The List: Five Surprising Things About The Secret WorldIn this week's The List, we're taking a look at five things that surprised us about The Secret World.
Column By Michael Bitton on July 05, 2012
Column By Michael Bitton on July 05, 2012
In all honesty, it’s been hard for me to get into The Secret World. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve been excited for the game since Funcom first announced it and began taking forum registrations (signed up day one!) and I’m a huge fan of Ragnar Tørnquist’s prior works, including Dreamfall and The Longest Journey.
Still, once I actually got my hands on the game, there was just something about it that I couldn’t put my finger on that ended up deflating my excitement. While I had access to the beta for months, I rarely felt the urge to actually login and play. I do know that one of the major issues for me was the extremely poor character creation options; I just couldn’t get into my character.
Fortunately, I recently figured out a look for my character that I’m mostly satisfied with and now that the game has launched, I’ve spent a bit of time with it and found a couple of things surprising.
5. MMORPG.com Community Reaction
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This isn’t about the game itself, but let’s just say the community here at MMORPG.com is a bit of a tough crowd. Being so close to your discussions on a day-to-day basis I found myself surprised with a lot of the positive reaction we’re seeing from readers here on the boards.
You guys, for the most part, seem to be enjoying the game and for reasons that got me more interested in putting in some real time myself.
4. Game Performance
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I recently found out that support for SLI (multiple graphics cards) wasn’t actually set up until the latest set of NVIDIA beta drivers were released. I’d been playing the game before that (including back in closed beta) and the game ran great at cranked settings. Let’s just say I was around for the launch of Age of Conan, and with a top of the line rig at the time of the game’s launch I wasn’t seeing anywhere near the level of consistently strong performance I’m seeing in Funcom’s latest MMO.
3. Variety in Outfits
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While character creation is poor, and this is almost painfully ironic, the breadth and quality of outfits to dress your ugly bastard up in are almost unmatched. There are simply tons of clothing options to pick and choose from in The Secret World, both in and out of the in-game cash shop.
Once Funcom expands on their character creation options (currently targeted for the end of August), The Secret World could possibly have some of the coolest looking characters on the MMO scene.
2. Combat…Not Too Bad!
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I’ve noticed some fairly significant improvements on the combat animations since playing in beta (especially with handguns!) and while combat seems to be one of the game’s weakest areas being pointed out by our community here, I’m finding that at least so far, it’s not too bad (Mouse 4 for your builder really helps!). There’s a good bit of depth there when considering the synergy of different weapons skills and the debuffs/buffs they bring to a situation.
1. Questing IS Fun!
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Most people are raving about the really cool quest design in The Secret World, namely the quests that involve some sort of puzzle, and I have to say, I really do agree. Meeting up with random players and collaboratively solving quest puzzles is a real blast.
A friend of mine completed the dreaded Morse code puzzle recently by installing a Morse code app on his phone and actually figuring the thing out himself. I don’t know if I’ll go that far – but I’m honestly surprised at the length Funcom has gone to ask players to stop and think about some of their tasks.
Were you pleasantly surprised by anything in The Secret World? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!
I played in the closed beta and didn't like the intro to the game. Starting up the launch client, I didn't have big hopes, but it was actually very good now, really highlighting what the Dragons are about and giving them some depth.
What surprised me the most about TSW is that I actually sit and listen to the NPC's instead of skipping. It's partly because you get vital information for some quests and also because I think it's actually really well written, the NPC's ranging from a bit depressive, to amusing to outright funny.
TSW uses some really great art/assests for it's quest items. When you have to pick up a map or check someone's notes, the item you see looks like a map or someone's notes. Infinitley better than some text in a quest window which sadly is the norm.
Yes! This too! It really helps sell the quests. Should have added it in to the article. :)
I played the first closed beta but just couldn't get into it admittedly because the game was just so different it was a bit of a shock.
Early access started and I thought what the hell (already purchased the game) and as you mention the game has improved a lot from beta. I've been pleasantly surprised by just how well the launch went and secondly how polished the graphics are. If you have a DX11 card your're in for a real treat, the tessellation on surfaces is amazing and TXAA will be implemented soon.
Really the only issues I'm having is a few bugged quests which is a pain but I can live with them as Funcom has been fast to patch the initial bugged ones.
It's early days yet but it's a breath of fresh air in the crowded MMO space that's for sure and I'm starting to wonder if this may be a sleeper hit because it's so different.
Really enjoying the game. I'm not going to lie. I didn't have the highest of hopes for this game for several reasons when I first heard about it but overall I think it is a great game.
Character creation is definitely the biggest downfall though. It is simply awful how little you have available.
On a good note, best story themed content I have seen in an mmo. They really hit the mark in this area and the lore of the game.
Not sure if it is a long term venue but definitely worth checking out and playing least for a couple months. Glad to see they didn't pull a massive launch failure like they did with AOC.
The whole game surprises me. Especially when I come across challenging quests or a tough fight and I have to really dig in and "think" about what I'm doing. It changes the playing field in so many ways when that happens. Granted, this probably pushes certain people away, but for me, it's delivered so well I just HAVE to keep trying that investigation quest or finding the right build to mow down mobs in certain areas.
When people mention "depth" in an MMO this game is the epitome of it. The crafting, combat and quests are very deep. I truly hope this game leaves it's mark on the industry and starts changing the WoW status quo(great game but it's time to move on and add more DEPTH) gametype we've seen in the past 8 years.
Game has been great so far..
Awesome launch with only a few little bugs..
I'm really enjoying the game! My two cents...Story and missions are intresting and occasionally challenging. Some are a little buggy which is annoying as your never sure if its a bug or you've missed a clue. While facial features and height weight are limited i found the creation tool acceptable. The choice of outfits are good, although a lack of good mens trousers (for the look i'm going for). Client is fairly stable, odd crash here or there. Combat is fairly enjoyable although can get a little repeatative, which i'm sure will change as i get more skills to swap in and out. The lack of speech for your character in dialog scenes is a little frustraighting but funcom do make some amuzing references to this fact in the npc dialog.
Keep up the good work funcom.
I just LOVE the research of their quests , and the style of game play is beyond epic. I agree character customization needs work though.
If you start an article in a negative manner, you're automatically creating the reader's mood for the rest of it. Think about that next time you write about what are supposed to be "5 Surprising" aka "5 PLEASENT" things about an MMO.
I felt like I should stop reading in the beginning because it was so negative at first. You did turn it around nicely but still...the beginning is a turn off.