Destiny: Is this the future of gaming?

Destiny is a game recently released across various consoles and places the first person shooter genre into the role playing and MMO genres.

As much as I believe that as time goes by, we will see almost all genres adopt into an MMO-like standpoint, Destiny seems to do this in a rather shabby fashion. I detail some of the reasons below:

Question 1: Do you get rewarded?

Yes you do, with new gear and guns, however the amount of time you need to invest to get the greater gear can be considerable.

Question 2: How is the grind?

There is no question that the grind is certianly apparent in this game. Especially when trying to accrue vanguard marks (as opposed to crucibal marks). Vanguard marks mainly require you to play strikes, which are like dungeons in regular MMOs. However, because there are only a very short supply of strikes, this results in excruciatingly repetitive gameplay. On the  other hand, if you like competitive multiplayer, I would find the crucibal marks a lot easier to accrue.

Question 3: Is this truly next-gen?

Yes, it looks pretty, however with its repetitive gameplay, lack of different things to do, and rather long loading screens (even on the PS4 and Xbox One), this is not what is expected these days.

Overall, I have spent over thirty hours playing and have reached level 26 currently. So as much as I feel the gameplay is repetitive, ofcourse it is still rather addictive.

Downloading LOTRO. Which MMO is truly the best?

So I find myself downloading LOTRO. I think I’m bored. This must be the only reason as I have dabbled in LOTRO many years ago and since have delved into a wealth of MMOs of different types over the years, but have never stuck it out on any one specifically for an exceptionally long length of time.

Maybe I’m not the kind of guy for MMOs. Perhaps my attention span warrants a car racing game or a quick-fire shoot-em up. My craving however, that niggling feeling at the back of my mind always maintains. The craving for an MMO, any MMO. Just get me levelling up!

What are your thoughts and do you have any preference over MMOs? I note that all MMOs tend to follow the same basic structure, however they all have their unique selling points (most, at least).

New Character in Guild Wars 2.

My new character in Guild Wars 2..

Rift: Free To Play Model Coming Soon

So it's been announced recently that Rift will be coming onto the free to play format, much like almost all other MMOs after a certain amount of time (exceptions including Eve and WoW).

This needs to be a very careful undertaking however as we have seen the free to play model crash and burn for games in the past. Yes, there's no subscription, but how is it best to implement factors into the game so the developer can still earn money?

A personal no no for me is buying quest packs, we saw this in LOTRO and I don't think it works too well. Ultimately this kind of DLC means you can't progress without investing (much like paying to be able to go into different parts of the world, or to be able to level up).

I hope Rift does adopt a winning scheme (Guild Wars 2 is testament that it can be done, but I guess that was made from the ground up as a non-subscription game, that could make a difference).

Going free to play can either make or break a game. I guess we'll find out (I'm sure it'll be fine!)

MMO's: Getting back into it.. but there's too much choice?!

Once again, I'm feeling that unmistakable itch within the gaming cortex of my brain (yes, ofcourse it exists..). The itch that continually nags at me to start playing an MMO again, until the inevitable happens and I give in.

My one problem? Which one do I choose? Do I do the unthinkable and re-subscribe to WoW (maybe not). Perhaps Rift, but then again, with the new Star Trek film that has just come out, I also feel drawn to a dabble in Star Trek Online.

This is amongst many other options I could take. Is there just too much choice these days? If so, is this nessacerily a bad thing?

One thing is decided though, I may as well not go back to Rift until the free to play model is put in place in June.

Gamerscore or Trophies?

Which one is better. Do you like the thought of all of your achievements being held into an accumulative score, or do you prefer the random mix of bronze, silver and gold trophies which ultimately determine your current user level (I guess this is more similar to people who play MMOS or any game with an RPG development side to it).

Ultimately, as I dive between the two, I don't see that one is better than the other. I just see them as an additional element to each individual game that can make the game that little bit more addictive or replayable.

To consider trophies or a gamerscore as a reflection of your gaming prowess could be considered ignorant. You may completely dominate a certain genre of game, whilst not as much with another. Plus the fact that some achievements/trophies are insanely hard to get, or require you to invest a lot more time than you would ideally like to.

I think this system would work a lot better and mean a lot more to us if we actually saw real rewards from it (i.e: reach 20000 gamerscore or level 10 and we will give you *** store credit/points). This would create a whole new buzz around the system and make people, hopefully, invest more time in their games, rather than moving onto the next big thing.

Games That Suck You In..

No matter how hard you try, some games can get their grubby little claws into you and you'll be hard pressed to be able to let go. These are games that either have so much content, addictive gameplay or rewarding goals that we all play them time and time, and time again.

To name a few:

- The Elder Scrolls Games.. Oblivion being particularly greedy with my time.
- WoW
- Fry Cry 3
- Fuel
- Just Cause
- Simcity
- Anno

I'm sure we can all name our own few games that seem to of stolen many hours of our lives without us even realising it. This is likely to be the future of gaming and we are likely to see much more addictive 'RPG' like factors applied to almost every style of game going forward; for better or for worse (very much for worse with concern to things like DLC).

What Is The Formula In Making A Long-Standing MMO?

There are various different aspects that affect the longevity of an MMO and when it's date with imminent death is. These include:

- The game becomes stale (same old stuff, just remade in a slightly different way)
- No user support or very little
- Playerbase never takes off so it doesn't last outside of a year
- Competition
- No unique selling point

Take a look at the below article which tells us more about what Guild Wars 2 is planning to do going forward to try and maintain their playerbase. The factors they discuss are fairly common sense, however, even with the best laid plans it may still prove futile.

http://uk.ign.com/articles/2013/03/07/how-guild-wars-2-plans-to-survive

This is because the MMO genre can be very fickle, purely because there are so many options available. It's very easy to be able to move onto different adventures.

So what makes an MMO stick? What do you love about your favourite MMO that means you aren't easily deferred onto something else?

Typing Errors In Games..

Whether it be within dialogue, random text or through any other means. Finding a spelling mistake in a game when just starting out can have a considerable affect on your first impressions, especially if its joined by errors two and three shortly thereafter. It doesn't in anyway reflect the final product necessarily, however it doesn't bode well.

I have been recently playing Anno 2070 and have come across many instances in the few short hours I have played. When you consider the mainstream MMOs have page after page of text to check but don't often make errors, you find yourself thinking there wasn't much attention to detail during development and testing.

Can you think of any other games where you have found the elusive, or sometimes, obvious error?

On another note, if there does happen to be any spelling errors in this post.. please ignore.

Entropia Universe..

This is one of those games I have recently come across which both intrigues but also completely puts me off.

The prospect is good and the mechanics of the game are much the same as many other games. A similar game I find is Eve Online whereby this also has an active, user fuelled economy. This game however, takes the user created economy to the next level. The currency can be exchanged into USD, this therefore means that every item, every piece of land, vehicle or accessory has a real world value to it. This has resulted in a lucky few people being able to make a living from this single game and good for them (although this would not be easy as first thought, and would also involve taking significant risks/investment, unless they happen to get lucky).

The main reason this puts me off is, although I may pay a monthly subscription for a game, this is done automatically and is not something I give a second thought over. If I were to want to invest and buy items in a game to help me progress, where each item i buy would be considered as a real purchase, this for some reason gives the whole transaction a different feel. I can see this mechanic causing people to also get too involved and plunder much more money than they would of ever done in a standard MMO.

The only other thing to mention is that the game has some of the best visuals in an MMO to date, just be sure to get yourself a powerful enough rig to make the most out of it. Personally, I'll stick to playing the standard stuff, but for anybody than ventures into this game, good luck.

Elder Scrolls Online Will Be A Third Person MMO..

I know the traditional way of playing MMOs is via a third person perspective, posed high above your character and being able to see in all directions and know what is going on. With Elder Scrolls Online having been confirmed to be in this same third person perspective, although it has its obvious advantages, surely this takes away one of the main selling points of the Elder Scrolls series (from Morrowind onwards).

When I first heard about this impending MMO, my first thought, as like many others, was how good it will be to play the game in first person, a bursting flame of fire hovering in one palm, whilst a sword is held in the other. This was its unique selling point and now this isn't the case, this seems like it may just be like any other MMO and could very well go the same way as SWTOR, which originally had lofty ambitions.

Surely the disadvantages of such a view could be overcome by introducing new gaming dynamics, a small picture in picture interface or maybe just to provide the choice. If everybody has the same point of view, then there is no unfair advantage (at least in PvP).

I hope I find further reason to look forward to this game with new announcements in the future, but I can't help but feel a little deflated.

MMOs On Consoles, Could It Work One Day?

A new game by the name of Destiny may be developed by Bungie as an open world first person shooter (or an adaptation of). This is exciting as it opens up the possibilities for the future of the genre and for gaming as a whole.

Thinking more along these lines and to varying extremes. How long do we think it will be before the MMO genre is converted (successfully) over to the console market? I know its already had its attempts (such as DC Universe on PS3 or Final Fantasy), but it isn't what could be classed as successful when comparing it against its PC counterpart.

It's not impossible ofcourse, the only restraint I can foresee is the sheer size of the files and the need for them to constantly be updated, but also the lack of buttons you have when using a controller. I think there is a market ready to be dialled into which is begging for the next big thing.. The first MMOs that will hit consoles and be the equivalent of WoW, or stand side by side with the popularity of Call Of Duty at least.

Is this just dreaming? Will we ever see this happen? Who knows, but I can't see it being too long before the console market is attempted more vigorously by the major MMO developers.

Dayz Addon For ARMA 2

I have just come across the Dayz addon for ARMA 2. Although this is merely an Addon and not what you would call a fully fledged MMO, from what I can see, this is a very good attempt at the concept, and a good move in the future direction of MMOs.

Much like many thousands of others, I feel compelled to buy ARMA 2, just so I can give this Addon a try. Has anybody played this and if so, what are your thoughts?

Please see:

http://dayzmod.com/

MMOs: What Is The Best Character Class?

Whether you want to be a Rogue, a Warrior, a Mage or choose from many other options, what is the best one to choose?

Is there actually a preferred one, or has each got its own merits and downfalls? Does it matter what game you are playing (for instance in some games, there is the option to undertake class customisation, rather than be restricted to certain elements purely because of your class.)

An experienced MMO player would of meddled with some, if not all, the classes on offer to see what each one is like. Are Warriors and Mages all there cracked up to be.. or is the priest/healer class just as riveting?

Personally, my favourite class at the moment is the rogue-like class, with the ability to deal damage from afar but still have sustainable armor and also a companion to help you in your travels (speaking from Rift).

Will World Of Warcraft Always Be At The Top?

Don't get me wrong, World of Warcraft is a great game, with great support and it has an in depth world to explore, great gameplay/crafting systems etc etc.. But is it time that something else took the MMO throne.. It has been 8 years (approximately) so surely we should be crying out for something different by now?

At its peak I believe the subscriber number was around the 11 million mark, which has dropped to somewhere around the 9.5 million mark in recent times. This sounds like a large shift, but when you relate these figures to other MMOs, World of Warcraft stands clearly as the victor.

What's your stance. Is it time that World of Warcraft lost its dominance? Are there any other games out there that you think would rightfully deserve it more?

Personally, there are games like Rift, for instance. Rift is similar to WoW in a lot of ways, but in a lot of others also improves on it (graphics and randomly generated rifts in the world for instance). Maybe Elder Scrolls Online could topple it? Extremely unlikely.

Is it possible that upwards of several million people are too far invested in WoW now, with their characters maxed out and so forth, that moving on would just seem crazy? This could be a good reason why WoW would remain at the top (not to mention it is still a top performer in its genre, even 8 years on).

3000 Players Collide..

 

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2013-01-28-eve-online-when-3000-players-collide 

Surely this is the point where the term Massively Multiplayer lives upto its name a bit too much?

Rant: Logging Into Guild Wars 2!

I have been trying to login to Guild Wars 2 this afternoon, and it would not let me login. My first assumption was that this was due to the fact that I had not logged in for a month or two and I had forgot my password (although I was certian I had it correct).

I clicked the 'recover my account' button and this led to a webpage that was currently unavailable. From this, I then clicked onto the 'reset my password' button, this link was also not working. From this, I then went directly to the website and went through the reset process, after fully entering the serial code from the box, amongst other details, I successfully reset my password.

I tried to login again and it still tells me my details are invalid, both username and password. I could reset it again but id have to enter in the serial code again.

Not to mention the other various times it has asked me to authorise my location because im logging in on a different device, although I don't turn my router off and I use the same computer. I had to disable this function.

Result. MMOs sometimes may not realise how fickle the genre is and due to the wide competition there is out there, it is very easy to move on. I gave up and began to boot up WoW so I can plow through, up to level twenty, to see if I want to get back into that instead.

Games can have security but some are overly done. It is only a game at the end of the day and I find it easier to login to things that should be more secure (like banking), than I do into this game.

Rant over. Thanks for listening.

Wish Lists..

We all have them, whether it be for the latest album, book or game. Mine is more related to games and includes the following, including many more:

- Sim City (released March 2013). I loved SimCity 4 and its been way too long since. Hopefully this sequel will not disappoint.

- Elder Scrolls Online. If this is in anyway like Oblivion or Skyrim, then it's on to a brilliant concept in an MMO world. I did, however, think the same of SWTOR, and as much as I tried, i couldn't continue to play it. Hopefully, this will not disappoint.

- As previously said and for reasons I don't quite understand.. Euro Truck Simulator 2!

- Anno 2070. I know it's been out for a long time now, but I have never played it and I could plow hours and hours into Anno 1404.

Everybody has wish lists, mine is a good mixture of differing elements. What's in yours?

Moving Between MMOs

MMOs are by far, my favourite genre of game, however with the abundance of different ones out there, how do you choose just one (or two).

I have played various MMOs but have never been able to stick to one in particular. The pure choice itself can be overwhelming and because there are so many, each one fights for our attention and picks at your curiosity with a new mechanic, or interesting new take (although most just work off the same general idea anyway). I have played many MMOs, including the below and many more:

- WoW
- Rift
- Allods Online
- Darkfall
- Secret World
- Guild Wars 1 and 2
- LOTRO
- Star Trek Online
- SWTOR

No one has managed to grab my attention to the fullest, and it will only be a matter of time until I move on to the next big thing. I'm a sucker for a good, or sometimes appalling MMO. Is it just me or does anybody else dart around them?

Free To Play vs Subscriptions

We may be at a turning point, not only in the MMO genre, but with gaming overall. Whether it be with the majority of MMOs now turning towards a free to play model, rather than the regular financial support of a subscription, or with the same model being adopted now into the casual gaming market (such as FarmVille and the many other apps out there).

So what is best, is the future bright when it comes to a free to play model? The only game that appears to of avoided this is WoW (yes it may be free to play up until level 20 but that isn't any good for anybody), and it is still going strong.

Surely we still get the same content updates and user support across both platforms, as of course, ultimately the company is still getting their money, whether this be through advertising, in game purchases or subscription fees.

- Guild Wars 2 vs WoW
- LOTRO vs Rift

Personally, nothing will beat the subscription as there just seems to be more effort put in. What I don't agree with however is games which ask for a subscription fee but then still prompt you for in game purchases.. for shame..