General Discussion

For about 2 years I have been playing WoW, got 2 toons to 70 and such. But once you've reached the max level I feel that the endgame is lacking and such. I am sick of constantly running gruul's, kara, ssc and such over and over and in my opinion, the pvp in WoW is one of the simplistic and worst  I have played, runescape being the worst. As WoW was my first MMO I have no idea what to expect from other games, but I want to switch to a game with a more engaging and challenging combat system and more character customization (races, classes, etc.) 

Most of all, I want a game that doesn't make you play for the purpose only to hit max level, to find it to be the worst experience in the game (my opinion only).

Any ideas? I've heard LOTRO is more of the same as WoW, but I am a huge fan of the series and I have heard from others that the storyline is excellent and immersive, but there is very little choice in character races/classes? Someone recommended vanguard but I looked into it but it is basically the same game but with more bugs.

(I'm guessing my best bet is SWG or Everquest, I've tried EvE but that game is a little over the top workingwise).

I apologize if I am not giving enough information in this query, I am very new to the genre.

Thanks in advance for all responses.

I'm also a WoW drop out.

Only gave I've tried so far is EQ2 Trial and it's actually pretty fun.

I'm waiting for Age of Conan though.

I wouldn't recommend SWG since it's ... POS.

EVE is fun for awhile but doing the missions gets so boring as well as mining.

As frustrating as waiting can be, I would suggest you sit tight for now. Age of Conan and Warhammer are both due out this year. Warhammer is built around realm conflict, whereas WoW's PvP is more of a tacked-on 'feature.' If you liked the look and feel of WoW but wanted more meaningful PvP, Warhammer may be right up your alley.  Age of Conan takes the photorealism approach to graphics and has PvP based on a Guild vs Guild model as opposed to the faction/realm based PvP of WAR. Some may find that preferable, as you can choose who you ally with and who you fight against. Age of Conan also features clan cities and city building. If player controlled resources are something you'd be into, that's certainly something to consider. Both games offer many more interesting features. I would suggest visiting their respective websites for more in-depth details.

www.warhammeronline.com

ageofconan.com

As for the older MMOs... they certainly were kings of their own age, but they have reached their peak and watched it pass. Population can be a real issue as games get older and the game grows top-heavy with multi-year veterans. I find it much more enjoyable to try a game at launch when the enthusiasm is high and everything is fresh for everyone, beta testers aside. I'm getting into personal opinion here, but hopefully you can get some use out of it. Certainly, when there is some time until the next 'big' release, going back to an older game can be fun and worthwhile, but with two big titles at our doorstep (provided there are no more delays), I honestly think it may be best to at least wait and check them out.

I think I might go with AOC. It seems to be a much more community based game, hence easier groups, etc. When I was in WoW it felt as if I was playing in a game with really great AI, not other people. The character classes also look really engaging. The monthly fee is still $15, I think. It doesn't seem to be raid based either. After WoW, I don't want to be playing another raid based game for awhile.

Looking to see you all in the game :P

Originally posted by r1m1k1

For about 2 years I have been playing WoW, got 2 toons to 70 and such. But once you've reached the max level I feel that the endgame is lacking and such. I am sick of constantly running gruul's, kara, ssc and such over and over and in my opinion, the pvp in WoW is one of the simplistic and worst  I have played, runescape being the worst. As WoW was my first MMO I have no idea what to expect from other games, but I want to switch to a game with a more engaging and challenging combat system and more character customization (races, classes, etc.) VG has a lot of races and classes, but the game has population issues as well as bugs left over from a very bad launch.  EQ2 also provide a lot of classes and races, and has recovered a lot since a bad launch.  I have far more fun with EQ2, and I am still wary of VG.  LOTRo has a very superb launch, but the choice of class/race is limited.  COH/V also has quite a lot of classes to choose from, but the game is totally different in style to WoW.

Most of all, I want a game that doesn't make you play for the purpose only to hit max level, to find it to be the worst experience in the game (my opinion only).  Both LOTRo and CoX are fun to level up, actually LOTRo is great up to level cap.

Any ideas? I've heard LOTRO is more of the same as WoW, but I am a huge fan of the series and I have heard from others that the storyline is excellent and immersive, but there is very little choice in character races/classes? Someone recommended vanguard but I looked into it but it is basically the same game but with more bugs.  Very true about LOTRo, you can only be on the good side, and if you play the bad side, its only limited to PVPing.  On the other hand the storyline and the graphics are very enjoyable.  So far they only open the maps to the Misty mountains, Rohan, and all the bad side's land are still not yet open.  So there is potential for a lot of PVE new contents.  There is one catch to this game, do not level too fast, or you run out of things to do fast.  Play it casual, and its a very nice time killer.

(I'm guessing my best bet is SWG or Everquest, I've tried EvE but that game is a little over the top workingwise). SWG is not good now.  Its virtually empty.  I know the SWG fans will throw rocks at me.  I have been revisiting this games on and off, and I must say it has not yet recover from the CU/NGE fiasco.  If you ever consider old games like EQ, why not DAoC, at least it offers a change from WoW, in which PVP takes on a more integrated stance.

I apologize if I am not giving enough information in this query, I am very new to the genre.

Thanks in advance for all responses.  Tell us what you eventually picked.  We would like to know that too, I do, as I am out of "games" for almost a year.

I'm a fellow ex-WoW player, and like a lot of people here I'm waiting for WAR and AOC. Just a few more months.

Well most mmos dont have a good endgame.

The only decent one I can think of that has something to look forward to other than raiding when you reach max level is DAOC with its rvr.  Even that gets boring after awhile though. I hear the classic servers are still jumping. So you may give that a try.

There are a few other older games still around that you may find interesting including Shadowbane, Asheron's call, and Ultima Online.

I would also highly recommend trying Oblivion if you have not yet. It is a great game (especially when you mod the hell out of it!) that I jump on when I am in the mmo doldrums and cannot find anything to else to play.

Other than that, you will probably have to wait for Warhammer or Age of Conan, and hope one or both of them turn out to be what we have all been waiting for. Spellborn looks like it may possibly be good too.

Originally posted by Chainmail

 

Well most mmos dont have a good endgame.

The only decent one I can think of that has something to look forward to other than raiding when you reach max level is DAOC. I hear the classic servers are still jumping. So you may give that a try.

There are a few others that are not to my liking much but you may find interesting including Shadowbane, Asheron's call, and Ultima Online. All of which are highly recommended (well maybe not SB :P) but a bit more dated as far as graphics and UI.

I would also highly recommend trying Oblivion if you have not yet. It is a great game (especially when you mod the hell out of it!) that I jump on when I am in the mmo doldrums and cannot find anything to else to play.

Other than that, you will probably have to wait for Warhammer or Age of Conan, and hope one or both of them turn out to be what we have all been waiting for. Spellborn looks like it may possibly be good too.

The real problem now is population.  Even the most populated (the classic) server is not very "hot".  I have taken advantage of free-returns 3 times and I never have the will power to level up to max (which I was told only takes a month or so).  I have problems finding people around the newbie zones.

As for Oblivion, yes I tried it.  I want to use the mod that stops the autoscaling of mobs but it does not work for me.  I admit I am stupid, its not the mod's fault.  If I can fix that I will go back to oblviion without doubts.

The secret to modding Oblivion is to never install any mods manually and to never overwrite any files. You need to use OBMM (Oblivion Mod Manager) to create OMODs and also Wrye Bash. They are easy to learn and will keep your original files from getting corrupted. I have about 170 mods installed and the game runs great most of the time.