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Free Trial - first (and last) impressions
SchroesCat
Member UncommonPosts: 44
Greetings,
I am writing this thread, because I wish I had read one like it before I downloaded the 9 GB trial version to give this a shot. To make it short: If you didn't like WoW you won't like this either, I think. To me, they both feel the same, and are not worth it. Of course it all depends what you are looking for.
If you are looking for...
- beautiful character art
- unique ways of dressing
- any way at all to make your character unique (apart from number-crunching mayhaps)
- fast paced, interesting combat and a bit of a thrill while battling
- elves that look somewhat serious, mysterious, graceful... you know, all those attributes that are commonly associated with in fantasy, and not elves with ears that look like flying devices, invented by some cruel and drunk god on a whim to makes his friends laugh
... best look elsewhere.
I am probably not the best of judges to compare this game to WoW or LotRO, since I played those two for only a short few hours, but Rift feels the same:
- no room for creativity in character optics or garment
- toonish, comic-like overall looks, no grace at all in character art
- pretty boring combat (though I'd say LotRO had faster, more interesting combat) [Crits' AI is for crying out loud. You can practially stand next to a group and attack one foe, while his friends just stand around and pretend nothing was happening]
And while all this weighs heavily on the game for some people (like me), and you still might hope to find good RP - I don't think you'll find it. Apart from the fact that many of the above stated points don't usually attract RP-heavy people, the publisher is not promoting or enforcing it at all, even on the so-called "RP-Servers".
To me it seems to be just another WoW clone, mainly trying to adress the mainstream and younger crowd.
I sure hope no-one gets offended. I bet many do, but I can live with that. I am not writing this to unleash a discussion on whose cats' personal preferences are the more nobles ones, I just hope to save another cat with similar preferences to mine some time.
I might be just spoiled by the possibilities to get creative and nice RP that NWN once offered - and spoiled by the beautiful artwork that Guild Wars still offers.
To all those that enjoy it: Cheers and happy gaming!
Comments
Drinking out of cups on you tube is funny
i played for a few months at launch and i'll agree on your assessment of the game mechanics. they were kind of, eh been there, done this before. very like wow. however, i must say i really liked the art, including the characters. I didnt mind the kelari looking the way they did, in fact i made all my characters kelari.
the location/scenery art was better though, you could tell defiant presence by the presence of neat steamunk stuff
RIP Ribbitribbitt you are missed, kid.
Currently Playing EVE, ESO
Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and not clothed.
Dwight D Eisenhower
My optimism wears heavy boots and is loud.
Henry Rollins
I have no idea why Rift is so popular, (according to MMORPG that is). I too waited while the huge file downloaded expecting to at least have a game on par with LOTRO....NOT! Ridiculous gameplay, poor skill implemetation, (done before, didn't live up to hype) toony characters, low graphic detail, clunky, outdated UI and finally mobs with poor AI.
Pros - able to join a group battle with no loading screens and other frustrations that go along with group play.
I quickly left, demoralized and disallusioned by the mmo market.
P.S. Aion was ok, but I just couldn't relate to the mobs and sound affects.
Queen - "Another one bites the dust...AND another one down, another one down, another one bites the dust...HEY! HEY!"
Originally posted by PhelimReagh
Greetings PhelimReagh,
to me the characters look very much "standardized". You can play around a bit with facial features, hair and the such, but the avatars of a given race are not very different in looks. Body stature is the same for all, only size scales. This is a trait of many games.
What bothers me even more is when even clothing and/or armor comes with the same limitations. Who says a wizard does have to wear a robe, always? It's another disease that many games suffer from: From miles away you see a characters profession.
Rift just seemed to have not not put any consideration at all into the fact that some players like some customization control over the appearance of their avatars. I have played only for short, but I would wager that all level 10 clerics look alike (garment/armor-wise), and so do all level 10 fighters, rogues, etc...
There might be an option to dye the armor, or a choice between two different sets.. but I don't think Rift offers anything else. Stuff you find looks the way you found it, and since everyone will want to wear the armor with the best rating available for their level, they will all wear the same suits they found, which will all look the same.
... leaving no room for creativity on the player's end of the stick.
That is what I meant.
Cheers,
S_Cat
P.S.: Again, I am not trying to force my views down anyone's (unwilling) throat, and the creators of Rift sure deserve respect for what they created. It's just not my cup of tea.
I wasn't fond of RIFT either, but I have to ask you (OP) what game you were coming from....you know, the most recent game you LIKED....that you couldn't compare RIFT to either WoW or LotRO or any other game in your post. Not that a COMPARISON is necessary, I was juust wondering what is the most recent game you actually liked?
President of The Marvelously Meowhead Fan Club
If you think the graphics are poor, are you perhaps playing the game on a rather old system? It's either that or I don't really grasp your taste in graphics. I thought RIFT graphics were very good, maybe not as good as what you have in Aion, but certainly very good.
That characters al tend to wear the same armors and that there a few ways to make your toon stand out, ok I agree. That the combat is just spamming skills like in WoW, possible, it's not as innovative as it could have been. but graphics not good, uhm, sorry but no way!
Waiting for Guild Wars 2, and maybe SWTOR until that time...
A few questions if I may ask:
1. How long did you play the game? I myself played some in beta but mainly pure and alone for testing so didn't look at the game as I do when I actually buy or sub to one. I didn't find it to be like WoW, only thing that comes to mind is how polished the game already felt when I played.
2. What level did you reach? Again due to being a beta only player in Rift I can't say how much will change after the honeymoon lvl's (is what I call the introduction levels for learning the game) But from past experiance in most MMORPG's the combat will feel allot better when higher lvl's are reached and often if not always feels abit boring in the beginning. The same apply's for character costumization which in most MMORPG does change after reaching more level. Again don't have Rift experiance to know if and how this might change once you reache higher lvl's but still just curious to your answer on this.
3. Did you take the time to actually read the missions/quests? This I did notice in beta cause it's part of the testing and nothing came across as being like WoW apart from the obvious things you can find in almost any MMORPG, the story is different, the way it is told is different, but I can understand if people just click the quest and head for the marker then it could feel like what ever other game they have played the same way.
Obviously not every game is for everyone but when I read or want to read someone's impressions it makes it intresting to read when certain aspect where told/written aswell, thus me asking these questions.
I didn't bother with picking the game up on release for numerous reason I felt where not important enough to share with others, but since you felt it was important (somewhat) I would love hearing your answers. Greetz
Wait a second, you played WoW for a few hours only, played Rift for a few hours only and are making sweeping statements about Rift being a WoW clone based on your VAST experience with this subject? You say in one breath your not the person to make such comparisons, but then do so in the next....
NWN is not an mmoropg, making RP comparisons between a co-op game and an mmo is a skewed perspective especially when in one you can mod till your hearts content and control the entire multiplayer aspect yourself. MMO's don't work that way.
As your comparing apples and oranges, name an example of the mmorpg you are referring too where you can "get creative"? A few offer limited customisation but even the best of the sandbox mmo's has limitations. I can't think of any where you have the control of a DM in an RPG.
Based on your likes and dislikes, I'd suggest that MMORPG's are obviously not for you, I'd also suggest you go back to RPG's and stop making such comparisons because there won't be an mmorpg which satisfies your requirements.
Expresso gave me a Hearthstone beta key.....I'm so happy
@ShroesCat - What were you actually expecting Rift to be?
I can not remember winning or losing a single debate on the internet.
i wouldnt mind if the engine could push a lot of player but 1500 per server come on.
This just seems to either be flat out lies or someone who didnt really pay any attention to what they played.
If the game looks bad maybe your playing it at some pretty nasty setting, there are plenty of other posts here that show this game has the ability to look good.
"no room for creativity in character optics or garment" - This really depends on how much you want. They have dyes sets and 4 wardrobe tabs. lots of vendors aroudnt hat sell differnt gear that can go into thos.
"toonish, comic-like overall looks, no grace at all in character art" - put this next to WoW and there is not cartoonish comparison. Rifts looks far more on the realistic side.
"pretty boring combat (though I'd say LotRO had faster, more interesting combat) [Crits' AI is for crying out loud. You can practially stand next to a group and attack one foe, while his friends just stand around and pretend nothing was happening]" - This is no flaw in RIFTs allow, every MMO has this problem. Maybe your expectations ont he genre are way out of proportion
And while all this weighs heavily on the game for some people (like me), and you still might hope to find good RP - I don't think you'll find it. Apart from the fact that many of the above stated points don't usually attract RP-heavy people, the publisher is not promoting or enforcing it at all, even on the so-called "RP-Servers". - Very few MMo's actually lend to any sort of true RP anymore. the soul focus of just about every game is the combat anymore. So again this is a problem wiht the genre, not this game.
Our community just started playing Rift about 3 weeks ago and having a blast! it worth a try, even though the gameplay is very similar to WoW it does have its own uniqueness -- the class system is a blast! here's a free 7-day trial if anyone wants to try it including some info about the game, I suggest the Sunrest server (one of the more populated ones): http://waronwings.guildlaunch.com/se...ft/?gid=191935
Enjoy!
I tried the rift free trial and thought it was a very good game loved the class systems and would keep playing if I were not waiting on SWTOR to release.
SWTOR will be released mid December
so might as well keep playing!
NWN (1) in multiplayer modus (Persistant Worlds, mostly) was definitely the only game that ignited my passion and held me captive for long. NWN (2) was a disappointment for me.
I would have liked "The Chronicles of Spellborn". Despite it's lacking in many aspects, I really liked the artwork and combat felt fresh and real. Those that have been there know why it's not really playable though.
The last game that held my attention for a bit was Guild Wars. After getting over the initial disappointment of (again) not finding the type of roleplay I was used to and loved from NWN I got around to appreciating what Guild Wars had to offer: Beautiful artwork and especially character art and animations. Fast paced and exciting combat + thoughtful and fast PvP.
Yes, I am still roaming the net for something comparable to NWN 1. I am not sure anymore if it is even possible to foster the roleplaying athmosphere found in many NWN games and worlds on a larger scale. I would think yes, if someone tried, but there seems to be no interest from any gaming company to even give it a shot.
1. I played only a few hours, until coming to the conclusions in my original post. Then I lost interest.
2. I got to level 4 or 5 I think. Yes, I am sure many things change after getting past the introductory stuff - but I don't think the points that are important to me are affected by those changes.
3. Most quests I found were of the type: "Kill three X and find 6 Y - then come back to me for the reward and the next quest"
*******************
Regarding graphics, since this came up in several replies:
Clearly visual art and the perception thereof is a very subjective thing. To me Rift is nothing exciting. I am not saying Rift's graphics are poor quality. It is just the style of art that does not appeal to me and brings up memories of what I saw on WoW and LotrO - in terms of the mood. It has a comic-toon, slightly childish feel for me. It has nothing to do with "realism". If I want realism I can look out my window.
(And yes - Chronicles of Spellborn is much more cartoon-like than any of the above mentioned games, but the visual art appealed to me. It was unique, a bit dark.. very nice I think!)
My views are very subjective, I never aspired to anything else. I was hoping to give little reason to be offended with my original post - and I think it worked. To those that still took offense: It was not my intention!
Again: I am not saying Rift is totally {beeped} up, and anyone who is playing it, is a {beep} . I just find it mainstream in regards to the points I mentioned in my first post, and in many others, and found nothing so outstandingly excellent as to make up for it. - so it's not for me.
The occasional flame is only to be expected. That's why I have a fire-proof vest when I thread forums in general.
Cheers!
The last few days for me was a decision of Rift or Aion Trial.
I picked Aion. My findings for that game is the same as your's about Rift. Nothing new, and bland. I'm only a level 7 in Aion but I'll give it a few days more, but I don't think it will change much.
With me, I want to get one thing out of the way. The problem isn't the fact that Rift is a WoW Clone. I like WoW and have been playing it for years, but none of the WoW clones are as good as WoW. Sure, they all do one or two things differently than WoW, but collectively, they are all inferior. Rift's quest are incredibly sub-bar, the graphics are bland, the game is linear, and the class selection is deceptively small. Seriously, there are only about 6 or 7 "classes" in Rift despite Trion promoting that the game has like 20 something souls to mix and match. Almost every class within an archtype plays so similarly that the only difference in gameplay will be the order of the buttons you press for your rotation. Then, of course, almost every class relies on combo points and finishers, which I really hate. People say the game is only linear because it's new and hasn't had as many updates as WoW. This is, of course, all true, but the issue is that it doesn't matter whether or not the game is new. If it's going to copy World of Warcraft, it needs to launch with everything WoW has if not more in order to be a serious contender.
lulz tell me how that works out at 55. Have fun with that one. For laughs go roll a Templar a try and pvp.
@Op Thanks for trying to be fair with 3 positive and 3 negative, but your 3 negative go to prove why RP'rs will never be happy in MMO's. I think LOTR was made for you guys or something.
The ward drobe and dye system alone puts this game 7 years ahead of WoW. I am still shocked by the amount of minute insignificant stuff rp'rs consider major that they rest of us just laugh at. I care about content and end game stuff to do not if I have a /sit command to flirt with a girl online.
I played this game and really enjoyed it for the first month or so. I was a part of every server first up until the first raid, Greenscale. The T1 experts were actually fairly challenging when our entire group was in quest gear, and clearing all of them was pretty cool. Before all the nerfs, some of the T2s would completely wreck groups if you weren't paying attention. DSM anyone? That place was hell our first time through in shit gear, but the challenge and doing it with really cool people made it great. Then the grind begun. Grind the T1s to be able to do T2s easily. Do raid rifts to get better essences to go do more T2s to go grind in some instanced PVP map. After the grinding was done we could either go grind some more in the first raid or go grind in PVP. We decided to quit instead.
The idea of playing yet another MMO that is so focused on vertical progression just did not appeal to me. I mean really... I'm no fan of WoW and I don't play, but if I wanted vertical progression and well polished/challenging PVE content I'd play WoW. Rift does very little different, which is fine, because it does it well, but I'm just not interested in playing that MMO anymore. Seriously, someone needs to set a new "gold standard" in themepark MMO's because the current formula is just old and gross.
I too, wonder why Rift is popular. Well, what I wonder more often is IF it's popular. A slight dent in WoW's subscriptions and many people coming back to WoW only months after starting to play Rift don't really make me think that the game is a runaway success. I played it for a while but I honestly felt like I had seen everything already, and quickly lost interest.
The main reason I suspect that the game was flocked to is because people were tired of WoW. That's a fair assessment I think. Personally speaking, that was my reason for even giving it a try, but this thread is about the game itself and not why people jumped on board the Rift train.
Having played WoW for a number of years, I couldn't force myself to read huge blocks of text that presented little more than a basic fantasy tale, then walk around hitting some hot keys, when the only big differences between Rift and WoW were the so called dynamic events and the deep skill trees customization.
A lot of the skills were named after WoW skills or were obviously inspired by them, which made me giggle, but it wasn't that big a deal. No one is under the delusion that Rift was meant to be a WoW-like. The Rift mechanic is just boring though. It feels like an unpolished promise of new ideas in an MMORPG. Along with the very limited race selection and the mixed quality of voice acting, I actually started to want to play WoW again. I can't be sucked into another hype machine that's going to make me prefer WoW, that's not a good feeling.
lol if Rift does anything it makes you pissed off at Blizzard for taking so long to do updates and calling bull on their constant excuses. Fee's for transfer went out of date roughly 4-5 years ago probably. Why no ward drobe tab or armor dye?
Yeah the entire character transfer scam really irritated me. Sadly, I bought into it and they still haven't enabled the transfer of heirloom gear so that you could potentially level up toons fast on a server your friends are on, instead of plodding along at normal pace for weeks and wanting to take a break from the game completely once you reach the lvl cap. Grrr.
I didn't try to transfer characters in Rift, was it free?
I don't get angry at a company who makes video games. There's far more important things I could rage at. If I had to describe Rift with two words they would be, "Status quo," which is my biggest gripe with the game. As soon as I figured out that the diversity of the soul system wasn't so diverse, I felt like I knew everything about the game. Even if you play very casually, you hit the level cap so insanely fast that you're forced to deal with the less-than-spectacular end game. Making an alt in that game is horrendous; there's really not much diversity in the areas you can level in, so you end up doing the exact same thing you did on your main. Not to mention that you can play every class in the game with only 4 different characters.
I think these MMO's should stop trying to compete with WoW on its strongest point, which is end game raiding. There's no way to catch up to a game that has 8 years of practice developing that type of content. Trion has been patching incredibly fast, but I don't think that they can sustain at that rate. Eventually, players are going to get bored of raiding in Rift just like they have in WoW.