Toy Box

It sounds like you like the same things in a MMORPG that I do, I'll have to check out LotR.

Originally Posted by Saffron

It sounds like you like the same things in a MMORPG that I do, I'll have to check out LotR.

Give it a shot. I am not a very social person in MMORPG's although I do not mind OCCASIONALLY getting into groups and playing. LotR seemed to fit my personality better. It wasn't hugely populated by other players, so while I could go out on my own and check shit out, I wasn't distracted by assholes and idiots while doing so.

I did hear that it hard to get groups together for some of the higher level stuff, but I will deal with that when I get there. IF I get there.

Wow. Good blog! Informative, thanks!

I have always been tempted to dip my feet into these waters, but with fear that I will turn into one of those drooling addicts that we all hear about.

I'm still on the fence....but I'm glad I read this.

Originally Posted by The Diabolical Mr. Lieman

Wow. Good blog! Informative, thanks!

I have always been tempted to dip my feet into these waters, but with fear that I will turn into one of those drooling addicts that we all hear about.

I'm still on the fence....but I'm glad I read this.

Dude, it is VERY easy to become one of the drooling retards. All of them are built to be addictive and time sucks. Even LotR. The only reason why I favor it because I can play at my leisure, and play with myself. Er, I mean play by myself.

Now if we could get a group of casual MMORPG players, I'd be down for that. I plan on checking out Guild Wars 2 when it comes out, only because me and the kid used to play it a lot so we want to see what they did with it.

Can you play this on a Mac I wonder? Surely.

I can see becoming addicted too. This is truly why I fear this, and I don't say that lightly. I FEAR it. I would get hooked. Call in work. Not finish screenplays. I would sit and play like a freak.

Ok...so maybe not. But I would dedicate too much time to it. Sigh....so tempting.

I noticed by looking at the videos, that for anyone not familiar with these games that they all kind of look the same. I chose actual gameplay videos over the official trailers so for the most part, all MMORPGs ARE the same to some extent. but the devil is in the details and some things can not be shown in a video, but rather experienced.

For anyone who has played an MMORPG, you know what I mean. Personally, I do not want to run the same quests over and over and over again just to level. Nor do I want to have to make alternative characters just to make one who can craft or cook. I just want to make one character that I can play from start to finish...with little forced grouping with other players. I know, some say "well if you are anti-social, then why the fuck do you play a social game?" Fair enough.

I am anti-social and a loner...but I am NOT disconnected. I am the proverbial wallflower. I am an observer, a people watcher. I do not mind social interactions with friends. Otherwise I want them brief and on MY terms or involve me putting my penis in a decent looking female.

Also, when it comes to video games, most people are friggin' idiots who do not know how to play. It's tough getting a steady, decent group of good players together and I HATE wasting my time with a bunch of strangers who waste an hour of your time only to get your ass killed somewhere..

WoW. Time suck, life suck, never ending cycle of building up shit to collect pixelated crap that will mean nothing and be worthless by the time the next patch comes out. Until recent patches it was impossible to play without bogging down your computer with so many addons that your computer video would ultimately crash and sizzle like the space shuttle did in 1986. Addons for damage, healing, how the gray and bullshit crap are handled in your bag, crafting, to scan the auction house to make sure said crap was worth something and what...Jesus. WoW.

I should add I killed my laptop and am now running the most kick ass,HOLY SHIT, mamba jamba, personally built gaming computer ever known to man. MWAHAHAHAHAHA! (When did I become this much of a nerd and why am I admitting it openly)

They have since added, from one of the more recent patches, made grouping easier if that's what you wish to do. For dungeons, group quest or battlegrounds for PvP. With this said unless you are one of the harder classes to play such as a healer or a tank you will be waiting a min sometimes of 15 mins. If you leave a dungeon too quickly you will also get a deserter buff and won't be able to re-queue for another 15 mins, or kick anyone until the buff for using the "looking for group" buff has been removed. Basically, it's a pug group (which means strangers who could give a fuck about you) with sometimes shit players who ruin the experience of pew pewing big bad mean things that want to bonk you on the head.

The WoW PVP is again fun but it's a all dependent on gear and the casual player usually dies first. Crazy, annoyingly, WHY AM I WASTING MY TIME??!!!?? fast.

Stay away. You will get sucked in.


Aion: It is a grind fest. The end game content is limited from what I have been told and leaves you to PVP, craft crap and more PVP. Which I love.. But you can't do that successfully until you are mid to upper 20's. You have to spend an enormous amount of time grinding, aka gathering bullshit. This game is geared more around MONEY than it is about content. WoW has a never ending storyline. Aion....is about killing the same shit over and over, gathering herbs, powders, fish...over and over and over. AND OVER AND OVER....so fucking dull.

Aion PvP from what I have seen is kinda cool. Rifts open up to and from opposing sides and people enter them in mass to earn rank. This is also done in the Abyss which is a place to level as well as a place to earn rank by killing opposing members. What that means is if a bored ass dickhead wants to kill you while you are questing he can do so and make you run all the way from the place you're bound to (usually a city) back to where you were to continue playing. You also have to buy back your experience if you die unlike WoW where you have to pay for gear repairs.

Until around level 18 this game is definitely a game you could play solo at your leisure and would be happy with it. You are given a quest line, told to kill or gather so much or whatever and run to do it. At 18, you are giving group quests which you have to spam /lfg to find other people, they take a good bit of time and they are not closed dungeons so you have to compete with others for the same goals.

I have deleted WoW. It's had enough of my life. I have had enough of dealing with morons who think that they are expert button mashers with the correct make up in gear or whatever. Aion, on the other hand, is still there and has been known to suck an hour or two out of me in a blink.


Let me put it this way. I asked a person who spends a LARGE chunk of her day playing how long it takes to level a toon to 50 (which is the highest level)....she told me 3 months. That translated into 5 hour days for 3 months. BAHHH!

I'm tempted to check out DDO. The graphics are decent. The vids I've checked say that the casual solo player would be happy. But, I'm not found of having shit less than others because I don't want to pony up $9.99 for some magical pocket widget that ups my pew pewness by +20.

Tell me how LOTR goes. I'm curious.

Thanks for the added info, Countess. Your description of Aion is everything I DO NOT WANT in a MMORPG. If you get a chance, check out this Wiki article on LotRO: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lord_of_the_Rings_Online

It explains a good bit and since you are a dork, you will understand a lot of the lingo.

Excellent added info, thanks, Countess.

So guys...is this like...never ending quests? Is there one goal in mind? Can you kill each other, and if you can, what prevents asshole from ruining gaming experiences every time, and when you die, do you just start back from a point in the game?

Originally Posted by The Diabolical Mr. Lieman

Excellent added info, thanks, Countess.

So guys...is this like...never ending quests? Is there one goal in mind? Can you kill each other, and if you can, what prevents asshole from ruining gaming experiences every time, and when you die, do you just start back from a point in the game?

Each game handles those things differently. Most of their official sites have FAQS you can check out that go into more detail about it. But for the most part - unless you choose a server where it is allowed, or step into an area that allows it, another player cannot simply come up and kill you.

As for stories, most games have a main arc. That main arc contains quests that progress the main story forward. Along the way, you meet new people discover new towns\lands\areas, etc all chock full of side quests and mini story arcs. If you ever do finish a game's main arc, the ending is not really an ending anyway. You are just free to do other shit like grouping with other high level people to get even better gear, fight other players or just hang out like a loser.

Oh, and in regards to the game I WILL be playing in 2011, Guild Wars 2, I really dig this from their FAQ:

Will Guild Wars 2 be solo-able?
Yes. You will be able to advance your character to the maximum level without ever joining a group if you so desire. Most content will be designed in a solo-friendly way, though often with mechanisms for scaling up in difficulty when more players are involved. This will give players the option to experience the game however they prefer.

At the same time, it is important for an MMO community to join together to overcome challenges. Guild Wars 2 will feature challenges that require players to join forces.

A-fucking-men. Oh, and the Char race are using guns. :P

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YEdr8HHJ-zU"]YouTube- Guild Wars 2 - The Races of Tyria[/ame]

I played a bit last night. spent some time hanging out in some marsh somewhere killing random shit for fun. I picked up some quest thing about killing some spiders and a Queen spider and was directed to a derelict fort in the swamps. I found it and also ran across about 8 other people hanging out in the vicinity - either doing the same quest I was or whatever.

I tried to kill the Queen by myself, but she kicked my ass proper in full view of a laughing crowd. But luckily one of them requested to group with me as they had a similar problem. So I grouped for the first time int he game. My cherry waseth poppethed. But whatever, we kicked the spider's ass and I got something for it but I don't remember what. I think I sold it. I'm saving for a house.

My entire point being, I wasn't forced to group. I could have just came back to the spider once I was a little higher level if I wanted. Once we beat the thing we disbanded and went our merry ways. Just the way I like it. But for you, Beklhark Watcher of the Woods, I will always remember the fun we had in the 5 minutes of unabashed hack and slash. This is for you:

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LatorN4P9aA"]YouTube- Journey - Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)[/ame]

I watched the South Park WoW episode last night, where the kids get all fat and pimply faced while playing the game and Cartman shits on his mother. Thought of you.

Yeah, I know, who cares, but I read this whole damn thing and all the comments despite not knowing an MMORPG from a grenade launcher and felt entitled.

I love that episode. Although I have never played WoW. But it is all the same, really. But obviously I do not allow MMORPG's to suck up too much of my time...just a bit more free time that could be used doing other stuff I guess.

The internet has enough of my life, I refuse to get an online game like that. I know where my addictions lie, and refuse to give up the last bit of my social life to it!

The only I have played was...and please, please don't shoot me...was Maple Story *snickers* It was actually kinda fun. Too hokey and needing real money to really draw me in, though.

I would probably like Aion. I'm one of those people that adored FF8 for having to draw 99 of every spell in the game. Being 10 levels ahead of where I should be:P However! I rarely have had a problem with a boss fight! :P

Okay, since we touched on the topic of South Park: did you think the queefing episode was funny or disgusting? Because opinion was sharply divided in my household...

Farts are always funny albeit witnessing them first hand would change anyones perspective.

Vaginal or otherwise = hilarious. Final vote.