Discussion
Hi everyone,
Im thinking of entering into the world of online gaming this weekend but not sure where to best place for a newbie to start is.
I like the idea of ever changing enviroments such as Everquest and warcraft etc but i dont know alot about the way they all work!
Anyone here regulary play this sort of games who could offer me any advice?
Cheers:)
Im thinking of entering into the world of online gaming this weekend but not sure where to best place for a newbie to start is.
I like the idea of ever changing enviroments such as Everquest and warcraft etc but i dont know alot about the way they all work!
Anyone here regulary play this sort of games who could offer me any advice?
Cheers:)
World of Warcraft is a very good place to start, especially if you're new to this kind of thing. Alternatively, some MMORPGs (usually the smaller, less sucessful ones) offer free 7 or 14 day trials - just download the client and set up an account. Anarchy Online gives you a year's free trial - though that is limited to the basic game only and none of the expansion packs. Then there's Guild Wars, which while not exactly a true MMORPG, doesn't have any monthly fees.
Free trial linkage
Anarchy Online
EVE Online
Everquest II
Free trial linkage
Anarchy Online
EVE Online
Everquest II
I play Unreal Tourement 2004, and it is great fun,
esp, the Vehicle Capture the Flag mods, and there are loads of new maps all the time.
A bit of running about, shooting, sniping, flying, boating, driving, creeping about in alleyways or on space platforms, it is all good stuff.
The Onslault maps are good, more tactical planning and team work.
There are some good rip offs of the best Halo maps in UT2004, like Blood Gulch, Sidewinder etc. which play better than the real thing.
Koenig
esp, the Vehicle Capture the Flag mods, and there are loads of new maps all the time.
A bit of running about, shooting, sniping, flying, boating, driving, creeping about in alleyways or on space platforms, it is all good stuff.
The Onslault maps are good, more tactical planning and team work.
There are some good rip offs of the best Halo maps in UT2004, like Blood Gulch, Sidewinder etc. which play better than the real thing.
Koenig
stig said:
Whoa, if you play Everquest prepare to lose weeks of your life 
I know I do
IMHO it's far better than the other crop of MMORPGs, WoW and Guild Wars have their merits, but you'll tire of them way before EQ2.
Been there and done that and WoW still has me coming back while EQ2 bored me to tears inside 2 months.
EVE on the other hand I have been playing for about 30months (with a few months off here and there).
jimbro1000 said:
EVE on the other hand I have been playing for about 30months (with a few months off here and there).
Yup - playing it on and off since it was launched. If you have the patience, EVE has a depth and complexity other games simply cannot match. Having said that, the learning curve is steep and the gameplay can be somewhere on the lethargic side of sedate at times.
judas said:
Yup - playing it on and off since it was launched. If you have the patience, EVE has a depth and complexity other games simply cannot match. Having said that, the learning curve is steep and the gameplay can be somewhere on the lethargic side of sedate at times.
ahhh thats the problem see, i dont have the patience for extremly in-depth sort of games like that, i'd just end up getting frustrated with it.
Have been playing the everquest 2 trial of the isle for a couple of days though and i did get the hang of it all very quickly and reached the level limit for the trial version.
Is WoW as easy to get into? Does it have similar gameplay or more action than eq2?
ta
WoW at first can appear to be daunting if you are not familiar to MMORPG's, but its easy to get to grips with. Its entertaining, and there are plenty of good natured gamers on that will help you along the way. I've recently had some very good quests with other players and the level of gameplay is very high. Most players are pretty selfless and play their roles well rather than waste their talents.
Best way not to let these games go stale is to vary your activities between questing, fighting and selling items created with your chosen skills. The most interesting part of the game is when you reach the higher levels - you can then participate in a mass battle between horde/alliance for certain territorys, during which you can pickup rare/unique items and battle honours.
I'm on the bloodhoof Realm if you try it out
Steve
Best way not to let these games go stale is to vary your activities between questing, fighting and selling items created with your chosen skills. The most interesting part of the game is when you reach the higher levels - you can then participate in a mass battle between horde/alliance for certain territorys, during which you can pickup rare/unique items and battle honours.
I'm on the bloodhoof Realm if you try it out
Steve
WoW reeks of quality, i'd liken it to a single player RPG that happens to have the bonus of other players there, the questing system is strong enough for you to play through the game on your own if you wanted to, unlike other games where you feel that you're doing exactly the same thing as other people, WoW manages to make you feel like you're an integral part of the story and can have a real impact on the world.
Add that to the fact that there are hundreds of other people on each server at each time and you can see the appeal.
Add that to the fact that there are hundreds of other people on each server at each time and you can see the appeal.
Steve_Evil said:
WoW reeks of quality, i'd liken it to a single player RPG that happens to have the bonus of other players there, the questing system is strong enough for you to play through the game on your own if you wanted to, unlike other games where you feel that you're doing exactly the same thing as other people, WoW manages to make you feel like you're an integral part of the story and can have a real impact on the world.
Add that to the fact that there are hundreds of other people on each server at each time and you can see the appeal.
This is what really keeps me playing - whereas EQ2 went for "gritty reality" (which really doesn't work in a sandbox online RPG) WoW goes for stunning stylised visuals that feel much more cohesive. Despite being less than realistic it is far more immersive and subsequently feels much more rewarding.
When I first saw EQ2 in the flesh it was fanastic, a real piece of eye-candy but then seeing WoW makes you realise just how much is wasted effort.
Both games have very, very similar mechanics and draw heavily on other previous games for this (Horizons looked very, very ripped off) but where EQ2 feels a bit clunky and drawn out in places WoW is a beautifully well judged piece of artistry.
The PvP is very much take it or leave it but both the PvP and non-PvP servers work very well indeed but be prepared for serious hard work beyond level 20 if you do choose PvP. Soloing is not a viable option there unless you have a very, very quiet server.
I still stand by what I said a couple of months back: "When have Blizzard ever produced a bad game?"
Which leaves me rather looking forward to Hellgate:London when it comes out...
jimbro1000 said:
Whoa, if you play Everquest prepare to lose weeks of your life
I know I do
IMHO it's far better than the other crop of MMORPGs, WoW and Guild Wars have their merits, but you'll tire of them way before EQ2.
Been there and done that and WoW still has me coming back while EQ2 bored me to tears inside 2 months.
EVE on the other hand I have been playing for about 30months (with a few months off here and there).
Jimbro and Judas,
is Eve good?? It looks it. I've been checking the website out for about 2 days now and am really close to clicking on the client download.
Can you give me a player's perspective of it. What do you do when you are offline? Do you get into fights often? Is it hard to pick up etc etc.
Thanks!
I've dipped into Eve a couple of times, it looks absolutely awesome but I never managed to really get into it.
Probably a couple of reasons for this, I think you really need to get into a decent corp to make real progress and I don't have the time I used to for playing games. I liked what I've seen of the combat, only ever fought against NPC pirates though.
I'd pick it up again but I'm not sure how easy it would be to get to a stage where you could be useful for anything other than mining without a serious amount of help.
Probably a couple of reasons for this, I think you really need to get into a decent corp to make real progress and I don't have the time I used to for playing games. I liked what I've seen of the combat, only ever fought against NPC pirates though.
I'd pick it up again but I'm not sure how easy it would be to get to a stage where you could be useful for anything other than mining without a serious amount of help.
I think the thing with EVE is that you can play it whilst doing other things on your computer and still make progress, you can set your ship to mine things whilst you surf the net or take time out to chat with other players, something a lot of other games don't give you the chance to do as you're always out there doing something. There is still a lot of action to be had, but you don't have to sit through the grind like in other games, chill out with a mag or watch a film.
I have to agree with the above, EVE is quite possibly the most laid back online game you are ever likely to play.
Leaving it running in your absence is probably not a good idea but you certainly do not have to give it all of your attention. If you want something that keeps you hooked continuously then it will not be to your taste. You spend far too much time on long flights across a very, very, very large map!
Membership within a corp is pretty much a necessity but there are loads out there and most of them are pretty big by now.
There is something for everyone out there, If you don't like PvP then stay out of the low sec systems and go for the more traditional, honourable lifestyle but if PvP is your thing then life as a bountyhunter or pirate awaits. The reality is that EVE is a massive eco system of miners, manufacturers, traders and hunters. The scale puts every other online game in the shade, this game is (in the words of THHGTTG) really, really big.
One word of warning, if you get upset when people start flaunting the laws of physics then dont bother. There is very little by way of attempt to observe such minor details.
Leaving it running in your absence is probably not a good idea but you certainly do not have to give it all of your attention. If you want something that keeps you hooked continuously then it will not be to your taste. You spend far too much time on long flights across a very, very, very large map!
Membership within a corp is pretty much a necessity but there are loads out there and most of them are pretty big by now.
There is something for everyone out there, If you don't like PvP then stay out of the low sec systems and go for the more traditional, honourable lifestyle but if PvP is your thing then life as a bountyhunter or pirate awaits. The reality is that EVE is a massive eco system of miners, manufacturers, traders and hunters. The scale puts every other online game in the shade, this game is (in the words of THHGTTG) really, really big.
One word of warning, if you get upset when people start flaunting the laws of physics then dont bother. There is very little by way of attempt to observe such minor details.
jimbro1000 said:
I have to agree with the above, EVE is quite possibly the most laid back online game you are ever likely to play.
Leaving it running in your absence is probably not a good idea but you certainly do not have to give it all of your attention. If you want something that keeps you hooked continuously then it will not be to your taste. You spend far too much time on long flights across a very, very, very large map!
Membership within a corp is pretty much a necessity but there are loads out there and most of them are pretty big by now.
There is something for everyone out there, If you don't like PvP then stay out of the low sec systems and go for the more traditional, honourable lifestyle but if PvP is your thing then life as a bountyhunter or pirate awaits. The reality is that EVE is a massive eco system of miners, manufacturers, traders and hunters. The scale puts every other online game in the shade, this game is (in the words of THHGTTG) really, really big.
One word of warning, if you get upset when people start flaunting the laws of physics then dont bother. There is very little by way of attempt to observe such minor details.
Thanks Jimbro.
Downloaded the client last night, its bloomin big, 500mb!! Had to do it twice, first download took me to 87% then Windows did its stupid thang and for no reason said it had to cancel the download and close IE. Tried a second time from their mirror 2 server, watched some Tour De France on tv, came back and it was at 85%. Sat there with my fingers crossed and it completed the download. Took me 1hr 8mins in total so not too bad, considering I don't use a download manager yet.
Whilst I was downloading I was reading some of the chronicles and short stories, quite good some of them. Especially the wet grave one. EVE is truly massive isn't it. They have a full history of the system, the actual galaxy and world within it is huge and there are over 50,000 players on it!!! Wow.
Going to get the client installed tomorrow night and begin my life in the vastness that is EVE. Going to give it a good few hours to start with to get the tutorials done etc.
You online with it tomorrow Jimbro? Anyone else online with this game?
If we get enough we could probably start our own PistonHeads corporation or something like that.
Actually, which race are you all in?? Been looking at Caldari or whatever it is, any good??
>> Edited by funkyrobot on Thursday 7th July 10:04
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