Thinking about getting an MMORPG, any advice?

[slip81]

Recently I started thinking about getting a PC MMORPG, and I was wondering if anyone here plays them and what their thoughts are. I know nothing about online RPG's since I've never played one, but I do enjoy console and PC RPG's a great deal. Right now I'm thiniking about either going with Everquest or FFXI, and I'm wondering which one would be the best bang for my buck.

[Lone_Monster]

I have not played any either, but I hear FFXI Is very good. If I could pick between that or EverQuest, I'd pick Final Fantasy. But you know you have to pay a monthly fee, right?

[calthaer]

Here's my advice: don't get one.

I've played Everquest, Asheron's Call, Earth & Beyond, and some of the betas for other games like Horizons, and I have to say that I don't think any of them are worth the time or the money.

If you enjoy console RPGs, my question would be: why? If it's the long, over-arching story, then you're not going to really get that kind of satisfaction with any of the PC MMOGs. Almost all of them have completely static worlds where very little - if anything - changes from month-to-month. When you pile on the other problems, like a) overcrowding (you may be standing in line for content, esp. if you play Everquest - if I want to do that I'll go to an amusement park), b) anti-social behavior (even if the other players can't kill you, they can certainly annoy you and ruin your gameplay experience), and c) the fact that in many of these games you cannot successfully play without finding a good group of people...

But, if you're dead-set on it:

Ultima Online - has had real problems with anti-social behavior, overcrowding, "macroing" (people gaining skill by having scripts play the game for them), and other stuff. Top-down and sort of 2D. Heavy death penalties, and other people can sometimes loot your corpse depending on where you die.

EverQuest - a leveling treadmill: prepare for long bouts of tedium. Heavy death penalties that can really set you back by days or even weeks. Long waits for certain content. You cannot really play this game after about level 10 without having a regular group of people to play it with.

Asheron's Call - It's alright, I guess, but I found it sort of lackluster. Large empty areas - can get lonely. You can successfully "solo" (play by yourself). Reasonable death penalties. A little bit of an overarching story. If you play on a PVP server, then prepare yourself for lots of anti-social behavior. There is an over-arching story of sorts, but you'll probably never find it (only the über-guys usually participate).

Earth & Beyond - this one is dying in a few months so don't even bother.

Horizons - Sort of interesting in that you can play lots of different races (even a dragon). Intriguing crafting system allows you to create items. Combat system is sort of underdeveloped last I played.

Dark Ages of Camelot - I've heard good things about their combat system, but it's essentially another leveling-treadmill from what I hear.

City of Heroes - lots of combat, but I hear good things about the powers system. It's perhaps too early to tell with this one.

Anyways you should research it before putting down the money and beginning monthly fees. See if it's really what you want to do before jumping in. Some of them might have free trials and such.

[Azazel]

Avoid them like the plague.

[Daria]

Ultima Online - has had real problems with anti-social behavior, overcrowding, "macroing" (people gaining skill by having scripts play the game for them), and other stuff. Top-down and sort of 2D. Heavy death penalties, and other people can sometimes loot your corpse depending on where you die.

I enjoyed Ultima Online a lot but ONLY because I was playing it on a free player run server (shard). Basically player shards eliminate over crowding and there's all types of communities available. Everything from Player Killing to Role Playing, just find one that's right for you.
________
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[SoulBlazer]

Well, I play Earth and Beyond and FFXI right now, and if you're mostly into console gamers, then you have to be prepared for a very different game. Still, I enjoy FFXI a lot. I hear that EVE and Star Wars Galaxies are good as well.

Now if only someone would make a massive MMORPG set in the Star Trek Universe..... ;)

[NE146]

City of Heroes seems to be the 'hot' one at the moment... try out the beta!

[Sylentwulf]

Let me tell you THE biggest and most important thing about MMORPG's.

You NEED to start playing them WHEN they're released. If you wait 5-6 months after one has come out, you'll be that useless newbie who everyone ignores and runs past.

Harsh? Yes. True? Mostly. Eventually you'll figure things out or you'll finally find that ONE person who's willing to help you out for an hour or so, and finally make some progress.

Having said that, Everquest 2 Beta is starting VERY soon, and the game should be out in about 2 months or so. I'm waiting for that to be released as my next MMORPG. In the meantime, I would suggest going out and getting AC1, AC2, EQ, or UO. But you most likely won't get too far into any of them for the reasons stated above. Good luck!

[Hamsnibit]

My advice is don't. There are so many enjoyable games across all the game systems and PC so that you can enjoy a variety. With MMORPG you'll end up sinking all of your time and possibly life in a never ending soap opera of repetitive crap that you have to pay monthly for. I beta tested FFXI and enjoyed it for about a month until I realized I spent several days fighting the same crappy monsters hundreds of times over and over just to level up enough to go to the next area. The games also turn into a contest for alot of people to see who can get what first and who has the most powerful stuff. You'll also find that alot of people take the stuff way too seriously. If you are in a party of people and things don't go they way they like they ill quit, or let you get killed, etc..

[calthaer]

On this note:

Has anyone looked into the game Guild Wars that's being developed by several ex-Blizzard guys? It sounds something like a cross between Planetside, Diablo, Counterstrike and / or most typical MMOGs on the market now. From what I can see, it's an action-oriented game where you can still gain levels and whatnot, but there are certain game dynamics that make it such that superior tactics (and not a bajillion hours of dedicated play-time) are what really win the game.

The kicker: no monthly fees. They will, however, be releasing expansion packs every 6-9 months. Not owning an expansion pack will not bar you from the parts of the game you currently own, however.

I'm interested to hear what everyone else thinks about it.

http://www.guildwars.com - also some previews on Gamespy and other sites that reveal a lot of information that the main site doesn't.

[Azazel]

My advice is just to stay away from all of them.

[mezrabad]

The BIG problem with these games for people like me is that THEY NEVER END. New games come and go while you're hammering away at the beastie-du-jour. Eventually, the other games (that you'd like to play) pile up so much that you have to go play them and while you do your in-game friends level up about 30 times and you can't play with them too easily after that.

These games aren't designed so that you can play them for an hour a night, they require serious investments of continuous time, otherwise, the people with whom you play advance beyond your reach and then it can be a pain in the butt to find new people to group with you.

If you have a friend in the real world who wants to dive into a game with you, I say go ahead and take your pick, whatever genre appeals to either of you. If I were to jump back in anytime soon (but I'm not) I'd do City of Heroes for a little while and then World of Warcraft when it comes out. Get a commitment from your friend to play regularly with you and I'd bet any game you pick could be fun.

[Gamemaster_ca_2003]

here is a MMORPG that us free but extra features must be paid for.


www.Runescape.com

[AB Positive]

I'm about to give City of Heroes a shot, I hear that it plays MUCH differently from most MMOs and the battle system is what usually kills me. I'll have a more detailed review when I get it up and started.


-AG

[musical]

Avoid them like the plague.


I tried Hack which is supposed to "emulate" the online world.

If that's online play, I ain't interested.

The descriptions in magazines about endless leveling up, endless searching for special items, constantly getting killed by rude persons.... doesn't sound any better.

[calthaer]

These games aren't designed so that you can play them for an hour a night, they require serious investments of continuous time, otherwise, the people with whom you play advance beyond your reach and then it can be a pain in the butt to find new people to group with you.


That's just the thing: Guild Wars doesn't sound like it does require that sort of time investment. You're not charged a monthly fee, so if you don't play it's not like you're wasting money. Furthermore, the multiplayer games all have the same limitation: each person can only take 8 skills / spells into the level / area with them. It doesn't matter if you've played 10, 100, or 1,000 hours - you still only have 8. Sure, people who've played more can have access to a wider array of skills from which to pick their 8, but even so it's tactics and a party's coordination and combination of skill-strengths that will win the day, and not really the "uber-ness" of their time-investment.

In that sense, it seems more like a game of Counterstrike - you can play a game or a few games, put it down whenever you want, and pick it back up later whenever you and some friends (or just you) want to. They also have crafting and town centers and lots of other MMOG features, too.

[Ruffie]

Wow, I'm seeing a lot of MMORPG hate here, and even though I am a MMORPG enthusiast, I will agree that much of it is justified. There are some misconceptions here, too. Maybe I can help clear some of it up. My experience comes from 6 years of Ultima Online, 9 months of Everquest, a brief dalliance with World War 2 Online and Planetside, and my current addiction to City of Heroes.

If you are thinking about playing a MMORPG, you first have to look at yourself - the time you have, your psychological profile, and your ability to tolerate playing alongside the abolute worst scum on the planet. Remember when Obi-Wan warned Luke about Mos Eisley and said "You'll never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy"? He could have easily been talking about any MMORPG.

It is true that some MMORPGs require playtime the equivalent of having a second job. Everquest and its clones are like that. Some players thrive on that, others like me burn out on those "levelling treadmill" games. Ask yourself - is the reward of an occasionsal "ding" of the level meter and a new spell or item worth the repetitive hunting of the same monsters with the same AI over and over for months?

Admittedly, my EQ experience was from its launch in 1999 to early 2000, so things may have changed. However, I hear much of the same stories from former players of EQ, Asheron's Call, Dark Age of Camelot, Anarchy Online, and Star Wars Galaxies.

Now let's discuss the RPG part of it. Again, 98% of the playerbase of any of these games could care less about roleplaying, either in its strictest sense or in a casual manner. They care about levels, loot, and leet - ness (dewdspeak for eliteness). And out of the 2% that roleplay you'll often find no sympathy either, as many roleplayers are so traumatized from hanging out in a virtual world with kids playing characters named SLIM SHADY or MastaKiller that they cling together in tight groups and let no one else in.

So, the MMORPG can be a very hostile environment. That's the main thing you should know before jumping aboard. TRUST NO ONE, at least at first. And if you do have to trust them, make sure you know what you're doing - the game's rules and mechanics and such - before going along with ANYTHING they say.

Sounds pretty bleak, huh? Why do I - why would anyone - be so enthralled with such an environment? Simply this - these are online persistant multiplayer virtual worlds! If you can appreciate the incredible implications of this advance for gaming and socialization, then MMORPGs might be for you. Believe me, it's worth putting up with the negatives to be a part of it.

I will use my experience with Ultima Online as an example. UO is a completely unique MMORPG and by far - BY FAR - the most complex play-wise (not graphically) of all these on the market. Here's a list of some of the things I did in UO from 1998 - 2003:

-Got killed and looted by other players daily when the game was overrun with PKers (very early on, it's all safe now).
-Infiltrated a PK guild to see if they used bugs, cheats, and exploits to gain advantage (yes, they did)
-Learned to fight and eventually hunted PKers
-Explored a large world and a vast sea
-Created an in-character pirate PK character and crew who sailed the seas plundering other players' ships if they did not surrender peacefully
-Built several homes, later able to be fully redesigned and customized. The house customization tool is awesome - I built a lighthouse by the shore.
-Decorated and redecorated my homes many times over
-Ran a successful and profitable vendor shop, where other players purchased goods I either salvaged from the sea, captured from other players, or crafted using one of my crafter characters
-Spent hours mining, making huge amounts of gold
-Spent hours blacksmithing, sometimes at my shop and sometimes in town, repairing other players' armor and weapons for free or for a small tip
-Fought monsters and other players alongside my guildmates
- Fought in HUGE roleplayer battles with multiple guilds allied against each other. The sight of a hundred horseback players sweeping down is an imoressive sight
- Established a naval blockade of a major city

and so on....

You see, the nature of most of these games is the addition of new content, but much of making the game fun is up to the player or community of players using the tools provided and their own imagination. If you sit around and wait for the developers to provide the content, you will often be disappointed.

While I did state that 98% of players are bad, taking the time to find the good, mature players in any MMORPG is certainly worth the effort. Once you have done that, the game really becomes a lot of fun in spite of all the negatives mentioned here.

I am currently playing City of Heroes and having a great time. To some extent, it is a lot like the EQ -style levelling treadmill games I mentioned earlier. However, it's really easy to get into, the combat is a blast, and there are multiple paths to advancement (street fighting, missions, etc). I'm 2 months in, only level 20, and still enjoy it immensely) I roleplay my hero, even though almost no one else does, and the gameplay really makes one feel immersed in the environment.

So ask yourself what type of player you are, and what is your tolerance for the type of people that have overrun these games. Ask yourself what you want out of the experience, what you're willing to put in.

MMORPGS, like any game genre, are a personal preference. I personally think they are the greatest genre I've ever seen. I hope that this long-winded post has somehow helped you in your effort to decide whether or not these type of games are fr you.

Ruffie

[Trellisaze]

I tried Hack which is supposed to "emulate" the online world.

If that's online play, I ain't interested.


.Hack's a pretty shallow emulation of an online world. Probably not a good idea to use this game if you're trying to figure out if MMORPGs appeal to you.

[-hellvin-]

Personally I woudl wait on picking a new mmorpg. I think unless you're jumping into one right from the start it's probably not going to be as fun as playing a game that has become ritual to thousands of players who have played it for a year or more.

[EnemyZero]

well from personal experience. EQ and FFXI both suck, check out Lineage 2 (www.lineage2.com

[Sylentwulf]

Wow, old post. need to update my reply - Screw EQ2, it's never coming out at this rate.

[dmhawkmoon]

I'd like a MMORPG where if you die your never come back. The worse the penalties the better! I loved Diablo 2 hardcore, but that's not a MMORPG of course.

[musical]

I tried Hack which is supposed to "emulate" the online world.If that's online play, I ain't interested..Hack's a pretty shallow emulation of an online world. Probably not a good idea to use this game if you're trying to figure out if MMORPGs appeal to you.
Understood.



-Created an in-character pirate PK character and crew who sailed the seas plundering other players' ships if they did not surrender peacefully
-Built several homes, later able to be fully redesigned.....
-Ran a successful and profitable vendor shop.....
-Spent hours mining, making huge amounts of gold
-Spent hours blacksmithing.....
- Fought in HUGE roleplayer battles with multiple guilds allied against each other. The sight of a hundred horseback players sweeping down is an imoressive sight
- Established a naval blockade of a major city

See, none of that really interests me. If I'm going to "decorate a home" I'd rather use a real home for my model. Open a shop and sell goods? I'll do it in the real world. Blacksmith? I'll visit my brother's real country home and shoe some horses.

Now obviously some things like pirating and naval bombardment I can not do for real, but that's why military sims like Pirates! and 688 exist. I prefer those. (And no brats trying to kill me off & ruin the experience.)

As usual..... IMHO.