Originally posted by Aiiane

Originally posted by Emberz

I cant help but feel that Global Agenda paid to take the number 1 spot. I wonder if MMORPG.com sold out on this one.

Sorry if I am going against the grain on this one. But I'm just calling it how I see it.

 

Why, because you don't think anyone except a giant company could make a good game?

I can't speak for Emberz, but if we're anything alike, it is more because the game fails to appeal to us in any manner on any front, mechanically, visually or otherwise. I don't care who is developing it: I've just read a lot of adrenaline- and testosterone-driven commentary, seen screenshots of Unreal Tournament characters, watched videos of crappy-looking gameplay, and read the same kind of bad sci-fi short stories that preceded Tabula Rasa. I can't help but think that I would have loved it as a preteen boy, but today....

It is nice to see an MMOFPS with decent character customization, though. That the facial customization is better than that of most recent MMORPGs is a pretty sad fact for the latter.

Originally posted by Saerain

I can't speak for Emberz, but if we're anything alike, it is more because the game fails to appeal to us in any manner on any front, mechanically, visually or otherwise. I don't care who is developing it: I've just read a lot of adrenaline- and testosterone-driven commentary, seen screenshots of Unreal Tournament characters, watched videos of crappy-looking gameplay, and read the same kind of bad sci-fi short stories that preceded Tabula Rasa. I can't help but think that I would have loved it as a preteen boy, but today....

One thing I would point out is that basically all of the gameplay footage that's been publicly released so far is in the form of a collection of short clips, as opposed to actually seeing how a game plays out. Personally, I wish they would release some more lengthy footage so people could see more of the actual gameplay, as opposed to just people shooting at each other. But that probably won't happen until later on when things are more finalized.

Originally posted by Aiiane

Originally posted by Saerain

I can't speak for Emberz, but if we're anything alike, it is more because the game fails to appeal to us in any manner on any front, mechanically, visually or otherwise. I don't care who is developing it: I've just read a lot of adrenaline- and testosterone-driven commentary, seen screenshots of Unreal Tournament characters, watched videos of crappy-looking gameplay, and read the same kind of bad sci-fi short stories that preceded Tabula Rasa. I can't help but think that I would have loved it as a preteen boy, but today....

 

One thing I would point out is that basically all of the gameplay footage that's been publicly released so far is in the form of a collection of short clips, as opposed to actually seeing how a game plays out. Personally, I wish they would release some more lengthy footage so people could see more of the actual gameplay, as opposed to just people shooting at each other. But that probably won't happen until later on when things are more finalized.

Closed beta is less selective. You will likely see all sorts of leaked footage some time after closed beta starts early next month.

Or, you may simply sign up for the beta :D

FFXIV was just an unveiling/video.  There was no interaction.  I think the list is pretty solid.  GA has a lot of work put into it and it is a pretty unique and interesting experience.  They just need to focus heavily now on making the FPS side as entertaining as some of the top tier FPS's and they will have a hit.  They took on a serious challenge because not only do you have to implement the MMO aspect into FPS's, but it won't succeed unless it's as good as the regular FPS's in the first place.  No one will keep playing an FPS with some RPG stats or persistant map if it isn't close to as good as the regular online FPS's out there.  APB is an interesting concept and it could work out well.  SW:TOR is a no brainer.  I am surprised DC Univ beat out Champions Online, but I haven't followed each all that much lately or their E3 coverage. 

Nice write up.  Man can you imagine next year's E3?  Could be really sick if the rumored Elder Scrolls Online was unveiled, FFXIV, Heroes of Telara, maybe some Earthrise, Secret World from Funcom, maybe some World of Darkness from CCP, and I bet Trion may unveil their MMORTS or their scifi channel MMO too.  I am hopeful for the next few years and MMO development and progression.  Exciting stuff.

Originally posted by Aiiane

Originally posted by Saerain

I can't speak for Emberz, but if we're anything alike, it is more because the game fails to appeal to us in any manner on any front, mechanically, visually or otherwise. I don't care who is developing it: I've just read a lot of adrenaline- and testosterone-driven commentary, seen screenshots of Unreal Tournament characters, watched videos of crappy-looking gameplay, and read the same kind of bad sci-fi short stories that preceded Tabula Rasa. I can't help but think that I would have loved it as a preteen boy, but today....

 

One thing I would point out is that basically all of the gameplay footage that's been publicly released so far is in the form of a collection of short clips, as opposed to actually seeing how a game plays out. Personally, I wish they would release some more lengthy footage so people could see more of the actual gameplay, as opposed to just people shooting at each other. But that probably won't happen until later on when things are more finalized.

Right, but keep in mind I gave it the award based on interview, video and playing the actual game with minimal supervision for about an hour.

I wouldn't have given it the sticker unless it really was a lot of fun.

Again two of your 4 picks are real shaky.   APB is borderline and Global agenda is just not a MMO, they are both far more like Diablo which we all agree is not a MMO than any MMO I have played.

I agree the pickings were slim at E3, still a lot of unannouced MMO's out there.  Next year should be far more interesting when we get to see some of them.

It remains to be seen if DC Universe will be the success that people are hailing it with.  SOE has yet to sway me that they have changed.  I personally think they will ruin the game with RMT.  We will just have to wait and see.

Originally posted by Recon415

---

 

And fill me in on why you feel that way. Hirez is a small company. They would not even have enough money to make a bribe like that. Their entire backing is by the Exec producer, who, to my knowledge, is funding the entire developement.

No, Executuve producer, is not funding it

While this year's picks are games that I'll most likely never pick up, since I'm not a fan at all for FPS, I'm still glad for the exposure. It was also a pretty interesting read of the efforts developers put forth to entice gamers.

We are beings of change and evolution (and occasionally revolution too), and it's good to see what's outside the box - of norm.

As for the speculation of a bribe, it's more hassle than its worth. Even if it's actually possible for Global Agenda to pay a bribe... once the game BETA/release doesn't match up with the article, mmorpg.com would totally lose all credibility, something I'm sure they don't want to risk, considering how many subscribers this site has and how many would be alienated. At least I know I would.

P.S. - It's refreshing to see staff taking an active role and participating in the forum.

Originally posted by Dana

Right, but keep in mind I gave it the award based on interview, video and playing the actual game with minimal supervision for about an hour.

I wouldn't have given it the sticker unless it really was a lot of fun.

Oh trust me, I know. :) Full disclosure here, I'm an Alpha tester for the game. It really is quite fun. That's why I'd like them to release more extensive footage, because I've experienced how fun the gameplay can be and they small amount of publicly-released footage doesn't capture that. :)

Originally posted by justill45

Originally posted by Recon415

 

---

 

 

And fill me in on why you feel that way. Hirez is a small company. They would not even have enough money to make a bribe like that. Their entire backing is by the Exec producer, who, to my knowledge, is funding the entire developement.

 

No, Executuve producer, is not funding it

Hi-Rez Studios' C.E.O. Erez Goren is funding it out of his own pocket. He was previously the C.E.O. for other software companies in the business sector:

http://atlanta.bizjournals.com/atlanta/stories/2003/10/13/daily3.html

http://www.hirezstudios.com/about_hi-rez_studios.html

Originally posted by djFEVA

While this year's picks are games that I'll most likely never pick up, since I'm not a fan at all for FPS, I'm still glad for the exposure. It was also a pretty interesting read of the efforts developers put forth to entice gamers.

We are beings of change and evolution (and occasionally revolution too), and it's good to see what's outside the box - of norm.

As for the speculation of a bribe, it's more hassle than its worth. Even if it's actually possible for Global Agenda to pay a bribe... once the game BETA/release doesn't match up with the article, mmorpg.com would totally lose all credibility, something I'm sure they don't want to risk, considering how many subscribers this site has and how many would be alienated. At least I know I would.

P.S. - It's refreshing to see staff taking an active role and participating in the forum.

Yeah, if anyone thinks I took a bribe, feel free to go tell that to my 1999 Sunfire.

Seriously some people need to tighten their tinfoil hats ;)

Originally posted by Aiiane

Originally posted by justill45

Originally posted by Recon415

 

---

 

 

And fill me in on why you feel that way. Hirez is a small company. They would not even have enough money to make a bribe like that. Their entire backing is by the Exec producer, who, to my knowledge, is funding the entire developement.

 

No, Executuve producer, is not funding it

 

Hi-Rez Studios' C.E.O. Erez Goren is funding it out of his own pocket. He was previously the C.E.O. for other software companies in the business sector:

http://atlanta.bizjournals.com/atlanta/stories/2003/10/13/daily3.html

http://www.hirezstudios.com/about_hi-rez_studios.html

Ok, I was slightly wrong on the title, but the concept stays the same. Hirez has no backing from any well known deep pocketed company. This is all off one person's cash.

Originally posted by Recon415

Ok, I was slightly wrong on the title, but the concept stays the same. Hirez has no backing from any well known deep pocketed company. This is all off one person's cash.

and clearly NOT just another WoW-wannabee. 

Good to see they aren't afraid to try something a bit, uh... DIFFERENT!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4NPZkgK-TkY

While i look into these games i realise how differently they have evolved over the ears... :) I eagerly await starwars to be launched and see it in action but.. what makes this E3 edition soo special is that there is a sense  of surprise we have to look out for in the furure... This is usual for the game event but i found this time its different despite the economic slow down.. I am convinced the MMOs wil eventually adapt a better way to keep ppl busy 27X7 than mindless grinding and Monster killing.

You are kidding me, 2 mmofps with lobby system get a MMORPG award. Why isn't there a Diablo 3 forum here actually, i mean your char is saved server side (you have the skill system) and you also have a lobby!

Originally posted by Saerain

Originally posted by Aiiane

Originally posted by Emberz

I cant help but feel that Global Agenda paid to take the number 1 spot. I wonder if MMORPG.com sold out on this one.

Sorry if I am going against the grain on this one. But I'm just calling it how I see it.

 

Why, because you don't think anyone except a giant company could make a good game?

 

I can't speak for Emberz, but if we're anything alike, it is more because the game fails to appeal to us in any manner on any front, mechanically, visually or otherwise. I don't care who is developing it: I've just read a lot of adrenaline- and testosterone-driven commentary, seen screenshots of Unreal Tournament characters, watched videos of crappy-looking gameplay, and read the same kind of bad sci-fi short stories that preceded Tabula Rasa. I can't help but think that I would have loved it as a preteen boy, but today....

It is nice to see an MMOFPS with decent character customization, though. That the facial customization is better than that of most recent MMORPGs is a pretty sad fact for the latter.

In other words, it doesn't sport the beating-a-dead-horse-with-several-horse-corpses turn based hotbar whack-a-mole combat, and cookie-cutter generic fantasy setting of the majority of MMOs for the past ten years. 

I also love the "It's not an MMO unless it has gameplay derived from MUDs, and must be turn based with hotbars!!! OMGZ!! ANGST!!" comments from others.  Sorry to break it to you, but MMO != MMO3DMUD (i.e., EQ, WoW et al, most any with turn based hotbar combat, auto-attack-and-wait gameplay).  The entire concept of a massively multiplayer game is to take a multiplayer game and add more players.  Both APB and GA meet those criterion, but since they aren't 1:1 clones of the boring stream of MMO3DMUD (see EQ, WoW et al) clones we've had for the past decade, people are going to whine about them constantly.

Honestly, as a gamer and game developer, the trend of the term MMO to be redefined to narrowly refer ONLY to games that are direct clones of EQ/WoW/etc. (i.e., MMO3DMUDs, which is really what they are, since almost ALL of the gameplay in those games can be directly traced back to MUDs, i.e., combat, which is the primary gameplay in MMO3DMUDs (aside from meta-gameplay, such as item collection, stat/level mill, socialization)) was starting to thoroughly disgust me, given the potential possible for ANY type of multiplayer game to be made massive.  It's about damn time other developers have pulled their collective heads out of their arses and realized that a LOT of genres are fun to play on massive scale.

I think people need to begin to accept that things are changing within the MMO world.

Peoples expectations and technology are changing all the time and unless MMOs evolve they ultimately will be replaced by a new genre. Either that or gamers will have to adjust their definition of MMO to encompass the new types of game.

I'm in the Global Agenda alpha and even the alpha version of GA is an incredibly fun game - period. To claim the manufacturers bribed a journalist because you're experiencing cognitive dissonance is pathetic and is the kind of negative attitude that's slowly destroying the original 'community' aspect of MMOs.

Personally, I'm a low-fantasy kinda guy but even so, the mechanics of GA make it so much more engaging than the classic 'hotbar' style games. I can live with the hi-tech setting in the same way I could live with Pacman's crap graphics - the basic game is fantastic so the peripheral elements become less significant. It's like the lobby system that many people are sceptical about. Cities in WoW are just lobbies with no restrictions. And if no restrictions is all it takes to make you feel like you're truly immersed in what is basically a cartoon world, I have to wonder about your mental age. All competitive activities, e.g. sports, require some degree of infrastructure to bring players together. Otherwise, as with games like WAR, competitive battles never happen, have no direction or just fade out before getting started.

GA won't be everyone's cup of tea, but no game ever will be. I think it will be extremely popular though, particularly if they market it well.

Originally posted by grndzro

FFXIV isn't on the list......It will be as big or bigger than SWtoR.

imo this list is epic fail, and not for only the above reason.

You need to take the developer's reputation and history of delivering on their games. Bioware and Square Enix are 2 of the greatest developers of all time in my book. with deep pockets and incredible talent backing them up.

SWtoR and FFXIV sould head this list, IDC which one is first, but thoes 2 WILL be blockbusters.

SWToR and FFXIV won't even be out before the next E3.  Maybe one of them will have enough actually gameplay to warrant a best of show then.

Truth is Bioware has no MMO experience, and theres game's are carried by their storylines (the actual gameplay of their game's are generally mediocre at best).  And Square Enix developed FFXI... a game thats is incredibly underwhelming given the IPs potential. 

Global Agenda is something different, atleast compared to the stuff thats been put out over the last several years.  And its apparently quite fun to play.  Maybe you are more interested in brand names and cinematic movies, but I'm personally looking for a good game to play.  Kudos to MMORPG for not taking the easy way out and actually giving us a real opinion.

I think Star Wars the Old Republic is going to be huge. I can't wait until that game comes out!