potential new player needs unbiased, factual info

Reehay · February 2006

hey all... sorry to have to do this but im really pressed for time and cant do alot of research on RF. so if you wouldnt mind please answer a few game questions. feel free to elaborate as much as youd like.

background: have played about every major MMO...my favorites were EQ, DAoC, FFXI, L2, EVE. i enjoyed different qualities of each but none of those listed were able to combine what i like best enough to keep me playing for more than 1-2 yrs. was waiting for Dark and Light and Dungeons and Dragons Online but theyre so incredibly bad my friends and i are now searching for a new game.

1. how is character creation? i dont care too much about appearances but in terms of skills, are there choices in creation other than race that will "tailor" my character to different designs or "templates"?

2. how is character development? skill or class based? tech tree? do all classes end up being carbon copies of each other? any overly dominate skills? any classes that are overly uber or conversely, worthless?

3. hows the grind? i dont mind long or repetitive leveling as long as its somewhat interesting. i.e. the combat is mildly complex or challenging or capable of surprise. if i just hit the same 2 hotkeys over and over, id rather stick pins in my eyeballs.

4. i understand the game is RvR. how is the balance between the races? are the races different enough to create different playstyles or strategies?

5. what are the goals of RvR? what is gained or lost? can any real impact on the gameworld be made through RvR?

6. the game interface. customizable enough for western players? comparable to which other MMOs? is it point/click movement or WASD?

7. technical difficulties? where are the servers located? separate North American servers from Euro and Asian? lag problems?

well, those are my major concerns. thanks very much for any input and feedback you can offer.

cheers

Garrik · February 2006

Originally posted by Reehay
hey all... sorry to have to do this but im really pressed for time and cant do alot of research on RF. so if you wouldnt mind please answer a few game questions. feel free to elaborate as much as youd like.

background: have played about every major MMO...my favorites were EQ, DAoC, FFXI, L2, EVE. i enjoyed different qualities of each but none of those listed were able to combine what i like best enough to keep me playing for more than 1-2 yrs. was waiting for Dark and Light and Dungeons and Dragons Online but theyre so incredibly bad my friends and i are now searching for a new game.

1. how is character creation? i dont care too much about appearances but in terms of skills, are there choices in creation other than race that will "tailor" my character to different designs or "templates"?

When you create a charcter you get a very basic selection of faces, hair and clothing, so the actual character customisation isnt huge. You will also pick your class at this point, these are warrior, ranger, specialist and spiritualist (bellato/cora only for spiritualist). After that you get a class change (2nd job) at level 30 and another at level 40. Your class depends on what armour you will be wearing and what weapon you will be using. check out http://rfinfo.net/ and http://rfo.askterix.com/ for more info on the job changes and the skills you get with them.

2. how is character development? skill or class based? tech tree? do all classes end up being carbon copies of each other? any overly dominate skills? any classes that are overly uber or conversely, worthless?

The character developement is similar to most games in the way that you "level up" but with RF you also have a PT system, these are skills that are very important to raise before you level, ill give you an example as it is easier.

Level 1 Ranger will have somthing like.

close range [      %       ] 1/2

long range [       %      ] 1/5

Force [      %      ] 1/99 (Bellato and Cora only)

Shield [      %      ] 1/2

Defense [      %      ] 1/5

each of them will need to be maxed or atleast nearly (if your char to be good) before the cap for them increases, what i mean by this is once you get to level 9 your ranged skill will change from 1/5 to 1/6 so before then you want to have it at 5/5 so you only need to do 1 PT level in ranged at level 6, the same goes with the rest, they increase as you level. Each faction has a bonus PT aswell, the Accretians (robots) have a launcher pt so they can level there big rocket launchers, the Bellato have Unit PTs so they can level there MAUs (Massive armour units, Mechs) and the Cora have Summon PTs so they can level there summons. Each PT effects the character in different ways as listed below.

Defence = increase in max HP and defence per level.

Close range = Allows you to use higher level melee weapons and deal more damage.

Long range = Allows you to use higher level ranged weapons and deal more damage. It also increases maximum Stamina points.

Shield = Increases block rate with shield and allows you to use higher level shields.

Force = Increases maximum FP (force points, MP)

They are the main ones but you also have the race specific PTs but they depend on what class you are, if you are planning on being a Cora summoner then you will level the summon PT but if you are a Cora warrior then you probably wont.

Skills also gain levels each time you use them and you also have a maximum skill PT, at the top of the skill window it will say 1/5 when you first start. This number will increase the more you use skills and eventually at about level 7 it increases to 1/6, but before it increases you should grind your skills and get them to 5/5 before the increase.

No characters are worthless, they all have there own advantages and disadvantages, the classes and races are both very balanced, non of them over power each other, they all have there strong points and weak points.

All classes get new skills once they get 30 points in there basic skill tier (around level 28) and then they open up a new tier of new skills and again once you get 30 points in that tier the next tier unlocks, so on and so forth. The main thing with classes is each class gets new specific skills at each job change, so at level 30 when you pick your class you will get skills that nobody else (apart from people of the same class) will have.

3. hows the grind? i dont mind long or repetitive leveling as long as its somewhat interesting. i.e. the combat is mildly complex or challenging or capable of surprise. if i just hit the same 2 hotkeys over and over, id rather stick pins in my eyeballs.

The game is quite simplistic, the quests are simple and easy, goto x and kill x number of mobs, for these you get money, exp and rewards as normal. There is quite a grind to it and always having to worry about keeping your PTs up so you dont dead end your character is quite a challenge and takes quite alot of grinding, personally i find it fun and you may also. as for hotkeys, well you will be spamming potions a hell of alot and depending on what class you are will depend on how many skills you are going to be spamming, Ranger start with the least, warriors/spiritualists start with the most (i dont know about specialists because i have never played one) overall the combat is fast paced and good fun, sometimes you have to watch for some nasty agro, that is mostly later on in the game though.

4. i understand the game is RvR. how is the balance between the races? are the races different enough to create different playstyles or strategies?

The races are very blanaced and the stratergies for each are very different, for example.

Accretian (robots) will have there launchers set up with siege kits (cant move with a siege kit on) and these will blast away at the opposition and the oppositions chip, mean while the warriors will be defending the launcher guys and killing any runners, some will also be hitting the chip.

Bellato will have there MAUs (Mechs) blasting away at the opposition, with the rangers helping, whilst the warriors storm the chip and make an opening for the MAUs. Then the warriors and MAUs will hold off the enemies whilst the rangers, spiritualists and DD warriors attack the chip. The MAUs will also be attacking the chip.

Cora will have loads of summons and spiritualists and nuke everyone in sight until they get to the chip then they will nuke that to whilst the warriors and summons defend them, rangers are used mainly for getting runners and dealing huge damage to the frontline of the opposition.

5. what are the goals of RvR? what is gained or lost? can any real impact on the gameworld be made through RvR?

You fight for the ownership of the core, the core is mining area where the players of the winning faction can mine to make huge amounts of money which is great for them, they can then exchange some of this money into gold, gold helps decrease tax rates on items that are bought in shops e.g. potions. So the more gold a faction has the lower the taxes are.

Also memebers of the opposing factions can then attack other mining areas and kill people whilst they are mining. This causes huge pvps in mines.

There are also other areas of the game where PVP takes place such as the sette desert, so if you go here watch out because you can be ganked and killed at any moment.

6. the game interface. customizable enough for western players? comparable to which other MMOs? is it point/click movement or WASD?

You can set it so it is either point and click, or WASD and using the number keys (or F keys) to use skills, they can also be right clicked. It is similar to most mmorpgs that are around now and is overall comfortable to use.

7. technical difficulties? where are the servers located? separate North American servers from Euro and Asian? lag problems?

The performance of the game is absolutly excellent, very few people have complained about lag, most are extremely pleased with how stable the servers are, even i am when you see how crowded they get (especially spirit server).

well, those are my major concerns. thanks very much for any input and feedback you can offer.

cheers

That is an unbiased and honest view on the game, if you think you might like it then give it a go, verything i have said is exactly how the game is, of course there will be things i have missed but i cant really write down everything that is in it.

Goodluck.

Garrik

binjuice · February 2006

Originally posted by Garrik
Originally posted by Reehay That is an unbiased and honest view on the game, if you think you might like it then give it a go, verything i have said is exactly how the game is, of course there will be things i have missed but i cant really write down everything that is in it.
Goodluck.
Garrik

I am greatful for someone able to give such a post without belittling themselves with a troll. Congratulations Garrik you have pulled off what many 'others' would never be able to do. I hope you keep posting such fine posts.

And to all Trolls, be ashamed, very ashamed. Bashing a game for reason's that were NEVER in its design brief is just plain annoying. Go back to your other MMO's (we know where 90% of you came from) And let the Dev's guide you through life hand in hand. We are Oh so sorry that you can't create fun for yourself in a game designed around player interaction and RvRvR let alone free PvP in other titles. Remove those pipes from those rear ends and take a look at what a game that is different to the tradiotional Western, has to offer, not what you expect from it.

Reehay · February 2006

Thanks alot Garrik.

that was exactly the kind of reply i was hoping to get. appreciate the well thought out examples and the links you supplied did well to fill in the rest. i'm about 75% ready to try RFO.

hope you dont mind expanding your thoughts on a few remaining concerns of mine.

1. after reading alot of posts, i'm a little worried about the use of potions. i hate that just clicking potions can negate any skill or strategy in the battle. is it really that easy to use potions? dont they have a refresh timer? do they nullify the need for a healer class or any teamwork between the classes?

2. ive also read alot of concerns over the movement/camera system. given the choice, id prefer the WASD or cursor movement style but reviewers have said this doesnt work very well. however you commented it was "comfortable". is there any substance to the negative comments about the movement? is it a responsive movement system? can you strafe, move backwards, change direction smoothly? i noticed in many of the videos the players just seem to stand in front of each other blasting away. id hate if it was just a rockem-sockem robot game where people just wailed on each until either dropped.

3. is there collision detection in RFO? my concern here is that ranged enemies can shoot through walls and mountains, etc. and hit me from impossible angles. is there even line of sight detection?

4. in your estimation, how much does equipment affect your success? in L2, i think items were far too overpowered and careful use of skills could almost never win against uber gear. i.e. can players just buy their way to victory?

5. the skill system seems most similiar to L2. just wondering if there was any way to redistribute spent skill pts once theyre allocated. ..i.e. can you experiment with a skill and then reclaim the skill pts if you dont like the skill. one thing i hated most with L2 was the fact you were so locked into your skills to the point if a skill was bugged or something you were completely stuck with it even if it wasnt working as intended.

6. one pet-peeve of mine is the visual clutter during fights. i hate to see names and damage messages floating everywhere. can these be turned off?

7. i'm left handed and have become accustomed to using the cursor keys for directional movement and the numpad for hotkeys. is this possible?

8. how many characters per account? and can you choose difference races?

once, again...thanks alot for your time; youre a good ambassador to the game, and this will really help me pinpoint whether or not to join RFO.

cheers ::::08::

tinytink2001 · February 2006

1. There is a 3 second timer on potions. The game is not designed for 1v1 pvp. It is designed for group vs group or race vs race. Also, there are no healers in this game. The potions enable you to level alot faster than other games of this sort because you do not have to pary to lvl non stop untill higher levels.

2. I havent used the wasd system. I like the simple method of point and click, but if you like WASD it is there. As for controlling the camer it is very similar to the way you controll the camer in Lineage 2. Simply hold the right mouse button and move it where you want it. There are some neat keyboard short cutts for camera possistions that are cool for large fights. I believe the k key zooms your camer way out into the sky letting you see terain and things you could not see other wize. However, when you do that the camera becomes fixed in that posision untill you hit k again. In other words if you move forward the camera does not move with you. I find that weird. As for battle your tactics depend on your character. As an archer in beta I found it prety easy to kite people if they choosed to attack me. However, I knew that I could not kill anyone alone. For the person to die someone else would have to have him on target and be attacking him. Organized groups is the way to fight in this game.

3. Yes, I hate targeting a monster in a slightly hilly area. For some reason the game actualy lets you shoot and waste your ammo, but the amo just hits the dirt and does not make it to the mob/person.

4. at high levels equipment will make a huge difference. However you have to understand that money is way easy to come by in this game. When I needed stuff all I did was afk mine when we had controll of the core. I average about 175k D an hour of mining.

5. I did not see a way to move points.

6. I was never bothered with it. I do not know the answer to this question.

7. I believe it is 3 chars per account and only one race per server. In other words if you play on the earth server you can only be one race on that server. If you want to play a diffrent race you must play on a diffrent server.

Hope it helps.

Thunderballs · February 2006

Originally posted by Reehay
Thanks alot Garrik.that was exactly the kind of reply i was hoping to get. appreciate the well thought out examples and the links you supplied did well to fill in the rest. i'm about 75% ready to try RFO. hope you dont mind expanding your thoughts on a few remaining concerns of mine. 1. after reading alot of posts, i'm a little worried about the use of potions. i hate that just clicking potions can negate any skill or strategy in the battle. is it really that easy to use potions? dont they have a refresh timer? do they nullify the need for a healer class or any teamwork between the classes? 2. ive also read alot of concerns over the movement/camera system. given the choice, id prefer the WASD or cursor movement style but reviewers have said this doesnt work very well. however you commented it was "comfortable". is there any substance to the negative comments about the movement? is it a responsive movement system? can you strafe, move backwards, change direction smoothly? i noticed in many of the videos the players just seem to stand in front of each other blasting away. id hate if it was just a rockem-sockem robot game where people just wailed on each until either dropped. 3. is there collision detection in RFO? my concern here is that ranged enemies can shoot through walls and mountains, etc. and hit me from impossible angles. is there even line of sight detection?4. in your estimation, how much does equipment affect your success? in L2, i think items were far too overpowered and careful use of skills could almost never win against uber gear. i.e. can players just buy their way to victory?5. the skill system seems most similiar to L2. just wondering if there was any way to redistribute spent skill pts once theyre allocated. ..i.e. can you experiment with a skill and then reclaim the skill pts if you dont like the skill. one thing i hated most with L2 was the fact you were so locked into your skills to the point if a skill was bugged or something you were completely stuck with it even if it wasnt working as intended.6. one pet-peeve of mine is the visual clutter during fights. i hate to see names and damage messages floating everywhere. can these be turned off?7. i'm left handed and have become accustomed to using the cursor keys for directional movement and the numpad for hotkeys. is this possible?8. how many characters per account? and can you choose difference races?once, again...thanks alot for your time; youre a good ambassador to the game, and this will really help me pinpoint whether or not to join RFO. cheers

1. Yes - however unlike most mmog the pot spamming in RFO has to be seen to be believed. You will need to outnumber your opposition or be many many levels above them if you want them to go down. pots click in immediately at full rather than having any significant downtime and a gradual drinking effect. should be called injections they are that fast.

2. Yes. I think you would have to try it and make up your own mind though.

3. Not sure on this - the envirnoment is very simplistic in this respect. As an example you can be looking out on a vast plain and a huge mob can pop up in front of you becasue of the way the game renders as you walk. In combat, ranged attacks are not that ranged i.e. your enemy will be quite close to you for you to be able to hit them even with a ranged attack. There is very little by way of terrain to use to make battles more interesting.

4. yes - you will need to afk mine all the time you are not playing or afk level your buff skills. I think a lot of players getting excited about RFO dont have experience from other MMOG where this causes a lot of imbalance in the game. you can run around and prentend to be a pvper at almost any level and spam pots which is possibly why a lot of people claim the pvp is good (aside from the graphical elements of these events). items seem to be very limited, by no means do you have a wide selection of items to use in comparison to some other games - although you can enhance them and some of the items are very cool looking.

5. not to my knowledge. Personally i like it that way. If I decide to spend my afternoons skateboarding in the real world, i dont expect to be able to swap that experience to turn me into a champion flower arranger. i think you should have to research your skills and live with the decisions you make. In RFO you do have to take care with what you level (again it is a real shame - if not negligent) that the main RFO website still doesnt have info on this direct from the company and relies on fan sites and players to post this info. trouble with a lot of these skilsl is that they become non sensical - as said, a caster can just spam pots and mele a warrior toe to toe or a warrior spam pots to close in on a ranged attacker and spam pots - your skills are pretty much eyer candy and nothing else in a system as messed up as this - imo.

6. Not sure sorry. There was also the visual clutter of only being able to see the feet of some of the larger mobs in the game whilst fighting them at close range. This creates the added problem that the mobs footprint is so big you cant easily click an area that isnt the mob and hence manouvere away from them to vary the fight or your tactics - thats a real downer. Whilst in this situation you can be belted from all sides by opposition or other mobs and there is very little you can do other than telport away of kill them all and spam pots.

7. not sure m8.

8. 3 per server I believe.

On closing i would recommend anyone interested in mmog tries rfo - if you are on a tight budget maybe you need to debate it - but on the whole you should get the box price worth of fun or interest from it even if you do put it down and go onto something else. if you are in danger of being sucked in just becasue it is a new release in USA/Europe and you are the type of player that hasnt learnt to distinguish between genuinely skillful or groundbreaking mmog then it is definitely one to walk away from IMO becasue you might very well wake up in 12 months time with a mmog hangover and feeling you've wasted your time !!!

Reehay · February 2006

thanks all for your comments. appreciate your time.

think im gonna pass on RFO.

happy gaming

Garrik · March 2006

Originally posted by Reehay

thanks all for your comments. appreciate your time.
think im gonna pass on RFO.
happy gaming

Hey there , sorry i didnt get back to your other questions I havnt been around here for a while. Im glad to see you made your descision even if it is to pass on RF.

Maybe some day you wil end up playing it anyway .

Goodluck with whatever game you choose to play.

Garrik

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