Oh wow, it does sound very good! I'll probably try it when it comes out with an open beta, since I don't have the time for it now. And nice, it's going to be free to play! Definitely will try this out in the near future.

 Heh, I haven't even heard of that word before, so I'm definitely too new to be called 'old school'.

Besides, I only started playing MMORPGs around... 3 years ago, my first being Maplestory, so... yeah.

Well... I would probably recommend EVE Online as well. It's pretty much in the normal range for subscription fees, but you can use in game money to buy plex, which gives you 30 free days, so that might enable you to spend less than the normal person would. I'm not too sure about raiding, but EVE does have massive pvp battles, and it has quite a high population.

And, it's pretty much the most well known sandbox game. Plus, there's a free trial, so you might want to try it to see if it works for you.

I highly doubt it, because they both appeal to different target audiences. After all, EVE is pretty much the most famous sandbox game avaliable, while Star Trek Online will be following the traditional themeparks. So yes, I highly doubt the majority EVE fans will flock over to Star Trek.

Maybe they might be curious enough to just try it, but I have a feeling that some of them will be coming back to EVE, especially if they like the sandbox genre.

The only movie that I can think of that fits this catagory is School of Rock, that Jack Black movie. I don't know why I love it so much... first time I watched it five times on repeat (and not counting the parts I rewound just so I could watch it again). I know it is reminicent of High School Music and Camp Rock, but still... it was really fun to watch. I especially liked that drummer guy.

For some reason, I'm really looking forward to buying Borderlands, even though I'm not much of a first person shooter player. But Borderlands really does look interesting. I know it's out, but I'm waiting for the price to go down so I can buy it. It's fifty nine dollars in my country right now...

Other than that, I'm also really looking forward to Guild Wars 2 and the EVE expansions.

Originally posted by tro44_1

Originally posted by Quirhid

There is no game without gameplay. A MMO with a bad gameplay would be an enhanced chatroom with graphics.

 

Like Guild Wars

...

Are you serious? Guild Wars is anything but an enhanced chatroom with graphics. I would normally associate that claim with a game like Second Life.

Not that Second Life isn't fun though... but it certainly fits the description far aptly than Guild Wars ever would.

I guess it depends on what you perceive as grind. For me, I feel that killing mobs for xp constitudes as grinding, and I hate that in games. At least in quest based games (even though people refer to them as quest grinds, go figure) there is a goal you work towards. Of course, leveling up is a goal, but killing mobs just for that is extremely monotonous. I prefer games that reward you for questing, so it's like breaking down the grind into more managable portions, and I am fine with that.

Every single game is going to have a grind. The closest thing to the game that the above poster described (out of all the games I've played) is EVE Online, and even then there is a grind there, where you have to 'grind' missions and npc pirates to get enough isk to support your later endevors.

Hence, I feel that if you find it fun, you will continue to play it, whether there is grind or not in the first place. Though I have to admit that I really like the idea of a game being based on storylines and missions, rather than killing mobs. Like Guild Wars for example. The only grind you can find in the game would be the titles (which, I have to admit, I have no patience for) and farming, but the quests barely have any grind in them. You only kill mobs to reach a certain place that is necessary to complete the mission.

Well, that is quite true as well. As good as the gameplay is, if the community is full of dicks you would start to dread logging in as well, and your liking for the game will decrease. Yet there might be something about the gameplay that attracks these dicks in the first place...

That being said, gameplay is what makes me stick to the game. If I dislike the gameplay, I won't play the game. So yes, I feel that it is the most important thing in a game.

Personally, I feel that most of the time, game developers would chose their art style  based on the audience they are trying to target. For example, games like Free Realms, which we know is meant for younger children, has a very cartoonish art style, whereas games like Dragon Age and Requirem Bloodymare are meant for older people, due to the presense of gore. However, that is not to say that only young children are attracted to Free Realms. In fact, I first started playing Free Realms when I was older than twenty, and it liked it because of the content and the minigames it had. In fact, I was actually going to subscribe to it if it weren't for EVE. These games, even with a definite kiddie artstyle, are still able to attract older folk.

And why? Because of the content. Free Realms offers minigames, and people other than children are attracted to these minigames. I joined specifically because of the mini-games after all. Games like WoW, even with a decidedly cartoonish art style, is still able to attract gamers older than twenty because of the activities they offer, such as questing, raiding, pvp. And I can't say that I actually dislike the WoW artwork; I think it's beautiful. And Lord of the Rings Online too; more cartoonish, yet attracts more than children because of the lore attacted to it. And Borderlands as well, certainly for a more mature audience due to the the monsters and blood present, yet they chose a more cartoonish style, as with Champions Online and COH/COV.

Which is why I agree with the OP; that art should not be a deciding factor when it comes to attracting the target audience. It goes much deeper than that.

Most of the time actually. Normally when I leave games I don't really bother to come back, but for games that I really did enjoy myself in (mainly for the community) I'll start to get nostagic and sooner or later I'll find myself reinstalling.

But... it's like what a lot of people have said in this thread; it's as if the old magic is gone. About a few months ago, I caved and went back to Dream of Mirror Online, the free to play game that I actually spent the most time in because I enjoyed myself the most there. I loved the people, the different jobs and how we could switch and combine the different skills to play a particular role, the costumes and the settings. Unfortunately... while everything still remained the same, the community wasn't as friendly as it was last time. Last time, I was literally able to find teams within five minutes of logging on, but now, it's only when I'm about to log off that I find a team. And even worse, a lot of guys kept wanting to hook up with me. That's why I hate games with ingame marriages; I play games to have fun, not to find a virtual husband whom I'll probably never meet in real life.

As far as I know off, the only game I know that actually features spherical worlds is EVE Online, but even then you still couldn't actually land on the worlds, but in the coming expansions we will get to.

My guess is that technologically, game developers do have the resources to do such a thing, but unless it's a priority and it will add to the game world, they probably won't bother with it.

Looks like they're going to have to change the name of the game then. Now that they can't call it "Free Realms" anymore...

That and well... there are no MMOs on consoles that I would play. And more importantly none coming. Pirating on consoles is silly easy as well.
This is another reason why I stick to the PC as well. I mainly play MMORPGs, and I need a PC for those, because of the keyboard. I love chatting with other people ingame, and so far, I have yet to see a console that offers chatting.

Dream of Mirror Online would be my recommendation. It has a lot of classes and you can actually try all of them out on the same character. The community is excellent... the people there love to group (just don't go into those auto-loot teams). Moreover, you can also buy cash shop stuff with in-game money as well, so it is more fair than most games with cash shops. However, it does get grindy in the later levels, and the graphics are rather anime-ish. However, despite it's flaws, I had a lot of fun playing it. In fact, it was the longest amount of time I actually spent on a free to play game.

That is very true; the market shifts from time to time to different things, and I can see that happening with consoles and PCs as well. I admit that I am a loyal PC gamer as well, and so far, I have yet to buy a console. However, that could change in the near future, especially if there is a good reason for me to get a console.

*saves them and uses as desktop backgrounds*

That's one of the reasons why I love EVE so much; the settings are beautiful! Granted, they're just nebulae and mist and easy to create, but they still are extremely beautiful.

Oh wow, that's amazing! I think it's great that people these days are starting to take the initive and come up with their own things, rather than sit around and complain about what is avaliable. I would love to make a game of my own, except that I know nothing about programming and animation.

I don't know anything about coming up with games so all I can offer you is my encouragement.

I don't understand this fixation of having one game 'killing' another. If people like a game, they will play it. Simple as that.

As much as I love Guild Wars Fractions (it's my favourite campaign by the way), what I really hate is the mispronounciations of names. I understand that Asian and Western pronounciations are different; people always ask me for an English name because they can't pronounce my given name. But honestly, if you want to have an Asian setting, at least get voice actors who can pronounce names correctly. I keep cringing at almost every cutscene because of the horrible pronounciations.