Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Allods Delivers



Last night I logged into Allods to check and see if the rewards, for the Play for Rewards event, had been sent out. It seemed that I had only gained one item, but the mail system was a bit overloaded I read on the forums. Upon logging in at a later time I received all of my rewards and I was pretty excited. In my mailbox waiting were the following items, pictured below:


Some of the items I sold and made a pretty penny, most I kept though. I absolutely love the mount, cosmetic armor and the Talisman of The Chosen one, which adds the glow (pictured) around my character's head.

I have to say for logging in just one hour a day it was well worth it. Even if I couldn't play I made a point to at least leave my character sitting there. There was a bit of a conflict on patch day, which was about halfway through the event, so all in all the event actually took 16 days, with 2 not counting. But if the forums were checked up on, all information was there as well as on Facebook, it just took a bit of keeping tabs on.

Playing for the last few weeks has been enjoyable, I really like the game as it is now, more so than how it was at release. I'm not too crazy about the aspect of playing a PvP oriented game but there are things that differ from the average PvP based game. I like the classes and races, the look and feel of the game. I'm quite glad I gave it another chance and it was well worth it with the event plus the new spring festival event going on, which has been fun. I love games that have fun fluff filled events and Allods really delivered on the fluff!

I will continue to play Allods after this, I wasn't sure just how far I'd get but it was a great incentive to come back and try it out! I leave you with some pictures of my time thus far in Allods.

Yasker Hawk Set.

My 'druid' look.

Tropical Allod.

Ewwww.....

The stash!

Sunset.

Bunny ears and a skeleton costume while dancing= win :)

Monday, February 27, 2012

Thoughts On: Zentia & Loong



The great thing about playing a MMO in this day and age is choice. There are so many wonderful games out there. Different art styles, different types of play, may it be casual or hardcore there is something for everyone. To wish a game would fail or bottom up is simply silly, why would we want to limit the choices out there? What you dislike might be right up another player's alley. I also think it is great to get excited about games, it is why I write about them. Even if I don't play all the games I get excited about I love that they are there when I want them. That is a really great thing.

Thinking back to early 2000, I didn't have the choices I do today. The big choice was what class do I want to play in Everquest, what type of guild do I want to go after. It is so nice, all these years later, to be able to sit down and ask myself what game do I want to play. Thus I love trying out new games, I love returning to games when I miss them, I love the choices and options available to players.



With that said this weekend I tried a couple of really neat (F2P) MMO games I wanted to share. In my last post I spoke briefly about Loong, which is really a nice MMO that has a great feel to it. You can jump in and start going along with the business of questing and feel like you're actually progressing. Tons of quests, autorouting, neat pets who loot for you, smooth controls and combat is decent as you level up it starts to get more involved, though a bit dull to start out.

While the race and appearance options are not the most optimal it does have some alternative things like the appearance slots and armor that changes certain aspects, such as hair. The characters are attractive but nothing really astounding. The armor is nice looking and gets better as you level, looks wise. Questing rewards you with sets, which is nice, instead of hunting around for gear you are given it as a reward. For a free to play game I think it is quite decent simply because of the content and quality over quantity of race/looks. There are so many out there that have tons of races and classes but send you out to grind levels instead of questing, which can get dull fast if you don't know what or why you're even grinding to get high end.

The world is really lovely, the water effects are gorgeous and even with shadows on the game runs smoothly. It is sort of funny how a F2P game like this, little known, preforms better than some bigger titles that are more so popular. I think it looks better than a lot of the more popular subscription based games. But looks are not everything. The game does seem to have some depth and lasting power, thus far, I still feel like logging in after playing it a few days.



I felt myself drawn back to try the different roles, I am thinking I'll be working on this a bit longer to see how it fleshes out at the mid levels. For something on the side it is a great alternative, as I already have so many games I'm working on. Leveling is pretty decently paced, at least until the teens, where I am now, which is nice. I really think this is a fun little game to relax to in the evenings. Definitely worth a look.

--------------------------------------------------------

Next up is Zentia. Recently I was watching Massively's Beau livestreaming Zentia. I played it before and really liked it a lot but for some reason the screen seemed jumpy to my eyes and it really bothered me. I think the motion of walking is just different in this type of MMO and since getting glasses it doesn't bother me when I wear them. So that could have been a problem with just me. I actually liked it a lot and decided to give it another chance, I'm glad I did.




Graphically this game might not impress a lot of people but it has it's own special charm. I actually think it is quite cute. What draws me to this game is that it is really casual and fun. Lots of quests, auotorouting (where your little pet leads you from place to place) and it has a light comical feel. You can tame pets, tame mounts and even tame multiple person and combat mounts, which is a novel idea I like.

There are neat appearance items which can change how your character looks, even combat gear does this too. While I haven't run into any great appearance stuff yet, I do have hopes I'll find some along the way. The character creation is a bit different, you can't alter the character's looks but you can with costumes. I do think the looks are very cute and quaint.

I made a friend while playing, who helped me find some mounts and explained a few things to me. It was nice that someone came up to me and tried to help. I was very grateful, he even showed me a few places to go, taking me for a ride on his bear mount.



Every weekend there is bonus xp, I like that, plus leveling seems a real decent pace, your not sitting through levels for that long. You do feel as if you are moving along through things advancing. Pet taming also requires skill points to level and train up. But it goes pretty fast with just a few tames, at least the first few ranks. This determines what level mounts and pets you can tame.

I love that you can tame things you want to and that the game is so casual feeling. Very relaxing to play for a bit and just have fun. Seems a great game to duo with a friend, ride around together on mounts and quest. This is one I definitely see myself popping in and out of for awhile, something great on a weekend or tired evening. I really find it enjoyable!




So, that's it for today, a bit sick, thought I was over the flu last week but I think I had a relapse, blah! Hope everyone has a great week and the flu keeps away from you all!




Sunday, February 26, 2012

Now Playing 2/26



This week I decided to do another video showing off what I'm playing. Some brief footage in-game for each one, showing the combat, UI and the world. I enjoy doing these videos just to show off some of these great games. Anything longer would start to get dull so I try to keep them short and sweet. I suppose I'll call these 'Now Playing' :)

Everquest
Vitt was messing around in Halls of Honor and saw Mithaniel Marr was up, he asked if I wanted to kill him, as if he needed me but it was fun to head in there and down him. The last time I did was during the PoP era doing progression (Vit and I got one kill away from our PoT flag before we had to take a break due to a move IRL).

I'm still playing Everquest but mostly on the weekends when he plays. I enjoy the game more so as a duo and have been mostly working on my Beastlord who is parked at 75, along with Vit's Rogue, working hard on AA points. I thought it would be neat to fraps an old boss kill for a video. I had to shorten the footage a lot, as it took several minutes to kill, these bosses still have a lot of hitpoints.

Allods Online
Really enjoying Allods. I managed to log in every day for the 14 day (Play For Rewards) event. I also got very attached to the game in the process. I thought I'd show off the next area I'm working through, quests and some combat with my summoner. As you can see in the video- Ding 15! I could be higher but just taking things slow enjoying my time and doing a lot of event type stuff for fun and rewards (notice my shiny appearance stuff).

Loong Online
I found this game recently, it is smooth as butter and polished. I don't know if I will actually play it but it is a really good free to play title. It has some gorgeous visuals, a robust and interesting pet system, as well as appearance slots and PvP sieges if that is your thing. The combat right now, at my level, is a bit bland but maybe it will spruce up a bit once I get more abilities. I thought it was worth showing in the video too.

The mount in the video is a free 29 day, or so, one that I got for free. I love the pet system the little guys even loot for you! The class system is kind of different as you pick your playstyle as you go. You choose in game to wear cloth/armor and what weapons to use then which skills you want. That sets you on a path of what you will be classified as. It does appear that this game had some decent financial backing, you can't help to notice fluid and gorgeous it is.

In my next video I'd like to show a bit of Zentia. That is another fun free to play title I'd like to share more about but enough for today. Hope you enjoy the video! The awesome song can be found- here.



Friday, February 24, 2012

TGIF!

Ah... Friday! Victory dance!




Giving credit where credit is due- SOE




Over the last few days things really have gotten ugly concerning EQ2 and the ProSiebenSat.1deal. There were forum bans, titter rage and so on, there was even a petition against this deal. But SOE is listening and trying to come up with a solution. I know many people would just be happy to see the deal go away but I think they deserve some credit for trying to come up with some type of solution. I'm really happy to see that they are working on some type of middle ground.

They could have just sent out bans and ignored players until they saw fit but they are trying to touch base and I think that is really a good start. I have had my issues with SOE here and there, as with any MMO I play, at some point, but I gotta say that they are a company who listens and hears players, more so than most. I'd say a lot more.

Raging and pulling out the pitchforks isn't going to help matters. I think this is one of those cases where feedback is important but it is also important to act like adults about the situation. There have been multiple forum, twitter and Facebook posts giving updates on how they are trying to come up with a solution and that they won't be dividing up the community which is something to give them credit for. Good news IMO.






Thursday, February 23, 2012

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Scribbles

I haven't drawn anything in so long it seems, and my scanner died too. Just sharing some scribbles I've been working on, time to make supper so I suppose I'll finish it another time. My son misplaced my good pencils, hence the nubby ones I'm using >.> Grrrr....







HEY, DO YOU MIND IF YOU SELL YOUR SERVER OFF? CHECK ONE: YES, NO, MAYBE


From Cheesepirate.com


SOE has made some really unsettling decisions over the last few months. First up in EverQuest they announced they were ending the Recruit A Friend program, cutting off all links to accounts. Thankfully they listened to the player base and decided to grandfather it in. I still think they should have left it up until a week or so before the Free To Play conversion, but I understand that they have to have some sort of cut off. Still there could have been a better way of bringing this on could have been presented, a last call for the program, some type of word. Alas they did hear our cries and we were happy with SOE.

Next up was the announcement that the sun was setting on the lone EQ Mac server. The server was being shut down and that was that. However, a lot of players voiced how upset they were, both PC and Mac players alike hated seeing this happen, a longtime community being shut down. On top of all of this there is mainly one programmer who really keeps that server going as it is complicated with lots of old coding, but it really seems odd how to even let it get to that point. At least they do have that gem of a developer- Hobart.

So, I was surprised to see a poll on this topic of an EQMac server. Even though I don't play on a Mac I still voted I would, because if I had one I'd surely play that version of EQ on it. SOE didn't let us down, shortly after they announced that the server would remain up and go free to play with no cash shop. SOE never ceases to amaze me. That was wonderful news!

It looks like SOE is starting to make some better choices, even if they do end up startling the community in the process, right? Now I'm really puzzled over the company 'selling' off their EQ2 EU servers to what is known as a shady company that has poor support and security, thus segregating their community. I mean, really, the population isn't that healthy IMO. I couldn't even find enough players to hand out roses for the valentine event (no handing to NPCs like WoW did... Boo..hiss). I just don't get it.

You run into all kinds of problems like Canada being cut off, weird I know. How about those serving our country outside the US, they get cut off too. Lots of things that I think were not considered. I want to know why they would even do this. EQ2Wire has a great list of problematic scenarios that will tie into this.

This company could really be something great if they got their heads our of... Well, you know. They have some great games, wonderful communities, they listen to players on huge issues. I'm really glad that, with most cases, they listen to the community and do weigh in our input. I'm really happy that they do, but why not do some polls in the future instead of backpedaling so much in the future?

I have a great idea for polls- Maybe: HEY, DO YOU MIND IF YOU SELL YOUR SERVER OFF? CHECK ONE: YES<X> NO < > MAYBE< > DO YOU MIND IF WE SHUT YOUR SERVER DOWN? CHECK ONE: YES<X> NO < > MAYBE< >

I often wonder if anyone at SOE even plays their games thus having any idea of what goes on in these communities, heh. The ones making the decisions? Because they obviously don't seem to consider the players right off the bat. It is sad too because they really do have a solid foundation which they seem to overlook.

Well, I wish the EU players the best of luck. Hopefully SOE starts putting on their thinking caps in the future. I don't see this ending well, as in the past these types of servers were always pulled back into the company, which is good, but it is the players who suffer for the poor decisions.

Monday, February 20, 2012

Allods Online- Scratching The Surface



Earlier this month Allods Online announced the Play for Rewards event and I had decided to give the game another chance, to actually log in for an hour each day for fourteen days, scratch the surface and see what is really there. A chance to see more of the game and really give it a chance, I've always liked the game but there were things in the past, mechanics and cash shop power, that turned me off. This month marks the official release of the game with a great celebration and it is a perfect time to start. With that the game has toned down and become something really enjoyable. Two years ago I was so excited about the beta and it's nice to be excited about it again.

I'm not going to be able to cover all my thoughts on the game, of course, but I'd like to share some of my pondering and experiences since being back. I went in wanting to grab some freebie items and something to piddle around with when I get bored, but ended up getting quite hooked. I might not last all the way to end game but for me it is all about the journey and I'm having a great time.

Spring Festival Allod

I'd have to say over the last two years the game has gotten less harsh with certain things. The cash shop is still a part of the game but you can grind money and buy these items from other players, which is a nice alternative. That is also something you have to worry about 40+. From what I read, thirty bucks (USD) will get you a set of level 4 runes that will pretty much do you well. These runes help with killing mobs and taking damage. I'm not sure exactly the specifics but we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. If you enjoy a game I don't see a problem with dropping a few bucks into the shop sometimes to support it. I'd much rather get cosmetic stuff but.... I've already gotten so much free cosmetic stuff from the game.

My bank is full of glorious, shiny, fluffy appearance gear. Much of it is cash shop items but I obtained them all through the Spring Festival, plus a few unique festival items. I was in fluff ecstasy when I found out there were repeatable quests for a mount, coins (festival currency- which is a world drop too), and other neat stuff. I've really enjoyed the event- Which has slowed down my leveling, spending time betting on crab races, running races and giving people cards and flowers, lol. But I have to say I've had a blast doing it. My friend, Rak, logged in last night and we gave each other gifts for about half an hour through quests and it was a lot of fun (great part of having a gamer friend who is willing to play as many games as I).

Love the mounts in this game.

So lets get to the nitty gritty. Hows combat? It is a bit slower paced, there is no auto attack but that isn't such a bad word anymore (WoW Monk, TOR anyone?) and when you compare it to playing a caster in many games it isn't a huge deal. Which I am playing a caster, the Demonologist. I'd say it reminds me of WoW years ago, a bit more challenge in some aspects where fights didn't end in mere fractions of a second. It depends on your play style, I enjoy both fast killing and a leisurely pace, both have their places respectively.

You have talents, so you have a choice of which direction you wish to go, a bit of flexibility and you gain your abilities through these, not spells from a vendor. You also can enhance these with rubies but I'm still much of a newb that I cannot get into this with detail.

Adventuring.

The classes are different and interesting, the new addition of the bard adds a lot of flavor. I loved the bard, it will probably be my next character I work on. For now I am working on the summoner type class as I love having minions. There is the holy trinity so you have the choice to dps, tank, heal, as well as some support classes too, which is a nice change. Soloing is very enjoyable with all of the classes I've tried, some are more fun than others but it narrows down to your personal preference.

The world is vibrant and lovely, I love the art style, it does make you think of WoW, but it has it's own charm and style. I'm a huge fan of the high fantasy art style that is Allods. The characters move fluidly and animations (as well as combat) are really smooth. The game feels very polished.

Bye, bye newbie isle!

What I really like about Allods is that there is a lot to do. This is a quest driven game and there is a ton of questing to do. It is nice to see a F2P game that doesn't run out of quests after the first few levels, leaving you to grind and feel lost as of where to go. If you're looking for something similar to WoW in the questing (theme park) aspect but want a fresh new scene, Allods delivers here. Plus it has a different twist for end game, Astral ships seem like a great deterrence from the normal end game.

Other things to mention? Bag space is starting to become a problem but if you're in it for the long haul it is a good investment. I've already gotten a (free) quest for a larger bag and mostly I need more room for my plethora of fluff stuff. It isn't as bad as some games and more often than not you can find a vendor close while questing. There is a hearth/gate like ability if you hit the i key then you can access your recall ability, in this window. There are portals to other areas, some require a quest to unlock them. Portal travel is quick and handy, you'll find many along your travels. The cash shop works well but if you pay after business hours (server clock on website page) you'll have to wait until the next morning to have your gotatoes filled. A bit annoying if you play late but they generally are quick to get it to you in the mornings. During business hours it seems to be instant.

Rak and I being silly with holiday junk.

The game has PvP, Astral Ships (combat and flying to allods through the astral), instances, raids, crafting and a whole lotta fluff. It is one that can keep you busy for awhile. The game isn't perfect but I'm having a great time and I didn't expect to have as much fun as I am. Sometimes it is good to give a game another chance, down the road. Two years later Allods Online really shines.

More as I progress through the game. Hope you enjoyed the screenshots and reading my recount of the last few weeks. I've made a video showing off a couple of my pets, some cosmetic armor and the holiday special dance (watch in HD), enjoy!



Saturday, February 18, 2012

Eye Candy

Cupid?

Maraudon

Don't look up.

Halls of Lightning.

Purgatory.

Holy light.

Summoner.

...Because you can never have enough Fenris in a post ;)


Friday, February 17, 2012

Sixty Hours!



My best friend messaged me today and asked if I'd pass along some info on a really interesting project that takes place this weekend. So here is what he's asked me to pass along:

Mojang (Minecraft creators) took votes to make a new game- strategy shooter with steampunk ancient egypt theme, lol. The catch: they have to make it this weekend, only 60 hours. While it is being created, you can buy it for as little or much as you want (.01 cent or $1,000 doesn't matter) and all proceeds go to 4 charities however you choose to divide it up. It also being streamed live the entire event and you can watch them code it, test it, etc. Has cameras on them and their screen is also being streamed. Very cool for a good cause.


Very cool indeed, some great incentive as well. You can find out more here and watch live as well as chat!




Thursday, February 16, 2012

Valentines Recap

Hope everyone had a nice Valentines week :) I ended up getting a new pair of glasses (I can see!), they're purple! I also got a new droid for Valentines from my sweetie (yes, it has a purple case) so I hope to write a bit about some Android games. I had an Android before but it was a bit slower, now I actually want to play all kinds of fun games on it. Eventually I'd like to write some more about that. If you have any recommendations for good games let me know. Anyhow, thought I'd recap what has been going on this week.

WoW


It's so lovely!


I've been having a lot of fun with the Valentines event in WoW. I managed to get my holiday mount, and then the pet on two of my 85's, I'm still hoping to get the rocket. It gives me something to work on and I enjoy the holiday events in WoW. It is always nice when they add something new to work towards, I wish more games did this. Very refreshing.

Yay!

Last night I managed to get my Albino Drake! I noticed I was so close to it, so I ran out and grabbed a few more mounts in order to get the achievement. I've always wanted one so that was a nice milestone to hit!

Allods Online


Holiday style.


I'm still chugging away with Allods on the side, continuing to play through the login event. The event is still going on but was on hold for two days because of the latest patch being released, it seems to be back on track with about five days left. I can't play every single day so sometimes I log in for my hour and afk. I do wish more information was put on the website about the hold up with the event but I think I managed to get it back on track without missing a day, I surely hope so!

The new expansion is pretty cool so far, the Bard class is a lot of fun. At the low levels you can kite mobs around which is great. I'm not sure if I'd play one up but I plan on messing around with mine more to see if I want to. More to come as I get a better feel for the new class.

The Bard.

With the expansion came a new area that everyone can participate in. Daily quests on a tropical beach. It includes races, mixed drinks and crab racing. Pretty fun stuff and some cool rewards. I got a bunch of nifty fluff gear for the event so that was sweet! You can read more here about the Tropical Allod. There are plenty of gifts and prizes to collect for the event, it has been exciting for me as my first Allods event to have participated in.

New Tropical Allod
-----------------------------------------

Other than these two games, I haven't been keeping up much with the rest of the games I've been dabbling with. I need to log into EQ2 to take part in the valentine event, I only logged in twice briefly to check things out. And then EQ I mostly play on the weekends when Dire feels up to it. PWI I put on hold until the expansion hit, which had a huge patch to download. The expansion gift has been put on hold too, so I don't even have any idea if it is anything good. We'll see soon, I hope.

Last but not least- Ever wonder what it would be like to skip all those pesky levels and get on with the game? Well I've heard people complain in the past. Seems Webzen if offering just that- for one montth- anyone who plays gains a max level character in: Mu, Archlord or S.U.N. Max level character that is fully geared. I used to play Archlord several years ago, I enjoyed it. You can find the details here.

So that's about it for today. Hope everyone has a great weekend!

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