Originally posted by denshing

Originally posted by keithian

I need to introduce someone to MMOs (PVE centric).  Curious to get your thoughts as to which ones you think might still be enjoyable and not overwhelm someone while still not boring me to death. WOW? LOTRO? GW2? SWTOR? AOC? Pros/Cons? Best for Groups of 2? Remember, newbies dont understand stats in most cases.

Thanks.

Try out EVE online. I hear it's VERY beginner friendly.

That made me laugh out loud... ^^  Even with the new focus, its NOT new player friendly. 

Originally posted by XxGrimmxX
I tried to get my friend into GW2 and he was just lost in everything. I don't reccommend it. 

I might not recommend GW2 right out of the gate either.  The game doesn't have a lot of explaining or tutorials enough for someone brand new to this kind of gaming to easily understand.  It's not an incredibly difficult game and I love it.  But it wouldn't be my best recommendation to a brand new player. 

As many have said, WoW is probably the best bet.  It starts you out slow, pretty much explains everything in detail, and I cant imagine anyone having a hard time figuring it out as they go along.  It was built in such a way purposefully so even the uninitiated could pick it up easily and get going. 

I hate to not recommend GW2 as its one of my all time favorite mmo experiences, but that game confused a lot of long time mmo players in the beginning.   I never had a problem with it what so ever.   But as I said, WoW would be your best bet.  If not perhaps try Lord of the Rings Online as it has a free to play mode.  I would suggest Swtor as well since its fairly simple to understand, but it's free to play model is so abysmal I could see it turning a brand new mmo player off to mmorpgs forever.  It would me. 

Originally posted by grimal

Honestly, I really feel that any of these four are good into level games:

1) WoW - has a bit of everything

2) GW2 - Same reason as WoW plus you don't have to be bombarded with the notion of the trinity.

3) LOTRO - Very friendly community and packaged very nicely.

4) SWTOR - Has a little of everything. Familiar IP.  Free to play (limited).

All of the comments here are helpful. I can't see starting someone in Vanguard. I really didn't get into Rift at the time as I felt the starting area was very bland and the story worse than WOWs..but maybe I didn't give it enough time to get to know the game more. I'm not sure if the random events right off the bat are a good way to start. GW2 I say no based on my previous comments...so I guess it is down to LOTRO, SWTOR or WOW. Free only to level 20 for WOW sort of rules that out...so it comes down to LOTRO or SWTOR. Its a tough choice. I used to love LOTOR. Only played to level 60. It did feel like one of the few RPGs out there in the way it integrated you into the story with a friendly community. SWTOR with companions allows for tackling most of the content including 4 player content using companions as players. Its a tough one :-). LOTRO is  more open and less linear. SWTOR has the story which can make things for a beginner more interesting. I haven't tried Sith yet so maybe I would be less bored myself. sigh

Originally posted by Wraithone

Originally posted by denshing

Originally posted by keithian

I need to introduce someone to MMOs (PVE centric).  Curious to get your thoughts as to which ones you think might still be enjoyable and not overwhelm someone while still not boring me to death. WOW? LOTRO? GW2? SWTOR? AOC? Pros/Cons? Best for Groups of 2? Remember, newbies dont understand stats in most cases.

Thanks.

Try out EVE online. I hear it's VERY beginner friendly.

That made me laugh out loud... ^^  Even with the new focus, its NOT new player friendly. 

depends, if the guy new to MMOs would like to have his hands held from start to finish or that he looks for a real challenge.

EVE can be simple, I play it for many years, it's not that hard, it just has a few hard rules......but EVE can be frustrating if you are used to a game like WOW.

WoW hands down.  The graphics and environment are clean, clear and distinct as to not confuse new players that tend to wander into new areas without even knowing it. The leveling system is curved to award players with enough new things while keeping things simple and offers more variety with dual specs, glyphs and enchants as they approach higher levels. The world is large enough where there are plenty of things to occupy new players with things with tons of room for them to grow and explore. The refer a friend program is the best I've seen to offer returning players their friends a leg up in getting started. The endgame and PvP options are varied enough for new players to ease into those directions if they choose to do so.

Well it depends severely on the learning ability of the user/s.

FFXI si the game where you LEARN the MOST about RPG content and class design.

Everquest 2 is the best of the "OTHER" type of rpg's.

By other i mean linear questing rpg's,that do a ton of hand holding and free handouts.

FFXI is a lot easier now but still has a steeper learning curve.It is NOT a hand holding game nor does it offer free handouts,other than the initial tutorial part.

Reason i think EVERYONE should have started in FFXI of old is becuase they learn the genre before all the repeated copy cat habits.

For ease of just stepping into this genre,i would say Everquest 2.Wow is also easy,but instead of starting in a large city ,you basically start in the middle of nowhere.EQ2 offers more overall contant than Wow and pretty much more than any game,but aside from housing,i woudl argue FFXI offers more.Wow offers many mounts and zones/instances but not a lot more than that.

Originally posted by Muke

Originally posted by Wraithone

Originally posted by denshing

Originally posted by keithian

I need to introduce someone to MMOs (PVE centric).  Curious to get your thoughts as to which ones you think might still be enjoyable and not overwhelm someone while still not boring me to death. WOW? LOTRO? GW2? SWTOR? AOC? Pros/Cons? Best for Groups of 2? Remember, newbies dont understand stats in most cases.

Thanks.

Try out EVE online. I hear it's VERY beginner friendly.

That made me laugh out loud... ^^  Even with the new focus, its NOT new player friendly. 

depends, if the guy new to MMOs would like to have his hands held from start to finish or that he looks for a real challenge.

EVE can be simple, I play it for many years, it's not that hard, it just has a few hard rules......but EVE can be frustrating if you are used to a game like WOW.

Yes, he will need his hand held. He doesn't even play video games, let a lone one with a keyboard.

Originally posted by Aelious
If the person is used to navigating either keyboard/mouse or console I would say GW2. If not then WoW IMO.

Yup, per my previous comment, he is not used to keyboard/mouse. Per my previous comment, I think I'm ruling out WOW because even if it may be the best choice, the level 20 cap for free to play rules that out. Thanks for the comments though.

What kind of gamer is he/she?

Originally posted by Kuppa
What kind of gamer is he/she?

He isn't. He has never tried gaming lol. THere was a time I never played a MMO around WOW beta and since then thats basically all I play (not WOW, but MMOs in general..except for Skyrim sometimes too :-). The probably with WOW is I don't like that for a beginner it caps at 20 which is why it appears it is a choice between SWTOR or LOTRO. Ill need to ask him which type of universe seems more interesting on the surface.

Originally posted by keithian

Originally posted by Kuppa
What kind of gamer is he/she?

He isn't. He has never tried gaming lol. THere was a time I never played a MMO around WOW beta and since then thats basically all I play (not WOW, but MMOs in general..except for Skyrim sometimes too :-). The probably with WOW is I don't like that for a beginner it caps at 20 which is why it appears it is a choice between SWTOR or LOTRO. Ill need to ask him which type of universe seems more interesting on the surface.

Do they know you are putting him/her up for this? If it's willingly I either suggest to get him to something like PS2. Which isn't an MMORPG, but it's an MMO. It's also always easy to get people hooked on shooters. I would stay far away from LOTRO, that's a bit more niche. TOR, WoW, GW2 are good starting grounds.

Any casual themepark from last decade. WoW, Rift, SWTOR, GW 2,..

Choose one based on personal preferences.

Either WoW or EQ2.

Both have interesting race/class combos so your friend is more likely to find something that clicks with them.  Both have fantastic worlds.   You dont have to worry about stats in either until much later on, EQ2 in particular you only need to know fighter = str, scout = agi etc.

I would give the nod to WoW overall though, because of one thing: no game on the market is anywhere near as active for low/midlevel grouping.  Even as a dps dungeon finders dont take long at all.  And the cross realm stuff (plus people rare pet hunting) makes the zones less empty than most.

Originally posted by Nevulus
Recently I have introduced my nephew (11 yr old) to MMOS, in order to tame his Minecraft addiction, the ones he took to the best were WoW, EQ2, and SWTOR. GW2 was a complete nightmare for him, little social interaction, chaotic public quests. I tried to push for gw2 the hardest since it is sub-free, but alas eq2 and wow ended up being his favorites. So he is playing EQ2, since it's free.

Agree or Vanguard is F2p would also teach him.

I guess it would have to be something they are somewhat interested in. Do they read fiction? If so what type? Would a high fantasy setting be more up their alley or are they Star Wars fans?

When I introduced my wife to MMO's it was EQ2 and then LOTRO. It was quite a challenge as it is so easy to take the little things for granted. She was a console gamer with tons of Final Fantasy experience over the years but the kb/mouse combo was tough at first as well as all of the LFG, WTB and FTW! etc. It is an enjoyable experience and now she is an old pro! Just don't tell her I said she's old.

My pick if I had to do it again?  LOTRO to start and let them decide if it's (online gaming) something they enjoy. Then expand to other titles if they are looking for something different.