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This era of bad MMO's saved me. (I think)
quentin405
Member Posts: 468
So recently I was doing some thinking.. and you know ever since I was approx 14, playing football AND hockey. my younger friend who was a total computer nerd dragged me into this older game called Meridian59.. I totally did not get it. I was teeeeeeerible.. But we played a little off and on. Then sometime later he drug me into the release of Ultima Online.
And I clicked with UO. I was a beast with my halberd. Clanking little cats and mongbats over the head. Sure my first toon was gimp but my second was a powerhouse.. in a badass guild we had boxed in polar bears, all the rare stuff in our house. Cool black robes (lol) it was SOOOO fun.. I mean I was really popular, being online 24/7 (sometimes quite literally) I was the go to guy for info, backup, any help you needed. Of course my real life suffered, I quit sports, did bad in school for 2 years.. Gained alot of weight, but man I was a god in UO. Even figuring out ways to wolfpack UOE users with my guildies ( an extreme cheating program, alot of noobs used to get a leg up on pvp).
Years later, we heard of this new game Everquest.. we had done all and seen on all UO so we decided to migrate.. And things pretty much went the same there.. I spent 10 times more online time chatting and helping guild mates then actual playing.. Some of the first that ventured into the planes.. Had seperate accounts for shift based camping of items. Rinse repeat..
Years later WoW was coming out... again we migrated.. again we played it like it was meant to played.. Going beast on players / dungeons / raids.. days of no sleep..
AND then... something happened.. was it me? Was it the industry? Did games really start sucking or did I start sucking? I dont know for sure... but since the release of Wotlk, I have probably jumped around to 100 different mmo games.. Everything from hefty pro-order collectors edition to the smallest crappy little asian grinders..
Never once have I found even a touch of that crack cocaine like addiction to a game... felt the need to play way past me getting sleepy. Or to stay up for 2 sunrises trying to beat the curve of people leveling and getting items.. Its just gone..
Now I am waiting for ToR /GW2 to release .. hoping I get the fun i used to out of a game.. But I am pretty sure I wont.. maybe a few weeks or a month out of each..
But one thing that has happened is I have gotten back in touch with real life.. continuing my education.. I have a career now.. a daughter Im in love with. Working on a new hobby that isnt online gaming.. (people really do some boring stuff in real life lmao)
So to close.. I think this era of MMO gaming people are talking about.. it seems everyones bored, no one is playing 1 game very long.. games are getting more and more shallow and easy, it has been both a curse and a blessing. I am unable to enjoy what is probably the only hobby I will ever really LOVE, but it has allowed me to expand my horizons in many ways..
Anyway, thanks for reading if you did.. hope it wasnt to long. Anyone else care to share their stories? Or comment? I would absolutely LOVE some conversation not relating to ToR/gw2 or TL2/D3 
Comments
I agree in many ways. Ever since the release of WoW and after playing that for 2 years, I have not been able to sit and play one MMO for any length of time. I have sense been in touch with reality too and just trying to do whatever I can to make money and make a living.
I think Diablo 3 will be my last test. We will see what happens!
New games get older faster than they did fifteen years ago.
I can blame the game, or just observe that I'm not that same person I was in '97. Fifteen years of experience just says "You don't need to do this as a power gamer any more, play when you feel like it."
The final step, I think, is just embracing that no one game will ever entertain you indefinitely.
Self-pity imprisons us in the walls of our own self-absorption. The whole world shrinks down to the size of our problem, and the more we dwell on it, the smaller we are and the larger the problem seems to grow.
For me, as I am getting older I find real life to be much better and or demanding than the games I once spent 24 hours a day on. I still play when I can and yes that fact that a lot of games released over the last five years are big steaming piles of hot fudge has helped me come to the same conclusion. Still lokking forward to Tor, Wod, The secret world etc. Just don't have the freaking time. Good post O.P, enjoyed the read.:)
Nice read! I've long been contemplating whether this might be the autumn of my gaming (At least as a hobby). I enjoy it still, true, but not as once did. TOR and Diablo 3 is probably my last big commitments, after that it's going to be very casual gaming with friends on the old consoles to bring back memories
I'm in pretty much the same boat as the OP, although I do wonder whether the fact that MMOs are considered weak these days is a cause or a consequence of becoming bored with gaming in general.
That said, I still enjoy a bit of gaming but nowhere near the hardcore levels of a few years ago. I'm looking forward to TOR and I know it won't be a lifestealer like DAOC and CoX was back in the day and that's OK, I'm not looking for that anymore. Those days are done and I'm perfectly content with the casual approach nowadays.
Well i have a kind of same experience as you did but i swifted to solo rpg's a few years ago and its alot better combining with my real life family and work then mmo's. I still play mmo but maybe 3 hours week i mainly play solo RPGs 10 hours a week devided over several days and i love it.
I played for years and years 10-15hours a day 7days a week now i can't immagine i did that lol.
Hope to build full AMD system RYZEN/VEGA/AM4!!!
MB:Asus V De Luxe z77
CPU:Intell Icore7 3770k
GPU: AMD Fury X(waiting for BIG VEGA 10 or 11 HBM2?(bit unclear now))
MEMORY:Corsair PLAT.DDR3 1866MHZ 16GB
PSU:Corsair AX1200i
OS:Windows 10 64bit
You know, I had the same feeling too.
There was once an MMO called Jumpgate that got me hooked because it was almost completely different out of all of the MMOs today(except for leveling).
For an example, traditional MMOs had a 3rd person view, dice rolling combat system, character attributes/classes, higher level always outclassing lower levels, and point clicking, a seperate place for PvErs. These type of MMOs still exist up to this day.
Jumpgate on the other hand was to be played in 1st person view, real life skills determined the outcome of PvP battles, your avatar attributes was the ship you were flying, guns and equipment that was mounted on the ship along with what's in the cargo. You could fly all the ships that you wanted from your faction, and use any equipment that fits with the ship, and with no character class system, the player could what whatever he wanted in space(mining, combat, hauling, artifact hunting, etc).
When JG lost it's popularity back in 2003, gave up on trying to get a lot of players online in the game, and realized that almost every single MMO were basically the same after WoW, I moved on to make attempts of making a series of indie games, fonts, and trying to be creative in many other ways. Along with juggling with community college work as well.
So this is probably gonna be like that until another game like JG comes out.
----------------------
Give me lights give me action. With a touch of a button!
Might be beacuse the older MMOs acually had some good substance,challenge gameplay, more social oriented aspects ect.
Very few of modern MMOs have that, what they do have is easymode gameplay to hit max level asap beacuse as the younger generation of gamers says, the real game starts at endgame, and endgame means endless loops of raids to get those epics that will get useless anyway when the next expantion hit the shelves and the cycle repeats.....yawn...
If it's not broken, you are not innovating.
It seems that MMO's have become too "cookie cutter" based in part on korean mmo's.
Where has the orginality gone?
I realize mmo's cost allot of money to produce. Developers look to major corporations to infuse the game with finances to help further develop the game. The crux of this is the developer is then pawn to the major corporation to create the game as the major corporation wants the game to be. Orginality seems to be displaced in favor of the mighty dollar/euro. And we as consumers get stuck with these 'cookie cutter' games taunted as the next best mmo to come along since sliced bread.
Something has to change and I'm not sure what that something is.
I think it's a case of expecting different things than one being better than the next.
If you grew up on a hardcore UO PvP server, or with the massive raids of EQ that took hours of your time (that is, if you could spend the dozen plus in-game days to get your character to the right level), then the new crop of MMOs isn't for you.
But look at it the other way- what you see as satisfyingly challenging, people with less time on their hands might see as needlessly time-consuming, or overly frustrating. They see it as being barred from the most fun of the game.
MMOS, like a lot of other games, are becoming mass-market as they're accepted by the mainstream, and that necessarily means that the barriers are being lowered. Is that a bad thing? Well, yes and no. Yes, because it devaules that sense of acheivement, but no because it means that you have more people to play with.
Like I said, it's a conflict of expectations rather than a rose-colored "things were better when..."
Simply put...
1.) MMos are very similiar, style is getting boring to many people.
2.) So many options are available, making it easier for someone to just give up on a game and try another.
3.) Existing games are slipping down a slope of medocraty. Trying to cater to casuals draws more numbers initially, but loses the dedicated player base in the long run.
If MMos were more limited like they were at one time, I have a feeling this feeling would be a lot less common. Its just such a common place now a days that even potential 'wow topping' games won't be doing it. Sure a lot aren't that 'amazing' but when you look at WoW, it was far from 'amazing' when it first came out. It took a great deal of time for it to refine itself into a better shape. Gamers today just don't let games really have that much of a chance since there are just so many options out there. Why give a game time to develop and grow better when they can go off and play another game instead?
Most MMOs today are easymode, you can solo to max level, crafting is simplistic if any, housing is rarely in, you a lead by a carrot from quest hub to quest hub, you dont have to read the quest text, everything is lit up as a christmas tree on the map, the items glows on the ground like if they were radioactive.
The MMO even singleplayer ones are made for mentaly challenged and you are in Special Olympics everyones is a winner.
What's next for our new game generation, a autopilot?
If it's not broken, you are not innovating.
I already heard of some Asian f2p , that is allowing you to 'autopilot' your character from quest giver to quest location
Really I understand making some things in mmorpg's more accesible or conveniant , but imho mmorpg's crossed line between 'accesible' and 'dumbing-down' years ago
I agree to an extent. Although I honestly think GW2 will be the game of choice for the old MMO vets like you and myself. I just hope and pray it delivers. No other game released in the last 6 years has me so confident that it will be a masterpiece.
Everything you need to know about Elder Scrolls Online
Playing: GW2
Waiting on: TESO
Next Flop: Planetside 2
Best MMO of all time: Asheron's Call - The first company to recreate AC will be the next greatest MMO.
Too many gimmicks, not enough game. After a while you just stop and ask yourself "Why in the world am I standing here on the edge of a pond killing man-eating frogs?"
I often see people saying that MMORPGs are turning into SP RPGs. It's worse than that... at least SP RPGs are GOOD RPGs. Force fit SP content into an MMORPG world and all we get are watered down storylines and the ability to stand in front of the bank showing off our shiny armor, mini-pet or pocket-pony mount.
Maybe it's just that the glamour has faded. After all, if it isn't entertaining then why bother?
I'm in an identical place as you chief. What's more I've heard the same sentiment echoed in lots of people on forums and all my mates that overdosed on wow until WotLK killed our enthusiasm. I think we just overdid it really. I dont recall spending so much time getting immersed in anything like wow, it delivered for me on so many different levels and everything since seems like a poor copy, hence the jumping around to game after game and getting bored rapidly. Nothing I've seen on the horizon looks like a huge departure from the mould. The only thing I think will reawaken that gaming thrill will be Planetside 2...whenever that comes out.
Yeah. They just transform in bad Single Player RPG games , with co-op multiplayer option in instanced dungeons.
I am starting to ask myself a question , since MMORPG's stopped to create MASSIVE WORLDS for your character to "live" in.
Why should I spend subscription OR / AND money in item shops ?
Really I started to play with UO. Then after I stopped playing UO after few years , I stopped playing mmorpg's at all , then I came back after long break. I was a bit shocked with how diffrent WoW and other games were from UO , but eventually I played them even though their severe limitations.
It was fun for a while. Ultimatelly they are not creating worlds anymore. That's biggest problem for me imho.
EVE was fun for a while , but ultimatelly I am not into playing a ship , and I am too old for indie , bugged and heavily focused on PK'ing and only endless PvP games like Darkfall and MO.
Bah I don't need something very hardcore or exceptionally awesome. I just want a game that won't be 'kill orcs&wolfs for NPC's playing solo , then run instances endlessly , and all this in confined , simplistic and heavily streamlined ruleset , that does not give any other option'.
Mmorpg's just offer 'hack&slash' type of gaming nowadays, not much more than that
To the OP:
I have gone through the same experiences as you for the most part and I have done it all. The thing about the older games, even early WoW, was that they were tougher games. After WotLK games have gone into easy mode. The thing is for people like you and I, games are just too easy these days. Yeah, there are some grinders but they are just grinders. Having an experience and fun at the same time while have difficulty, is just not what games are about anymore.
Sad part is, if this trend continue even the casual will drop the MMOs.
If it's not broken, you are not innovating.
I can relate to this as many others seem to as well. I used to spend hours upon hours in the virtual world and even made friends that I keep in contact with moreso then some of my lifelong RL friends.
At the same time if games were of the caliber they used to be or if I was as interested in them the way I used to be, I would probably still be single and working a crappy dead end job. That was the case when I was at my peek in the MMO world. So even though I do miss an amazing MMO experience, I am enjoying the fact that I will be getting married soon and that I'm going back to school to finish my degree in a field that I find interesting and has great job opportunities and future growth.
MMOs need a thriving community to be successful. When games today are being made for solo play it totally destroys a major part of why mmos were successful back in the day.
Thats what i think aswell, With Everquest the best thrill i got was when im fighting a mob and were both low hp at 10% and the fight goes down to the border line 1% on you and the mob its live or die knowing that if you die your gonna suffer a penalty of some XP loss that you work hard to get and also your loot you would need to find somone to help retrieve from your corpse, There was so many places to explors you were never stuck in one zone you could move to another of similar lvl current MMO company seem to be lazy and make bare minimun and call it a game, take rift for example there is 2 city each with 1 zone to lvl in when you finish questing in the first you move to the second and you very quickly get to see everything, while in EQ there was 12 cities to start each with slighty strong zones around it, There is more zones in Everquest 1 at the release of the game than any other modern MMO and each zone had a reasonable amount of people in aswell which was surprising since they were using 1999 hardware to support that many players.
The community also plays an important role in makign a good memorable game which MMO these days are also lacking there all based on solo play + some group raids and instances which you just run through killing and you dont relay get to talk much due o all trhe button mashing and moving. If you ever needed help somone was around to give you a hand because they knew how harsh the world of norrath could be, which was the reason they enjoyed it so much.
MMOs these days shouldnt be called MMOs there basicly Single player games with a chat room in, with the occasion instance or the 2-3 raid instances when you hit max lvl in a week that you repeat over and over again till you get sick of it.
Whats the difference from a MMO these days and a single player game like dragon age not a whole lot except the combat is better and more inovative in the single player game most of the time
Were successful? so you are telling me that MMOS make less money now compared to say days of UO and EQ? lol
I'm probably reading way to much into it being it's only gaming and all but to me the way so many MMO's are now "everyone wins" kind of games mirrors what people want now. Everyone gets great stuff just for showing up. It's the way things are now in sports for kids growing up. Score not being kept in early leagues, everyone gets trophies for participating. When I was playing sports as a kid score was kept and......gasp......some teams lost. we didn't get rewarded for just showing up. Sometimes we won it all and got trophies sometimes we sucked, and sometimes we were in the middle somewhere. We all survived though without being rewarded for showing up. There needs to be challenge in games and sometimes eveyone doesn't get everything in a game for just showing up. Anyway my two cents, sorry for rambling.