Be my MMO tour guide.
Here's the setup: I first got hooked on MMOs by playing Dark Age of Camelot. From there I went to EQ2 on opening day and stayed there for a couple years pouring way too many hours of my life into raiding and whatnot while while also dabbling in City of Heroes, Star Wars Galaxies pre-NGE, and even Matrix Online. I also put a few months into WoW and actually enjoyed it far more than EQ2 but I never joined a guild so I let if fall by the wayside as soon as my first kid was born. Basically I just couldn't find the time to sink into an mmo with a newborn. Well, now he's almost 2, I just upgraded my PC, and I've got the itch for some more casual mmo play.
I've started out by jumping into Age of Conan and I've found I can usually squeeze in an hour a night and maybe a few hours on the weekend. I've absolutely loved my time in this game but I've got a feeling the shine is gonna' wear off pretty quick. I've already got a guardian up to 55 and several alts in the 20's. I just don't see a lot of variety for multiple replays since I've been all about the quests in this game.
So this leads me to my question for all of you. I think that rather than dump a year or more of my time into one mmo I just want to try a bunch of them out to the mid to high levels and then move on once any hint of bordeom strikes. I think it will play well to my altaholic streak where I like trying out new classes, new places, etc. I've got several games in mind that I would like to try but I'd like to get suggestions from you guys and also what order you think I should try them in. I've got some interest in trying LotRo, Tabula Rasa, the newly patched Vanguard, and if I'm feeling risky maybe even some EVE. I'll also probably be going back to WoW at some point. I know there are others I'm either missing or just flat-out don't know about. Give me some ideas and any comments you may have on the other games out there I've not played yet.
MMO's are a sidequest to life. -Elysium
LotRO didn't hold my interest very long - I think it is the classes and how they play; I find them rather bland compared to, say, WoW or Vanguard. If you want casual, it's hard to beat WoW; they've sped up/eased leveling quite a bit, and it's easy to get chunks of quests done in 15 min or however long you have to play. I can definitely recommend Vanguard if you have a rig that can handle AoC, as long as you can put up with rough edges. There are a TON of very fun classes, and they are all supposed to be soloable to some extent nowadays. You can of course also play all 3 for at least 10 days for free.
I can't think of too many others out there that I would consider worth the time; things like FFXI and Lineage I/II/whatever are way too grindy, etc. Guild Wars may scratch your itch a little bit, but it's not exactly an MMO proper in my book. You may also check out Anarchy Online after the new graphics engine is released - the core game is free to play and was decently fun back in the day - certainly enough for a short romp for a month or two.
Warhammer Online: Khoram, Dwarven Iron Breaker, The Wanderers on Ostermark
Khoram's Workshop
I've played more than my fair share and I'll give you a quickie overview of the one's I've played that you indicated interest in:
1. EVE - Played about a year about three years ago or more. It was great. I hooked up with a smallish corp and even our mining nights were kind of fun -- nothing as scary as mining in low sec space. I played the market and made quite a bit of money before quitting due to real life commitments. I hear the game is vastly different now especially with the Empyrean Age factional PVP and the Trinity engine upgrade.
2. LotRO - I loved the feel, flavour and pace so much I sprung for a lifetime membership. I still log in a few nights a week to check out what's going on and given more time this summer I'm going to get my minstrel and hunter up to 50 in time for the Moria expansion. You must give this a try.
3. Vanguard - Played this for the month after finding a cheap copy. Not the game many wanted or that launched. It's a perfect cross, in my opinion, of EQ2 and WoW. Loved the diplomacy and crafting especially as a valid 2nd or 3rd option behind combat/adventuring. Much improved from launch from what I understand. Might have played it a bit longer but Age of Conan launched...
4. Tabula Rasa - Definitely fun for the 2 weeks I played from launch. They made a few changed since then but the community was pretty tight and the combat was fun. The cloning system was neat too. I didn't get into the PvP much since my spy(?) was a bit underpowered.
I think my answer is flit around. No one is holding a gun to your head and asking you for more than the client cost and a free month (sometimes less for the older ones). It's a buyers market. There are MMOs still out there like PotBS which I'd love to have time to try, or FFXI or even DDO. My only other advice is checking out what the Goodjer guilds/corps/kinships are and perhaps hooking up there as well. Have fun!
XBL Gamertag: Bear Patrol
You know, I'd completely forgotten about Pirates of the Burning Sea. I never really heard much about it aside from the endless hype on places like MMO radio years before it launched. Seems to have kind of come out and then sputtered into obscurity. I also didn't know AO was getting a graphics upgrade. I'd tried the core game about 2 years ago and liked the concept, I just left for graphically prettier pastures after a few weeks of play.
MMO's are a sidequest to life. -Elysium
1. LOTRO - I would also recommend trying this game. While the classes are a bit bland, the environment is amazing, and it is a very casual friendly game.
2. Tabula Rasa - I picked this game up and played it for the first month. While there were some interesting points to it, I found the game in general to be very boring. Within the first couple levels, I was already bored with the game and looking for something new. (The game is an normal MMORPG with the illusion of being an FPS. However, once you get past that cover, you quickly see that all combat is, is pointing you mouse in the general direction of some a mob and repeatedly clicking the left mouse button.) If you're looking to try this game out, I'd definitely recommend trying to find a free trial before actually picking the game up.
3. Vanguard - I only played this game at launch. There were several things that I liked about it. Unfortunately, there were a lot of things wrong with it. I've heard good things about it though recently. May definitely be worth giving it a try.
4. EVE - I would definitely give EVE a try, but it's gameplay if very ... off beat. You'll either love it or you'll hate it. Definitely give the trial version a play before paying for the game.
5. Guild Wars - While I agree that this game isn't really an MMO in the normal fashion, it is definitely worth a look. Especially if you do enjoy some good PvP once you max level (which doesn't take too long).
Chumpy wrote:
Malor wrote:
That sounds like SWG after the NGE. I know they were trying to make combat "more interesting" but all it did was make my hand cramp after shooting for 45 minutes at a Krayt Dragon. If that's the combat style Tabula Rasa took then I think my interest in that one just took a nose dive.
MMO's are a sidequest to life. -Elysium
LOTRO
I love LOTRO! I love the setting and the storyline throughout the game. The characters are a bit bland sure but the game is great!
Tabula Rasa
I love this game. The gameplay is a blast. And while it certainly does well in smaller chuncks, the game does have some legs if you're into a more fast paced MMO. The game really does feel like you're in the middle of a war. If you played during beta you should come back and give it a whirl. Unfortunately there's not much content for 40+ (50 is the max), but the team is always tweaking and adding additional content.
City of Heroes
You either love it or you hate it. There really isn't any in-between. If you really love superheroes then your enjoyment of this game goes up considerably. The leveling process is slow compared to other games, but the customization and storytelling is really awesome.
I forgot about City of Heroes. I would have to agree with exactly what you said about it. It can be a bit slow, but it is definitely a blast to run around in spandex saving the city.
Chumpy wrote:
Malor wrote:
I enjoyed City of Heroes and worked a Fire Tanker up to 50. I hear they are gimped now. Then I worked on a Bug (Kheldians) up into the 30's and I got tired of the grind. But that first character was a lot of fun to play.
I'm not lost. I'm locationally challenged.
Spore Profile
EVE - This is my current MMO of choice. Lots of depth, completely open sandbox environment. Heavily PvP based, even trading and crafting has PvP aspects to it.
WoW - I played this for 4 years before giving it up for EVE. Partly got bored, partly got tired of people.
FFXI - I played this one for 3 years before quitting to go to WoW full time. I left this game because of people too.
SWG - I played it, loved it, and quit before the NGE debacle.
Tabula Rasa - This game was horridly broken in beta, and from what I understand it hasn't changed much. It's not solo friendly, and barely scratches by as casual friendly. Very buggy by all acounts still.
LoTRO - I played a couple weeks in beta, and a week post launch. Looks gorgeous, fairly casual friendly but the world just seems very flat. Characters seem shoehorned in around the Quest for the Ring, and because of that, they seem very flat. Very polished * fun, but just doesn't feel deeper than a wading pool.
City of Heroes - Awesome character creation. The game is very, very repetitive. Fun, but very repetive.
I've played a bunch of smaller MMOs as well, but these are the major ones. I'd second WoW if you're looking for casual fantasy, and EVE if you're looking for casual Sci-Fi. Yes, EVe, the hardcore MMO to end all hardcore MMOs. Time commitment can be as little to as much as you'd like to make it. Beyond that, FFXI was a lot of fun with a good community to play with. SWG in its heyday was a blast, considerably less so now.
GL to ya o7
wordsmythe wrote:
Podunk on Jessica Alba wrote:
Well, I got the 14 day free trial of EVE this weekend but only managed to play two or three hours total. It's certainly got that initial feel of a game I could fall for. The ship-centered sci-fi setting complete with capital ships and not just one man fighters like most sci-fi games... Yeah, I could definitely go for it. Though I've already noticed some potential issues for me. With the automated travel, mostly automated combat, and occasionally long travel times, I could easily see myself sitting around reading a book while playing this game. I'm not sure that's a good thing. And I definitely see how insanely deep this game can become. In many mmo's I feel like I'm starting in a wading pool and eventually I will work up to the 10 foot deep end. With EVE I feel like I'm bobbing on top of the ocean in a tiny life raft and that thousands of feet down there's a war going on among see monsters and that if I slip over the edge of that raft I'll never see the light again. For the time being I can get my little ship from one point to another and I can blow up a few rats along the way and that's good enough for me. Guess I'll give this its two weeks and see if I want to keep this around over AoC.
MMO's are a sidequest to life. -Elysium