its all about catharsis and empathy

I saw a reference to this in another forum and gave it a try.

It was good fun (and helped me spend some time during a patch dowload.

Give it a go..( I was an EASK btw)

http://www.guildcafe.com/zQuest.php

In my case, all of them.

Like many, when i play a new game I usually dislike it pretty quickly or stay until i max out a number of chars.

From my experiences, I have most enjoyed longevity in EQ2, Eve and AO.

Lotro is a new addiction and im looking forward to Tabula Rasa joning the list

Like you I played EQ2 religiously since beta but needed a change. I swapped to WOW, which after EQ2 felt like an underwhelming experience, and now play LOTRO. I like this new game but it just feels like EQ2 in a different package.

I have recently gone back to EQ2 and restarted some new chars - lovin every second. The bizarre aspect is that having spent some time off, playing in the old zones are like rekindling fond memories.

The community are as good as ever and I am glad i took the break so I can come back and enjoy it all again.

Struggling....to...care.......

Game.....generating...trivial....debate.....that......is...too...much..like...RL

Must...hit...an...orc...

I love Eve and none of this bothers me in the slightest. The players, corps and devs are not perfect? the mechanics allow for exploits? Some people bear a grudge?

None of which is spoiling my enjoyment of the game.

Totally different experience in my view. An MMO like EQ2 has great content and lore but the social aspect is the unique point that should hook you in. A game like Oblivion is a solitary affair. It has, arguably, better graphics and a more rigid storyline but is distinctly single themed whilst an MMO usually developes each zone / area with a different theme in mind.

Oblivion is a damn good game but it became tiresome very quickly for me.

1 - A horror survival game: Something like a Resi evil game or something based on "28 days later".

2 - NeoCron - as it should have been.

3 - Mythology - God of war inspired game

4 - GTA the MMO. Gang warfare versus civil authorities (COH vs COV style)

5 - Corporate Man; An MMo based on wheeling and dealing, succesfully climbing the corporate ladder to reach the illustrious top of the management chain...oh wait...screw that, its why I play games in the first place.

To Peteppp: your an idiot. Pure courtesy and sensitivity should have made you realise that your post was unecessary.

To the family : My sincere sympathies.

Not only have I been part of the Eve community since launch but have made many new friends through online gaming for many years. The social aspect of an MMO is its prime unique component and its for this aspect that the genre is becoming increasingly popular. The gamers we meet, the guilds we join are all real people and therefore deserve common courtesy and respect.

Personally I am not an RTS fan so Starcraft has never been on my Radar.

I was worried that as much as a Diablo MMO is an exciting prospect, i was afraid that it would never live up to the hype and would tarnish my memories of this legendary game.

Would love an original IP from Blizzard though - they rarely fail to make genre defining games.

I left SWG and started with EQ2 ( I personally have no opinions either way over SOE that colours my view) and loved the games deep storyline and excellent community. I  am playing that as my main with Lotro as my second. I like LOTRO but it is a shallower experience of  EQ2 ( mainly due to EQ2 having 2 yrs worth of content over Lotro). Vanguard is a good game but lacks the pace of EQ2 that hooked me in the early years.

Happy gaming whatever your choice

I have played both EQ2 and wow since release and LOTRO for last 2 weeks.

I can honestly say that EQ2, for me, is a far better game in terms of gfx, content, variety , weapons, community and fun factor. I do like Lotro but it is a little shallow compare to EQ2 ( mainly due to all the content that has been added since release) and unless you are a real Tolkein fan, the EQ2 lore and storylines were more interesting to me.

Personal choice as always but EQ2 would get my vote as a game that you would like for longer based on current respective contents. Echoes expansion is heartily recommended but the others are not really necessary in my view.

Happy gaming

Rubbish, SWG, EQ2 and wow did in first couple of months to keep release day momentum up.

Every new game has to survive in a different competitive world now that wow has established such a dominant position. The old rules of gaining subscribers no longer apply. wow has succeeded in stimulating a huge market where all new entrants have to fight harder to steal its new base. Its not a comment on the game but on the marketing strategy it employs to feed its intended growth curve.

other than your grind comment (grinding is in every game in one form or another), you should try a number of the free trials to fiind one you like.

EQ2 has grate comm unity and crafting and is rich in lore and good gfx

wow is the main player and has a instant gratification factor

eve is a techincal tour de force but a slow burner rather than kil kill kill

try LOTRO, Ryzom and any you can get free trials on

Good luck

i dont care for magazine reviews of online games. I personally dont believe you get a good opinion for a games long term appeal until you spend serious time on it. Most of the games I have played longest on did not have instant appeal for me but just enough to make me want play on a little more.

Vanguard is a very fine game but do not have the right equation for instant mass appeal. Its a slow burner which I play but at a lesser rate that wow or eq2.

I dont think its complex but it does not provide easy gratification like other games.

Most games lvl you quickly for the first 10 levels orr so as a means of getting you hooked to the mechanics. Vanguard is far slower pace / longer to get to these points so it feels either complex or laborious.

Some like that , others dont. It will alienate a large section of the "instant" win community