I was curious to see what features tend to stand out in MMOs, for better or worse. I'll go first then. :)
I'm playing Firefall atm. I've only been playing about week, but so far it's fun. The gameplay is a blast and the world is gorgeous. The different classes have a diversity of abilities which give the game more longevity than I expected. Dynamic events pop up all over the map, so there's no shortage of things to do. That is, things to fight. Sure, there's a lot to do besides taking missions, but 99% of the game is combat. I do like the freedom to wander around and find trouble on my own, but even after a week it's already started to feel repetative.
My highest class (battleframe) is only level 20, so I haven't seen a lot of the content yet. I've watched some videos of endgame boss fights and they look chaotic and exciting; fun if you like that sort of gameplay. The most fun I've had so far has been grouping up to defend a location or fighting alongside dozens of players to take down a world boss. There are instanced missions that can be soloed or done by a group, but if there's a group finder I haven't noticed it. I know there's some content that more or less requires a group but I haven't reached that point yet. Most of what I've experienced has been geared toward soloing which has made meeting people a rarity. I wish there were more social elements to the game to encourage player interaction because the battles are infinitely more enjoyable with teamwork.
I'm more of an RPG gamer. Shooters have never interested me much. I went into Firefall looking for a sci-fi MMO, and while I'm admittedly enjoying the FPS/TPS style gameplay, I know it's going to become stale for me soon. It'll be fun for a short time and then I'll move on.
World of Warcraft 1.12.1 on Nostalrius (Vanilla emulator server), very casual
EQ2, very casually, here and there
The Elder Scrolls Online - just revisited this after a year or so of not playing it; am having a lot of fun and it seems very active, at least in the low levels and in the city hubs; chose Ebonheart Pact because I love the starting area Bleakrock Isle, and the subsequent area, Stonefalls, just looks a-mazing; am playing a Templar with melee-focus
The Witcher: Wild Hunt, have to pick it back up; overwhelmed me and I had to take a break ;)
Game of Thrones, from Telltale. Every Telltale adventure game is pretty much awesome.
Age of Empires II HD, when I just need a quick fix of fun and strategy
Uh, for MMOs, pros and cons of what I listed above ...
WoW Classic is actually pretty awesome and a lot harder than I think anyone gave it credit for - back in 2004/2005 it was seen as an "easy" game but honestly, in the face of modern 2015 mechanics, it's quite challenging to go back and play on this Vanilla server where the original difficulty and puny items were in place. :) Very fun.
EQ2 I have been playing for 11 years so obviously I like it, but the mix of classes and races is one of its strong points. I don't even know anymore how many there are - I think 26 classes and 22 races? It's a lot! Also the characters, armor, and look of NPCs is very detailed. Some of the end-game zones are absolutely beautiful - although the older zones might be seen as very plain by today's standards. They've done a lot of streamlining over the years (not always for the better, IMHO) to generally make the game more progression- and solo-friendly. It still has a massive amount of skills and abilities for each class, though, which can be a little bit like playing whack-a-mole with your mouse constantly clicking on skills, but some people really like this aspect, so I guess it depends on your preferences.
TESO - without a doubt the most beautiful MMO on the market today, and the newest AAA high-fantasy MMO. Has really beautiful areas - and surprisingly slow progression - you gain the first 3 levels very quick but after level 4 it slows significantly and many hours until level 10 - at least for the average or casual player like me. Also lots of exploration - the map system and POIs were really well done, so there is always something to find off the beaten path, and uncover every POI in an area. The overland adventure zones are mammoth. Unfortunately, I have not had great luck getting groups for dungeons beyond the early levels - but that was a year ago. They might have changed the group mechanics or group finding tools since then. Crafting is extremely easy but does require lots of materials - you can invest in all disciplines if you want, or just pick one or two to focus on. The skills system is pretty nifty, too. You choose which skills to invest in, 1 point per level, plus some extras for finding out of the way Skyshards (3 = 1 point) The only downside is that, IMHO, the questing becomes very stale - even though they did a great job with full voiceover acting for NPCs, and the quests tie in very nicely to the area storylines, for some reason, it just doesn't draw me in. However this is a very fun modern high-fantasy MMO in my opinion.
Elite: Dangerous. Its probably most enjoyable if you know and liked the original '84s game and its successors. This version attempts to include MMO elements, but without actually having a good architecture for it. For example, you're limited to instances with at most 32 other players around. There is no global chat, only local/direct and even that is somewhat ugly to use. There's no guilds or other ways for players to meet and socialize (although the game has wings, which means up to four players can form a group). The game has three modes of playing: Open (you can meet all players who also play Open), Group (you can only meet players which are in your group, which can be of any size), and Solo (you never meet other players). Since Open is essentially PvP free for all, some huge groups have formed in which PvP is forbidden except for special conflict zones. All three modes have the same galaxy background simulation however, so a Solo trader can influence the prices at a space station and the Open players will see that.
The latest update, Powerplay, has introduced galactic powers which are basically huge factional blocks that players can join, and support in their expansion attempts. However it can be difficult because the game only allows so limited meeting up/communicating.
However, the game also does a lot of things really well: It simulates a huge galaxy, and really gives you a feel for the scale of space. Its a huge world where you can go where you want (well, in space...walking around in stations and planetary landings are planned eventually, but not too soon I guess). Trading, mining, bounty hunting, pirating, flying missions for minor or major factions, and of course exploration. You can fly over thousands of light years to the far side of the galaxy, and explore worlds no human has ever seen before. And even with a lot of players doing that, only a tiny portion of the galaxy has been explored yet (the galaxy has over 400 billion stars).
The flight mechanics in combat and supercruise (faster than light) are enjoyable. There's no skills in the game (like casting skills or weapon skills in EQ), instead its your personal skill with your keyboard/mouse or flightstick, and your knowledge of the game that determines how successful you are.
What game are you currently playing?
Game? more like games!! I play a pretty wide range of games currently, but not so much on the MMORPGs. League of Legends, Destiny, Hearthstone, EvE Online and TESO (on occasion), and Bloodborne.
What do you like about it?
I'll focus on League because I play it the most. It's very competitive, I have a lot of friends that play it, the pro level games are very entertaining to watch, and no one game of League feels the same.
What do you NOT like about it?
Since its competitive, getting stuck with bad/toxic players can be....frustrating. I'm in the top 5% of players on the ranked ladder though, so I dont run into this much anymore. This isn't a game you can just sit down and play all day and all night, it wears on the mind and wrists, sometimes its nice to play an RPG.
I've been trying FFXIV for the last week, but I've had about all I can take of it. If I have to do one more kill quest, or deliver 1 more message to an npc standing 20 feet away I'm going to lose it. I really want to like the game because I grew up on Final Fantasy. The graphics are amazing, and considering I'm playing it on a PC with a 5 year old video card (gtx 480) and able to run the DX11 client with medium to high settings and a consistent 60fps, its extremely well optimized. It has all the music, sound effects and atmosphere of the series I love, but underneath its just the same generic crap I despise. The world feels cramped, tiny boxed in areas with invisible walls everywhere and everything is so streamlined and anti-septic, I have to keep resisting the urge to spend 10 minutes writing a script to just do everything for me. I've gone through the first 15 levels now and haven't been able to get a group or even a conversation out of anyone. Oh thats right, its because no one needs a group. Sometimes I run up to heal people thinking it might be an ice breaker, but then they naturally regenerate it back before my cast time is finished.
/end rant
Dullahan said:
I've been trying FFXIV for the last week, but I've had about all I can take of it. If I have to do one more kill quest, or deliver 1 more message to an npc standing 20 feet away I'm going to lose it. I really want to like the game because I grew up on Final Fantasy. The graphics are amazing, and considering I'm playing it on a PC with a 5 year old video card (gtx 480) and able to run the DX11 client with medium to high settings and a consistent 60fps, its extremely well optimized. It has all the music, sound effects and atmosphere of the series I love, but underneath its just the same generic crap I despise. The world feels cramped, tiny boxed in areas with invisible walls everywhere and everything is so streamlined and anti-septic, I have to keep resisting the urge to spend 10 minutes writing a script to just do everything for me. I've gone through the first 15 levels now and haven't been able to get a group or even a conversation out of anyone. Oh thats right, its because no one needs a group. Sometimes I run up to heal people thinking it might be an ice breaker, but then they naturally regenerate it back before my cast time is finished.
/end rant
I played 1.0 FFXIV beta and it was awful. I played at 2.0 launch and I liked it but all my friends quit. We started playing again at the beginning of this year and half of them quit (and are not MMO gaming at all) because the game starts off slow. Those of us that continued playing feel we have been truly rewarded with a hidden gem.
I have been enjoying FFXIV and have actually found the game to have a great, interactive helpful community -more so than I have seen in games in the last couple of years. People are generally nice and if they know a person is new to a fight, they will take the time to explain it and work with them to defeat the encounter. I am surprised that people are not talking to you because I have found the exact opposite. I usually have a conversation in almost every dungeon I am in.
The zones do appear small in 2.0 especially when you are low level yes (I hate invisible walls) - but they actually get a lot bigger as you go deeper into them. By the time you are 50 you will look at the map and say "wow, I didn't know it was that big." The Zones in 3.0 are much more vast and what you and I are accustomed to.
The game really starts to shine after level 36 where the dungeons become more intense and the story picks up. The game is also a lot deeper that just its theme park shell - but you have to dig to find these elements. I believe you will enjoy elements such as your weapon quest line. It is not a replacement for what you hope from Pantheon, rather its is a game you have to take and enjoy for what it is. It is a very well designed, beautiful, story-basedtheme park, lots of side things to like crafting and housing and with lots of attention to detail ;) I am having a lot of fun.
Zarriya said:
I played 1.0 FFXIV beta and it was awful. I played at 2.0 launch and I liked it but all my friends quit. We started playing again at the beginning of this year and half of them quit (and are not MMO gaming at all) because the game starts off slow. Those of us that continued playing feel we have been truly rewarded with a hidden gem.
I have been enjoying FFXIV and have actually found the game to have a great, interactive helpful community -more so than I have seen in games in the last couple of years. People are generally nice and if they know a person is new to a fight, they will take the time to explain it and work with them to defeat the encounter. I am surprised that people are not talking to you because I have found the exact opposite. I usually have a conversation in almost every dungeon I am in.
The zones do appear small in 2.0 especially when you are low level yes (I hate invisible walls) - but they actually get a lot bigger as you go deeper into them. By the time you are 50 you will look at the map and say "wow, I didn't know it was that big." The Zones in 3.0 are much more vast and what you and I are accustomed to.
The game really starts to shine after level 36 where the dungeons become more intense and the story picks up. The game is also a lot deeper that just its theme park shell - but you have to dig to find these elements. I believe you will enjoy elements such as your weapon quest line. It is not a replacement for what you hope from Pantheon, rather its is a game you have to take and enjoy for what it is. It is a very well designed, beautiful, story-basedtheme park, lots of side things to like crafting and housing and with lots of attention to detail ;) I am having a lot of fun.
I think I will stick with it, because I've heard you (and others) say good things about it here and on mmorpg and that has me intrigued. I actually really like some of the main storylines and both the dialogue and the way they do the interaction in a cinematic way.
I am assuming this is specifically talking about MMOs after reading the first line of your second comment in this thread.
What am I playing currently?
I am playing Final Fantasy XIV (though I don't really know why, I am not really enjoying it) and Final Fantasy XI on a classic era emulated server.
I won't go into what I like and dislike about FFXI as it is a much older game and bares a lot of similarities to everquest and what pantheon hopes to achieve (thats why I am here after all). For Final Fantasy XIV however, there is quite a lot that I very much dislike about it from its endgame progression being too vertical which funnels everyone into the same singular piece of content to its constant undermining of persistence by scaling everything difficult back every 3-6 months to its horrendously boring itemization that just makes me completely uninterested in obtaining gear.
That said, they have an excellent party finder tool (its not what you think it is) where people can open a posting for a party and describe what that party is intending to do and set how many players of what job and or role they feel is needed. Once posted other players can look at all party seeking member posts and opt to join. I think this would have been a great system to have in games like everquest and FFXI especially for experience parties. They also deliver high quality updates on a regular basis which would be quite a boon if the content they pumped out interested me for more than a passing glance.
Side note: FFXIV 1.0 was as bad as it was because it just wasn't anywhere near finished, like at all. As they progressed and patched things in it started to flesh itself out but they threw it away and started with a completely different design type (more akin to WoW style design) for 2.0/A Realm Reborn.
Question for Zarriya: Im not trying to fight over this, I am merely curious but I have to ask what depth are you talking about post 36? For me FFXIV is among the most shallow mmorpgs I have ever played, the gameplay boils down to rotation + dodge colored boxes and circles on the ground. I am currently maxed level for the heavensward expansion and still see it severely lacking any depth so I must know what you are seeing.
Mephiles said:
....Question for Zarriya: Im not trying to fight over this, I am merely curious but I have to ask what depth are you talking about post 36? For me FFXIV is among the most shallow mmorpgs I have ever played, the gameplay boils down to rotation + dodge colored boxes and circles on the ground. I am currently maxed level for the heavensward expansion and still see it severely lacking any depth so I must know what you are seeing.
When you start off doing dungeons at level 15 they are very basic. Dullahan has not made it yet to the higher levels where the mechanics become more complex. FFXIV starts off as mostly an introduction to dungeons and raids and gets more complex as you level is what I was saying to him. Yes it is a lot of dodging, but there are also criteria that need to be met in order for a win to happen. These mechanics take place in the lvl 35 Temple Of Quarn. Perhaps the others in your group did the mechanics for you and you did not know about them. A fight would appear to be simple shoot and dodge then. Have you done the fights in World of Darkness? That has a lot of criteria that has to be met - you do not just sit there and spam your rotation - as a BLM most of the times I cannot execute a perfect rotation because I am too busy dodging, or performing a task that needs to be done. Check out this thread since there is too much for me to write: http://www.reddit.com/r/ffxiv/comments/2t1ybk/world_of_darkness_boss_mechanics_thread/ ; I have raided in many MMOs and these raids rank up there in depth. Is it reinventing the wheel? no. But the fights are not simple spam rotation/dodge.
Castwell said:
None. Bored with all of them
That's me too. Can't find any to hold my interest. No PC games anyway. Been playing a good bit of Splatoon, and other Wii U games with my girls.
Zarriya said:
When you start off doing dungeons at level 15 they are very basic. Dullahan has not made it yet to the higher levels where the mechanics become more complex. FFXIV starts off as mostly an introduction to dungeons and raids and gets more complex as you level is what I was saying to him. Yes it is a lot of dodging, but there are also criteria that need to be met in order for a win to happen. These mechanics take place in the lvl 35 Temple Of Quarn. Perhaps the others in your group did the mechanics for you and you did not know about them. A fight would appear to be simple shoot and dodge then. Have you done the fights in World of Darkness? That has a lot of criteria that has to be met - you do not just sit there and spam your rotation - as a BLM most of the times I cannot execute a perfect rotation because I am too busy dodging, or performing a task that needs to be done. Check out this thread since there is too much for me to write: http://www.reddit.com/r/ffxiv/comments/2t1ybk/world_of_darkness_boss_mechanics_thread/ ; I have raided in many MMOs and these raids rank up there in depth. Is it reinventing the wheel? no. But the fights are not simple spam rotation/dodge.
I have done all of the 2.0-2.55 content including the binding coil raids (and the crystal tower - world of darkness that you were speaking of) and it just doesn't do it for me. Its good you're able to enjoy it though and not stuck with nothing but a not quite up to par emulated server like me.
I have to agree with you on their system of item progression, like everything else, its just so dry, formulaic and sanitized. Then theres the skill and combat system which are incredibly basic and bare. At level 15 I have 2 abilities + a heal that I use. I spam those two abilities over and over, and once an hour or so I heal myself but its almost never necessary if I avoid the telegraphed abilities.
Its just like people are afraid to innovate any more. They are afraid to mix it up with class abilities, and most of all, afraid of having too many options because games must be compatible with consoles using shitty old tech (hand held controllers).
Maybe its just me, but I remember back when UO and EQ came out, I was enthralled by these games and thought, "man this is great, and it can only get better." Yet it never did. It only got worse, more streamlined, and more appealing for a younger demographic having the attention span of a goldfish.
Dullahan said:
I have to agree with you on their system of item progression, like everything else, its just so dry, formulaic and sanitized. Then theres the skill and combat system which are incredibly basic and bare. At level 15 I have 2 abilities + a heal that I use. I spam those two abilities over and over, and once an hour or so I heal myself but its almost never necessary if I avoid the telegraphed abilities.
Its just like people are afraid to innovate any more. They are afraid to mix it up with class abilities, and most of all, afraid of having too many options because games must be compatible with consoles using shitty old tech (hand held controllers).
Maybe its just me, but I remember back when UO and EQ came out, I was enthralled by these games and thought, "man this is great, and it can only get better." Yet it never did. It only got worse, more streamlined, and more appealing for a younger demographic having the attention span of a goldfish.
Streamlined is definitely the word. The console tech (regardless of it being a bad choice or not) isn't even stopping them from mixing it up. A lot of modern mmos are so stuck behind the idea of balance they will not do anything that could jeopardize it. Every dps class must have the same dps and same utility, every tank must tank relatively the same way, every healer needs to heal relatively the same way and lets not forget loss of the support class entirely. This kind of design alone (before even considering the games other major faults) put me off of playing star wars the old republic (and I am a big star wars fan). I just couldn't take the mirror classes and bland abilities.
Kilsin said:
What is YuJShfDChbIEJ supposed to mean? lol
Nothing ! LOL Just pretty letters ;) Я хочу большой кофе. Вы хотите большая пицца. Я хочу большое пиво.
Back on topic, I have nothing I am even remotely interested in playing except for Pantheon. All my hopes rest on you.
Mephiles said:
Streamlined is definitely the word. The console tech (regardless of it being a bad choice or not) isn't even stopping them from mixing it up. A lot of modern mmos are so stuck behind the idea of balance they will not do anything that could jeopardize it. Every dps class must have the same dps and same utility, every tank must tank relatively the same way, every healer needs to heal relatively the same way and lets not forget loss of the support class entirely. This kind of design alone (before even considering the games other major faults) put me off of playing star wars the old republic (and I am a big star wars fan). I just couldn't take the mirror classes and bland abilities.
I agree with this sentiment.
I was looking forward to the Progression servers, but that turned out to be a mess, so i went back to the 'real' 1999 experience on the P1999 servers and i enjoy it alot more then the Progression servers.
Other the that i play alot of Xcom Longwar mod, but that is singelplayer only.
And i play ALOT of Arma 3 King of the Hill with 4 or 5 friends, its such a fun game when u have a small team that can sit and talk on Teamspeak.
So hopeing for Alpha testing on Pantheon this year, if not i know Xcom 2 and Fallout 4 are gonna keep me busy for months to come while we wait on Pantheon.
Finally broke down and when through the mess that was installing the p1999 eq files.After all that I expected to be amused for a little bit then be bored. To my delight I am anjoying it far more than I had hoped. In Fact the first time I set foot in EC an saw all the auctions I almost cryed a little.
I actually have been trying the EQ2 time-locked beta on the PvP server. Though it too is filled with quest progression, they have slowed down the experience and the game offers a lot of dungeons and open world content as an alternative. I personally didn't like EQ2 when I tried it years ago, it just felt too easy and experience came in rather fast. Now that they've reduced the exp rates, people actually have to group up and work together, especially on the PvP server.
Its a far cry from the classic EQ1 that I enjoyed the most, but for the time being it seems to be the best option for me.
1) Diablo 3, hardcore mode, PS4.
Likes:
One death and reroll. That, boys and girls, is a proper death penalty. Most excitement and tension I've had playing a game literally since EQ1 Kunark era. When one death gets rid of that t00n, every minute put into it, and every piece of gear and loot on it at time of death, the game takes on a whole new perspective. Every accomplishment is better, every fight is more important, paying attention actually matters, etc. I'll never play non-HC Diablo ever again, it's that much better.
Dislikes:
Console version doesn't do seasons because it's too easy to cheat the leaderboards. My best gaming buddy had health issues, so our online gaming is on PS4 or we don't play, so I am stuck on the console, and no seasons. :(
2) FF XIV, casually, when I am not playing Diablo 3.
Likes:
a) One t00n to rule them all, and all you need to switch classes is switching your main hand weapon. Yes, you still have to level those different classes and skills and all that, but all the other stuff like bank, faction, gear, etc stays with you. I loved it when Rift only forced 4 archetypes who could then become any of the sub classes by switching their profile around and I love it even more with FF XIV having one toon that can literally do it all, just not all at once.
b) Main quest line that forces you to group, too bad, you're doing dungeons and bosses and that's that. I like it.
Dislikes:
a) Worst map system of any MMO ever, other than EQ1. All of FF XIV's good qualities are almost totally overshadowed by how craptastic that map system is.
b) Anime cutesie overload. Yes, it's an FF game, so of course it will have anime cuteness overload, but sometimes it gets overwhelming.