Well, TSW does bring many healthy ideas to the MMO-genre however considering it as the most innovative mmorpg of the year is kinda too early since games like Guild Wars 2 aren´t out yet. Sadly, this forum doesn´t give the best chance talking about something with logic since fanbois just jump in shouting about how '' stupid '' u r.

So, basically, we can´t decide until GW2 is out, which is a game that can compete very effectively when it comes to innovation. I won´t be surprised if I will get 100 comments explaining for me that GW2 is only another fantasy mmo, but my answer will simply be: innovation isn´t something about the skin, in the most cases, but about the mechanics. GW2 is a game that develope these old mechanics, known to all, and represent them in a very innovative way, making the game pretty hyped. Don´t await GW2 to be that popular if it doesn´t brough something new to the genre, and so far it has done a great job.

There are many healthy ideas in the both games and it is just u who will decide which is the most innovative in the most effective way. It just like choosing ur favo game, it really depens on the personal opinion much. However, in my opinion, TSW doesn´t bring that much to the MMO-genre itself but to the RPG-industry. The game is kinda far away from the MMO-style which became known for all after UO. TSW is a game that does focus on RPG when GW2 in on the hand, most focusing on MMO-gaming brining very healthy ideas to the '' open-world formula ''. None of these games are perfect so far, but with further work from the both companies, these games can end up making a big '' blow ''.

Originally posted by FredomSekerZ

Originally posted by Vannor

Originally posted by FredomSekerZ

BTW, is the lore innovative? Real world setting is not new, but a world where every myth and legend and inpirations from, well, anything on earth exists, sounds quite innovational even in general video games, specially mmos.

I'm not sure tbh, it can't really be considered invention because all that lore sort of exists already... it can't really be considered innovation because no other MMO has done it before. All games have to have unique lore though otherwise they'd all be sueing each other. Would you consider LOTRO to be innovative because it was the first MMO to use middle earth lore? Cause that's all they have done, taken lore from somewhere else and put it in a MMO. Lore shouldn't really be considered really unless it dramatically affects gameplay in some way, imo. The atmosphere they have created though could be considered innovation I suppose, it's almost like making world design a real art form.

I agree but lore does affect, well, everything in TSW. Apperantly, Funcom's Issue updates are going to chnage the world and reveal more and more missions, etc. Story is not new, but lore and story in TSW are the same in a way, IMO.

I would not consider Lotro as innovative where lore/setting is concerned. The lore/setting there is solidly and squarely based in medieval fantasy. The same themes and archetypes that you saw in UO, EQ and all the subsequent medieval fantasy games.

I think lore should be considered in the case of TSW. It's front-and-center in the gameplay, almost every single thing you do is related directly to the lore and backstory of the game. I can't think of any other MMO where I was so aware of the lore/story. Many other MMO's you can play all the way to level-cap without learning much about the lore unless you made a clear effort. It just wasn't really an intrinsic part of your "everyday life" in the game.

Originally posted by SpottyGekko

I would not consider Lotro as innovative where lore/setting is concerned. The lore/setting there is solidly and squarely based in medieval fantasy. The same themes and archetypes that you saw in UO, EQ and all the subsequent medieval fantasy games.

 

I think lore should be considered in the case of TSW. It's front-and-center in the gameplay, almost every single thing you do is related directly to the lore and backstory of the game. I can't think of any other MMO where I was so aware of the lore/story. Many other MMO's you can play all the way to level-cap without learning much about the lore unless you made a clear effort. It just wasn't really an intrinsic part of your "everyday life" in the game.

SWTOR was the first MMO that delivered a story/lore driven experience on a similar level of TSW. I just think TSW is better. But when it comes to what you are talking about, SWTOR was first.

Originally posted by Vannor

Originally posted by FredomSekerZ

Originally posted by Vannor

Originally posted by FredomSekerZ

BTW, is the lore innovative? Real world setting is not new, but a world where every myth and legend and inpirations from, well, anything on earth exists, sounds quite innovational even in general video games, specially mmos.

I'm not sure tbh, it can't really be considered invention because all that lore sort of exists already... it can't really be considered innovation because no other MMO has done it before. All games have to have unique lore though otherwise they'd all be sueing each other. Would you consider LOTRO to be innovative because it was the first MMO to use middle earth lore? Cause that's all they have done, taken lore from somewhere else and put it in a MMO. Lore shouldn't really be considered really unless it dramatically affects gameplay in some way, imo. The atmosphere they have created though could be considered innovation I suppose, it's almost like making world design a real art form.

I agree but lore does affect, well, everything in TSW. Apperantly, Funcom's Issue updates are going to chnage the world and reveal more and more missions, etc. Story is not new, but lore and story in TSW are the same in a way, IMO.

I wouldn't say it affects everything but after thinking about it for a bit I agree that it does have some affect on gameplay. Things like using computer terminals and visiting fake websites is all allowed because of the lore.

I asked about the lore because i felt it's, well, somewhat original as a whole. Honestly, now that i think about, the idea of the world changing pernanemtly isn't new. After all, Cata chnaged insane amounts of it. And it was because of the lore ;)

Another thing in the Inv Missions is that, while puzzle quests aren't new, using ARG elements and in-game browsers kind oiff is. But again, EVE as an in-game browser too. But the apllication for each is different in a way,.

Eeven talking about lore, GW2's take on Elf and Gnome races from normal fantasy mmos to it's own unique races, but can we call that innovative?

in the end, i think that all that matters is what one feels himself. To me, TSW isn't 100% different. It's still very much a themeapark, but unique in enough areas, like lore, IMissions, etc to be considered the most innovative mmorgp coming out this year for me. So will feel it's GW2, other PS2, which are 2 games i like very much myself. To each their own. All that i personally care about is how much fun they are.

Originally posted by colddog04

Originally posted by SpottyGekko

I would not consider Lotro as innovative where lore/setting is concerned. The lore/setting there is solidly and squarely based in medieval fantasy. The same themes and archetypes that you saw in UO, EQ and all the subsequent medieval fantasy games.

 

I think lore should be considered in the case of TSW. It's front-and-center in the gameplay, almost every single thing you do is related directly to the lore and backstory of the game. I can't think of any other MMO where I was so aware of the lore/story. Many other MMO's you can play all the way to level-cap without learning much about the lore unless you made a clear effort. It just wasn't really an intrinsic part of your "everyday life" in the game.

SWTOR was the first MMO that delivered a story/lore driven experience on a similar level of TSW. I just think TSW is better. But when it comes to what you are talking about, SWTOR was first.

Yes, SW:TOR "did it first", not arguing that. But did they do it "right" ?

But, as an example, in SW:TOR the dungeon instances didn't really feel connected to the world I was playing in. In TSW, the instance in Kingsmouth is all about the wreck of the Polaris, which brought the Draug to the island in numbers. It feels like a natural extension of the Kingsmouth zone. It's clearly a part of that zone's lore and backstory. The same with Inferno in SC, it's an extension of the events taking place at the Overlook Motel.

In SW:TOR the first popular instance takes place between your starter world and the next planet. It's not an extension of either story, it feels tacked-on. If you skipped it, you'd not know any more or less about the starter world or the next planet. SW:TOR's dungeons never felt like they were part of the game flow. Having to run them from Fleet also took you out of your normal progression.

Does that make anyone else kind of sad?

Originally posted by SpottyGekko

Originally posted by colddog04

Originally posted by SpottyGekko

I would not consider Lotro as innovative where lore/setting is concerned. The lore/setting there is solidly and squarely based in medieval fantasy. The same themes and archetypes that you saw in UO, EQ and all the subsequent medieval fantasy games.

 

I think lore should be considered in the case of TSW. It's front-and-center in the gameplay, almost every single thing you do is related directly to the lore and backstory of the game. I can't think of any other MMO where I was so aware of the lore/story. Many other MMO's you can play all the way to level-cap without learning much about the lore unless you made a clear effort. It just wasn't really an intrinsic part of your "everyday life" in the game.

SWTOR was the first MMO that delivered a story/lore driven experience on a similar level of TSW. I just think TSW is better. But when it comes to what you are talking about, SWTOR was first.

Yes, SW:TOR "did it first", not arguing that. But did they do it "right" ?

 

But, as an example, in SW:TOR the dungeon instances didn't really feel connected to the world I was playing in. In TSW, the instance in Kingsmouth is all about the wreck of the Polaris, which brought the Draug to the island in numbers. It feels like a natural extension of the Kingsmouth zone. It's clearly a part of that zone's lore and backstory. The same with Inferno in SC, it's an extension of the events taking place at the Overlook Motel.

 

In SW:TOR the first popular instance takes place between your starter world and the next planet. It's not an extension of either story, it feels tacked-on. If you skipped it, you'd not know any more or less about the starter world or the next planet. SW:TOR's dungeons never felt like they were part of the game flow. Having to run them from Fleet also took you out of your normal progression.

Why are you talking about instances now?

SWTOR delivered a story/lore driven experience that is front and center in a very similar way to TSW. TSW does it well, but it's not innovative. Actually, I would argue that TSW directly pulled from single player experiences presented by Bioware single player games (ME, DAO, ETC.) - heavy on cutscenes with a lot of atmospheric quality. Then SWTOR came out using a similar content delivery method and TSW followed suit.

Originally posted by heartless

Originally posted by Atlan99

Originally posted by heartless

It's a decent game but "most innovative?" Let's not get too carried away here. It's WoW with a handful of quests you have to use your brain for. And yes, I do mean handful. Kingsmouth has 5, Savage Coast has 1 and Blue Mountain has 1.

Saying TSW is like WoW  with x, is like saying Home Alone is Beverly Hills Cops with Christmas.

Like I said, let's not get too carried away here. It's a themepark MMO through and through. There are a handful of quest that require you to use your brain to solve, sadly, the hardest so far was "Kingsmouth Code," the rest were easy. There is also so little of them that they are all but insignificant. There are 7 total during the first 3 zones, 5 of them are in the first zone. Most of the other quests place a marker on your map and you know exactly where to go and what to do. The game also has zone progression, typical of themepark MMOs. You move from Kingsmouth, to Savage Coast to Blue Mountain to the Egypt zones and then Romania.

It has a really cool setting and stories but it's a themepark game like WoW.

This is an example of why no MMO will ever make some people happy.

People ask for "more x" for years. A developer finally steps up and puts more "x" into their game, and what do people do? They immediately move the goal-post by saying "well it has "x", but it's not "y" enough", and dismiss it.

I'll be the first to admit when a MMO feels like a wow-knockoff to me. In a heartbeat. I have no problem pointing it out when I see it.

I see people saying TSW is another themepark like  WoW and I wonder what game they're playing, because TSW has been anything *but* WoW-like to me. In WoW and its ilk, I'm guided very deliberately along a very clearly pre-defined path, through a series of discrete areas where everything is laid out, fine-tuned and balanced meticulously for the specific level range I will be when I'm sent there from my previous quest hub. Because the designers specifically created it that way. There's very little room for deviation. If I go one way I'm quickly in over my head. If I go the other way, I'm overpowered for the content.

In TSW, I'm all over the place. Quests lead me all around Kingsmouth, into Savage Coast, into Blue Mountain and back. They're leading me to different cities to undertake different tasks. I can go back to Kingsmouth and still find content that will kick my ass out there, even when everything in another corner is effortless. I've been sent through areas I've already progressed beyond only to reach an area where the mobs will wipe the floor with me. I've had to sneak and/or haul-ass  through very dangerous areas to complete the tier for a quest/mission I'm doing. TSW is the first MMO I've played since FFXI where I've had to do that.

That has never been the case in WoW, Rift, LoTRO or any other linear theme-park MMO. In WoW-like games, once you're done with a zone, you're done with that zone. It's obsolete. There is no "going back". There is no "corner of the map with higher level mobs who will eat you alive". In TSW, there are reasons to go back to zones all the way up 'til the highest tiers of progression. It is not linear.

Like with any MMO, the experience you get out of it is derived from what you put into it. If you're approaching it like a standard linear theme-park, then that's the kind of experence you're going to have; and it's your own doing. Not the game's. Those who aren't trying to force a WoW-shaped peg into a TSW-shaped hole aren't having that "issue".

As for "being forced to have certain builds to go through certain areas".  Wrong. There is no "one template you must follow". That, again, is self-imposed behavior. People are used relying on cookie-cutter builds in other MMOs, so they automatically assume the same must be true of TSW as well. If you play the game based on pre-determined cookie-cutter builds, then you're going to get a cookie-cutter experience. You aren't forced into playing that way. You've chosen to play that way.

TSE offers innumerable possible ways to mix and match weapons, actives and passives, with various Talisman setups to enhance and augment them, different synergies to explore and bridge abilities to take advantage of. The people who experiement and try different things are finding setups custom-tailored to their preferred playstyle, or a variety thereof, and they're having fun. Those who immediately look for "the best build templates" and choose not experiment are getting exactly the cookie-cutter experience they're seeking, and they're on the forums complaining about it.

As usual, many players are their own worst enemies, cornering themselves needlessly into a playstyle they obviously don't enjoy, under the self-imposed mandate that "they're supposed to play that way"... and then blaming the game/developers for it.

If you want an "off-the-rails" experience in TSW, it's easy. First, get yourselves off the rails. Stop chasing or repeating other people's playstyles. Explore, experiment and find your own playstyle that works for you and that you actually enjoy. Crazy concept, I know, but it also actually works.

Originally posted by colddog04

Originally posted by SpottyGekko

Originally posted by colddog04

Originally posted by SpottyGekko

I would not consider Lotro as innovative where lore/setting is concerned. The lore/setting there is solidly and squarely based in medieval fantasy. The same themes and archetypes that you saw in UO, EQ and all the subsequent medieval fantasy games.

 

I think lore should be considered in the case of TSW. It's front-and-center in the gameplay, almost every single thing you do is related directly to the lore and backstory of the game. I can't think of any other MMO where I was so aware of the lore/story. Many other MMO's you can play all the way to level-cap without learning much about the lore unless you made a clear effort. It just wasn't really an intrinsic part of your "everyday life" in the game.

SWTOR was the first MMO that delivered a story/lore driven experience on a similar level of TSW. I just think TSW is better. But when it comes to what you are talking about, SWTOR was first.

Yes, SW:TOR "did it first", not arguing that. But did they do it "right" ?

 

But, as an example, in SW:TOR the dungeon instances didn't really feel connected to the world I was playing in. In TSW, the instance in Kingsmouth is all about the wreck of the Polaris, which brought the Draug to the island in numbers. It feels like a natural extension of the Kingsmouth zone. It's clearly a part of that zone's lore and backstory. The same with Inferno in SC, it's an extension of the events taking place at the Overlook Motel.

 

In SW:TOR the first popular instance takes place between your starter world and the next planet. It's not an extension of either story, it feels tacked-on. If you skipped it, you'd not know any more or less about the starter world or the next planet. SW:TOR's dungeons never felt like they were part of the game flow. Having to run them from Fleet also took you out of your normal progression.

Why are you talking about instances now?

 

SWTOR delivered a story/lore driven experience that is front and center in a very similar way to TSW. TSW does it well, but it's not innovative. Actually, I would argue that TSW directly pulled from single player experiences presented by Bioware single player games (ME, DAO, ETC.) - heavy on cutscenes with a lot of atmospheric quality. Then SWTOR came out using a similar content delivery method and TSW followed suit.

I mentioned instances because I was saying that everything in TSW is directly related to the lore/story as it unfolds. Even the dungeons are placed in such a way that they integrate seamlessly into the story as you travel through it. They fit the setting and are closely connected to the zone they exist in.

I did not get the same feeling drom the SW:TOR dungeons. They felt disconnected from where I was in the story at that time.

I never claimed that TSW was innovative because it had a story or used cutscenes.

Originally posted by colddog04

Originally posted by dreamscaper

Originally posted by Vannor

Originally posted by SpottyGekko

The setting is innovative (modern day setting)

APB is modern day, as one example

The character equipment is innovative (no stats on visible gear, gear with stats is never visible)

Champions Online did this, I'm sure there were more as well.

So did City of Heroes. But up to this point pretty much every non-superhero MMO has used the visible gear setup.

Rift has wardrobe slots. WoW has transmogrification. EQ2 has Wardrobe slots. That is basically what your look is. They are wardrobe slots and your real gear goes in a different place.

Those are all wardrobe setups though. Pieces of gear still dictate what your appearance is. With TSW, gear and appearance are completely disconnected, like in CoH and CO.

Originally posted by SpottyGekko

Originally posted by colddog04

Why are you talking about instances now?

 

SWTOR delivered a story/lore driven experience that is front and center in a very similar way to TSW. TSW does it well, but it's not innovative. Actually, I would argue that TSW directly pulled from single player experiences presented by Bioware single player games (ME, DAO, ETC.) - heavy on cutscenes with a lot of atmospheric quality. Then SWTOR came out using a similar content delivery method and TSW followed suit.

I mentioned instances because I was saying that everything in TSW is directly related to the lore/story as it unfolds. Even the dungeons are placed in such a way that they integrate seamlessly into the story as you travel through it. They fit the setting and are closely connected to the zone they exist in.

 

I did not get the same feeling drom the SW:TOR dungeons. They felt disconnected from where I was in the story at that time.

 

I never claimed that TSW was innovative because it had a story or used cutscenes.

Are you saying it's innovative because dungeons are in the correct zones and connect to the story? WoW did exactly the same thing with... BC? Cataclysm? The story lead you straight into dungeons as you went along. The questing direction and stories were very good at giving the player a sense of direction and showing them what the instances were about before offering main "dungeon quests." Often times, the dungeons were not even a culmination of a zone's progress, but instead the dungeons ran along side the main story development.

That part of TSW is definitely not new or innovative. It's difficult to get a grasp on what you are talking about because you keep shifting it, but trying to cram this whole story/lore driven thing into the word "innovation" doesn't work for me at all.

Originally posted by colddog04

Originally posted by SpottyGekko

Originally posted by colddog04

Why are you talking about instances now?

 

SWTOR delivered a story/lore driven experience that is front and center in a very similar way to TSW. TSW does it well, but it's not innovative. Actually, I would argue that TSW directly pulled from single player experiences presented by Bioware single player games (ME, DAO, ETC.) - heavy on cutscenes with a lot of atmospheric quality. Then SWTOR came out using a similar content delivery method and TSW followed suit.

I mentioned instances because I was saying that everything in TSW is directly related to the lore/story as it unfolds. Even the dungeons are placed in such a way that they integrate seamlessly into the story as you travel through it. They fit the setting and are closely connected to the zone they exist in.

 

I did not get the same feeling drom the SW:TOR dungeons. They felt disconnected from where I was in the story at that time.

 

I never claimed that TSW was innovative because it had a story or used cutscenes.

Are you saying it's innovative because dungeons are in the correct zones and connect to the story? WoW did exactly the same thing with... BC? Cataclysm? The story lead you straight into dungeons as you went along. The questing direction and stories were very good at giving the player a sense of direction and showing them what the instances were about before offering main "dungeon quests." Often times, the dungeons were not even a culmination of a zone's progress, but instead the dungeons ran along side the main story development.

 

That part of TSW is definitely not new or innovative. It's difficult to get a grasp on what you are talking about because you keep shifting it, but trying to cram this whole story/lore driven thing into the word "innovation" doesn't work for me at all.

On the topic of instances, the actual instances themselves are "innovative". I have not played every MMO in existance (only WoW/SWTOR/DCUO/Rift/AoC/AO/SWG) so someone correct me if I am wrong (as I am sure would happen anyway), but this is the first MMO I have seen where instances don't waste your time with 20+ min of trash for 3 min of boss encounters. In TSW, the instances are actually 25+ min of straight up boss encounters, well designed ones at that..

Originally posted by doodphace

On the topic of instances, the actual instances themselves are "innovative". I have not layed ever MMO in existance (only WoW/SWTOR/DCUO/Rift/AoC/AO/SWG) so someone correct me if I am wrong (as I am sure would happen anyway), but this is the first MMO I have seen where instances don't waste your time with 20+ min of trash for 3 min of boss encounters. In TSW, the instances are actually 25+ min of straight up boss encounters, well designed ones at that..

That sounds awesome. I've been hearing so many good things about the dungeons tbh. I know that WoW raids started removing most of the trash from the raids. But zero trash must be nice.

Originally posted by colddog04

Originally posted by doodphace

On the topic of instances, the actual instances themselves are "innovative". I have not layed ever MMO in existance (only WoW/SWTOR/DCUO/Rift/AoC/AO/SWG) so someone correct me if I am wrong (as I am sure would happen anyway), but this is the first MMO I have seen where instances don't waste your time with 20+ min of trash for 3 min of boss encounters. In TSW, the instances are actually 25+ min of straight up boss encounters, well designed ones at that..

That sounds awesome. I've been hearing so many good things about the dungeons tbh. I know that WoW raids started removing most of the trash from the raids. But zero trash must be nice.

it's not zero trash.. but it is very limited amount from my experience so far. 

Originally posted by Bobbie203

Tsw is good but not worthy of a 10/10.

It is not the best mmorpg of the year, but it is the most innovative daredevil game of the 2012, which will pave way for future mmorpg. IMO. In fact archeage has similiar skill system that tsw has.

 

The days of spec into pure healing, tanking, or dps is gone. HYbrid i where its at. Freeedom to choose how you play is the new hotness.

Yeah as innovative as SWTOR...............I rember how people were amazed by the Storyline feature.

Just because it has a decent feature, that doesn't make it an innovative MMO.

In fact TSW is pretty generic, and IMO boring as hell.

There is no point in having a good Skill system if the combat is so pathetic.

Originally posted by colddog04

Originally posted by doodphace

On the topic of instances, the actual instances themselves are "innovative". I have not layed ever MMO in existance (only WoW/SWTOR/DCUO/Rift/AoC/AO/SWG) so someone correct me if I am wrong (as I am sure would happen anyway), but this is the first MMO I have seen where instances don't waste your time with 20+ min of trash for 3 min of boss encounters. In TSW, the instances are actually 25+ min of straight up boss encounters, well designed ones at that..

That sounds awesome. I've been hearing so many good things about the dungeons tbh. I know that WoW raids started removing most of the trash from the raids. But zero trash must be nice.

Its technically not "0" trash, but it ranges from 0 trash from boss to boss in some areas, to 2 trash mobs inbetween Boss pulls in others. And as a few people have already pointed out, the boss fights themselves are insanly epic, pretty akin to raid bosses of WoW/Rift/SWTOR, and I am not even talking TSW hardmodes yet.

Originally posted by ste2000

Originally posted by Bobbie203

Tsw is good but not worthy of a 10/10.

It is not the best mmorpg of the year, but it is the most innovative daredevil game of the 2012, which will pave way for future mmorpg. IMO. In fact archeage has similiar skill system that tsw has.

 

The days of spec into pure healing, tanking, or dps is gone. HYbrid i where its at. Freeedom to choose how you play is the new hotness.

Yeah as innovative as SWTOR...............I rember how people were amazed by the Storyline feature.

Just because it has a decent feature, that doesn't make it an innovative MMO.

In fact TSW is pretty generic, and IMO boring as hell.

There is no point in having a good Skill system if the combat is so pathetic.

what's wrong with combat?

aside from the broken gear manager.....

Originally posted by Aerowyn

Originally posted by ste2000

Originally posted by Bobbie203

Tsw is good but not worthy of a 10/10.

It is not the best mmorpg of the year, but it is the most innovative daredevil game of the 2012, which will pave way for future mmorpg. IMO. In fact archeage has similiar skill system that tsw has.

 

The days of spec into pure healing, tanking, or dps is gone. HYbrid i where its at. Freeedom to choose how you play is the new hotness.

Yeah as innovative as SWTOR...............I rember how people were amazed by the Storyline feature.

Just because it has a decent feature, that doesn't make it an innovative MMO.

In fact TSW is pretty generic, and IMO boring as hell.

There is no point in having a good Skill system if the combat is so pathetic.

what's wrong with combat?

Its not Tera, but it is pretty much exactly like every other popular themepark MMO out there...I guess thats a big detrament for some.

Originally posted by doodphace

Originally posted by Aerowyn

Originally posted by ste2000

Originally posted by Bobbie203

Tsw is good but not worthy of a 10/10.

It is not the best mmorpg of the year, but it is the most innovative daredevil game of the 2012, which will pave way for future mmorpg. IMO. In fact archeage has similiar skill system that tsw has.

 

The days of spec into pure healing, tanking, or dps is gone. HYbrid i where its at. Freeedom to choose how you play is the new hotness.

Yeah as innovative as SWTOR...............I rember how people were amazed by the Storyline feature.

Just because it has a decent feature, that doesn't make it an innovative MMO.

In fact TSW is pretty generic, and IMO boring as hell.

There is no point in having a good Skill system if the combat is so pathetic.

what's wrong with combat?

Its not Tera, but it is pretty much exactly like every other popular themepark MMO out there...I guess thats a big detrament for some.

TERA combat isn't very fun imho.. just the extreme lack of options in the game I found it to be not interesting at all, mystic was only class I found semi interesting but overall the game is just shallow and extremely dull/reptative.. I think many never even bothered having multiple builds in TSW and doing the deck dance between fights to see how enjoyable this combat system really is.. oh well their loss I suppose. although for the OPs title I'd say no not the most innovative for the year sadly.

"Your own opinion matters more." most innovative mmorpg of the year.