How can someone hate Aion and City of Heroes? For the time periods they were made, they were two of the best games in their respective genres. I would even argue that Aion is the best MMORPG out there, even over WoW(too commercial).
Aye, in as much as you can love and promote Aion, others can hate Aion or CoH.
2) How complex does it seem to be (don't care for easy games).
3) Does it involve Microtransactions? (I move on if it does ... I hate them).
4) What's the end-game play?
5) Does it have PvP? (important to me).
6) Does it have a strong player economy and crafting system? (very important to me).
PvE is nice, and I want it to be entertaining ... but that only last for a short while. I like to get involved in my games and stick around for a while ... so PvP and end-game is the final descision.
You will notice I didn't mention graphics ... for me, graphics is icing ... I'm more interested in a great playing game with so-so graphics than a crappy game with awesome graphics (can we say AoC?).
Whether one likes a game or not though, it cannot be argued that there are things that make a game distinct from it's competitors, or should anyway. With Aion, I saw that they really did an excellent job of balancing out all the parts of the game, but it was the story that really shined there.
How I hear about an MMO isn’t that important to me. Whether it’s from a friend, reading a magazine or hearing about it on this site doesn’t change anything. I also don’t put much stock into the company that is developing the game. Sure, some companies have more experience than other but that doesn’t necessarily mean anything. Everyone started low on the totem pole so why hesitate when a new developer emerges? Doesn’t make sense to me.
After I hear about the game I generally look at their official web-site. From there I look at the screen shots and probably not for the reason you think. I could care less about the graphics, I really could. What I’m looking for is what the characters are doing in the game, what the interface looks like, what the layout of the world is and, more importantly, what the genre is for the game. Can I expect to play an Elf or some Cyborg? Screen shots typically help with that. I also look at the lore on the official web-site. I don’t RP at all, just not very good at it, but if the company has spent some time on the lore and really fleshed out the world then I get a warm fuzzy. If the developer cares enough about a game to make it “real” and to give it history, then they care enough about the game to make it fun and enjoyable for the gamer.
If the game has passed the official web-site test I then begin to Google them. What is the industry saying about the game? What are fan sites saying? Are there any fan sites? I just want to see what’s out there!
If the game still holds my interests then I begin to follow press releases. If I’ve looked into a game and it didn’t “click” for me then I could care less what the hype is around the game or how colorful and descriptive the press releases are. No one is going to convince me to show interest in the game. Either it interests me or it doesn’t and the only person who will convince me of that is myself.
If I like the press releases/podcasts/interviews which come out then I will likely make a decision on whether I will buy the game or not. I typically reserve my impulse purchases for single player games. MMOs on the other hand come with a bit more commitment and investment. I want to be sure when it comes to MMOs so I’m generally thorough.
My one exception to everything I posted above, absolutely EVERYTHING I posted above is a free trial. Wave a free trial in front of my face and I will give damned near anything a try!
*EDIT*
Got on a bit of a rant there. Let me include a list as well:
1) Type of genre (little bored with high fantasy right now)
2) What type of economy will exist in game. if the game is run purly on player crafted items I will almost always try it.
3) Crafting (see #2).
4) What type of PvP (I won't play a FFA, gank fest. Just not my style. If there are "safe zones" than I am happy. If there are PvP battlegrounds then no so happy).
5) Sandbox V themepark (I prefer sandbox of course but will compromise on some aspects of a themepark [i.e. some instances are fine, beginner quests but the game SHOULD focus on exploration]).
I start with screenshots too, there is a certain level of graphics all of us expect, though it varies widely between players.
Genre is not important to me, if the other areas are sound I will play it.
I do not look for ‘something new’, I look for a complete product.
I am a fan of multiple race and class systems. But I also like a skills only idea instead of class, on the fence there.
Quests are a critical MMO component, do them right and players remember. Lotro has the best quests I have seen over the level range. AoC had the best quests I have seen 1 to 20.
PvP is a must, preferably realm versus realm. If not then zoned pvp, not open or random pvp.
Good character customisation or a large range of clothing choice with cosmetic slots. AoC is an example of the former, Lotro an example of the latter.
Balance. In all aspects of the game.
Making grouping more important, with grouping only quests, group bar brawls, group crafting, whatever, just grouping!
No microtranactions
Give me some difficulty I don’t want to sleepwalk the game.
What is the end game? A problem always.
Garrett wants to play a Savage Orc, ok we have his number.
To actually get me to try out a game is relatively simple; it has to have a free trial. That way, I would at least have an inkling on how the game would work (and whether it would work on my laptop in the first place), and what the gameplay is like. If I really enjoyed myself in the trial, I would see about suscribing to it. For free to play games, I'll just continue to play it until I get bored. That's the beauty of free to play games really; if you don't like it, just move along.
After that, it depends on whether the game has a pay by cash option. I don't have a credit card (don't trust myself with them at the moment, and will only get one after I start work), but I do have a debit card, along with some money inside. If I can use my debit card to pay, then I'm definately suscribing to it.
However, I have a much bigger checklist on what would actually get me to continue suscribing to the game. First and formost, I have to love the storyline and lore. Best storyline so far in an MMO would have to be Guild Wars; I love love love the storyline there. Seriously, it's the first game that actually got me interested in an MMO with a storyline. There are so few games out there with good storylines, and meaningful quests that link to the storylines it's really sad.
After that would come the features. If I am intrigued by the list of features, then I would definitely continue to play it. Moreover, it would give me something to work towards, especially if I might get burnt out before I should. An interesting guild system (or clan or corp or tribe) would make me very happy, having meaningful quests (Guild Wars excells at that too) and a housing system would make me even happier.
Last but not least, the community is extremely important too. If I find a community that I can get along with, with friendly people who are willing to help a newbie, then yes, I would be more inclined to stay. The main reason why I play MMOs is for the social aspect, and if that is not there, then I don't see why I should continue to play it. That was probably why I ended up getting burnt out over Guild Wars (though it still is by far my favourite game); I barely spoke to anyone there, and the people in Shing Jea Monestary annoyed me so much.
I usually look at genre first. I don't like that most new MMO's are usually fantasy, but if it's good (different) I'll play it. A lot of the Sci-Fi MMO's out there need a lot of work, but they are my favorite. I like to see MMO's that try something new, something that hasn't been tried before. I then look at the factions and classes and races of the game, wondering how different I'm going to be from every other player. How unique will my character be? Character customization is a must. Next, I look at the gameplay footage and screenshots of the game. I usually will do a trial or beta for anything further. If I don't like it, I won't play it. At the current moment, I'm looking at All Point's Bulletin, Star Trek Online, and Star Wars: The Old Republic, all of which seem to be coming along very nicely. All Point's Bulletin is on the top of my list because I love cops and robbers type games. And I love GTA, so I think that this game succeeds on my list.
First, i'll look to see if its Fantasy. i usualy dont like Sci fi. i dont know why, but it just isnt for me.
then i go on gameogre and look for a review, seriously though, that site is really great. instead of other sites that give their favorite review, i can look through hundreds of player reviews, and get the good and the bad.
next is find a gameplay video, and then screenshots explaining what i am seeing.
lastly i'll go to the main site and read up on everything i can about the game.
and i always choose gameplay over graphics. i dont have the recorces to try P2P games, and i've found a lot of F2P games are clones of each other. the games iv been able to stick with are RuneScape and Tibia who both get bashed for poor graphics. the thing is, they have really solid gameplay.
1. Look at who is making it. If it says SOE anywhere, I move on. If it doesn't, I continue reading.
2. Look to see the theme: high fantasy, low fantasy, established IP, new IP. I'm kind of burnt out on Fantasy (high or low) as well as established IPs now. At this point I read on but am only truly considering buying/investing time in it if it's a new IP.
3. Look at their plans for crafting and player housing. If it "doesn't interfere with being heroic" like Vogel plans for SW:TOR, I'm out. If it plays a key role in gameplay and the gameworld (FE, MO, SWG:PNGE, Ultima Online), I'm another step in.
I have come to realise how big a deal this is for me, and I am mostly a combat player. All recent games have systematically removed these things for convienence of the combat player, but destroyed the community in the process. I soloed a lot in SWG, but I knew my crafters personally, and my doctors and some of the entertainers. Soloing has nothing to do with community I think.
4. Look to see if it's group centered or solo heavy. I prefer games that are group focused, but not raid focused.
I think this is a great point as well. The last part seems to be lost on the numerous solo vs group threads we have seen lately, and I think it ties into your crafting point. The raid gear drops are killing community in my opinion.
5. Look to see how active the company is within the community. A level of interaction that Fallen Earth has, or Asheron's Call had with monthly events is a huge plus.
6. Look at PvP. I prefer PvP with a purpose (as opposed to the "because I can" approach that most developers take). SWG had good elements with people defending cities/forts they built. DAoC was good with respect to my realms versus the others. Not a fan of FFA/loot PvP and neither do I like instanced arenas or battlegrounds.
7. Look high and low for the terms "RMT", "Microtransaction", "Item Mall or Shop" or <insert company name> dollars, potatoes, currency, shines, etc. If any of this or anything related to this not listed is in the plans, the game is written off immediately.
I will tie this one into the other points I commented on as well. When people support RMT and say things like, 'as long as its only fluff, then I don't care', I think that works in a game where crafting is utterly pointless, like most games today. There is no reason why a crafter could not construct the fluff items, so essentially I see this line of thinking coming from people who only like combat. In other words, screw crafters, role-players etc, as long as no epic swords are purchaseable.
8. Look up the key players on their dev team. If there is anyone in a super influential position that had similar reigns on another game I didn't enjoy or have read detailed depictions of them charlie foxtrotting it, I start looking for the tell-tale signs of them doing it again.
9. Hopefully get in beta (I've sucessfully made it into every beta since 2003/4 that I've applied to) and get a sense of the game while getting a look at how well it is put together (i.e., how darn buggy it is- and yes, I report them, lol).
10. If satisfied with the above, I alert my "crew" to which new game they will be purchasing (I'm the MMO point-man) and buy the game.
Great points, I agree with every single one, other than I am not a point man for any crew, hehe.
I've tried to be the trend starter and have gone off to play new MMO's but the factor that keeps me from staying is "Are my friends there?" If the answer is no I won't be staying for long.
What I am really looking for nowadays is something that is apart from the "Human, Elven, Dwarves" Mainstream.
I don't care about who makes it. I see CCP (EVE) doing a good job while still being rather tiny company. I saw Aventurine (Darkfall) fail epic because they did not care about rules in their community. Not in the forum, nor in the game.
I prefer fantasy on a high level like Horizons (Istaria) has, but there has to be a populated world, not only a crafting simulator with a bunch of people in a really huge world. However I am playing EVE atm, because ist wide and open and full of possibilities.
What I miss in all the recent gams is one: Variety.
If you leave stats unrecognized, you always get humans in diefferent shapes, although the are named Orcs, Elven, Fangran or whatever. If you wanna have a look on that try Earth eternal beta. There are 22 beast races, but all are going on 2 legs, using their hands to wield human weapons, wearing human armors. If you change the shape they would go as koreans, chinese, germans, frenchman, dutchman, americans or whatever humans without anything to wonder about. Why dont the wolf use his fang? Why dont the deer uses his antlers? Why there is no snowball avalanche for the yeti?
I remember dragons in Horizons having a fire breath, tail whip, and other special abilities that might be natural for dragons. THAT was fun!
Why all other games only feature costumed humans? Don't they dare to go an other way than WoW?
I am looking for real fantasy, mind challenging quests for a mature audience. I believe the more difficult the quests are, the better the community is. Because help is really needed.
Remember what RP came from: It came from pen & paper sessions and they challanged your brain. Not only your right forefinger for spamming the left mouse button. In recent MMOs brain seems to be not needed.
For all those reasons there is only one thing i chose my MMO from:
Do I get the chance to have a free look? No trial? Than I won't play. I would not buy a car without a test drive either.
After looking at the graphics and gameplay, I go and look at the review then on to their forums to hang out a bit. I look at the technical issues and then the General. Once I feel comfortable about the game I start pricing it online.
I pretty much give most P2P games a fair shake of their 1st month. I don't play F2P games due to the quality and caliber inherit to them, that an the community associated with them. If after the 1st month of play I don't like what I see, I usually drop out on it and do not subscribe. Some retain me a little longer, making me interested in where the dev team is taking the game and will let me sub for another month..maybe even more. I've tried about 90% of the P2P mmo's that have come out starting back at EQ my first.
Many did not make it past the 1st month, several did of that list EQ, EQ2, Matrix Online, WoW, SWG, LOTRO, DDO, EVE, AOC. of these only a few made it past 3 months EQ, EQ2, WOW, SWG EVE...The rest either had something i didn't like about them or just bored me to tears after a point or were just plain crap towards end game. The game i subbed longest to was SWG however at around 5+ yrs thru all the NGE turmoil when my 300+ guild finally floundered and I finally gave up on it. I have tried resubbing to these few a few times but most can't get me to stay. (I only play wow cause my sister forces me to but I keep dropping it).
I recently picked up both Fallen Earth and Champions Online nearly the same week and several weeks after they launched and got all those launch bugs out of the way....I don't know how i pick them but ...fallen earth is gonna make it....to at least 3 months and a 2nd look...champions online isn't going to make the grade...
1. Personally I'm a sci-fi nut, I enjoy fantasy but sci-fi is more my thing. (Look at past history w/ SWG)
2. Gameplay (skill based system over leveling), Open world (sandbox vs themepark) I love to explore the world even at the lowest levels, Quest system that makes sense and not endless kill 10 rats, PVP/PVE both good and not a FFA gankfest, I don't care for arena/BG's but I like open world PVP as long as its fair and not a zerg fest either which is just stupid.
3. Fun-I gotta be having fun and not feel like I'm grindingk, boredom is a sure shot to the unsub button. (i'm looking at you 8 time unsub wow!)
4. Immersion=This ties into all of the first 3 especially #2 (open world). I have to feel like I matter, that I can explore the world and don't have to walk along a path or be lead by the nose thru a park, I want to have freedom to do what i want, to become a bandit to roleplay a pirate, to become a meglomaniac paladin who will stop at abosolutely nothing to vanquish evil even at the peril of his party, or to be that durnken dwarf axe swinger who ruffs it up in the local pub every nite. I HAVE TO LOSE MY SELF IN THE WORLD FOR HOURS and not realize it.
Actually one of my first criteria is cost: Do I have to pay to get the client? Do have to pay right away or is there a trial period/zone? Then how much is the suscription OR How much it it recommended to spend in the cash shop to progress?
My first MMO was Dofus, and since it's so low-cost and still so much fun to me, I have trouble actually taking to another game. I will try something else but mostly, I'll go back to my first "love".
The only recent exception is GalaXseeds, because it's entirely free and meet my "casual" needs.
Graphics are important at some point but I much prefer a smooth gameplay then high end graphics. I like good animation and usually, mmos lack in these area.
The content is important but I mostly look at the sandbox tools. Each mmo do provide an interesting set of “community” tools… crafting, housing, zone pvp and such… If the mmo is greatly lacking in these then I usually walk away to the next title.
A game like “Ahem”; EVE provides an incredible amount of “community tools”. This means that if I want to be the top crafter, I need the top miners, pvper, traders and corps to help me out. In exchange, I can help them out and so on.
2. balanced pvp with some kind of a matching system.
3. relative no grind needed for competitive pvp.
4. able to PVP without need to get to max level. I want to be able to decide if I'm going to play pvp the game without grinding for months, just to be able to try it.
5. interesting skill system and good game mechanics.
6. games that follow those demands: GW - good game, Fury - bad game.
7. good games that fail: WOW - fails on 4, EVE- fails on 1, war - fails on 5, lotr - fails on 2-4.
Either it shouldn't exist, or must be by choice, never free for all. It can be contained in zones that have zero interest to PvE players, or be only initiated by duels (with an auto-ignorable challenge system) or realm wars where people expect it (still separated from PvE players). Where PvP exists, it should be a friendly competition, ideally. No permanent damage should result to either party involved.
I should never have to be looking over my shoulder while minding my own business.
PVP style is a deal-breaker, regardless of anything else the game has to offer.
2 : Classes / Combat options (gameplay):
I prefer physical combat, but this can be expanded upon in a sci-fi setting. I'll never touch mage jobs, and there has to be the option of not taking any magical abilities without harming the overall effectiveness of a character. I prefer unique weapons, not your standard medieval weapons or laser guns, no matter what the setting is.
Also, there has to be a lot to do during combat, not just auto-attack and unleash a special attack every 1 to 5min. The more there is to do, the more potential there is for strategy, as long as it's not just button mashing to get the same results.
3 : Solo-ability:
My schedule is not my own. I cannot generally lock myself into being in a game at a certain time for any period of time. I get called away. I want to be able to accomplish most things on my own, with group-needed events taking under 2 hours (including gather time).
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Those are my "Big 3" criteria. If those are missing, I won't be able to enjoy the game for long (or at all in some cases.)
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These next things may draw me to a game, or hold me in the game longer than I intend to stay:
4 : Friends:
If I know people who are playing from outside the game, I'll join/stick around to help them out. I don't go out of my way to make new friends. I can also happily play MMO games without making any friends (I HATE when games force you to add a certain number of people to your "friends list" as part of the quest lines.)
5 : Story:
I like playing through quests when they're part of a larger story that you complete progressively through the game. A story can justify "collect 10 rat tails" type quests, especially when semi-cinematic cut-scenes are involved with the story before and after. I'll continue playing long after my friends leave a game if there's more story to be seen, even if that story can be watched on youtube (it's not the same).
6 : Price:
I only play 1 P2P game at a time currently, while I play several F2P games. Point 4 is drawing me to other P2P games right now, but I can't justify the expense yet. Free to play games offer variety from the P2P game experience that can get boring at times.
7 : Developer Feedback:
MMOs are constantly changing and growing. The developers should have a clear goal for their game, and each thing they add to the game should build on that goal in some way. The players should understand that goal. Each time the game is changed in some way, or something is added, the developers should say why.
With this understanding, players can offer more constructive feedback and suggestions. People who want things that go against the goals of the developers can easily be discarded and be rightly told to go play another game with that goal. A person's subscription fee does not entitle them to creative direction of the game.
When developers fold to the whims of a vocal community, when it goes against the game's goals, that's when you have problems, in my opinion.
Sometimes the vocal community can be right, and are trying to get the game to stay true to its goals in a significant way that the developers either are already working on, or may never have thought of before. In these cases, it would be of monumental importance for the developers to acknowledge the issue and say what they're doing about it, even if it's just "we're working on it." Even better, would be to discuss the options they're thinking about, and open it to discussion, so what they finally do end up implementing is what people actually want.
If developers are aware of the state of the game, and show a real understanding, I have hope that the game may change for the better. This shows there is potential for greatness.
When developers are silent, and simply release updates without their reasoning, players can feel like they are being ignored (and they very well may be.) This problem becomes even more noticable when there is a language difference between developers and players.
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There are a few other things I look for, but they don't make or break a decision. They would read more like a wish-list, so I'll save that for a relevant topic.
A game has to be fun to play, but everyone has their own defination of fun, so here are my criteria.
1 - I have to be able to try it out before puting money into it. I've had too many disappointments to trust reviews and hype. I prefer to get in on beta so I can see how well they deal with bugs and to get in on the launch if I like the game. However, a feee trial of at least a week is a good alternative. Its also nice if you don't have to buy a box just to get a game key.
2 - I don't like FPS and if there is PvP, it has to be optional. Occasional PvP for a change of pace is ok, but open PvP is out. For those that insist on PvP, give them their own server to kill each other on. (AC and WoW have nice balance here; Eve fails.)
3 - It should have a decent crafting system, but high marks in other areas can compensate for weak crafting. Idealy, crafted items should be as good as any loot item and there needs to be amarket for crafted goods. (SWG has great crafting, Horizons and Vanguard both have very good crafting and LOTRO is good).
4 - It needs to be soloable. Grouping is fine for epic quests, but if there isn't someone handy to quest with, I don't want to be locked out of most of the content. (On release, DDO failed here, but is now nicely balanced.)
5 - I prefer skill based games, but if its class based, there needs to be a good variety, preferably with multi-classing. I also want mutiple character slots so that I can try out different play styles. (The original SWG had a great skill system, but was too restricted on character slots.)
6 - Meaningful questing that adds to the story line, not just kill me 5 of this and 10 of that. (LOTRO does a great job of integrating quests into the story line and having a lot of diversity.) I also enjoy just exploring new areas. The fog on the map for unexplored areas makes it more exciting to discover new things. On the other hand, it should be easy to locate things that I've already found. Nothing ruins a good quest like spending half a hour trying to find the NPC to finish the quest.
7 - Character customization is important. I don't want to look like everyone else I meet and I don't want cookie-cutter abilities where every mage or cleric has the same skills. Multple skill trees are a good way to add diversity. When adjusting avatar appearance, sliders are better than cycling through presets. (CoH/CoV has great customization.)
8 - The user interface has to be intuitive to use. The more customization the better and UI elements need to be at least dragable if not resizeable. I especially like games that support addon scripting with Lua or Python (WoW has amazing capabilies here).
9 - I don't like being restricted to PnC movement, especially where the same click would be used to select a target, so that if the target moves as I click on it, I won't end up running to it by mistake. If it does rely on PnC movement, it had better have good pathing to make up for it.
10 - Anything that makes it feel like a complete world is always a plus. There needs to be a good marketing system for buying and selling, not just players standing around spamming stuff to sell (Eve has a great system). Player and Guild housing is always a plus and player run cities are even better (SWG is ideal in this respect). A decent method for long distance travel is important too, as I don't want to waste most of my time running from one location to another.
11 - It needs to be a 3D world, but game graphics are mostly eye candy as long as its not buggy (no shooting through walls, etc). Game performance is more important than looks. (AC2 proved that pretty graphics can't make up for shallow game content.)
12 - By the time its released, the game needs to be solid with no major bugs. Too many games are release early with the promise to fix things after release. I don't want to pay to play a game that is functionally still in beta and development is torn between fixing old bugs and adding new content. Vanguard made this mistake and it took a whole year to get it cleaned up.
On the F2P vs P2P issue, I'm fine with F2P as I can try them out without commiting major $$ and I can play them occasionally without feeling that I'm wasting a monthly subscription. (DDO has a nice alternative in that it supports both models.) While I have several alternate F2P games, I only subscribe to one P2P game at a time. Of course there are more poor quality F2P games than P2P, but at least it only costs you time to try them out.
How do I pick my mmo? I loved your list and some of the ones I read (couldn't read them all as I am on my lunch atm). Being 30 and very focused on income and other elements of RL now I have to look at several things as well as the most comnly listed ones (i.e. graphics play style etc.). I research into the play heavily using forums here asking friends in other games etc. I cannot invest the time in another WoW (was raiding quite heavily last year and the one before). So as an example the screenies and other descriptions of Aion look great and grand but there is no way I can justify spending $50 and a monthly fee for what most say is a grind (yes I realize that WoW technically isn't a grind but if I can't be the best because I can't spend 40 hrs a week playing whats the point in me spending my hard earned cash).
If something has a free trial I will usually try it if the screenies look good or it somehow catches my interest (its a case by case type of decision really). I would highly suggest using this tactic to grab the more casual gamers once the release has cooled btw. I also have vowed never to play another free to play mmo.
For me, the IP is a big issue. Even if the game has flaws, if I'm a big fan of the IP, I can have fun and keep myself interested for a long time. The neXt thing for me is Community. As much as I've liked some games, the community was young or adolescent. I look for a community that is more mature; that will be a factor in how long I stick with a game.
1. Look at who is making it. If it says SOE anywhere, I move on. If it doesn't, I continue reading. 2. Look to see the theme: high fantasy, low fantasy, established IP, new IP. I'm kind of burnt out on Fantasy (high or low) as well as established IPs now. At this point I read on but am only truly considering buying/investing time in it if it's a new IP. 3. Look at their plans for crafting and player housing. If it "doesn't interfere with being heroic" like Vogel plans for SW:TOR, I'm out. If it plays a key role in gameplay and the gameworld (FE, MO, SWG:PNGE, Ultima Online), I'm another step in. I have come to realise how big a deal this is for me, and I am mostly a combat player. All recent games have systematically removed these things for convienence of the combat player, but destroyed the community in the process. I soloed a lot in SWG, but I knew my crafters personally, and my doctors and some of the entertainers. Soloing has nothing to do with community I think. 4. Look to see if it's group centered or solo heavy. I prefer games that are group focused, but not raid focused. I think this is a great point as well. The last part seems to be lost on the numerous solo vs group threads we have seen lately, and I think it ties into your crafting point. The raid gear drops are killing community in my opinion. 5. Look to see how active the company is within the community. A level of interaction that Fallen Earth has, or Asheron's Call had with monthly events is a huge plus. 6. Look at PvP. I prefer PvP with a purpose (as opposed to the "because I can" approach that most developers take). SWG had good elements with people defending cities/forts they built. DAoC was good with respect to my realms versus the others. Not a fan of FFA/loot PvP and neither do I like instanced arenas or battlegrounds. 7. Look high and low for the terms "RMT", "Microtransaction", "Item Mall or Shop" or <insert company name> dollars, potatoes, currency, shines, etc. If any of this or anything related to this not listed is in the plans, the game is written off immediately. I will tie this one into the other points I commented on as well. When people support RMT and say things like, 'as long as its only fluff, then I don't care', I think that works in a game where crafting is utterly pointless, like most games today. There is no reason why a crafter could not construct the fluff items, so essentially I see this line of thinking coming from people who only like combat. In other words, screw crafters, role-players etc, as long as no epic swords are purchaseable. 8. Look up the key players on their dev team. If there is anyone in a super influential position that had similar reigns on another game I didn't enjoy or have read detailed depictions of them charlie foxtrotting it, I start looking for the tell-tale signs of them doing it again. 9. Hopefully get in beta (I've sucessfully made it into every beta since 2003/4 that I've applied to) and get a sense of the game while getting a look at how well it is put together (i.e., how darn buggy it is- and yes, I report them, lol). 10. If satisfied with the above, I alert my "crew" to which new game they will be purchasing (I'm the MMO point-man) and buy the game.
Great points, I agree with every single one, other than I am not a point man for any crew, hehe.
Ohatro
In SWG I enjoyed being that doctor who patched up your wounds. I'm all for there being a wide variety of ways to play. I stand by that combat is very, very valuable, but it is not king. A good game, in my opinion, allows for a diverse amount of ways for players to play that have equal value as opposed to a diverse amount of ways to engage in combat.
"Many nights, my friend... Many nights I've put a blade to your throat while you were sleeping. Glad I never killed you, Steve. You're alright..."
These days with the armies of trash games out there haunting us, i have to test every one of them, play a bit, read the story (and thats if the game got me interested at all), some other times, im just unable to install a game or when i log in i say, "i wont play this" (trashy interface, graphics or sound), and never come back, pretty much it goes in the feeling, also i try games that are in final beta or relased alreday, because in the past i was victim of the hype, i waited for a game so long, that when actually came out i was sick of it and never played it in the end.
And since there are so many games out there and im more like the casual player its very important for me thats F2P, my wallet wouldnt allow me to pay for more than one P2P game...
For me, gameplay is by far the most important. It can be the prettiest game in the world, but if it ain't fun, I'm bored in ten minutes.
I also want to know about soloability. To each his own, but I never want to again get deceived in a game like Wow where you can solo to the top and then it's raid or forget about meaningful progression.
Third is PvE focus. I'm not a PvP'er, and if the game has a heavy PvP focus, like say, Warhammer, I won't even set foot in it.
Comments
Aye, in as much as you can love and promote Aion, others can hate Aion or CoH.
1) Subject matter (I'm burned out on D&D).
2) How complex does it seem to be (don't care for easy games).
3) Does it involve Microtransactions? (I move on if it does ... I hate them).
4) What's the end-game play?
5) Does it have PvP? (important to me).
6) Does it have a strong player economy and crafting system? (very important to me).
PvE is nice, and I want it to be entertaining ... but that only last for a short while. I like to get involved in my games and stick around for a while ... so PvP and end-game is the final descision.
You will notice I didn't mention graphics ... for me, graphics is icing ... I'm more interested in a great playing game with so-so graphics than a crappy game with awesome graphics (can we say AoC?).
Whether one likes a game or not though, it cannot be argued that there are things that make a game distinct from it's competitors, or should anyway. With Aion, I saw that they really did an excellent job of balancing out all the parts of the game, but it was the story that really shined there.
How I hear about an MMO isn’t that important to me. Whether it’s from a friend, reading a magazine or hearing about it on this site doesn’t change anything. I also don’t put much stock into the company that is developing the game. Sure, some companies have more experience than other but that doesn’t necessarily mean anything. Everyone started low on the totem pole so why hesitate when a new developer emerges? Doesn’t make sense to me.
After I hear about the game I generally look at their official web-site. From there I look at the screen shots and probably not for the reason you think. I could care less about the graphics, I really could. What I’m looking for is what the characters are doing in the game, what the interface looks like, what the layout of the world is and, more importantly, what the genre is for the game. Can I expect to play an Elf or some Cyborg? Screen shots typically help with that. I also look at the lore on the official web-site. I don’t RP at all, just not very good at it, but if the company has spent some time on the lore and really fleshed out the world then I get a warm fuzzy. If the developer cares enough about a game to make it “real” and to give it history, then they care enough about the game to make it fun and enjoyable for the gamer.
If the game has passed the official web-site test I then begin to Google them. What is the industry saying about the game? What are fan sites saying? Are there any fan sites? I just want to see what’s out there!
If the game still holds my interests then I begin to follow press releases. If I’ve looked into a game and it didn’t “click” for me then I could care less what the hype is around the game or how colorful and descriptive the press releases are. No one is going to convince me to show interest in the game. Either it interests me or it doesn’t and the only person who will convince me of that is myself.
If I like the press releases/podcasts/interviews which come out then I will likely make a decision on whether I will buy the game or not. I typically reserve my impulse purchases for single player games. MMOs on the other hand come with a bit more commitment and investment. I want to be sure when it comes to MMOs so I’m generally thorough.
My one exception to everything I posted above, absolutely EVERYTHING I posted above is a free trial. Wave a free trial in front of my face and I will give damned near anything a try!
*EDIT*
Got on a bit of a rant there. Let me include a list as well:
1) Type of genre (little bored with high fantasy right now)
2) What type of economy will exist in game. if the game is run purly on player crafted items I will almost always try it.
3) Crafting (see #2).
4) What type of PvP (I won't play a FFA, gank fest. Just not my style. If there are "safe zones" than I am happy. If there are PvP battlegrounds then no so happy).
5) Sandbox V themepark (I prefer sandbox of course but will compromise on some aspects of a themepark [i.e. some instances are fine, beginner quests but the game SHOULD focus on exploration]).
He is my how I choose rundown:
I start with screenshots too, there is a certain level of graphics all of us expect, though it varies widely between players.
Genre is not important to me, if the other areas are sound I will play it.
I do not look for ‘something new’, I look for a complete product.
I am a fan of multiple race and class systems. But I also like a skills only idea instead of class, on the fence there.
Quests are a critical MMO component, do them right and players remember. Lotro has the best quests I have seen over the level range. AoC had the best quests I have seen 1 to 20.
PvP is a must, preferably realm versus realm. If not then zoned pvp, not open or random pvp.
Good character customisation or a large range of clothing choice with cosmetic slots. AoC is an example of the former, Lotro an example of the latter.
Balance. In all aspects of the game.
Making grouping more important, with grouping only quests, group bar brawls, group crafting, whatever, just grouping!
No microtranactions
Give me some difficulty I don’t want to sleepwalk the game.
What is the end game? A problem always.
Garrett wants to play a Savage Orc, ok we have his number.
To actually get me to try out a game is relatively simple; it has to have a free trial. That way, I would at least have an inkling on how the game would work (and whether it would work on my laptop in the first place), and what the gameplay is like. If I really enjoyed myself in the trial, I would see about suscribing to it. For free to play games, I'll just continue to play it until I get bored. That's the beauty of free to play games really; if you don't like it, just move along.
After that, it depends on whether the game has a pay by cash option. I don't have a credit card (don't trust myself with them at the moment, and will only get one after I start work), but I do have a debit card, along with some money inside. If I can use my debit card to pay, then I'm definately suscribing to it.
However, I have a much bigger checklist on what would actually get me to continue suscribing to the game. First and formost, I have to love the storyline and lore. Best storyline so far in an MMO would have to be Guild Wars; I love love love the storyline there. Seriously, it's the first game that actually got me interested in an MMO with a storyline. There are so few games out there with good storylines, and meaningful quests that link to the storylines it's really sad.
After that would come the features. If I am intrigued by the list of features, then I would definitely continue to play it. Moreover, it would give me something to work towards, especially if I might get burnt out before I should. An interesting guild system (or clan or corp or tribe) would make me very happy, having meaningful quests (Guild Wars excells at that too) and a housing system would make me even happier.
Last but not least, the community is extremely important too. If I find a community that I can get along with, with friendly people who are willing to help a newbie, then yes, I would be more inclined to stay. The main reason why I play MMOs is for the social aspect, and if that is not there, then I don't see why I should continue to play it. That was probably why I ended up getting burnt out over Guild Wars (though it still is by far my favourite game); I barely spoke to anyone there, and the people in Shing Jea Monestary annoyed me so much.
Main characters:
Jinn Gone Quiet (Guild Wars)
Princess Pudding (Guild Wars)
I usually look at genre first. I don't like that most new MMO's are usually fantasy, but if it's good (different) I'll play it. A lot of the Sci-Fi MMO's out there need a lot of work, but they are my favorite. I like to see MMO's that try something new, something that hasn't been tried before. I then look at the factions and classes and races of the game, wondering how different I'm going to be from every other player. How unique will my character be? Character customization is a must. Next, I look at the gameplay footage and screenshots of the game. I usually will do a trial or beta for anything further. If I don't like it, I won't play it. At the current moment, I'm looking at All Point's Bulletin, Star Trek Online, and Star Wars: The Old Republic, all of which seem to be coming along very nicely. All Point's Bulletin is on the top of my list because I love cops and robbers type games. And I love GTA, so I think that this game succeeds on my list.
First, i'll look to see if its Fantasy. i usualy dont like Sci fi. i dont know why, but it just isnt for me.
then i go on gameogre and look for a review, seriously though, that site is really great. instead of other sites that give their favorite review, i can look through hundreds of player reviews, and get the good and the bad.
next is find a gameplay video, and then screenshots explaining what i am seeing.
lastly i'll go to the main site and read up on everything i can about the game.
and i always choose gameplay over graphics. i dont have the recorces to try P2P games, and i've found a lot of F2P games are clones of each other. the games iv been able to stick with are RuneScape and Tibia who both get bashed for poor graphics. the thing is, they have really solid gameplay.
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Great points, I agree with every single one, other than I am not a point man for any crew, hehe.
Ohatro
I've tried to be the trend starter and have gone off to play new MMO's but the factor that keeps me from staying is "Are my friends there?" If the answer is no I won't be staying for long.
Many good points written already.
I agree with many, but let me cast my opinion.
What I am really looking for nowadays is something that is apart from the "Human, Elven, Dwarves" Mainstream.
I don't care about who makes it. I see CCP (EVE) doing a good job while still being rather tiny company. I saw Aventurine (Darkfall) fail epic because they did not care about rules in their community. Not in the forum, nor in the game.
I prefer fantasy on a high level like Horizons (Istaria) has, but there has to be a populated world, not only a crafting simulator with a bunch of people in a really huge world. However I am playing EVE atm, because ist wide and open and full of possibilities.
What I miss in all the recent gams is one: Variety.
If you leave stats unrecognized, you always get humans in diefferent shapes, although the are named Orcs, Elven, Fangran or whatever. If you wanna have a look on that try Earth eternal beta. There are 22 beast races, but all are going on 2 legs, using their hands to wield human weapons, wearing human armors. If you change the shape they would go as koreans, chinese, germans, frenchman, dutchman, americans or whatever humans without anything to wonder about. Why dont the wolf use his fang? Why dont the deer uses his antlers? Why there is no snowball avalanche for the yeti?
I remember dragons in Horizons having a fire breath, tail whip, and other special abilities that might be natural for dragons. THAT was fun!
Why all other games only feature costumed humans? Don't they dare to go an other way than WoW?
I am looking for real fantasy, mind challenging quests for a mature audience. I believe the more difficult the quests are, the better the community is. Because help is really needed.
Remember what RP came from: It came from pen & paper sessions and they challanged your brain. Not only your right forefinger for spamming the left mouse button. In recent MMOs brain seems to be not needed.
For all those reasons there is only one thing i chose my MMO from:
Do I get the chance to have a free look? No trial? Than I won't play. I would not buy a car without a test drive either.
After looking at the graphics and gameplay, I go and look at the review then on to their forums to hang out a bit. I look at the technical issues and then the General. Once I feel comfortable about the game I start pricing it online.
Then I buy it.
I pretty much give most P2P games a fair shake of their 1st month. I don't play F2P games due to the quality and caliber inherit to them, that an the community associated with them. If after the 1st month of play I don't like what I see, I usually drop out on it and do not subscribe. Some retain me a little longer, making me interested in where the dev team is taking the game and will let me sub for another month..maybe even more. I've tried about 90% of the P2P mmo's that have come out starting back at EQ my first.
Many did not make it past the 1st month, several did of that list EQ, EQ2, Matrix Online, WoW, SWG, LOTRO, DDO, EVE, AOC. of these only a few made it past 3 months EQ, EQ2, WOW, SWG EVE...The rest either had something i didn't like about them or just bored me to tears after a point or were just plain crap towards end game. The game i subbed longest to was SWG however at around 5+ yrs thru all the NGE turmoil when my 300+ guild finally floundered and I finally gave up on it. I have tried resubbing to these few a few times but most can't get me to stay. (I only play wow cause my sister forces me to but I keep dropping it).
I recently picked up both Fallen Earth and Champions Online nearly the same week and several weeks after they launched and got all those launch bugs out of the way....I don't know how i pick them but ...fallen earth is gonna make it....to at least 3 months and a 2nd look...champions online isn't going to make the grade...
1. Personally I'm a sci-fi nut, I enjoy fantasy but sci-fi is more my thing. (Look at past history w/ SWG)
2. Gameplay (skill based system over leveling), Open world (sandbox vs themepark) I love to explore the world even at the lowest levels, Quest system that makes sense and not endless kill 10 rats, PVP/PVE both good and not a FFA gankfest, I don't care for arena/BG's but I like open world PVP as long as its fair and not a zerg fest either which is just stupid.
3. Fun-I gotta be having fun and not feel like I'm grindingk, boredom is a sure shot to the unsub button. (i'm looking at you 8 time unsub wow!)
4. Immersion=This ties into all of the first 3 especially #2 (open world). I have to feel like I matter, that I can explore the world and don't have to walk along a path or be lead by the nose thru a park, I want to have freedom to do what i want, to become a bandit to roleplay a pirate, to become a meglomaniac paladin who will stop at abosolutely nothing to vanquish evil even at the peril of his party, or to be that durnken dwarf axe swinger who ruffs it up in the local pub every nite. I HAVE TO LOSE MY SELF IN THE WORLD FOR HOURS and not realize it.
http://www.forceofarms.com/index.php
Actually one of my first criteria is cost: Do I have to pay to get the client? Do have to pay right away or is there a trial period/zone? Then how much is the suscription OR How much it it recommended to spend in the cash shop to progress?
My first MMO was Dofus, and since it's so low-cost and still so much fun to me, I have trouble actually taking to another game. I will try something else but mostly, I'll go back to my first "love".
The only recent exception is GalaXseeds, because it's entirely free and meet my "casual" needs.
Graphics are important at some point but I much prefer a smooth gameplay then high end graphics. I like good animation and usually, mmos lack in these area.
The content is important but I mostly look at the sandbox tools. Each mmo do provide an interesting set of “community” tools… crafting, housing, zone pvp and such… If the mmo is greatly lacking in these then I usually walk away to the next title.
A game like “Ahem”; EVE provides an incredible amount of “community tools”. This means that if I want to be the top crafter, I need the top miners, pvper, traders and corps to help me out. In exchange, I can help them out and so on.
SWG had it right.
1. has to be fantasy.
2. balanced pvp with some kind of a matching system.
3. relative no grind needed for competitive pvp.
4. able to PVP without need to get to max level. I want to be able to decide if I'm going to play pvp the game without grinding for months, just to be able to try it.
5. interesting skill system and good game mechanics.
6. games that follow those demands: GW - good game, Fury - bad game.
7. good games that fail: WOW - fails on 4, EVE- fails on 1, war - fails on 5, lotr - fails on 2-4.
My "Big 3" criteria:
1 : PvP:
Either it shouldn't exist, or must be by choice, never free for all. It can be contained in zones that have zero interest to PvE players, or be only initiated by duels (with an auto-ignorable challenge system) or realm wars where people expect it (still separated from PvE players). Where PvP exists, it should be a friendly competition, ideally. No permanent damage should result to either party involved.
I should never have to be looking over my shoulder while minding my own business.
PVP style is a deal-breaker, regardless of anything else the game has to offer.
2 : Classes / Combat options (gameplay):
I prefer physical combat, but this can be expanded upon in a sci-fi setting. I'll never touch mage jobs, and there has to be the option of not taking any magical abilities without harming the overall effectiveness of a character. I prefer unique weapons, not your standard medieval weapons or laser guns, no matter what the setting is.
Also, there has to be a lot to do during combat, not just auto-attack and unleash a special attack every 1 to 5min. The more there is to do, the more potential there is for strategy, as long as it's not just button mashing to get the same results.
3 : Solo-ability:
My schedule is not my own. I cannot generally lock myself into being in a game at a certain time for any period of time. I get called away. I want to be able to accomplish most things on my own, with group-needed events taking under 2 hours (including gather time).
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Those are my "Big 3" criteria. If those are missing, I won't be able to enjoy the game for long (or at all in some cases.)
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These next things may draw me to a game, or hold me in the game longer than I intend to stay:
4 : Friends:
If I know people who are playing from outside the game, I'll join/stick around to help them out. I don't go out of my way to make new friends. I can also happily play MMO games without making any friends (I HATE when games force you to add a certain number of people to your "friends list" as part of the quest lines.)
5 : Story:
I like playing through quests when they're part of a larger story that you complete progressively through the game. A story can justify "collect 10 rat tails" type quests, especially when semi-cinematic cut-scenes are involved with the story before and after. I'll continue playing long after my friends leave a game if there's more story to be seen, even if that story can be watched on youtube (it's not the same).
6 : Price:
I only play 1 P2P game at a time currently, while I play several F2P games. Point 4 is drawing me to other P2P games right now, but I can't justify the expense yet. Free to play games offer variety from the P2P game experience that can get boring at times.
7 : Developer Feedback:
MMOs are constantly changing and growing. The developers should have a clear goal for their game, and each thing they add to the game should build on that goal in some way. The players should understand that goal. Each time the game is changed in some way, or something is added, the developers should say why.
With this understanding, players can offer more constructive feedback and suggestions. People who want things that go against the goals of the developers can easily be discarded and be rightly told to go play another game with that goal. A person's subscription fee does not entitle them to creative direction of the game.
When developers fold to the whims of a vocal community, when it goes against the game's goals, that's when you have problems, in my opinion.
Sometimes the vocal community can be right, and are trying to get the game to stay true to its goals in a significant way that the developers either are already working on, or may never have thought of before. In these cases, it would be of monumental importance for the developers to acknowledge the issue and say what they're doing about it, even if it's just "we're working on it." Even better, would be to discuss the options they're thinking about, and open it to discussion, so what they finally do end up implementing is what people actually want.
If developers are aware of the state of the game, and show a real understanding, I have hope that the game may change for the better. This shows there is potential for greatness.
When developers are silent, and simply release updates without their reasoning, players can feel like they are being ignored (and they very well may be.) This problem becomes even more noticable when there is a language difference between developers and players.
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There are a few other things I look for, but they don't make or break a decision. They would read more like a wish-list, so I'll save that for a relevant topic.
A game has to be fun to play, but everyone has their own defination of fun, so here are my criteria.
1 - I have to be able to try it out before puting money into it. I've had too many disappointments to trust reviews and hype. I prefer to get in on beta so I can see how well they deal with bugs and to get in on the launch if I like the game. However, a feee trial of at least a week is a good alternative. Its also nice if you don't have to buy a box just to get a game key.
2 - I don't like FPS and if there is PvP, it has to be optional. Occasional PvP for a change of pace is ok, but open PvP is out. For those that insist on PvP, give them their own server to kill each other on. (AC and WoW have nice balance here; Eve fails.)
3 - It should have a decent crafting system, but high marks in other areas can compensate for weak crafting. Idealy, crafted items should be as good as any loot item and there needs to be amarket for crafted goods. (SWG has great crafting, Horizons and Vanguard both have very good crafting and LOTRO is good).
4 - It needs to be soloable. Grouping is fine for epic quests, but if there isn't someone handy to quest with, I don't want to be locked out of most of the content. (On release, DDO failed here, but is now nicely balanced.)
5 - I prefer skill based games, but if its class based, there needs to be a good variety, preferably with multi-classing. I also want mutiple character slots so that I can try out different play styles. (The original SWG had a great skill system, but was too restricted on character slots.)
6 - Meaningful questing that adds to the story line, not just kill me 5 of this and 10 of that. (LOTRO does a great job of integrating quests into the story line and having a lot of diversity.) I also enjoy just exploring new areas. The fog on the map for unexplored areas makes it more exciting to discover new things. On the other hand, it should be easy to locate things that I've already found. Nothing ruins a good quest like spending half a hour trying to find the NPC to finish the quest.
7 - Character customization is important. I don't want to look like everyone else I meet and I don't want cookie-cutter abilities where every mage or cleric has the same skills. Multple skill trees are a good way to add diversity. When adjusting avatar appearance, sliders are better than cycling through presets. (CoH/CoV has great customization.)
8 - The user interface has to be intuitive to use. The more customization the better and UI elements need to be at least dragable if not resizeable. I especially like games that support addon scripting with Lua or Python (WoW has amazing capabilies here).
9 - I don't like being restricted to PnC movement, especially where the same click would be used to select a target, so that if the target moves as I click on it, I won't end up running to it by mistake. If it does rely on PnC movement, it had better have good pathing to make up for it.
10 - Anything that makes it feel like a complete world is always a plus. There needs to be a good marketing system for buying and selling, not just players standing around spamming stuff to sell (Eve has a great system). Player and Guild housing is always a plus and player run cities are even better (SWG is ideal in this respect). A decent method for long distance travel is important too, as I don't want to waste most of my time running from one location to another.
11 - It needs to be a 3D world, but game graphics are mostly eye candy as long as its not buggy (no shooting through walls, etc). Game performance is more important than looks. (AC2 proved that pretty graphics can't make up for shallow game content.)
12 - By the time its released, the game needs to be solid with no major bugs. Too many games are release early with the promise to fix things after release. I don't want to pay to play a game that is functionally still in beta and development is torn between fixing old bugs and adding new content. Vanguard made this mistake and it took a whole year to get it cleaned up.
On the F2P vs P2P issue, I'm fine with F2P as I can try them out without commiting major $$ and I can play them occasionally without feeling that I'm wasting a monthly subscription. (DDO has a nice alternative in that it supports both models.) While I have several alternate F2P games, I only subscribe to one P2P game at a time. Of course there are more poor quality F2P games than P2P, but at least it only costs you time to try them out.
How do I pick my mmo? I loved your list and some of the ones I read (couldn't read them all as I am on my lunch atm). Being 30 and very focused on income and other elements of RL now I have to look at several things as well as the most comnly listed ones (i.e. graphics play style etc.). I research into the play heavily using forums here asking friends in other games etc. I cannot invest the time in another WoW (was raiding quite heavily last year and the one before). So as an example the screenies and other descriptions of Aion look great and grand but there is no way I can justify spending $50 and a monthly fee for what most say is a grind (yes I realize that WoW technically isn't a grind but if I can't be the best because I can't spend 40 hrs a week playing whats the point in me spending my hard earned cash).
If something has a free trial I will usually try it if the screenies look good or it somehow catches my interest (its a case by case type of decision really). I would highly suggest using this tactic to grab the more casual gamers once the release has cooled btw. I also have vowed never to play another free to play mmo.
IP AND COMMUNITY
For me, the IP is a big issue. Even if the game has flaws, if I'm a big fan of the IP, I can have fun and keep myself interested for a long time. The neXt thing for me is Community. As much as I've liked some games, the community was young or adolescent. I look for a community that is more mature; that will be a factor in how long I stick with a game.
I try them all................then I decide if I like it
Great points, I agree with every single one, other than I am not a point man for any crew, hehe.
Ohatro
In SWG I enjoyed being that doctor who patched up your wounds. I'm all for there being a wide variety of ways to play. I stand by that combat is very, very valuable, but it is not king. A good game, in my opinion, allows for a diverse amount of ways for players to play that have equal value as opposed to a diverse amount of ways to engage in combat.
"Many nights, my friend... Many nights I've put a blade to your throat while you were sleeping. Glad I never killed you, Steve. You're alright..."
Chavez y Chavez
These days with the armies of trash games out there haunting us, i have to test every one of them, play a bit, read the story (and thats if the game got me interested at all), some other times, im just unable to install a game or when i log in i say, "i wont play this" (trashy interface, graphics or sound), and never come back, pretty much it goes in the feeling, also i try games that are in final beta or relased alreday, because in the past i was victim of the hype, i waited for a game so long, that when actually came out i was sick of it and never played it in the end.
And since there are so many games out there and im more like the casual player its very important for me thats F2P, my wallet wouldnt allow me to pay for more than one P2P game...
The play's the thing.
For me, gameplay is by far the most important. It can be the prettiest game in the world, but if it ain't fun, I'm bored in ten minutes.
I also want to know about soloability. To each his own, but I never want to again get deceived in a game like Wow where you can solo to the top and then it's raid or forget about meaningful progression.
Third is PvE focus. I'm not a PvP'er, and if the game has a heavy PvP focus, like say, Warhammer, I won't even set foot in it.
The rest is minor, graphics, setting, etc.
Here's an interesting thing I look for:
Can the Character Jump?
I want to jump. I really dislike games where everything is a ramp because the character is earthbound.
It's one of the first things I look for!