E3 2011 Awards
With the completion of last week's E3 convention in Los Angeles, and with a weekend under their collective belt, the MMORPG.com team has put their heads together to hand out the E3 2011 Awards. See if your favorite game made the cut and then let us know what you think.
Awards By Garrett Fuller on June 13, 2011
Best MMO of E3 2011 – Defiance (Trion)
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Defiance offers some interesting innovation to the MMO genre. The E3 demo was played on the PC, XBOX, and PS3, combining all three systems into a persistent world where players battle it out against recently landed aliens trying to terra-form Earth.
From what we’ve seen so far, the game looks fantastic. Defiance has all the bells and whistles of an MMO wrapped up with a third person shooter. The intense game play we saw had players doing a quest style mission to fight for alien technology against hordes of soldiers leading up to a boss fight, and the game moved very well across all three platforms.
The only downside to Defiance at this time is that they could not answer questions about PvP. With skills, armor, and weapons playing a major part for character progression, features like the teleportation armor and stealth mode really came to life. Overall it was hard to ignore Defiance’s back end technology and fast paced game play. Did we mention there will be a TV show to go along with the game as well? Congratulations to Trion for really delivering above expectations on this hardcore sci-fi title, now we just have to wait.
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Most Anticipated MMO of E3 2011 – Star Wars: The Old Republic (Bioware)
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There is no question that Star Wars: The Old Republic was the brightest blip on the MMO radar at E3. The game continues to drive their story lines with impressive cinematic trailers.
Inside the gameplay demos, Bioware has clearly increased the pace of the game to play faster than the game that we saw last year. The demo made a special point of showing off player vehicles and the famous planet, Tattooine, where fans will have a lot to explore once the game launches.
With so many features in the game it really feels like an epic Star Wars event more than just an MMO. We got to see Operations for the first time and these raids will test the skills of even the most experienced Jedi.
The one area where Star Wars really does shine is making the MMO personal. With the heavy emphasis on story and so many individualistic features like starships, vehicles, and droids, the game gets very personal for players. The main question is, when will all these parts fit together? Hopefully by the end of the year we will have an answer. Get your blasters and light sabers ready, it is going to be one crazy winter season.
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Best PvP of E3 2011 – Dragon Nest (Nexon)
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Nexon comes up to bat this year with Dragon Nest. Do not let the anime style fool you. The PvP in this game is fast and furious. With knock down drag out fights for players in battle ground areas Dragon Nest moves very fast. Our team had a blast with the fights in the game pitting warriors against archers and mages trying to bring each other down in the arena. Using Vindictus’s combat as an example, Dragon Nest has some great attacks for players to master. The class balance was great too as pitting ranged players against some heavy melee fighters could end either way based on player skill. After several rounds of combat we decided to take on the team from Nexon. The PvP fights score up so even if you die once you are resurrected to fight again without losing the match. Dragon Nest took us by surprise and gave us some great PvP stories for the next time we have a go at Nexon.
Rising Star Award for E3 2011 – World of Tanks (wargaming.net)
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Tank commanders rejoice, World of Tanks hit E3 this year with the power of a bombshell. The game, which has grown drastically over the last year, has now become one of the premiere titles online. For fans of tanks, WWII style games, and fast paced action vehicle combat, World of Tanks serves up great fun for the night time computer warriors. With Clan Wars on its way and Historic Campaigns adding to the fun, tank players have a lot to look forward too. World of Tanks gets our Rising Star Award from becoming one of the fastest growing online games over the past year. With its free to play design and realistic graphics, you can check it out very easily. This game is definitely worth checking out and only looks to get better in the coming year with more additions and battlefields for players. Tip your helmets to World of Tanks, they have done a great job this 2011.
Best Expansion of E3 2011 – Lord of the Rings Online, Rise of Isengard (Turbine)
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Lord of the Rings Online has been around for a while. They have made the transition to Free to Play and have seen Warner Brothers come in, merging Turbine into their company. The game maintains a strong player base and is now open to new fans for free.
Isengard is the third expansion for LOTRO and brings some great content and features to players. For a game that has been around as long as it has, it is exciting to see such a strong expansion come to the forefront for fans. The idea of “mobile quest givers” alone is worth it for MMO fans as companions join your crew to give you quests as you go. Turbine is really pushing the story aspect here for LOTRO and giving players the ability to make a difference in Middle Earth. Not only that, but everyone will have access to LOTRO’s monster play which allows players to jump into PvP as monsters in the game. A hardened veteran of MMOs, LOTRO is serving up some amazing content with this expansion. We are happy to give them our Best Expansion of E3 Award.
Best Genre Crossover of E3 2011 – End of Nations (Trion)
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There have been many spins on the MMO industry from different genres of games. Many companies have tried to incorporate all kinds of game play into MMOs. So far the Real Time Strategy genre is one of the toughest areas to get right in an online space. Trion’s End of Nations does an amazing job of bringing the fast paced multitasking of RTS to the online game space. Players can constantly work their forces and construct units to fight it out across virtual battlefields. Having 50 player PvP zones is even better for RTS strategists to work together in bringing down other players on a truly epic scale. End of Nations mixes the best parts of the RTS cocktail with some serious persistent world punch. Trion’s follow up to their successful MMO RIFT looks to take online games into an entire different direction.
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Most Innovative of E3 2011 – DUST 514 (CCP)
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EVE Online has been a triumph in the MMO industry. Spanning years of gaming now, it remains one of the most ruthless places online. Factions and players have been battling it out for almost a decade. Now with DUST 514 players will be taking on a whole new level of engagement into the dark future of EVE. The impact that DUST 514 will have on the EVE universe makes everyone stand up and take notice of a game that pays homage to ground combat in a world of space ships. DUST players will be able to impact planetary control in EVE and EVE players will be able to help out, or hinder, DUST players as well. The two games will not only share certain aspects and their economies, but it will all happen on the same servers, real-time.This connection between the two games makes DUST 514 our Most Innovative Game of E3 2011. Get ready pilots, the ground wars are about to begin.
Best Combat of E3 2011 – TERA (En Masse)
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MMO are moving closer into the action combat zone with their play styles. The first game to really bring this to the next level is TERA. The game play and combat move incredibly fast for an MMO and players will enjoy the quick combat in the game. With a UI that allows for some combinations and dodges, MMO combat will not be the same once this game hits the market. TERA continues to impress by having some of the best demos at game shows. If you are at a show with a TERA booth, definitely take the guided tour, you won’t be disappointed. TERA has all the features of a major MMO, but it is the combat in this game that really shines. We look forward to more as the game continues to grow and launch in the Western market. Fast paced fights and monster boss battles, TERA wins our best combat award for E3 2011.
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I am not sure about Defiance, knowing not too much about it other than what I have gleaned here.
But, if a game can bring consoles and pcs together in the same persistent world...*and* do it well (that is a big if) that is a huge win.
That said, I have my doubts about how well they can be integrated without one side or the other suffering horribly, especially with regards to any pvp.
correct me if i'm wrong, but from what i understand about Defiance, when the game is live, you won't play with people playing on different systems. so ps3 players play with ps3 players, xbox with xbox and pc with pc. so wvwn though thats what the demo was showing that won't be how it is at luanch. at least that is what i had heard.
Am I being punk'd here??!?
Lord of the Rings: Rise of Isengard Best Expansion of E3??
Considering that we have NO gameplay, NO screenshots, NO alpha, NO beta, ONLY a release date and the promise that they're working on it and it wins for "Best Expansion"...
You can't be serious??
Well without seeing Defiance at E3 it is hard to even debate wether it was the best mmo at E3. I guess we'll see! :)
SW:ToR winning most anticipated at E3 for MMOs was almost a given. So i'm not surprised on that one.
As for what i am surprised about is this
as companions join your crew to give you quests as you go. Turbine is really pushing the story aspect here for LOTRO and giving players the ability to make a difference in Middle Earth.
Now everyone knows i'm a Bioware fan, so it makes me a bit curious that before now most of these games (i do know LOTRO is a story based game) that now so many games seem to be incorperating features that are common in Bioware games. IE branching stories, comapnions that also give quests. It just seems interestsing and gives me a smirk. Good to see story is still viable in MMOs.
Its sad that action combat seems to be the next big thing.
Action combat opposites anything a rpg revolves around.
At best you get action adventures, at worst APB.
Some people like interaction in videogames :) If you don't theres always bioware games :P
Were there any other MMO expensions even at E3? LOTRO may have just been 'awarded' by default.
I'd like to know more before making judgement on Defiance. I'll keep an eye on it.
SW:ToR is a game I've been waiting for since the first mention of the game. I am eagerly wainting it's release, especially since it seems to have EVERYTHING I like in a MMORPG. Time will see if my personnal hype is met with equal rewards.
I agree with the Defiance pick. I woke up the morning of E3 knowing little about it and really interested in DUST 514. Now Defiance sounds like a day one purchase with Dust 514 being a pass.
Interesting what exclusivity and reveals do to games' hype in a short time span.
I don't know much of Defiance,but LOTR is much better in my opinion.
ps:they should have added Skyrm even though it isn't MMO xD
dunno about the others ...
but Dust 514 totally deserves most innovative!
CCP are trying to expand the level of depth of the EvE universe to mind boggling levels! The space commanders in their ships will soon walk the station which will add to the immersion (this field attracts more serious and calculating), while on the other hand on planetside there'll be the trigger happy thugs on the ground level getting their hands dirty
I sincerely hope that in Dust 514 a player can choose to either fight random fights for random corporations or join an EvE corporation and only fight for them (or for neutral/ally coporations when no work's available)
Would even be ineteresting if Dust players could form separate solely merecenary groups, independent from EvE corporations and hire themselves out to the higherst bidder.
I really look forward to seeing them delve in this cross-platform cross-genre approach. The concept fascinates me! And I wish them the very best of success. I'm curious to see how much further they can push the boundaries
So far the MMOs that focus on more action based combat have been failures. And TERA isnt doing so well itself, so I would temper expectations on that.
"The game play and combat move incredibly fast for an MMO and players will enjoy the quick combat in the game."
There should be a 'some' before players. TERA wont revolutionize combat at all. It will likely be a niche game and its HIGHLY doubtful it will make a big splash against SWTOR and GW2
Whole list is trash and the PVP award how can a mini game win best PVP award how????? I am and have been looking forward and still am to dragonnest like i have for 2 years but mini game pvp should not win pvp award.
Me too. They should have added a line saying that it's a great game IF you have NEVER played any major MMOs out there.
So... Best game of E3 isn't even on MMORPG.com's game list? How does that happen?
Defiance by Trion, huh? They are already moving on to new MMOs after Rifts only been out a few months?
I really hope Trion doesn't become another Funcom, spitting out medicore/incomplete MMOs every couple of years. They did a commendable job with Rift, but it's clear Rift is plateauing in a hurry... and a clear reason why is a lack of communication/decent content.
Now, I sorta see why.
So, the best of show is basically a multi-platform Tabula Rasa??
Most of these games look like they are trying to pull in the COD / Battlefield players, and are throwing "real" MMORPG players to the dogs.
Might just be me......but I don't think so.
What's your definition of a 'real' MMORPG player? WoW players like 8 year olds or 45 year old housewives?
And you for a fact played Defiance to know anything about it?
im fealing trion try to make to many game at the same time , end of nation and now defiance .
most of the team probably dont work anymore on rift , where the game probably still need alot of work , well i was expecting alot more coming from rift , now that i know they work under 2 other new game im kinda sad .
That tells you how bad all the other expansion are this E3.
:D
Are you serious?
You don't know anything about the game, but you say another game is better? Thats absurd.
Don't get things mixed up. Trion is a company. Within the company they have multiple teams. The people working Rift won't be working on End of Nations or Defiance. Well the majority of the teams, some of the less time consuming parts of the team might pull double or triple duty. Defiance actually sounds awesome. I know why people are suspicious of it, since DCUO promised the exact same thing, but what we got was xbox servers full of people, ps3 servers full of people (not so much now since the game was down for almost a month), and PC servers which are empty. However with Defiance they're going to get all 3 to play on the same server. They're not the only ones to do this. FFXI had PS2 and PC playing together, and it worked very well. Some would say that the UI in FFXI was clearly for the PS2 (the graphics too), but it was pretty easy to operate on PC too. So it's doable.
I am not gonna lie, Dust and the concept and implications behind it are getting me pretty excited.
However, I have to say that a the dropship feels a lot like the ones from the Star Wars Prequel and that tank is alot like Halo's Scorpion. Not saying its a direct copy, but i can tell what the concept artists were doing with their freetime while they were working this gig lol
I can't wait to see this game in action, particularly how it will effect EVE....and its 43,000+ plants.
Trion announced all 3 games, Rift, End of Nations and, at the time an unnamed MMO/ TV show with the sci-fi channel. All 3 have been in the works all along. It's not like Trion is abandoning Rift and moving on. It's all part of their plan.
Not to hate or anything, but you'd have to be a BioWare fan to believe BioWare invented those features. Both features have been used before and in some instances, better than what BioWare did. Branching storylines hardly exists in BioWare games. Doing stories in various different orders does not make it branching. Witcher on the hand, has a neat branching story line.
Defiance - looks and sounds a whole lot like the comic book "Drafted" which was cancelled. PvP with PC players Vs Consoles in thsi type of game I just dont see it working out too well, Ask Microsoft about that they already worked out it was a bad mix.
Dust 514 is intriguing, I would like to see more titles explore this and a client for Windows would be nice but oh well, keyboard and mouse players own console players as MS is all too well aware..see above.
Uh, not even close. Sharing the same universe and economy as EVE puts DUST on a whole other level from every other MMOFPS.
I don't think you understand how gaming companies work, they have multple teams working on multiple projects. Rift, End of Nations, And defiance (though it was unamed at the time) were all announced at the same time. The rift team, except for the higher ups in the company, will for the most part not work on defiance or end of nations.
u are basing your statement on what ? what other ppl are saying ? have u played tera , or atleast playing ktera ? u have to wait and see , don't get your hopes to high with swotr or gw2 both have their issues but do share a common one = pvp, both are pve oriented for the moment so ..... i do not know how to say it but if u like to bash a pixel and he drops dead pops a purse u get items yey u are happy ... then those games are for ya ( after playing tera , tab option is the biggest dumbest idea someone had long time before) if not i think u will not be verry happy with them or atleast not on long term.
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If defiance has same market strategy as rift we can call it dead from start
DUST u do realise 2 things about dust right
1. is ps3 only that means for pc players of eve the game is like not existing
2. IS NOT AN MMO IS FPS a pure FPS why was even put on mmo list ? just because is related to eve ? the only intereaction betweeen eve will be same chat as corporation and recruitment chat in rest nothing maybe videos but i doubt it , if u hope u will fly then get droped on planet from your ship and start shooting bad guy's who came to steal your ore , sry ain't happening it will be like global agenda , most part it will be missions taken from a hub , the single player part will be minimal some eve related things how to move how to shoot and that's it
SWOTR wil have same place as star trek / LOTR or any other movie/book related games , will boom at start then only fans of the book/game will play, as exemple see LOTR a verry good game but after playing some time u realise is boring and brings nothing new
For me i made my decision i will play tera , atleast it's the closest to L2 pvp stile , " U piss me i crack your head and move on', and u dont have to grind like crazzy ( in ktera i made lvl 27 wich is half from max in 3 day's but was hard core i would say u can make max lvl in 1 and half months of normal playing at this moment)
guys trion had three different teams. one for rift, one for end of nations and one for what we now know as defiance. they have been simultaneously working on all three mmos for a few years now, or at least rifts and end of nations they have been, no idea how long they have been working on defiance but I know its been a year. the rifts team is probably still in place since they have had three different teams working this whole time.
glad to see world of tanks got something. despite its limited gameplay it is still very fun to play and hopefully this should bring some players to check out the game.
still waiting for swtor, hasnt it been most anticipated for a few years now.
Credibility to this list is almost zero... Most of this titles aren't even done yet.
Pure Trion marketing campaign.
Looks like E3 really lacked... um.. content this year. Throw an MMO at a wall and hope it sitcks.
Dust wasn't best of show, he's refering to Defiance.
“Rising Star Award for E3 2011 – World of Tanks (wargaming.net)”
“Historic Campaigns”: historic battles mode was delayed; campaigns are not planned at all.
Can someone correct a mistake on one of the WoT advertisements on this site: this is NOT Kurt Knispel but Tiger commander SS-Untersturmführer Karl Brommann (66 victories).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karl_Brommann
http://www.achtungpanzer.com/gen10.htm
"There should be a 'some' before players. TERA wont revolutionize combat at all. It will likely be a niche game and its HThere should be a 'some' before players. TERA wont revolutionize combat at all. It will likely be a niche game and its HIGHLY doubtful it will make a big splash against SWTOR and GW2IGHLY doubtful it will make a big splash against SWTOR and GW2"before judgind something u probably dont know because u didnt play at all dont make judgement like u are a god or something..i played tera and gw stress beta and i can tell already tera combat system is a revolution and ----> your precious gw 2 with eaze (i wont mention star wars at all since the combat system tab click target is boring and overated and also the animation sucks..)TERA figjhting system is the best to date DEAL with it.check other sites too....tera took the most awards of best mmo while star wars and gw 2 get sh1t
I didnt care about Defiance the moment I saw Trion Worlds was behind it
I still have my Tabula Rasa box! Wish someone would pick this up, dust it off, polish it and re-release it.
If not, I might have to check out Defiance.
E3 is a joke anyways and anyone remotely knowledgeable won't take it seriously.
man, i havent read much bout the new Star Wars MMO... But i hope its similar to how galaxies was when it first came out.. i havent really seen mmo's run "it" like that since.
Funcom has 3 straight failed MMO's, with TSW as a possible great MMO this time around. Trion has only made solid games that are doing well in the market, why not expand and do more. I wouldn't compare them to Funcom, only company that can compare to Funcom's failures is Cryptic.