How to get started with a MMORPG?

alex5389

I am a newbie and I am totally confused about playing MMORPG. I have tried some to install, but in most cases I cannot get them to work.

 

First, I need to find a game and a page to download the game. What I download is a downloader which downloads the many GB of games onto my computer.

 

When the extensive download finally is complete, there might be a button to start the game. But wait! This does not start the game, it starts updating/checking/whatever the game! It starts again downloading million and million of bytes! And even some MMORPG (fiesta online) always says something about something complete, but donwloads something again. Absolutely frustrated, after ONE hour, I switched my computer off. There is no way of knowing how long this will take until I REALLY can play the game. If I am able to play the game at all. Maybe after a week, when the game finally is installed, it updates again, which takes another week. This is ridcoulous!!

 

My question: Is there a general guide on how to get started with a MMORPG? How the download works, why the game is always updating? How to make sure to choose the right server, the correct download site (so not to download the SAME game twice, because you are in a different area)?

 

I have the feeling I am waiting, and waiting, and then waiting again! Is the waiting the game ??? What am I doing wrong??????

Asm0deus

It is usually pretty simple.

 

1~ find  a game that you want to try.

2~ register an account with the site or game company

3~ downlaod the client or installer. (some games you download the whole client off the bat and some have an installer which is usually really quick to download.  Once the you have the installer running the installer downloads the game client.  The client is the thing you install on your pc that lets you play the game, it is the thing that communicates with the "server" while you are playing etc)

4~ Once the game client is installed it usually has to "update" the client. (this is because the clients are not always fresh from "today" and can be months old  and do not contain all the latest updates etc) This can be very long or fairly quick depending on how much updating it has to do.

5~ Once the client is updated you can usually click on "START" or "PLAY", log in using the info you registered with ..

6~ Enjoy the game  and try to find some friends

 

 

Games don't have big patches or updates every week but may have small maintance or small patches to fix bugs etc. Usually the first time you install a client the will be a big long update and depending on the size of the game and your net speed can take a 30mins or 4 hours+ etc 

 

After this initial  install though login  should be pretty fast with the client just doing a small "check" that doesn't require any download or update really unless there was a new content added to the game so then you will have a update with the size and length depending on how much content was added to the game.

SavageHorizon

You are not doing anything wrong, some mmos require you to have the whole game downloaded and full patched before you can play.

I suggest you download Lord Of The Rings Online because they just released a new expansion yesterday and their are many player running around Middle Earth. On top of that you have the best mmo that actually gives you that true RP feeling rather than a fed-x feeling.

I suggest you choose the RP server Laurelin, it has certain RPing rules so choose your name carefully. The game also lets you play while the game is downloading in the background so you can play instantly.

Here https://www.lotro.com/en/game/download

Also a guilde to playing mmos for the first time http://www.goozernation.com/video-games/index.php/news/941-the-mmorpg-beginners-guide

See, it's not hard if you actually use google for what it was meant to be used for,  it's all waiting for you to find it.

 

Mors.Magne

The most important thing is to choose the right MMORPG for you.

 

I think reading reviews about MMORPGs and watching reviews on YouTube are very enjoyable pastimes.

 

You could ask yourself the following questions:

• What genre do I prefer? (Fantasy / Sci Fi / Other etc)
• Do I prefer PvE, PvP, or a balance?
• Do I prefer to pay by subscription, one-off purchase, or in-game shop?
• How much time can I devote to this game? Generally speaking, PvP and 'raiding' type activities take up a lot of time in order to do well. PvE is far more flexible but may become repetative in some games. How much time you have available is probably the most important consideration of all because MMORPGs are greater time-sinks compared to other games, although they do have greater longevity - some intend to last forever.

 

Scot

Installing a game is hideously complex compared to how we use to do it. We used to laugh at remembering how long it took to upload a game from a cassette tape, well now it can take the same time with a MMO.

I suggest you leave your PC on overnight and download it that way. However if you do not have a 2MB+ connection you are going to have problems playing the game.

Sartoriuss

If you are new, then maybe is better to try some MMORPG through Steam....You make there account (which is free), will find some mmorpg, and put it into download. You decide, how many bandwith you give for DL.Then Steam will download it, while being in the background and not interfering with rest work. Also you can always cancel downloading and continue it later.

Muke

Originally posted by Asm0deus

It is usually pretty simple.

 

1~ find  a game that you want to try.

2~ register an account with the site or game company

3~ downlaod the client or installer. (some games you download the whole client off the bat and some have an installer which is usually really quick to download.  Once the you have the installer running the installer downloads the game client.  The client is the thing you install on your pc that lets you play the game, it is the thing that communicates with the "server" while you are playing etc)

4~ Once the game client is installed it usually has to "update" the client. (this is because the clients are not always fresh from "today" and can be months old  and do not contain all the latest updates etc) This can be very long or fairly quick depending on how much updating it has to do.

5~ Once the client is updated you can usually click on "START" or "PLAY", log in using the info you registered with ..

6~ Enjoy the game  and try to find some friends

 would like to add to that:

7- enjoy the game your way and don't listen to "friends" wanting to boost you to endgame in 1 day to help them boost in endraids, leaving you bored within a week.

 

Phaserlight

I agree with your feelings, OP. Take heart, things are changing.

Speely

The initial install and patch update process can be tedious, especially these days. The nature of the genre means that do much changes in regard to the code that it's inevitable. What's important is that you don't let it discourage you, for you have to face this trial in order to prepare yourself for an overall experience of being overwhelmed and confused once you are actually playing anyway. Your first mmorpg will likely make you initially feel like you have no idea what's going on. Don't worry about that. It's part of the charm, and you will come to look back on your adjustment period fondly and have many funny stories too share with others about those fledgling days of wonder and perplexity. Have fun... it's worth it

alex5389

Thanks a lot for the input, but I still feel lost. I just downloaded AION, and now all the patches are downloading. After ONE hour (internet connection is not the best) the percentage rised from 14% to 15%. When I am online 2 hours a day, this will take about 40 days until all the patches are downloaded and I can play the game...

I can imagine, that by then, in 40 days, an update is available and the patch downloading starts all over.....

 

Maybe someone can provide a list of free easy-to-install-and-download-MMORPG-without-waiting-half-a-year-unti-you-can-finally-play-the-game list? Or is a 100 GB/s optical fiber internet connection a requirement to get started with a MMORPG?

 

plutosams

Most MMOs are going to take longer than 2 hours to initially download, many games are 10+gb and some of the new games can be well over 20GB.  Aion is around 15 gigs so expect it to take awhile; might want to leave it overnight.  What is your connection speed?

Grixxitt

OP, if you're internet is that bad, maybe you shouldn't really be playing MMOs. 

Not trying to sound like a dick but you need a good, solid connection (read: DSL or better) for 99.9% of MMOs, or games that try to be MMO's nowadays. I wouldn't even bother until you ditch the phone tether/56k modem or whatever it is you're using

General-Zod

Originally posted by alex5389

Thanks a lot for the input, but I still feel lost. I just downloaded AION, and now all the patches are downloading. After ONE hour (internet connection is not the best) the percentage rised from 14% to 15%. When I am online 2 hours a day, this will take about 40 days until all the patches are downloaded and I can play the game...

I can imagine, that by then, in 40 days, an update is available and the patch downloading starts all over.....

 

Maybe someone can provide a list of free easy-to-install-and-download-MMORPG-without-waiting-half-a-year-unti-you-can-finally-play-the-game list? Or is a 100 GB/s optical fiber internet connection a requirement to get started with a MMORPG?

 

Ahh those were the days ...

Being totally excited about a game that could be bought & downloaded online

Beginning the download

Waking up in the middle of the night just to make sure the game is still making progress

Honestly things arent going to get better in-game. Less than average internet connection can result in pure frustration for you. Iv been there, logging in during the evil hours just to play without lag, being excluded from groups because I couldnt keep up. One of the requirements for a mmorpg is a decent connection.

When I got older I went overboard with the connection because of the issues I had in my childhood. I wont even move to certain areas because the only service provider that services that area dont carry speeds over 50mbps...

Phaserlight

Originally posted by alex5389

Thanks a lot for the input, but I still feel lost. I just downloaded AION, and now all the patches are downloading. After ONE hour (internet connection is not the best) the percentage rised from 14% to 15%. When I am online 2 hours a day, this will take about 40 days until all the patches are downloaded and I can play the game...

I can imagine, that by then, in 40 days, an update is available and the patch downloading starts all over.....

 

Maybe someone can provide a list of free easy-to-install-and-download-MMORPG-without-waiting-half-a-year-unti-you-can-finally-play-the-game list? Or is a 100 GB/s optical fiber internet connection a requirement to get started with a MMORPG?

 

Vendetta Online's download size is roughly 300 megabytes.  It usually takes me about 10 minutes or less to get the game installed and start playing on a new computer.  If you are using a dial-up it's going to take a bit longer.  I don't know how they kept the download size so low (a lot of procedural generation, probably), but the devs are very smart people. 

 

I'm sure there are others.

Mendel

OP, you might need to leave your PC online overnight to get your download and updates fixed.   Almost all MMORPGs can be played with a dial-up modem, but as you're experiencing, getting that initial installation of the client on your system can be a real pain.  Most installation programs are restartable -- if the connection fails, the next time you try to install / patch, the game will 'know' where it was at and continue from there.  So, even if you can't leave your PC online overnight (or the download doesn't finish), your time won't be wasted.

It would seem intelligent for a company to patch both the live client AND the new-install builds at the same time.  That way, any new game installs would not need both lengthy download and lengthy patch tasks.  Sadly, the next company that actually does that will be the first.

nerovipus32

I wish i was the OP.

Quizzical

If you're going to play an online game with other people, you have to have the same version of the game that they have:  the latest released version.  Whatever you downloaded initially was presumably an older version, as game companies don't necessarily update the download version every single time they patch the game.  Once you've installed that, you next have to download any patches that released between the version that you downloaded and the latest version.  That's why it seems like there are several downloads.