I want to spend my summer with a fun MMORPG. I was considering Warhammer online or WOW, but unfortunately Warhammer turned out to be a flop. Which game is better and cost less?

Guild wars costs a lot less since it doesn't have any monthly fees. GW have evolved from Diablo while most MMOs comes from an old game called Meridian 59 so it will feel somewhat different from the rest.

Anyways lets see the both games + and -:

GW+

great arena styled PvP

Good AI, monsters don't fall for the tanking thing here

Very good looking for a 5 year old game

Best programmed game I ever seen, any cathegory.

-

Instanced

You kinda get stuck after a while, once you are max level, got a great great weapon, the good elite skills and a good armor with the best runes.

Wow+

Huge community

nice programming, few bugs

A lot of skins for armors, weapons and so on.

-

Really easy. Probably the easiest MMO out there, not counting free realms

The lore feels like they puzzled it together quite badly, WTF aliens???

The balance in PvP is quite bad.

I would go for Guildwars, there is a huge box with all the expansions in, you buy it and never have to pay another cent again.

Originally posted by zollen

I want to spend my summer with a fun MMORPG. I was considering Warhammer online or WOW, but unfortunately Warhammer turned out to be a flop. Which game is better and cost less?

 

 

Do you want PvP or PvE?

Guild Wars is not really an MMO, it's mostly a PvP game.  It's not even marketed as a MMO. 

WoW is about PvE.  If you like fighting NPCs and monsters & doing dungeons, that's the game for you.

Warhammer, while definitely coming short of expectation is a good game with great concepts.  In terms of mass PvP/RvR there is no better game out there.  Since you're only playing for the summer, you will have a lot of fun with Warhammer till you get to the endgame.  You can level through PvP and PvP alone.  The real issues with Warhammer start at level 40.

It comes down to what you prefer.  Fighting other players or AI controlled monsters.

Well PvE\dungeons\raids\quests\crafting goes to WoW.. hands down

Now PVP is a little more complex.

ALL PvP in GW is instanced with I beleieve a max of 5v5 (i could be wrong), WoW has instanced PvP of upto 40v40, also has arenas for 2v2 3v3 or 5v5 with awards going to the top teams at the end of each arena season.

Due to GW's instancing there is no free world PvP, no danger you will get attacked while out adventuring and questing, when you leave a town in GW you enter a private instance of which you can invite a few friends or bots... in wow you leave a town and there is no loading (unless you enter a group dungeon) its an open world, could be 50 horde waiting for you behind that tree =D

and my pet hate of GW.. your gluded to the floor, which is very annoying, "omg a log on the floor, give me 5mins while I path around it as I cannot jump".

I say try em both, wow has a free trial.

 Guild Wars only allows 8 spells/actions on your hotbar at a time. WoW, you have all you abilities and spells at your disposal at all times. Convenience vs. Strategy.

Hmm....this is like being asked to compare GTA4 to Legands of Zelda, not a lot of commonality.

But if you've never played WOW I recommend you give it a go.  It still has a long life ahead of it where as GW's is on its last legs as it awaits the release of GW2 in the near future.

Originally posted by Palebane

 Guild Wars only allows 8 spells/actions on your hotbar at a time. WoW, you have all you abilities and spells at your disposal at all times. Convenience vs. Strategy.

Are you saying GW require more tactical thinking than WOW?? 

I enjoy PvP more than PvE. I don't like fighting pixels which always reacts the exactly same ways.

Do I need to pay WOW + all expensions in order to fully enjoy all PvP features??

considering you can get the trilogy of Guild Wars and you're looking for just the summer. I recommend Guild Wars. It's a lot more instance fun. You wont' get to the fun stuff in WoW untill your summer is almost over. Guild Wars you can just right in. I recommed Guild Wars. It's great for PvP but also has a fun PvE story that you progress through via missions. With cut scense and voice acting.  Plus the spell effects are amazing and the graphics ect.

WoW is a lot of fun and can be for a long time but I think Guild Wars is great and you can seriously have a very memorable summer if you decided to play it :) 

you really can't compare the games, they are completely different

both games have a trial so you can test them out. However, GW's trial is pretty terrible, the only thing you could get out of it would be the basic mechanics of the game.

Have you ever played the card games like Magic the Gathering? That is what Guild Wars skill system is based after. Part of the fun of the game is coming up with different combinations of skills to use for your character. If you don't enjoy that sort of thing than you are better off with a more traditional game like WoW.

PVP battles go from 1v1 and up to 12v12 in Guild Wars. WoW has the battlegrounds of potentially 40v40 (AV) although last time I played there were huge imbalances such as 35v15. I'm not sure if that's improved now or not. Also WoW has 2v2, 3v3, and 5v5 arena pvp. One thing to keep in mind is that in Guild Wars you can pvp as soon as you install the game, WoW you'll need to level your character first.

WoW is a much more gear based game so if you enjoy that sort of thing it's probably the way to go.

Personally I like the pve in Guild Wars, it has a central campaign that places you in missions that can be challenging. Similar to a single player game with a central story. The pve in GW would certainly last you the summer. Some people may not like that though. For the long run WoW is a better choice for pve though.

And just for a fluff argument, GW dance emotes are the best in the business.

Originally posted by zollen

Originally posted by Palebane

 Guild Wars only allows 8 spells/actions on your hotbar at a time. WoW, you have all you abilities and spells at your disposal at all times. Convenience vs. Strategy.

 

Are you saying GW require more tactical thinking than WOW?? 

 

I enjoy PvP more than PvE. I don't like fighting pixels which always reacts the exactly same ways.

 

Do I need to pay WOW + all expensions in order to fully enjoy all PvP features??

 

 

If you buy normal wow, the main restrictions are as follows

• Cannot play drenai or blood elf races or play there lvl 1-20 zones (need exp 1)
• Cannot obviously go to outlands (exp 1) or northrend (exp 2)
• Cannot play EoS (eye of storm 20v20 Battleground) (need exp 1)
• Cannot play SoA (20v20 battleground) (need exp2)
• Cannot play Wintergrasp (need exp 2), or the new 40v40 battleground currently being tested
• Participate in arenas.
• Cannot play as the new DK death knight class (need exp 1+2 & a lvl 55+ toon)

you can

• join a pvp server and pwn newbs all you like in the 1-60 zones
• Play AB,AV & WG battle grounds

For $20 you can buy vanillia WoW, but I would strech to $30 and buy wow+tbc (exp 1), you can play the two new races, play all current battle grounds (lvl restrictions apply). You also get 30days playtime included. No point buying Wotlk (exp 2) untill you get lvl 65)

You biggest decision will be which of the 400+ servers you decided to make ya first toon on.

But go play the free 10day trial.. WoW might not be ya thang!

info on battlegrounds: http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/pvp/battlegrounds/

info on classes:  http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/info/classes/index.html

Originally posted by zollen

Originally posted by Palebane

 Guild Wars only allows 8 spells/actions on your hotbar at a time. WoW, you have all you abilities and spells at your disposal at all times. Convenience vs. Strategy.

 

Are you saying GW require more tactical thinking than WOW?? 

 

 

Some players would believe so. I find it an artificial inconvenience myself. They use it to make the spells/actions you choose be meaningful, becaue you have to change your template to suit where you are going and what you are doing. I myself will never play another MMO where I don't have all of my earned abilities at my fingertips. Spoiled I guess.

Originally posted by zollen

Originally posted by Palebane

 Guild Wars only allows 8 spells/actions on your hotbar at a time. WoW, you have all you abilities and spells at your disposal at all times. Convenience vs. Strategy.

 

Are you saying GW require more tactical thinking than WOW?? 

 

I enjoy PvP more than PvE. I don't like fighting pixels which always reacts the exactly same ways.

 

Do I need to pay WOW + all expensions in order to fully enjoy all PvP features??

 

 

Uhm, if you want PvP, why would you consider WoW?

Choose between Guild Wars or Warhammer.  If you want instanced battles arena style, go with Guild Wars.  If you want Open World PvP/RvR Lakes & instanced 15 on 15 scenarios, go Warhammer.  Warhammer from Tier 1 to Tier 3 is a blast.

Originally posted by Hydroblunt

Originally posted by zollen

Originally posted by Palebane

 Guild Wars only allows 8 spells/actions on your hotbar at a time. WoW, you have all you abilities and spells at your disposal at all times. Convenience vs. Strategy.

 

Are you saying GW require more tactical thinking than WOW?? 

 

I enjoy PvP more than PvE. I don't like fighting pixels which always reacts the exactly same ways.

 

Do I need to pay WOW + all expensions in order to fully enjoy all PvP features??

 

 

 

Uhm, if you want PvP, why would you consider WoW?

Choose between Guild Wars or Warhammer.  If you want instanced battles arena style, go with Guild Wars.  If you want Open World PvP/RvR Lakes & instanced 15 on 15 scenarios, go Warhammer.  Warhammer from Tier 1 to Tier 3 is a blast.

If you want an empty game where there is nobody around and a lot of the game cannot be done because you lack players, and want instanced PVP or PVP that doesn't matter or change the world at all, by all means play WAR.

If you want PVP, go Guild Wars or look to the old school and go DAOC. The one cluster has a good population at this point.

If you want an empty game where there is nobody around and a lot of the game cannot be done because you lack players, and want instanced PVP or PVP that doesn't matter or change the world at all, by all means play WAR.

The server i play on is by no means empty.

last week we took on altdorf and you had exactly 0.5 seconds to go to fort before it was full. which means there were more then 72 players on destruction side alone in that area (all during daytime)

sure RVR and SC is atm a bit empty becouse of the new Land of the dead, but it will be back to normal pretty soon.

Originally posted by Hydroblunt

Originally posted by zollen

Originally posted by Palebane

 Guild Wars only allows 8 spells/actions on your hotbar at a time. WoW, you have all you abilities and spells at your disposal at all times. Convenience vs. Strategy.

 

Are you saying GW require more tactical thinking than WOW?? 

 

I enjoy PvP more than PvE. I don't like fighting pixels which always reacts the exactly same ways.

 

Do I need to pay WOW + all expensions in order to fully enjoy all PvP features??

 

 

 

Uhm, if you want PvP, why would you consider WoW?

Choose between Guild Wars or Warhammer.  If you want instanced battles arena style, go with Guild Wars.  If you want Open World PvP/RvR Lakes & instanced 15 on 15 scenarios, go Warhammer.  Warhammer from Tier 1 to Tier 3 is a blast.

Originally posted by Hydroblunt

Originally posted by zollen

Originally posted by Palebane

 Guild Wars only allows 8 spells/actions on your hotbar at a time. WoW, you have all you abilities and spells at your disposal at all times. Convenience vs. Strategy.

 

Are you saying GW require more tactical thinking than WOW?? 

 

I enjoy PvP more than PvE. I don't like fighting pixels which always reacts the exactly same ways.

 

Do I need to pay WOW + all expensions in order to fully enjoy all PvP features??

 

 

 

Uhm, if you want PvP, why would you consider WoW?

Choose between Guild Wars or Warhammer.  If you want instanced battles arena style, go with Guild Wars.  If you want Open World PvP/RvR Lakes & instanced 15 on 15 scenarios, go Warhammer.  Warhammer from Tier 1 to Tier 3 is a blast.

If you want PVP why consider WAR?

Give GW a look but .....

If you want fluid, responsive combat.  Instanced 10v10 to 40v40man battlegrounds, open world go anywhere PvP, 100v100man open world siege battles, in game 2v2,3v3 & 5v5 arena ladder team battles with in-game rewards for the best teams ... then choose WOW.

You have to spend a lot more time playing wow to be competitive than GW.

WoW has a ton of people, so I am sure you will have friends who play, who could help you out.

GW has instanced based everything only.  It can be fun, but it really sucks in the immersion/ world pvp aspect.

WoW has Arena sport that is severaly inbalanced for many classes.

GW relys on builds for PvP. Ie you and your team use a group of skills that work very well together.  But this means counters to your build destroy you, while what you counter, you destroy.

WoW has a new top dog class every few months or so, to keep people playing/trying new classes.

GW Storyline is quite good, but the PvE can be lacking, nothing like the PvE of wow.

GW has basically zero crafting.

There are other things, but, I think you could learn more trying out the trial for each.

Originally posted by Zorndorf

Originally posted by Leucrotta

If you want an empty game where there is nobody around and a lot of the game cannot be done because you lack players, and want instanced PVP or PVP that doesn't matter or change the world at all, by all means play WAR.

 

The server i play on is by no means empty.

 

last week we took on altdorf and you had exactly 0.5 seconds to go to fort before it was full. which means there were more then 72 players on destruction side alone in that area (all during daytime)

 

sure RVR and SC is atm a bit empty becouse of the new Land of the dead, but it will be back to normal pretty soon.

I am sure some people will still play WAR.

The problem is will EA let them in the coming years.

Recent stats Pheace showed that of the 15 US servers 5 of them were med/med. 10 were Low/low and that means simply - in War terms - unplayable.

On Xfire the last days WAR didn't fall anymore, leveling out at 2.3 K Xfire players. Related to the figures in the past 9 months and viewing the ratio with the 300K known subs of EVE, it would be leveling out now at around 150K players.

That would mean they need to distribute the players to 75K players US and 75 K players EU. So regrouping the US servers to around 7.

Perhaps with 7 US and 7 EU servers the costs can be controlled to keep the game going for EA.

 

Who cares what Xfire says i dont even use Xfire i speak out of experience rather then bland figures without even playing the game. war also have more subs then 150k.

But reading your posts you only get a hardon on WOW's subs so im not taking you so serious anyways.

As for OP i played both gw and wow and its hard to pick one as they r both good games

if you want to  play it just for a while with some nice pvp from the start id choose gw over wow any day

lots might not agree but i found the PvE in GW rather interesting and good aswell, Some missions are one of the best pve experiances you can get but thats all based on own opinion ofcourse

Originally posted by Leucrotta

If you want an empty game where there is nobody around and a lot of the game cannot be done because you lack players, and want instanced PVP or PVP that doesn't matter or change the world at all, by all means play WAR.

 

The server i play on is by no means empty.

 

last week we took on altdorf and you had exactly 0.5 seconds to go to fort before it was full. which means there were more then 72 players on destruction side alone in that area (all during daytime)

 

sure RVR and SC is atm a bit empty becouse of the new Land of the dead, but it will be back to normal pretty soon.

Sure and I can find servers in SWG and AOC that have huge numbers too...it doesn't mean a thing.

What does? I was in the WAR beta along with an entire guild of players who were long time WAR fans. These were the people the game was made for. At launch our guild had over 200 individual players. We were one of the most powerful guilds on the server.

After 3 server transfers (1 volunteer and 2 forced), I went back to see who was still playing, hoping to find love for the game again.

Our guild had 5 players left and I ran into 2 players the entire time I was in Tier 1.

Even the GM, who I never expected to play anything but WAR ever again left to go back too...get this....Star Wars Galaxies..... and this is a guy who plays WAR tabletop weekly. Other players have moved back to their old games and left WAR in the dust.

WAR is in serious trouble....end of story. Recent events regarding WAR and Mythic only prove it to be even more so true.

Originally posted by templarga

Originally posted by Leucrotta

If you want an empty game where there is nobody around and a lot of the game cannot be done because you lack players, and want instanced PVP or PVP that doesn't matter or change the world at all, by all means play WAR.

 

The server i play on is by no means empty.

 

last week we took on altdorf and you had exactly 0.5 seconds to go to fort before it was full. which means there were more then 72 players on destruction side alone in that area (all during daytime)

 

sure RVR and SC is atm a bit empty becouse of the new Land of the dead, but it will be back to normal pretty soon.

Sure and I can find servers in SWG and AOC that have huge numbers too...it doesn't mean a thing.

What does?

what does? if i read tons of posts here, that  a game needs a gazzillion subs with a million servers all full otherwise it is a fail.

i just post my experience and i can say that Warhammer is very playable. i dont claim all servers but hey even mighty wow have crappy servers amongst them

Having spent ALOT of time in both games.

I'd say that if you want to do alot of PvP Guild Wars is for you.

But if you want to do lot's of PvE WoW is the way to go.

So.

PvP - Guild Wars

PvE - World of warcraft

Also if you're not looking to spend alot of money Guild Wars would be cheaper.

Originally posted by templarga

Originally posted by Hydroblunt

Originally posted by zollen

Originally posted by Palebane

 Guild Wars only allows 8 spells/actions on your hotbar at a time. WoW, you have all you abilities and spells at your disposal at all times. Convenience vs. Strategy.

 

Are you saying GW require more tactical thinking than WOW?? 

 

I enjoy PvP more than PvE. I don't like fighting pixels which always reacts the exactly same ways.

 

Do I need to pay WOW + all expensions in order to fully enjoy all PvP features??

 

 

 

Uhm, if you want PvP, why would you consider WoW?

Choose between Guild Wars or Warhammer.  If you want instanced battles arena style, go with Guild Wars.  If you want Open World PvP/RvR Lakes & instanced 15 on 15 scenarios, go Warhammer.  Warhammer from Tier 1 to Tier 3 is a blast.

If you want an empty game where there is nobody around and a lot of the game cannot be done because you lack players, and want instanced PVP or PVP that doesn't matter or change the world at all, by all means play WAR.

How about actually trying the game before bashing it?  Drink much Haterade?  Do you even have a concept of low pop versus high pop servers? 

Warhammer is a blast from T1-T3.  It's the best game for RvR/mass PvP out there.  Its problems are at endgame or T4.  For the summer, it will be fun for the OP, I just doubt any long term enjoyment past a few months.

Guild War is not a MMORPG.  The game is not even marketed as a MMORPG.  Please get a clue.

Originally posted by Hydroblunt

Originally posted by templarga

Originally posted by Hydroblunt

Originally posted by zollen

Originally posted by Palebane

 Guild Wars only allows 8 spells/actions on your hotbar at a time. WoW, you have all you abilities and spells at your disposal at all times. Convenience vs. Strategy.

 

Are you saying GW require more tactical thinking than WOW?? 

 

I enjoy PvP more than PvE. I don't like fighting pixels which always reacts the exactly same ways.

 

Do I need to pay WOW + all expensions in order to fully enjoy all PvP features??

 

 

 

Uhm, if you want PvP, why would you consider WoW?

Choose between Guild Wars or Warhammer.  If you want instanced battles arena style, go with Guild Wars.  If you want Open World PvP/RvR Lakes & instanced 15 on 15 scenarios, go Warhammer.  Warhammer from Tier 1 to Tier 3 is a blast.

If you want an empty game where there is nobody around and a lot of the game cannot be done because you lack players, and want instanced PVP or PVP that doesn't matter or change the world at all, by all means play WAR.

 

How about actually trying the game before bashing it?  Drink much Haterade?  Do you even have a concept of low pop versus high pop servers? 

Warhammer is a blast from T1-T3.  It's the best game for RvR/mass PvP out there.  Its problems are at endgame or T4.  For the summer, it will be fun for the OP, I just doubt any long term enjoyment past a few months.

Guild War is not a MMORPG.  The game is not even marketed as a MMORPG.  Please get a clue.

I beta tested WAR and I played both sides until max level and then left. My entire guild, over 100 individual players, is gone. Nobody is left and let me remind you, this guild was formed in beta, is related directly to a major WAR info website and was full of WAR universe fans. Some of these people still meet nightly for WAR tabletop games and they were the biggest fanbois you will ever meet. As a matter of fact, the guild has officially left WAR as a chapter and mocing to another game.

Of course we were forced twice and decided once to change servers due to low population. So yes, I have tried the game , I have played the game and I have left the game. It is a travesty of an MMO at this point and if you want to discredit what I say, it won't be because I have never tried the game.

And no T1-T3 is not fun anymore. There is nobody left to play. You can hardly complete public quests and the RVR lakes are empty. One side will zerg through it and you can do nothing to fight back because there is nobody around. Last time I tried the game, I ran into two people the entire time I played (Empire, Tier 1).

Doesn't matter if Guild Wars isn't an MMO or not....at least it has people playing it.

EDIT: Server was iron Rock, Order side. Just so you know I am not talking about an old server.

Originally posted by templarga

Originally posted by Hydroblunt

Originally posted by templarga

Originally posted by Hydroblunt

Originally posted by zollen

Originally posted by Palebane

 Guild Wars only allows 8 spells/actions on your hotbar at a time. WoW, you have all you abilities and spells at your disposal at all times. Convenience vs. Strategy.

 

Are you saying GW require more tactical thinking than WOW?? 

 

I enjoy PvP more than PvE. I don't like fighting pixels which always reacts the exactly same ways.

 

Do I need to pay WOW + all expensions in order to fully enjoy all PvP features??

 

 

 

Uhm, if you want PvP, why would you consider WoW?

Choose between Guild Wars or Warhammer.  If you want instanced battles arena style, go with Guild Wars.  If you want Open World PvP/RvR Lakes & instanced 15 on 15 scenarios, go Warhammer.  Warhammer from Tier 1 to Tier 3 is a blast.

If you want an empty game where there is nobody around and a lot of the game cannot be done because you lack players, and want instanced PVP or PVP that doesn't matter or change the world at all, by all means play WAR.

 

How about actually trying the game before bashing it?  Drink much Haterade?  Do you even have a concept of low pop versus high pop servers? 

Warhammer is a blast from T1-T3.  It's the best game for RvR/mass PvP out there.  Its problems are at endgame or T4.  For the summer, it will be fun for the OP, I just doubt any long term enjoyment past a few months.

Guild War is not a MMORPG.  The game is not even marketed as a MMORPG.  Please get a clue.

I beta tested WAR and I played both sides until max level and then left. My entire guild, over 100 individual players, is gone. Nobody is left and let me remind you, this guild was formed in beta, is related directly to a major WAR info website and was full of WAR universe fans. Some of these people still meet nightly for WAR tabletop games and they were the biggest fanbois you will ever meet. As a matter of fact, the guild has officially left WAR as a chapter and mocing to another game.

Of course we were forced twice and decided once to change servers due to low population. So yes, I have tried the game , I have played the game and I have left the game. It is a travesty of an MMO at this point and if you want to discredit what I say, it won't be because I have never tried the game.

And no T1-T3 is not fun anymore. There is nobody left to play. You can hardly complete public quests and the RVR lakes are empty. One side will zerg through it and you can do nothing to fight back because there is nobody around. Last time I tried the game, I ran into two people the entire time I played (Empire, Tier 1).

Doesn't matter if Guild Wars isn't an MMO or not....at least it has people playing it.

EDIT: Server was iron Rock, Order side. Just so you know I am not talking about an old server.

You might want to refresh your knowledge because on Dark Crag, there is always action going on.  There are another two servers which are just as active.  T1-T3 is still a blast.

Once again, you obviously lack the understand behind a LOW pop server.  It's not much different in WoW, I would know as all my toons are on a server which is slowly falling toward low pop.

Your opinion on WAR is simply extreme.  It has issues which the developers, particularly Marc Jacobs, refused to deal with.  But the fact remains that there is no other MMO out there which does RvR and mass PvP the way Warhammer does it.  The game had and still has great potential and there is a reason why so many players still hold on.  For a travesty of a game it still has 300k subs and had nonstop RvR and city sieges on the main servers before that distaster called LotD. 

And once again, Guild Wars is not a MMORPG.  It's at most half of a MMORPG.

To answer the original question: It's just a matter of preference. Guild Wars is more of a niche title and you make a few compromises to not pay the monthly fee. It is not an open, persistent world. You meet up with other players in the towns and outposts but when you go out to do your quests the game instances off until you come back. There is some good strategy since you can only take a limited number of skills at a time. Don't let the above posts make you think that Guild Wars lacks PVE content. With the three campaigns plus the Eye of the North expansion there is plenty to do. It's at least worth picking up one of the campaigns because you only have to pay for it once.

As far as WoW goes, I don't think it needs much of an introduction. It's a very highly polished game and is very fun for new players. It is a much bigger game than GW and you have a huge open world to explore. There is defenitely more variety in WoW but you might find that you get just as satisfying of an experience out of GW. My final recommendation is to go ahead and pick up GW for 30 bucks and give it a shot. After a couple of weeks do the WoW trial and make your decision then.