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DF Review by DF Veteran
paxprobellum
Member Posts: 8
I posted this on the official forums. It's not a proper review, more of a synopsis. Original post here: http://forums.darkfallonline.com/showthread.php?t=266927
Background:
Been playing MMOs since before there were MMOs. I started with MUDs (text-only) – first Allanthya, then Gemstone III & Dragonrealms. Some others as well, but those were the mains. After that, I moved on to UO (launch to 99), then EQ (launch-ish to 2004), then WoW (launch-ish to 2005), then back to EQemu (2007-2009) until DF came out. I tried to start playing on launch day, but my F5 skills aren’t leet so I didn’t get in until the beginning of week 2.
Status in Game:
400+ Health
75+ Masteries
Stats between 80 and 110
(Not a noob. Don’t tell me to come back in 2 months :P)
Why DF is great:
There are a lot of things that I think DF really nailed. One of them is the concept of 1 character with unlimited skill progression. Characters have identities. It’s not just “Oh here comes some dwarf” – it’s “Here comes Beleg the metal-wearing, no-crafting-skills, fireball-slinging dwarf”. Although the concept of unlimited skill progression has its pitfall (see: DF Pitfalls), it is a great feature to allow characters to continually gain skills as they use them (especially with one character) – this also artificially balances PvP (as OP FOTM skills are available to all, at least theoretically).
In addition to character skills, DF has plenty of others carrots to chase. There are a variety of crafting skills that all require lots of raw mats to get up. The items that crafters produce are important. So although I’m not a crafter, I still keep a list of things I need by my computer. It is usually 5 to 25 different enchanting and/or crafting mats. Although anyone can be a master of X craft, everyone is not, so knowing who can make you gear is important (see: character identity). Recent trading features and events (player vendors, MS trade fair, etc.) have created more opportunities for players to get gear without crafting then ever before.
PvP combat is, of course, DF’s strong suit. No tab targeting. Lots of skills (see: options). Player skill is important (for FPSers), as are character skills (for RPGers). In addition, PvE is engaging, interesting, and continually evolving. Different mobs fight differently, and most are very intelligent (especially compared to AAA titles like WoW, etc.). There are no developer-implemented safe zones (especially for clanned players), making PvE and even harvesting a possible PvP encounter.
The world is beautifully hand crafted. Lots of open space for impromptu fighting. Having the high ground/cover is very important for fighting, so becoming familiar with the world is both useful and entertaining. The graphics and sound are well done, and always improving. New animations are coming (soon TM), which will definitely be helpful.
One of DF’s greatest assets is the developers. Although they get a lot of gripe on forumfall, they are doing an awesome job. DF has launched and had 3 expansions before WoW has had 1 expansion PLUS the expansions were all free PLUS their entire dev team is smaller than WoW’s QA team alone. In addition, they are continually tweaking the game to make it better. For example, a lot of people QQ’d about PvE revamp in the last expansion, but it has done a lot to move “profitable” PvE to PvP hotspots (dungeons) and left the “not as profitable” PvE to remoter areas. If they continue to make good design decisions, DF will be amazing.
Why DF is not-so great:
I gush because I love the game, but I certainly have some personal gripes with the game. In no particular order …
• I think bunny hopping is excessive. Lots of forum chatter on how to fix this.
• We need more economic and political tools. (i.e. trade routes and the “journal” suck.)
• Housing needs some tweaks -- IDOCs need to be more regular.
• A lot of the community (in particular, the forumfall dwellers) are elitist idiots.
• There are no player-enforced safe zones. The game population would increase if more players got involved in helping noobs.
• The distinction between mob dropped gear and player crafted gear is not big enough.
• UI needs work (coming soon (TM)!)
DF Pitfalls:
Darkfall is not for everyone. I would note that it is NOT for the following people, among others:
- ADD Elitist Min/Maxer
This person needs to have everything maxed (and they usually need to have it now). In addition, they will complain that getting every carrot takes way too long until they get every carrot or quit. Afterwards they quit anyway (quitting usually means retiring to forumfall).
This attitude is a problem because there is no “end-game” in DF, unlike many other MMOs. Character progression continues concurrently while you play the game. Yes, there are certain character skills required to win fights 1v1 (or even 2v1), but that is NOT the point. The point is – if you can’t stand being inferior to someone, this isn’t your game. (Also, there are a lot of very fun things in DF that aren’t the absolute best way to the top of the character progression ladder!)
- The Themeparker
This person expects the game to explain itself (and sometimes play itself). They have been raised on glowing !s and ?s. They can only differentiate MMO gameplay into Questing, Grinding (PvE), and PvP.
This attitude is an issue because DF doesn’t explain itself, and you are expected to create your own fun. Not everything is cut-and-dry (ie grinding vs PvP), and nothing is laid out for you to do. You know what would be a lot of fun? Try to take every city in Elven Lands. There’s no quest for it, and it might require some in-game political maneuvering (even some forum warrioring!), but the game certainly allows you to pursue this. (AV continues to add more sandbox tools, but the sad reality is most folks don’t care/don’t know how to use them.) If you stand around the bank all day long, this might be you!
Comments
Thanks for sharing was a great read and I'm actually downloading the 14 day free trial as we speak to try the game myself.
Any advice is welcomed, thanks in advance.
Pretty good writeup, however I think one of the biggest gripes to a newer player would be the unlimited skill system you love. It makes the grind horrible on them, while making you, the vet, more powerful, and considering everyone is hybrid, it adds a lot more grind to the mix. However, aventurine is already adressing this with stuff like offline leveling and prestige classes.
And to the above poster, join a guild ASAP.
Check out the accelerated character development guide made by Valroth. Here is part 1.
"Mr. Rothstein, your people never will understand... the way it works out here. You're all just our guests. But you act like you're at home. Let me tell you something, partner. You ain't home. But that's where we're gonna send you if it harelips the governor." - Pat Webb
Thanks guys.
Some good replies by Lord Zeb and Aikar Walmoor in your thread, which I agree with.
Lord Zeb says:
Got some good points, and some weak...
For instance, he doesn't talk much about the leaving RPGers or failed Alignment system & poor communication tools that drove them away. (Does touch a bit on Economy though.)
Does however not say anything against what I have said:
DFO is the best Free for all full loot fantasy MMOFPS on the market.
And I hope it makes it into becoming a MMORPG soon.
Aikar Walmoor says:
You missed a lot on the downsides of the game:
-The game is extremely asocial and shallow, anything that is not random arac clans killing everything in sight is not encouraged, in fact, its handicapped.
-The world looks beautifil but fails its purpose, which is to be immersive. Right now is just a 3 week eye candy until you realise you cannot interact with anything other than killing mobs. Not even sit on a chair or moving npcs in city, everything is so static and meaningless. Besides they even repeat the same building patterns a lot (houses, ruins etc) and all the architecture you find is just an excuse to put your random 4 mob spawn. Plain and boring.
-The game can barely be called sandbox, it really lacks a whole lot on this. We dont even have any kind of clan emblem to distinguish and there isnt anything remotely advanced regarding sandbox enviroment/tools. All we have is preplaced cities with preplaced buildings that are just a bunch of polygons with no use other than maybe having a buff or enabling shit.
-Everyone is the same (or ends up quitting or being the same). I dont think i need to explain this but when every player is casting all kind of spells from every school while wearing heavy armour , using different melee weapons and shooting with the bow, all of this without any measure or system that prevents ppl from being master of everything, then we have a problem.
Of course this doesnt mean a shit to the remaining playerbase which are the fps kids, they only want to get there faster (aka reduce "the grind") instead of asking for actual character diversification , and if it was for them there would be a portal in every square of agon , no mobs, and everyone with skills maxed in 1 week. These are the cancer of Darkfall and only end up ruining whatever potential this game could have as a sandbox or overall mmorpg instead of going back to quake.
-About devs, im not sure what to think yet. But when they announced fun hulks as sandbox content they really worried me. Not only that but i remember fanboys saying that would be only a minor part of the expansion and that we were not fair by critisizing it (even tho it wasnt so much about thinking that funhulks was a major part of the expansion, nobody thought so by then, but the fact that its one of the most immersion-breaking themeparkish pieces of shit i ever seen as game addition) and it ended up being actually one of the very few things that added content in this hellfreeze expansion which took them at least 8 months to deliver.
Despite having a lot of criticism of the game, I always say that Darkfall is the best MMO on the market.
I've played most every MMO on the market, and have played Darkfall since the closed beta. Since Darkfall release I've been a clan leader involved in 1,000+ person sieges, a clan member leading small raiding groups, a solo player trying to fight off PKs and help n00bs.
I'd wager that I have a pretty good feel of everything Darkfall has to offer.
Best Parts of the Game
Freedom - No predefined "theme park" paths. Do what you want, be what you want.
Detail - You can tell that the world is hand made. Really the most beautiful game world of any MMO.
Economy - A very "real" economy. The only artificial aspects are reagent cost, arrows and tools. Having to worry about the reputation of someone you're trading with is a big step up from WoW auctions.
Fun combat - Compared to the tedious click and wait style of most MMO's, Darkfall is very lively.
Skill based - It is possible to beat someone who is higher level and better equiped (to some extent).
Community - Some of the most helpful people I've ever encountered in MMO's have been in Darkfall. I've also never been part of a community that was more lively and fun. I can sit for hours and just chat in the Racial Alliance channel.
Worst Parts of the Game
Grind - Undeniably, there is still a grind. Mainly around spells and stats as the weapon/archery grind isn't bad anymore, but there is definitely a feel of "grind to compete" within the game.
Alignment - The alignment system is meaningless. People slaughter "good" people all the time and can just spend 15 minutes grinding their own alignment back to "good". If you run into a poor happless miner out away from town, there is really no reason why you shouldn't murder him.
War Dec - Through war declarations, it is possibly for "gank guilds" to kill new players in town without penalty. This is essentiall a penalty free license to kill good aligned players.
Towers - Aside from killing immersion with magically lightning zaps whenever "bad" players come near, towers are not a suitable replacement for guards. There is no sneaking around the towers, and there is no fighting back.
Also, the towers in player cities do nothing. People can sit in your city 24/7 while getting hit by towers and not really get damaged.
Sieges - The siege system is still very frustrating. Due to global messages when sieges start, most sieges are crashed and rarely very competitive. It is also still possible to launch 4am sieges.
Lack of content - AV is working on this, but they really need more quests, more mob spawns etc. Considering the relatively low player population, there really aren't that many spots to find good mob spawns.
Even if you have a good mob spawn, most are only 2-3 monsters. It is very possible that you will have an awesome looking evil tower/castle thing with a great environment around it, but only have 1 monster inside.
Overall I would definitely recommend Darkfall to anyone, and really hope that AV continues to improve the game.
(Uzik ibnYaraq in game. Always willing to help.)
http://www.youtube.com/user/UzikAlJhamin
Great write-up! I really, really wish more player reviews in these forums, on any MMO not just DF, would be like this instead of "The graphics suck. And the UI sucks. This game sucks! Anyone who likes it sucks!" Posts like the above are so much more helpful.
Current: None
Played: WoW, CoX, SWG, LotRO, EVE, AoC, VG, CO, Ryzom, DF, WAR
Tried: Lineage2, Dofus, EQ2, CoS, FE, UO, Wurm, Wakfu
Future: The Repopulation, ArcheAge, Black Desert, EQN
While the stereotype of Darkfall players are l337 pvp kiddies, you'd be surprised at how many well spoken and mature players there are (I think the average age is 25).
HOWEVER, most of us don't take ourselves too seriously so as to be offended by trolling, cursing etc.
Also, you need to realize that Darkfall essentially released into beta. I played during the early friends and family beta, and that was more like an alpha test.
I've had a lot of criticism of Darkfall and Aventurine (hell, I still do) but it really is the best MMO on the market, and probably the best on the horizon.
(Uzik ibnYaraq in game. Always willing to help.)
http://www.youtube.com/user/UzikAlJhamin
Oh I know, I played it for half a year and plan on getting back into it once I get a rig that will run it. The DF community has its share of asshats, like any MMO, but overall I was quite impressed with how helpful and fun the majority was.
Current: None
Played: WoW, CoX, SWG, LotRO, EVE, AoC, VG, CO, Ryzom, DF, WAR
Tried: Lineage2, Dofus, EQ2, CoS, FE, UO, Wurm, Wakfu
Future: The Repopulation, ArcheAge, Black Desert, EQN
Sorry to hear that your first impression didn't meet your expectations. I wouldn't judge Darkfall too harshly though with a short play session. As a new player, you did not know where to run to find the action. Darkfall is a huge world and there are many places that are empty. This is a good thing since hopefully you can find such areas to farm mobs. I live on Ice island and our city is raided daily.
Truth be told the game just lacks players there might be 1000 players total but the pvp is fun not gonna lie. It isn't the best for pvp but it does fill in that void for this sorta niche. If only a real developer made this game.
I don't have any issues with population during poeak hours. The game is quite popullated and more people are joining.
How can you compare Oblivion to an MMORPG?
Are you playing on NA? If so I am more than willing to meet up with you and help out/show you some cool things.
(Uzik ibnYaraq in game. Always willing to help.)
http://www.youtube.com/user/UzikAlJhamin
To be fair, DarkFall has some very small similarities with Oblivion, and Oblivion has the depth that DarkFall is lacking. Perhaps not in terms of PvP, but instead about cities and life around the cities, guards, NPC having conversations, hearing about rumours, traveling, skills and stats system, etc. What Oblivion has done is by no mean revolutionnary, nor too hard to re-create, yet DarkFall has taken the cookie-cutter path. NPCs don't even have text in DarkFall! It just opens up a shop or a quest tab.
Never played Oblivion. Its a MMORPG?
No, it's a single player game. But it IS really awesome, and probably the best game I've played outside of DF in awhile. DF isn't Oblivion Online, but it's a similar feel.
PS No, I don't work for AV. But I do like DF and figure I should advertise. I had already written this post up for forumfall, so I just copied it over here. See the link in the OP.
PPS If you're thinking about getting DF, it's only $7.50 on impulse right now. 14 day free trial, ofc.
Many would say that TES:Morrowind is superior, although I didn't have the chance to try it. But yeah, Oblivion is definitively a great RPG.
So what you are telling me is you wish Oblivion would be as good as Darkfall.
Guys I didn't mean to down Darkfall cause I actually love the open world MMORPGs which are rare now days. Main reason I decided not to join Darkfall for the long run is population and very hard to master controls, I want to play the game not take hours of reading, youtube videos to be able just to move /fight/use skills cause it's a game after all not work. I did the 1st 2 quests from 1st NPC near me as I started and found them very easy to navigate and complete but found funny that when fighting goblins they run like crazy sometimes for no reason. If controls were easier I would be all over this game and ignore population issue.
How long ago did you try the game?
(Uzik ibnYaraq in game. Always willing to help.)
http://www.youtube.com/user/UzikAlJhamin
2 days ago
Another month to get your bindings to "just so," and obtain a weapon swap macro to smoothly switch weapons.
And you're done.
I find the controls pretty simple for basic fighting. I mean melee and archery are simple, unsheath weapon, aimd and click. Magic is more complicated to use effectivly but follows the same principles. If you aren't willing to read I don't think any great MMO is for you as you'll be limited to themeparks that hold your hand throughout the game and require not thought.
If you don't like the default key mapping it's easy to change. The fist thing I changed was make right clicking paryy and esc the ui toggle.
They added the ability to completely remap everything. If you look at the "input controls" section of your GUI menu, you will see. This is really necesary since the default mappings are retarded.
I use the following mappings:
Left Click - Attack
Right Click - Block
Middle Mouse - Heal Self
TAB - Equip staff
Q = Equip 2h weapon
E = equip bow
T = equip 1h sword
Y = shield
~ = Change attack mode
f1 = HP potion
f2 = Stam potion
f3 = eat food
H = use
N - alt use
(Uzik ibnYaraq in game. Always willing to help.)
http://www.youtube.com/user/UzikAlJhamin