a guide to CoH for New Players from Old MMOs


Adam7

 

Posted

[ QUOTE ]
Shadow shard, auto exemping, PvP zones, building bases, old TFs, the soon to be legends & skills systems.

[/ QUOTE ] And do any of these give you anything new to do? Shadow Shard may be visually appealing, but all you do is run around and hit things. Auto-exemping, PvP, old TF's - all ways to hit things. Bases: how many bases can you build, especially at these prices? Skills system - if it's essentially crafting, then it's the same old grind - hitting a "crafting skill" button instead of a "punch" button.

This isn't anything "new" at 50 - it's more of the same. If this is all the game offers then you might as well retire at 20. If the Council boys just slip on a dress and facepaint and become Carnies, what's the point?

Anyway.

I applaud the devs for the things they HAVE done: the game looks great, the character customization right out the gate is refreshing compared to being dressed in identical rags that most games offer newbies, the environmental effects while lag inducing are generally gorgeous, the animations look good. A solid foundation.

I'll stick to it a little longer, then I'm probably going to reduce to one account, and let it rest for a while.

Cheers!
Max


================================
Without the "hero" in superhero, you're just a bully.

Engremore/IronMax/Jackalope/BaronMind - Infinity server
Engremore/IronMax/Doc Martian- Triumph Server
Just Click on City of Heroes

 

Posted

[ QUOTE ]
As much as I think the way in which ED was introduced was inexcusably inept, I think the concept is good in that it frees up slots overall. So I think it *will* have the effect of increasing the diversity of how things are slotted. Some players may have the same 3 powers but one 6 slots all of them with 1 accuracy/3 damage/2 end while someone else may choose to boost the secondary and someone else may double slot accuracy (or triple slot it in the case of AE attacks, who knows?); others will choose to 4 slot the power so they can take other powers, etc. etc. etc.

I also think it frees some folks from the tyranny of Hasten and Stamina. No one was holding a gun to anyone's head, but boy if you were missing one of those powers people would just act like you had a hole in your head (my spines scrapper never had and never will have hasten and I cannot tell you how many 'helpful' comments I got recommending I take it).

As to the downside, the effect on tankers and defensive sets grates on my nerves. And the way in which it was introduced and the subsequent spin has significantly eroded my respect for the devs.

[/ QUOTE ]

I'm not quite as upset as you about ED -- we just have different subjective reactions to the way our characters play now, I expect -- but I have to agree with everything else you've said here. While finding an optimized build is slightly easier than before, the difference between "concept" and "optimized" builds has been considerably closed, so players can put together a build they find fun to play without feeling underpowered compared to their optimizing teammates. Thus does ED increase diversity.


 

Posted

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Shadow shard, auto exemping, PvP zones, building bases, old TFs, the soon to be legends & skills systems.

[/ QUOTE ] And do any of these give you anything new to do? Shadow Shard may be visually appealing, but all you do is run around and hit things. Auto-exemping, PvP, old TF's - all ways to hit things. Bases: how many bases can you build, especially at these prices? Skills system - if it's essentially crafting, then it's the same old grind - hitting a "crafting skill" button instead of a "punch" button.

This isn't anything "new" at 50 - it's more of the same. If this is all the game offers then you might as well retire at 20. If the Council boys just slip on a dress and facepaint and become Carnies, what's the point?

Anyway.

I applaud the devs for the things they HAVE done: the game looks great, the character customization right out the gate is refreshing compared to being dressed in identical rags that most games offer newbies, the environmental effects while lag inducing are generally gorgeous, the animations look good. A solid foundation.

I'll stick to it a little longer, then I'm probably going to reduce to one account, and let it rest for a while.

Cheers!
Max

[/ QUOTE ]

The real interesting thing to me is that the game itself is not done. As Manticore stated there is content for _years_ with this game. As the technology gets better then I'm sure there will be more interactive ways to defeat bad guys.

The reality is that in the comic books, a majority of the time, the bad guy is defeated with a fight. It's the essence of good vs evil. CONFLICT. Most of the time there isn't a "we can talk it out" scenario. I am sure that as time moves on there will be a more interactive environment and technological developments to allow different ways to approach defeating the bad guys.

If anyone like IronMax is looking for new and different ways to defeat the bad guys, I say "wait and see". Go away for awhile if you need to (we all have that time where we need to put it down and walk away for a few- that's all good) and come back if you can't take being patient.

The game will evolve. We just have to wait and see.


 

Posted

Very nice Adam. You certainly have a way with words my friend.


 

Posted

Very well put. However, I feel you may be preaching to the choir a bit here.

A lot of what you say/advise will fall on deaf ears. Haters want to hate. If people get bored with the "lack of end game content" (becasue, you know, it's the end of the game) let them leave. In the meantime, I'll still continue to enjoy the game and have fun playing my lvl 50 for a long time.


 

Posted

[ QUOTE ]
In the meantime, I'll still continue to enjoy the game and have fun playing my lvl 50 for a long time.

[/ QUOTE ]

Heh, or those people like me will continue to enjoy the game and have fun playing their 37 alts :P


 

Posted


I'm late. ::sigh::

Great post!!


 

Posted

[ QUOTE ]
I can't be satisfied and enjoy the game indefinitely if all it is is a fighting game. If all I have to look forward to is doing the same thing with different powers, fighting villains that only differ in look and powers, then I may as well leave the game to kids who like seeing pretty images flashing by over and over.

[/ QUOTE ]
I don't know about you, but I can. I still play my level 50 at times not for content (heck, I mostly do that Kora Fruit mission with her) but purely for the battles. Heck, I just did a mission with my level 14 corrupter that, except for a single spawn, was all 3 minions and most of those were even level. Every single battle played out very differently. Sometimes I would use cover, sometimes I would hover above with that jet pack thing, sometimes my snipe would miss, sometimes my snowstorm anchor would start to run off and I would have to drop the power or risk agro'ing who knows who. And that's just solo with a few powers. Groups tend to play very differently as well....

IF they are challenged, that is. I keep my Warshade at Heroic and his battles are mostly pretty dull, playing out mostly the same way. (However, the battles with a Void or Q-Gun are seriously intense. Nothing like the sound of a nictus gun to wake me up!) Playing my Mastermind at the normal difficulty level was pretty dull, too. If things are easy then you don't need to think about cover to hind behind or other clever strategies. Just go in, blast, and move on.... zzzzz. Tolerances differ per person but I like my difficulty such that I at least get into red health every two or three hours. If I'm not dying every 10 to 15 hours then I'm probably not having much fun.


By the way - to the Original Poster.... My MMO history is a bit different. I played a lot of Asheron's Call, which had no end game content at the time. Then I moved on to Anarchy Online, again no end game content at least when I was there (heck, it was lucky to run at all). Then to Dark Age of Camelot where the min level to be usefull in Realm vs Realm was always five levels above me. DAoC was a BIG shock to me. That was (and likely still is) a game where the lower levels are just there to train you for the 'real' content in the end game. It's good to be back in a game where advancement is there just to add more variety to your battles.


I really important concept here in CoH/V is the sidekick. YOUR LEVEL DOES NOT MATTER ALL THAT MUCH!! A level 5 that's sidekicked up to level 49 won't be nearly as effective as a real level 49. However, in most MMO's just taking a two week vacation can be harsh. If you go away for a month or two then you can forget ever playing with your old friends again unless you all make new characters! Not here. The character that has gotten behind by two months can just be sidekicked in and will still be able to contribute to the group! In fact, thanks to levels taking more time the higher you go, they should slowly catch up to the higher level characters.


P.S. Yes, "my level 50." After probably 4000 hours of play I have just one level 50! However, I think the total 'grinding' time I've done in this game is less than 40 hours. I'll take 3960 hours of fun over any stack of level 50's, thanks.


 

Posted

[ QUOTE ]

P.S. Yes, "my level 50." After probably 4000 hours of play I have just one level 50! However, I think the total 'grinding' time I've done in this game is less than 40 hours. I'll take 3960 hours of fun over any stack of level 50's, thanks.

[/ QUOTE ]


Amen to that!


 

Posted

[ QUOTE ]
In nearly every other MMO out there, the levels leading up to the max level “end game” are just gravy. They are meant to make you “put in the effort” or “grind” to reach the fun: max level raiding, equipment, crafting. Essentially, the meat of the game occurs after your level is maxed out and you are fine tuning your “stuff” (whether that be powers or equipment or rabid chipmunk pet of DOOOMZXORS)

[/ QUOTE ]

You know, that's where I'd disaggree with you. Right there. I haven't yet seen anyone who can claim with a straight face that WoW's endgame is where the fun is.

Au contraire, every single co-worker that's tried WoW, plus for example both Gabe and Tycho from Penny Arcade, seemed to quickly find that end-game grind non-fun. In the words of one co-worker who reached level 60 in WoW, he quit when he noticed that he needed a few hours just to assemble the massive teams needed for that end-game raid. That's it, literally: a few hours wasted every day before the "fun" even begins.

And how much "fun" such a massively repetitive affair is... again, let's just say most WoW players would quickly disaggree.

As someone who's briefly played WoW too, I can tell you that the game evolution is exactly the other way around than you paint it. The most fun is to be had in the single digit levels: quests are aplenty, the difficulty is reasonable, and they don't involve much walking. Then it gradually goes downhill, and there's more and more timesink and less and less game. By the time you get your mount, most quests starts involving an hour of riding just to get there.

That fine-tuning your equipment is _not_ the meat of the game, and _not_ where the most fun is. It's one last bone you're thrown to keep you busy (and still bored) while you're in the "but if I quit, I'll lose all my guild-mates and friends" phase.

[ QUOTE ]
PLers just don't "get" this game.

[/ QUOTE ]

No. You don't "get" PLers.

Most of the PL-ing in those games isn't because they need to get to the fun part, and in fact it _skips_ the fun part.

The reason it happens is just because some people are terminally insecure, and need a virtual crutch for their ego. The crutch being the achievement in a virtual world, and keeping up with the virtual Joneses. There's a mirage that if you're level 60 and have the full set of dire-chipmunk-fur clothes (or the biggest castle in UO, or whatever), you're suddenly _someone_. Suddenly everyone will envy you, your boss will give you a promotion, random females will want to bear your children, etc.

That's all there is to it: a mine-is-bigger-than-yours mirage. They just _have_ to keep up with the virtual Joneses, even if it takes reaching for the RL credit card and paying to be PL-ed.

[ QUOTE ]
That is NOT CoH. (this is why many people who PL to reach the end become unsatisfied very quickly; they are missing the point of this game)

[/ QUOTE ]

I'll aggree: COH is exactly the other way around than WoW. In WoW the first 10 levels are the most fun, and the next 10 a close second, and so on. COH starts with the least fun 20 levels, and gets to be a lot more fun later.

In the beginning in COH, you're weak, travel takes ages (and sometimes gets you killed before the mission even started, e.g., in the Hollows), and you wheeze out of endurance like an asthmatic all the time. (And since we're talking PL: let's remember that while now Rest recharges quickly, at the apex of PL-ing, it took half an hour to recharge. So getting your stamina back involved standing around watching the walls for a minute. After each fight.)

_And_ it's the levels where you don't even get much choice over your character's development. You face a stupid grind for Stamina and travel power, where half your powers until level 20 must go just into getting those. There's very little fun in that for most builds, and very little character development: you just gnash your teeth and grind your way towards Stamina. Instead of taking something you badly need (e.g., a second attack on your Tanker, for when you can't find a good team at 6 AM), you gnash your teeth and check yet another punishment power on the checklist. (Yay! I soo wanted Hurdle... NOT.)

And only after that it finally starts being fun. You finally actually have endurance for more than one fight, and most importantly, you finally get control of your character's development. (Or maybe not even then, as you first scramble to take all the resistances/attacks/whatever-else you skipped to get Stamina and a travel power.)

And I'm not even getting into the life of a Controller before Containment. That was an agonizing grind until level 32, when you finally got your reward.

So in a way, COH is the only game where I somewhat understood PL-ers, up to a point. It was never my thing, but I didn't really rush to point fingers at those who did get PL-ed. If anyone decided to skip those grind levels, well, I don't have to try too hard to see their point too.


 

Posted

[ QUOTE ]


Adam, what makes City of Heroes different, and what is this paradigm shift of which you speak?

Unlike any other MMO out there, City of Heroes is NOT about the “end game.” It’s a paradigm shift that a lot of people have trouble swallowing, but it’s the way the game was made.

In nearly every other MMO out there, the levels leading up to the max level “end game” are just gravy. They are meant to make you “put in the effort” or “grind” to reach the fun: max level raiding, equipment, crafting. Essentially, the meat of the game occurs after your level is maxed out and you are fine tuning your “stuff” (whether that be powers or equipment or rabid chipmunk pet of DOOOMZXORS). That is NOT CoH. (this is why many people who PL to reach the end become unsatisfied very quickly; they are missing the point of this game)

PLers just don't "get" this game. There is no end game content that extends ones enjoyment. Unlike WoW or EQ or DAoC, you don't have high level raid content or PvP uber rewards. When you hit 50, the Devs expect you to roll an alt, and bring your 50 out for 50 content (when its made), PvP arena, PvP base raids (and crossover CoV content), and playing with your friends. They have expanded what your 50 can do with the exemplar and auto exemplar for TF features.

Other than that though, your character has essentially retired. Sorry, no way for you to spend another 1000 man hours raiding the depressing elemental plane of sadness where Lord EMO god of whining and mediocre music reigns supreme, just to beat him and hope you are the one person out of your 50 player raid group to get the hat of Xanax (+35 save against confusion and fear) to further tweak your stats. That’s not this game. And when they DO make end game content, people will exhaust it and cry out for more within weeks. Why? Because no matter WHAT endgame content CoH adds, it will not be the kind of end game content these people want.

[/ QUOTE ]


yeah I notice your generic any generation MMO has mages warriors then another odd AT or two and can usually only be played like one correct way or something like that then in those games there are lots of LAG,mean players(play runescape and you'll be called a noob in one second) and have to re buy armour and weapons and potions and crafting items every few lvls you just spend half your time doing that and not playing the real game like teh quest and stuff

I like CoH/CoV because there is no like uber tastic rune embuned broadsword of whats his face that only looks cool. I like CoH/CoV because you sway away from that and mainly focus on lvling your character(and buy enhancments isnt as painstakign as get new equipment and stuff) also your cosutume stays the way it is until you want to change it

either way nice guide kinda tell those old MMO players like you dont need to buy weapons,armour and other crap every lvl


 

Posted

An HOUR to get to your mission/dungeon/whatever!?!? You're exaggerating, right? Jeez, I thought it was horrible in Anarchy Online to take 20 minutes to get to a mission. (Of course, there would also be 15 minutes paging through the random mission computer trying to find one that was even that close and had a sane reward.)


So far I've only made two characters with Stamina and only one of those (the tank) got it at 20. Actually, my controller just respec'ed it out. My blaster and defender both drain endurance. My dominator doesn't seem to need it at all. My corruptor probably will need it. Really though, this power isn't the must-have so many think it is. Especially now with reduced endurance cost and ED.


 

Posted

I'm not kidding. There are missions at that point in WoW where you either go through a higher level enemy area (I guess someone at Blizzards really wants to shove PvP down everyone's throat) or you take a scenic detour around the whole world map. And then all the way back to hand in the quest.

My favourite metaphor for WoW is that of boiling a frog alive. They say that if you drop a frog into hot water, it will hop out. But if you put it in cool water and very very slowly raise temperature, it will stay there and get boiled.

(Mind you, I haven't actually tried it, and I wouldn't really advise anyone to perform cruel experiments on animals. Unless you're a necromancy mastermind, I guess.)

That's WoW. It starts great fun and almost no time-sink (the first missions in the newbie area send you at most 100 ft away) and you're as happy as a frog in a cool pond. Then gradually, very slowly, it becomes more and more time-sink and less and less game.

Until the end-game raids, when it becomes almost purely time-sink for large groups of people. The chances that the boss will drop the armor piece you need are so low, it makes hitting the jackpot in Las Vegas seem a lot safer a bet. And if he does, you're one in 20 people rolling the die for it.

(Think what COH would be if at the end of a TF or Hami raid (A) there's only a 2% chance of getting the enhancement, and (B) only one person got the enhancement. All 8 get to roll a die for it, and only the winner gets it. Literally. That's WoW's endgame raids in a nutshell.)

And let's get a bit deeper into the fun of that raid itself. None of them involve any clever tactics, they just involve large groups of people using the same 2-3 powers over and over again. Literally. No, seriously, you're suddenly reduced to a repetitive pull-and-kill routine, where only 2 or 3 icons on your bar are ever used. In fact, they involve a lot less tactics and thinking than the missions at single digit levels, and you use less powers than you used at level 9.

And the kicker is that it's a reward you don't even need, technically speaking. You're already at max level and powerful enough to take on the toughest critters in the game. There's no further level to be gained with that equipment, and no opponents you need it against. That's it. It's just an exercise in collecting some costume pieces, for very little more than fashion.

Mind you, I'm not saying WoW sucks. It _is_ well designed. (Getting people addicted first and then paying for months for less and less actual game content per day played, until the point where they just repeatedly see the same dungeon over and over again, I can only admire the genius in that design.)

I'm just saying that the view that all the fun is at the level 60, and that levels 1-59 are just a grind to get to the fun part, is completely false. Levels 1-59 _are_ the actual game in WoW too, and level 60 is a last-ditch repetitive chore you're given to keep you busy. I fail to see how someone can see that repetitive chore as _the_ meat of the game, unless they're obsessive-compulsive or something.


 

Posted

I'd like to say that this is only partially true.

I'm a diehard roleplayer; the fun of this game for me is making a character like Captain Snowflake (the silliest Golden-Ager ever) or Sarik VaYir (recalcitrant ex-Thorn Necromancer Hero) and letting them truly come to life.

However, I have a friend I have asked to assist me in helping Sarik reach level 50 at a rapid pace. Is this because I want to grind? No. Is this because I want to skip the content? No. Do I want the HOs, Kheldians, or anything else from level 50? Not really.

I want Sarik to have access to the powers that defines HIM. Not his AT, but HIM. As a Necromancer, Phantasm and Spectral Army are my goals.

But as a roleplayer, I keep getting distracted. Powerleveling is the way I can flesh this guy out and enable me to still roleplay, albeit roleplay with powers that define the character.


"Some people wrestle with their inner demons. I stabbed mine in the back of the head. He was a bleeder." - Black Mage

"We've trained you better than for you to use excuses like 'I didn't have control over what I was doing!'" - Major Tasker, Longbow

 

Posted

[ QUOTE ]
...paradigm shift...

[/ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Those of us who enjoy the game for what is IS... here bringing another alt up from 1-50.

[/ QUOTE ]

/signed


 

Posted

Are you Adam Ant from UO, Adam?

JC.


 

Posted

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
CoV and I6 will change some of this. There will be crafting for one.

[/ QUOTE ]

Yea, there will be crafting, and I'll address that sometime soon after I experience it... but its not exactly the kind of crafting from other games. However, my opinion may change after experiencing it.

[/ QUOTE ]

Honestly, aftert experiencing WoW, I am scared of crafting in CoX. It could easily be so bad! I am glad it has been postphoned, and that Statesman is so picky about it.


 

Posted

[ QUOTE ]
As someone who's briefly played WoW too, I can tell you that the game evolution is exactly the other way around than you paint it. The most fun is to be had in the single digit levels: quests are aplenty, the difficulty is reasonable, and they don't involve much walking. Then it gradually goes downhill, and there's more and more timesink and less and less game. By the time you get your mount, most quests starts involving an hour of riding just to get there.

[/ QUOTE ]

This is exactly my WoW experience, and it is why I quit. Once you've played all 6 possible characters to level 30, you have done WoW. And even doing that, there is a lot of repetition. After 40, the game becomes a hopeless grind and enforced teaming.

The sad bit is that the designers of WoW THINK that the end game is the best part. That is where all their efforts are focussed, that is where there is new content.


 

Posted

ack! so many posts on a guide that I thought was dead...

"Rise from your grave!" apparently...



lots to address, and aswer... but i'll try (these answers may or may not be in order)

As far as preaching to the choir- I think you are right, and for the most part, I am. But I am also hoping to that this guide may help new players coming in from DAoC or EQI/II, or AO or the like. Games where the goal is the destination, not the journey.

As far as WoW and Endgame and Fun- Didn't want to direct quote you, but I'll address your point. I never claimed that the endgame is where the "fun" is, but if thats where the "goal" is. Blizzard is going to keep adding "end game" content, and all the fun raiding / PvP that goes along with it. Thats where THEY want the game to go, even if the fanbase differs. unfortunately.

PLing in other MMOs - We can agree to disagree, no? Most PLers I knew of in other MMOs did so so they could participate in the end game. The place where all the under max level gameplay brought them. The "goal" of lack of a better term. And that goal was either raiding, stat tweaking or PvPing depending on your game.

And as for me-
I have never played an "adam" before in any MMO, and my most well known character was a max level runemistress and PvP meanie in dark age of camelot: Aryiallis Loreweaver, leader in The Hands of Destruction. Long range damage and bubbles 4tw! Kind of makes sense why my main is a blaster here lol.


But i'd like to thank all of you who agree, or disagree, for the kind words, the sentiment, and the contributions to this thread.
My SG is starting to get into the swing of things with bases & crafting (though, as Mal knows, we aren't PvP centric, so our base is geared to PvE and not raiding), so I will address that eventually. But its still not crafting in the "Lets raid the glacier, where Fidge-ar the icy dragon of cold awaits in his den of frozen tears!" kind of crafting.


 

Posted

Maxxing the level is as much a "goal" in EQ2 or UO (to give two examples I'm also fairly familiar with) or whatever as it is in COH. I.e., it's only a "goal" people set for themselves, nothing more.

There _is_ a game between levels 1 and 49 (59 with the recent EP) in EQ2, and it's not just a grind to get to the final raids. There are storyline quests, class quests (e.g., the armour quests at level 20), crafting, and generally 99% of the content on that DVD to explore between 1 and 49.

And, again, it's anything but grind at lower levels. In the beginning you're in fact overpowered in EQ2, again quests are aplenty, they're in safely soloable areas (for a lot of them you don't even have to leave Qeynos or Freeport or fight anything), and the hunting/questing/resource-gathering areas are right adjacent to your assigned village. And, as usual, it goes downhill as you raise in level.

How that can be seen as just a grind to get to level 50, is truly beyond me.

Now mind you, there are plenty of faults with EQ2, and plenty of reasons why one would quickly grow bored with it. But nevertheless that _is_ the actual game. That there's something magical at level 50 that makes it all worth it, that's at best a mirage and made-belief. Whatever you didn't like about levels 1-49, you'll get at level 50 too (in some cases, e.g., the huge load times, you get worse, as you get to zone several times just to get from point A to point B), with the added kick of being stuck in a Groundhog Day kinda loop where you do the same thing over and over again every day.


 

Posted

[ QUOTE ]
If nothing else, this post has made me feel much better about the fact that my highest character is 14 after a month of solid playing.

Thanks!

[/ QUOTE ]

People in this MMO are notoriously nice to lowbies

I think the reason is the one in the above, its' about the content on the way to 50, not after...


 

Posted

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
In nearly every other MMO out there, the levels leading up to the max level “end game” are just gravy. They are meant to make you “put in the effort” or “grind” to reach the fun: max level raiding, equipment, crafting. Essentially, the meat of the game occurs after your level is maxed out and you are fine tuning your “stuff” (whether that be powers or equipment or rabid chipmunk pet of DOOOMZXORS)

[/ QUOTE ] You know, that's where I'd disaggree with you. Right there. I haven't yet seen anyone who can claim with a straight face that WoW's endgame is where the fun is.

Au contraire, every single co-worker that's tried WoW, plus for example both Gabe and Tycho from Penny Arcade, seemed to quickly find that end-game grind non-fun. In the words of one co-worker who reached level 60 in WoW, he quit when he noticed that he needed a few hours just to assemble the massive teams needed for that end-game raid. That's it, literally: a few hours wasted every day before the "fun" even begins.

And how much "fun" such a massively repetitive affair is... again, let's just say most WoW players would quickly disaggree.

[/ QUOTE ]
Ok, I'll keep this short. The OP made the almost exact same point that you are, he just did it via a different route and with plenty o' snark. Essentially you're proving his point. You both are on the same page, maybe his "humor" threw you off? It's funny that you come off all like you're in disagreement.


 

Posted

Here's some advice for those who go from CoH/CoV to other "grind" MMOs: don't expect things to be half as fast or exciting as CoH. In fact, COH is very unique and it bucks all trends set by fantasy grind MMOs.


Basically, other MMOs are engineered to be as slow of a grind as humanly possible. You will litterally spend more time begging for groups, walking between places, crafting stuff, and on the back of a griphon then you will just plain old kicking [censored].

I tried WOW for a month, and found I just could not do it. No matter how much people would tell me "its the best", or no matter how much I would tell myself "its the best", the game was just no fun. Compared to say CoH or even PlanetSide, World of Warcraft was a big snooze fest. Any game where you have ANY time you can put something on "auto pilot" and go off and play on the Play Station 2 is not very excite IMHO.


Curse you, Statesman, for making a game design so inherently fun that they can @$#k us around on nerfs every other week, but still keep us comming back for more action!


The truth is the solution from an equation of lies. ~Maileah Kirel

 

Posted

GREAT guide, Adam7. I just emailed the link to a friend of mine— it's a great summation of what makes CoX different from other MMORPGs.


"I'm loyal to nothing, General... except the Dream." � Captain America

 

Posted

[ QUOTE ]
And do any of these give you anything new to do? Shadow Shard may be visually appealing, but all you do is run around and hit things. Auto-exemping, PvP, old TF's - all ways to hit things. Bases: how many bases can you build, especially at these prices? Skills system - if it's essentially crafting, then it's the same old grind - hitting a "crafting skill" button instead of a "punch" button.

[/ QUOTE ]

The only way I know of to *really* get away from these kinds of things, to have puzzles solved by cleverness, to have signature foes, to have complex political machinations is. . . to have a live rpg. Which is why my CoH friends and I still get together for them.

Of course, the down side to a live game is spending 2-3 hours resolving a single fight, because now you have to look up each rule for how that debuff works in conjunction with the knockback and the blast, and crunch the numbers. . .

More basically, you need a much higher ratio of "people designing/running the game" to players then any MMO can support. Sure, maybe you could recruit "guest writers" who would make up new stories for missions for little or no pay, but thats window dressing. To actually have different mission success criteria takes a *lot* of work by programmers. And they seem to be working on it as fast as they can; look at the addition of ambushes inside missions, for example, that gave them a lot more dynamic feel. Mayhem missions coming up are another step in that direction. Some day we will surely reach the goal of being able to pull that lamp post out of the ground and hit Jurrasik with it.