on what basically amounts to failure?
Am I missing something here? It would be one thing if they actually PAID to do this but for mmorpg.com to actually WANT to do it? Uhhhhhhhhhhhh WHAT???
The game is a totally amateur at best production all around. It's featureless and contentless and its production quality is terrible. You can't even buy the fucking thing for christs sake because they can't even properly support themselves or their subscribers.
There is not one major gaming mag or gaming site that has even cared about reporting on this game let alone giving it a 10 page anything because they know what it is -- crap.
So basically mmorpg.com is wasting their time covering crap. Are you guys really that hard up to find something to write about?
Why don't you write a 10 page spread on Dark and Light while your at it?
funny shit
So because you belive its featureless, contentless and "amateurish"......no one should talk about it? Maybe you have missed something after all, as you say : )
And maybe we should wait until Aventurine begin to make adds for DF. Would the game be more ok if they did hype it? As Funcom did with AoC. Let the game speak for itself.
Seriously,
If you don't like the fact that MMORPG.com are publishing articles about Darkfall then don't read the article. It really is that simple. Darkfall has been talked about in games I have played and still play as being the answer to good PVP. The developers in question are clearly having issues meeting demand. I am not sure why or to be honest I don't particularly care why. If the game is something I want to play I will find a place in it. If not I am not I'm going to loose any sleep.
It seems to me that some people think this game owes them something. At any time if you are unhappy with the game or the service you can vote with your feet and stop paying a subscription or don't pick one up in the first place. Moaning about it achieves absolutely nothing especially in a forum that has no bearing on the games actual development.
I hope the original author of the article continues despite the negativity displayed here. I'd like to think most people who read anything are mature enough to make up their own minds about the content of the article. Still it is worth noting if you have nothing constructive to say then please find another place to say it. I'd imagine the comments section is a place where you can offer your own insight in to an article a place to ask questions for up coming ones and a place to make CONSTRUCTIVE criticism.
Give it a chance, see the whole series of articles, read them all or not if you are interested enough. Choice is yours but be respectful.
Darkfall gets the coverage because dispite it's many flaws in execution it's different from just about everything else in what it attempts to do. Love it hate it or whatever you feel about the game and or the company producing it it's the only game that offers the full pvp full loot set in a fantasy setting.
My major disagreement is I would hardly call it an evolution of UO. I would call it an evolution of Shadowbane with devolved UO concepts based on a medievil fantasy FPS engine to tie it all together. The few things it takes from UO are open PvP, Full loot PvP hard to argue about that apart from the implimentation of the alignment system that appears to be full of more holes than a sieve a pretty small step backwards from UO kill another player get flagged pker.
The giant step backwards from UO is the poor implimentation of the skill system instaed of small increases of effectivness of skill over many potential levels we have mediocre increases of effectivness over a few real levels. By this I mean in UO if you gained a level in a skill your effectiveness went up a small amount. In Darkfall there is no improvement in gaining a level. Level 1 has the same effectivness as level 24 at level 25 you get an improvement which basicly means that everyskill has 4 effective or real levels you just have to wade through 96 other levels that mean nothing to get the meaningful ones. Hardly a case for evolution.
Sure it has 3D graphics over UO's 2D and if all you played UO for was the open PvP/full loot then just maybe thats enough to call it an evolution but UO did so many more things than Darkfall better that I can't bring myself to agree with the idea that Darkfall is an evolution of UO.
The lesser of two evils is still evil.
There is nothing more dangerous than a true believer.
A 10 part overview?!?!?! Wow sorry, but Darkfall does not deserve a 10 part overview, played the game for a month in a big guild and still found it to be boring and severely lacking. The combat was less than the revolutionary, excitement I thought it would be...personally I found the PvE combat to be about as dynamic as the PvP combat, which amounts to either A) trading ranged shots or Mana Missile back and forth or
melee which basically amounts to people running around like cracked out chickens with their heads cut off...yes very realistic and exiciting (/sarcasm). The only thing I found I lied about it in the end was the skill based character development system, but I'll wait for a more enjoyable game that has this feature minus the huge amount of grind and the rampant hacking and cheating. Best wishes to those who enjoy the game though and I hope the fraction of the MMO community that plays this can keep it up and running.
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Mean People Suck
I find it hilarious to see SO many critics show up and bitch about all the publicity Darkfall gets. Than ALL the rabid fanbois get on and call the critics trolls. As a result, the vicious circle of Darkfall hype continues. It's a self fullfilling prophecy from both sides.
I see tons of articles on this site about Eve Online all the time. I don't see people slamming this site over it's coverage of that game. Just an observation...
I'm sure some hater of the game will state that because I like Darkfall I must be a basement dwelling fanatic who worships Tasos as God and therefore I don't know anything about reality and I should get my head examined for liking such a pile of shit game and blah blah blah...
The truth is, I don't care. I'm gonna log out of here, log onto Darkfall, and enjoy my Saturday afternoon. I am going to kill some enemies. I am going to loot their bodies. I am going to get pk'd and looted, and I am going to enjoy every minute of it!
Later.
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Mean People Suck
I think people gave of mocking the site bout how according to this place, Eve is the greatest MMO ever, even though no one wants to play it. Its become a joke. After Eve won an award for best PvE of the year, among other catagories it has no business even competing in, this site isn't taken too seriously.
Its coverage of Darkfall is just another nail.
I'm still here.
Honestly, I regret labelling this as a ten part overview. This is a Correspondent article, like any other correspondent article on the site. Numerous games have articles written about them, published on a weekly basis through our Correspondent program. Andy submitted a proposal to write ten about Darkfall. Given that he's the Darkfall Correspondent, that makes a lot of sense. Other writers have written close to ten articles on the games that tehy are covering. It's really that simple and isn't actually disproportionate. I'm not going to publish all ten parts simultaneously, they will be spread out in the same way thata ll other Correspondent articles are.
Ok, now I'm going to address some of the points in the thread:
First, and I can't say this clearly enough: THIS IS NOT A REVIEW. This is a CORRESPONDENT OPINION PIECE, no more, no less. It doesn't pretend to be anything more than that either. You'll know a review when you see it on the site because it will be labelled REVIEW and will have a score associated with it. Not every article put on a gaming website, anywhere, is a review.
Second - Darkfall articles produce hits. Hits are the bar by which I judge the popularity of articles. it's not disproportionate coverage so long as people are reading it. If people stop reading it, we'll stop running it (of course this isn't a cover-all rule, but in terms of determining what articles to run and when in a general sense, it applies). Right now, quite honestly, Darkfall articles are some of the most widely read articles that we run.
Third - If you feel that a game isn't getting enough Correspondent coverage, become a Correspondent yourself or encourage someone else that you know who plays the game in question to become a Correspondent. All you have to do is email virtuaz@mmorpg.com.
Cheers,
Jon Wood
Managing Editor
MMORPG.com
So, just so that we're clear on your facts:
Yes, EVE did win a number of awards one year in questionsbale categories. First of all, those were reader voted awards, the management and editorial staff of this site had NO input on who won those awards. That year, we had decided to open up the voting in every category to include every game... The result saw one game win in categories it shouldn't have. We learned something that year, and that's the reason that we do editorial nominations now (and by the way, we still get complaints from people about that as well), so we don't have a repeat of that. This isn't something we've hidden and in fact it's something we've been pretty open about admitting we were wrong about.
Just trying to provide you with all of the information.
Cheers,
Jon Wood
Managing Editor
MMORPG.com
As a local sports talk radio host puts it: "If you want to kill my show stop complaining about it!"
Feedback (aka buzz good or bad) is the metric by which management measures reader interest.
If you want to kill DarkFall coverage, and hopefully DarkFall itself (yeah i'm a Hater shutup), don't click on the article reviews / overviews.
Has Tasos ever explained why they decided against Perma-death?
Living in a harsh and realistic world, i'd have thought this would be mandatory.