Now that its official that HG:L will be shutting down permanently on Jan 31 2009, I'd like to see if there's any game out there that can fill the gap. I mainly need a game that has real-time action combat, and strays as far away from the typical WoW/EQ style combat as much as possible.

To elaborate on combat, I need features such as being able to strafe(move side to side as an evasive tactic) out of the way of projectiles, use the environment for cover, and the lack of a basic auto-attack. I need a game in which how/where you position yourself and the necessity to manually aim your attacks matters just as much if not more than when you activate your skills. Another way of putting it is "twitch" based combat.

I also need the typical MMORPG stuff, such as levels, skills, and gear to improve your character's PvE abilities. A lot of challenging PvE content is a must as well, as I'm not too fond of PvP. Being able to fight my way up to very difficult bosses with challenging AI, some of which required a solid group, are also things I'm going to miss about HG:L.

Here is a video of my guild killing one of the end-game bosses, as an example of the style of combat I'm looking for. As you can see I have to strafe side-to-side to avoid his massive fireballs, and have to run away from his tail whip attack if he moves towards me. And just like any MMORPG, we would not be able to take him down without the proper gear and levels. The difference here is the extra challenge of the twitch style gameplay.

It will also have to have dedicated and officially hosted servers. No Battle.net/Diablo style servers.

So basically I'm LF an MMORPG with twitch based combat, challenging and intelligent PvE content, and lots of ways to customize and improve your character's ability to handle the PvE content.

Definetly seems like atalntica although for the "twitching" part i think runescape had that to a point, like you can range mosters from behind stones and bosses were killed with strategy

The only games that I can think of that will have 100% of that is Darkfall and possibly Earth Rise.  DF is out...well who knows but its supposed to be this year.

Something close could be Tabula Rasa.  I really enjoyed 6 months in that game and I liked being able to jump behind a tree or rock and be out of harms way.  Check to see if the population is ok though.  Not a long term game but it had some of the best PvE I have seen in any game.  Some instances are crazy. The game has auto lock but some weapons like shotgun are manual. Plus you can turn off auto lock.

Second game would be AoC but its either hate or love.  If you have a rig for it you can really run it well and combat is mostly manual.  People dont use side step or back jump or forward jump enough.  You can be half way through a combo and double tap in any direction and then finish the combo if you are quick enough.  Nice options at least.

Might be wrong here but I also think Spellborn has manual twitch combat.  Dont play WAR if you want twitch combat because for me its the most basic combat I have seen and I seem to be hit even if you are behind an obstacle. 

Chronicles of Spellborn

Good luck finding one m8..

Sorry i can't be more positive these days.

I'm giving TR a shot. It seems more action based than the typical MMO, and I have only heard good things about the PvE content. One of the things this site says is:

"First person shooter fans who crave a richer gaming experience will appreciate a massively multiplayer game that is reactive to player choices and allows for a broad range of character movement. They’ll also find FPS standards including explosions, vehicles and big guns."

FPS style gameplay has always appealed to me, and my ideal action style MMORPG would play very much like a FPS, one of the reasons the marksman was my main character in HG:L. I was also happy to see that there are stealth classes, something HG:L lacked. I was also glad to see I could get it for 20 bucks from NCSoft's official site, and that includes the first 30 days and 3 buddy keys. The download should be finished soon and i'll be installing it within the hour.

Originally posted by Ambikan

I'm giving TR a shot. It seems more action based than the typical MMO, and I have only heard good things about the PvE content. One of the things this site says is:

"First person shooter fans who crave a richer gaming experience will appreciate a massively multiplayer game that is reactive to player choices and allows for a broad range of character movement. They’ll also find FPS standards including explosions, vehicles and big guns."

FPS style gameplay has always appealed to me, and my ideal action style MMORPG would play very much like a FPS, one of the reasons the marksman was my main character in HG:L. I was also happy to see that there are stealth classes, something HG:L lacked. I was also glad to see I could get it for 20 bucks from NCSoft's official site, and that includes the first 30 days and 3 buddy keys. The download should be finished soon and i'll be installing it within the hour.

Ambikan, you are probably playing as I am typing this.  I hope you enjoy TR. I think its pretty under rated and there have been a huge amount of improvements going into it and I stopped playing 3 months ago so there must be more now.  Like most games the fun really starts around level 14ish up.  When you start getting some wicked abilities you can really mix it up. I liked the sniper / ranger class myself and the armour looks the nuts. The game had some big plus's for me and I wish they did this more in other games.  They are:

* NPC's attacking bases and seeing good NPC's react and fire back.  Creates a living universe feel.

* NPC enemy actually run away when they are badly injured and they do move semi intelligently. 

* Some if not most of the Instances were well thought out and felt like you actually accomplished something.  Treeback Ridge and Devils Den have some amazing moments.

* Logos - I loved the idea and I think they should incorporate it a lot more into the game but I think MMO's need more mystery and should unfold as you level up.

* Smooth movement and the ability to jump behind barriers and have better aim by kneeling etc made the game feel like you can react to your environment.  Compared to WAR I felt like I was stuck in mud the whole time because everything seemed to be in slow motion. 

Either way there is plenty of gameplay in TR for a new player and its a great game for logging in for 1 hour and just mixing it up.

Let me know your thoughts!

Ok here are my initial thoughts on the game, and they a mostly positive.

1. It completely satisfies my desire for action/twitch based combat, moreso than i thought it would. Managing your characters positioning in the environment is paramount, and you must manually aim every attack before you acquire a "lock" on an enemy. It seems i don't have the accuracy or damage with my weapons unless I am kneeling, which makes finding a balance between positioning and movement very important.

2. The idea that you are in the middle of a war is very realistic. The enemy race you are fighting doesn't just spawn or wander randomly about the map, they are dropped by dropships, and will intelligently hide and ambush you. Neutral but hostile creatures will also attack the enemy race, and you can often avoid the brunt of a firefight by letting them fight each other before you decide to pick off the survivors. Also, the enemy race will regularly attempt to and sometimes capture your control points in the common areas, and defending them or taking them back is a different and rewarding PvE experience for me. Your ally NPCs will also intelligently enter and compete in the battles against the enemy race, adding to the feeling that you are truly in a war and never alone in the map.

3. I have not had a chance to run the instances yet, as they seem tailored for groups and I have not had the urge to group yet. Crafting is also diverse but not complex, I have found many ways to modify my equipment to suit my particular character build. It is hard to explain the character customization options, but they are very diverse, and you are not bound to any particular path of skills, armor, or weapons, no matter what class you choose. You can always respec your skills and attribute points in town if you make a mistake, provided you have the prestige points.

4. I cannot seem to find a way to "grind". There doesn't seem to be any place in the game where you can just run around and farm mobs for exp. The enemy race will be in place for an ambush, or drop from dropships as you travel. Neutral-hostile mobs will be found in their respective environments, but i have not found a single spot that you can just keep killing the same thing over and over for exp. This is both good and bad, because it dilutes a player's ability to farm and grind, making the game seem more realistic. On the other hand, sometimes I need levels to complete my quests or explore new areas, but can't find things to fight without traversing large distances.

5. The game seems very tailored to the "explorer" type of player, which I consider myself. It does not seems that you can progress very far in the game without thoroughly visiting almost all of the areas on the maps. This is a welcome change from WoW style games in which to level efficiently your are encouraged to grind or farm in a specific area, then move to another area once you have gained a certain amount of levels, skipping much of the content.

6. I'm level 13 and have entered the second common area, The Divide. I feel I am hitting a proverbial wall in the PvE content because I get my ass kicked while trying to explore the areas I need to for my missions. I'm not sure if its because I'm trying to solo everything and missing an easier way to gain exp while soloing. At this point I might be forced to group before getting much further.

EDIT: 7. I chose the Orion server, one of the 2 US "West" servers, despite the fact that I live on the east coast. There is only 1 server listed as "East". I have not checked server population at US prime time, but they are all listed as green (low) population. The EU server had a "mid" population during their prime time. The general chat almost always has plently of people talking, leading me to believe that server population is not a problem. However, I have not seen much chat on the trade or LFG channels. I will have to check the server population at US prime time to see which ones are most heavily populated. I have asked several questions in general chat, and every question was answered eagerly by someone willing to help a new player.

Although its only in beta at the moment id go with Zethcarn and have a look at Chronicles of Spellborn, the combat system seems to suit what your after. Its what originally attracted me to the game.

The official website is - http://www.thechroniclesofspellborn.com/en/index.html

and a video explaining the combat system -

http://www.mmorpg.com/gamelist.cfm/game/207/view/videos/play/1309

Not released yet, but one to wait for :)

Hey again. If you are in the divide already you are a bit low at level 13 to really get out there on your own.  However its not impossible.  I think I was around 15-17 when I went in.  The instances in the game are not fully focused on group at all.  In fact I completed a lot on my own.  However it took some sneaking, hit and run and a few spawns but you can actually do it.  If not all then at least some of the missions inside.  Regarding grind areas the best thing for leveling is just protect a base and use that rifle from the wall and then jump over and go nuts with the shottie!  Otherwise there are some caverns with squid critters that are all over the place.

Like I said earlier I started to really enjoy the game a lot around 18-25 because you can do some pretty wicked stuff and the instances in the next main map are rocking.  There are some spiritual instances that only you can do on your own and they are kinda cool. 

Hey do you like the station announcements?  Some really killed me.  Makes me miss TR now but I am keeping an eye out for patches that might make me jump back in.