Tough luck, i barely ever got ganked, playing an alfar.

Originally posted by xpiher

The OP went in blind, is exaggerating, and/or had bad luck. The game isn't one massive grief fest, but you die as a newbie. I'm going to go with the fact that 1) transfers just happened so refugees are doing some killing around NPC towns to get a feel for the population, and 2) he went in blind.

 

All I know is, he is definitely not the only one having this experience from what I can see on this and other forums. If nothing else, this game is definitely hostile to soloing. You will need to join a gang to survive at all. Thats not appealing to me.

By contrast, while soloing is far from optimal in Eve, it is definitely doable without a lot of effort. You dont have to worry about constant griefing from more advanced players, because even though anyone can attack anyone else at any time, the game has incentives built in to discourage it in the noob parts of the game (empire space). So it hardly ever happens. Darkfall seems to be lacking any such incentives. So yeah, I would expect higher level players to farm me for resources because the game does not provide them an incentive not to.

I'll revisit the darkfall forums in a few months and see if the situation improves. Maybe the Devs can fix this problem. I really wanted to like this game. But right now, the game looks like it will be a frustrating, grindy, and annoying experience. And thats not fun.

Originally posted by outfctrl

I remember when I first started playing UO back in 1997 and 98.  The first thing I did was get my hiding skill up.  This saved my ass many times.  I actually got it up to almost 90+, then after I became fairly good at playing, I lowered it to raise fighting skills.

Does this game have hiding skills?

They actually had stealthskills listed in the beta but they were removed early on into the beta with no word of them ever to come in the futre of the game.

However their is NO RADAR. And you can lose people by running around/climbing  rocks/trees/buildings. Also you can hear people pvping/pveing from a good distance away from them which will give you an idea of if you should approach an area or not.

Hiding in UO was a great skill and very usefull when your outnumbered/getting ganked. You would still have to be smart but you could get away or use it to fight back. It would be a nice addition to darkfall if it was introduced in a limited form.

I.E cant use it in player cites/hamlet areas. Cant move while using it. etc.

I think part of the issue is that DFO doesn't have much else to offer besides PvP atm. Some will scream that it's meant to be a PvP MMO, which is partially true, but an MMO can't survive long-term with JUST PvP for PvP's sake. It has to offer other incentives to keep people interested for the long haul.

EVE has an amazing economy that's the backbone for everything else. PvP isn't just for shits and giggles, it's for control of resources, influence, money and power. Don't want to PvP, then become a bounty hunter, miner, trader, crafter, rat killer, you name it.

And yes, EVE has Empire space where newbies can learn the ropes and do ok for themselves without ever needing to PvP at all. But the real action, wealth, power and resources are in nullsec, so there should be some incentive to draw people out of the safe zone.

I think an area for newbs in DFO would go a long way to keeping people interested for longer. Some argue that it will only delay their inevitable leaving, which might be true for some, but not for all. Plus, with a safe zone, the newb can choose when and where they want to PvP. Those that want full on PvP, as it is now in the game, will still have a majority of the map to use.

It obviously is working for EVE, I see no reason why it wouldn't work for DFO. Add more viable play options, and add a safe zone for new players. The US NEW clan is a good start, but it could be better.

Well I have recently startet playing DF allso, well there was nothing else arround so why not give it a go. I have been folowing it for some time on theese forums and thats has been, well... interesting :P

But im stunned by the game and im loving it, as others has said, it has a little of the UO feel to it. Im only playing casual and mainly focusing on crafting / gathering, but I for one have not experienced the ganking yet. Well players have tryed, but keeping on attention, listening to sounds and generally being carefull have kept me out of harms way so far. Not that im saying that im a better player, but I love the fact that this is based on player skill meening the skill of the person behind the keyboard, not ingame stats.

Surely I know its gonna take forever for me to get anywhere in DF only playing casual, but im fine with that.

Allso im all in to the idea of introducing some sort of hidding, like in UO, im not in the the idea of starter areas or new player islands. I rather enjoy the fact that you have to learn the hard way. Kinda helps sorting the players faster. leaving behind the "serious ones" not that the ones leaving are not, but im sure you know what i meen.

Originally posted by Nizur

I think part of the issue is that DFO doesn't have much else to offer besides PvP atm. Some will scream that it's meant to be a PvP MMO, which is partially true, but an MMO can't survive long-term with JUST PvP for PvP's sake. It has to offer other incentives to keep people interested for the long haul.

EVE has an amazing economy that's the backbone for everything else. PvP isn't just for shits and giggles, it's for control of resources, influence, money and power. Don't want to PvP, then become a bounty hunter, miner, trader, crafter, rat killer, you name it.

And yes, EVE has Empire space where newbies can learn the ropes and do ok for themselves without ever needing to PvP at all. But the real action, wealth, power and resources are in nullsec, so there should be some incentive to draw people out of the safe zone.

I think an area for newbs in DFO would go a long way to keeping people interested for longer. Some argue that it will only delay their inevitable leaving, which might be true for some, but not for all. Plus, with a safe zone, the newb can choose when and where they want to PvP. Those that want full on PvP, as it is now in the game, will still have a majority of the map to use.

It obviously is working for EVE, I see no reason why it wouldn't work for DFO. Add more viable play options, and add a safe zone for new players. The US NEW clan is a good start, but it could be better.

Their are already enough safe zones in the game.

All starting cities are protected by guard towers.

As well as each different racial lands have at least 1 wilderness bank with a guard tower protecting it.

As a noob you could easily farm away at resources to create weatlh for yourself to buy more and more skills for your character.

However their is not nor should their be a safe hunting area for noobs to hunt in.

In a lot of cases the starter goblin spawns are within a  2-3minutes run to the guard towers. I dont know how much safer you need to be. After all your outside of towns where anything can happen. Just very unlikely to happen because your so close to guard towers. If your getting ganked repeatedly then move to another area or learn to adapt.

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Originally posted by ChaosChest

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Originally posted by Nizur

I think part of the issue is that DFO doesn't have much else to offer besides PvP atm. Some will scream that it's meant to be a PvP MMO, which is partially true, but an MMO can't survive long-term with JUST PvP for PvP's sake. It has to offer other incentives to keep people interested for the long haul.
EVE has an amazing economy that's the backbone for everything else. PvP isn't just for shits and giggles, it's for control of resources, influence, money and power. Don't want to PvP, then become a bounty hunter, miner, trader, crafter, rat killer, you name it.
And yes, EVE has Empire space where newbies can learn the ropes and do ok for themselves without ever needing to PvP at all. But the real action, wealth, power and resources are in nullsec, so there should be some incentive to draw people out of the safe zone.
I think an area for newbs in DFO would go a long way to keeping people interested for longer. Some argue that it will only delay their inevitable leaving, which might be true for some, but not for all. Plus, with a safe zone, the newb can choose when and where they want to PvP. Those that want full on PvP, as it is now in the game, will still have a majority of the map to use.
It obviously is working for EVE, I see no reason why it wouldn't work for DFO. Add more viable play options, and add a safe zone for new players. The US NEW clan is a good start, but it could be better.

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Their are already enough safe zones in the game.
All starting cities are protected by guard towers.
As well as each different racial lands have at least 1 wilderness bank with a guard tower protecting it.
As a noob you could easily farm away at resources to create weatlh for yourself to buy more and more skills for your character.
However their is not nor should their be a safe hunting area for noobs to hunt in.
In a lot of cases the starter goblin spawns are within a  2-3minutes run to the guard towers. I dont know how much safer you need to be. After all your outside of towns where anything can happen. Just very unlikely to happen because your so close to guard towers. If your getting ganked repeatedly then move to another area or learn to adapt.

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I don't see why noobs can't farm in a safe zone. They would only have access to cheap, basic mats. Just what is needed to level crafting/harvesting as well as magic/melee to a certain point. Anything worth any real money would only be available far from the safe zone. If a newb wants to stay a newb, they can stay in the safe zone. If they want to become famous, powerful, rich or whatever, they need to leave the safe zone.

Plus a 2-3 minute run for a newb is too far. Most gankers/newb farmers will be mounted, and can easily outrun a newb. You'll be dead and looted before you even get halfway back. Especially if there's more than one.

NEW didnt exist when I started playing, at least to my knowledge. But had it existed, I probably would have continued to play. It really is far too frustrating to walk out of town to your first kill and... then you are dead. Ok, it happens. Lets try going over here instead. Here comes some people on mounts. Dead. Dammit there went everything I own. Again. So you go out to smash on some rock, thinking maybe you can make some cash to replace your equipment through gathering. Dead. *sigh* So now I've even lost my harvesting equipment.

I get it. This game is for badasses only. You have to be LEET to play this game. Gotcha. I've been killed in UO so many times I couldn't see straight. Same with DAOC, Shadowbane, and lots of full loot MUDS. I am all for the fulltime, open PVP. I love the idea of full looting. But come on, there has to be SOME better way to let new players LEARN the mechanics of the game before you throw them to the wolves. And wolves there are aplenty.

Loved everything about this game except the fact that it makes it VERY hard to get started unless you know people already playing. There ARE people ganking the new players in their starting areas, and even the greatest assembly of the new players in the area wouldn't be able to stop that. The lawlessness and free play of the game is what makes it so appealing, but without organizations like NEW and experienced players that are willing to spend some of their time patrolling the starting areas, I don't see the population growing in any meaningful manner.

*edit* There was one experienced player in the starting area that gave me some equipment and was trying to help the new people but he did nothing to stop the ganking that was going on, perhaps because he was unable to..

Originally posted by deviladvent

because  you suck that doesnt means the game sucks.. dont get offended , but this game aint no wow or AOC or a korean mmo. this game is like that and you will get your ass busted. do some research before getting it ? or you like to play wow or aion more ?

yes the game isnt for everyone and isnt for you. thats all.

I'm sorry, I missed the part where the OP said the game sucked.  Could you please point me to where he said that?

Thanks. 

The thing all the trollers and fanboi's seem to forget is that even carebears/casual players have wallets and spend money and let me assure you they can make or break a game just like you can.

So while DO may not be for the casual gamer or a more pve centric player, when you pullout the ass-hat and start calling people names. (lol like my first line) You are telling them hey you suck we do not want you to spend your money here anyway...and then later you cry and biatch cause later the game closes down because lack of funds. 

So maybe rather then ganking / trolling / flaming - why not say, hey get on and I can help you learn the joys of the this game, to relish that adrenaline rush as you smack down another player.

Sure it takes some time, but you can make a friend / maybe a good member in your clan and possbily one day that new friend will end up helping you, but the most important thing you get is more financial support to a game you love, which I think is really important too because otherwise they will shut their doors as they are in this to make money..no matter what the they tell you.

Just a thought.

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Originally posted by Tethered
The thing all the trollers and fanboi's seem to forget is that even carebears/casual players have wallets and spend money and let me assure you they can make or break a game just like you can.

So while DO may not be for the casual gamer or a more pve centric player, when you pullout the ass-hat and start calling people names. (lol like my first line) You are telling them hey you suck we do not want you to spend your money here anyway...and then later you cry and biatch cause later the game closes down because lack of funds.

So maybe rather then ganking / trolling / flaming - why not say, hey get on and I can help you learn the joys of the this game, to relish that adrenaline rush as you smack down another player.

Sure it takes some time, but you can make a friend / maybe a good member in your clan and possbily one day that new friend will end up helping you, but the most important thing you get is more financial support to a game you love, which I think is really important too because otherwise they will shut their doors as they are in this to make money..no matter what the they tell you.
Just a thought.

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This is true. There's a player-driven clan for new players on the US server called NEW. It has the backing of most of the major clans in the game. It lets new players join for up to 30 days so they can learn the ropes and get their feet under them. It's also a great clan recruitment tool. Clans or individual players who feel like helping out newbs are welcome to contribute.

There will always be hardasses who take themselves and this game way too seriously. You have those in any competitive game, even WoW. Hopefully they will become the annoying minority. It looks like they already are getting drowned out by those that actually care about the game and know what real competition is all about, so that's a good sign.

Originally posted by Nizur

 

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Originally posted by Tethered
The thing all the trollers and fanboi's seem to forget is that even carebears/casual players have wallets and spend money and let me assure you they can make or break a game just like you can.

 

So while DO may not be for the casual gamer or a more pve centric player, when you pullout the ass-hat and start calling people names. (lol like my first line) You are telling them hey you suck we do not want you to spend your money here anyway...and then later you cry and biatch cause later the game closes down because lack of funds.

So maybe rather then ganking / trolling / flaming - why not say, hey get on and I can help you learn the joys of the this game, to relish that adrenaline rush as you smack down another player.

Sure it takes some time, but you can make a friend / maybe a good member in your clan and possbily one day that new friend will end up helping you, but the most important thing you get is more financial support to a game you love, which I think is really important too because otherwise they will shut their doors as they are in this to make money..no matter what the they tell you.
Just a thought.

---

 

This is true. There's a player-driven clan for new players on the US server called NEW. It has the backing of most of the major clans in the game. It lets new players join for up to 30 days so they can learn the ropes and get their feet under them. It's also a great clan recruitment tool. Clans or individual players who feel like helping out newbs are welcome to contribute.

There will always be hardasses who take themselves and this game way too seriously. You have those in any competitive game, even WoW. Hopefully they will become the annoying minority. It looks like they already are getting drowned out by those that actually care about the game and know what real competition is all about, so that's a good sign.

Jerks exist in all games.  With the larger game population, there are way more jerks in every server of WoW.  No denying that.

The real difference is, in WoW, I can ignore them.  Leaving the common channels remove them from my game experience once and for all.  Zoning into a raid and they simply cannot do me anything any more.  In DF, where the jerks are free to do anything they want, it will be very detrimental to my game experience.  Oh yeah, I have to join a guild and find people to help me kill him, just to temporarily remove him from my eyesight.  But then, I have to do something not the way I want, in order to temporarily feel free to play the game the way I way.  That is your idea of fun.  Not mine.

AV is obviously aware of the issue about its gaming community.  The idea of a NEW, though not new, is a solid approach to giving the new comers a breathing chance.  Good way to start retaining new members.  I just hope it is not too late for AV.

I doubt that there are too many people who really wants a game dead.  One more game in the market is always good, more choices for people.

Originally posted by Tethered

The thing all the trollers and fanboi's seem to forget is that even carebears/casual players have wallets and spend money and let me assure you they can make or break a game just like you can.

So while DO may not be for the casual gamer or a more pve centric player, when you pullout the ass-hat and start calling people names. (lol like my first line) You are telling them hey you suck we do not want you to spend your money here anyway...and then later you cry and biatch cause later the game closes down because lack of funds. 

So maybe rather then ganking / trolling / flaming - why not say, hey get on and I can help you learn the joys of the this game, to relish that adrenaline rush as you smack down another player.

Sure it takes some time, but you can make a friend / maybe a good member in your clan and possbily one day that new friend will end up helping you, but the most important thing you get is more financial support to a game you love, which I think is really important too because otherwise they will shut their doors as they are in this to make money..no matter what the they tell you.

Just a thought.

 

 

Only the extremists on both side of the love-hate spectrum spend time talking so much about their games.  Oh yeah that makes me a bad guy too.
 

The majority in the middle are the contends gamers who spend their time gaming.  They will not make so much noise.  On the other hand, these majority are the ones that keeps sub money coming in good measures.

The vocal super tiny few thinks they speak for the whole, as no one cares to speak.  Unfortunately, their wallet accounts for so tiny bits, they cannot cover the room rental for the lead developer.

Originally posted by deviladvent

because  you suck that doesnt means the game sucks.. dont get offended , but this game aint no wow or AOC or a korean mmo. this game is like that and you will get your ass busted. do some research before getting it ? or you like to play wow or aion more ?

yes the game isnt for everyone and isnt for you. thats all.

The same thing could happen in some Korean games. Accept in most of those you will only lose something that cost a month's worth of a cash grind. It's not that much different.

I bought Darkfall and tried to play it 2 days. Got no idea what to do, and got killed all the time.

To Play Darkfall, you really need to read many guides, read the forum and so on. You need to spent much time and afford. For me, its seems to be more a game for hardcore fans. And those games usually die after some time, because just a handfull of fans are left who still believe in it.

I think I will get back to Wurm online when I want a real sandbox mmorpg. Thats a much better sandbox game.Or even Ryzom, that got a much better player-starting. I just feel bad for the 50 € I paid.

Originally posted by xpiher

Originally posted by Xianthos

For new player thats a damn big reason, but if you are so ignorant it isnt. Thats enough said about your comment.

 

If you are going to quit because of dying, then preventing you from dying during "newbie" phase will just prolong you from quitting.  People who quit the first month will just quit the second month. The only thing I'd like to see AV add is maybe a 5hr invulnerability shield since that will allow people to get used to the interface and the game before dying, without making the system exploitable. Newbie zones are a waste of development time unless they are intergrated into the game's story

Edit: I love how every time a "I quit the first month" post is made, regardless of the game, its always a new MMORPG account.

 I quit my first month. Do I have a New MMORPG Account?

The OP made what seems to be a reasonable post describing his particular experiences in the game. He didn't call people names he didn't state that the game sucked or was broken he did  say that he found the overall game play frustrating and not to his liking. This is exactly the sort of post that someone needs to read before they try a game and go through similar issues and leave unhappy or feeling cheated. The fact that the OP has been a member of this site for some time and only now made a post is indicative of how strongly they felt about their experience.

Because one person does not like a game does not mean that the game is bad. For me Darkfall is a game that I find interesting but that I suspect I would not enjoy playing so I appreciate a post like this as it helps give me a better idea of what some people go through if not all. I like the concepts in Darkfall and am happy that the game exists and that others find it fun but for me the wide open FFA PvP in combination with the looting simply would kill the fun for me. There were a number of comments on how to handle the issues the OP had but they all revolve around game play style and mainly say don't play solo which is generally a bad idea in most games that have any sort of FFA PvP. However, not everyone can play at the same time as others and there are times when simply no one you know and/or trust is around so do you just simply not play or go do play another game?

Darkfall has a number of interesting ideas and twists and they should be applauded for bringing the product to the market but when people are attacked for pointing out that these ideas may not appeal to mass market and that the game should be approached by people willing to try it these ideas then you are not doing Darkfall any favors.

Originally posted by Dereknor

I bought Darkfall and tried to play it 2 days. Got no idea what to do, and got killed all the time.

 

To Play Darkfall, you really need to read many guides, read the forum and so on. You need to spent much time and afford. For me, its seems to be more a game for hardcore fans. And those games usually die after some time, because just a handfull of fans are left who still believe in it.

I think I will get back to Wurm online when I want a real sandbox mmorpg. Thats a much better sandbox game.Or even Ryzom, that got a much better player-starting. I just feel bad for the 50 € I paid.

It amazing how some people can't play  without a guiding hand of quest line and exclamation marks over NPC heads. Even then they need The Quest Helper to move on.

The things is that all that things from a theme park MMO are openly available in Darkfall as well: you can progress your character, go and hunt some monsters for gold, regents and equipment, treasure hunt chaos chests or if you have some keys you can try your luck in a dungeon full of monsters. You can trade and socialize, gather and craft, get yourself a house, furnish it and soon add to it your shop.  Above that  you can pvp on small and large scale, get involved in politics and play for the highest stake in DF which are cities and hamlets. Did I mention incoming Conquer the seas expansion which is suppose to give a meaning for sea combat and ships ? As much a lot of those features need some polish and are definitily less frriendly then other casual games with no real pvp, DF is worth its price.

Originally posted by Blindchance

Originally posted by Dereknor

I bought Darkfall and tried to play it 2 days. Got no idea what to do, and got killed all the time.

 

To Play Darkfall, you really need to read many guides, read the forum and so on. You need to spent much time and afford. For me, its seems to be more a game for hardcore fans. And those games usually die after some time, because just a handfull of fans are left who still believe in it.

I think I will get back to Wurm online when I want a real sandbox mmorpg. Thats a much better sandbox game.Or even Ryzom, that got a much better player-starting. I just feel bad for the 50 € I paid.

It amazing how some people can't play  without a guiding hand of quest line and exclamation marks over NPC heads. Even then they need The Quest Helper to move on.

The things is that all that things from a theme park MMO are openly available in Darkfall as well: you can progress your character, go and hunt some monsters for gold, regents and equipment, treasure hunt chaos chests or if you have some keys you can try your luck in a dungeon full of monsters. You can trade and socialize, gather and craft, get yourself a house, furnish it and soon add to it your shop.  Above that  you can pvp on small and large scale, get involved in politics and play for the highest stake in DF which are cities and hamlets. Did I mention incoming Conquer the seas expansion which is suppose to give a meaning for sea combat and ships ? As much a lot of those features need some polish and are definitily less frriendly then other casual games with no real pvp, DF is worth its price.

 

If I want to craft, build a house, a shop and have sea battles, I play wurm online. that already has all of this even more advanced then in darkfall. But it just cost 5 €

I just expected more from a 50 € game, not just a short tutorial on how to move. Why is it that there are so many user made guides and explainations on how the game work, but none from the programmers? For a 10 € game it would be ok. But for such an expensive game, I expect more care for new players. I wonder how many players keep playing darkfall. Of cause you can make a hardcore sandbox game, that just the hardest players survive and like to play, if you can keep a mmorpg going with 100 players ;)

Originally posted by Dereknor

If I want to craft, build a house, a shop and have sea battles, I play wurm online. that already has all of this even more advanced then in darkfall. But it just cost 5 €

 

I just expected more from a 50 € game, not just a short tutorial on how to move. Why is it that there are so many user made guides and explainations on how the game work, but none from the programmers? For a 10 € game it would be ok. But for such an expensive game, I expect more care for new players. I wonder how many players keep playing darkfall. Of cause you can make a hardcore sandbox game, that just the hardest players survive and like to play, if you can keep a mmorpg going with 100 players ;)

Well I found that I was comfortable in Darkfall before the first hour was up. I didn't start using any online guides until my second week. I was fine and enjoying myself.
 

Compared to EVE the learning curve in Darkfall is negligible. Over 300 thousand people don't find EVE that impossible or "hardcore" to play. Sorry you didn't enjoy but be careful of the picture you paint of a game that merely was not for you.