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Darkfall Column: Five Most Interesting MMOs of 2009
So far this year, 27 games have launched. Jon runs down the list of the five that - for good or bad - caught his eye so to date.
By Jon Wood on September 08, 2009
A few weeks ago, I took a look into the future to see what the top games of 2012 might be. This week, I thought I’d ground myself firmly in the present and take a look at the five most interesting MMOs to launch this year, at least so far. In order to qualify for consideration, a game need only have launched some time between the 1st of January 2009 and today.
So far this year, we’ve had a grand total of 27 MMO launches. They have spanned the genre, from hardcore to children’s titles, subscription and item shop (and in at least one case, both), sports to fantasy. Of all of them, I’ve narrowed it down to five games that I have found, for one reason or another, interesting.
To be clear, this not a ranking of best or top MMO launches, but rather a list of launches that caught my eye for any number of reasons, good or bad.
Hope you enjoy:
;)
#5 The Chronicles of Spellborn
Since its original announcement, The Chronicles of Spellborn picked up fans and followers with its promises of a new MMORPG experience, one that was not only more “hardcore” in terms of the game’s PvP system, but also one that would revolutionize the way that combat was handled in MMOs.
First, all combat in Spellborn was to be twitch based, meaning that you had to aim and fire everything from sword swing to arrows. If you missed your opponent, you missed. It was that simple. Second, and perhaps more of an innovation, was the game’s skill deck. The skill deck was supposed to add a whole new layer of strategy to MMO combat as players placed their abilities tactically into their deck, which rotated with every attack, bringing up a whole new set of abilities. It was of interest and enough to catch the eye or critics and players alike.
Then, the launch came… at least for European players. The game launched first for Herman, Austrian and Swiss players on November 27th of 2008, and for the rest of Europe the next week.
“But Jon,” you ask in horror at the obvious mistake I must have made here, “how can this game be on your list of games launched in 2009?” Well, my good doubter, that’s because the game launched in Europe ONLY in 2008. The full launch wasn’t completed until April of 2009 when the game made its appearance on the North American stage. Like it or lump it, I’m in North America, so NA release is the one I’m most concerned with. Sue me.
It is at least partially for this reason that I find Spellborn’s launch of interest. I thought that what appeared to be a little territory battle between Frogster in Europe and Acclaim in North America really did a disservice to the game in general. A staggered launch, especially one as drawn out as Spellborn’s is bound to lose favor with the last group to get the game, especially if early reviews of the first release are lackluster.
There were a few other elements of the game that I found enough interest in to merit its place on the list. The art style, for one, was and still is like nothing that the MMO world has ever seen before. Dubbed by the developers the “Spellborn Style,” the look always struck me as an attempt to be surrealistically realistic, with exaggerated angles and characters.
The second thing that I found of interest was Acclaim’s decision to open the game up to players for free, at least in a limited area of the game. It’s an intriguing version of a trial that allows players to get their feet wet in the game, with no commitments and none of the time limits that you get with a standard MMO trial. It’s not the first time it was done, but it was noteworthy.
In any case, the unfortunate truth is that after about a half a year of existence, the game just isn’t doing as well as many, myself included, thought that it would. The development company behind the game, Spellborn NV, went bankrupt in June and Acclaim announced that they were going to re-develop the game to include microtransactions, a process that should be finished sometime in 2010.
;)
#4 Runes of Magic
When I first saw Runes of Magic at a game convention in Germany, I thought that there was something different about it. Up until I saw this game, I had a certain image in my head about what a game developed for microtransactions should actually look like. I’m a little bit embarrassed to admit that when I thought of F2P, all I could picture were games with anime-style graphics and poorly localized dialogue. I know that’s a gross stereotype and that there were certainly games out there that didn’t fit that mould, but nonetheless, that was my perception. When I walked into my first demo for RoM, I saw a nice-looking game that looked like a real competitor to its AAA P2P counterparts.
That’s what I find so personally interesting about Runewaker’s contribution to the MMO world, its ability to make a F2P doubter like myself sit up and take real notice of the model for more classic fantasy MMOs.
The game transitioned smoothly from a beta product to launch on March 19th, 2009. When MMORPG.com’s Sean Bulger got a chance to review it in May, he felt that the game was an exception to the rule (see: stereotype) for F2P games.
In discussions with the developers throughout production and into launch, it seems as though Frogster, the company tasked to localize the game for the Western market, has taken careful pains to do the localization properly. They want to bring not just the language, but the concepts and other content more in line with what players over here expect.
Also of interest was the way that Bulger describes the game at the end of his 7.7 review:
“Runes of Magic is probably the most middle-ground, average game I have ever played. It seems for everything that they do right in the game, there's some niggling problem that brings it down. Yet, at the same time, for every fault I find, I can find something else that can make up for it.”
“…for a free to play game, what it brings to the table is far beyond what you normally see from those types of games. Frogster claims that they've hit one million registered users in North American and Europe, and I can understand why.”
;)
#3 Champions Online
As a long time fan of Cryptic Studios’ first foray into the world of MMOs with the groundbreaking City of Heroes franchise, any game that the studio put out as a follow-up would have garnered my interest. My interest was further piqued when I read that this follow up would come in the form of a game based in the vast Marvel universe. Of course, history records what happened there: Partners Microsoft and Marvel pulled the plug on the project, and Cryptic picked up a fairly obscure pen and paper IP in Champions to continue the game.
I’m not going to try to go into the reasons that the original deal fell through, so much as I am going to concentrate on what I think was a fascinating decision on the part of the studio to tie their newly liberated superhero MMO to an IP. The reasons could range anywhere from the brass at Cryptic were long-time fans of the franchise and jumped at the chance to acquire it, to the idea that those same folks thought their second super-hero MMO needed an IP to help differentiate it from its predecessor which by then the company had sold off to NCsoft. In any case, such a move was bound to raise eyebrows, and it did.
As we began to learn more and more about Champions Online, we saw that the game was going to employ a visual style that was designed to hearken back to its comic book roots. I’m not saying it was a bad choice, but it sure didn’t work for the folks who made that first Hulk movie… In any case, stylistically, the game is very different from City of Heroes. This was something that Cryptic absolutely needed to do. What was once their game is now their competition.
More The List Features:
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What are the other 22?
I thought it was great that we saw a lot of diversity in the MMO releases this year.
Dragonica, Atlantica Online, Florensia, NeoSteam and several others expanded the markets they were in and offered something new in one or more ways.
Over the past year we saw Crossfire, Combat Arms, Sudden Attack and Wolf Team - a collection of persistent character FPS's - cross over to new markets with what seemed like reasonable success.
I don't quite get the attraction of Runes of Magic but that's very possibly because I'm simply not the target market so it isn't 'my thing.'
TCoS and Darkfall featured manual targeting, and both Mortal Online and Fallen Earth look to be offering that as well. I'm very anxious to see how that is received over time.
All in all, I think it was a great year for diversity in both the styles of games offered and the business models surrounding them.
(Yes, I know he said 'this year' and not 'the past year' but it seemed on-topic enough to post this here.)
What a joke. Why dont you stop the charade and just declare this the darkfall #1 fansite?
Seriously, the game is a niche game with a very small following. Most gamers outside this site have never even heard of the game and those that visit this site wouldnt have either if you didnt insist on plastering crap about it on the front page on a daily basis.
It was still the most interesting of all of the games. I don't suppose you actually took the time to read the description and the rationale behind the choice before flying off the handle? If you didn't, then shame on you and I suggest you go re-read it and see f you still feel it's fanish. If you did, then I just don't know what to say... I wouldn't call what was said overly positive.
Good list, nice read. Thanks for the article.
This list shows the sad state of MMOs today.
Yes I've heard Runes of Magic is very nice and is a quality MMO in a f2p package, so that is the bright spot on the list.
The rest of the list is filled with games that either aren't doing well or are so utterly casual (and f2p) that they aren't really that interesting at all.
I'm really starting to wonder if my MMO days are over, as the qualtiy games get old enough to start closing down and all the new games are so unintersting and so simple a caveman could beat them in a month, maybe it's time to step out of this genre.
People talk of the fall of the mmo genre all the time. I disagree however.
THe best thing about this genre is all of the games that started this wonderful genre up are still going. You could complain the the new mmos aren't that great but whats stopping a player from playing UO, EQ or AO again? don't say population because every one of the older games has atleast one full server with a busy community.
This is the greatest genre ever, I've recently gone back to UO and can;t believe how awesome it is with actually active players filling the majority of the shards.
With the exception of a couple games like E&B, Pre-CU and SB the genre is still totally intact with older much more satisfying games.
I could never walk away from this genre its older games are freaking epic.
There is a point where you just have to let's it go. Will I play a MMO in the next years? Perhaps, perhaps not. How can I say? My life can change a lot, I may have more or less time, I may enjoy other games.
I didn't start playing games with MMOs, and my last game won't be a MMO. Of that, I am sure. How many more MMOs will be tried, I have no idea, could be none or dozen. Right now, I am playing games on Facebook, they kinda remind me old BBS games...and guess what, there are more players in my "main game" than in all MMOs combined together. MMOs are a neat and nice dream, and I would definitely enjoy dreaming about 1 again...not just anyone! Afterall, I did write a complain letter to Zynga about some gameplays issues in their Facebook game, I guess you won't change the monkey!
I will most likely try Champion Online, not in the near future however. The other? I wish them the best...
It was still the most interesting of all of the games. I don't suppose you actually took the time to read the description and the rationale behind the choice before flying off the handle? If you didn't, then shame on you and I suggest you go re-read it and see f you still feel it's fanish. If you did, then I just don't know what to say... I wouldn't call what was said overly positive.
it was only interesting cause of the garbage community and the fact that the game was in developement for ages... and now its released its laughable that they delivered a game that isnt all that special, and received negative reviews when it came out.
Have to agree with Darkfall on #1, what a crazy ride that was. You had to be hardcore just to get a spot in the game.
nice article, i totally agree those 5 games (eve if they really didnt all work good) can change face of future mmorpg ...
Lets wait and see ^^
Thank you for the article ;)
it was only interesting cause of the garbage community and the fact that the game was in developement for ages... and now its released its laughable that they delivered a game that isnt all that special, and received negative reviews when it came out.
Oh yea darkfall is crap but game like Aion, WAR, Runes of Magic, etc are the best games ever! :rolleyes:
Darkfall does somethings right and some things wrong. All that matters is this. The game is out and even though some people say the game is utter shit, it did prove that you can make profit off of a sandbox game even one that is medicore (I don't think its all that bad. it needs more fluff and its getting it. Then again all I care about in a game is PvP). You can love or hate the game, but that much is true.
Now I'm looking forward to MO, but the way that beta is going sigh
I have to agree, DF was defintiely one of the most interesting games of 2009, whether you love or hate it.
But calling MMORPG.com DF's number one fansite, ROFL, that's going to have some DF supporters laughing out loud today.
Darkfall was definitely the most 'interesting'. Whether you consider Adventurine to be famous or infamous is in the eye of the beholder I suppose. I played EU for a couple months and let my sub run out right before NA launch. I think Adventurine is a bunch of weazles and won't throw another penny at them.
I give them credit though, they peaked my interest up until now. But now I'm looking forward to Mortal Online. Starvault already stated they will start out with at least one server in europe (sweden, i believe) and that noone will be charged extra when servers open up in their area of the globe (i.e., NA servers). This is a hell of a lot better than what Adventurine did, which is why they no longer get my money.
I have to agree with John on the list, especially with putting DF as number one. Only by actually reading the article can one understand WHY he put it as number one. This being that it did in fact, garner the strongest feelings of 2009 about a single game. Now for most, including myself, those feelings were more of disgust than anything else; it garnered them all the same. Stradden recognized this, and thusly put it number 1.
Very well done John, here is to hoping for pleasant memories with the class of 2010.
CHAMPIONS: I was very dissapointed with champions (what little I saw of it) It had very little in common with the champions PnP game using pre caned powers (like COH) instead of the option to be able to roll your own powers
yes it did have a complex charactor creation but suprisingly I found it lacking in the several charactors I tried to make (they never came out the way I imagined them) it remains to be seen if this title will become something some day but it was just another skin job in my mind that has been produced for 15-20 years even the generic spawn generators from at least as far back as EQ era was a yawn for me but like I said I have very limited exposure only a few hours in the "open,open beta" (and oposed to the "open,closed beta"
cant anyone come up with a game that does not follow this tired arcade kill grind idiot AI theme? if i didnt know any better its like theres this construction machine that developers bought 20 years ago they everyone uses to produce slightly different versions of the same crap. as a veteran player its alot of "been there done that"
dont get me wrong there is alot of room in these games for improvement without throwing the entire book out the window.
some suglobal sugestions:
more drama
more player bonding with the game and other players to build loyalty
smarter AI its out there.. percieve, advance, attack just is boring for the defacto brain
more diverse quests instead of vending machine quest givers have them more organic,, have more than a single path to the goal besides brute force.
definatly more player choice freedom,, lord of the rings put in costume clothing so that players could "choose" how they wanted to appear this addition alone gave them +2 in my book though they still cant seem to have resizeable UI windows and their fishing addition was an insult! overall lotro is one of the few games I would fully recomend for the casual player
now if they can only get slippery ice! its odd to have whole zones of snow and ice and none of it slippery! its like white dirt.
they also have a terrible aversion to boats and water they finally put a taxi boat on their lake zone but its a simple teleport :(
still better than FALLEN EARTH which is prety much a run of the mill SWG era generic construct (quite a decent harvest and crafting system) actually quite a boring and bland world especially at the upper levels I recomend avoiding this title for 6 months to a year then see if they added (vehicle physics engine,, grenade physics engine,, water physics engine, and lastly a method of long distance fast travel better than horses or vehicles) they dont even have things like the shotgun guages in the corect order so much for quality control.
I got an idea for a story for you why not do a feature on a "dream game" set up some postings about building player dream games.
have 2 foundations 1 casual and 1 PVP (try to set up votes so they can be double or cross voted)
ask players to sugest different thems then vote/decide which will be used
then have discussions/ sugestions about what features should be left in or out
ending up with a 2-3 page description of this player dream game
when I say dream game im not talking impossible content or nonexistant interfaces just if players had the ability what would their game look like.
Darkfall #1
Good article Jon. I have to agree on your choices, it has been an interesting year. I will say that I don't think many adults will play Free Realms very long, I just found it way too childish for my tastes. I do know some kids that enjoy it though.
As to Darkfall, they just tried to be too many things. Far too many features poorly implemented. If they had just cut down the feature list and concentrated on those select features I think the game would have been much better. But they have a following, they might still get it right yet.
I think Darkfall and Spellborn are both very good examples of how not to market a game.
Not exactly the definition of 'interesting' I would choose.
That definition would make Paris Hilton and the Swing Flu 'interesting' as well.
crap there is a new strand??? the "swing flu"? /palms face
RE: Darkfall "I just know that its progress over the last few months has been entertaining to say the least."
When it comes to Darkfall, I'd say it's been entertaining over the last DECADE. ~grin~
I am glad they finally got released and wish them tons of success.
Ken
"...entertaining to say the least."
Yes, never have I come to know a game so intimately without having actually played it. I wonder how many games in the future will elicit such hope of deliverance from dross. I also wonder if any will actually deliver it.
Okay, so maybe 2 of the titles count as "interesting" in the sense of watching a train-wreck...(darkfall and champions)...but the reast? More stuff no one really cared about.
The list hammers home that 2009 has sucked as a year for new MMOs; let's face it, the market is taking a serious deep breath after AoC and WAR.
Secondly, the list is reinforcing my opinion that this site is increasingly interested in covering things that I have zero interest whatsoever in reading about...so perhaps it's more than time to go elsewhere.
Depends on your tastes..
You do realize MMORPG isn't designed solely for you right? You know they cover MMO's in general all MMO's not just the ones you like?
I personally love Runes of Magic and F2P games and hate P2P so half the list to me is Crap or a Griefer fest but hey you like being all He-Man in a Video Game Grats to You ... You guys are welcome to throw your Egos/Epeens at one another in Darkfall.
Enjoy
The games chosen reflect the unwillingness of MMO companies to try anything new as much as they do the games themselves. But I think the list is spot on in identifying those companies that have tried something a bit different.
Though not my cup of tea, Free Realms was probably the biggest hit of the year. I honestly think online gaming releases have pretty much sucked since 2008. You can rate Darkfall slightly above vaporware because it actually did somewhat release. The gaming industry didn't need another Super Hero game ie Champions. As many of us have found out the older or should we say dated games are far superior to anything thats been released in the past 3-5 years. Ala DAOC for one.
So many "mmos"...99% of them are crap, some of them are not even mmos..more like single player ultra instanced games with online support, only 1 or 2 are worth playing...the rest are a poor excuse for a game...but hey..if people still play crap..they will give us crap...
It never occurred to me to look at Darkfall's launch in that perspective. Quite interesting :)
Of course it does, this is an opinion/discussion site....one that clearly has such a history of covering things you cared about that you're a six-post wonder after how long?
This site has been drifting hard towards covering F2P stuff though, so perhaps you will be more motivated to post eh?
When you can't find significant news about current titles here, what's the point of reading it?
BTW since you seem a little challenged, this wasn't a column about liking or disliking games, he was making a case for "interesting" as in important to the genre or industry, in which I think he was grasping at thin straws...because none of these were terribly important.
Darkfall was a soap opera of epic failure that finally reached a pinacle...big deal. It got talked about a lot, but I don't see that it revealed any great new trend in the industry or "showed" anyone anything.
Champions? Puh-leez...this has been a non-story almost from the moment Cryptic announced it. All they have shown is that you can badly and quickly rip off an existing product, even one you made lol, and people will still buy it.
Free Realms...yeah there's an industry shocker...lotsa kids on the internet who will play a free game that launches with a decent ad campaign...couldn't see that one coming in a million years without being a genius or something.
The others? Just the latest installment of the "F2P borg will devour you all" BS that is becoming the norm around here. Games most people in the P2P market never even heard of.
/signed
To file Darkfall as #1 shows clearly, why I shouldn't read the articles here any longer. Once upon a time, they have been good...
Did the title read "Most important games of 2009? 'Cause I was writing about games that were, for wahatever reason, interesting. If it said important, it was a typo. I wasn't making a grand statement about their importance. Darkfall was ranked number one because I thought it provided me the most interest in its launch and lead-up.
Suggestion for future: Read and comprehend whole article before yelling at others and accusing folks of grasping at straws. I'm sorry, but you couldn't have been further off in your assumption.
Hope that clears things up for you.
Thanks for the good read!
Did the title read "Most important games of 2009? 'Cause I was writing about games that were, for wahatever reason, interesting. If it said important, it was a typo. I wasn't making a grand statement about their importance. Darkfall was ranked number one because I thought it provided me the most interest in its launch and lead-up.
Suggestion for future: Read and comprehend whole article before yelling at others and accusing folks of grasping at straws. I'm sorry, but you couldn't have been further off in your assumption.
Hope that clears things up for you.
>shrug< Try it yourself too
I was directing that at the poster who seemed to think the article was a qualitative assement or popularlty poll..."Interesting" and "Important" are pretty interchangeable when you are basically talking about industry "buzz" and what players were talking about or watching. Sorry you felt I was somehow misinterpreting or misrepresenting you.
You found Darkfalls' launch "interesting" because it was like watching Oprah....I found it pathetic, predictable and boring...not to mention that no one I know was "talking about it" outside of a few very specialized forums like this one...None of my gaming friends ever even heard of it, never saw it talked about in OOC or on guild sites etc.
My gosh, "interesting" and "TCoS" in the same paragraph?
Wow, this is one of the worst articles I have seen on this site. Darkfall?? Seriously? You forgot the part about all of the hackers and the way people got ripped off. The way probably 50% of the population quit within 2 months. One of the worst billing systems in history and a release that was just laughable. I was really looking forward to DF too, such a disappointment.
*Edit
I forgot the part about the servers crashing every time there was a large scale city siege. Yes, very interesting. All the things promised at release that are finally finding their way into the game. Character transfers to the US servers as promised??
People talk of the fall of the mmo genre all the time. I disagree however.
THe best thing about this genre is all of the games that started this wonderful genre up are still going. You could complain the the new mmos aren't that great but whats stopping a player from playing UO, EQ or AO again? don't say population because every one of the older games has atleast one full server with a busy community.
This is the greatest genre ever, I've recently gone back to UO and can;t believe how awesome it is with actually active players filling the majority of the shards.
With the exception of a couple games like E&B, Pre-CU and SB the genre is still totally intact with older much more satisfying games.
I could never walk away from this genre its older games are freaking epic.
I play AC to this day for that very reason. But I also an aware that at some point in the future, probably at least a few years still, those original games will not be profitable enough anymore and will be dropped. So when I don't see anything in the works to be released in the next few years that fills that gap it is disappointing.
Why not ?
Maybe not as interesting as watching a piece of art , a firework show or one of the 7 wonders of the world ; but more like "interesting" alongside the lines of watching a car crash or some other similar imminent catastrophe without being able to interfere..........not the most beautiful sight but definitely draws a crowd.
Other than maybe Champions Online or perhaps Runes of Magic, I don't see anything interesting about any of the other mmos mentioned other than the fact they are just horrible mmos that should not have been made.
Yes, Most Intersting but far from best. What ever its an opinion, everyone has one. CO, imo kicks ass im almost every direction you can take an mmo. But then again you know what they say about opinions, like that oriface we sit on while reading this screen. Everyone has one. We really should Thank the hard working Devs, etc for giving so many mmo's to choose from. Interesting or not. they are there.
This article brings up an issue: the low quality of mmos released so far this year and still to be released.
Even Aion, the most polished of the bunch, is garbage compared to the potential of FF14, GW2, ToR, APB...ect.
2009 is bad for MMOs...and most things, really. 2010 should be better. *crosses fingers*
Could not agree more, The other 4 are not my cup of tea, but I love darkfall, and it was a refreshment from the clone mmo's thats been coming out. I played SWG and EVE in the past, and runescape prior to that, so Darkfall is a gift from god to me.
MO, global agenda look like some good upcoming games, but not going to be darkfall.
Fallen earth was a game I was interested in until I found out that there was a pvp radar installed in the game lol, and it was all PVE pretty much. No risk in PVP.
[Mod Edit] - removed OP off-topic portions.... not the right forum to attack or defend any game in excessive detail
I've only played Runes of Magic, and I must say you have an interesting definition of "interesting." Runes of Magic is about as interesting as a brown paper lunch sack with a little potato chip grease soaking through it.
maybe train wreck interesting?
Kidding aside, the list is pretty good. I'd have to generally agree with it . Otherwise, it's an opinion piece. Sure, others might have a different "5 most interesting", but I think the reasoning in the article was pretty sound, stated in an articulate manner, and made for a good read.
The list is more like "Top 5 MMOs with unrealised potential"
Or perhaps "3 train wrecks, 2 nothings and a pizza place"
Or better yet "Another awful article because Im not really a writer but MMORPG.com seems to think I am"
Here, I'll list the things that are actually interesting about the MMOs listed in the article:
TCoS - how quickly it came and went
RoM - how much the hardcore players are willing to spend
Champions - how much differenve a patch can make
Free Realms - SOE made an above average MMO for kids
Darkfall - the frothing maniacal fervor of the fans
I honestly don't think Darkfall qualifies as a sandbox game. If it does, you can call any mmo a sandbox. Everything in the game is static, and players don't really have the tools to do much of anything. If anything it's a persistent low budget medieval fps with a few RTS elements.
i cant stand microtransaction based games. they are going to be the death of the mmo genre. f2p games always suck ass, and monthly subs with a micro shop is pure greed.
Darkfall, my favorite mmorpg number 1 yay!
"Everything in the game is static"
What? Have you even played Darkfall?
Anyway, on topic - Darkfall gained my interest in 2003 due to my love of Ultima Online and more aggressive games such as Quake, UT, CS etc. I've never had such an interest in any game to date; this is due to the social and political side of the game where anything can happen as well as the brutality of the combat and the ability to shine through with player skill rather than character skills. I'd now consider the game to be my favourite MMORPG. This is down to one hard fact: I have never had more fun in any game than I've had in Darkfall Online.
At least we don't pay for time cards...yet.
I actually pity the asian market for such a reason...sure, the super casual gamers save a few bucks, but everyone else is paying double or more just to keep playing.
I liked the article.
Thought it was a fun read.
I agree that Darkfall was the most interesting launch of '09; just wish I hadn't been a part of it.
To the people blowing up over Darkfall being number one on his list,
Being interesting doesn't mean good or bad. It means that there were things surrounding it that set it apart from the others, whether those things be good or bad.
Jon wasn't making a point of Darkfall being a good game, any more then he was making a point that it was a bad game. He was just pointing out that with everything that went on during it's launch that it was the most interesting of the mmo's to release this year.
Think of it this way.
The staged release.
Billing errors.
Review controversy.
Server problems.
Missing features.
The love/ hate relationship of the gamers.
NA server opening.
Players having to buy a second account to play on the new server on day one. (or even today for that matter.)
Now point out another game that had all of those things happen when it released.
There are none.
Put it into perspective. Imagine if Dark and Light had released this year. I believe it could have made the list in the number two spot right behind Darkfall. Dark and Light isn't a good game, but it was interesting due to all of the controversy surrounding it.
It's the controversy, and the events surrounding Darkfalls launch that earned it the number one spot on Jon's list; not the quality of the game.
Now sit back.
Breathe.
Pop an adoral.
And relax.
Some of you got way to hyper over nothing.
Sadly the majority of interest in these titles seems to revolve around the method of access (subscritpion) by the player, in real gameplay terms they struggle to offer a single fresh idea between them. 2009 seems to be destined to be the year of absolute stagnation in gameplay terms.
Here's hoping 2010 actually inspires some designers with the courage to do something imaginitve or original with the medium.
I have to agree that Free Realms does rank as number 2 for most interesting launch.
It is the one game that claims to have millions of registered accounts (I think over 8 million now at the rate SOE was saying, 500k every week), but yet the number of concurrent users... or *cough* active accounts, is no where near that.
I have an idea, how about having an article of, "The List: 5 of the most Interesting Spins of 2009"?
pretty much true.
Darkfall Online is easily the best game that has come out in years!
Exactly, put it into perspective...all of those were totally predictable based on the history of the hype, BS, drama and near-vaporware nature of DFs development for years...so why was any of it "interesting"? It's like saying someone crying on Oprah was "surprising"...no it was expected.
This article brings up an issue: the low quality of mmos released so far this year and still to be released.
That - right there. Hard to have any "interest" when all we are seeing is garbage.
Wow, I didnt expect so many ppl with a lack in reading skills. Very interesting :)
I agree mostly although I would put Aion on there. It also has had HUGE hype. Too bad most of them have bombed or will.
I will agree with a lot said in the artical and response to it. I won't agree with the you had to be hardcore just to play df post. Yes it was hard to get the game, but thats not hardcore thats just marketing strategy to create a lack of a product to make people want it more.
Now on to CO yep I found it lacking in a lot of places in customization and powers, as well as the way those powers worked. A lot of powers I got to try out I couldn't use cause I didn't have enough INT or END to use them. A large number of classic symbols were missing from the emblem list. And I felt that a lot of things would have been better if they added more lays to the costumes. As for the game itself the powers never really made me oo and awe the way I'd liked.
Tottaly agree on #1 Darkfall, cudos to Jon Wood
Then again , i am biased because i enjoy the game and the patches the devs have offered the past months. There are always issues to be resolved (damn these 3 elemental school mages) , but the true spirit of sandbox and player controlled bigger picture and politics is 110% there.
Game is wild, i promise you that.
#1 Darkfall - definitely, it was a show that ffa pvp and sandbox has people wanting to play, agreeing with the rest as well. Lot of interesting titles this year while not that successful but interesting nevertheless. :)
I sort of think DF supporters, DF haters, and people who just aren't interested in the game in general will all be laughing out loud at that. Musta been one of the dumbest statements i've ever heard. MMORPG.com never seases to amaze me, it keeps getting more and more sub-trash level individuals by the day.
Exactly, put it into perspective...all of those were totally predictable based on the history of the hype, BS, drama and near-vaporware nature of DFs development for years...so why was any of it "interesting"? It's like saying someone crying on Oprah was "surprising"...no it was expected.
This article brings up an issue: the low quality of mmos released so far this year and still to be released.
That - right there. Hard to have any "interest" when all we are seeing is garbage.
Wow.
Comprehension has failed you.
It's interesting because of all the controversy that surrounded it.
It has nothing to do with the quality of the game.
Sorry, you are the one failing to "get it" here. Yes, the quality of the game has nothing to do with it, but *you* and the die hard forum warriors on sites like this are the only ones who found it "interesting" because of that controversy.
Given the history of the game and Tasos it was a given that the launch, good / bad / indfifferent, was going to generate the kind of pointless fanbois/hater wars that it did. It was as boring and predictable as watching a scripted Jerry Springer episode.
I get it - it was an opinion piece...I disagree with his opinions...what he found "interesting" I found to be boring, predictable or simply irrelevent.
This.... Altair's post and another 2 or 3 before it...
/facepalm
100% predictable response from some of the DF fans.
Folks, he's not saying Darkfall is a great game. He's not praising nor scorning decisions they made. He's saying that of all the games listed, the controversy, hype and everything else that surrounded DF has made its development and launch the most interesting *to him*.
To be clear: He's not saying Darkfall itself is the most interesting game. Though I know that won't stop some of you from spinning it that way anyway.
I'm just waiting for the post where someone spins it as something like, "DF voted the Most Interesting MMO! The haters/trolls were wrong! Darkfall is a success!!" I have a good idea of who would post such a thing, too... but I'll wait and see what happens.
I'm just waiting for the post where someone spins it as something like, "DF voted the Most Interesting MMO! The haters/trolls were wrong! Darkfall is a success!!" I have a good idea of who would post such a thing, too... but I'll wait and see what happens.
I would not be surprised if AV does not Tag this on the front page of the DF website, its just begging to be spinned that way.
Darkfall # 1
Dont think there can be more drama here, then what DF did generate.
So its a natural winner. Just look how at this thread : )
Yeah darkfall deserves #1 spot for sure! Then also look at the patches that came out so far not one of them was disappointing! they made many players resub or bring in fresh meat! AV is going for the long ride with this game and with every patch it gets better! I dont know but does that not remind you of CCp and eve online? ;)
I usually like Dana's articles, but call these MMOs the most interesting in 2009? Wow... well, maybe they are for 10 first levels... Champions Online is grind.
It was still the most interesting of all of the games. I don't suppose you actually took the time to read the description and the rationale behind the choice before flying off the handle? If you didn't, then shame on you and I suggest you go re-read it and see f you still feel it's fanish. If you did, then I just don't know what to say... I wouldn't call what was said overly positive.
Actually I read the so called "rationale" behind the choice plus the arguments for it. They are very much lacking any convincing argument, the whole proposition is backed with the "great" argument of "it got the MMO people talking". Seriously, I would suggest the so called "journalists" on this site to catch up on their reading in rhetorics, I could suggest Plutarch, Plato and Aristotle.
I agree with the first post, that this site is very biased towards Darkfall, and I always believed that journalism is supposed to aim for objectivity, and not subjectivity as mostly I see here.
Regards,
R
Actually I read the so called "rationale" behind the choice plus the arguments for it. They are very much lacking any convincing argument, the whole proposition is backed with the "great" argument of "it got the MMO people talking". Seriously, I would suggest the so called "journalists" on this site to catch up on their reading in rhetorics, I could suggest Plutarch, Plato and Aristotle.
I agree with the first post, that this site is very biased towards Darkfall, and I always believed that journalism is supposed to aim for objectivity, and not subjectivity as mostly I see here.
Regards,
R
Geeze guy.
In reading the article, the specific games he chose and the reasons he chose them, it seems pretty obvious that he's not advertising or showing preference for any one over another. The "honor" of being chosen in this article at all isn't necessarily one I'd be plastering on my front page. To be sure, if MMORPG.com was looking to promote DF, this article was not the best way to do it.
Darkfall's reasons for being in the top spot aren't exactly flattering to the game if you've followed the game's development at all; it's been considered by many as a very public demonstration of how *not* to develop, hype, launch, run and defend a MMO.
However, I think it's a fair assessment since, if nothing else, the three-ring circus that is DF and its ring-leader, Tasos, have been the source of much conversation, speculation, debate and flat out arguing on these forums.
Seems to me like y'ou're just picking nits here and looking for an argument where there is none.
Haven't played the other MMOs but I'm heavily invested in Free Realms these days. I thought I was done with SOE but the casual approach and the collection of mini-games has kept me interested since launch. I don't know if this is a testament to the game's playability or the fact that I'm pretty burned out on the traditional MMO formula? Who knows.
Darkfall for the win! Someone made a game that is not an EQ clone. That is a unique aspect within itself.
I suggest replacing the biased writer, if he can't take a neutral position. Then again MMORPG.com is getting pretty biased aswell. I guess you need to make your money with disgusting promoting.
But Darkfall, #1? Because it made a "hype"? "drama?". Right..thats what games are about. Never knew concepts were considered to overtrow solid-made games...
Very poor..I feel like reading a filler.
i agree darkfall was interesting to see launch. but its more like darkfall is interesting like a car crash is interesting. everyone likes to see one. its scary, ugly, yet you cant look away. but i dont deny the game has garnered what can be only determined as a freakshow of arguments, and counter argument, fanatic fanboism's and trolls alike. never before i seen a game have such fun, inviting antics follow its wake lol. truly enjoyed it beyond anything else, it made for a continuous good read.
" Then, the launch came… at least for European players. The game launched first for Herman, Austrian and Swiss players on November 27th of 2008, and for the rest of Europe the next week."
Yes someday I would like to visit Hermany....
Crazy ride is a tremendous understatement for me. I was one of those people that had waited for 4-5 years for Darkfall before it finally launched this year, I was also one of the few thousand of people that got to beta test the game for a month and I was one of the first few thousand that was in the game on launch day.
My journey with Darkfall has been such a roller coaster for so many years that it is without a doubt the game that has had the biggest impact on my life ever.
I stopped playing Darkfall about 3 months after the launch but the thing is beta and the first 2 months after launch I played the best game I have ever played and I have been a gamer for over 10 years and played hundreds of games and dozens of mmos in my time and nothing has ever come even close to the pure joy of playing Darkfall.
But as great as Darkfall was as suddenly it died right at my feet.
The first 2 months of Darkfall was all about rushing to gather resources, claiming a city, sending out raiding parties and fighting of raiding parties. The game felt incredibly dynamic and with so much promise of what was to come but it turned out that once that we conquered that first mountain there was no lush valley behind it but just an empty desert and that was one of the most devastating experiences of my gaming carer.
I guess I should have seen it coming and in the end it comes down to that it was an unfinished title developed by a team that while they had the heart didn't really have the muscle to finish a project of this size. Maybe one day Darkfall will be a finished title but for now I am still licking my wounds.
Problem is it is easy to describe a MMOG as interesting and give it a number 1 slot on that basis. It is another thing to pay hard earned cash for a game, invest a lot of time in it and end up being shafted because the product is effectively being miss sold.
Darkfall is interesting, I do like the author applaud their efforts but I can't really condone ignoring consumer law...
You can't call Darkfall a "sandbox" game. Sandbox games give you the option of any playstyle and character skillset you wish, with each having a viable role in the game. That situation doesn't exist in Darkfall.
Darkfall is in reality a class based game, with only one viable class. That one class is the melee/archer/magic class. If you don't train all three, then those that have trained them have a huge advantage over you. There is no choice in the matter.
I had followed Darkfall since October 2002, and I wanted it to be the one game that I can finally be happy with for a long time. They created a huge world with a widely varied landscape and excellent details. They created decent character models - not the best, but ones I could be happy with. The city building and siege systems were good.
The two things they failed to provide, and these are absolutely key to a pvp mmo game - 1) a decent combat system, and 2) a decent skill tree. If they had spent half the time they devoted to crafting a beautiful world into working out those two things, Darkfall would have been pure win.
It was still the most interesting of all of the games. I don't suppose you actually took the time to read the description and the rationale behind the choice before flying off the handle? If you didn't, then shame on you and I suggest you go re-read it and see f you still feel it's fanish. If you did, then I just don't know what to say... I wouldn't call what was said overly positive.
Wood clearly describe it very objectively with open mind, why Darkfall is number 1 intresting game of 2009, but for trolls-haters nomatter how hard you try, when give an opinion thats clearly not from a rabbit fanboi but an open objective observation they just keep bashing it they dont care what others say in there mind even tho they never played it Darkfall is crap in there limited mind, pitty so many are narrow minded:(
Again so many failing to undertsand why wood choose Darkfall as most intresting mmo of 2009 as i read many replys they wanne see a themeaprk at number one spot they all hate games like darkfall its not posible its an intresting mmo no they just hate it.
And for those who have follow it for so long and come up with arguements like this or that is not what i thought Darkfall would be pls GO BACK TO UO Darkfall dont need you BYE:p
1 small independed company makes a free for all pvp with full loot nobody force to played and you have hundreds of carebear games and still they hope this ONE SANDBOX FREE FOR ALL GAME FAILS this is BEYOND ME?
it was only interesting cause of the garbage community and the fact that the game was in developement for ages... and now its released its laughable that they delivered a game that isnt all that special, and received negative reviews when it came out.
Oh yea darkfall is crap but game like Aion, WAR, Runes of Magic, etc are the best games ever! :rolleyes:
Darkfall does somethings right and some things wrong. All that matters is this. The game is out and even though some people say the game is utter shit, it did prove that you can make profit off of a sandbox game even one that is medicore (I don't think its all that bad. it needs more fluff and its getting it. Then again all I care about in a game is PvP). You can love or hate the game, but that much is true.
Now I'm looking forward to MO, but the way that beta is going sigh
he i wouldnt say anything yet : ) *cough* wait for massivelod to be in
I honestly think dana is sleeping with one of the dev's from darkfall because there's no way in hell I'd rate that game so high on the list.
I'd say Darkfall is right next to Roma Victor... on the most hyped biggest poopers list.
It's got I SUCK AT DEVELOPING GAMES written all over it. The UI, the BUGS, the HACKS, the crappy character development. They failed at everything. They even managed to make FPS a neutral addition by making AOE spells the only thing people really use in PVP (how hard is it to hit someone with a rocket launcher in a fps that you can cast 5 times before reloading?).
If your soul purpose in a game is to watch a bar go across the screen 24/7(archery, magery, harvesting) then by all Darkfall should be #1.
Dana should be fired for posting this.
The only reason Darkfall is still in business is because they blatantly lie on their site about the attributes of their product and then sell it for 50 bucks with no refund policy.
Very Interesting Article.
I am not surprised by DF's #1 spot as the most interesting and I agree with that choice as well. I was in its beta for a while and also gave it a good try at launch (half my guild made it in the first 2 weeks post launch.
Being original UO players, we were very very interested by the Features and what DF's fan made hype let out. Unfortunately the game ended up being half cooked, while most of the PvP aspects and excitement was there, in the beginning...it quickly became sour because of how people play games today, but also because how many elements are designed in to the game.
The adventure in the Dangerous Wilderness feeling got stomped by the exploitation of some mechanics, and the flawless execution of others. There was no more Dangerous Wilderness to be found, there is no wilderness in Darkfall, there is only a battlefield.
The moment you step outside a Town (player or not), it is a Battlefield. Hence, the game loses the quality of Danger, and becomes a Frag fest at the same level of any other FPS game out there, there is no Adventure Factor. And I prefer the true FPS game, because at least there we do not have to harvest resources or Kill AI for Gold in order to get the weapons to fight in it.
In ether case, would not want to make this a review about DF. All in all I agree with it being #1 in the interest scale. And happy also about the other 4 games of the list, I will certainly be giving a closer look to these.
Thanks
"...Frogster claims that they've hit one million registered users in North American and Europe, and I can understand why.”
This is one ridiculous point of view. Claim or not claim, u should play a bit more and get more experienced with game. There is NO million registered users. There is above 100k-200k users and - 900k alts. Yes, every high lvl players have above 20 acc, I know players that have 40+ acc. I'm one of them. Geezzz...
As ROM stands as competitor to AAA MMORPG games... Yes, it can stand. But reach end game, you will see how worst game can be made. And it's still in beta. Believe or not.
Putting a bug ridden unbalanced and empty pile of crap as #1 interesting launch of 2009 is just hilarious.
Is this what the MMOG following has become? A constant flame war? The majority of you are creating malicious, uneducated propaganda around Darkfall without having any expirience with it. I have been following Darkfall since 2006 and it has become clear that most of the people that dropped the game became bitter and have made it their agenda, not to mention the many who have been blind sighted by an industry and have never seen the log in screen.
It is pathetic.
Despite problems surrounding the implementation of features and other issues the game is unique and to the right audience a favourite. Shame on you for preaching hate, blinded you are all so that you forget each has his own taste. Few of you realise how difficult it is to make something this big with limited funding and staff, and in your bitterness you spin stories to redeem your bruised ego.
So stop it. Darkfall deserves more respect then the industry has given, or in the least objectivity.