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Thoughts from an old timer
manofsteel
Member Posts: 19
To be honest I am scared to see the D&D brand slapped on this game. I have such fond memories of playing this game over ten years ago (when the manuals had the name Gary Gygax stamped on the front) that I hate to see anything potentially dirty the name. You might say that Wizards of the Coast has allready done that. Gary Gygax seemed to think so in an interview he gave which can be found here. I almost feel in a crazy way that the game should be given to the players, never again to be touched by the corporate world. The old system should be brought back and recognized as a national treasure (again, crazy talk). I suppose you could always stick to the old books, but I am digressing. I wonder what D&D could bring to the MMORPG world when it was really the D&D playing style that fathered the whole genre. Comparing D&D to other MMORPG's is like comparing todays rappers to the pioneers who made it all possible for the new talent of today. Yet here it is, being made into an MMORPG, but this is not the D&D I had previously mentioned. This is simply an MMORPG that could really have any name, but D&D was chosen for brand power. Ultimately it all comes down to the player experience. D&D was always about the player experience which is why I still remember it so fondly. Even if it does not play exactly as the original pen and pencil version (which it will not), it can still pioneer a new experience. My earliest memories of this game are priceless and this same type of value seems to be in short supply in the MMORPG world today. The genre is still relatively new so I have no complaints. You may even consider us to be slightly past the "pong" stage of MMORPG's. There is much to be gained, and I am rooting for this game to "blow it up". The fantasy world created by Gary Gygax and company still set the standard from which I judge movies and books of mythical beings and magical lands. When I see an elf or dragon in a movie my brain automatically references the database built from how an elf or dragon looked and acted in the D&D setting. For this reason some of the other MMORPG's seemed so cheasy to me. EQ just cannot make a dragon that can satisfy! If it can't be found in Monster Manual I am not interested. The only one that I have been able to stomach is Anarchy Online which is futuristic. I guess this is further evidence of how powerful D&D was in shaping the minds of the fans. Maybe this will give D&D an edge over the others. The graphics look great and if they stay true to the image the fans carry then they will have a real chance. I also want to add that I think it is good to start in a new world. In my opinion the lands like Forgotten Realms and Dragonlance are better for building a story around the game as opposed to pure game play. This gives the developers and players full reign to do as they please in creating a new story. If this game were to be in Forgotten Realms I would be afraid the developers would commit sacrilage by killing off Drizzt or whoring out Elminster as a cheap NPC doing stupid wizard tricks. I would however love to be able to travel the lands of Mystara which didn't have as much of a story. I think it would be great to be able to personalize your character by starting a Wizard from Glantri or a barbarian from Ethengar. It would also be great if they included some of the oldest modules as group only quests. Wouldn't be a great thing to relive the crazy decrees from the Duke of Rhoona in the Curse of Xanathon? It would just be too much to take a group of friends through the The Keep on the Borderlands module, it would make my day. Anyways, I am rambling... thanks for listening!
Comments
If DnD Online stuck as close as possible to the paper and pencil version then it will be a success.
I am not PvP fan but in paper and pencil death is a reality no matter where you go (civilized or wilds).
No crafting? Good grief.
If at launch they suppored the races and classes in the Player's Handbook that would be a good start. Adding content over periods of time.
The world needs to be dynamic and limitless in space. No place is inaccessible if someone has the right skills or magic (mountain tops, or flying through the clouds at 15,000 feet).
No CHAT system in-game unless you use magic like in DnD. Each character can chat with those in 'voice' range (whisper, normal, shout mode). Yeah, it kind of sucks but have a mage in your party like in real DnD.
When people log out their characters bulid a small campfire or tent and rest. Always resting until someone or something approaches them, then a basic AI script takes over (defend or say 'I'm resting'). That solves the accidental or purposeful disconnects. That will make people log out in 'civilized areas in hotels, houses, etc. for fear of dying).
When you die, you die like in DnD paper and pencil. If a troll eats you and goes back to his lair your characters stuff (the stuff the survived his digestive fluids) will be in his lair. So will your bones for resurrection.
Harsh? No, it's exactly what is expected in paper and pencil and DnD is the most popular RPG on earth for THAT REASON!
I have a bunch of other ideas I might e-mail to the developers when I get enough time.
I agree with most of what you two have said... although I still don't have a problem with some form of limited PvP... maybe have an arena or something where those who want to fight one another can go.
I've been playing the table top version of D&D for more than ten years myself. I can only hope and pray that this game can come close to doing the world of Dungeons and Dragons justice... if not, if this is a collossal bust, do you think they will try again? (god i hope so... )
- Iczer
Tacklebury --}>>>
***edited***
Changed the link. I put the link to the PnP version by accident sorry. This is the evolution of that game into digital world someday. Laterz.
***edit***
Sadly it looks like they took the page offline or something. http://www.lejendary.com still works, but not the LA Online page. Been a while since I've been there. I'm gonna check out the PnP page and see if they say anything about the online version there.
Tacklebury --}>>>