Why is Tera not more popular?

Mikeha · October 2013

Originally posted by Nevulus
Originally posted by RebelScum99
Originally posted by Nevulus

Also the world itself felt claustophobic. Part in due to the Unreal engine not lending itself very well to a massive multiplayer experience, hence the instances and narrow paths between quest hubs.

I agree with you about the leveling experience and the unimaginative questing, but definitely disagree with you about the world feeling claustrophobic. I actually felt that the world was laid out quite well, and plenty open enough. In fact, I didn't find it any less claustrophobic than a game like GW2 when I tried it.

I have mainly only good things to say about TERA. I only played it for about four months, but I enjoyed the time I did play it. My main issue with it, and the reason I eventually left, was the horrid questing system. It wasn't so much that the quests were generic. We see that in many games. But there was no variety. Not even generic variety. Every quest was simply kill X of Y. Period.

And ironically, that was TERA's undoing. It had a GREAT combat system, far better than other so-called "action combat" MMOs like GW2. I really enjoyed the fact that every decision you made in combat had consequences, and you had to plan out your attacks from everything from which attack to where to position yourself AFTER the attack so that you were in a good spot to finish your combo. Unfortunately, the questing involved SO MUCH killing X of Y that even the great combat system began to get tedious. Then you add in all that work you had to do to get to endgame, only to find there isn't much of an endgame, and yeah...I could only take so much.

Still, it's a very solid game for those that don't mind endless mob-grinding. BAMS are one of the best additions I've seen in an MMO, the dungeons are top-notch and creative, and En Masse is a top notch company. I just couldn't take that quest system.

Don't get me wrong. I did enjoy Tera. I have been thinking about coming back as well when I have some more free time and the patience to download that huge game, and I thoroughly enjoyed the combat a lot more than gw2, but most of their maps were very linear, with too many invisible walls for my taste.

It was actually one of the main complaints early on second to the standard questing model. Not all maps, but most felt like a railroad. Which gave the quest hub gameplay an even more linear feel.

Never-the-less I did enjoy Tera, and would recommend it to anyone into incredible graphics and engaging combat. The lock-in-place casting gave the combat a strategic element VERY rarely found in combat systems similar to Tera. You have to pick & choose your attack and point of attack more precisely.

Some of the areas are small but some are really vast and open. One thing people fail to mention that I really like about the game is that there is no loading when traveling the world. Everything is seemless and I cant remember the last time I have seen that in a mmo. I don't like invisible walls but the world being seemless is such a huge + for me I just have to go with it.

marcuslm · October 2013

The graphics + world design + character design are incredible. The combat is also fun. The main problem for me was the boring and repetitive questing.

This may sound minor, but it also always bothered me how each class had one weapon type and that was it.

Marcus

RebelScum99 · October 2013

Originally posted by marcuslm

This may sound minor, but it also always bothered me how each class had one weapon type and that was it.

Marcus

Good call. I HATE this. One of my biggest pet peeves.

Ngeldu5t · October 2013

Originally posted by marcuslm
The graphics + world design + character design are incredible. The combat is also fun. The main problem for me was the boring and repetitive questing.

This may sound minor, but it also always bothered me how each class had one weapon type and that was it.

Marcus

Same for me,the borefest repetitive questing is the main problem and also remember that Gameforge kill the game for EU.

Mikeha · October 2013

Originally posted by marcuslm
The graphics + world design + character design are incredible. The combat is also fun. The main problem for me was the boring and repetitive questing.

This may sound minor, but it also always bothered me how each class had one weapon type and that was it.

Marcus

That's not minor, its one of the main dislikes I have about the game. I love being able to use different weapons. One other thing I like in mmos is the ability to class change. Like starting out as a warrior but later at a certain level being able to branch off to another type of warrior. That would be really nice if you could do that in TERA.

bcbully · October 2013

for me it was the questing. I just couldn't do it

Idk if I made it to level 3. I did have a couple duels in the newbie area, and they where fun.

DamonVile · October 2013

Originally posted by Torvaldr
Originally posted by Sovrath

Blatant copy is a gross exaggeration. There are some things that feel a little similar or quirks I notice that lead me to think the games had similar developers and influences. The crafting and atmosphere of the game world sometimes feels similar. There are certain traits or feelings NCSoft games have to me. They share some of them.

That's because the lead designer of TERA worked for NCSOFT on lineage 3 and then stole the tech when the game was canceled and made TERA with it. Bad things happened to him but we got TERA out of it :P

someforumguy · October 2013

It is not often that a game's artstyle rubs me the wrong way enough for me to stop playing it. But in this case it just annoys me if I see those toons wield weapons the size of a streetlight with the acceleration and speed as if they are wielding a dagger. I know all fantasy games exaggerate with this purely to make characters look more powerful. But to me this game went over the egde and made combat look silly. Flashy and colourful yes, but nevertheless silly.

But hey, that is just my opinion. To each their own I guess.

Sovrath · October 2013

Originally posted by someforumguy
It is not often that a game's artstyle rubs me the wrong way enough for me to stop playing it. But in this case it just annoys me if I see those toons wield weapons the size of a streetlight with the acceleration and speed as if they are wielding a dagger. I know all fantasy games exaggerate with this purely to make characters look more powerful. But to me this game went over the egde and made combat look silly. Flashy and colourful yes, but nevertheless silly.

But hey, that is just my opinion. To each their own I guess.

But that's because you are looking for a sense of reality in these systems.

If you look at these asian games (and heck, movies, anime, etc) there is usually a lot of exageration. The conclusion I've come to is that most things are about being "representational".

So any character that is wielding a 15 foot sword like it weighted 3 ounces is actually not wielding a 15' slab of metal.

He/She is wielding a representation of his/her power as well as manifesting a certain style.

If anything it's somewhat akin to including a sense of "fable" (not the game) into the visual style of their world.

Paul Bunyan's axe dug the grand canyon when he dragged it across the ground. John Henry was able to beat a steam engine in a race to carve a tunnel through a mountain.

Obviously none of that is true. One looking for a sense of realism would be hard pressed to accept those (or other) stories as being palatable on any level.

Same with the representation of armor or weapons (or monsters) in Asian games. They are not about "being" armor and weapons but represent the totality of the hero that wears/wields them. I dare say that a 15' weapon represents the force of will and skill and force of the hero. It's iconic.

So sure, it's obviously ok not to like this stuff but I think, given your reasons, a paradigm shift in thinking might make it easier to accept.

Jakdstripper · October 2013

from my personal experience it is just too pedo.

there is no other way to say it. it is incredibly difficult to relate to those character models. the horn dudes, and stone giants are cool but eveything else is so borderline pedo that you just feel dirty looking at the screen. they all look like children, even the full size ones. i dont want to play a game with children, i want to play a game with bad ass dudes and hot looking women (not berely dressed children).

the gameplay is actualy kind of fun, but the setting and characters are just way too weird for the western audience. Even Aion didn't push the ped so much.

DamonVile · October 2013

Originally posted by Sovrath

But that's because you are looking for a sense of reality in these systems.

If you look at these asian games (and heck, movies, anime, etc) there is usually a lot of exageration. The conclusion I've come to is that most things are about being "representational".

So any character that is wielding a 15 foot sword like it weighted 3 ounces is actually not wielding a 15' slab of metal.

He/She is wielding a representation of his/her power as well as manifesting a certain style.

If anything it's somewhat akin to including a sense of "fable" (not the game) into the visual style of their world.

Paul Bunyan's axe dug the grand canyon when he dragged it across the ground. John Henry was able to beat a steam engine in a race to carve a tunnel through a mountain.

Obviously none of that is true. One looking for a sense of realism would be hard pressed to accept those (or other) stories as being palatable on any level.

Same with the representation of armor or weapons (or monsters) in Asian games. They are not about "being" armor and weapons but represent the totality of the hero that wears/wields them. I dare say that a 15' weapon represents the force of will and skill and force of the hero. It's iconic.

So sure, it's obviously ok not to like this stuff but I think, given your reasons, a paradigm shift in thinking might make it easier to accept.

I think a lot of it comes down to art and what you like. Two people can look at the same picture...one wets his pants and crys like a baby....the other sees a blob of paint any idiot could paint. ( an extreem example obviously :P ) There never really seems to be a good reason why some people like one type of art and hate another. It's just sort of how you are.

jcsadone · October 2013

I don't know. Personally I didn't like it at all, it's a matter of taste I suppose. I played for few stages of beta and a day or two sometime after it went f2p, so I can't really judge. But from my perspective:

-Fight system is interesting - doesn't hook me up, but it is interesting.

-Gameplay mechanics (fighting system aside) are rather korean MMO generic, which isn't a bad thing, but again - not what I was hoping for.

-Community is awful, one of worst I ever seen in any MMO (maybe I choose a bad day to try a game or something, but really... this was like ninja camp for trolls with attitude problems).

-Story? Nah. I really didn't like it - not my type of deal.

-Style? Too generic korean for me. But I need to admit, that quality was superb and the game runs smoothly on my 4 year old wooden PC.

-As far as I know, gameplay in long run depends on gear trademill, so that would bug me if I ever would like to try it again.

-Aaaand cash shop - I can't really say, because I didn't played long enough to even check how fair it is.

All and all I find Tera to be really nice and really not for me game. Matter of taste...

Voqar · October 2013

I don't consider action combat better than tab target. I would agree it's more engaging but that can be overkill for the legions of trivial mobs you need to deal with to level. I don't mind it but I've read that this can wear on a lot of players.

It's especially true when you consider that a lot of TERA's content is exceptionally bland. The questing is as generic and simplistic as it gets - purely hub based basics (kill, collect) with no wrinkles or gimmicks. It's different from similar presentations in other games by it's sheer simplicity and lack of doing anything to disguise the quest grind. The zones may be pretty but they're very contained (like FFXIV or vice versa) and exist purely as vehicles for quest containment - there's no exploration value or anything to find outside of quest targets.

It's also yet another MMORPG where solo is too present and grouping is not, and even a lot of the group content can be soloed (BAMS) if you're the type that finds fighting the same mob for 10-20 minutes to be fun. And/or it's exploitive and you have a lot of high level babysitters blasting low levels thru content, which is weak (if you don't really want to play, why login?).

It's a good game and I always recommend to all my friends to try it out just to see how the best action-based combat system in MMORPGs works, but, the combat system alone isn't enough to carry the game and the rest of the game is either bland or fairly weak compared to other offerings.

Ender4 · October 2013

I was pretty indifferent towards the combat as well. Yeah it is nice at first having to position yourself but in the long run it is no more important than in say GW2 which has tab targeted mixed with action based. The combat made using things like direct heals really awkward while not really feeling like it improved on what other games are doing these days. On top of that it really exaggerates any effects you have from lag and makes the game way too AE friendly.

I think this is one area where GW2 probably got it right, you have a mixture of both so you always have to be aware of position. Older games that are pure tab target do get pretty dull for sure though.

Sleepyfish · October 2013

Giving it an honest go right now the combat movement sort of reminds me of the now dead TCOS but the classes seem less complex. Sort of low on the Stealth and CC and high on dps side of things. Seems like a very restrictive holy trinity. It goes without saying that it is grindy. Still though if it were less of an Asian style grind it would be better. You really get the feeling no matter how good the combat may be you are traveling over a mob invested flatearth. I kept getting the feeling I was playing kings quest with castlevania mobs.

Gatlan · October 2013

This is shallow, but I hated the introduction when they're flying to the Island and say a few cliches back and forth. I didn't really give the game a chance after that. I only got to level 5 or so. It seemed very generic and the first few skills I learned rooted me which felt awkward in an action mmo. That was during beta and I uninstalled. I'm usually more tolerant. The game just started wrong for me.

eHug · October 2013

Originally posted by Jakdstripper
from my personal experience it is just too pedo.

there is no other way to say it. it is incredibly difficult to relate to those character models. the horn dudes, and stone giants are cool but eveything else is so borderline pedo that you just feel dirty looking at the screen. they all look like children, even the full size ones. i dont want to play a game with children, i want to play a game with bad ass dudes and hot looking women (not berely dressed children).

I hope you tried to make a bad joke, because normal people will not feel dirty when looking at fictional dressed anime characters - and even if they were really kids, most people still wouldn't feel dirty looking at them.

Your comment reminded me of the taunt "if you play a female character as a male you are gay/unsure of your sex", so I really hope you failed at being funny.

deerstop · October 2013

Ironically enough, I didn't like the combat. I hate to manually aim the spells, that's just annoying.

Originally posted by Roderan This is shallow, but I hated the introduction when they're flying to the Island and say a few cliches back and forth.

Agreed!

Antiquated · October 2013

Originally posted by g4m3sh4rk
This game, so far, has an engaging combat system and a good story line. I am finding it difficult to dislike anything about it so far. Can some one please spell it out for me? There has to be something off about it.

This is mmorpg.com, we can find numerous faults with any game. It is our hobby.

Now, is that really what you want?

"I'm too happy, help me stop someone! Come and ruin this, I want to be wretchedly miserable, too."

If you're enjoying yourself, stay the hell away from message boards.

someforumguy · October 2013

Originally posted by Sovrath
Originally posted by someforumguy
It is not often that a game's artstyle rubs me the wrong way enough for me to stop playing it. But in this case it just annoys me if I see those toons wield weapons the size of a streetlight with the acceleration and speed as if they are wielding a dagger. I know all fantasy games exaggerate with this purely to make characters look more powerful. But to me this game went over the egde and made combat look silly. Flashy and colourful yes, but nevertheless silly.

But hey, that is just my opinion. To each their own I guess.

But that's because you are looking for a sense of reality in these systems.

If you look at these asian games (and heck, movies, anime, etc) there is usually a lot of exageration. The conclusion I've come to is that most things are about being "representational".

So any character that is wielding a 15 foot sword like it weighted 3 ounces is actually not wielding a 15' slab of metal.

He/She is wielding a representation of his/her power as well as manifesting a certain style.

If anything it's somewhat akin to including a sense of "fable" (not the game) into the visual style of their world.

Paul Bunyan's axe dug the grand canyon when he dragged it across the ground. John Henry was able to beat a steam engine in a race to carve a tunnel through a mountain.

Obviously none of that is true. One looking for a sense of realism would be hard pressed to accept those (or other) stories as being palatable on any level.

Same with the representation of armor or weapons (or monsters) in Asian games. They are not about "being" armor and weapons but represent the totality of the hero that wears/wields them. I dare say that a 15' weapon represents the force of will and skill and force of the hero. It's iconic.

So sure, it's obviously ok not to like this stuff but I think, given your reasons, a paradigm shift in thinking might make it easier to accept.

It is not a sense of reality that I am looking for, but consistency. It doesn't even make sense in the world it has to play in. Everything else displays force mechanics that are comparible to rl, except the combat physics. I am fine with characters being able to do crazy things, but not if at the same time this crazy hitting with weapons the size of a truck does only 1 damage against a squirrel. It just looks silly lol.

An opponent that obviously weighs less then your crazy big lightspeed moving weapon should be flying all over the place when being hit with it.

EDIT :I am also not against over the top. I really liked Saints Row the Third for its crazy combat. But that game doesn't take itself so seriously.

Having to think out of the box using your own made up rules to accept combat mechanics so they don't annoy me because they are so inconsistent is just fooling yourself. No thanks.

syriinx · October 2013

Originally posted by Voqar
I don't consider action combat better than tab target.

Action combat is not better than tab target. its just a different style.

SwampDragons · October 2013

Just to linear, atleast for me.

breadm1x · October 2013

I only played it for the boobz who cares for combat and endgame.

When peeps hit max level they allways quit and go play somthing else. :P

(yeah and i even BOUGHT the game, and like allways then I buy somthing it will become F2P later)

TheRealDarkeus · October 2013

I really think it is because of the poor story and questing. I mean, why should I care what is going on? What the hell is going on? It is too boring to care really. A MMO can be linear if the story and lore is good. TERA does not have good lore and story. The questing needs a change.

Sovrath · October 2013

Originally posted by someforumguy

It is not a sense of reality that I am looking for, but consistency. It doesn't even make sense in the world it has to play in. Everything else displays force mechanics that are comparible to rl, except the combat physics. I am fine with characters being able to do crazy things, but not if at the same time this crazy hitting with weapons the size of a truck does only 1 damage against a squirrel. It just looks silly lol.

An opponent that obviously weighs less then your crazy big lightspeed moving weapon should be flying all over the place when being hit with it.

EDIT :I am also not against over the top. I really liked Saints Row the Third for its crazy combat. But that game doesn't take itself so seriously.

I still think you are.

I've only seen St. Row so haven't played it. However, from what I've seen that's more about the absurd. Remember, I said that the "heroes" of these Asian games embody more "fable". Again, my examples of Paul Bunyan or John Henry. I realize you can fly in St. Row but my sense is that mechanic is more about being absurd. Even that gun that makes you dance is more about the absurd.

We are talking about representation and fable.

Doing a small amount of damage to an enemy the size of a squirrel is more about mmo game mechanics and progression. Has nothing to do with art design. I understand that "consistency is important but western games are guilty of the same stuff.

I've yet to see any western game that doesn't do the same thing. Looking at you LOTRO. I can go to the starter area and kill a bird at level 5 but take that same level 5 character to a high level area with the same size bird and get my ass handed to me. Same in EQ 2 as far as the size and scope of certain enemies.

using a regular size sword, in western games, should still do a huge amount of damage.

You are just adding the "realism" bit and saying "if the sword is 15' long it should do even MORE damage.

Again we are talking about representation and style and "again" a sense of "fable".

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Why is Tera not more popular?

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