Well, Puzzle Pirates already has this type of setup.  The Blue  Oceans (servers) are paid and the Green are Dubloon oceans. You buy dubloons with real money and use them for various things in the game.  PP has been pretty successful with this model, too.  I played on both oceans.  I got a veteren's discount on a year and bought it all at once and played with sub, but I lost my job near the end and I couldn't renew, so I just played on the dub ocean every now and then.  Because of my play style and how they structure the things you buy (Things expire after X logins vs X consecutive days, for example), I was able to play at about the same  level on each ocean.

So, to sum it up. If done well, I would definately play agame with both an item mall and sub.

At frist I was thinking Pox Nora or Dreamloards, but I'm not totally sure if they are exactly what you are looking for.  Both involve strategy and I know PoxNora does have the trading/collect of M:tG.  As for dreamlords, I can't remember too much about this game, though.  But, a quick skim of their homepage told me that it  "is a unique mix of Massively Multiplayer Online Games (MMOG) and Real Time Strategy (RTS)"

 Well, that's odd.  I remember there was a registry tweak that helpped me play Megoni (or however its spelled). Bascially, that game did the same exact thing. 

Oh well,I guess I'll post to their boards and see if I can find a solution.

Hi!

I can play any most games smoothly.  This is my boyfriend's computer, so I'm not totally sure on the specs but, I think its a 2.7 GHz CPU, 3GB ram and I'm not sure about the video card. But I can run Runes of Magic, EVE, WoW and EQ and EQ2 fine. I had to tweek the settings for performance rather than quality, but other than that everything was smooth.

So, it surprises me that this game hiccups so much.  My connection is great so I have no idea.

Anyone with the same problem? 

 You may want to try www.mudconnect.com or www.topmudsites.com  The are basically, the same has this site, but with reviews and top listings for MUDs, MUSHes, etc.

I play at Lusternia.com with is has a awesome backstory, tons of events and stuff. I also play casually.

 www.taikodom.com

This is a portuguese game but the are translating to english.  Think free to play/pay for perks EVE and you have this game. So far, it seems OK. I have just been playing the tutorials.  Compared to EVE its a bit cartoony, but I like it so far. 

There's 4 classes: Hotshot (Figher),  Juggernaut (Bomber), Scout (Explorer) and Merchant (Trader).   All I have fooled around with is the Merchant class.  You can mine for raw materials to sell for profit or hand over with a PO (recipe) who wil craft it for you.  From the features page, they list lots of missions, a huge universe to explore and a much more.

As for the pay to play part: You can buy hoplon's with RL cash. They can be traded ingame for a flat 1 hoplon=50 in game coin or for Affiliation that gives you access to more places, more storage and hangar space, higher insurance and a bunch more stuff. Afflication can last 30, 60 or 90 days. I don't really like that you can't buy hoplons or become an affiliate with ingame currency, though.

If anything its worth a try at least. I've played for about an hour and it seems like it has promise.  In the beginning  voice actor is talking in Portuguese, but the words are in English. Other than that, I haven't read anything too bad about it on the English boards.

Originally posted by hidden1

Originally posted by Realedazed

 Hey Eisdrache, have you ever tried Second Life.  I know there you can find/create/buy almost any type of avatar and there's a bunch of RPers there, too.  I'm not sure of its capabilities, but theres a bunch of Never WInter Nights (NWN) servers floating around.

 

Also have you checked out INSILICO in second life?  As RP-cyberpunk soloution for something a bit different in MMO's.

 

http://insilico.ning.com/

Not bad. I may have to reinstall Second Life and try that.

 Hey Eisdrache, have you ever tried Second Life.  I know there you can find/create/buy almost any type of avatar and there's a bunch of RPers there, too.  Also,  I'm not sure of its capabilities, but theres a bunch of Never WInter Nights (NWN) servers floating around. and those are full of RP.

edited because I left out some of a sentence/

 I got some free time due to the structure pack up thing that's going on.  So, I might as well try the game again.  I downloaded it before, but unfortuately overtime was offered at my job and money trumped gaming.  

Anyway, I remember Sunrunner being a good RP server, but RP isn't a big thing.  However, I do like crafting. So any suggestions for a good server where a crafter can do pretty decently?

Oh, and I'm not sure which crafting class I'd like to take yet.  I remember cooking was cook, but I don'tthink it was pretty profitable.

Thanks!

 Well, technically you don't have to spend money to play.  There is (or will be) a diamond exchange, so you can buy diamonds with in game gold. I was reading that they took it out because they took a huge hit because of credit card fraud. But, as soon as they work out the kinks, they are going to be bringing it back.  

Gold is terribly easy to get, right now.  But, as soon as the exchange opens up, there is going to be a huge demand for diamonds. So, of course the price in gold will go insanely high. But that is how it usually is. 

So, basically you can play for free, techincally. I say techincally, because you are not paying for the diamonds, but someone has to.

 I like the game so far. I only played WoW for a little while, but so I can't really compare.  The  only thing I can say that I dislike about the game is: not enough storage space.  I'm 15/15 and a pack rat. So my backpack, bank and free storage chest are full almost all the time.

 But, that's how they are going to make their money from me.  I guess paying 4.99/month (at least) for diamonds  isn't bad. A few for bank/storage space, fluff like furniture and good stuff like exp potions and recall runes and i'm all set at 1/3 the cost of WoW. Plus, if I'm broke a month ( which I usually am) I don't have to pay and since its free, they won't cut me off for non-payment like WoW would.

Other stuff, I can live with. I'm looking forward to seeing how well this game does when it's out of beta.

 I understant completely. I've tried a bunch, but I'm very, very picky about everything.  My boyfriend hates MMOs, though. So, he's slowly getting me off of the computer and on to his 360.  I've rediscovered Obilivion. I started a long time ago and never really got into it. But, now I'm hooked.

I'm not giving up hope on the MMOs though. I'm just waiting to see whats going to become of the next wave of games coming out soon.

 It really depends on the game. With some games, I can see from the beginning that I will not like them.  Other's I may take a while to explore the different parts of the game.  Usually, theres one or two things the I do like/love about a game, but more than likely, it doesn't justify a subscription.  A play a few  free to play games for that reason. I hop on, do what's fun and hop off. 

 Well, its hard to have a favorite it my case. I love fantasy books. So I also like fantasy  based games.  The only type I usually see are Medievel fantasy, which is getting boring.  I'm really getting into  Sci-fi, though.   Games like Eve and Face of Mankind really have piqued my interest. After playing games like EQ and WoW,  I guess it is because it is something different than what I am used to.  After my frist time playing Eve, I actually read some Sci-fi books.  Go figure.

For the sake of this poll, I'm gonna say Sci-fi.  

 Opps, sorry. I wasn't thinking of 2D/3D thing and completely missed that requirement.

 I don't know how into puzzles you are, but Puzzle Pirates as a decent trade system last time I played. They have a F2P and a subscription ocean (servers) F2P is technically free, since you can earn currency in game or purchase with real money.

You can earn maps to get you to different islands. You can buy items from the market on settled islands or forage for them on deserted islands. Then, sell them for profit at other markets or to players. Alternatively, you can own a stall or shop and craft things that are neccessary to pirate life (rum, swords, cannon balls, etc).

Almost everyhting here is completed by puzzling, of course. The quality of the rum, for example, is determined by how good you do at its puzzle.  The only down side to me is, you may get tired of the puzzles after a while.

 I skimmed over a bunch of other posts and I think I may have a different answer.  I'm actually going to say Perfect World was my biggest let down.  Well that and Age of Conan, but I'll let that game alone.

I've been waiting for that game for some time. I've read so many articles and reviews that said that game was going to tbe the Asian WoW - and best thing is: Its FREE! Or..something like that.

I already followed the bandwagon and spent my money on AoC, so I tried Perfect World and was not impressed at all. I played it for about a day and never returned. So, I can't really explain why I didn't like it becuase I really cant'r remember exactly way.  I guess I just went in expecting a bunch more than it offered.

Anyone feel the same?

 I play MMOs for the community. Plus, I like being the go-to girl if you need something.  I'm all for depending on other player, choice.  

Actually, I'd like it if you can get good stuff from NPCs, loot drops, or whatnot. Especially, if its a small community or you play during off-peak hours. Because if I have to wait a long time for a responce or look high and low for the one crafter who can forge me my sword of doom +10, I'll be one unhappy player.

 I'm actually kinda of excited that the game is back.  I wanted to play before, when I read about the game back during the first release, but I couldn't because of school and work.

I've been stuck on text based games because they offer a bunch of story, drama and roleplay.  I played EVE for a while, but I didn't have a lot of time to really get into it.  So, I'm really hopin the best for the game!

Just wondering. Is this game up and running? Sometimes I cannot log onto the website, I get a timeout or something.  I go to Google and it comes up, so I'm thinking that its not my connection.  Also, I've downloaded the client via bittorrent (from a link I got on my first and only successful visit to their homepage).  But, when I click  "create new account" it either doesn't work, or the secure website doesnpt come up.

Am I doing anything wrong?
Thanks