Dark Souls, to me, is just like the Emperor's New Clothes.
I played Demon's Souls on my PS3 - based on a LOT of warm praise around the web. What I found was a game full of tedium and grind - where you fight NPC patterns until you clap yourself on the back for learning them.
I appreciate the combat system - and I think the stats are well implemented. But the story is bullshit, the lack of a proper coop mode in an action RPG is painful, the lack of proper stealth and archery gameplay is sad, the respawning excessive and the boss fights gimmicky and typically over-the-top JRPG stuff.
I guess if you really think learning a simplistic AI pattern is a feat worthy of note - it's something.
Personally, I put the game down after 25-30 hours and 3 bosses. The reward simply didn't justify the investment required for progress.
I've tried Dark Souls - and except of a more non-linear structure, it seems all but identical to Demon's Souls.
---
Grim Dawn is decent - but very average overall. There's a distinct lack of interesting active skills - and the world is bland. Combat is very, very "drone-like" compared to the best in the genre.
Dark Souls, to me, is just like the Emperor's New Clothes.
I played Demon's Souls on my PS3 - based on a LOT of warm praise around the web. What I found was a game full of tedium and grind - where you fight NPC patterns until you clap yourself on the back for learning them.
I appreciate the combat system - and I think the stats are well implemented. But the story is bullshit, the lack of a proper coop mode in an action RPG is painful, the lack of proper stealth and archery gameplay is sad, the respawning excessive and the boss fights gimmicky and typically over-the-top JRPG stuff.
I guess if you really think learning a simplistic AI pattern is a feat worthy of note - it's something.
Well im definitely not going off on a continuous rant promoting the game so this will likely be my last post on the game here. Not saying DS has the smartest AI in gaming but what exactly do you expect out of an AI in any modern game? Sure, every boss has a hidden "strategy" but at least it doesnt hold your hand guiding you to the answer, flash weak points in your face, or hold your hand throughout. TBH, 3 bosses, at least not the first 3 I faced in Demons Souls, dont even begin to scratch the surface. Mind you, its a 60 hour game (average) so I have no idea why/how 25-30 hours only got you through 3 bosses given such a "simplistic AI pattern."
To me it was like a breath of fresh air after playing so many piss easy games for well over a decade. I wouldnt say there is a grind when there is really no need for it. Yeah, if you die you lose your souls and start over with everything respawned (minus shortcuts you open) but thats part of the magic. You really dont need to worry about keeping all the souls, just cash in whatever you get after every boss. Stealth and Archery usually OP, and this is coming from someone who tends to play that archetype in games like Skyrim which have them.
I weep for this attitude gamers have these days. Look im not saying your wrong for not liking DS, to each their own, but your negatives are confusing. Particularly considering this is a Pantheon forum. "Simplistic pattern AI" is pretty much MMO's in a nutshell. Hell, its gaming in a nutshell. Pantheon will have mob grinding, will probably take your XP on death (taking much longer to recover), will require you gear up correctly ... its shaping up to basically be Dark Souls but with tab-targeting.
darkfall unholy wars is fun if you like to group with others... I can find people online at any given time of the day to play with in that game and the community is older 30+ it seems like for the most part. Everyone uses teamspeak and the PVP is fun too. Most of the game is PVE unless you just want to PVP all of the time you can try that too but you will probably run out of stuff and have to PVE. Its a unique experience and the most active MMORPG (group-wise) that I currently play... I also play a handful of other games but they have too much solo content... nothing has me all the way right now.
NEWS FLASH!"A bank was robbed the other day and a man opened fire on the customers being held hostage. One customer zig-zag sprinted until he found cover. When questioned later he explained that he was a hardcore gamer and knew just what to do!" Download my music for free! I release several albums per month as part of project "Thee Untitled" . .. some video game music remixes and cover songs done with instruments in there as well! http://theeuntitled.bandcamp.com/Check out my roleplaying blog, collection of fictional short stories, and fantasy series... updated on a blog for now until I am finished!https://childrenfromtheheavensbelow.blogspot.com/Watch me game on occasion or make music... https://www.twitch.tv/spoontheeuntitled and subscribe! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUvqULn678VrF3OasgnbsyA
Maybe it would behoove you to take a small break from MMOs and try some of the amazing single player RPGs and other games available. I did this a couple years ago for about 6 months or so and when I came back to my mmo of choice I felt refreshed and excited to play another mmo. Your mileage might vary, but I imagine it wouldn't hurt to at least try.
I suggest doing what MrMelGibson said. I'm currently doing this. Taking a break from my 15 year stint of MMO playing and playing some survival games such as ARK, some shooters an what have you. It's nice because it's building up my excitement for the Legion expansion so I'll be nice and fresh for it(minus my alpha and beta testing for the expansion but even then, I didn't invest more than 10 hours into the alpha so I would be fresh for launch)
I would check out Wurm Unlimited on Steam. It is a sanctioned private server system (like P99) of Wurm Online. This way you can avoid toxic jerks. There is a fair amount of private servers to look at with some great communities. Wurm was originally released in 2006 so its got old school graphics and mechanics.
I love Wurm Online but I think it's too much like UO to recommend to the OP. Did the OP ever try UO? I still get the urge to play on uosecondage.com.
I can't really recommend anything except old MMO's which might still be running, things like DAOC, Anarchy Online, Asheron's Call (yes it's still running) and Neocron. I know of many, MANY niche MMOs, the trouble is I have no idea whether you'd like them or not. My favorites are also on my other harddrive, so I can't give a better list.
There're also browser MMO's or text-based MUDs you might like. I've played Dawn2055 and AstroGalaxy a little and some MUDs, like Medievia or Icesus. If you can handle grind you might like Alteraeon--reminds me distantly of EQ. Avalon is deep. If you're interested in MUDs, just go over to http://www.topmudsites.com/.
Do you like sandbox or survival games/MMO's? I love them so much. Some single player examples are Dwarf Fortress, Unreal World and NEO Scavenger. There's also a sandbox/RPG named Balrum. A newer RPG with some roots in Fallout is Undertale. Checkout steam and sort by RPG. Look at the Stalker series. My favorite in the series is STalker: Shadows of Chernobyl. Buy it when it's discounted.
Otherwise, I strongly recommend going to GoG.com. I've had a blast on GoG so far. It's a gr8 service. I mean, if you can't find anything new then stick with the old! I just recently got Darklands, Baldur's Gate, Temple of Elemental Evil, Fallout 2, Risen and some others. I'll probably never play them all and that's a small fraction of what's available. It totally humbles me how many games there're. It blows my mind. And to blow it further, I'll add GoG has only reworked a handful of games. *boom*
Comments
I played Demon's Souls on my PS3 - based on a LOT of warm praise around the web. What I found was a game full of tedium and grind - where you fight NPC patterns until you clap yourself on the back for learning them.
I appreciate the combat system - and I think the stats are well implemented. But the story is bullshit, the lack of a proper coop mode in an action RPG is painful, the lack of proper stealth and archery gameplay is sad, the respawning excessive and the boss fights gimmicky and typically over-the-top JRPG stuff.
I guess if you really think learning a simplistic AI pattern is a feat worthy of note - it's something.
Personally, I put the game down after 25-30 hours and 3 bosses. The reward simply didn't justify the investment required for progress.
I've tried Dark Souls - and except of a more non-linear structure, it seems all but identical to Demon's Souls.
---
Grim Dawn is decent - but very average overall. There's a distinct lack of interesting active skills - and the world is bland. Combat is very, very "drone-like" compared to the best in the genre.
Overrated would be the word.
To me it was like a breath of fresh air after playing so many piss easy games for well over a decade. I wouldnt say there is a grind when there is really no need for it. Yeah, if you die you lose your souls and start over with everything respawned (minus shortcuts you open) but thats part of the magic. You really dont need to worry about keeping all the souls, just cash in whatever you get after every boss. Stealth and Archery usually OP, and this is coming from someone who tends to play that archetype in games like Skyrim which have them.
I weep for this attitude gamers have these days. Look im not saying your wrong for not liking DS, to each their own, but your negatives are confusing. Particularly considering this is a Pantheon forum. "Simplistic pattern AI" is pretty much MMO's in a nutshell. Hell, its gaming in a nutshell. Pantheon will have mob grinding, will probably take your XP on death (taking much longer to recover), will require you gear up correctly ... its shaping up to basically be Dark Souls but with tab-targeting.
NEWS FLASH! "A bank was robbed the other day and a man opened fire on the customers being held hostage. One customer zig-zag sprinted until he found cover. When questioned later he explained that he was a hardcore gamer and knew just what to do!" Download my music for free! I release several albums per month as part of project "Thee Untitled" . .. some video game music remixes and cover songs done with instruments in there as well! http://theeuntitled.bandcamp.com/ Check out my roleplaying blog, collection of fictional short stories, and fantasy series... updated on a blog for now until I am finished! https://childrenfromtheheavensbelow.blogspot.com/ Watch me game on occasion or make music... https://www.twitch.tv/spoontheeuntitled and subscribe! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUvqULn678VrF3OasgnbsyA
I suggest doing what MrMelGibson said. I'm currently doing this. Taking a break from my 15 year stint of MMO playing and playing some survival games such as ARK, some shooters an what have you. It's nice because it's building up my excitement for the Legion expansion so I'll be nice and fresh for it(minus my alpha and beta testing for the expansion but even then, I didn't invest more than 10 hours into the alpha so I would be fresh for launch)
I can't really recommend anything except old MMO's which might still be running, things like DAOC, Anarchy Online, Asheron's Call (yes it's still running) and Neocron. I know of many, MANY niche MMOs, the trouble is I have no idea whether you'd like them or not. My favorites are also on my other harddrive, so I can't give a better list.
There're also browser MMO's or text-based MUDs you might like. I've played Dawn2055 and AstroGalaxy a little and some MUDs, like Medievia or Icesus. If you can handle grind you might like Alteraeon--reminds me distantly of EQ. Avalon is deep. If you're interested in MUDs, just go over to http://www.topmudsites.com/.
Do you like sandbox or survival games/MMO's? I love them so much. Some single player examples are Dwarf Fortress, Unreal World and NEO Scavenger. There's also a sandbox/RPG named Balrum. A newer RPG with some roots in Fallout is Undertale. Checkout steam and sort by RPG. Look at the Stalker series. My favorite in the series is STalker: Shadows of Chernobyl. Buy it when it's discounted.
Otherwise, I strongly recommend going to GoG.com. I've had a blast on GoG so far. It's a gr8 service. I mean, if you can't find anything new then stick with the old! I just recently got Darklands, Baldur's Gate, Temple of Elemental Evil, Fallout 2, Risen and some others. I'll probably never play them all and that's a small fraction of what's available. It totally humbles me how many games there're. It blows my mind. And to blow it further, I'll add GoG has only reworked a handful of games. *boom*
This is itself a incomplete list of the games which AREN'T on GoG:
https://www.gog.com/wishlist/games