I've gotten through most of the comments and figured I'd correct some of the things you guys are confused on or accusing me of. As I've seen people comment that they believe the fact that this is a column on ArcheAge it shouldn't be biased. I'm going to stop you right there as this column has always been here to deliver news and have opinionated content.
Obviously when I post an article saying hey, I'm not feeling it, everyone that's been following the game is going to get into a bit of an uprise. I'm just giving you guys my experience which is what every commenter has asked for since my first impression article on the game.
For those commenting that I've barely played the game, honestly I'm not sure on the hours, but I have played a significant amount of it. I haven't played since the weekend I'll admit, I think I was level 28. In my article I frequently stated that my issue with the questing is that in order to do anything fun you need to do the boring grind of questing. If you're in the alpha or know ArcheAge, yes, you can clearly say, "You can do whatever you want at any level." That's not true. If you start trying to get into the sandbox features at level 1, you're going to be screwed. That's why you have to level up generally through the questing. Granted you can completely level through activities using labor points, but that will take a hell of a long time, and be difficult since you can't even take advantage of the sandbox system at a low level. You're locked down to certain zones unless you have tons of guildies protecting you from getting one hit instantly. After the Glyph news I clearly explained what things I didn't like about ArcheAge, for the record, there are going to be people that dislike ArcheAge, be ready for it, not everyone has the same opinion.
Anyway, this column is supposed to be biased, that's how I was informed to write it so you're aware. I'm not saying this is a bad game, I'm saying it might not be the MMO for me. From what I can tell the majority of the game that's fun is practically end-game, or 30+ at least. By saying the game hasn't grabbed me, I'm not saying, "Yeah guys, ArcheAge sucks, you're all wrong, it's a terrible game, look at me I'm a writer." I'm just another person with a pen and paper writing my experience. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion and I look forward to hearing more from you guys when beta kicks off.
PS: All of you saying that I don't care about the game, am just writing about it because it's popular, etc. you're wrong. If that was the case I wouldn't be writing about ArcheAge. I've been following the news, streams, forums, fan sites, subreddit, etc. since before it really starting getting popular in the West. Unfortunately a lot of the hardcore feedback from people like Keksx92 and Fido is hard to follow now that it is so popular. But hey, when is a game getting more popular an issue?
PSS: Since 1.0 everyone has been pointing out the themepark elements of the game and that's what players arrive into, so that's been a significant part of my experience thus far.
Where there's a game, there's a player, I'm that player.
I have 4 of these launchers programs installed because publishers or retaillers force me to use them. Some of them, you cannot even close them once the game is launched and they stay in the background. I do not like them at all, they are bloatware for me. I prefer to launch a game directly and use another dedicated program chosed by me for communicate with friends.
About the game, it has potential but it is not the sandbox I am wainting for.
One of the problems with your article is that the title makes it seem like it's about Glyphs and then you shift focus by bashing on Archeage. I understand that they are related subjects but the transition felt forced and awkward at best.
I can understand your criticism of Archeage but you are going to get a lot of hate for reviewing a sandbox game with a theme park attitude. The real fun in a game like Archeage comes from being in a guild and taking part in communal events. I know that's not for everyone but if you play the game with a solo mindset you aren't going to get that much out of it.
The sandbox content comes in the later levels but that should give you more motivation to level up. You would be past level 30 in no time if you were serious about reviewing the game.
P.S. looking for a guild through global chat is pretty noob.
Ok lets start with, hey we made an awesome game that everyone enjoys, then maybe we will make our own gaming platform like steam. ok then the stories go on
One of the problems with your article is that the title makes it seem like it's about Glyphs and then you shift focus by bashing on Archeage. I understand that they are related subjects but the transition felt forced and awkward at best.
I can understand your criticism of Archeage but you are going to get a lot of hate for reviewing a sandbox game with a theme park attitude. The real fun in a game like Archeage comes from being in a guild and taking part in communal events. I know that's not for everyone but if you play the game with a solo mindset you aren't going to get that much out of it.
The sandbox content comes in the later levels but that should give you more motivation to level up. You would be past level 30 in no time if you were serious about reviewing the game.
P.S. looking for a guild through global chat is pretty noob.
Sunroot, two things. One, people changed the title on me so I entirely agree with you, that wasn't on me. None the less, every column is supposed to be news & opinion/experiences. Two, I'm not reviewing the game. Also worth noting, I wasn't looking for a guild in global chat, I stated that they aren't worth your time. So I essentially said exactly what you just said.
Where there's a game, there's a player, I'm that player.
I have to ask.. where in his post did he say he hated the game?
"I've been writing about ArcheAge since April and have been playing it on and off, but for some odd reason it just hasn't grabbed me. When I was first asked if I wanted to write a column about ArcheAge, I think I had heard of the game maybe once before. Looking back on my first column post I remember the chaos I walked into with the 1.0 nonsense just having been announced."
Just wanted to know if he really said that or not.
From what I can tell the majority of the game that's fun is practically end-game, or 30+ at least.
...
I disagree with you article because the way it was writing, not because the game didnt grab you (i cant disagree with that, hapened to you and im sure it will with alot of ppl)
Picking this quoted sentence for exemple, its diferente from what you inicial wrote that gives the idea that is need to rush to 50 to experience the rest of the game features, i disagree with that and the way it was writing.
Other think is, you could share with us what you define as fun to do in "end game", what was or is your objective in AA and probabily the discuss had other path.
Well, I read the article, and I must say it was really bad. I'm hoping you just had a bad day, because it was depressing. Someone who is interested in Archeage should probably be writing this column.
Originally posted by jesteralways I don't understand the topic of your article at all. what are you trying to say exactly? i think we random players in this forum already established that the best thing about AA are : pvp, farming, ships, crafting and gathering. why did you even bother writing about mediocre pve content(which the game devs don't even advertise or care about providing in a quality form) when we random players already established that it is crap? you have to go through them; yeah everybody did but they are not moaning over it, get a grip on yourself, you are writing column in mmorpg.com for goodness' sake.
actually he hasnt written anything about PVE, he griped questing and farming. and overall AA seems to be lackluster.
I was excited about AA at first, but now notice how much of a bland game it is compared to Black Desert. Not worth getting into this, since all the features they have arent that new and will get boring pretty fast.
Sunroot, two things. One, people changed the title on me so I entirely agree with you, that wasn't on me. None the less, every column is supposed to be news & opinion/experiences.
so what gives with the criticism of a storyline that is still in Korean that you could not have experienced. That in itself destroyed any credibility on the rest of your opinions as far as this old gamer is concerned.
I sincerely hope that MMORPG will find a new columnist for this game, not some fanboy who glosses over the rough parts of the game, and there are a few. I just want someone who will write about his experiences honestly.
I looked at the first ten levels as a intro or tutorial. I made 2 levels in one day from crafting/mining/ and doing crafting quests. While the quests may not be mind bogging they do set you up with basic gear and knowledge.
I think he was trying to say it is like every other mmorpg except for the farming, pirate etc. Content at a certain lvl that hes trying to get to, so be aware of the quest grinds meaning you will have to put your time in to see the beauty of the game. Now with that out the way i saw the words wow clone, time to go deep in the paint! Now WOW is a long running game I have been playing on off for years why? Well the content, the endless addons, the fact that a lot of my peers play it and most important the ease of access to the games content. The only thing that ticks me off is the lfg. They could do a better job by grouping by item lvl. That's all, in my opinion following novels for games make for better games because of actual story lines so other games are doing that I see swordsman online being a hit youtube swordsman tv episodes, then after seeing the story try game out play for the story there can be some work on mechanics but it gets little talk but is a strong title. Archage big money lots of talk we saw this with ESO and Wildstar and well they have been labled by gamers wow clone ughh why not going to ask but that's what happened so give the guy a break take the article for what it is a personal opinion.
Unlike the rest of these guys who are "vested" in AA, I get what you are saying. I mean if you're setting out to created the genre's first sandpark mmorpg, you should try to do a better job that basically laying a minefield of thempark features in front of the sandbox utopia. You only risk deterring masses of players from even getting far enough to experience the freedom of having an open ended sandbox world. They could have done much, much more to weave these two styles together to enhance the experience. Why include questing at the beginning when it seems it's not your strongest hand? They could have easily save that for later levels when it could have been presented as a alternative in leveling up. you can easily include a basic tutorial of quest to introduce the sandbox features of the game and have the players take it from there. No need to drag it out for 30 levels.
But please continue to show just how similar this crowd is to any other fans of the genre are. Lord knows that just because you guys play a different game doesn't mean you're going to act accordingly.
"Small minds talk about people, average minds talk about events, great minds talk about ideas."
Sunroot, two things. One, people changed the title on me so I entirely agree with you, that wasn't on me. None the less, every column is supposed to be news & opinion/experiences.
so what gives with the criticism of a storyline that is still in Korean that you could not have experienced. That in itself destroyed any credibility on the rest of your opinions as far as this old gamer is concerned.
I sincerely hope that MMORPG will find a new columnist for this game, not some fanboy who glosses over the rough parts of the game, and there are a few. I just want someone who will write about his experiences honestly.
I looked at the first ten levels as a intro or tutorial. I made 2 levels in one day from crafting/mining/ and doing crafting quests. While the quests may not be mind bogging they do set you up with basic gear and knowledge.
I didn't criticize the storyline, everyone I've spoken with in-game has told me that the storyline is bad. The only parts of it that aren't translated are the cutscenes, all quests are translated otherwise. There are some items as well, but that's not the point. And I didn't deny that the quests help you, I literally stated in the article that it works as a tutorial.
Originally posted by M4ko I was excited about AA at first, but now notice how much of a bland game it is compared to Black Desert. Not worth getting into this, since all the features they have arent that new and will get boring pretty fast.
I wouldn't say it's a bland game, it's primarily that I've been demotivated to play by the early game. As you get I'd say around level 30 and up I believe it is more interesting since that's when people suggest getting into PvP. That's likely when you have a good general knowledge of the game from the questline and can really decide to do whatever you want. Craft, sail, join a guild, become a well known pirate, farm, etc. I personally feel you're given the option to do all these things at level 1, but it's still not possible unless you're given everything by higher level people. Having a guild or group of friends going into the game will help you significantly with the whole experience as you would imagine with any MMO. Not to say, oh hey, the game is bad unless you have friends, it's just you'll enjoy it
Originally posted by Ramonski7
Unlike the rest of these guys who are "vested" in AA, I get what you are saying. I mean if you're setting out to created the genre's first sandpark mmorpg, you should try to do a better job that basically laying a minefield of thempark features in front of the sandbox utopia. You only risk deterring masses of players from even getting far enough to experience the freedom of having an open ended sandbox world. They could have done much, much more to weave these two styles together to enhance the experience. Why include questing at the beginning when it seems it's not your strongest hand? They could have easily save that for later levels when it could have been presented as a alternative in leveling up. you can easily include a basic tutorial of quest to introduce the sandbox features of the game and have the players take it from there. No need to drag it out for 30 levels.
But please continue to show just how similar this crowd is to any other fans of the genre are. Lord knows that just because you guys play a different game doesn't mean you're going to act accordingly.
For the most part you get the message of what I'm trying to say. Players will tell you that you can get into the sandbox features from the moment you start the game because you do have the ability to. There's no level requirements or anything that prevents you from starting crafting, trading, farming, etc. But you won't be able to get the resources you need especially in circumstances where it's a hostile zone with people that can one hit you because you're level 1. One of the big things mainly revolving around 1.0 was that everyone started saying hey, this isn't sandbox anymore, it's themepark. While I've spoken about the questing being dull, there are still sandbox elements by all means and they are still the strongest part of the game I would have to say. I've mentioned prior several times now, farming and PvP are the most popular features about the game as of players in the alpha.
Originally posted by Hysteric Well, I read the article, and I must say it was really bad. I'm hoping you just had a bad day, because it was depressing. Someone who is interested in Archeage should probably be writing this column.
I understand you're looking for new information and to be woo'd, but that's not how journalism works. You may have a high and mighty opinion about how ArcheAge is the best game of all, but that's your opinion. Not everyone has the same opinion. Ever since 1.0 I've been dedicated to getting word out from dedicated people in the community so developers like XL Games and Trion Worlds can hear them. Not to say people like Scott Hartsman or Evan Berman aren't involved in the community, because you frequently see the two and other developers frequently speaking with the community. Which is great, unfortunately it wasn't this way as much before.
Originally posted by Jabas
Originally posted by Snakester95
...
From what I can tell the majority of the game that's fun is practically end-game, or 30+ at least.
...
I disagree with you article because the way it was writing, not because the game didnt grab you (i cant disagree with that, hapened to you and im sure it will with alot of ppl)
Picking this quoted sentence for exemple, its diferente from what you inicial wrote that gives the idea that is need to rush to 50 to experience the rest of the game features, i disagree with that and the way it was writing.
Other think is, you could share with us what you define as fun to do in "end game", what was or is your objective in AA and probabily the discuss had other path.
In my article I don't believe I did state that it's more interesting around level 30, so I apologize for that. Although, I did mention some of the fun things to do in "end game" which I would say rather is from level 30 and on instead of end game to clarify now. The things that have gotten my attention that I haven't experienced yet involve PvP, sailing, naval battles, and maybe trading runs, not sure. I've done very little with sailing as I only have a row boat right now and had one close encounter with PvP but I've mostly been in peaceful protected zones unless you go into Bloodlust mode. Anyway, I would like to go back toy our statement where you said to discuss the other path. That's not the case with ArcheAge, it isn't really two paths. From how I see it, in order to get to the sandbox portion of the game, which you may see as the second path, you have to get through the first path which is questing. You don't have to do every quest in order to start crafting, sailing, building, etc. but you need to follow the questline to get equipment, level up enough to defend yourself, etc.
Originally posted by masteribu Playing a community-based game ALONE and then criticizing it for stupid reasons. Good job!
MMORPG's are commonly played solo and still enjoyed by plenty of people. If you've been following my column you'd know that I have played with people prior and joined guilds in the past. The few people I played with were usually short fun experiences, although most of the guilds have been bad thus far. Aside from going through the forums there isn't really a good way to find guilds right now and there are plenty of guilds that are just getting ready for beta and release rather than to play. Also, when you say, "criticizing it for stupid reasons." you can do better than that, give me what reasons you believe are stupid. It's fine if you criticize my reasons, everyone has their own opinion, welcome to society, so is life. But try to be vocal so I can either improve my article or explain my opinion further on those reasons you believe to be stupid.
Originally posted by mrbowser81 I think he was trying to say it is like every other mmorpg except for the farming, pirate etc. Content at a certain lvl that hes trying to get to, so be aware of the quest grinds meaning you will have to put your time in to see the beauty of the game. Now with that out the way i saw the words wow clone, time to go deep in the paint! Now WOW is a long running game I have been playing on off for years why? Well the content, the endless addons, the fact that a lot of my peers play it and most important the ease of access to the games content. The only thing that ticks me off is the lfg. They could do a better job by grouping by item lvl. That's all, in my opinion following novels for games make for better games because of actual story lines so other games are doing that I see swordsman online being a hit youtube swordsman tv episodes, then after seeing the story try game out play for the story there can be some work on mechanics but it gets little talk but is a strong title. Archage big money lots of talk we saw this with ESO and Wildstar and well they have been labled by gamers wow clone ughh why not going to ask but that's what happened so give the guy a break take the article for what it is a personal opinion.
Personally I haven't really said that I dislike the questing, just that it feels like a dull grind more than anything. Anything regarding the story and lore that I mentioned in the article was from what other people in-game have said. I won't say everyone as there are plenty of people playing the alpha that I haven't spoken to, but there are also tons of people I've spoken to that have precisely said, "If you're playing ArcheAge for the quests and story, you're not going to have fun. You have to make your own fun."
Overall, as I've previously said, everyone has their opinion, feel free to post it. Not everyone agrees with everyone, so yes, you will occasionally hear conflicting opinions that you may not like. If you want to post about what you dislike, you're entitled to doing that, but tell me why. Not just, oh this article is stupid, the writer is biased, etc. Before you write your next comment, understand that this column is here to provide news and opinionated content. Also, I often put in title names that are relevant to the article, but other editors often end up changing the name. Therefore this did lead to some confusion for those that were expecting the whole article to be about Glyph.
If you've been following my column since I started, you'd know that the first half of my article tends to always contain a news wrap up of whatever Trion has released occasionally with an XL Games update. Generally it depends on if I'm in the right place and hear about news regarding the other versions as I don't speak Korean, Japanese, or Russian. (Regions where ArcheAge is out or open beta) Then the second half ends up being what I've been doing in ArcheAge, what I think of, what's cool, what's bad, etc. In this case, it was a news cap on Glyph with my opinion on it. Then me just speaking my opinion on how ArcheAge hasn't grabbed me. Never did I say I dislike ArcheAge or it's a bad game. Regardless, as always, I appreciate your comments and concerns for the game, continue posting so I can improve my articles. Although I won't take, "You're a sucky writer" as constructive criticism because my opinion isn't yours.
Where there's a game, there's a player, I'm that player.
I just don't understand how you can say that a Sandbox game "hasn't grabbed you" when it sounds like you haven't even experienced a single sandbox feature?! For most, that would be the driving factor to find out but you seem to have lost interest without even getting there. So if the drive has never been to experience the sandbox what was it? As others have said, seems as though you came to AA from themeparks, played it like one, then condemned it.
As I have told others many times, until you experience the sand, you have no right to comment. Journalists are supposed to comment on facts and in a unbiased manor. Your bias is toward themeparks which is why there was no drive on your part to experience the sand and as a journalist reported a biased incomplete view. So this equates to until you have all your facts and can base them on actual experience, you have no right reporting on them until you have at least some balance to your opinions. So do us all a favor, build a house, ship, farm, trade, treasure hunt, etc. Something.....anything besides only questing. Until then please stop writing about Archeage.
I sincerely hope that MMORPG will find a new columnist for this game, not some fanboy who glosses over the rough parts of the game, and there are a few. I just want someone who will write about his experiences honestly.
sorry but youre retarded. Hes not a fanboi if hes not overhyping it. and he DID write about his experience and it wasnt pleasant. duuuuur
Snakester, stop defending your opinion. Fanbois are always vicious towards anyone who gives any criticism, but when their beloved title flops, they just sit quietly and walk away.
In my article I don't believe I did state that it's more interesting around level 30, so I apologize for that. Although, I did mention some of the fun things to do in "end game" which I would say rather is from level 30 and on instead of end game to clarify now. The things that have gotten my attention that I haven't experienced yet involve PvP, sailing, naval battles, and maybe trading runs, not sure. I've done very little with sailing as I only have a row boat right now and had one close encounter with PvP but I've mostly been in peaceful protected zones unless you go into Bloodlust mode. Anyway, I would like to go back toy our statement where you said to discuss the other path. That's not the case with ArcheAge, it isn't really two paths. From how I see it, in order to get to the sandbox portion of the game, which you may see as the second path, you have to get through the first path which is questing. You don't have to do every quest in order to start crafting, sailing, building, etc. but you need to follow the questline to get equipment, level up enough to defend yourself, etc.
Thanks for the answer, its a little more clear what you wrote on the article.
For someone who mainly looking for pvp only its better be lvl 50 and the questing is the fastes way to get there, get gold and gear a little. And yes questing in AA is nothing special and i beliave if its all someone do it solo might get boring.
But the idea of AA, imo ofc, is not focus in only one thing while leveling:
Befor lvl 30 is supose to have allready a speedboat, working for that is a nice break from questing (the donkey quest is the most boring thing in my opinion thought). After that you get acess to a huge part of the game: sailing with the fastes boat in-game. Ofc only be lvl30 is not going end well if you meet other agressive players or if you go alone and cross with a few lvl 35 mobs, But with 2 or 3 friends it can be a nice adventure.
About the "other path", well its my bad english sry, what i wanted to say was if the article was a little better writing, i mean you explain a little better your opinion like you are doing in replies, we had a diferent disscuss here on forum insted off all that negative replies about you article.
You really need to get with a group / guild to experience this game to it's fullest. ArcheAge isn't really a soloers game. Sure, you can quest (and farm), but the game itself is designed to make you actually want to play with others.
I just don't understand how you can say that a Sandbox game "hasn't grabbed you" when it sounds like you haven't even experienced a single sandbox feature?! For most, that would be the driving factor to find out but you seem to have lost interest without even getting there. So if the drive has never been to experience the sandbox what was it? As others have said, seems as though you came to AA from themeparks, played it like one, then condemned it.
As I have told others many times, until you experience the sand, you have no right to comment. Journalists are supposed to comment on facts and in a unbiased manor. Your bias is toward themeparks which is why there was no drive on your part to experience the sand and as a journalist reported a biased incomplete view. So this equates to until you have all your facts and can base them on actual experience, you have no right reporting on them until you have at least some balance to your opinions. So do us all a favor, build a house, ship, farm, trade, treasure hunt, etc. Something.....anything besides only questing. Until then please stop writing about Archeage.
You haven't been following my column have you? This column is not a review, it's a news recap and an opinion on the game. At no point did I say I dislike themeparks and dislike ArcheAge. I said ArcheAge hasn't grabbed me "yet", emphasis on yet. This is a column to cover what's going on with the game and my experiences, not an article to say ArcheAge is the best game ever and I love every single feature of it. This is also not a review, this is a column, that has biweekly posts to continue providing updates on what's going on with th game and my opinion. I reported my opinion on the parts of the game I've experienced thus far, at no point did I state that ArcheAge is a bad game or that I even dislike it.
Also, I didn't give up, I just said I've been demotivated by the questing, which the majority of players in the alpha have stated they don't like. Therefore, it's like walking in mud to get to the sandbox features. Anyone would walk slow. Overall, before you shoe your biased opinion down other people's throats, try to understand what the column is. Take a moment to look at the other posts in my column, half of it includes news and the other half if my opinion. Prior to now my opinion has been mostly positive of the game and nobody has an issue with that. Of course not, why would they? So when you say, "...you have no right", "...a biased incomplete view", guess what, this article is supposed to contain my opinion. Try not to understand that your opinion isn't the only one that matters.
Where there's a game, there's a player, I'm that player.
Originally posted by Dreamo84 If they post an article about liking a game they get flamed, if they post a complaint they get flamed. Should they even bother posting articles?
I think we can all concur on the answer to this... No.
Comments
I've gotten through most of the comments and figured I'd correct some of the things you guys are confused on or accusing me of. As I've seen people comment that they believe the fact that this is a column on ArcheAge it shouldn't be biased. I'm going to stop you right there as this column has always been here to deliver news and have opinionated content.
Obviously when I post an article saying hey, I'm not feeling it, everyone that's been following the game is going to get into a bit of an uprise. I'm just giving you guys my experience which is what every commenter has asked for since my first impression article on the game.
For those commenting that I've barely played the game, honestly I'm not sure on the hours, but I have played a significant amount of it. I haven't played since the weekend I'll admit, I think I was level 28. In my article I frequently stated that my issue with the questing is that in order to do anything fun you need to do the boring grind of questing. If you're in the alpha or know ArcheAge, yes, you can clearly say, "You can do whatever you want at any level." That's not true. If you start trying to get into the sandbox features at level 1, you're going to be screwed. That's why you have to level up generally through the questing. Granted you can completely level through activities using labor points, but that will take a hell of a long time, and be difficult since you can't even take advantage of the sandbox system at a low level. You're locked down to certain zones unless you have tons of guildies protecting you from getting one hit instantly. After the Glyph news I clearly explained what things I didn't like about ArcheAge, for the record, there are going to be people that dislike ArcheAge, be ready for it, not everyone has the same opinion.
Anyway, this column is supposed to be biased, that's how I was informed to write it so you're aware. I'm not saying this is a bad game, I'm saying it might not be the MMO for me. From what I can tell the majority of the game that's fun is practically end-game, or 30+ at least. By saying the game hasn't grabbed me, I'm not saying, "Yeah guys, ArcheAge sucks, you're all wrong, it's a terrible game, look at me I'm a writer." I'm just another person with a pen and paper writing my experience. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion and I look forward to hearing more from you guys when beta kicks off.
Where there's a game, there's a player, I'm that player.
I have 4 of these launchers programs installed because publishers or retaillers force me to use them. Some of them, you cannot even close them once the game is launched and they stay in the background. I do not like them at all, they are bloatware for me. I prefer to launch a game directly and use another dedicated program chosed by me for communicate with friends.
About the game, it has potential but it is not the sandbox I am wainting for.
^.^'
What the heck is this article about? ????? First it was about Glyph and too many platform and then it went to Archage???
This guy crazy???
Bacon is good
Where is Waldo?
Jeffery,
One of the problems with your article is that the title makes it seem like it's about Glyphs and then you shift focus by bashing on Archeage. I understand that they are related subjects but the transition felt forced and awkward at best.
I can understand your criticism of Archeage but you are going to get a lot of hate for reviewing a sandbox game with a theme park attitude. The real fun in a game like Archeage comes from being in a guild and taking part in communal events. I know that's not for everyone but if you play the game with a solo mindset you aren't going to get that much out of it.
The sandbox content comes in the later levels but that should give you more motivation to level up. You would be past level 30 in no time if you were serious about reviewing the game.
P.S. looking for a guild through global chat is pretty noob.
Sunroot, two things. One, people changed the title on me so I entirely agree with you, that wasn't on me. None the less, every column is supposed to be news & opinion/experiences. Two, I'm not reviewing the game. Also worth noting, I wasn't looking for a guild in global chat, I stated that they aren't worth your time. So I essentially said exactly what you just said.
Where there's a game, there's a player, I'm that player.
I have to ask.. where in his post did he say he hated the game?
"I've been writing about ArcheAge since April and have been playing it on and off, but for some odd reason it just hasn't grabbed me. When I was first asked if I wanted to write a column about ArcheAge, I think I had heard of the game maybe once before. Looking back on my first column post I remember the chaos I walked into with the 1.0 nonsense just having been announced."
Just wanted to know if he really said that or not.
I disagree with you article because the way it was writing, not because the game didnt grab you (i cant disagree with that, hapened to you and im sure it will with alot of ppl)
Picking this quoted sentence for exemple, its diferente from what you inicial wrote that gives the idea that is need to rush to 50 to experience the rest of the game features, i disagree with that and the way it was writing.
Other think is, you could share with us what you define as fun to do in "end game", what was or is your objective in AA and probabily the discuss had other path.
Never write again....what a bad biased uninformed article.
actually he hasnt written anything about PVE, he griped questing and farming. and overall AA seems to be lackluster.
Do yourself a favor and don't try explaining a casual stitch & bitch column to this audience.
Keep it simple or their eyes tend to cross and poo gets flung around.
For haters: Dis game sux and is Asian.
For fanboys: Best game since SWG ( a game SO awesome it had to be shut down due to pure
awesomeness.)
Good luck.
so what gives with the criticism of a storyline that is still in Korean that you could not have experienced. That in itself destroyed any credibility on the rest of your opinions as far as this old gamer is concerned.
I sincerely hope that MMORPG will find a new columnist for this game, not some fanboy who glosses over the rough parts of the game, and there are a few. I just want someone who will write about his experiences honestly.
I looked at the first ten levels as a intro or tutorial. I made 2 levels in one day from crafting/mining/ and doing crafting quests. While the quests may not be mind bogging they do set you up with basic gear and knowledge.
I miss DAoC
Unlike the rest of these guys who are "vested" in AA, I get what you are saying. I mean if you're setting out to created the genre's first sandpark mmorpg, you should try to do a better job that basically laying a minefield of thempark features in front of the sandbox utopia. You only risk deterring masses of players from even getting far enough to experience the freedom of having an open ended sandbox world. They could have done much, much more to weave these two styles together to enhance the experience. Why include questing at the beginning when it seems it's not your strongest hand? They could have easily save that for later levels when it could have been presented as a alternative in leveling up. you can easily include a basic tutorial of quest to introduce the sandbox features of the game and have the players take it from there. No need to drag it out for 30 levels.
But please continue to show just how similar this crowd is to any other fans of the genre are. Lord knows that just because you guys play a different game doesn't mean you're going to act accordingly.
"Small minds talk about people, average minds talk about events, great minds talk about ideas."
I didn't criticize the storyline, everyone I've spoken with in-game has told me that the storyline is bad. The only parts of it that aren't translated are the cutscenes, all quests are translated otherwise. There are some items as well, but that's not the point. And I didn't deny that the quests help you, I literally stated in the article that it works as a tutorial.
I wouldn't say it's a bland game, it's primarily that I've been demotivated to play by the early game. As you get I'd say around level 30 and up I believe it is more interesting since that's when people suggest getting into PvP. That's likely when you have a good general knowledge of the game from the questline and can really decide to do whatever you want. Craft, sail, join a guild, become a well known pirate, farm, etc. I personally feel you're given the option to do all these things at level 1, but it's still not possible unless you're given everything by higher level people. Having a guild or group of friends going into the game will help you significantly with the whole experience as you would imagine with any MMO. Not to say, oh hey, the game is bad unless you have friends, it's just you'll enjoy it
For the most part you get the message of what I'm trying to say. Players will tell you that you can get into the sandbox features from the moment you start the game because you do have the ability to. There's no level requirements or anything that prevents you from starting crafting, trading, farming, etc. But you won't be able to get the resources you need especially in circumstances where it's a hostile zone with people that can one hit you because you're level 1. One of the big things mainly revolving around 1.0 was that everyone started saying hey, this isn't sandbox anymore, it's themepark. While I've spoken about the questing being dull, there are still sandbox elements by all means and they are still the strongest part of the game I would have to say. I've mentioned prior several times now, farming and PvP are the most popular features about the game as of players in the alpha.
I understand you're looking for new information and to be woo'd, but that's not how journalism works. You may have a high and mighty opinion about how ArcheAge is the best game of all, but that's your opinion. Not everyone has the same opinion. Ever since 1.0 I've been dedicated to getting word out from dedicated people in the community so developers like XL Games and Trion Worlds can hear them. Not to say people like Scott Hartsman or Evan Berman aren't involved in the community, because you frequently see the two and other developers frequently speaking with the community. Which is great, unfortunately it wasn't this way as much before.
In my article I don't believe I did state that it's more interesting around level 30, so I apologize for that. Although, I did mention some of the fun things to do in "end game" which I would say rather is from level 30 and on instead of end game to clarify now. The things that have gotten my attention that I haven't experienced yet involve PvP, sailing, naval battles, and maybe trading runs, not sure. I've done very little with sailing as I only have a row boat right now and had one close encounter with PvP but I've mostly been in peaceful protected zones unless you go into Bloodlust mode. Anyway, I would like to go back toy our statement where you said to discuss the other path. That's not the case with ArcheAge, it isn't really two paths. From how I see it, in order to get to the sandbox portion of the game, which you may see as the second path, you have to get through the first path which is questing. You don't have to do every quest in order to start crafting, sailing, building, etc. but you need to follow the questline to get equipment, level up enough to defend yourself, etc.
MMORPG's are commonly played solo and still enjoyed by plenty of people. If you've been following my column you'd know that I have played with people prior and joined guilds in the past. The few people I played with were usually short fun experiences, although most of the guilds have been bad thus far. Aside from going through the forums there isn't really a good way to find guilds right now and there are plenty of guilds that are just getting ready for beta and release rather than to play. Also, when you say, "criticizing it for stupid reasons." you can do better than that, give me what reasons you believe are stupid. It's fine if you criticize my reasons, everyone has their own opinion, welcome to society, so is life. But try to be vocal so I can either improve my article or explain my opinion further on those reasons you believe to be stupid.
Personally I haven't really said that I dislike the questing, just that it feels like a dull grind more than anything. Anything regarding the story and lore that I mentioned in the article was from what other people in-game have said. I won't say everyone as there are plenty of people playing the alpha that I haven't spoken to, but there are also tons of people I've spoken to that have precisely said, "If you're playing ArcheAge for the quests and story, you're not going to have fun. You have to make your own fun."
Overall, as I've previously said, everyone has their opinion, feel free to post it. Not everyone agrees with everyone, so yes, you will occasionally hear conflicting opinions that you may not like. If you want to post about what you dislike, you're entitled to doing that, but tell me why. Not just, oh this article is stupid, the writer is biased, etc. Before you write your next comment, understand that this column is here to provide news and opinionated content. Also, I often put in title names that are relevant to the article, but other editors often end up changing the name. Therefore this did lead to some confusion for those that were expecting the whole article to be about Glyph.
If you've been following my column since I started, you'd know that the first half of my article tends to always contain a news wrap up of whatever Trion has released occasionally with an XL Games update. Generally it depends on if I'm in the right place and hear about news regarding the other versions as I don't speak Korean, Japanese, or Russian. (Regions where ArcheAge is out or open beta) Then the second half ends up being what I've been doing in ArcheAge, what I think of, what's cool, what's bad, etc. In this case, it was a news cap on Glyph with my opinion on it. Then me just speaking my opinion on how ArcheAge hasn't grabbed me. Never did I say I dislike ArcheAge or it's a bad game. Regardless, as always, I appreciate your comments and concerns for the game, continue posting so I can improve my articles. Although I won't take, "You're a sucky writer" as constructive criticism because my opinion isn't yours.
Where there's a game, there's a player, I'm that player.
I just don't understand how you can say that a Sandbox game "hasn't grabbed you" when it sounds like you haven't even experienced a single sandbox feature?! For most, that would be the driving factor to find out but you seem to have lost interest without even getting there. So if the drive has never been to experience the sandbox what was it? As others have said, seems as though you came to AA from themeparks, played it like one, then condemned it.
As I have told others many times, until you experience the sand, you have no right to comment. Journalists are supposed to comment on facts and in a unbiased manor. Your bias is toward themeparks which is why there was no drive on your part to experience the sand and as a journalist reported a biased incomplete view. So this equates to until you have all your facts and can base them on actual experience, you have no right reporting on them until you have at least some balance to your opinions. So do us all a favor, build a house, ship, farm, trade, treasure hunt, etc. Something.....anything besides only questing. Until then please stop writing about Archeage.
sorry but youre retarded. Hes not a fanboi if hes not overhyping it. and he DID write about his experience and it wasnt pleasant. duuuuur
Thanks for the answer, its a little more clear what you wrote on the article.
For someone who mainly looking for pvp only its better be lvl 50 and the questing is the fastes way to get there, get gold and gear a little. And yes questing in AA is nothing special and i beliave if its all someone do it solo might get boring.
But the idea of AA, imo ofc, is not focus in only one thing while leveling:
Befor lvl 30 is supose to have allready a speedboat, working for that is a nice break from questing (the donkey quest is the most boring thing in my opinion thought). After that you get acess to a huge part of the game: sailing with the fastes boat in-game. Ofc only be lvl30 is not going end well if you meet other agressive players or if you go alone and cross with a few lvl 35 mobs, But with 2 or 3 friends it can be a nice adventure.
About the "other path", well its my bad english sry, what i wanted to say was if the article was a little better writing, i mean you explain a little better your opinion like you are doing in replies, we had a diferent disscuss here on forum insted off all that negative replies about you article.
Again, just my opinon.
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You haven't been following my column have you? This column is not a review, it's a news recap and an opinion on the game. At no point did I say I dislike themeparks and dislike ArcheAge. I said ArcheAge hasn't grabbed me "yet", emphasis on yet. This is a column to cover what's going on with the game and my experiences, not an article to say ArcheAge is the best game ever and I love every single feature of it. This is also not a review, this is a column, that has biweekly posts to continue providing updates on what's going on with th game and my opinion. I reported my opinion on the parts of the game I've experienced thus far, at no point did I state that ArcheAge is a bad game or that I even dislike it.
Also, I didn't give up, I just said I've been demotivated by the questing, which the majority of players in the alpha have stated they don't like. Therefore, it's like walking in mud to get to the sandbox features. Anyone would walk slow. Overall, before you shoe your biased opinion down other people's throats, try to understand what the column is. Take a moment to look at the other posts in my column, half of it includes news and the other half if my opinion. Prior to now my opinion has been mostly positive of the game and nobody has an issue with that. Of course not, why would they? So when you say, "...you have no right", "...a biased incomplete view", guess what, this article is supposed to contain my opinion. Try not to understand that your opinion isn't the only one that matters.
Where there's a game, there's a player, I'm that player.
I think we can all concur on the answer to this... No.