December!

Ding, it's my birthday today! I am heading out to meet Dire for dinner tonight but I have some time to kill and I thought I'd get a post up about what I have been up to and some stuff going on in the MMO realm. Sometimes I am the last to know about these things, lol.

Delving Into The Past

Things really feel in a slump these days as far as the MMO scene goes. There isn't really a whole lot of new stuff, and what has come out over the last few years has been new to the west, older games that took years to release here and they have not been all that great. It seems so many games I play are on slow updating schedules, smaller content drops or just feel they are in limbo. But there are some new bits of interest here and there. The longer I play MMO games the more I seem to delve back into the past, or rather, the games that were in their prime in those golden days of the past.

Wandering (MMO)

As I mentioned a few weeks ago I was wanting to try out some trials, maybe some free MMO games. I've dabbled in a few things recently and wanted to give some thoughts on them. I suppose it's most surprising what I found to be exciting was something I passed over years ago. I'll save the best for last.

Dark Age of Camelot
I am still considering playing DAoC but I have a lot to think on. It is really a lovely game, it has an appeal I can't explain. Yesterday I made my way to a place around my level, out in a field in the middle of nowhere- killing headless corpses. I wondered where to go next then I realized I had no earthly idea where to go, I'd forgotten a lot. I remember towns and I can make my way around well enough but it will be a lot of learning if I play this. I cannot expect my husband to learn any of this in his short MMO playing time. I dropped the subject with him. I'm still thinking this one over.

Allods Online
I did manage to try Allods Online again. With the fear of Death mechanic changed the game was sounding much better at first glance. However, playing it as a main staple is not looking as appealing. It seems everything needed to enjoy the game at a decent rate is cash shop oriented. Do these people not get that you can do well with just cosmetic items!?

This game could have been so good. It had such promise. It's quite a let down to see it turn into this type of game. Not only are needed items in the shop but mounts are too... along with the food to make them level. I like to research games before getting into them and after finding all of this, I just decided to maybe pop in when I'm very bored and want to play around. Nothing serious.

LoTRO
I've played this game in the past very briefly. Something about it never has clicked with me. I don't know if it is the goofy characters or the characters yelling as they attack. I just can't get into it. I read a lot of blogs where people rave over it and figured I'd sit down and dedicate at least 30 minutes to trying it again. Maybe I'll see what people are talking about this time around?! I spent about an hour or so plodding along through the game.

In the end all I did was annoy my son with my character's battle cries and I realized some games just don't click with some people. Sure it's lovely, nothing out of the ordinary though. I'd rate the looks up there with Guild Wars. No matter how lovely a game, if I do not like the characters I will not play it. We win some we lose some. I want to say- It's not a bad game, it's just not one that catches my fancy.

Vanguard Saga of Heroes
I've tried the Vanguard trial in the past. Played it five minutes and brushed it aside. I bought it when it was released and it was full of bugs of course but until recently I haven't had a computer that would do it justice. On a whim I downloaded it and decided to give it more than five minutes.

I was actually very impressed and saddened at the same time. Impressed because this is a really nice MMO. I can't speak for high end as many games change once you get there. However I've spent quite a bit of time trying the classes and getting to know the game. It's so different than it was at release. I'm actually considering playing this game.

Sad why? Ah, this game has been neglected so badly. Why play a game that is tossed in the corner? I'm always one to 'fight' for the underdog, I'd like to experience it. I think this game could have been so much more. I actually think it could have surpassed EQ2 if things were done right. I'm not going to get into all this now, perhaps another time. I will say I already prefer the combat over EQ2. I'm not stuck facing the mob like a magnet. If you play or ever have played you know what horrible mechanic I am talking about.

I'm going to keep playing the trial for a few more days and decide if I want to play it or now. I was thinking of just getting a station pass. I'm not sure yet. I'm in no mood to head back to EQ2 anytime soon. Maybe EQ on the side. More tomorrow though! I've got some more playing to do before I dwell any deeper. I did manage to get Dire to try it! That's a start.

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I think sometimes we, as gamers, are quick to write off games. There are a vast amount of good games out there. Some of us want to play what is cool, what's popular. Think outside the box for a change, you just might find something rewarding.


Safe adventures all!
-kaozz

Dark Age of Camelot- Deja Vu

I didn't play DAoC in its heyday, I didn't get to experience it in all it's glory. I started years after that because I was too busy playing Everquest to want to try anything else for five straight years. Finally I did try it, several years ago and it was one of the greatest gaming experiences I've had, thanks to the people.

I noticed lately that the trial no longer requires a credit card. You just sign up and *bam* you have 14 free days. If you see this game in the store don't bother picking it up, everything is now free, all you do is pay for the subscription. I haven't seen it in any store since 2007 honestly.

I was thinking about reactivating my account but I decided to just try it out first before taking any big leaps to another MMO. I had a grand time on my other character years ago. Doubting that I'd be so lucky to find friends as easily this time, I figured to start over for a few days to see how things were. On my second day playing I got a whisper asking if I wanted to join a guild, me being a person to jump at the chance of making new friends I accepted.

Deja Vu. These were some very kind people, I lucked out once again or this is still a great community, both possibly. They helped me with some gear, coin and best of all spent some time with me leveling talking and showing me the ropes all over again. I am a reborn newbie, I've forgotten a lot about the game, it's refreshing though. The kindness that has been showered upon me while playing this game always dumbfounds me as it's like going back ten years ago to my early days in EQ, people were so much nicer and helpful. I'm a carebear so I play on the Co-Op server, I love it there.

The game has had some changes but I've been gone so long I don't remember everything. It is a very beautiful world, having been revamped long ago, it still is quite lovely. It's fantasy, old world gaming- in the now. It has an old feeling, playing this game, that I remember feeling when I first tried Everquest. No, it's not Everquest but it reminds me of the classic game in a lot of ways, it's similar. If I wanted EQ I'd play it, this is fresh to me and it has so many classes to play, so many places to explore. It's new all over again to me.

Co-Op has about 150 people playing there. They do raids together and it seems a tight friendly community. I can't really get into depth as I just skimmed the surface but things do seem to be going on between alliances on an often basis. My friends were telling me of some GM events that had been going on recently that were lots of fun.

Hows game-play? Some classes can solo well and some still don't solo as well. Some things never change in games heh. The game is  older so to many it will feel clunky but once you get past that it's not bad, it's charming. If you are an old MMO player like myself you will appreciate the game play for what it is. The UI, it's not flashy but it gets the job done. The music is fantastic. The mobs are rustic but charming. The models are a bit dated but not horribly so. I love the Everquest models so these were fine with me. I'm a lover of old games, they tickle me.

If you are looking for something that might take you down memory lane, this might just do the trick. If I was looking to play a flashy new game I would be playing one, so keep that in mind. This is a solid older game with a really great community. There is much to do still, many classes to play and the level cap is 50. After the cap you can start alts at 20 which is nice. It's easy to group with friends. There is housing also and Guild Halls, a nice bonus.

I look forward to my journeys in DAoC. I'm so close to subscribing but I'm still giving it some thought, I still have several days on my trial. Now if I could get the ol' man to try it....Oh and Ding 20!

See ya in Camelot!
-kaozz

Hopping Around (MMO)

I did a bit of hopping around this weekend in my games. I suppose I like a change of scenery sometimes. Or.. my curiosity gets the best of me. In any case I had fun.


WoW
My little Lock is almost fifteen now, going quite slow! I've been waiting around on Dire a lot and I am at the point where I'm thinking he isn't going to play his alt with me. He is constantly on the Alliance on his Mage. I actually left leveling a character there to play Horde with him, I swear... At any rate I am having fun with the Lock. I enjoy having a pet and it's going to be nice having more than one spec to dps or farm with! Currently I am affliction to level.

I'm doing some daily quests as I can on the Priest. I mostly just log in to do a few dailies and raid. My guild is asking if I want to heal but I don't know if I feel like farming badges for another set. I am still thinking it over. That and I don't enjoy healing on the Priest as much, Druids have it so laid back. I need more buttons on my mouse.. I need a new mouse in that case! I'd like to have this.

Free Realms
I hadn't logged in for a few days and my son asked me if I wanted to play. So we went off to find Elite coins to level our adventuring and get the rewards for them- backpacks!  I ended up hitting Adventure level 20, and I think he hit 14. We had a lot of fun finding them, we had to look up quite a few, well he did and I followed- lol. We also did a few instances together and this was fun, just the two of us.

I forgot I had several packs from the TCG to open, they must have sat there for months. I actually got quite a few neat items, Chatdy Backpack, Goth Jacket, Punk Pants and a few other cool items. I was really excited about that. I need to keep up with those!

Free Realms is not your general MMO, it's nice and laid back. Do whatever you want when you want type of thing. It is a nice change not to have to be grinding mobs all the time. Though with no high end content and can grow boring a tiny bit. But, this game doesn't have the pressure others do and it's nice. If I was a kid my parents would probably have to pry me off the computer with a crowbar!

DAoC
I actually ended up checking out DAoC and need to mess around with it some more. I was going to write a bit about it today but I think I'll leave that for tomorrow. It's been interesting being back and the trial is easier than ever... More on that tomorrow!


Safe Adventures!
-kaozz

Sunday Screen Shots

Do we need another 'X' MMO?

I sometimes wonder, do we really need another 'X' MMO game. What I mean is, do we need another Star Wars when there already is one. Another super hero game when there's already two out now? How many super hero games do we need, what is going to make the new one more interesting to players? Are these companies saying the previous games were not as good as they could do them?

Everyone wants to make a big hit, they promise bigger and better, but honestly how many types of the same game do we need. Sometimes it feels like a copy of a copy of a copy. Then there's the games that make a sequel to compete with their own games. Everquest 2, I was seriously let down when I heard about this game. It to me meant a decline on the first, which at the time I was really into still. Years later I'm actually happy playing it, though it took years for me to get over that. I suppose it's different when it's within the same company, you know the lore will be there, the things you liked in the first place.

Why do game companies make new games to compete with what they already have? In the same genre I mean, is it really to compete with the newer games out? I think that was the intention with Everquest 2. I think it's the same intent for NCSoft with Guild Wars 2. If Aion isn't a hit, they know people liked Guild Wars, they can always fall back on that.

When do companies realize what they have is good, well liked, popular enough to keep chugging along? Sometimes they seem to move on and leave the games that put them on the map, to fade away quietly. Take DAoC for instance, the game still receives updates, however to me it feels neglected when you compare it to Mythic's shiny new game WAR. No more expansions. But do older games really need more expansions? Look at Everquest. S.O.E. was wise enough not to make that mistake when the shiny new game came out. People still like the older games, Everquest is proof of this. Obviously it's still doing well enough to keep putting out an expansion each year.

I also wonder at the alternative ideas companies use, take the upcoming Star Treak MMO for instance. Who really is interested in this type of game? I've read about it, seen many articles, but nobody seems really hyped. Is it to widen an audience? It sure would be a trekkie's dream. I as a gamer have no interest in it though. Maybe that's just me.

Look at some of the niche games out. How about those PvP aimed games. Which of those is really a big hit. I'm not saying they are not doing well. Out of the all of them I would say Aion. But why? From my perspective it draws in PvE players due to the style of play we start out with. How many of those PvE players really stuck with it though?  They are niche games, you have to simply like PvP a lot to play them. Why do companies limit themselves after seeing the previous company flounder with this type of game? People say they love PvP. How come Fury didn't make it? It was strictly PvP. I thought it would be a PvP dream? Simply put, niche games don't offer to a big enough audience.

I sometimes wonder do many of these companies really pay attention to what the customers even like or want? No, I'm not saying we need another WoW! It seems a lot of companies compare success to this game. 

Just some thoughts I had recently. Feel free to comment.
-kaozz

Away from the norm, Dark Age of Camelot.

If you come here often or if you just pop in on occasion you may have noticed I have been in the process of doing some reviews on games you don't see many reviews for, or up to date reviews. Today I decided to go over Dark Age of Camelot. So lets get started!

Dark Age of Camelot
This game is not one you see in stores anymore. In 2007 I found this gem of a game in Best Buy. It was the only copy on the shelf, the only one I have seen since. I had always wanted to try it, I had just been too into Everquest when this game was more mainstream. So I decided to try it.

While writing this I have actually considered playing it again in the future, it was that good IMO. It is by no means a dead game, just because games may be older doesn't mean they are not any good and nobody plays them. Most of the players you find are dedicated people who know what they are doing. That is a good thing! Communities are closer and nicer for the most part.

Whats so good about DAoC?
First off I had heard it was RvR (realm versus Realm), specifically. Well no PvE for me right? Wrong. This game also has a Co-Op Server where the main focus is on PvE. If you like RvR or PvP it offers a lot towards that crowd too. Also there is a 'Classic' Server for the 'old timers', which I thought was pretty neat too.

Mounts! Everyone loves mounts. This game offered some of the best ideas I have seen in ANY game when it comes to mounts. Horses of molten rock, unicorns and so on. I just thought they were fantastic.

Player Housing along with guild housing. I loved the player housing! It was great, you could even store things in the house, extra armor, or your trophies. You could design the inside as well as the outside! Putting flowers and trees on your plot of land. You could stand outside and look at a house someone had taken time to transform into their liking.

Game Play
There are solo type dungeons, solo play to an extent, raids, groups and many different types of PvP (RvR).

PvE was quite fun. I joined a guild at the young level of 4 or so! I was very lucky that someone had taken me under their wing explaining my class to me in depth and offered to invite me to join the guild they were in. This guild made the game one of the most enjoyable game experience I have ever encountered. We went to dungeons, we traveled all over a vast amount of places in the process of my leveling. The world was a beautiful place. At times I miss this game.

Dungeons, we did a lot of those. We had DPS, tanks, healers, if we died we usually had a good laugh about it. It was just so much fun. I didn't quest in this game much due to being in a guild I grouped with all the time. It was much like my days of Everquest. There were quests to, solo dungeons, do this or that. So don't think the game is just a grind fest.

Something else worth mention would be once you hit the max level 50, you get a free level 20 character. So you get to skip a bit of leveling. This may not sound like a big deal but keep in mind that the level cap is not all that high considering the steep levels in most games today. You also gain ranks after the level cap, so there is something to work towards once you hit the cap.

Also there is an auction system which was very handy!

Classes and Races
Classes do have specific roles in this game. The game offers a truly massive amount of classes and diverse choice of races to pick from. Solo play was much much easier for some classes than others. I am not going to sugar coat it and say "Oh yes everyone can solo fine!", that wasn't the case. Specific classes such as the Necro it was cakewalk for. There also were some classes I have never seen in any game that really were very fun.

Listed here are the three Realms and the classes available to each, as you can see for yourself the list is large.

Races
Albion: Avalonian, Briton, Half-Ogre, Highlander, Inconnu, Saracen, and the Korazh.

Hibernia: Celt, Elf, Firbolg, Lurikeen, Shar, Sylvan, and the Graoch.

Midgard: Dwarf, Frostalf, Kobold, Norseman, Troll, Valkyn, and the Deifrang

Classes
Albion: Armsman, Cabalist, Cleric, Friar, Heretic, Infiltrator, Mauler, Mercenary, Minstrel, Necromancer, Paladin, Reaver, Scout, Sorcerer, Theurgist, and Wizard.

Hibernia: Animist, Bainshee, Bard, Blademaster, Champion, Druid, Eldritch, Enchanter, Hero, Mauler, Mentalist, Nightshade, Ranger, Warden, Valewalker, and Vampiir.

Midgard: Berserker, Bonedancer, Healer, Hunter, Mauler, Runemaster, Savage, Shadowblade, Shaman, Skald, Spiritmaster, Thane, Valkyrie, Warlock, and Warrior.

PvP offers group, battlegroup and solo. Realm versus Realm is the main focus of Dark Age of Camelot however on the Co-Op server you can opt out of this play style if you chose to.

Graphics
I want to go over the graphics even though I have mentioned them a bit. This game is older but it really does have lovely graphics. If you are into the Warcraft type look of a game it is similar to that. The castles were impressive, I wish I had all of my screen shots still to show off! My computer quit on me around this time and I lost everything.

Anyhow, the graphics of course can run on low end computers. Don't take this as the game looks like junk, it doesn't.

Community
Did I brag on the community enough yet? The people in this game were great. I feel bad that I lost out on such a wonderful game community when I quit playing. After my computer gave up on me I didn't play anything for many months. I just never made it back to Camelot.

The people were kind, helpful, and the guild I joined was so generous to me. However they spoon fed me so much that when I was close to reaching the top level I still didn't know my way around some places very well on my own. That took some learning, wandering around. So if you ever play, make sure to explore on your own also to get to know your way around. It's easy to get lost in this vast game.

Expansions and some thoughts.
The game offers seven expansions of which two are available to download free. No new expansions have come out in quite a few years.

This game has a rather older UI, if you can get past that it's pretty fun. The interface is dated, it's not unplayable, the game as a whole has a steep learning curve. Some classes more than others. You can get lost easily, learning the game and your way around takes some time. If you are as lucky as I you will meet people who can help you out with things, there are channels where you can ask questions also.

I thought this was a good solid game, it's at time a grind. What game isn't though? Travel in it is not too bad but you have to know where to go which sometimes can be confusing. Learning all this comes with time. If you are looking for something out of the norm, a good community with tons of charm you may want to give this one a try.

I like to talk about older less mainstream games that I think are worth mention, still worth playing. This is surely one of them. Mythic had some good direction with this game, it was definitely way before it's time in the way of PvP. While it is still updated regularly it seems it has fallen on the back burner at times. However it is still alive and kicking!

Interested? Some links to help you find your way!

Official Website
You can check out the website here if you are interested. There is a 14 day free trial, however if does require a valid credit card to be entered.

Class guide
Also one of the best class guides I have found would be Classes of Camelot.

Wiki
Also there is a Wiki which holds much information that I just wasn't able to cover. You can find it here.

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I probably won't be adding another review until late next week, keep checking in if you are interested in some older titles! -kaozz