Originally posted by etruscan Perhaps I'll ask again. Is there an economy - and what does it consist of?
What do you mean by economy? If you mean currency. Then 'yes'. Instead of being called money it's called 'information' though. Allows you to buy stuff from vendors, upgrade skills, or hit up the market for auction deals. Other then that though you'll find cash pretty useless. Just before I stopped testing. I knew folks that were walking around with literally billions of info. They had maxed out their skills and pretty much had no use for it anymore. It's probably why our Organization had over 500 million in our Org Bank.
I never really bothered with the hacker or coder lines. I only cared about Guns and Martial Arts. So I never bothered to max out any of the other skills beyond those that come with being awakened (Hyper Jump, Hyper Dodge, etc). At 50 I had little under 100 million because I just lacked stuff to buy (Exact amount was something like 92.5 million) and I was one of the poorest members of RIP. Actually I probably was the poorest.
In War - Victory. In Peace - Vigilance. In Death - Sacrifice.
Originally posted by etruscan Perhaps I'll ask again. Is there an economy - and what does it consist of?
Player-based economy mainly. But it hasn't been truly established yet. A lot of the main systems have just recently begun to flesh out in terms of economy. I.E. massive crafting changes and more to come, so a lot of these costs and baselines wont be established for awhile. The economy is still in flux if you will. But capability? Yes.
Take typical MMORPG. Throw in Matrix name. Change money to information and mining to node mining. Throw combat system that looks new but is really just an old system with some modifications.
And what do you have? MxO. No doubt it'll gain loyal followers, but so does Anarchy Online and SWG. Not a market laster.
Want to play a game that has many years left on it? Try WoW or EVE Online. WoW because all the CS kiddies play it and EVE Online because it's a solid game with solid subscribers. The difference between EVE Online and other games like UO, SWG, and AO is that it's not dying a horrible death due to mediocrity.
Originally posted by Ranma13 Want to play a game that has many years left on it? Try WoW or EVE Online. WoW because all the CS kiddies play it and EVE Online because it's a solid game with solid subscribers. The difference between EVE Online and other games like UO, SWG, and AO is that it's not dying a horrible death due to mediocrity.
I play EVE Online... and I love it. The economy is so lush and there's a lot of potential to be whatever you want to be. You make the game. If you want PvP, you do it... if you want to run trade routes - you do that. If you prefer research and development... no problem. I've tried my hand at WoW - my girlfriend plays it avidly. It feels pretty solid and looks beautiful, but I can't get into the questing aspect and am really not a Fantasy fanatic.
MxO looks really nice and the combat sounds like fun. I know it's bound to following up on the plot outlined in the films - but without some other point beyond combat (which sounds like the penultimate experience in the game), I'm really not so sure I'm interested yet.
This "game" came off my HD faster than most. From what little time I spent "playing" it I will say this:
Herky-jerky combat visuals is an excellent way to describe it.
Bland environment is also spot-on. Environment graphics are sub-par, and everything is very square.
Intuitive combat is a bit of a stretch. I found it cryptic, random, and uninteresting, even the special moves got boring real fast.
As far as design, you can go into any building you want. Unfortunately you only have to go through one or two to know what they all look like.
The tutorial was a nightmare, and not helpful at all. I know it has changed since I did it, but it would have to improve a lot to be helpful at all.
Overall, I would sum it up by saying I had flashbacks to Enter the Matrix pretty much the whole time I was playing. Nothing remotely reminds you of the movies except for the sunglasses and trenchcoats. Everything else is so anti-matrix-y that it turned me off super fast. Complexity is fine, but this game surpasses complexity and just seems random and very slapped together.
In my opinion, they are hyping the story aspect because the mechanics are clunky, unintuitive, and ultimately uninteresting. You can tell the greatest story in the world, but if you're randomly swapping between languages, some real and some fake, no one will be able to understand it, and your focus on storytelling will be wasted due to a lack of focusing on smooth graphics, a decent combat engine, and quality mechanics.
Habit is not to be flung out the window by any man, but coaxed down the stairs one step at a time. - Mark Twain
Amen to that, this game is nowhere near ready for release, if it was early beta I would say it looks good, but as it stands it is gonan be hella lame. World is repetitive as hell, combat is ultra lame, I want fast paced, edge of my seat action if Im gonna be fightin in the matrix, dammit!!! what do I get but a rock-papper-scissors-esque P.O.S.
Originally posted by vknid heh well I am not going to try and defend myself cause your obviously biased about this game But I am going to change my opinion about the graphics because I did finally max out my graphic settings since I have a pretty high end comp. (upgraded comp, but never changed the settings in game) I said poor before.. cause, well.. they were horrible at low settings. When I maxed it out, I felt like I was playing a different game oddly enough. Cars on the streets and pedestrians on the sidewalks. I still think it feels out dated. I have to compare it to EQ2 because imho EQ2 is pretty cutting edge stuff. I am not a fan of EQ2 at all but I do think their graphics are visually stunning. On a scale of 1 to 10 I would give Matrix a 7 (maxed video settings). Btw I have no doubt the devs are banging out the bugs, I never implied they werent. I would certainly expect them to bang them out, cause, well thats their job The fact that you know some of them is non-issue. Later.
This may sound like a totally stupid question, but does the above post imply that cars on the street and pedestians milling around only appear on the higher graphics settings?
From what i have noticed.. yes. I mean there are one or two stationary cars every now and then, and no one walking around. So if you want motion, you need high settings. Its kind of cool cause if you run at a car, you will have a few animations to "get out of its way". also when you run past someone walking down the street they will also have a little animation. Its not much, but its the little things that make it nice. cause they didnt have to add those animations and just make you run through them.
Originally posted by vknid Originally posted by darquenbladeOriginally posted by vknidheh well I am not going to try and defend myself cause your obviously biased about this game =)But I am going to change my opinion about the graphics because I did finally max out my graphic settings since I have a pretty high end comp. (upgraded comp, but never changed the settings in game)I said poor before.. cause, well.. they were horrible at low settings. When I maxed it out, I felt like I was playing a different game oddly enough. Cars on the streets and pedestrians on the sidewalks. I still think it feels out dated. I have to compare it to EQ2 because imho EQ2 is pretty cutting edge stuff. I am not a fan of EQ2 at all but I do think their graphics are visually stunning. On a scale of 1 to 10 I would give Matrix a 7 (maxed video settings). Btw I have no doubt the devs are banging out the bugs, I never implied they werent. I would certainly expect them to bang them out, cause, well thats their job The fact that you know some of them is non-issue. Later.This may sound like a totally stupid question, but does the above post imply that cars on the street and pedestians milling around only appear on the higher graphics settings? From what i have noticed.. yes. I mean there are one or two stationary cars every now and then, and no one walking around. So if you want motion, you need high settings. Its kind of cool cause if you run at a car, you will have a few animations to "get out of its way". also when you run past someone walking down the street they will also have a little animation. Its not much, but its the little things that make it nice. cause they didnt have to add those animations and just make you run through them.
I don't have a fantastic rig and you'll see lots of cars in my ~600+ screenshots. It's all player enabled. There are Density and Max Settings for each type Pedestrians, Traffic etc. You set them yourself.
Downtown they are much more prominent as well. And with recent changes all the peds have been given a facelift. More personality.
Originally posted by GrimmWrath The combat is esentially that Stick Fight paper/rock/scissors combat with fancy animations. When you're not using special moves(and often even when you are), who wins a combat round is just random chance on how the outcome of your picking style A, B, or C matches up with the AI's use of style A, B, or C. That's another drawback of the Interlock combat system. Who ever loses a combat round does no damage what-so-ever. When the ever faulty ramdomization routine gets stuck in a rut, a pushover mob or player will pound you into the ground. True random number generation for computers is a proven myth, and MxO's All-or-Nothing combat system is far more dependant on it than any MMORPG product out there.
This is one of the biggest misconceptions of MxO. It is a virtually rolled number, not rock-paper-scissors. For one, RPS give you three possible outcomes and we have four basic types of attack to start with (Speed, Power, Grab, Block). Now, what abilities do you have loaded up to attack with? Kung Fu? Karate? Handguns? This makes a difference. If you go in with Handguns against a Kung Fu Master be prepared to be disarmed at some point. If you're disarmed you better have some martial arts loaded as a backup or your opponent will clean your clock. Oh, and you better have been leveling up your abilities as well. So now that we've made the number of combinations numerous (Power attack with Kung Fu level 10, Speed attack with Handguns level 15, etc.) let's toss in those ability moves you can snap off in the midst of combat like Disarming Shot, or Overhand Smash, or Guard Breaker, etc. Rock-paper-scissors = 3 choices. MxO combat = many, many choices.
MxO combat=choices. That is correct. I can Speed Attack, Block, Cheap Shot, Full Auto Redux, Piston Kicks, cast Hacker Abilities, etc. And that's not to say what other mayhem I can cause once I put my enemy into a dazed/off-balance, etc state.
But it all boils down to "rolling" higher than your opponent. In all other MMO's your attack is calculated independently of your opponent's attack. So we can essentially damage each other at the same time. I just have to worry about breaking through their buffs/armour/aura/whatever. Now in the "Interlock System", not only do I have to worry about that, but now I have to essentially cross my fingers and hope that I roll higher than them? No thanks.
All melee combat boils down too is whoever gets the bigger number in tactics showdown. That's not really much of a choice if you think about it.
yea, but think about it... if you were fighting someone you wouldnt both be standing there hitting at the same time untill both of you fell over... whoever has better tactics in real life would always win, becuase they would be hitting them over and over without taking any damage. open your eyes from WoW and youll see that the combat is actually pretty realistic.
however, some people like to just stand there and get hit at the same time as they hit thier opponets, but that form of combat is boring.. and i hope interlock gets incorperated in by other games in the future.
GRAPHICS - I think the actual graphics (characters, environment, vehicles) are great for an urban MMO. I have no problems suspending disbelief in walking through the MegaCity. If it wasn't for the lack of FPPOV (which I'll get to later), I'd feel like I was in the Matrix.
GUI - The GUI looks bad, except the compass/phone interface at the bottom which is nice. I don't mean to be so harsh, but it looks blocky and the four combat interfaces that come up when interlocked get in the way of the visuals.
GAMEPLAY - I'm torn on this one. Firstly, the lack of FPPOV is disturbing. Why create these tall buildings, why put windows that can see outside of the buildings, and why tell us that we are "Jacking In" if we can't see the world through our character's eyes? I don't know if it was a control issue or what, but I could not get past this myself. It's in every other MMO I've played and I would think it's very basic and expected to be in the game.
Combat is great AND also convoluted. I like the combat system, I think it combines strategy well with keeping the player involved in the combat situation. That said, it takes a lot of getting used to. The ability to switch between ranged and close combat is great, and it definitely sets itself apart from any other MMO out there.
CHARACTER/SKILL BUILDING - This is where MxO really shines. I love the way they designed this. You can fully customize your character's skills at any time for any reason. No need to worry about dropped classes, because it's just like the movies. You want to be a kung fu spy master? Simply upload your skills and that's what you are. This is the best part of the game, aside from exploring the MegaCity.
SOCIAL INTERACTION - I didn't have quite the same experience other people seemed to have. The community, to me, seemed like a bunch of people hanging out at a phone booth. Grouping up was fun. Not much here, that I personally noticed, though
CONTENT - The missions are great. I had fun doing them and I'm sure with the storylines, they'll be even better. Not all of the characters and missions are where they're supposed to be yet, but I'm sure that will be polished by release. My only problem, however, is that everything is geared around the combat system (which I love - but some more diversity would be nice)
EDIT: THE WORLD - The MegaCity is huge and expansive. I like it. The lack of zoning is great and you can freely walk anywhere. There is enough diversity in the buildings to be realistic (though some do have the same interiors, but that happens). I haven't made it too far out of the core zones you start out in, but there does appear to be enough diversity for things to be interesting.
OVERALL: It's unfortunately not enough for me to leave WoW or SWG at the moment, but it's definitely a great game for anyone sick of fighting with swords and magic.
Originally posted by Mr_Man CHARACTER/SKILL BUILDING - This is where MxO really shines. I love the way they designed this. You can fully customize your character's skills at any time for any reason. No need to worry about dropped classes, because it's just like the movies. You want to be a kung fu spy master? Simply upload your skills and that's what you are. This is the best part of the game, aside from exploring the MegaCity.
There is one problem with that though. Your attributes cant be changed once you hit accept. Which I would think would make it hard to be good at "anything" you want - at "any time" you want. You would have to choose one - to be good at it.
I mean you can still USE any skill if you have them.. but they would be more second rate to your skill of choice.
hey vknid, the abilities dont really matter, i have 30 perception and karate and lost a duel vs a level 22 with 15 perception, so you can be really good at anything if you know what your doing. PLUS you can at least choose where your attributes go, fing WoW fanboy
Originally posted by jackman1118 hey vknid, the abilities dont really matter, i have 30 perception and karate and lost a duel vs a level 22 with 15 perception, so you can be really good at anything if you know what your doing. PLUS you can at least choose where your attributes go, fing WoW fanboy im level 22 too
Thats too bad if they don't matter. They should just remove them then. If anything, I would imagine it will matter at some point during beta when they balance it more. fing jackass in training.
Well, going back to something I had asked earlier in this thread (and got answers to), the game does become a lot more immersive if you turn all the settings on that enable cars on the road and pedestrians milling about. I just didn't think that that would be in settings (my card sucks, and none of that was enabled by default).
However, to anyone who can answer, I have couple of other questions. I've been occupying myself doing missions, and, is there any more variety later on than: Enter building X, go to floor Y, talk to/kill/escort NPC Z? That does get a little old after a while. Hopefully there is more variety later on, because I think even with the storyline added, that would still get old pretty quick (for a game that's going to rely so heavily on the storyline/missions).
Secondly, while I have been running around doing these missions, I have noticed next to no enemies to fight out on the streets. It seems no matter how far I run, it's just me by myself, not running into any trouble whatsoever. I'll come across another player every once and a while, but that's it. Strange.
Originally posted by darquenblade Well, going back to something I had asked earlier in this thread (and got answers to), the game does become a lot more immersive if you turn all the settings on that enable cars on the road and pedestrians milling about. I just didn't think that that would be in settings (my card sucks, and none of that was enabled by default).However, to anyone who can answer, I have couple of other questions. I've been occupying myself doing missions, and, is there any more variety later on than: Enter building X, go to floor Y, talk to/kill/escort NPC Z? That does get a little old after a while. Hopefully there is more variety later on, because I think even with the storyline added, that would still get old pretty quick (for a game that's going to rely so heavily on the storyline/missions).Secondly, while I have been running around doing these missions, I have noticed next to no enemies to fight out on the streets. It seems no matter how far I run, it's just me by myself, not running into any trouble whatsoever. I'll come across another player every once and a while, but that's it. Strange.Just asking.
There are a lot of different missions, but they are generally your typical fare of mission types. Down to their fundamentals they are generally as you explain. Then again -- this is the case in every game I can think of MMORPG or not. The building thing is obvious -- because where else are you going to be? In a forest? It's a city its full of buildings :P They have warehouse missions, building missions, etc. But nothing occurs in the street -- at least not in beta. I can say that much. I've never found the missions to be boring, although they are your standard fare in types, escort, assassination, destroy, deliver etc, they don't feel much that way when you do them. Some have all sort of optional things to do within them and some present you with other difficulties like locked doors, or objects / doors wired with bombs, security alarms and cameras, wandering sentries. Stuff like that. They're definitely a lot more lively or at least possess the adaptability code-wise to handle a much more wider breadth of things.
Originally posted by wallywest MxO combat=choices. That is correct. I can Speed Attack, Block, Cheap Shot, Full Auto Redux, Piston Kicks, cast Hacker Abilities, etc. And that's not to say what other mayhem I can cause once I put my enemy into a dazed/off-balance, etc state. But it all boils down to "rolling" higher than your opponent. In all other MMO's your attack is calculated independently of your opponent's attack. So we can essentially damage each other at the same time. I just have to worry about breaking through their buffs/armour/aura/whatever. Now in the "Interlock System", not only do I have to worry about that, but now I have to essentially cross my fingers and hope that I roll higher than them? No thanks. All melee combat boils down too is whoever gets the bigger number in tactics showdown. That's not really much of a choice if you think about it.
Hmm... so it's an MMORPG and you'd like to extract the 30+ year RPG method of rolling to hit? Jeez, it's always been a matter of crossing your fingers and hoping. That's part of the thrill. Would you just rather walk up to the opponent and declare, "I have more uber gear, therefore I win." It sounds like you'd rather have it more basic, closer to the rock-paper-scissors that MxO was being accused of (but is not).
You get bonuses dependent on how you've leveled your skills, sure. And so has the other guy. There's always the mystery of the random number generator, but that just equates to the mystery of luck in real life. But there is strategy involved. Do I really want to sit back and try ranged attacks with submachine guns or a rifle against a hacker? Most likely not. But I'd probably be alright against him with handguns in interlock. But if he's an Akido Master I probably better stay away from the handguns in interlock before I suddenly find myself disarmed and debuffed. I could possibly bounce back by using a blocking move but I better have some martial arts loaded up. Oh, good, I have Kung Fu. Let's get him back with his own medicine and try a grab move. That ought to even it out again.
It's part knowing what your opponents can do and part getting a feel for the way the fight is going. I certainly don't wish to return to the days of SWG, loading up 12 of the exact same attack, and getting up to grab a mug of coffee. What was that nonsense?
Your typical mission: Ask for a mission using the interface. It directs you to some closest building deemed to be far enough that you have to walk there but close enough that you don't have to go across half the city. In other words, there's no 'one' building where the NPCs reside and you can get the exact same mission twice in a row in two different buildings. The only thing that changes is the names.
So when you actually start missions, most are your typical either kill or FedEx mission. However, the FedEx missions are stupid. The NPCs warn you that the package is 'hot' and you should watch out for hostiles...except from the entire distance from point A to point B, I've encountered absolutely no resistance. This happens all the time too.
When I was still playing, clicking on an elevator panel too fast would freeze the game. Same with clicking on a door too fast, sometimes it freezes and sometimes the door refuses to open.
In the kill missions you receive, you have to kill.....2 enemies. Who are so easy that it's not even worth your effort. Not fun.
And the last thing I find absolutely horrendous about the missions is: Who in their right mind talks like the NPCs? "I finally realize the truth, Alexander Nepocrolis" or whatever. They always say their first and last names, even if they're supposed to be boyfriend/girlfriend. And let's not mention the fact that sometimes the NPCs have male/female names even though their character is clearly of the opposite sex.
Ugh. Yes, almost every MMORPG uses the same kill/FedEx quest system but some actually make it fun to do quests, like WoW.
Originally posted by Ranma13 Your typical mission: Ask for a mission using the interface. It directs you to some closest building deemed to be far enough that you have to walk there but close enough that you don't have to go across half the city. In other words, there's no 'one' building where the NPCs reside and you can get the exact same mission twice in a row in two different buildings. The only thing that changes is the names.So when you actually start missions, most are your typical either kill or FedEx mission. However, the FedEx missions are stupid. The NPCs warn you that the package is 'hot' and you should watch out for hostiles...except from the entire distance from point A to point B, I've encountered absolutely no resistance. This happens all the time too.When I was still playing, clicking on an elevator panel too fast would freeze the game. Same with clicking on a door too fast, sometimes it freezes and sometimes the door refuses to open.In the kill missions you receive, you have to kill.....2 enemies. Who are so easy that it's not even worth your effort. Not fun.And the last thing I find absolutely horrendous about the missions is: Who in their right mind talks like the NPCs? "I finally realize the truth, Alexander Nepocrolis" or whatever. They always say their first and last names, even if they're supposed to be boyfriend/girlfriend. And let's not mention the fact that sometimes the NPCs have male/female names even though their character is clearly of the opposite sex.Ugh. Yes, almost every MMORPG uses the same kill/FedEx quest system but some actually make it fun to do quests, like WoW.
"When I was still playing" Your opinions no longer valid if you were playing months ago or somesuch. Much has changed even beyond my scope of expectation. I mean the latest build on QA Server thats not even live yet, has exceeded my expectations. I just didn't think they would bother to polish it up that much. Totally blown me away. On second note -- your opinions are shoddy nitpicks at trying to take apart an otherwise excellent piece of software.
You can say all you want -- but WoW's quests are a one time deal and everyone will have done them. (It's one of the first MMOs you could /really/ write a strategy guide to as the missions are the same) MXO literally will be phasing out mission content, as the storyline progresses. Not to mention we've been testing the mechanics of the system, whatever lackluster feeling you've received from the missions was either due to past experiences (I.E. having not played in awhile to see the v ariety of improvements that have come down the pipeline) or simply the fact they are intended to be run of the mill barebones missions, so we can test the medium in which to deliver future content. The funny thing is -- as barebones as they are they provide a moderately entertaining storyline and experience.
To speak from my own recent experience on a FedEx mission. In the past sometimes they didnt appear, and then a few patches later, they'd just randomly teleport in behind you and you'd onlyt know they were there when you started getting shot at. Recently I was doing one of these and literally saw the mob running across a roof, she then hyperjumped in front of me to intercept me. So much for that!
Originally posted by Ranma13 Your typical mission: Ask for a mission using the interface. It directs you to some closest building deemed to be far enough that you have to walk there but close enough that you don't have to go across half the city. In other words, there's no 'one' building where the NPCs reside and you can get the exact same mission twice in a row in two different buildings. The only thing that changes is the names.So when you actually start missions, most are your typical either kill or FedEx mission. However, the FedEx missions are stupid. The NPCs warn you that the package is 'hot' and you should watch out for hostiles...except from the entire distance from point A to point B, I've encountered absolutely no resistance. This happens all the time too.When I was still playing, clicking on an elevator panel too fast would freeze the game. Same with clicking on a door too fast, sometimes it freezes and sometimes the door refuses to open.In the kill missions you receive, you have to kill.....2 enemies. Who are so easy that it's not even worth your effort. Not fun.
When you were still playing... must have been a while. For at least a couple months not when running courier missions NPC's will jump off buildings in front of you (sometimes behind) while you're in transit. Only 2 enemies in the mission area? Jeez... did you have the mission on the "Easy" level? It's also been a while since there have been elevator issues.
You see, it was a beta. It still is a beta. You were not playing a finished game.
Originally posted by darquenblade Quick question: Do the difficulty settings for the missions adjust just the enemy numbers, or their difficulty as well?
They adjust a really unpredictable array of things. Sometimes more mobs, higher leveled, increases overall challenge as well. Like Hard missions might make some doors that would be previously easily unlocked require some sort of lock picking, or security alarms, doors booby trapped with bombs, security cameras. A variety of things change on any given mission or at least are capable to change as you increase difficulty. You notice this less from Easy to Medium, its more reserved for Hard that some missions change a whole lot.
Hard missions aren't intended to be solo'd so it make sense that the hard missions have much more variety in challenges, as you'll likely have playes in your group that can handle these challenges and have a role besides just being another body. Really compells you to desire a Spy or Hacker on the team. (Some computers can be hacked using the Hackers ability...Hacker hehe)
Well I currently play World of Warcarft and City of Heroes I have been reading up on the matrix online and from what I hear the game sounds good but also it sounds not ready. It sounds like the game should not have had its released pused up from april to march. Also in world of warcraft good tactics do get you the win. Gear is important but not the most important if someone uses better tactics than you. You will lose. The random rolling stuff does sound good but at the same time the way the interlock system works I think it could be a problem. I still remain skeptical and I hope there is a free trial that comes out so I can test the game out before I buy it. I hope they get the game all good to go by release time because it seems like it could be amazing.
neva really thought this game wud go anywer, just becus i dont find games movies lyk this work, as it is all martial arts, i dont c how games can go on with only the 1 type, lyk with out things lyk mages
Toughest rater in the world Try to impress me, please, i dare u
Originally posted by sdoughty neva really thought this game wud go anywer, just becus i dont find games movies lyk this work, as it is all martial arts, i dont c how games can go on with only the 1 type, lyk with out things lyk mages
Take your drugs elsewhere, wrong board. Do some reading, its not just martial arts. Christ.
Comments
What do you mean by economy? If you mean currency. Then 'yes'. Instead of being called money it's called 'information' though. Allows you to buy stuff from vendors, upgrade skills, or hit up the market for auction deals. Other then that though you'll find cash pretty useless. Just before I stopped testing. I knew folks that were walking around with literally billions of info. They had maxed out their skills and pretty much had no use for it anymore. It's probably why our Organization had over 500 million in our Org Bank.
I never really bothered with the hacker or coder lines. I only cared about Guns and Martial Arts. So I never bothered to max out any of the other skills beyond those that come with being awakened (Hyper Jump, Hyper Dodge, etc). At 50 I had little under 100 million because I just lacked stuff to buy (Exact amount was something like 92.5 million) and I was one of the poorest members of RIP. Actually I probably was the poorest.
In War - Victory.
In Peace - Vigilance.
In Death - Sacrifice.
Player-based economy mainly. But it hasn't been truly established yet. A lot of the main systems have just recently begun to flesh out in terms of economy. I.E. massive crafting changes and more to come, so a lot of these costs and baselines wont be established for awhile. The economy is still in flux if you will. But capability? Yes.
Take typical MMORPG. Throw in Matrix name. Change money to information and mining to node mining. Throw combat system that looks new but is really just an old system with some modifications.
And what do you have? MxO. No doubt it'll gain loyal followers, but so does Anarchy Online and SWG. Not a market laster.
Want to play a game that has many years left on it? Try WoW or EVE Online. WoW because all the CS kiddies play it and EVE Online because it's a solid game with solid subscribers. The difference between EVE Online and other games like UO, SWG, and AO is that it's not dying a horrible death due to mediocrity.
MxO looks really nice and the combat sounds like fun. I know it's bound to following up on the plot outlined in the films - but without some other point beyond combat (which sounds like the penultimate experience in the game), I'm really not so sure I'm interested yet.
Some of my thoughts now that I can share them.
This "game" came off my HD faster than most. From what little time I spent "playing" it I will say this:
Herky-jerky combat visuals is an excellent way to describe it.
Bland environment is also spot-on. Environment graphics are sub-par, and everything is very square.
Intuitive combat is a bit of a stretch. I found it cryptic, random, and uninteresting, even the special moves got boring real fast.
As far as design, you can go into any building you want. Unfortunately you only have to go through one or two to know what they all look like.
The tutorial was a nightmare, and not helpful at all. I know it has changed since I did it, but it would have to improve a lot to be helpful at all.
Overall, I would sum it up by saying I had flashbacks to Enter the Matrix pretty much the whole time I was playing. Nothing remotely reminds you of the movies except for the sunglasses and trenchcoats. Everything else is so anti-matrix-y that it turned me off super fast. Complexity is fine, but this game surpasses complexity and just seems random and very slapped together.
In my opinion, they are hyping the story aspect because the mechanics are clunky, unintuitive, and ultimately uninteresting. You can tell the greatest story in the world, but if you're randomly swapping between languages, some real and some fake, no one will be able to understand it, and your focus on storytelling will be wasted due to a lack of focusing on smooth graphics, a decent combat engine, and quality mechanics.
Habit is not to be flung out the window by any man, but coaxed down the stairs one step at a time. - Mark Twain
Amen to that, this game is nowhere near ready for release, if it was early beta I would say it looks good, but as it stands it is gonan be hella lame. World is repetitive as hell, combat is ultra lame, I want fast paced, edge of my seat action if Im gonna be fightin in the matrix, dammit!!! what do I get but a rock-papper-scissors-esque P.O.S.
F-
Linux is free.....if your time costs nothing.
This may sound like a totally stupid question, but does the above post imply that cars on the street and pedestians milling around only appear on the higher graphics settings?
From what i have noticed.. yes. I mean there are one or two stationary cars every now and then, and no one walking around. So if you want motion, you need high settings. Its kind of cool cause if you run at a car, you will have a few animations to "get out of its way". also when you run past someone walking down the street they will also have a little animation. Its not much, but its the little things that make it nice. cause they didnt have to add those animations and just make you run through them.
---
Xen of Onslaught
I don't have a fantastic rig and you'll see lots of cars in my ~600+ screenshots. It's all player enabled. There are Density and Max Settings for each type Pedestrians, Traffic etc. You set them yourself.
Downtown they are much more prominent as well. And with recent changes all the peds have been given a facelift. More personality.
This is one of the biggest misconceptions of MxO. It is a virtually rolled number, not rock-paper-scissors. For one, RPS give you three possible outcomes and we have four basic types of attack to start with (Speed, Power, Grab, Block). Now, what abilities do you have loaded up to attack with? Kung Fu? Karate? Handguns? This makes a difference. If you go in with Handguns against a Kung Fu Master be prepared to be disarmed at some point. If you're disarmed you better have some martial arts loaded as a backup or your opponent will clean your clock. Oh, and you better have been leveling up your abilities as well. So now that we've made the number of combinations numerous (Power attack with Kung Fu level 10, Speed attack with Handguns level 15, etc.) let's toss in those ability moves you can snap off in the midst of combat like Disarming Shot, or Overhand Smash, or Guard Breaker, etc. Rock-paper-scissors = 3 choices. MxO combat = many, many choices.
MxO combat=choices. That is correct. I can Speed Attack, Block, Cheap Shot, Full Auto Redux, Piston Kicks, cast Hacker Abilities, etc. And that's not to say what other mayhem I can cause once I put my enemy into a dazed/off-balance, etc state.
But it all boils down to "rolling" higher than your opponent. In all other MMO's your attack is calculated independently of your opponent's attack. So we can essentially damage each other at the same time. I just have to worry about breaking through their buffs/armour/aura/whatever. Now in the "Interlock System", not only do I have to worry about that, but now I have to essentially cross my fingers and hope that I roll higher than them? No thanks.
All melee combat boils down too is whoever gets the bigger number in tactics showdown. That's not really much of a choice if you think about it.
yea, but think about it... if you were fighting someone you wouldnt both be standing there hitting at the same time untill both of you fell over... whoever has better tactics in real life would always win, becuase they would be hitting them over and over without taking any damage. open your eyes from WoW and youll see that the combat is actually pretty realistic.
however, some people like to just stand there and get hit at the same time as they hit thier opponets, but that form of combat is boring.. and i hope interlock gets incorperated in by other games in the future.
I'm torn on MxO myself.
GRAPHICS - I think the actual graphics (characters, environment, vehicles) are great for an urban MMO. I have no problems suspending disbelief in walking through the MegaCity. If it wasn't for the lack of FPPOV (which I'll get to later), I'd feel like I was in the Matrix.
GUI - The GUI looks bad, except the compass/phone interface at the bottom which is nice. I don't mean to be so harsh, but it looks blocky and the four combat interfaces that come up when interlocked get in the way of the visuals.
GAMEPLAY - I'm torn on this one. Firstly, the lack of FPPOV is disturbing. Why create these tall buildings, why put windows that can see outside of the buildings, and why tell us that we are "Jacking In" if we can't see the world through our character's eyes? I don't know if it was a control issue or what, but I could not get past this myself. It's in every other MMO I've played and I would think it's very basic and expected to be in the game.
Combat is great AND also convoluted.
I like the combat system, I think it combines strategy well with keeping the player involved in the combat situation. That said, it takes a lot of getting used to. The ability to switch between ranged and close combat is great, and it definitely sets itself apart from any other MMO out there.
CHARACTER/SKILL BUILDING - This is where MxO really shines. I love the way they designed this. You can fully customize your character's skills at any time for any reason. No need to worry about dropped classes, because it's just like the movies. You want to be a kung fu spy master? Simply upload your skills and that's what you are. This is the best part of the game, aside from exploring the MegaCity.
SOCIAL INTERACTION - I didn't have quite the same experience other people seemed to have. The community, to me, seemed like a bunch of people hanging out at a phone booth. Grouping up was fun. Not much here, that I personally noticed, though
CONTENT - The missions are great. I had fun doing them and I'm sure with the storylines, they'll be even better. Not all of the characters and missions are where they're supposed to be yet, but I'm sure that will be polished by release. My only problem, however, is that everything is geared around the combat system (which I love - but some more diversity would be nice)
EDIT: THE WORLD - The MegaCity is huge and expansive. I like it. The lack of zoning is great and you can freely walk anywhere. There is enough diversity in the buildings to be realistic (though some do have the same interiors, but that happens). I haven't made it too far out of the core zones you start out in, but there does appear to be enough diversity for things to be interesting.
OVERALL: It's unfortunately not enough for me to leave WoW or SWG at the moment, but it's definitely a great game for anyone sick of fighting with swords and magic.
There is one problem with that though. Your attributes cant be changed once you hit accept. Which I would think would make it hard to be good at "anything" you want - at "any time" you want. You would have to choose one - to be good at it.
I mean you can still USE any skill if you have them.. but they would be more second rate to your skill of choice.
---
Xen of Onslaught
hey vknid, the abilities dont really matter, i have 30 perception and karate and lost a duel vs a level 22 with 15 perception, so you can be really good at anything if you know what your doing. PLUS you can at least choose where your attributes go, fing WoW fanboy
im level 22 too
Thats too bad if they don't matter. They should just remove them then. If anything, I would imagine it will matter at some point during beta when they balance it more. fing jackass in training.
---
Xen of Onslaught
Well, going back to something I had asked earlier in this thread (and got answers to), the game does become a lot more immersive if you turn all the settings on that enable cars on the road and pedestrians milling about. I just didn't think that that would be in settings (my card sucks, and none of that was enabled by default).
However, to anyone who can answer, I have couple of other questions. I've been occupying myself doing missions, and, is there any more variety later on than: Enter building X, go to floor Y, talk to/kill/escort NPC Z? That does get a little old after a while. Hopefully there is more variety later on, because I think even with the storyline added, that would still get old pretty quick (for a game that's going to rely so heavily on the storyline/missions).
Secondly, while I have been running around doing these missions, I have noticed next to no enemies to fight out on the streets. It seems no matter how far I run, it's just me by myself, not running into any trouble whatsoever. I'll come across another player every once and a while, but that's it. Strange.
Just asking.
There are a lot of different missions, but they are generally your typical fare of mission types. Down to their fundamentals they are generally as you explain. Then again -- this is the case in every game I can think of MMORPG or not. The building thing is obvious -- because where else are you going to be? In a forest? It's a city its full of buildings :P They have warehouse missions, building missions, etc. But nothing occurs in the street -- at least not in beta. I can say that much. I've never found the missions to be boring, although they are your standard fare in types, escort, assassination, destroy, deliver etc, they don't feel much that way when you do them. Some have all sort of optional things to do within them and some present you with other difficulties like locked doors, or objects / doors wired with bombs, security alarms and cameras, wandering sentries. Stuff like that. They're definitely a lot more lively or at least possess the adaptability code-wise to handle a much more wider breadth of things.
Hmm... so it's an MMORPG and you'd like to extract the 30+ year RPG method of rolling to hit? Jeez, it's always been a matter of crossing your fingers and hoping. That's part of the thrill. Would you just rather walk up to the opponent and declare, "I have more uber gear, therefore I win." It sounds like you'd rather have it more basic, closer to the rock-paper-scissors that MxO was being accused of (but is not).
You get bonuses dependent on how you've leveled your skills, sure. And so has the other guy. There's always the mystery of the random number generator, but that just equates to the mystery of luck in real life. But there is strategy involved. Do I really want to sit back and try ranged attacks with submachine guns or a rifle against a hacker? Most likely not. But I'd probably be alright against him with handguns in interlock. But if he's an Akido Master I probably better stay away from the handguns in interlock before I suddenly find myself disarmed and debuffed. I could possibly bounce back by using a blocking move but I better have some martial arts loaded up. Oh, good, I have Kung Fu. Let's get him back with his own medicine and try a grab move. That ought to even it out again.
It's part knowing what your opponents can do and part getting a feel for the way the fight is going. I certainly don't wish to return to the days of SWG, loading up 12 of the exact same attack, and getting up to grab a mug of coffee. What was that nonsense?
Your typical mission: Ask for a mission using the interface. It directs you to some closest building deemed to be far enough that you have to walk there but close enough that you don't have to go across half the city. In other words, there's no 'one' building where the NPCs reside and you can get the exact same mission twice in a row in two different buildings. The only thing that changes is the names.
So when you actually start missions, most are your typical either kill or FedEx mission. However, the FedEx missions are stupid. The NPCs warn you that the package is 'hot' and you should watch out for hostiles...except from the entire distance from point A to point B, I've encountered absolutely no resistance. This happens all the time too.
When I was still playing, clicking on an elevator panel too fast would freeze the game. Same with clicking on a door too fast, sometimes it freezes and sometimes the door refuses to open.
In the kill missions you receive, you have to kill.....2 enemies. Who are so easy that it's not even worth your effort. Not fun.
And the last thing I find absolutely horrendous about the missions is: Who in their right mind talks like the NPCs? "I finally realize the truth, Alexander Nepocrolis" or whatever. They always say their first and last names, even if they're supposed to be boyfriend/girlfriend. And let's not mention the fact that sometimes the NPCs have male/female names even though their character is clearly of the opposite sex.
Ugh. Yes, almost every MMORPG uses the same kill/FedEx quest system but some actually make it fun to do quests, like WoW.
"When I was still playing" Your opinions no longer valid if you were playing months ago or somesuch. Much has changed even beyond my scope of expectation. I mean the latest build on QA Server thats not even live yet, has exceeded my expectations. I just didn't think they would bother to polish it up that much. Totally blown me away. On second note -- your opinions are shoddy nitpicks at trying to take apart an otherwise excellent piece of software.
You can say all you want -- but WoW's quests are a one time deal and everyone will have done them. (It's one of the first MMOs you could /really/ write a strategy guide to as the missions are the same) MXO literally will be phasing out mission content, as the storyline progresses. Not to mention we've been testing the mechanics of the system, whatever lackluster feeling you've received from the missions was either due to past experiences (I.E. having not played in awhile to see the v ariety of improvements that have come down the pipeline) or simply the fact they are intended to be run of the mill barebones missions, so we can test the medium in which to deliver future content. The funny thing is -- as barebones as they are they provide a moderately entertaining storyline and experience.
To speak from my own recent experience on a FedEx mission. In the past sometimes they didnt appear, and then a few patches later, they'd just randomly teleport in behind you and you'd onlyt know they were there when you started getting shot at. Recently I was doing one of these and literally saw the mob running across a roof, she then hyperjumped in front of me to intercept me. So much for that!
When you were still playing... must have been a while. For at least a couple months not when running courier missions NPC's will jump off buildings in front of you (sometimes behind) while you're in transit. Only 2 enemies in the mission area? Jeez... did you have the mission on the "Easy" level? It's also been a while since there have been elevator issues.
You see, it was a beta. It still is a beta. You were not playing a finished game.
Quick question: Do the difficulty settings for the missions adjust just the enemy numbers, or their difficulty as well?
They adjust a really unpredictable array of things. Sometimes more mobs, higher leveled, increases overall challenge as well. Like Hard missions might make some doors that would be previously easily unlocked require some sort of lock picking, or security alarms, doors booby trapped with bombs, security cameras. A variety of things change on any given mission or at least are capable to change as you increase difficulty. You notice this less from Easy to Medium, its more reserved for Hard that some missions change a whole lot.
Hard missions aren't intended to be solo'd so it make sense that the hard missions have much more variety in challenges, as you'll likely have playes in your group that can handle these challenges and have a role besides just being another body. Really compells you to desire a Spy or Hacker on the team. (Some computers can be hacked using the Hackers ability...Hacker hehe)
Toughest rater in the world
Try to impress me, please, i dare u
Take your drugs elsewhere, wrong board. Do some reading, its not just martial arts. Christ.