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Is this the game for me?
Mills007
Member UncommonPosts: 55
Subject line says it all... is this the game for me (at least until WAR comes out)? Wall of text to follow...
I am about a decade into my MMO playing life, having started with EQ and played nearly every major (and some minor) MMO released since then for at least some length of time. I loved my first experiences in EQ... the night I created my account and logged in and started in Surefall Glade. I made my way to Qeynos Hills (after stumbling around in the dark tunnel between the two zones) at night and found the event with Varsoon up and running. Holy $*@#! People higher level than me in gear much more colorful than mine were sitting around medding and healing while they waited for the next wave of big ol' skeles to come rambling up the path. It was glorious. I felt so wound up as I ran the path to the little shop about halfway to Qeynos, where another group was waiting for the next group of big skeles. I was hooked that night.
I played pretty regularly (wouldn't ever call what I did "hardcore", sine it took me nearly a year to get to like level 25) with a group of friends. We were all new, didn't have sites like Allakhazam, and dabbled in a little of everything. As my circle of friends brought more people online with us, we grew and there was always someone on that you knew or was a friend-of-a-friend to play with.
During that time, no other game I dabbled in came close (though I never picked up UO) to matchign the fun I was having in EQ. I eventually shelved EQ for SWG, which had a horrible launch... it didn't help that I was comparing a game that was essentially released in beta form with a game that had been out for years at that point. Even with the issues, I eventually came to enjoy the idea of having my own house/footprint in the game world, taming beasts, etc. However, it was never enough to keep me "hooked".
So, I floundered around from game to game until I go the invite to the WoW beta test. I liked it because it was a change of pace. There were quests aplenty. I could casual play/solo play my way through most of the content. Once the game was released, I had a new baby at home, the group of friends I had to play online games with had dwindled (for similar family-startup reasons), and I had less time to play. I picked up EQ2 as well, but found the simplified WoW gameplay to be to my liking at the time.
P.S. - I was going to ask this question in the official forum on the Vanguard site, but all I can find is a Tech Support forum, no general or gameplay forums... that's not a good sign. Either they don't exist or I couldn't find them, either of which is a problem.
So, here I sit today, waiting on WAR. It looks great on paper, we'll see how it gets pulled off. At that point, 'll go back to gaming a little more heavily, but again, will never be "hardcore". In the meantime, I can't decide whether or not to stick it out with WoW and get my BE Paladin leveled up or if I should pick up a copy of Vanguard. My system isn't bad, but neither is it top of the line, and I read about performance issues a lot in Vanguard, so I'm concerned about how/if it will even run. Assuming it does run well, I'm looking forward to creating a character, owning a piece of property, and living my online days as a small time farmer and tavern keeper (like to roleplay some, if in the mood for it). I have a second child now (2 kids under 2 1/2 years old) and only play for a couple hours in the evenings and a little more than that on the weekends... maybe 4-6 hours a day on Sat and Sun. I could care less about the high-end dungeons and best gear. I want to own a small farm, maybe dabble in cooking or brew making, tame a pet and maybe teach it a few tricks, and keep a place open for wandering travelers or regular customers. I want to know if I can create and lead this kind of in-game life now and do so enjoyably until WAR is released, or if this game doesn't offer what I'm looking for, would require more time than what I have to commit to it, or is lacking features that won't let me be what I want to be in Vanguard until I throw down for "expansion" content in 6 months that is really content left out at release.
Please, let me know what your expereinces have been in Vanguard and if you think thaqt this would be the game for me!
Comments
Short answer - Yes, this game was made for you.
Caveats:
- your gaming system will prolly have the biggest impact on your enjoyment. You will get all sorts of advice on your system but basically if your vid card is worth $150 or more and you have at least 1gb of ram (2gb highly recommended), you should be fine.
- with your experience in EQ you will find yourself right at home - but that home is still being built, much as EQ was in the beginning. Expect some construction difficulties.
- if you are a guild leader in WoW and your guild mates want you on as much as possible, don't pick this game up yet - you may not want to return Azeroth. (ok, personal issue there ... )
There are no downloadable free trials for Vanguard yet. Only free trials are if you get a "Buddy key". And handing out buddy keys through MMORPG has been deemed a "no-no".
Never be afraid of choices. More choices are always good things.
If you enjoyed EQ you will probaly like this. Despite being captivated by many aspects of that particular title there was much that just felt like 'work' rather than fun to me. I think it is safe to say VG is a title that will require what the fans call dedication and hardcore play. The detracters will refer to these same features as grind and mindless repetition.
Cheers.