Someone mentioned Project Gorgon..... This stopped me in my tracks, and got me thinking deeply of how much people will put up with on a unique and quirky level if Pantheon were made the same.
I argued with most everyone about Pantheon being niche. I now agree. Not because of First generation development, but because of uniqueness.
I'm not expecting anything about Pantheon being standard. I rationalize Brad and Visionary Realms as being completely self thinkers. Almost like they haven't played any other video games but their own.
A "Non-Everquest 1 player" will have to forget everything they know about standard video game play other than W,S,Y,D movement. They will have to understand leaving the confines of a safe zone WILL BE INSTANT DEATH unless they take certain precautions. After several attempts they'll have no choice but to ask questions. They will wonder why NPC's will not talk to them, or where do abilities come from, again they will have to ask.
I'm expecting Pantheon will be very hard in every aspect....... It will fit the player that finds a struggle to get anything done intriguing.
I will say, most want simple enjoyment, but intriguing players will be millions too !
If Pantheon is successful, many articles and how to play Youtubes will be made. Experts and fanatics will show us what they know.
This game will need it's own encyclopedia.... This is why it's taking so long.
Let them work !
Their's a fine line between "Buggy and Quirky"...... Buggy is negative and can ruin a game.
Comments
Players have been led down a path over nearly the last twenty years to expect everything about a game to be spoon fed to them. They expect the game play of every MMO to be the same, every RPG to be the same and so on. At least sufficiently so that they do not have to read anything about the game before they start. Delete is making Pantheon sound a little like Dark Souls, not sure how true that is but it does sound like you are going to not be able to just jump in.
We have a hobby that is now tailored to the most casual gaming possible, so Pantheon does not sound like it will go down well with them. But I have to ask, do we need them? Did Dark Souls need the casuals who whinged on about how hard it was? I don’t really see Pantheon as a DS equivalent for MMOs, but casuals will complain about even the tiniest amount inconvenience to their “fun”. Like too much travelling, you can put them on a horse galloping through beautiful countryside and they complain.
You can’t have any depth of play, grouping, lore or anything else other then the immediate experience of fun with such players, so I ask again do we need them? I think you know what my reply would be.
P.S Is that me in DMKano's picture above, looking down at the crap on the floor that now passes for most modern MMOs and then up at where we used to be in old school?
That said, if said "difficulty" is largely due to players having to wrestle with awkward UI or poorly explained or understood mechanics (see EVE) then not so much.
Watched the COE "parkour" video of what they called their Silver Mine "tutorial" dungeon. (Stay with me here)
The narrator was explaining why certain "help aids" were so obvious and in one example he said, "as it turns out we found if players don't know they can (and have to) backflip off of a ledge most won't think to even try."
Which was surprisingly thoughtful really, developers do well to provide enough information in game that players know how to "find the fun" or many will never experience what is available.
CCP well understands how many players they lose because of this hence they rework the tutorials and new player experience regularly.(perhaps to little avail)
Difficulty may be sought after, complexity less so I'm thinking.
"True friends stab you in the front." | Oscar Wilde
"I need to finish" - Christian Wolff: The Accountant
Just trying to live long enough to play a new, released MMORPG, playing New Worlds atm
Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions. Pvbs 18:2, NIV
Don't just play games, inhabit virtual worlds™
"This is the most intelligent, well qualified and articulate response to a post I have ever seen on these forums. It's a shame most people here won't have the attention span to read past the second line." - Anon
Logic, my dear, merely enables one to be wrong with great authority.
EQ1, EQ2, SWG, SWTOR, GW, GW2 CoH, CoV, FFXI, WoW, CO, War,TSW and a slew of free trials and beta tests
I fear they (VR) will then make changes to the game to appease the masses of filthy casuals and the game will no longer be enjoyable to lovers of the original and no longer be played by the masses who cried for change and then it will be another example of a game trying to please too many but fails to please any.
Logic, my dear, merely enables one to be wrong with great authority.
I think he is looking to make a game that is "challenging," and there is more than one way to do that.
For example, a quest can be challenging because there are things you have to figure out, or difficult enemies to defeat along the way, or by something you have to discern through the perception system, and so on.
I don't think there will be a lot of straight up camp rare spawn for 2 days, kill spawn, and then turn dropped item into quest giver. I expect this game will be a bit more cerebral with less emphasis on time spent waiting.
But hey, Brad doesn't run stuff by me lol. I just read what he says.
EQ1, EQ2, SWG, SWTOR, GW, GW2 CoH, CoV, FFXI, WoW, CO, War,TSW and a slew of free trials and beta tests
Not a self thinker
Who wins?
“Microtransactions? In a single player role-playing game? Are you nuts?”
― CD PROJEKT RED
"True friends stab you in the front." | Oscar Wilde
"I need to finish" - Christian Wolff: The Accountant
Just trying to live long enough to play a new, released MMORPG, playing New Worlds atm
Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions. Pvbs 18:2, NIV
Don't just play games, inhabit virtual worlds™
"This is the most intelligent, well qualified and articulate response to a post I have ever seen on these forums. It's a shame most people here won't have the attention span to read past the second line." - Anon
EQ1, EQ2, SWG, SWTOR, GW, GW2 CoH, CoV, FFXI, WoW, CO, War,TSW and a slew of free trials and beta tests
I expect nothing unique from Pantheon and sadly that is not a selling point for me because i don't like same old new skin.
"Self thinkers"
Well seeing what he did in the past i would say perhaps but not with Vanguard,that was same old new skin.
The oddity was EQ2 being exactly the same as Wow,which really has always baffled me.So i assume the Blizz people were in on the idea and copied the same template for Wow.
Then we need to only realize that Brad was not there anymore,his idea was EQ1 but then we saw EQ2 again within Vanguard.
So what exactly happened there?I can only assume Brad was still there in the early iteration of Eq2.Then i have to wonder WHY the hell he or the SOE team thought it a good idea to stick yellow markers over npc heads to string you into linear hand held game play.
Then seeing that EQ2 was not accepted at all was even more baffling because the very next week Wow the EXACT same game was selling millions..lol.So did Brad see Wow and think ok this idea is a good seller it just isn't with SOE?
My thoughts,he saw Wow,thought ..$$$$,his VG would look better than Wow,offer a couple unique ideas and be an easy seller.So where does this lead me ,well instead of being a free thinker,he was seeing ..$$$$$.
So fast forward ,what do they see,they see a EQ1 crowd that wants in>>>$$$$$.So expect the obvious,nothing exciting or new incoming,same old new skin.
Never forget 3 mile Island and never trust a government official or company spokesman.