BRUTAL effort 1/10 score

Wizardry · May 2006

I went in expecting a pretty decent game backing up the DnD title.Wow was i surprised at how bad the game is.First up the loading time was a joke,for a game that is all instancing,there is no way it shoulda taken that kinda loading time.The graphics are done like as in WOW,very cheap and non realistic.When i first looked at the npc's they have a sad look,like there 2d paper cutouts.The maps are very linear and the interface is way too cumbersome.You HAve to use the QWEASD keys while holding the shift key lmao if you are to make any use of the mouse clicks to cast spells or use the hotkeys.I would like to strafe with the arrows and use mouse for free look ,thats the normal setup games use and is far less cumbersome.CTRL could then be used for specials.

I assume there thought behind the easy quests ,and i mean SUPER easy a 3 year old could do them,Was for the real lazy dumb players that like to feel they have accomplished something.

Even if this game was made for a console i wouldn't accept it as even a decent effort.I played games like 10 years ago that used the dnd gameset ,and they were 20xbetter than this effort.Oh did i mention you just run into anything to climb,there is no effort whatsoever,it climbs for you.This game is a really babied game that would be fun for a 5-10 year old,except a young player like that couldn't use the cumbersome interface.

graphics 2/10...fun 1/10 ....quests 1/10 ....combat 6/10 it tries to do alot but loses score because it is instanced....UI 4/10....textures 4/10....exploring/open ended/linear 3/10.BAd/Bad/Bad Turbine you SUCK !

I knew it too ,because i said months ago that anything WOTC is involved in will be cheap and nothing more than a piddly effort to make money.They deffinately made this cheap effort to make money off the great name not the game.

When the bigshots sat at a table and discussed what they would do with this game,this is how im sure it went [lmao] ok lets use a engine that any atari can play this game,that way we increase our potential buyers.Lets make the game super easy[besides the UI]so that all the little kiddies can feel like there achieving something,then come out saying WOW this game is great im already at level 20.Oh ya and lets make everything glow so even the dumbest of dumb can find what there looking for...ah what the heck lets add super large arrows pointing to it as well.lmao sad/sad/sad/sad/sad effort.

Gameloading · May 2006

I doubt you even gave it a fair chance to begin with. I agree it is definitly not a game worth a monthly fee, and I expected a lot more of it, but graphics 1/10..? I agree its not a beauty, but a 1? and quests a 1..right..

I'm afraid this is not a review I can recommend to anybody.

Wizardry · May 2006

Ya grpahics i said 2/10 they look like one big pastel pasted onto static meshes.The npc's dont even move,and like i said if you look at them from a certain angle they look like 2d paper cutouts.You can find the same type of graphics used in console games like morrowind and stuff.They do this for a reason,so that any cheap machine can play the game easily.With everything being instanced,so virtaully nothing going on much around you,they could have done a WAY better job with graphics.Put more interaction,more animation/more particle effects, into the game,because there is virtually none.Reason it gets 2/10 is because this is not a console game it is made for PC.

Quests 1/10 thats a for sure they couldn't be any cheaper and made me feel like a lil kid.They are so linear and easy ,there is no way you mess them up.Like i said glowing chests?arrows pointing my god.Once you go into a quest instance,it's so small and linear ,even a console game would be embarrassed.I don't want to play metal gear honour type MMO's where im walking through narrow ship hauls.

The whole real problem is it's instancing,i never found it a big problem in other games till i tried this one.

If you want to see a very good effort done like 4-5 years ago on a very old unrealtournament engine,then checkout ......a MAP called FALKENSTEIN or maybe it's castle falkenstein.Then you will see awesome lighting and texture useage that gives you an amazing feeling just standing there.Then come back and look at DND an tell me they put out any effort.Falkenstein BTW was made for free by an outsider,not by the game designers who want you to buy there product.Who should be puttiong out the better effort? W/O question the game designer.

Did i give it a fair chance going in?your darn right i did because i loved playing all the games that used DND gameset.I can honestly say that the only type games im a little iffy on are sci-fi space sims.I really don't care for them at all,that is why i tend to never comment on them.You could up my scores by maybe 1 if you went in expecting a pile of junk,but i went in expecting alot from a DND game.

Maldach · May 2006

I definitely agree that it's a cheap game, there is so little game here that it can't be called an MMORPG, it's simply not massive, it's just a mulitplayer online role playing game. The graphics aren't great, but they aren't 1/10 quality. The korean 2-d games are more along the lines of 1/10 graphics, Roma Victor, Shadowbane, etc.

D&D Online honestly feels like a cash grab meant to stuff Turbines' pockets just long enough to fund LOTR Online and nothing more.

Index420 · May 2006

a lot of what you say about controling the char is just wrong, and you must not know what the options menu is...but other then that the game does blow big donkey balls

apocalance · May 2006

self-moderated response.. ignore

boba23 · May 2006

The game just isn't what my PnP games were like and it's not much D&D at all. The content is microscopic and the world... what a joke.

I am just glad this game is getting a slap in the face. It's about time game companies stopped putting out crap and expect people to buy it.

I really wish Bioware had taken this project instead... we'd have a real D&D Online... now its just some game you have to pay for montly and it's crap.

kystrom34 · June 2006

Content will actually make or break a game - not a licensed "name", will it make it long term or not is in the hands of the devs and hopefully they will start listening to the players.

Elnator · June 2006

What kind of video card do you have? I think the game has issues and
it's certainly not worth a monthly fee but it's not nearly as bad as
you're saying.

Originally posted by Wizardry

I went in expecting a pretty decent game backing up the DnD title.Wow was i surprised at how bad the game is.First up the loading time was a joke,for a game that is all instancing,there is no way it shoulda taken that kinda loading time.

I had no loading issues at all when trying the game out. Yes there was a brief wait when loading but nothing particularly hellish. Nobody I ever played with appeared to have particularly long 'zoning' times either. It also sounds like you didn't play the trial for more than 3 or 4 minutes because some of your statements make no sense whatsoever.

The graphics are done like as in WOW,very cheap and non realistic.When i first looked at the npc's they have a sad look,like there 2d paper cutouts.The maps are very linear and the interface is way too cumbersome.

What are you talking about? The graphics are far superior to WoW's. I rated them at an 8. They're not exactly what I am looking for but to call them cheap and non-realistic seems crazy to me. They are very well done. They're kinda monochromistic at first though. They really need to spruce up the color pallette a bit, especially in the early phases of the game.

You HAve to use the QWEASD keys while holding the shift key lmao if you are to make any use of the mouse clicks to cast spells or use the hotkeys.I would like to strafe with the arrows and use mouse for free look ,thats the normal setup games use and is far less cumbersome.CTRL could then be used for specials.

Not sure what you're talking about here. You don't have to use QWEASD... You use the mouse for mouselook (Hold the left button down) and you CAN steer with WASD but if you use mouselook you only need W&D or the ^ and V arrows on the keypad. Or you can use the numberpad. CTRL can be used for specials just fine. Not sure what you're talking about. You absolutely don't have to use the shift key unless you're using that for tumbling/blocking (And you can remap any key you don't like to something else).

I assume there thought behind the easy quests ,and i mean SUPER easy a 3 year old could do them,Was for the real lazy dumb players that like to feel they have accomplished something.

The early quests struck me as more tutorial type quests to familiarize you with the game. I didn't have a problem with them. Did you even get to the harbor? Once out of the entry area of the harbor (the trainer area) the quests got better, imo.

Sounds like the game wasn't your style at all but your review is pretty subjective rather than objective. The graphics are not as bad as you make t hem out to be. I agree on the UI, it needs work. You can't even get many of the objects to go flush with the edge of the screen (Something that should have been fixed during the beta, imo) and there are other niggling issues with it as well, like why on earth they didn't make it a 12 button bar (utilize - and

. But even there you scored a bit too harsh. The UI is a bit below the mark for a top end game but it's better than average. I'd give the UI a 6 out of 10. Not great, but not BAD either.

The graphics I stand by 8/10... they're good... just not exactly my style and just a little too monocolor in many areas. They do get better the deeper you go into the game though... The city gets more colorful further in. And as you get better armor it gets more colorful as well. Though still a realtively drab on the armor imo.

The combat system is not what I expect from an RPG. They sorta-kinda-wannabe FPS system makes combat VERY frenetic and just not all that fun, imo. I don't enjoy having to chase things around nearly as much as you have to during any given fight in this game. It gets old fast. I'd rather have a more traditional combat system (lose the FPS aspects).

I agree on the linearness of the game and the lack of storyline and the lack of a world. I also think they need to implement player housing, or at least appartments like EQ2 did and I think it needs crafting and a player market system. A lot of people whine about PVP but that is the one thing I think DDO can and will do fine without. I find it disturbing that Turbine picked that to put in when there are so many other things wrong with the game. PvP is the least of their needs.

All in all, you need work on doing reviews. I also think you didn't go very far at all in the game. Suspect you probably didn't even get into the harbor but were in the"port" the whole time. Because some of your statements indicate you didn't give the game more than a cursory glance. (Comments about the quests and maps being 'too easy' and the movement system gave you away... You didn't even figure out how to do mouselook... LOL)

Personally, I agree.... Turbine missed the mark with this game. Which is why if asked I recommend people not to waste their money on it. But, again, learn to review objectively.

brostyn · June 2006

This is a colossal waste of time. There is only one redeeming quality. I like the quest. Too bad I could only do 3 that were solo, and I tried a quest that was for 2 or more people. In 3 hours I couldn't find 1 person to group with me. This is exactly why I hate forced grouping.

Wolfen333 · June 2006

And then there are people like me who just love the game. Yes it needs improvement in areas, and needs a lot more content. Many of the quests are a lot of fun however, Xorian probably is the first one to come to mind as truly fun and challenging, and there are many others like that.

But I love the game and for me it is well worth the cost. And as someone else has pointed out it really doesnt sound like you played more than the very first area, the port and never even made it to the beginner's Harbor area. Either that or your a WOW fanboi come here just because .....{fill in reason here}.....

It all depends on your opinions and what you are looking for.

seabass2003 · June 2006

i would say the only thing wrong with this game is lack of content. everything else in your review was just absolutely biased and holds no basis other than just wanting to spam some hate.

also if you can't group or find a group in 10min then your just dumb.

Anofalye · June 2006

I will repeat myself,

I rather bang my head in the wall than play DDO, however the game would be worth about 8/10 if peoples judge it for what it is. It would be worth 7/10 if you consider the marketing and the lack of respect of the D&D legacy. The game is nice and sweet and it is a very nice ACTION game, it is not a RPG, so it is pointless to bring RPG stuff and trash it, it is not a RPG, no matter what they claim.

As much as you want to be angry at the game, check around, you will see that SOME peoples are having a LOT of fun. They are not dumbs peoples, they are actually enjoying the product for what it is. The fact that neither you nor me can enjoy it can't remove it worth.

The graphics are worth at least 9/10, giving a 2/10 is a joke. Textures are worth a LOT as well. FUN, well, if many of my friends are having a blast, I can't see how someone can give less than 7/10, no matter how much you dislike it yourself. Really, you should stop looking at yourself only and consider the product as a whole. 8/10 would be the fair worth, 7/10 due to the lying advertising and the non-respect of the D&D legacy.

Chessack · June 2006

Originally posted by Anofalye

I will repeat myself,

I rather bang my head in the wall than play DDO, however the game would be worth about 8/10 if peoples judge it for what it is. It would be worth 7/10 if you consider the marketing and the lack of respect of the D&D legacy. The game is nice and sweet and it is a very nice ACTION game, it is not a RPG, so it is pointless to bring RPG stuff and trash it, it is not a RPG, no matter what they claim.

I would argue that if they claim it to be an RPG, then anyone who reviews the game has not only the right, but I might well argue, the obligation, to review it as an RPG. If they called it an MMOAG (Massively Multiplayer Online Action Game) on their box cover, their website, and all their PR, I would 100% agree with you. It would be patently unfair to review, say, the game "Doom" or "Quake" as if it were an RPG. Anyone who trashed Quake for "poor RP potential" or something, would be totally out of line. But those games are not billed as RPGs.

Turbine, on the other hand, most definitely does bill DDO as an online RPG. Because they say it is an RPG, and it is their game, a reviewer is entirely within his, or her, rights to evaluate it as such, and to trash it for being a bad RPG, if they find it lacking in the "RPG" area.

Indeed, I would argue, that someone who intended to make an RPG and made, instead, an action-arcade game, has failed, and deserves to be evaluated as having failed.

This is NOT to say that all action games are bad, or that nobody should make an action game. I love a good action game. But don't bill your action game as an "RPG" when it isn't one. I'm actually also not even saying that DDO is an action game. YOU said that. I'm just disagreeing that trashing it for being one is out of line... it's perfectly within bounds, since THEY (turbine) have set the bounds, and those bounds involve "DDO is an RPG" right out of their own mouths/website.

C

Mikes123 · June 2006

now now...... in reply to the OP.

there s various ways to point out the flaws of DDO, it has a lot of them.

However the way the OP did it... just makes very clear that he never got past the newbie area at all.
Truth to be told, in an objective game review DDO wouldn t catch too good scores, however what the OP did wasn t review it was just uninformed game bashing. as such: go back to WoW forums and troll there please , thanks lol

Elnator · June 2006

Originally posted by brostyn
This is a colossal waste of time. There is only one redeeming quality. I like the quest. Too bad I could only do 3 that were solo, and I tried a quest that was for 2 or more people. In 3 hours I couldn't find 1 person to group with me. This is exactly why I hate forced grouping.

Brostyn:
You are full of crap. In the starter area alone you do 4 solo quests. In the Port you do another 4-5 Solo quests (in fact you CANT group in them) and have an adventure zone that can be solo'd as well as the alternative way into the harbor, which can be solo'd. In the Harbor there are 5 more quests specifically for solo play and another 3 or 4 that you can solo with relative ease at level 1 (I did them all with each of a ranger, rogue and a cleric toon so I know that a figher or caster could have with ease as well.) Even more open up once you hit level 2.

And as far as grouping I have NEVER had trouble getting into groups. Turn on LFG if you are not in demand or use the search tool to find a group looking for members and send them a 'join' request. Grouping in DDO is very easy.... probably the best tool I've seen yet for finding a group asside from PlanetSide (actually it's pretty similar to planetside's system).

Also, as of last night, 90% of the dungeons in the harbor now have an option to play them "solo".

I'm not saying the game is awesome... I'm still not sure it's worth a monthly fee... though it's a lot more tempting now... but it's not near as bad as you're trying to make it out to be.

Drkreaper · June 2006

I agree with some of the OP points but it sounds like he never actually played the game through to any kind of lv at all the pointer is just on the noob starter aera & the glowing chests ...

I am dissapointed with this game as I think everybody who actually bought & played through to lv 10 is as well there is just too many things missing and a lv 10 cap was just lame .

it seems they are trying to make it better but its too littile & mutch too late ..

if the ddo fans are lucky in a yr or so the game will have reached actual release quality..if its still arround

with sutch a poor performace with ddo ..many will be sitting back befor buying another title from them ..this does not bode well for LoR online

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