I wish sometimes I never even played pre-2004 MMO's. Then maybe I could find happiness in current MMO's. I doubt I will see anything that can match pre-2004 MMO's.
With you feeling the golden-age is after 2010. Then you are probably in luck, and someday there will likely be something that is better than MMO's from 2010 - current. Unfortunately the top games WoW, FF XIV and ESO are all worse now then many years ago. Of those I would probably lean to ESO, but that's not saying much.
As oher mentioned for me the golden age of MMO's is before but it may be to early to say. Since the MMOs are still a pretty recent genre compared to the comics that runs for almost a century from wich these golden, silver, bronze ages comes from in popular culture.
For me the apex of the golden age of MMOs are Lineage II in 2003 devloping the F2P model with laws in Korea to prohibit item trading on eBay and WOW in 2006 that made the MMO concept known to the world with millions of players. It was a pretty confidential genre before with UO and a couple other games runnings Lineage II with the crasy Korean seling their house for Calibur and WOW with his milions of dollar of benefits atracting plenty of company to try to get their part of the jackpot launched the Silver age, an age of decadence according to the old greeks.
Around 2010 I was playing CoX and then DCUO and I regret that time to but for diferent reason.
For me what changed since is not the grindy part. I started on Lineage II myself and played other Korean F2P MMOs that where epic grindy and the end game of DCUO implied to run raids after raids that was just another way to grind. MMOS with their random rarity loot have always been no life games the raid graded item removed the randomness but not the work.
What changed the most imo is the Action MMOs that arived with Tera that require skills instead of just pure work. I liked a game that reward long hard work over faster reflexes MMO where relaxing farming halfd absentmidlessely like a zombi.
If I wanted to prove my skils I played some LOL whereI mained Nami for 10 years before my reflexes recently did go to dull for enjoing PvP. In MMOs the dificulty was not the factor at the time anyone could do a raid in DCUO that was based on the CoX model of classical MMOs. It was the ime involved that made you stand out of the crowd. In 2011 Tera changed that introducing Action MMOs. It wasent the first MMORPG where you had to aim just the emphasis on skills was their selling argument and changed the genre.
Most new games these days are action MMOs, goodbye tab targeting and spaming your powers at a boss without moving, leting the tank take all the damage with an occasional slow huge AoE now and then. You need to move a lot more and target.
Geting older you get less skills and the games ask for more these days. I wish they made more casual no skill involve games like back then.
Like others here, I mainly play single player games these days. Whewn I get an MMO itch I will play either Wizard101 (a kind of "kiddie" setting) or GW 2 if I'm desperate. Wizard101 is not F2P (if you're curious) but does have it first combat zone (Unicorn Way) that you can try as a demo. Or you can sub for $9.95 USD. You can also purchase zones separately (there are lots of zones) and dungeons.
Haha, I remember playing Wizard101 for a single day way back. I did get a few laughs out of it and thought it was cute. I've grown out of "kiddie" and "cartoony" games a long time ago (not saying you're a kid, or that people who gravitate towards "kiddie" or "cartoony" games are manchildren either. It's just a matter of preference, I guess). Hence why I've stayed far away from WoW after Wrath of the Lich King. The artstyle is just too cartoony for me now not to notice.
What are you looking for in an MMO? Are there any items / features you DON'T WANT to see? Are you willing to (re)play older MMOs?
1. Anything new and original. Not like today's MMOs where they still have Orcs and Dwarves as races. IGET IT, I get it. High Fantasy has broad appeal, everybody loves 'em some D&D stuff and LoTR was awesome but I kinda miss being able to explore a world where it's more about traversing ethereal realms outside of the High Fantasy spectrum. There can still be unicorns, but I also want to be able to meet other astral beings besides elves or fairies.
Basically I'm searching for an MMO experience that will allow me to astral travel without needing to go into deep meditation and vast for days in order to attain that level of enlightment. I want to be an enlightened being in an unenlightened world, if that makes sense. I want the easy way out is what I'm saying.
2. I'm fine with just about anything. As long as it isn't primarily focused on building houses or maintaining fortes. I'm already a poor housekeeper, how will I be able to take care of my structures if I'm gone for a couple of days or just plain lazy? I DO like the idea of having to defend territory. I like beating the shit out of other people (in-game, that is). Especially if they threaten to kill my brethren. I also like beating the shit out of people in their own territory. I like competitive PvP, but I don't like competitive PvP where the fairness of it is primarily determined by cash shops. I want an honorable fight...
I also don't really like crafting? They should find a way to make crafting fun. Like, maybe turn it into a mini-game of Tetris. Every time you win a round, you've crafted a new healing potion for yourself.
Combat HAS to be action-oriented. Sorry, but I don't have time to wait for someone to make the next move. Turn-based, tab targeting and cooldowns are what really set me off. A hack-and-slash MMO without the mindless butchering would be an ideal pick for me.
3. Sure, age is just a number. In fact, I prefer playing vintage games over the new ones. A couple of weeks ago I replayed ICO and Shadow of the Colossus on my PC with a PS2 simulator. I really do think that games in the past were much more stylish and sophisticated than they are now... I'm like you in that sense, heh.
ESO has good quest variety, all well presented, varying in scope from small isolated stories to extended campaigns. There isn't much fetching to be had.
I'm looking forward to playing ESO the most. From what I gather, the devs seem involved enough with the community to actually listen and do something about their game if necessary. Since ES is an old franchise, I hope to find more "older" players like yourselves that I can party with . I dread having to deal with teenagers all over again.
I also thought that you were going to say 1998-2005 or something like that when you mentioned the golden era. If that had been the case, I would have told you that there is nothing to come back to as this genre no longer exists and was substituted by whatever it is that they call MMO / MMORPG today.
For me, mid 2010's were already an era of decline and fall of the genre. Therefore, I feel I am not the best person to comment on this.
No, I think it's great that people are responding who have no idea what I'm talking about.
I think it's funny that so many here are convinced that MMOs died out around the mid 2010s, just when I started to fall in love with them. Makes me wonder how much one's memory and perception is determined by certain phases in their life. What I may think is shitty today, may be somebody else's greatest joy tomorrow and vice versa.
Most new games these days are action MMOs, goodbye tab targeting and spaming your powers at a boss without moving, leting the tank take all the damage with an occasional slow huge AoE now and then. You need to move a lot more and target.
Geting older you get less skills and the games ask for more these days. I wish they made more casual no skill involve games like back then.
(I go back running in BDO)
Whoa, I'm the exact opposite of you! I USED to not mind "casual" gaming like tab targeting and such, but that has changed significantly for now that I'm back to playing MMOs. It doesn't provide me with much of a thrill at all. But maybe my needs will shift over a couple of years, too.
PHEW!!! *wipes the sweat off her brow* Sorry if you have to skim through this post to find your reply, but I don't want to spam this thread either. Not even for the points, heh. I hope I was able to answer everyone. Now I'm off to actual playing! See you in NWO or in ESO (just look for Faileas or Sunny D), and I'll be sure to come back to tell you all how awful they were in comparison to the MMOs in my days. Happy Gaming!
I also thought that you were going to say 1998-2005 or something like that when you mentioned the golden era. If that had been the case, I would have told you that there is nothing to come back to as this genre no longer exists and was substituted by whatever it is that they call MMO / MMORPG today.
For me, mid 2010's were already an era of decline and fall of the genre. Therefore, I feel I am not the best person to comment on this.
No, I think it's great that people are responding who have no idea what I'm talking about.
I think it's funny that so many here are convinced that MMOs died out around the mid 2010s, just when I started to fall in love with them. Makes me wonder how much one's memory and perception is determined by certain phases in their life. What I may think is shitty today, may be somebody else's greatest joy tomorrow and vice versa.
The mid 2010s = 2014, 2015 and 2016.
That is indeed when MMOs started dying out in the west (asian mmos have continued to be released since then).
The last AAA MMORPGs to be released by western developers were Wildstar and ESO....in 2014. So, we're going on 7 years now without a AAA MMORPG being released by a western developer. That's a pretty dead industry. Even if you look at indie MMORPGs, there have only been a couple: I can only think of Albion off the top of my head.
So, if you don't like the Asian aesthetic, or the typical approach to game design by Asian developers, then yeh, the genre is dying and nearly dead.
The future doesn't look that great either. The only big budget MMORPGs currently in development by western studios are New World and Star Citizen. That we know about anyway. And both of those games have had a lot of problems.
Of course, when you said mid-2010s, you then talked about WAR (2008), Chronicles of Spellborn (2008) and RIFT (2011?), so I'm pretty sure you just used the wrong terminology in your original post, hence all the disagreement in this thread.
Most new games these days are action MMOs, goodbye tab targeting and spaming your powers at a boss without moving, leting the tank take all the damage with an occasional slow huge AoE now and then. You need to move a lot more and target.
Geting older you get less skills and the games ask for more these days. I wish they made more casual no skill involve games like back then.
(I go back running in BDO)
Whoa, I'm the exact opposite of you! I USED to not mind "casual" gaming like tab targeting and such, but that has changed significantly for now that I'm back to playing MMOs. It doesn't provide me with much of a thrill at all. But maybe my needs will shift over a couple of years, too.
Tab Target =/= casual gaming
Easy = casual, challenging = thrilling
Tab target just has a completely different way of introducing challenge in comparison to action combat. Action combat focuses its difficulty on the physicality of the player: reaction times, accuracy, timing etc. Tab-target focuses it's difficulty on decision making and tactics.
What you find enjoyable is totally personal preference, there are easy games and hard games in both categories.......though mostly easy. Personally, I hate action combat, I find it boring as shit, despite the generally faster pace. But, thats because I prefer challenging decision making in my games, and not challenging reaction times and aiming.
Currently Playing: WAR RoR - Spitt rr7X Black Orc | Scrotling rr6X Squig Herder | Scabrous rr4X Shaman
Egotism is the anesthetic that dullens the pain of stupidity, this is why when I try to beat my head against the stupidity of other people, I only hurt myself.
I'm looking forward to playing ESO the most. From what I gather, the devs seem involved enough with the community to actually listen and do something about their game if necessary. Since ES is an old franchise, I hope to find more "older" players like yourselves that I can party with . I dread having to deal with teenagers all over again.
I don't know how well the developers listen, but do know that I've enjoyed the vast majority of what they have done and expect that to continue. I don't spend time in their forums so don't know how they interact there.
The game is fairly popular so you may run into some younger players, but perhaps not so much as would be attracted by final fantasy and such. I'm sure you can find a guild focused on older and hopefully more mature players.
The main thing I like about the game is the freedom it allows players in how they approach the game. Scaling allows players to adventure where and how they like. There are abundant quality PvE quests. Those that would rather level with PvP can do so from level 10 and onward (which takes little time.)
One can level a character entirely through crafting if desired, though that kind of play would be better experienced in other games.
Build diversity is also decent, with each class having three inherent skill lines with associated passives, racial passives, NPC guild skill lines and passives, vampiric and lycanthropic skill lines and passives for those so afflicted (exclusive to each other), and some other odds and ends. It is very much like building your own individual character from those pieces you select from a bucked of old school lego.
Another nice thing about the game is that it lacks the ongoing obsolescence of content and gear found in many MMORPGs. The content scales with your character so you can't outlevel it. The gear that comes along with expansions adds to the pool of that available rather than transcending it, giving more options and doing away with the need to aggressively chase what was added.
I feel the game offers a fair bit, and even if it isn't precisely what a person wants I believe it a good place to spend time while waiting for what is.
*sigh* Just when I was about to play NWO, I had to start making dinner. Today I have a last minute work project that I can't squeeze my way out of, either. I hope tomorrow I'll be able to devote my entire day to NW Online and possibly ESO. I just want ONE DAY, just ONE DAY where I can completely loose myself in a game again. I don't want to go into bed unless I'm so tired that I can't keep my eyes open anymore...
The last AAA MMORPGs to be released by western developers were Wildstar and ESO....in 2014. So, we're going on 7 years now without a AAA MMORPG being released by a western developer. That's a pretty dead industry. Even if you look at indie MMORPGs, there have only been a couple: I can only think of Albion off the top of my head.
So, if you don't like the Asian aesthetic, or the typical approach to game design by Asian developers, then yeh, the genre is dying and nearly dead.
Yeah, when I was writing that post I was like: "Wait a sec, how come I'm only mentioning Western games and not Asian ones? I remember playing a buttload of Asian MMOs, too... Were they really all that mediocre, then?" The only Asian MMO that I might add is Dragon Nest Dragon Saga, I felt that game aesthetically wasn't like the rest (to be fair, it was still very kawaii and a 3D copy of Maple Story in terms of gameplay, maybe not that exceptional after all...). Hm, Tera then? Like others have said, it did bring action combat to MMOs so that's something to consider. But I only remembered Tera because you guys started talking about it, haha. I had completely forgotten about that game, so it must not have been all that noteworthy.
The future doesn't look that great either. The only big budget MMORPGs currently in development by western studios are New World and Star Citizen. That we know about anyway. And both of those games have had a lot of problems.
Yeeeeah... New World... New World, one person made a YT vid about the gameplay and it was only about gathering treasure chests. Seriously, that was it. But that vid was a pretty old one, so maybe new things have been added now. Aesthetic wise, I think New World looks very realistic, but when I say "realistic", I mean it looks boring. Sure, if you're into conquistadores and like the "Old World" vibe, but I think they completely took that concept into the wrong direction. The "mystical" part of it with all the scary glowey monsters is what turned me down from wanting to play that game. Either it's going to be "European settlers discover South America and butcher the place" with some "mysterious Amazon tribes" features sprinkled into it, or then... Just don't do it? It seems tacky to me.
Star Citizen? I've vaguely heard about that name before. Sci FI is not my genre, unless you're allowed to go to other planets and spend most of your time there, each with their own unique ecospheres and inhabitants. I don't like walking down endless steel corridors. It's not friendly or warm at all. Sci Fi games remind me too much of my time waiting at the dentist office. Everything is white or cold steel. I'd much rather go into the woods or some other organic place where I'm met with weird looking critters, not robots.
...the genre is dying and nearly dead.
It's a sad thing. I think MMOs have so much potential. Who doesn't want to escape the drudgery that is called life? Don't must of us do? I think that's what MMOs offer apart from movies and TV shows. Plus, you still get to be connected with the outside world, just differently and in a more engaging way.
Of course, when you said mid-2010s, you then talked about WAR (2008), Chronicles of Spellborn (2008) and RIFT (2011?), so I'm pretty sure you just used the wrong terminology in your original post, hence all the disagreement in this thread.
HUH, am I really that old then? Or was I really that young when I played those game??? I distinctly recall playing those games in the mid 2010s... But I'm afraid you're right! Sorry for all the confusion this might have caused... WAR: 2008... Chronicles of Spellborn: 2008... Rift: 2011...Holy Cow, I was 15 when I played these games!!! Then I've been away from MMOs from... more than a decade now. Now that's just tragic, haha. Ugh, hate being made self-aware of my age...
Yeah. I played it till lvl 40, then got bored of it. I think the only thing that made Tera special was its combat system. Everything else was either about raiding dungeons and fetch quests. Very linear from A-2-B gaming. I never tried the PvP side of the game, though... I don't know why, I just didn't see it as an option at the time. I do miss playing my Baraka Priest "Adonai", though, he was such a cutey...
I feel the game offers a fair bit, and even if it isn't precisely what a person wants I believe it a good place to spend time while waiting for what is.
I like how ESO isn't just Skyrim Online. They kept the original look & feel from the old Elder Scrolls games, which I think is nice. Morrowind holds a special place in my heart... If it's going to give me a similar experience to Morrowind, I'm already satisfied.
EDIT: I just did a quick Google search for Dragon's Nest and when I saw screencaps of it I thought... This is not the Maple Story 3D clone I remember. It turns out I was talking about Dragon Saga! But now that I brought up Dragon's Nest, I do believe that game deserves an honorable mention. It tried something different than most MMOs, in that it had really nice artwork, the combat style was fun and dynamic. The reason I quitted Dragon Nest was because it was so heavily instance based.
*sigh* Just when I was about to play NWO, I had to start making dinner.
Don't know how far you're in to it, but Neverwinter has a "facebook minigame"-like (some hate it, some like it) system the Workshop, which basically serves as the crafting. Opens up somewhere around level 15-20, don't remember exactly.
You send out your gatherers for raw materials, assign the artisans to work, and then you can close the game and make dinner, they're working in the background
Optional system (which is good for those hating it), but can be a good source of gold, and some decent enough armour and weapon pieces during leveling.
1. Anything new and original. Not like today's MMOs where they still have Orcs and Dwarves as races.
[...] Basically I'm searching for an MMO experience that will allow me to astral travel without needing to go into deep meditation and vast for days in order to attain that level of enlightment.
2. I DO like the idea of having to defend territory. I like beating the shit out of other people (in-game, that is). ...
Combat HAS to be action-oriented. Sorry, but I don't have time to wait for someone to make the next move. Turn-based, tab targeting and cooldowns are what really set me off.
too bad you've missed TSW, it was right at the time of your mid-2010 (from 2012-2017).
New and original (modern day) setting, territory-based persistent 3 faction pvp in Fusang, "astral travel" in form of anima travel, and while tab target it offered a mouse aim mode as well (though still with the 1 sec GCD on abilities).
STILL haven't been able to play NW Online, can you believe that? F*cking clients with their outrageous demands. I want this changed, I want that changed. SHUT UP JUST SHUT UP!!! Thank heavens I'm not a MMO game developer... Ungrateful pieces of sh*ts. I need a place to vent my anger and it's going to be here.
*sigh* Just when I was about to play NWO, I had to start making dinner.
Don't know how far you're in to it, but Neverwinter has a "facebook minigame"-like (some hate it, some like it) system the Workshop, which basically serves as the crafting. Opens up somewhere around level 15-20, don't remember exactly.
You send out your gatherers for raw materials, assign the artisans to work, and then you can close the game and make dinner, they're working in the background
Optional system (which is good for those hating it), but can be a good source of gold, and some decent enough armour and weapon pieces during leveling.
Facebook... Is that the place where Internet people go to for socialising? I don't understand that.
1. Anything new and original. Not like today's MMOs where they still have Orcs and Dwarves as races.
[...] Basically I'm searching for an MMO experience that will allow me to astral travel without needing to go into deep meditation and vast for days in order to attain that level of enlightment.
2. I DO like the idea of having to defend territory. I like beating the shit out of other people (in-game, that is). ...
Combat HAS to be action-oriented. Sorry, but I don't have time to wait for someone to make the next move. Turn-based, tab targeting and cooldowns are what really set me off.
too bad you've missed TSW, it was right at the time of your mid-2010 (from 2012-2017).
New and original (modern day) setting, territory-based persistent 3 faction pvp in Fusang, "astral travel" in form of anima travel, and while tab target it offered a mouse aim mode as well (though still with the 1 sec GCD on abilities).
How did I miss The Secret World? I don't recognize it at all. I must have already quitted MMOs by that time, because I otherwise would have known about it... I like the concept, it's original for MMO terms, so that's good. I'm not too crazy about the modern setting, though... I don't think I would have played this MMO for very long, but thanks for mentioning it anyway. It's always nice to learn about new things.
Pantheon and Ashes of Creation. Kinda lost hope for Pantheon for a while, but the last couple of streams and videos has has reignited my expectations
Pantheon and Ashes of Creation's artstyle doesn't really appeal to me that much. Again, it's too realistic and either/or D&D/LoTR inspired. I'm only going to support games that are unique in their appearance and gameplay. Also, are you an adbot for MMOCult.com or something? Who are you?
The top 3 Western MMOs right now - and I'm confining it to "Western" because they are typically not as grindy - are WOW (still,) FFXIV and ESO.
WOW no longer requires an initial purchase, just a sub, It has changed a lot and there's a permanent free trial to level 20 with as many different characters/classes as you want. After that, it's a must sub to play. PC only.
FFXIV is B2P and must sub. PC and consoles.
ESO is B2P and sub optional. PC and consoles.
My suggestion is that you check those 3 out in whatever order and maybe one of them will draw you in.
The only problem with that is you have to pay before you play...I'd recommend going to Youtube and watching gameplay videos of these games and see if it looks like something you would like...I was lucky I got to try FFXIV on a free trial.... The tutorial is awful...They say if you can ge tthrough that its a good game, but I couldn't stand it.....
ESO is just meh...The quests make you run around aimlessly alot....I don't remember the name of the city, but it had one section where the questgivers were in this big mazelike building, and they were all a pain in the butt to find...To me that is not fun...Also the combat and animations are subpar.
How did I miss The Secret World? I don't recognize it at all. I must have already quitted MMOs by that time, because I otherwise would have known about it... I like the concept, it's original for MMO terms, so that's good. I'm not too crazy about the modern setting, though... I don't think I would have played this MMO for very long, but thanks for mentioning it anyway. It's always nice to learn about new things.
It wasn't "too crazy" about the modern setting either, the main concept of the game was it's the current world (at launch it was 2012), but with every myth and conspiracy theory is true. That was the game's motto as well, "Everything is true".
As a member of a secret society your task was to keep this "secret" world hidden from the "real" world, since when something or someone slips, that's how those myths born and people start talking about mummy/vampire/werewolf/etc.
The only problem with that is you have to pay before you play...I'd recommend going to Youtube and watching gameplay videos of these games and see if it looks like something you would like...I was lucky I got to try FFXIV on a free trial.... The tutorial is awful...They say if you can ge tthrough that its a good game, but I couldn't stand it.....
I pre-ordered FFXIV actually solely for the artbook. It was for the PS3 and I didn't even have a PS3 back then. Craziest purchase I've ever done... Again, I think the world and character designs in FFXIV look amazing, I'm truly a diehard fan of Naoki Yoshida. I secretly wish there was an MMO with the same epic and scope of FFXII. But I don't like sub-based games, especially not if I don't know what they're going to be like later in the game. There's also something about playing MMO games around launch time that makes them more special to me... Everyone is new and hasn't formed groups of their own yet, so it's easier to make friends and do quests/dungeons together. I feel like if I played it now, I'd be the only player in the starter fields having no clue what they're doing. I also don't want some veteran player come around the corner to hold my hand.
ESO is just meh...The quests make you run around aimlessly alot....I don't remember the name of the city, but it had one section where the questgivers were in this big mazelike building, and they were all a pain in the butt to find...To me that is not fun...Also the combat and animations are subpar.
Why do you say that? My brother just bought ESO for me together with all the expansion packs... When the "Morrowind" theme song started playing, I swear tears were rolling down my cheeks. I don't think I've been so moved by anything in a while now. I've been away from gaming for far too long...
It wasn't "too crazy" about the modern setting either, the main concept of the game was it's the current world (at launch it was 2012), but with every myth and conspiracy theory is true. That was the game's motto as well, "Everything is true".
As a member of a secret society your task was to keep this "secret" world hidden from the "real" world, since when something or someone slips, that's how those myths born and people start talking about mummy/vampire/werewolf/etc.
(maybe a bit too positive, they too mention honeymoon phase...)
Whaaat, are you kidding me? Where was I when this game was released? I feel so sad now... This sounds exactly like my jam. I love me some bigfoot and alien conspiracy theory stuff. I want to be taken by an alien spaceship and brought to the planet Niburu to mine gold for the the skygod Enki. Fight off tall, red-haired Nephilim giants with my in-game pals...
Also: https://youtu.be/SJqKtdxe5TI?t=121 Well, hello there... Hehe, nice to--...OH... OH NO NOOOOOO YOU HAVEN'T TAKE ME OUT TO DINNER YET, WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING!!! X)
Whaaat, are you kidding me? Where was I when this game was released? I feel so sad now... This sounds exactly like my jam. I love me some bigfoot and alien conspiracy theory stuff. I want to be taken by an alien spaceship and brought to the planet Niburu to mine gold for the the skygod Enki. Fight off tall, red-haired Nephilim giants with my in-game pals...
Also: https://youtu.be/SJqKtdxe5TI?t=121 Well, hello there... Hehe, nice to--...OH... OH NO NOOOOOO YOU HAVEN'T TAKE ME OUT TO DINNER YET, WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING!!! X)
Yep, it was a running joke back then: "I just joined the Dragon for the blowjob from Hana"
(all three factions had an out-of-body experience as initiation, and the other two were less enjoyable, Illuminati just pumped you full of drugs for instance, and while you were passed out they also grafted a chip to your spine for tracking and/or remote detonation in case you misbehave)
For the rest of the list:
conspiracy theory stuff - yep, in massive numbers. Not the recent batch of idiocy which only got popular by riding the social media fad though. But if the theory was present in the '90s or before (X-files ), it was at least mentioned somewhere in the game, most likely.
alien spaceships - no to that, but there's a Cold War-era soviet space program in remnants (phantom cosmonauts, space travel without vessels), and Area 51 referenced a lot.
bigfoot - sasquatches were there, part of the good guys on the player's side, some missions revolved around helping them or defend them (sasquatch rescue from the evil bugs https://youtu.be/c9ty63_BHf0 )
nephilim - were there, not as giants but in the original Enochian sense, as fallen "angels" (and their counterpart the grigori were there too). Not just in the lore, or as main actors behind the scenes, but one of the endbosses (Eblis in Hell Eternal) was nephilim too, as I remember.
Whaaat, are you kidding me? Where was I when this game was released? I feel so sad now... This sounds exactly like my jam. I love me some bigfoot and alien conspiracy theory stuff. I want to be taken by an alien spaceship and brought to the planet Niburu to mine gold for the the skygod Enki. Fight off tall, red-haired Nephilim giants with my in-game pals...
Well then, good news. You didn't miss it, not the essence of it anyway.
While The Secret World is no longer supported, that is because it was replaced with Secret World Legends. It is run by the same company, and has the same story and setting as the prior game.
It has a more streamlined character building system, which some TSW players don't like and is partly the reason many of them like to pretend it doesn't exist. However, since you didn't play the first game you likely won't find it an issue.
If you like horror and conspiracy it's well worth giving a shot:
It has a more streamlined character building system, which some TSW players don't like and is partly the reason many of them like to pretend it doesn't exist.
Pretend? Ok, I can't speak for all, naturally, but for me it really does not exist
But, as Prof. Tosspot said at its launch (https://youtu.be/DiEKJ0_K9nY ) I guess you could play it for the story... but only if all the rest, what was mentioned in the other review, aren't important to you.
The no levels, no classes, no handholding, the flexibility and challenge, etc. are all gone from Legends. It has levels, classes, dumbed to the ground, hand holding without any challenge...
Not to mention two elements specifically quoted during the course of the thread:
-no grind. Legends is like a generic korean grinder with TSW skin, all those handholdy, dumbed down easification changes were countered with grind. The typical present day "gameplay" of low challenge where longevity was achieved by grind upon grind.
-pvp (bonus points for territory based). Legends doesn't have TSW's pvp zones, except the smallest/shortest (and ofc the most boring one), Shambala.
Naturally, since it ain't an MMORPG anymore, the player cap was reduced severely on the zones.
(TSW's Fusang on its heydays had near 500 players at once, fighting all over the zone to control wells (respawn points) and the facilities)
But sure, if one can ignore the generic, boring and grindy gameplay, TSW's story and missions are still there in Legends...
You'd like action combat, no gathering/crafting, some consensual PvP, no high fantasy, no SciFi, no subscription, no free to play.
Besides being impractically fussy given you seem to know the genre it sounds like instead you want an action RPG with "games as a service" or multiplayer elements. Red Dead Online, but make it cosmic.
If the game you want existed and was actually any good I think it wouldn't be hard to find.
It has a more streamlined character building system, which some TSW players don't like and is partly the reason many of them like to pretend it doesn't exist.
Pretend? Ok, I can't speak for all, naturally, but for me it really does not exist
But, as Prof. Tosspot said at its launch (https://youtu.be/DiEKJ0_K9nY ) I guess you could play it for the story... but only if all the rest, what was mentioned in the other review, aren't important to you.
The no levels, no classes, no handholding, the flexibility and challenge, etc. are all gone from Legends. It has levels, classes, dumbed to the ground, hand holding without any challenge...
Not to mention two elements specifically quoted during the course of the thread:
-no grind. Legends is like a generic korean grinder with TSW skin, all those handholdy, dumbed down easification changes were countered with grind. The typical present day "gameplay" of low challenge where longevity was achieved by grind upon grind.
-pvp (bonus points for territory based). Legends doesn't have TSW's pvp zones, except the smallest/shortest (and ofc the most boring one), Shambala.
Naturally, since it ain't an MMORPG anymore, the player cap was reduced severely on the zones.
(TSW's Fusang on its heydays had near 500 players at once, fighting all over the zone to control wells (respawn points) and the facilities)
But sure, if one can ignore the generic, boring and grindy gameplay, TSW's story and missions are still there in Legends...
It can not exist for you if you like, but others should be aware of the new version so they can choose for themselves if it exits for them.
Yes, one can play for the setting and story, which in my view is the main draw of the game anyway. The flexibility is less than it what but the system still allows for character diversity and is more accessible.
Being a game of horror, conspiracy, and such, it makes sense to have a lower cap on zone population to maintain the feeling of isolation fitting to those genres.
The lack of PvP zones would be an issue for those that enjoy such, so I can understand why that would be a bother. For those that don't it's a non-issue.
Regardless, if one wants to experience the Secret World at this point, Legends is the only game in town. For those not too hung up on the what was of TSW, SWL would be well worth at least playing through once for the setting and story alone.
But sure, if one can ignore the generic, boring and grindy gameplay, TSW's story and missions are still there in Legends...
For those not too hung up on the what was of TSW, SWL would be well worth at least playing through once for the setting and story alone.
Agree on that, I said the same... just with disclaimers
Since OP specifically mentioned not wanting grind, and Legends is, as the puppet Prof says (for the gear upgrade, at least), "It's very simple, very boring, and full of grind."
Without derailing the thread into an off-topic discussion, just have to address this false PR stunt which looks like worked all too well, if people still bringing it up near 4 years later...
Being a game of horror, conspiracy, and such, it makes sense to have a lower cap on zone population to maintain the feeling of isolation fitting to those genres.
That's bull.
Player count has worked for 5 years perfectly, the game was designed that way, with the world bosses, etc.
The whole "Legends ain't an MMORPG anymore, it's an online action game" rebranding was a must, due to technical issues (paired with Funcom's laziness).
Mind you, it started in TSW even, after ignoring the game for years without actual development, the lag and crashes got so bad, for the last year they had to reduce the player cap to 40 in the world, and 150 (maybe even to 120?) in Fusang - that's why I posted above the pvp had near 500 players, in the heydays.
But when the Legends idea came up and they started to meddle with the code to squeeze in their precious reticule action combat, they realised even that lowered 40 cap won't fly.
Enter the PR stunt of "Not massively anymore, for immersion and isolation".
ed. to steer back for the thread's topic, how about AoC? Sure, it was already said
It kinda felt like Age of Conan to me. It was OK. Just... OK.
but who knows, depends on when was that first time, a second try could have different outcome... It got a couple (smaller) expansions, some updates and fixes, etc.
Sure, then it was left behind by Funcom, but looking at their performance of late, that's even a good thing
AoC is currently a solid game, with a smaller playerbase and a fully free play all through the base story. (at the endgame you might need to subscribe)
That's a great question. I just had a spontaneous rush to play MMORPGs again after having finished ICO and Shadow of the Colossus. Memories came back to me of my time playing games together with others. I haven't played games for years now because I've been so preoccupied with real-life stuff. I still regret not having pre-ordered the Bravely Default Collector's Edition because I was too afraid it would distract me from my studies/work/friends.
Thanks for all the help guys, I truly appreciate it... but I don't think I can play MMORPGs anymore. My current lifestyle doesn't allow for MMORPGs, or much gaming to begin with. I just sadly clung on to them because I had such great memories of playing them, and I thought perhaps I could relive that experience again and ask fellow MMORPG enthusiast what their experience was like back in their days. Just talk about good ol' times and reminisce about the past together. You guys have no idea how much I love chatting about videogames, haha. That's why it really pains me to say all this... I'm never going to have that same MMORPG experience again. That's just the truth, and it hurts. It's never going to be like the past... Maybe I sound overly sentimental, I mean, it's just games... but I have such fond memories, it's ridiculous. How can games impact you so? Haha. Anyway, I wish you all the best and may your favorite MMO be made in the future. I still have faith in the future of MMOs, guys!!! Cheers!
Agree on that, I said the same... just with disclaimers
Since OP specifically mentioned not wanting grind, and Legends is, as the puppet Prof says (for the gear upgrade, at least), "It's very simple, very boring, and full of grind."
_______________________________
That's bull.
Player count has worked for 5 years perfectly, the game was designed that way, with the world bosses, etc.
The whole "Legends ain't an MMORPG anymore, it's an online action game" rebranding was a must, due to technical issues (paired with Funcom's laziness).
No grind is needed to play through the story, so if that is all that is intended it won't be an issue. If a player wants to keep on after and push the character to it's full potential then it will be more of factor.
It's not bull. The genre the game is based on has strong elements of isolation, with at most small groups investigating conspiracies and the like. It's a bit hard for the supernatural to induce tension and fear if one is in a small army bristling with firepower. That technical issues may have been partly responsible for the shift it still fits the setting and tone of the game well.
Comments
With you feeling the golden-age is after 2010. Then you are probably in luck, and someday there will likely be something that is better than MMO's from 2010 - current. Unfortunately the top games WoW, FF XIV and ESO are all worse now then many years ago. Of those I would probably lean to ESO, but that's not saying much.
For me the apex of the golden age of MMOs are Lineage II in 2003 devloping the F2P model with laws in Korea to prohibit item trading on eBay and WOW in 2006 that made the MMO concept known to the world with millions of players. It was a pretty confidential genre before with UO and a couple other games runnings Lineage II with the crasy Korean seling their house for Calibur and WOW with his milions of dollar of benefits atracting plenty of company to try to get their part of the jackpot launched the Silver age, an age of decadence according to the old greeks.
Around 2010 I was playing CoX and then DCUO and I regret that time to but for diferent reason.
For me what changed since is not the grindy part. I started on Lineage II myself and played other Korean F2P MMOs that where epic grindy and the end game of DCUO implied to run raids after raids that was just another way to grind. MMOS with their random rarity loot have always been no life games the raid graded item removed the randomness but not the work.
What changed the most imo is the Action MMOs that arived with Tera that require skills instead of just pure work. I liked a game that reward long hard work over faster reflexes MMO where relaxing farming halfd absentmidlessely like a zombi.
If I wanted to prove my skils I played some LOL whereI mained Nami for 10 years before my reflexes recently did go to dull for enjoing PvP. In MMOs the dificulty was not the factor at the time anyone could do a raid in DCUO that was based on the CoX model of classical MMOs. It was the ime involved that made you stand out of the crowd. In 2011 Tera changed that introducing Action MMOs. It wasent the first MMORPG where you had to aim just the emphasis on skills was their selling argument and changed the genre.
Most new games these days are action MMOs, goodbye tab targeting and spaming your powers at a boss without moving, leting the tank take all the damage with an occasional slow huge AoE now and then. You need to move a lot more and target.
Geting older you get less skills and the games ask for more these days. I wish they made more casual no skill involve games like back then.
(I go back running in BDO)
Basically I'm searching for an MMO experience that will allow me to astral travel without needing to go into deep meditation and vast for days in order to attain that level of enlightment. I want to be an enlightened being in an unenlightened world, if that makes sense. I want the easy way out is what I'm saying.
Combat HAS to be action-oriented. Sorry, but I don't have time to wait for someone to make the next move. Turn-based, tab targeting and cooldowns are what really set me off. A hack-and-slash MMO without the mindless butchering would be an ideal pick for me.
3. Sure, age is just a number.
I think it's funny that so many here are convinced that MMOs died out around the mid 2010s, just when I started to fall in love with them. Makes me wonder how much one's memory and perception is determined by certain phases in their life. What I may think is shitty today, may be somebody else's greatest joy tomorrow and vice versa.
PHEW!!! *wipes the sweat off her brow* Sorry if you have to skim through this post to find your reply, but I don't want to spam this thread either. Not even for the points, heh. I hope I was able to answer everyone. Now I'm off to actual playing! See you in NWO or in ESO (just look for Faileas or Sunny D), and I'll be sure to come back to tell you all how awful they were in comparison to the MMOs in my days. Happy Gaming!
The ability to choose your grind on any given day.
To me, that makes a huge difference.
Once upon a time....
I don't know how well the developers listen, but do know that I've enjoyed the vast majority of what they have done and expect that to continue. I don't spend time in their forums so don't know how they interact there.
The game is fairly popular so you may run into some younger players, but perhaps not so much as would be attracted by final fantasy and such. I'm sure you can find a guild focused on older and hopefully more mature players.
The main thing I like about the game is the freedom it allows players in how they approach the game. Scaling allows players to adventure where and how they like. There are abundant quality PvE quests. Those that would rather level with PvP can do so from level 10 and onward (which takes little time.)
One can level a character entirely through crafting if desired, though that kind of play would be better experienced in other games.
Build diversity is also decent, with each class having three inherent skill lines with associated passives, racial passives, NPC guild skill lines and passives, vampiric and lycanthropic skill lines and passives for those so afflicted (exclusive to each other), and some other odds and ends. It is very much like building your own individual character from those pieces you select from a bucked of old school lego.
Another nice thing about the game is that it lacks the ongoing obsolescence of content and gear found in many MMORPGs. The content scales with your character so you can't outlevel it. The gear that comes along with expansions adds to the pool of that available rather than transcending it, giving more options and doing away with the need to aggressively chase what was added.
I feel the game offers a fair bit, and even if it isn't precisely what a person wants I believe it a good place to spend time while waiting for what is.
The future doesn't look that great either. The only big budget MMORPGs currently in development by western studios are New World and Star Citizen. That we know about anyway. And both of those games have had a lot of problems.
EDIT: I just did a quick Google search for Dragon's Nest and when I saw screencaps of it I thought... This is not the Maple Story 3D clone I remember. It turns out I was talking about Dragon Saga! But now that I brought up Dragon's Nest, I do believe that game deserves an honorable mention. It tried something different than most MMOs, in that it had really nice artwork, the combat style was fun and dynamic. The reason I quitted Dragon Nest was because it was so heavily instance based.
Facebook... Is that the place where Internet people go to for socialising? I don't understand that.
How did I miss The Secret World? I don't recognize it at all. I must have already quitted MMOs by that time, because I otherwise would have known about it... I like the concept, it's original for MMO terms, so that's good. I'm not too crazy about the modern setting, though... I don't think I would have played this MMO for very long, but thanks for mentioning it anyway. It's always nice to learn about new things.
Not the recent batch of idiocy which only got popular by riding the social media fad though. But if the theory was present in the '90s or before (X-files
While The Secret World is no longer supported, that is because it was replaced with Secret World Legends. It is run by the same company, and has the same story and setting as the prior game.
It has a more streamlined character building system, which some TSW players don't like and is partly the reason many of them like to pretend it doesn't exist. However, since you didn't play the first game you likely won't find it an issue.
If you like horror and conspiracy it's well worth giving a shot:
https://www.secretworldlegends.com/
You'd like action combat, no gathering/crafting, some consensual PvP, no high fantasy, no SciFi, no subscription, no free to play.
Besides being impractically fussy given you seem to know the genre it sounds like instead you want an action RPG with "games as a service" or multiplayer elements. Red Dead Online, but make it cosmic.
If the game you want existed and was actually any good I think it wouldn't be hard to find.
It can not exist for you if you like, but others should be aware of the new version so they can choose for themselves if it exits for them.
Yes, one can play for the setting and story, which in my view is the main draw of the game anyway. The flexibility is less than it what but the system still allows for character diversity and is more accessible.
Being a game of horror, conspiracy, and such, it makes sense to have a lower cap on zone population to maintain the feeling of isolation fitting to those genres.
The lack of PvP zones would be an issue for those that enjoy such, so I can understand why that would be a bother. For those that don't it's a non-issue.
Regardless, if one wants to experience the Secret World at this point, Legends is the only game in town. For those not too hung up on the what was of TSW, SWL would be well worth at least playing through once for the setting and story alone.
Sure, it was already said
That's a great question. I just had a spontaneous rush to play MMORPGs again after having finished ICO and Shadow of the Colossus. Memories came back to me of my time playing games together with others. I haven't played games for years now because I've been so preoccupied with real-life stuff. I still regret not having pre-ordered the Bravely Default Collector's Edition because I was too afraid it would distract me from my studies/work/friends.
Thanks for all the help guys, I truly appreciate it... but I don't think I can play MMORPGs anymore. My current lifestyle doesn't allow for MMORPGs, or much gaming to begin with. I just sadly clung on to them because I had such great memories of playing them, and I thought perhaps I could relive that experience again and ask fellow MMORPG enthusiast what their experience was like back in their days. Just talk about good ol' times and reminisce about the past together. You guys have no idea how much I love chatting about videogames, haha. That's why it really pains me to say all this... I'm never going to have that same MMORPG experience again. That's just the truth, and it hurts. It's never going to be like the past... Maybe I sound overly sentimental, I mean, it's just games... but I have such fond memories, it's ridiculous. How can games impact you so? Haha. Anyway, I wish you all the best and may your favorite MMO be made in the future. I still have faith in the future of MMOs, guys!!! Cheers!
No grind is needed to play through the story, so if that is all that is intended it won't be an issue. If a player wants to keep on after and push the character to it's full potential then it will be more of factor.
It's not bull. The genre the game is based on has strong elements of isolation, with at most small groups investigating conspiracies and the like. It's a bit hard for the supernatural to induce tension and fear if one is in a small army bristling with firepower. That technical issues may have been partly responsible for the shift it still fits the setting and tone of the game well.