View Full Version : MMOs and how I cleary don't get it
So, the other day, while I was looking up some crap, I ran into this banner for Lord of the Rings Online Free Trial. Being a skeptic about anything MMO related, my first thought was just to disregard it, but then I thought: hey, it costs me nothing to give it a shot and see what all the hubbub is about. And after playing for some five hours or so my question is this: what the fuck!?
Personally, I found nothing that would attract me to this game (or any game of the type) and I find it surprising that so many people play these games. The graphics are mediocre at best (and I played LotrO which, I read, actually has pretty good graphics for a MMO), the gameplay is repetitive and unappealing (and I played the "new, exciting" Warden class), the story is probably there somewhere, waiting for you to do about five thousand and one generic quests to get some money and experience, the setting looks worse than the one in Morrowind, and Morrowind came out about five or six years before.
Now, I'm not a complete idiot. I understand that in-game socialization is one of the main reasons why people play these games, but I still don't understand why. Are there so many miserable, lonely people out there, dying for acclaim of other miserable, lonely people while they run around killing monsters and raising levels for hundreds and hundreds of hours? Five hours into the game, I'm already bored despite managing to team up with a healer of some sorts and I no longer wandered alone. I also understand that there is probably depth to the game concepts later into the game, classes, improvements, new skills, campaigns, shit, I don't know. But for a game that fails to get a veteran gamer such as myself hooked in the first five hours, I ask myself how come so many play these games?
And I ask you the same. If you do play MMOs, why do you do it? What do you get from it that you can't get from a half-decent single-player RPG? Is it just the socialization part that appeals you? Do you like games that focus primarily on level grinding and whatnot? Or is there some aspect of this that I'm missing?
Alydia Ettermire
02-28-09, 05:55 AM
I played an MMO for a while. But seriously the fun thing about it was not needing artistic skill to make a bunch of people that actually look good, and then after that the most fun thing was playing dress up with the character. It is very repetitive, and the people you meet don't stick around. I rarely, if ever, encountered anyone (even if they were on my "friends" list) more than three times total.
So, yeah.
Well everyone has their own opinion. Quite frankly, I play games like Halo online. First-person shooter, adventure types. Oh and ones with lots and lots of blood. ^_^
Keep in mind I'm not talking about games with online component, which most games have nowadays. I'm not against an occasional shooter against live opponents or a game of soccer against somebody halfway across the world. I'm talking specifically about Massive Multiplayer Online games like World of Warcraft, Lord of the Rings Online, Lineage, Guild Wars, etc.
Cyrus the virus
02-28-09, 07:34 AM
I've generally been able to enjoy a good MMO.
For me, the initial stages of learning a new 'world' to play in, seeing how every player contributed to its community somehow, seeing how the economy works, developing my personal character and learning the intricacies of the system are all interesting.
I love the idea of teaming up with 5-19 other people to take down a well-thought-out dungeon or raid, each person fulfilling their role and communicating and having fun in a fantasy setting.
BlackAndBlueEyes
02-28-09, 08:56 AM
I guess your enjoyment depends on what sort of people you actually encounter and stick around with on the MMO itself.
Althanas could be considered an MMO, in my opinion. Many of the same themes apply--you've got a big world to putter around in, there's a vast community of players you can quest with, you level up to be able to get all the cool stuff and abilities, you can team up with X number of people to go on a quest or PvP ("Pick Up the Sword and Fight the Horde", anyone?), and so on.
Kind of like Althanas, you just need to find the right people who are dedicated enough to go questing with.
Lord Anglekos
02-28-09, 09:56 AM
I guess your enjoyment depends on what sort of people you actually encounter and stick around with on the MMO itself.
Althanas could be considered an MMO, in my opinion. Many of the same themes apply--you've got a big world to putter around in, there's a vast community of players you can quest with, you level up to be able to get all the cool stuff and abilities, you can team up with X number of people to go on a quest or PvP ("Pick Up the Sword and Fight the Horde", anyone?), and so on.
Kind of like Althanas, you just need to find the right people who are dedicated enough to go questing with.
Yeah...what BaBE said.
Back when I played RO (Ragnarok Online) I made a guild for just that purpose. It wasn't that large, had about fifty members or so, but it was fun for a little while. I wasn't much into PvP because most of the time people bought all that extra shit you can only get with RL money so they can whup your asses when they're like a Lv. 2 Paladin and you're a Lv. 159 Assassin Reborn (or something like that). But other than that, the socialization factor and meeting other people who were obviously into what I was was a big factor for me. After a while, though, that drive died and I left. You can't have the same creativity you have here; one can only slaughter so many giant spiders before he goes "WTF iz up w/ dis?" and leaves. How Bilbo did, I'll never know.
And then I realized you can get that same socialization factor by going to college for _______ (insert your interest). Yeaaaaah, I'm a little slow sometimes.
Oh, that and the redheads.
Taskmienster
02-28-09, 12:04 PM
I liked the MMO Warhammer Online at first... just like I enjoyed WoW at first. After about 10 levels I realize it's the same thing over and over, and not really any fun at all. The only reason I enjoyed playing it time to time was because I didn't have to write the stories myself, the lackluster game designers wrote it for me. -_-
So, no. I don't get it either. It's boring and monotonous.
OMFG, who amongst you bastards choose redheads? :mad: I should've made it a public poll so I know who gets the kick in the gut.
For me, the initial stages of learning a new 'world' to play in, seeing how every player contributed to its community somehow, seeing how the economy works, developing my personal character and learning the intricacies of the system are all interesting.Yeah, but apart of the contributing to the community (which is arguable, since a lot of people playing MMOs are idiots that want to know "how to mine for fish, lol" ;)), you get that from pretty much every single-player RPG and you actually get a decent story.
I love the idea of teaming up with 5-19 other people to take down a well-thought-out dungeon or raid, each person fulfilling their role and communicating and having fun in a fantasy setting.In a perfect world, yes, this is how it would work. But as was pointed out, it's rather difficult to keep a team together unless you're in a clan or something. But starting out, you're pretty much a n00b with a wooden spear, killing lame critters on your weak own. For at least ten hours, from what I could gather.
I guess your enjoyment depends on what sort of people you actually encounter and stick around with on the MMO itself.
Althanas could be considered an MMO, in my opinion. Many of the same themes apply--you've got a big world to putter around in, there's a vast community of players you can quest with, you level up to be able to get all the cool stuff and abilities, you can team up with X number of people to go on a quest or PvP ("Pick Up the Sword and Fight the Horde", anyone?), and so on.
Kind of like Althanas, you just need to find the right people who are dedicated enough to go questing with. True, true, but on Althanas you create something while you're roleplaying and you're honing your writing skills. In MMOs you follow the often lame series of quests and hone your ability to punch the same button or two over and over again.
Yeah...what BaBE said.
Back when I played RO (Ragnarok Online) I made a guild for just that purpose. It wasn't that large, had about fifty members or so, but it was fun for a little while. I wasn't much into PvP because most of the time people bought all that extra shit you can only get with RL money so they can whup your asses when they're like a Lv. 2 Paladin and you're a Lv. 159 Assassin Reborn (or something like that). But other than that, the socialization factor and meeting other people who were obviously into what I was was a big factor for me. After a while, though, that drive died and I left. You can't have the same creativity you have here; one can only slaughter so many giant spiders before he goes "WTF iz up w/ dis?" and leaves. How Bilbo did, I'll never know.
And then I realized you can get that same socialization factor by going to college for _______ (insert your interest). Yeaaaaah, I'm a little slow sometimes.
Oh, that and the redheads. That's another thing. Using real money for in-game crap is crazy. I saw a documentary where there are WoW workshops where people level characters up to sell to other people for real money. What the fuck? So there are actually people out there that pay to skip what's probably the very thing that makes the game even remotely fun (character development) so they would start with a character that pretty much kills anything with a single left-click. It's a crazy world.
I liked the MMO Warhammer Online at first... just like I enjoyed WoW at first. After about 10 levels I realize it's the same thing over and over, and not really any fun at all. The only reason I enjoyed playing it time to time was because I didn't have to write the stories myself, the lackluster game designers wrote it for me. -_-
So, no. I don't get it either. It's boring and monotonous. I see we understand each other perfectly on the matter then, Task.
After this brief encounter with MMOs I decided to give the genre one last shot, but not with any of the present games. Out of sheer respect to Bioware I will try Star Wars: The Old Republic once it comes out, partially because it's Bioware and partially because they claim you can get through 90% of the game (Han) solo. Which kind of defeats the purpose of an MMO, but whatever.
Lord Anglekos
02-28-09, 01:00 PM
That's another thing. Using real money for in-game crap is crazy. I saw a documentary where there are WoW workshops where people level characters up to sell to other people for real money. What the fuck? So there are actually people out there that pay to skip what's probably the very thing that makes the game even remotely fun (character development) so they would start with a character that pretty much kills anything with a single left-click. It's a crazy world.
Wow, I didn't even know about that. That's ridiculous. I mean, I know WoW is big, but c'mon. Paying money to play the same game month after month, only to pay even more to buy some character you didn't even make yourself? Someone shoot me. Either that, or find me a way I can make money off of this crazy scheme.
Actually one thing I enjoyed about a few MMO's was going on solo missions and just exploring the landscape. When the game developers really put effort into it, sometimes the land itself and the creatures within it are reason enough to play the game. That was one thing I enjoyed about RO; there were so many places you could go and so many different missions and risks. Occasionally some big baddie would show up out of nowhere and I'd find myself running for my life back to town, but I had a hell of a time doing it.
Final Fantasy 12 had good graphics and some pretty awesome-looking monsters, but the thing that frustrated me was I couldn't solo! Whenever I tried to, I'd get killed and lose EXP, which was a bitch. Being forced to party eventually was what pushed me away from the game. I didn't want to waste my time sitting around waiting for so-and-so to get over there from all the way across the world so we could wait for another so-and-so to get online so we could go kill a million bats over and over again to level up once. I know everyone has their own opinion about the game, but I'll never go near it again.
EDIT: Cabal Online was fun for a little while, too. Great graphics+landscape.
I'm a huge fan of MMO's. I'm currently waiting on Champions to come out...loved City of Heroes, just kinda got bored of having no one to play with. I joined a bit late, so it was hard to get involved with stuff. Virtue for life :D
I enjoy most online games in general, the sense of community and common goals really made it worth it for me.
Whitlen
02-28-09, 02:50 PM
I casually play WoW, but I enjoy playing with just a few close friends rather than get into the horrid politics that happen constantly. It's more fun that way anyway, and the instances and raids go much more smoothly.
Ebivoulya
02-28-09, 03:03 PM
Brunettes for the win.
Yeah, but apart of the contributing to the community (which is arguable, since a lot of people playing MMOs are idiots that want to know "how to mine for fish, lol" ;)), you get that from pretty much every single-player RPG and you actually get a decent story.
To be fair, some MMOs probably release 'level editors' for their members to make their own levels. I used to make maps for the original Unreal when I was in muh yungah days, and it was kind of cool. However, I think that puts you more on the game development side of the fan base, which can also bring with it some mad respek points.
True, true, but on Althanas you create something while you're roleplaying and you're honing your writing skills. In MMOs you follow the often lame series of quests and hone your ability to punch the same button or two over and over again.
Yeah, instead we hone our ability to pick which of 26 buttons should go next.
That's another thing. Using real money for in-game crap is crazy. I saw a documentary where there are WoW workshops where people level characters up to sell to other people for real money. What the fuck? So there are actually people out there that pay to skip what's probably the very thing that makes the game even remotely fun (character development) so they would start with a character that pretty much kills anything with a single left-click. It's a crazy world.
That's the thing I never really got. Isn't hundreds of hours of your life enough of a price to pay? Giving some members a very obvious and distinct advantage because they are more able to shell out the cash goes against game ethics, in my opinion. What happened to all gamers are created equal? If you like Bioware, check out Neverwinter Nights. One of the best RPGs I've played, even if it is based on DnD rules. Actually being able to pause the game in the middle of a fight is nice for yon strategizin', too.
Critters kicked my ass...i got pissed and tossed the mouse to patrick and said "UGH, FUCK BEING A TAUREN CHIEFTAN!" and grabbed a box of cookies and played Warcraft 3, with an already tooled out Tauren Cheiftan and his posse of moo cows from hell, stomping a mudhole in the elves and the humans and other orcs.
Collect those fucking cougar claws, bitch!
Yari Rafanas
02-28-09, 08:39 PM
The only MMO I played extensively (couple years) was City of Heroes. The main draw to that game passed the initial (oh I'm a hero and I am kickin' ass!) was the community of roleplayers. I got sucked into the super easy environment for roleplay and it's basically what took me away from Althanas altogether. Because it was a super-hero genre you could have so many types of characters and some really talented, creative people. Some of the coolest individuals I have ever met (and still know) were part of that game. Sure, you do get a bit bored of the gameplay, but that's when you would roll up new characters and whatnot.
Fuck WoW though. What a bunch of tools.
OMFG, who amongst you bastards choose redheads? :mad: I should've made it a public poll so I know who gets the kick in the gut.
I chose redheads. Wanna do something about it, big boy?
BlackAndBlueEyes
02-28-09, 10:02 PM
Yeah, I chose redheads too. Shall we settle this in PvP on EverQuest?
Godhand
02-28-09, 10:05 PM
Summary of this thread:
"You can't have fun your way, you must have fun my way!"
Christoph
02-28-09, 10:30 PM
summary of this thread:
"you can't have fun your way, you must have fun my way!"
no fun is allowed!
Summary of this thread:
"You can't have fun your way, you must have fun my way!"
HAHAHA
I lol'd.
Fidelis
03-01-09, 12:25 AM
Meh was obsessed with MMO's at one point especially Martial Heroes. Now just occaissonally when I have time.
I just like the fact I can go player-killing on a guild that decides to piss me off while I level random newbies. Or I'm that much of a jackass to just go PKing for the sake of being able to do it.
If you like Bioware, check out Neverwinter Nights. One of the best RPGs I've played, even if it is based on DnD rules. Actually being able to pause the game in the middle of a fight is nice for yon strategizin', too.I love Neverwinter Nights, even if it perhaps is a bit hack'n'slashy when compared to Baldur's Gate. I have both NWN games and all the add-ons, but I still need to go through Mask of the Betrayer and Storm of Zehir. So yeah, I pretty much like anything that Bioware makes, from their classics through KotOR and current games (Dragon Age is going to kick ass). That's probably the only reason why I'll try The Old Republic.
Summary of this thread:
"You can't have fun your way, you must have fun my way!"Ah, Godhand, a major contributor to the discussion as always.
I chose redheads. Wanna do something about it, big boy?No, I don't hit women. Besides, you're a chick. You can choose redheads. Because that must mean lesbian sex somewhere along the line.
Yeah, I chose redheads too. Shall we settle this in PvP on EverQuest?So we can see who can outclick who in a lousy setting with lousy gameplay? We can use even Minesweeper for something like that. ;)
Also, another thing I'd like to bring up. Money. Or rather subscriptions that you must constantly pay in order to play these games. I mean, you buy the game (which perhaps doesn't cost as much as some single-player titles) and then you must keep paying for it every single month just to keep playing. This, in some way or other, has become present in a lot of games today, sometimes as subscriptions and sometimes as additional content that you can download for real money. Note that when I say additional content, I'm not saying full add-ons, but rather stuff like additional cars in racing games, additional equipment in RPGs, stuff like that. So a game isn't a purchase anymore, it's an investment, or rather a clever way for people to rip you off.
Guild Wars, I believe, has no subscription fees, though I could be wrong.
BlackAndBlueEyes
03-01-09, 07:48 AM
You're right, Guild Wars still doesn't have any subscription fees. Which is how it should be with Momos.
Lord Anglekos
03-01-09, 12:38 PM
Yeah, Guild Wars has no subscription fees, although I tired of it pretty easily. Being a necromancer/warrior was fun, but then the whole giant-spider syndrome came into play again.
But I agree. Subscription fees blow.
Subscription fees are the worst part about these MMOs. I would be much more willing to play them if they would do away with that. I thought about playing Guild Wars but heard it actually wasn't all that good.
I used to play Final Fantasy XI. I was totally addicted, but it costs like $13 a month. When you add that up for the amount of time that I played it, I payed $286 to squeenix. PLUS another $40 for the actual game. That game wasn't worth that much money.
And for some reason I'm thinking about playing it again. I totally don't understand why I got so addicted to it. I mean most MMOs suck to play and FFXI is no exception, but once you've built up your character and made friends, it's really addictive.
Alydia Ettermire
03-01-09, 04:14 PM
I could never force myself to shell out money for one of the ones you have to buy the game AND pay subscription fees to play. I played one that was free to download and play, but if you wanted the really good stuff you had to pay like ten bucks a month.
I always found the fee worth it. These games provided me with some great friends who I still talk to as well as some really, really great times. I'm currently awaiting Champions Online to come out, and currently have a subscription open to Warhammer Online.
I've played quite a few MMO's; as I mentioned earlier, I played CoH, but I've also played WoW, FFXI, EQ, and SWG for extended periods of time. I've enjoyed the time I spent in all of them and the fee was worth the content that the developers continued to put out.
Cyrus the virus
03-02-09, 08:29 AM
I don't get the subscription fee hate. I would pay $15 a month to continuously play a game as much as I want before paying $60 a month for a new game. Besides, that's less than I spend on porn or beer or food or coffee.
And if we're going to bitch about MMOs, let's be reasonable and not talk out of our butts - WoW has a great storyline and very expansive, intriguing lore behind it. If you only play to level 20 before being bored, you probably wouldn't know this.
Guild Wars was awesome for a while, but starting new expansions already at the maximum level is fucking stupid.
I don't get the subscription fee hate. I would pay $15 a month to continuously play a game as much as I want before paying $60 a month for a new game. Besides, that's less than I spend on porn or beer or food or coffee.
And if we're going to bitch about MMOs, let's be reasonable and not talk out of our butts - WoW has a great storyline and very expansive, intriguing lore behind it. If you only play to level 20 before being bored, you probably wouldn't know this.
Guild Wars was awesome for a while, but starting new expansions already at the maximum level is fucking stupid.
I agree on the WoW point. Head to http://www.wowwiki.com/Portal:Main and click on just about anything and you'll find that just by browsing for a bit you can discover just how expansive their lore truly is. They have a boat-load worth of impressive material.
Damion Shargath
03-02-09, 12:09 PM
I tried some MMO's...and they all failed me. And with each next one I tried, it failed me sooner. I'm glad I never touched that Warcraft stuff though...
Nowadays I just can't be fucked to play videogames pretty much...apart from a few, once in a while...nothing. It just doesn't interest me whatsoever anymore.
BlackAndBlueEyes
03-02-09, 02:21 PM
My old roommate (some of you might remember him as Raziel here) was hooked on WoW. He lost all semblance of a social life, and his vocabulary regressed to two words: "Heal me."
Just ask Christoph. We'd rag on him from the safety of the living room, where he dared not to venture (that would require him getting up off the futon).
Christoph
03-03-09, 12:47 AM
Heh heh. 'tis true. "Heal me... heal me..." Four hours later. "Heal me..."
Wow, he must've sucked real bad if he needed that much healing.
Tainted Bushido
03-03-09, 04:06 AM
Wow, he must've sucked real bad if he needed that much healing.
QFT.
I've been kinda sitting back and watching this thread, since I was once a one time WoW addict. It's been interesting to watch the ongoing debate in here. Even funnier since I've seen both sides of the equation.
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