This could actually be done if the "power increase" per level is well balanced so that two levels difference isn't already a one-hit scenario.

I'm thinking about a difference of perhaps ... say 40 levels, where the difference in power first starts really showing.

And content with endless scaling isn't even THAT hard to imagine. It would get hella crazy once the first LvL 1000000 player starts showing up but that is a thought experiment for another day.

I miss people not starting threads like this every chance they get or whenever they feel nostalgic. :D

No seriously. I miss questless gameplay. I wanna (be able to) do what I want sometimes, dammit. (Part of the reason I like GW2 ... but that's only halfway there.)

Try playing with friends. The longevity you want isn't coming from the content of the games you play so you'll have to come up with ideas yourself within the boundaries of those games. Friends can help with that.

What you want is a sandbox MMO, apparently. Unfortunately even in those you ultimately reach a point of "no advance". The only thing that really fits your description of your desired experience is real life, I'm afraid.

"Some kind of help" is definitely needed on this one. But I don't think it can be given via the computer.

Gorwe, want the truth? GW2 is not for you. Try TSW or Tera (once it goes F2P). You'll be happier for it.

Once the guild training zones (read: private sPvP maps) are out, this should take care of itself.

As for dueling outside of PvP zones (i.e. in cities and whatnot): Wouldn't especially mind, but please don't.

Originally posted by CerebralM

So many games are free to play now with the basic assumption of "buying your way to the top*. The virtual item power bonus traded for cash is a disgrace.

Try to play an MMO that isn't P2W.

If this happened years ago, these people would be called e-bayers, cheaters and were responsible for botters and generally bad attitudes. They were the worst of the worst, power gamers with fat pocket books and the farmers that kept them in business. This was one of the darker sides of mmo gaming in the past and now it is not only fully accepted but expected.

Botting is still not accepted. Exploiters still get banned. Chinafarming (letting others farm for you in exchange for real money) is frowned upon by the average player. Where is the acceptance and expectation you speak of exactly?

(Some advice: Play MMOs with friends or people you get along with. A social experience is only as good as your social circles.)

There is no adventure in getting items or accomplishing anything in a game when you can just buy it. It just feels empty to me. I can handily afford most of the "hard items" to get via most in game item malls and it robs me of my fun. Seeing other people buy something for 2-3 bucks that took my team a few hours to get that took teamwork and coordination is robbed by 6 minutes on my pay scale.

Again: Try to play non-P2W MMOs. Most F2P MMOs feature only cosmetical items in their cash shops (or item malls). Which ones did you play?

 There is no risk, no reward, no immersion, no community. These games are just chat rooms now with malls to buy virtual items. Would have similar experience going to an arcade at the mall, only it would be having fun with real humans.

Don't like to play MMOs because you don't get a kick out of it -> don't blame MMOs. And if MMOs are just chat rooms with item malls, how is the real world different? (hyperbole.)

 ( I'm not bitter and nor do I mean to diminish the people that enjoy buying all their crap, but it is not for me. )

Well... that statement can be read as sounding bitter AND diminishing. And let me ask you: What kind of social experiences have you had in MMOs that you generalize all MMOs to be full of P2W-enthusiasts? There are people here who play for the fun of it and enjoy working for hard to get items.

What is a better system? How can a game make money and still offer a rewarding experience that can't just be bought.. SPRPGs are about all I've played with any sort of regularity now for the past 5 years. I have drifted from game to game and none really capture me anymore... mmogs are easy. No challenge. No Reward.

Then stop playing them. If SPRPGs are more your speed, stick to what you like. No one is forcing you to do anything.

But say "no challenge" again and I'll stick you into some of GW2's explorable modes. Just a suggestion. :P

Screw SGR! We need FMR! (flesh-machine romance)

Originally posted by bossalinie
"I play my games to escape facebook..."

How weird is this statement coming from intelligent people?

Hey, don't misquote me. I said "to escape THINGS like facebook".

It was a hyperbolic statement, really. You could just read it as "I play games to escape real life when I want to". Facebook, at least for me, is a buzzing cesspool of people wanting to chat all day long because they don't know how to entertain themselves when they are by themselves. And when I decide to waste my time on my computer, I'd like to do something I enjoy. Mindless chatting about daily life irrelevances is no such thing.

And whatever do you mean by "weird coming from intelligent people"? Is it really that weird to want to have some time OFF from the ever-present moral duty of social connectedness? I mean, sure, I could just leave my computer off for a change, but I actually DO enjoy playing MMOs for the fun of it (as opposed to f.e. e-peen comparison, which is what "socially connecting" ingame affairs will boil down to eventually anyway) ...

No thanks. This whole "import your friends into ESO" business will only work for friends who have also linked their accounts. And many might refrain from doing so due to already crumbling safety of web-anonymity.

Also, if you link your account, probably every single one of your friends on facebook will be able to see if, when and how long you are / have been playing ESO.

That doesn't lead to social connectedness, only to social awkwardness.

edit:

Also, I play MMOs to escape things like facebook where everyone and their sister always wants something or has some new thing he wants to tell everyone and his mother about. ...

I don't need that in my games, no thank you.

Loved how in the first few minutes they didn't really have anything to talk about. Judging by that it seems a lot of the game is fine the way it currently is.

Ask yourself:

Has the "need" to return arisen?

Why has this "need" arisen?

No one here will write you a feature list. ;)

Originally posted by Xiaoki

[ ... ]
Seriously, MMO developers, if you make an MMO that can be max leveled in 2 weeks PLEASE put more effort into the endgame.

Oh, that's adorable. You still think playing MMOs is only about maxing your level and getting to endgame? Poor guy.

edit:

For me:

1) Diablo 3 (bad game overall)

2) TERA (I couldn't stand looking at the graphics anymore. And combat felt painfully slow and dull)

3) EVE Online resub (1 month, didn't play once xD)

The quotes are reminiscent of a lot of stuff ArenaNet said about GW2s character creation functionality prior to launch (concerning both NPCs and PCs). I feel they fell just a LITTLE bit short of what was promised, at least talking about the Norn, Humans and Sylvari.

Judging from what I've heard I am certain that GW2s and WildStars character creation will be pushed into heavy comparison from an early point on. Which is actually exciting for me.

Personally, the way my character looks DIRECTLY influences whether I play him/her at all and how long my interest will last. In GW2 I find myself creating and recreating the same character until I find a look that fits and pleases my eyes. In WildStar it will be no different.

The secret to a game's longevity seems to crystallize as "player-made content". How neo-classic.

And where exactly did it say they were done implementing it? There is so much to do in GW2 you'd think it would be possible for people to spend at least two weeks NOT impatiently complaining... oO

Originally posted by The_Korrigan

More free content! This has to be a conspiration, this can't be true. I mean, content once a month, that's something we didn't see since Asheron's Call (before Turbine went to the dark side).

*heads to his account management to cancel his subscription*

I see what you did there.

And I agree.

I think  I have a spare... let me see.

*reaches into his pocket and hands over a little bag of patience*

Are you intentionally TRYING to be mad at ArenaNet for something? Oo

Originally posted by Mike-McQueen
Well it's neither an mmo nor an rpg so I guess that's why.

Let's see, you start with very little equipment/gear. Check.

You find better gear from monsters you kill. Check.

While on quests for NPCs that need help. Check.

You level up and appoint talent points. Check.

To be able to obtain and use better gear. Check.

That drops from stronger and stronger monsters. Check.

... please, just because it's a shooter it's not an RPG? In what way isn't B2 an RPG? Some riddle that is.

I think you mean "MMOs used to be only really accessible to the adult-minded". When I played Ultima Online (my first MMO) I was 10 or 11 years old and I did fine. Its all a matter of making people use their brains.

Games that aren't challenging on a mental level can easily be ignored if you know what you're doing. I rarely come across idiots in the games I play these days and the way I play them.

... and talking about Ultima Online ... in what way was the UI "compact"? Oo