Originally posted by Raltar

...But if you are claiming that your friends don't know what Asheron's Call is, then yeah, I guess I would say you have made some poor life choices.

I'm just gonna jump in here to not be constructive to this thread at all, as it's already a question asked one thousand times with no real, concrete answer on Bioware's part that should have just been looked up by the OP...

I very highly doubt anyone has really heard of Asheron's Call beyond the very small scope of people who visit sites like these. Not to say who you are referring to is equally out of line, but to say someone has poor life choices because their friends have never heard of a certain game is very silly (and entertaining to see... which is why I was so tempted to quote it and now tempted to replace my signature with this statement).

Very smart move on their part. Now I've regained partial interest. While I highly doubt I'd be willing to pay $12 / month for essentially having a minor effect on the persistent world, I can at least look at what I get with just the box and be pleased with that. It seems that a lot of these "FPSMMO" 's that are coming out recently (Crimecraft, APB, and now GA) are getting the idea that there's essentially not enough to be charging $15 bucks / month. Maybe for $12 / month I'd be willing to pay for it, but we'll see. It was a good idea to give players a choice... now we'll just see how successful / popular their monthly fees are in comparison to those that simply buy the box and if they decide to stick with it.

You seem to be looking for the master of everything. You question why MMOs don't have characters that are good at multiple things, but the answer is so obvious you should know it, and that's for the sake of balance. You can't shoot lightning, use a bow, and a sword with master profiency while wearing leather clothing. Well, you can do all these things, but in doing so you are not going to be as proficient as someone who focuses solely on magic, solely on their bow, and solely on their sword. In comparison to the guy who can perform magic, you can in turn have proficient sword and bow skills that he lacks, while also having magic; but you can't expect to have the same magic profiency as the guy who has made it his prime and sole focus.

If you're looking for someone who can do a little bit of everything, you're looking for a hybrid class. Though a hybrid of bow, magic, and sword is beyond my knowledge of any MMOs based on class. There may be some skill-based MMOs down your alley. But if you are looking to be the master of everything, then you're looking for Rock vs. Rock. MMOs are Rock vs. Paper vs. Scissors.

Very glad to see a planet like this. Looks fantastic from the small amounts of screenshots given. Looks very open, and I think Bioware is revealing this information to hopefully please those of us that are looking for something less linear than Coruscant (or at least, something less linear than it most likely will be). Definitely pleasing me and it's helping alleviate my fears of linearity. A couple more planets like this, more focus on large group content and I'd pretty much be ready to pre-order six months before release.

Originally posted by Swanea

Originally posted by Douhk

To be honest, I don't see why I would pick this game over APB, which is esentially the same thing except in a different theme with an open world over a closed arena-type battleground. In fact, I'm not really sure why I would play this game over a game like Call of Duty. And on top of that, expecting an extra $15 bucks a month for most likely less polish / balance than CoD will inevitably provide? Even with the list that's given within the first page (which, essentially, is almost all provided in a game like CoD) there really isn't much justification.

I could see how people would prefer this game over the standard MMOs like WoW, as it's a different playstyle. ButI just don't see this game possibly being able to survive / have any more than a 25k subscribers at best for charging the MMO standard fee for essentially another FPS where the actual standard is no monthly charge. I don't see many people choosing this game over other FPSs like T2F, CoD, Counterstrike, or even APB once it comes out. There just isn't enough there for it to deserve the standard MMO monthly charge.

While I don't know too much about GA, I don't recall anything in CoD about groups/factions/teams that fight over zones that they control, that brings in resources, that gives you things to craft with...MW2 will have that? Wow!

There are differences, yes. But I don't honestly see where the $15 bucks / month is justified. Basically, crafting, "progression", group and guild orientation and faction control. These are some of the main features I've been seeing touted for this game, but is that seriously it (Beyond what the standard no monthly fee FPS can offer)? And I ask that with sheer curiousity and in no way an attempt to insult, as I really am curious as to why they are actually charging $15 bucks a month. I just don't see how this would appeal beyond those that absolutely love this type of setting in a FPS (and quite frankly, I can surely find plenty of biotech / super soldier FPSs).

Heck, two of those features are actually in CoD now that I think about it. "Progression" as you gain levels offers better weapons and perks. There is also a strong "guild" orientation with the clans, appealing to more hardcore players. Just no crafting and no faction control. Is there more that isn't already in your regular run of the mill FPS?

Originally posted by Millsmate

Originally posted by Douhk

Originally posted by Millsmate

I've heard (and I'm pretty sure) that if an enforcer arrests a criminal, it takes the criminal longer to respawn when compared to death.

 

That's pretty funny if you were to compare that to real life.... ha. So if you are arrested, it actually takes you longer than if you were "just killed". It makes it seem like dying should ultimately be the goal over being arrested. Works alright, I guess within the actual game, but realistically I think they could come up with some other positive over arresting a criminal rather than killing them. It'd be better if it was an actual benefit to the Enforcer and less of a punishment to the Criminal, as in reality, not many people are going to care either way if the other person respawns faster or slower as it doesn't benefit them (at least directly), so they'll just be killing everyone and using whatever method is the fastest.

 

Maybe the whole idea of the enforcers arresting over killing is the fact that it tries to emulate what a real officer would do. If at all possible, an officer would try to apprehend the suspect as opposed to shooting him or her down. It rewards realism, but it also throws in the risk of trying to be a hero. That's my take on it anyways.

I understand that much and I agree on it, but I think they're taking it the wrong way. As I already stated, I don't think many people really care so much about emulation (especially with this game being more FPS-oriented and less RPG-oriented and the different community it brings) or what a real officer would do, but more over how it benefits them in-game. It's like adding risk for the player that isn't necessary; there's no immediate benefit, so chances are something like this would be completely ignored by the majority of the players. And on a further question, do they have something similar to this for the Criminals? I don't think it'd be really fair or intelligent on Realtime Worlds part on giving just one side this sort of function. But what exactly would the Criminals do... "torture" them? Take them hostage?

I actually don't mind that idea too much. It could give a further boost of infamy (or however they translate "infamy" into this game, as it is evidently one of the most important features of the game) to Criminals and a further negative of infamy to Enforcers, while increasing respawn time. It could give the Criminals a reason to try apprehending them without killing them and the Enforcers enough reason to avoid it at all costs. And for the Enforcers, they can simply arrest them and parade them off to jail in handcuffs, being their versions of the cops being taken hostage and taken back to whatever the base of operations for Criminals would be. Would be neat if you could have it prevented within the transportation, though... would be a neat little mission to save a clan member being hauled off to jail in a poilce car, or save a fellow police officer being taken in an Escalade :P

To be honest, I don't see why I would pick this game over APB, which is esentially the same thing except in a different theme with an open world over a closed arena-type battleground. In fact, I'm not really sure why I would play this game over a game like Call of Duty. And on top of that, expecting an extra $15 bucks a month for most likely less polish / balance than CoD will inevitably provide? Even with the list that's given within the first page (which, essentially, is almost all provided in a game like CoD) there really isn't much justification.

I could see how people would prefer this game over the standard MMOs like WoW, as it's a different playstyle. ButI just don't see this game possibly being able to survive / have any more than a 25k subscribers at best for charging the MMO standard fee for essentially another FPS where the actual standard is no monthly charge. I don't see many people choosing this game over other FPSs like T2F, CoD, Counterstrike, or even APB once it comes out. There just isn't enough there for it to deserve the standard MMO monthly charge.

Originally posted by Millsmate

I've heard (and I'm pretty sure) that if an enforcer arrests a criminal, it takes the criminal longer to respawn when compared to death.

That's pretty funny if you were to compare that to real life.... ha. So if you are arrested, it actually takes you longer than if you were "just killed". It makes it seem like dying should ultimately be the goal over being arrested. Works alright, I guess within the actual game, but realistically I think they could come up with some other positive over arresting a criminal rather than killing them. It'd be better if it was an actual benefit to the Enforcer and less of a punishment to the Criminal, as in reality, not many people are going to care either way if the other person respawns faster or slower as it doesn't benefit them (at least directly), so they'll just be killing everyone and using whatever method is the fastest.

More or less, just trying to make it as available to all possible players as possible. It's familiar with the WoW demographic, their most obvious target audience, and probably the only MMO that is even justified in trying to attract them as a massive whole with any sort of chance of success. It also has a good bit to do with the fact that they are targetting the young demographic in general, which is the smartest choice on a profitable margin, but not one I'm exactly happy about. Though I won't say it isn't a smart and sound business choice.

You basically have a lot less to lose and a lot more to gain with stylized and cartoon graphics over the extreme graphics of a game like Age of Conan, at least in terms of MMOs. Not that there's anything wrong with AoC's graphics, and I approve of them trying to push things forward two years ago, but it was too much too soon. I just feel like this game is doing too little too late in terms of graphics, being on par with WoW and, in all honesty, I'm pretty certain at least 80% of it's players can play the game on maximum settings at this point with no problem, and any mid-range computer in today's time could easily surpass it's limits.

Nope, never will either. Buying gold in an MMO is cheating. Cheat in your own games, but when you're cheating in a game that can negatively effect another player (aka, screwing up the in-game economy, technically hurting everyone) then I just see it as selfish.

Don't really mind them unless they effect my actual game enjoyment. For example, as already mentioned, PUGs and kill stealing. The majority of the people you hear on the global seem to be doing more chatting than playing, so I rarely ever actually see them in-game. They're for the most part bouncing around acting stupid in the towns and paying $15 a month for an oversized chat room. Which is fine by me, they can spend their money however they please. The PUGs, for the most part, have been fine for me. I've only run into two idiots, one causing our group to completely disban since we just couldn't take it any longer, and another idiot we just ended up kicking and going about our own merry ways. I definitely do not PvP in PUGs; they're with my guild or gaming friends who have also given Aion a try. Currently only 26 though so I'm just getting into it. Hey, if anything, they could be seen as a benefit in some ways. They certainly will most likely act as a good fodder when I finally do get around to serious PvP. And it will be hilarious to hear their whines and QQquits due to "imbalance".

Originally posted by diruuu

yea i know wat u mean but i dont want to lvl 45 then find out its a trash class for pvp that'd be too late. i need to make a decision while im young!

It's a pvp game. Pick a class that you enjoy based on it's mechanics. Balance will never be constant. We could tell you that the Glad is the best class in PvP currently and by the time you get there it would be shit. Balance is constantly changing and adjusting. And for this game, not by massive amounts; balance is pretty much perfect from what I've heard of end-game from a pal in Asia who's been playing for four months now. Your gladiator will have the best of times and worst of times... there is no trash class in this game or class above all others. Jesus, just play a class you like. If you want to be the ultimate PvP'er, you can either A.) Pick a class and learn it or B.) Have a max level for every single class and ride with the flow of balance. A.) seems a lot more logical and in any case, even with any possible balance issues the game may face, they won't be massive enough to effect you if you truly succeed with the class.

Grow success off of the game style you enjoy and with practice and persistence while learning what your class is good at and isn't, not riding the balance train and never actually pvp'ing if all you are doing is leveling just for the balance to be fixed once you've grind to 50. Depend on your own ability, not the class itself.

Surprised it's coming this early. Chances now that we can safely assume a summer launch with closed beta this early, unless they need to push it back (though, seeing as how slowly and safely they've been pumping out information, and a pretty evident idea that they're making consistent progression with the game and following their agenda, that seems unlikely). At first I assumed a Christmas release by next year. But with beta signups, and most likely actual beta starting in November or before the end of the year, a summer release is quite possibly in the picture. I'd imagine beta to last for several months and then a progression to open beta, and when june or july roll around we'll be seeing it in shelves. I highly doubt beta will last longer than seven months, as betas rarely do unless the game needs a push back (which, again, seems unlikely with current evidence... but is possible) or the company is solely dependent on beta testers over their own department for collecting data and testing (which, from Bioware, I'm sure they have plenty of their own paid testers to work out kinks on a higher and more knowledgeable level than the average volunteer tester).

And to be honest, I'm not really thinking of signing up for beta either. While other MMOs may be a different story, this one is something I think I don't want to spoil. If anything, I'll pick a class that I feel I most likely won't ever play, like the sith warrior, and spoil the story for that one class while getting a feel for the game. That is, in the impossible event that I actually became a tester in a 0.01% chance of a hundred most likely.

Originally posted by Cyborg99

Wait....shouldn't all you fanbois be playing this "great" game right now? Oh wait your either

A. Waiting to log in (haha your paying for a service you can't use)

B. Don't like the game (haha you lost $50)

Guess I win this aurgument..................

lol

aurgument

It's perfectly legal, yes. Did you pay for that first month? Technically, no. That first month "comes free". This is different than that first month being considered part of the purchase. See, what you bought and paid for was the actual game. But with it, as a special offer, they gave you that month which you technically didn't pay for. Just the game, the box.

Legally, they could prevent you from playing for that entire month within any sort of reasoning; such as, not having enough servers to fill you in. It'd literally be considered as a privelage to play the game if you didn't pay for that month, which I assume is the case since... well, this game being out only less than a week.

The sad thing is, something as small as this will probably be enough to stunt Aion's potential growth in half. A perfect example of the fact that if an MMO doesn't launch with absolutely NO FLAWS, WHATSOEVER, it'll have little chance of gaining subs over half a million. It doesn't matter if this was the most polished game to release after WoW became a tyrant; because of something like this, for giving someone something to complain about, it'll be torn to the ground. I'm sure this will be 10x more common knowledge to non-Aion players than any other positive features of the launch. People ask why WoW is the only "massive" multiplayer online game; it's because that's exactly what the communities want with such a judgemental mindset.

Yet, it's too soon to give judgement. After the next couple months, the damage done by the deteriorating quality of MMO players will be evident, whether it was devastating for it's growth or not. Heck, beyond this, Aion is probably the most polished game with the smoothest launch to come out since LOTRO. Perhaps they can overcome this and keep a slowly growing community, rather than one that slowly vanishes with nothing left but a spec of potential customers due to shill marketing. But seeing as how everyone is already crying for refunds for one days worth of no play time, it could be a clear sign that something this stupid will be enough for the players to say "this game isn't for me".

I agree with the idea of player housing, but I'd prefer if it had some actual functionality to it. Say, how in WoW and practically any other MMO released after it, there are specific places for your character to "sleep", aka places where if you log off, you gain exp bonuses when you log back on. I'd like this for in-game houses rather than specific areas. And it's also why I like the idea of ships acting as player houses; as they provide more functionality beyond simple roleplay and even more than just sleep, using them as transport from one city to the next or even from planet to planet transportation, while without a ship, you'd have a fee for traveling in a public ship or something. Ship docks, specific areas where everyone lands when traveling from planet to planet, would be great RP and general social hubs, and a good place to show off different types of ships, cruisers, what-have-you. It'd also be cool if you could acquire meeting halls for guilds and other large areas, for group meetings and organization.

Though beyond this, it's a lot of work for a very small amount of willing users if it provides no actual in-game functionality. It'd be unlikely for Bioware to create a complex system of housing (or at least complex enough to the point where RPers would actually find it acceptable) for such a small number of people unless they could make them something that non-RPers would want as well.

Originally posted by Tisiphone

 

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Originally posted by TheHatter
I don't eat at McDonalds because everyone else does. I eat there because I like it.
I didn't listen to Hawthorne Heights, Dashboard Confessional, etc because everyone else did. I didn't listen to them because they made my ears bleed.
I don't shop at WalMart because everyone else does, I shop there because it's easy and for "The Everyday Low Prices".
I don't play Fallen Earth because everyone else does, I play because I like it.
 
Moral to my post. I don't give 2 shits what everyone plays. I think doing the same dungeon everyday is boring as hell. If they like it, then so be it. I hate it, it's boring as hell. As long as an MMO isn't void of players, it doesn't matter how many people are playing.
WoW is the same damn thing over and over, I've ran every instance in the entire game at least 20 times each. There were no other games out there to keep my attention, I'm just a fan of MMOs. That does not mean I like pressing 1 2 3 4 while watching a movie to keep my brain from going totally numb, doing some nerfed raid boss for the 10,000th time to get a shiny ring is my idea of fun.
Btw. More people play per server on Fallen Earth than people play per server on WoW. So, you're not really playing with all those people anyway, so what do you care? This post is pathetic, get a life.
People like different things. "OMGZ FO REELZ YO!" get over it kid.
 
Edit: BTW, your use of generic variables to try and make yourself sound smart failed pretty hard. It just doesn't make any sense.
??vars?post?sense

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QFT from the first word to the last word.

You both seem to be misunderstanding the point of the topic... and I don't see how insults are really necessary or help your case in any sort of fashion.

I'll keep this potentially massive first post for such a broad topic simple:

"Realistically, nobody expects a new game to have the same levels of content as an established game like World of Warcraft."

This is the mentality I see of countless MMO players on these boards, and is a common excuse for new games that are sub-par. And in reality, I don't truly believe 90% (excluding those that play X game over Y game and can ignore content, polish, and quality for niche factors, which I can understand) agree with this, over the fact that only a small few have even a percentage of the subs equal to WoW's which is evidence enough what the majority thinks. Nobody seems to realize that WoW is the powerhouse it is today because no other MMO has the polish, quality, and content that it has garnered over it's years. They may hold different and potentially better playstyles, systems, graphics, classes, and other play qualities and systems in place, but if there isn't enough within the game to make it all up, then how can you expect to succeed in garnishing more than a few players who are attracted to your niche? You may have everything on paper, but if it isn't put together with the PQC (acronym, keep with me folks) that WoW has, then what can you honestly expect in an attempt to gather subscriptions? What attracts me to X game over Y game if Y game has so much more PQC, and X game maybe having Z differences in gameplay? Why would I play X game? What attracts me to Bob and Rob's Apocalypse Adventure over Fallout 3 if Fallout 3 has so much more PQC, and Bob and Rob's Apocalypse Adventure maybe having Z differences in gameplay?

Who would play Bob and Rob's Apocalypse Adventure over Fallout 3?

Who prefers variable Z over PQC?

This makes it pretty evident why WoW is our current ruler... while of course other factors exist, this is without a doubt, at least currently (not counting past or future factors), the biggest factor.

EDIT: Also, let's consider for this experiment that you haven't played either X or Y game before, and you had to choose between one or the other over Z and PQC and disregarding the factor of "new factor".

To be honest I'd be expecting more for a 2010 MMO (at least most likely 2010). We're getting to the point where we need to start improving graphic quality. I don't mean to the extremes of Age of Conan, albeit very nice, but more of a middle ground or really just a quarter improvement towards that direction. The graphics are better than WoW's, definitely, but not by a really substantial or what I would expect from this point onward. I can perfectly understand having graphics that appeal to WoW players and are usable by as many potential customers as possible, but to be perfectly fair, I'm sure at this point more than at least 80% of people can play WoW on at least High settings and any mid-level computer on the market since last year could completely wipe the floor with it. It's time for MMOs to start amping things up a tad more.

But beyond the graphics, my real issue is the art style. Yes, as everyone else states, I really feel like it just doesn't feel appropriate to the Star Wars universe. It's about as bad as the animated 3D Star Wars movie, and my fear is that they are merely trying to appeal to the young demographic with this cartoony art style. At the same time I approve of this and dislike this. Realistically, if I was making an MMO, I would use the same business practice; kids around 13-21 are easily the largest demographic (I'd say at least 50% of all players). But at the same time, it really encourages that same childish community that comes along with the demographic (and I don't really say this with bias; I'm 17 myself, but I can agree that people in this age group are obviously the more inclined to be l33tspeak monsters). I would have preferred the same SWG style, just improved vastly in graphic quality.