November 29, 2009
03:00 pm | 0 recommendations | Be the first to comment
Personally, I’m a bit tired of the endlessly recycled MMORPG ideas which have been floating around for years now. Fantasy MMORPGs like Atlantica Online, Perfect World and Ether Saga Online
are all good games, but we need some ‘fresh’ ideas to keep things
interesting. One idea which I feel should be considered is a
platforming MMO. It could be ‘room’ based like all the shooting MMOs
out there and would feature many different maps where the ultimate goal
would be to get to the end of the stage while avoiding obstacles and
enemies. It could have multiple game modes – one being a Mario style
level based game with cooperative gameplay or even a ‘racing’ game
where the first one to finish the map first wins. This obviously isn’t
a completely unique idea – but it would be original in the realm of
MMOs.
A ‘massive’ space themed MMORPG like Eve Online,
except free to play would also be a fairly original idea in the free to
play scene. There are currently no games like Eve Online that are free
to play. There are a few decent Scifi MMORPGs,
but nothing nearly as immersive as Eve. I do believe there is one game
currently in development, called Jumpgate Evolution, but it’s expected
to be pay to play. It’s crazy how many fantasy themed free to play
MMORPGs there are out there but not a single game like Eve Online. The
only game even remotely like Eve Online that’s free to play is a
browser game called Dark Orbit, but it’s fairly boring IMHO.
A ‘swimming’ themed sport MMO would be another interesting idea. I
mean, there’s an MMO for nearly every single sport from golfing (Pangya) to basketball (FreeStyle: Street Basketball) to hockey (Slapshot)
so it makes sense to make a swimming MMO or even a boxing MMO. Heck,
there’s even a soccer, baseball and a tennis MMO out there – so it’s
kind of lame that no game developer stepped up to make a swimming
themed game or even a volleyball MMO. If there’s a market for a
basketball or golfing MMO there has to be a market for other sports
MMOs as well.
Lastly, I’d like to see a modern themed MMORPG rather than Scifi or
fantasy. It seems like the only ‘modern themed’ games are MMOs these
days (Like Crimcraft and Alliance of Valiant Arms),
but I could see an MMORPG do well with a modern theme. I can’t see any
Asian game developers trying to make a modern themed MMO though – as it
seems like all Korean and Japanese game developers these days are only
churning out ‘anime’ inspired games. So for a modern themed MMORPG to
really work a prominent Western developer would have to take a crack at
it.
I guess the point of this post is to try and urge game developers to
try new ideas. Fantasy MMORPGs are fun and all but they do get a tad
repetitive.
Recommend This If you liked this, let others know:
November 28, 2009
02:34 pm | 0 recommendations | Be the first to comment
Even though new free MMORPG games are released practically every week – the most popular free to play games are still the same games that were popular 2-3 years ago. The reason for this is clear – MMORPG gamers seem to prefer classic games like Silkroad Online and MapleStory over ‘newer’ MMOs like Cloud Nine, Bright Shadow and Battle of Destiny. This is likely due to a combination of two things. Firstly, these older games are more established – as in they already have a large community and since they’ve been around for a long while they also tend to have more content. Secondly, older titles tend to be more compatible with older PCs. Newer more ‘visually appealing’ games like Atlantica Online and Gates of Andaron demand more powerful graphics cards. Now – that doesn’t make these game’s bad, but simply inaccessible to folks with weaker PCs.
Another reason why Gamers prefer classic MMORPGs is that a lot of newer free to play games just feel… cheap. Games like Luna Online and GhostX for example are ‘alright’ games, but have terribly poor English translations which really take away from the overall gaming experience. Not all ‘newer’ free to play games suffer from this though – Dungeons and Dragons Online, which used to be pay to play at one time, has excellent graphics, gameplay, music and pretty much everything else. The only issue with it is that it is a fairly demanding game. Believe it or not though, system requirements do hold a lot of people back – as many gamers out there still run really old computers. The most common monitor resolution TODAY is 1024×768! That’s insane! My resolution is 1920×1080! I couldn’t imagine going back to something like 1024×768.
Still though, system requirements set aside, it seems like gamers still prefer to play the classics over new games. Silkroad Online for example, still has like 30+ servers and it’s nearly impossible to log in to the game on the first try due to too many players. MapleStory has over 120 million registered users worldwide as well. So I guess the folks behind these classical MMORPGs are doing something right or the guys launching these newer games are doing something wrong. It’s one or the other.
Recommend This If you liked this, let others know:
November 24, 2009
05:17 pm | 0 recommendations | Be the first to comment
Uforia is a relatively new free to play MMORPG
publisher on the block – one of the newest actually. I really have no
clue what they’re thinking though. You’d imagine that a NEW game
publisher would try to ‘start off’ on a good foot by launching with
some epic new games – but nope. Uforia launched their MMORPG service
with a fairly old game called NosTale.
NosTale isn’t bad – but the game was already being published in North
America by another game company – so it didn’t exactly make sense for
Uforia to publish it as well. The second game Uforia launched was Red
War : Edem’s Curse – which is an incredibly ugly game that has worse
graphics than the original Diablo, which launched somewhere in 1997 I
think. Why on Earth would a brand new company start off their MMORPG
publishing business with two…. bad games? Maybe Uforia was just pulling
our leg though – their next game has to be better.
Three Kingdoms is their newest game that’s open to public – it’s a
3D fantasy MMORPG set in ancient China. Unfortunately, like the game’s
setting – Three Kingdoms is yet ANOTHER incredibly ‘old’ game with
terrible graphics. The graphics actually resemble the graphics from
Legend of Ares – an incredibly old game which was shut down due to a
lack of players. Honestly – how on Earth does Uforia expect to compete
with bigger and better game publishers like ijji, Aeria Games and OG
Planet? Games like Dungeons and Dragons Online, Shaiya, Last Chaos and Runes of Magic completely blow anything Uforia has out of the water.
You would think that after publishing three terribly old and ugly
games – Uforia would get their act together and launch at least ONE
‘modern’ decent looking game – but NOPE. The only game Uforia currently
has ‘scheduled’ to release in the next few months is an MMOFPS game called Mercenary Wars – which aims to compete with other shooting games like Wolfteam, Alliance of Valiant Arms and Sudden Attack.
The thing is though – unlike the three games I just mentioned –
Mercenary Wars both LOOKS terrible and has extremely buggy gameplay.
Honestly – I would rather play ANY browser MMORPG than even touching one of Uforia’s games. Why on Earth is Uforia launching these terrible games? I really have no idea.
Recommend This If you liked this, let others know:
November 24, 2009
05:17 pm | 0 recommendations | Be the first to comment
Even though there are a boatload of free MMORPG games
out there – they do get boring. Personally – I like to take a break
from MMORPGs every once in a while and kick back and play some MMOs. I
say ‘kick back’ because MMOs tend to require a lot less time commitment
to enjoy. Most MMORPGs require an enormous investment of time before
they really get good while MMOs can be enjoyed right away. There are an
countless different Free MMO games out there from high octane tactical shooting MMOs like Alliance of Valiant Arms and WolfTeam to crazy racing MMOs like Tales Runner and Project Powder.
These games tend to have a lot of depth as well – so they’re quite
addictive. The fact that you can ‘level up’ and get new clothes /
equipment makes these games all the more addictive.
MMORPGs on the other hand have their advantages as well. It’s hard
to really ‘get into’ any MMO as it’s difficult for players to really
connect with their character – as character development isn’t exactly a
core focus of MMOs. When I’m playing an MMORPG I’m always more
‘focused’ because I tend to connect with my avatar and grow with him.
There are also many more social elements in an MMORPG – as players need
to cooperate quite a lot more in MMORPGs like Runes of Magic and Shaiya
than in any MMO – because the only way to really ‘advance’ in these
games is to work together with other people – whether those people are
random people or guild mates. Don’t get me wrong – players need to work
together in many MMOs as well – but nowhere as much as an MMORPG. Back
when I used to play World of Warcraft – my guildies were like family to me. We would talk about all sorts of things completely unrelated to the game at times.
Obviously both MMOs and MMORPGs are enjoyable, just in a different
kind of way. MMOs are sort of instant gratification – as they require
little time commitment and are pretty straight forward. MMORPGs on the
other hand require a bit more attention but are much deeper and more
fun in the long run. I guess you can say MMOs are Instant Coffee while
MMORPGs are Coffee beans that you have to grow yourself then roast.
Whichever you fancy – there are plenty of both. So dig through the free mmorpg list on MMOHut and find something you like!
Recommend This If you liked this, let others know:
November 14, 2009
01:35 am | 0 recommendations | Be the first to comment
Sometimes I wish that every single free to play MMORPG was easily accessible on ONE website. I’m not talking about an MMORPG Review
site like MMOHut – I’m talking about one massive MMORPG game publisher.
Instead of Aeria Games publishing 8 or so games and OG Planet 4, Gamers
First publishing 5 – imagine ALL of these games being published on ONE
site. There are easily 120+ free to play games out there so this would
make sense. I mean, just like at this huge list of MMORPGs.
Some of you may be asking – who cares or why? Well – the reason is
simple. As a hardcore MMORPG gamer myself – I’m getting a bit tired of
having to make new accounts at every single game publisher. Right now,
I’m playing Dungeons and Dragons Online quite a bit over at Turbine, but if I wanted to start playing… say Shaiya or Last Chaos I would need to make an account over at AeriaGames. If I wanted to play Cabal Online or Rumble Fighter
I would need to make an account over at OG Planet. I don’t know about
you – but keeping track of a few dozen username and passwords for all
of my various accounts is NOT something I find desirable.
The ‘solution’ to this… whacky system would be some sort of
‘universal’ log in where MMORPG gamers could make ONE account somewhere
and use that account on EVERY SINGLE free to play MMORPG Game. It’d be
interesting if one game publisher just published every single game, but
that likely won’t be happening anytime soon – so the only real way to
accomplish this would be some third party service (Hopefully free!). It
would sort of like the OpenID of free to play MMORPGs. If you haven’t
heard of OpenID – it’s a service that basically lets you create an
account with them and lets you use that account at thousands of
different websites (Like Yahoo, AOL, Google, BBC, Myspace and many many
more!). I’m surprised that no such standard exists for this market yet
– as I’m personally fed up with having to micro manage dozens of
accounts. What makes the current system even more confusing is that
sometimes games like NosTale, Lunia and LaTale have multiple publishers, which can only add to the confusion.
Anyway – Someone make an awesome new system to fix this little headache – please!
Recommend This If you liked this, let others know:
November 8, 2009
08:50 am | 0 recommendations | Be the first to comment
I’ve been trying to get myself to play a lot of Free MMOGs
lately, note that I did say ‘MMO’ and not ‘MMORPG'. For those that
don’t know the difference – an MMORPG is a massively multiplayer online
role playing game while an MMOG is a massively multiplayer online game.
The key distinction is that an MMOG does not have to be an RPG. For
example, a shooting game like Battlefield Heroes
is an MMO rather than an MMORPG – because even though it’s multiplayer
it doesn’t have the core RPG of elements that games like World of Warcraft and Runes of Magic have.
The first free to play MMOG I played was BattleForge – a fun 3D
fantasy themed real time strategy MMO where players use cards to summon
units. I know – the whole card thing may sound like a ‘turn off’ for a
lot of people – but I strongly urge everyone to give BattleForge a try
– as it’s an extremely good game. I don’t really like ‘card’ games very
much – but I ended up loving BattleForge. I guess it’s because the game
is faster paced than most other ‘card games’ I’ve played before.
Anyway, BattleForge is completely free to play and it’s published by
Electronic Arts. I guess EA is really putting a lot of effort into the
free to play industry as BattleForge was released shortly after
Battlefield Heroes. Players can either play through the game’s ’story
mode’ campaign or fight against others online. The game does have a
co-op feature as well – so players can work together with friends
online in completing the campaigns.
Another interesting MMOG I played recently was Tales Runner. It’s a 3D racing MMO by Gpotato – the folks behind Luna Online, Fly For Fun and Rappelz.
What made Tales Runner so interesting is that the game is a ‘track’
racing game – meaning there are no vehicles. Players actually sprint
across the level on foot. It’s a pretty novel concept as 99% of racing
MMOs involve either cartoony ‘karts’ or fast ’sporty’ cars. Being an
‘anime inspired’ game though – Tales Runner has some very interesting
courses and game modes making the game. Racing across icy mountains and
fire pits is pretty interesting and unique to boot. The actual core
gameplay itself isn’t that great but it’s a game well worth checking
out simply because of the novelty – and it’s not a bad game.
Lastly, I played a neat little fighting game called Rumble Fighter. It’s a 3D anime inspired fighting MMO by OG Planet (Folks who made Cabal Online / Lost Saga).
The game plays a lot like Super Smash Brothers – but MMO style with
some RPG elements. The goal is to basically beat up the other team
through multiple game modes. Personally, I felt the controls and
overall gameplay to feel a bit too slow paced for me – but it’s
definitely an interesting game – as it’s pretty unique. The only other
game like it is Splash Fighters.
Recommend This If you liked this, let others know:
November 5, 2009
01:55 am | 0 recommendations | Be the first to comment
As most free MMORPG
gamers already know – more and more free to play games are being
released every month. This isn’t too surprising though – as more and
more game publishers are trying to hit it big by releasing a
blockbuster game. What is surprising though is that the quality of
these free to play MMORPGs is improving… quite fast. Perhaps the most
impressive free to play game I played recently was Dungeons and Dragons Online.
The game has drop dead gorgeous graphics some interesting gameplay that
isn’t too ‘grindy’. The fact that Dungeons and Dragons Online is a top
notch game shouldn’t be too surprising – as it used to be pay to play.
It’s actually one of many pay to play games gone free over the last few
years. Games like The Chronicles of Spellborn, RF Online and Archlord are other examples of pay to play games gone free to play.
On the Browser Game front - Earth Eternal just got released and it's one of the best looking browser games out there! It looks a lot like Runes of Magic
which is neat because it's entirely on the browser. I Really don't know
how these game developers do it - but the graphics on Earth Eternal are
easily comparable to any client based game. So if you're looking for a
top notch browser game - give Earth Eternal a try!
Another game I played recently that’s quite good is Alliance of Valiant Arms. It’s a 3D MMO shooter by IJJI. It plays a lot like Combat Arms, Wolfteam and K.O.S. Secret Operations
– but graphic wise it’s superior. Alliance of Valiant Arms has some of
the best graphics I’ve seen in any free to play game. Content wise
though – the game is lacking. That’s probably because it was released
recently though – so the developers haven’t had much time to release
new maps and features yet.
Lastly, another great MMORPG that I started playing recently and still do play is Dragonica Online. It’s a fun 3D side scrolling MMORPG by THQ Ice that plays a lot like MapleStory
/ LaTale – but with MUCH better graphics and gameplay. Honestly, it’s
one of the best free to play MMORPGs out there – so if you’re a fan of
side scrolling games – give Dragonica Online a try. It’s amazing .
Recommend This If you liked this, let others know:
October 16, 2009
01:47 pm | 0 recommendations | Be the first to comment
I’m not sure why, but it seems like the growing trend in free MMORPG
games it to launch the game without a tutorial. I had the opportunity
to play the Dragon Sky open beta just the other day and I found myself
a bit confused, as the game didn’t have a tutorial. Now, I’m no newbie
to genre, so I know the jist of how most MMORPG games work, but I just couldn’t figure out Dragon Sky.
For a good two hours I played the game without learning a single skill,
as the game never explained to me where to train skills. Heck, the game
didn’t even present me with starting quest. It basically told me,
‘ready… set…. GO GRIND!’. I eventually figured things out on my own,
but it would have been a lot more convenient if the game provided me
some instructions. Enough Dragon Sky bashing though, as it’s not the
only game without a tutorial. Even newer games like HolyBeast Online, Twelve Sky 2 and Titan Online don’t have tutorials.
One reason why games like Atlantica Online, Runes of Magic and Maple Story
are as popular as they are is because they’re fairly straight forward
games and have EXCELLENT tutorials / tooltips so newbies and veterans
alike can quickly learn the ins and outs of the game. When I install
and new MMORPG, I think it’s fair for me to expect some sort of guide /
tutorial. As a hardcore MMORPG gamer, I can usually figure things out
on my own, so the people really getting ’screwed’ are those that are
new to the genre, as they’ll end up wandering around for a few minutes,
dying and quitting the game. I really can’t understand why MMORPG
developers spend so much time, money and effort creating a game, and
decide to cut a corner and release their game without a tutorial. It
really doesn’t make sense. Like I said earlier, MMORPG veterans usually
don’t need a tutorial when trying out a new game, but those unfamiliar
with the genre certainly do.
The fact is, there really is no reason to launch a free MMO without
a tutorial. Without one, newbies will flock to the more popular games
that DO have them and this will hurt the entire game’s community. This
really wouldn’t be an issue if only a handful of games didn’t have
tutorials, but from my experience MOST Free Online MMORPGs don’t have tutorials. It’s simply ridiculous how many games don’t have tutorials.
Recommend This If you liked this, let others know:
October 7, 2009
09:07 pm | 0 recommendations | Be the first to comment
The year was 1998 and I had just started my very first MMORPG, Ultima Online.
I had no idea what to expect from this new genre but at first things
didn’t look so different. I wandered around town and eventually made my
way to a nearby forest. After killing a few orcs and trolls I thought I
had the game figured out but what happened next took be my surprise. In
the distance I saw another band of travelers and decided to make my way
towards them to say hello. Little did I know that this particular group
of players were in fact player killers (PKs) and were more interested
in my new suit of armor than in exchanging greetings. Needless to say,
I was overwhelmed and found myself a defeated ghost, forced to wander
the world in search of a healer who could resurrect me. My armor,
weapons, and the loot I had gathered from the orcs were all gone. I was
angry and I vowed to take my vengeance upon them when I was strong
enough. Over the next five years my skills improved and I joined a
guild and even took a side in the ongoing civil war between the forces
of Lord British and Lord Blackthorn. Mainly because of its PvP
features, Ultima Online kept me engaged longer than any other MMORPG,
even longer than the other early MMO hit EverQuest.
A False Dawn
Now fast forward to 2009 and it is obvious that the MMORPG market
has achieved new heights. Today there are hundreds of games available,
many of them don’t even charge a subscription fee. But what about PvP?
World of Warcraft and Warhammer Online
both boast of their Player vs Player content. Mythic even claims RvR
(PvP between larger numbers of players) as its opus magnum but both
games fall short of the kind of open PvP first offered over a decade
ago. Death in either of these games is meaningless since players are
instantly resurrected with only a slight financial penalty in the form
of damaged equipment. Some free to play MMORPGs like Atlantica Online, Ragnarok Online, Shaiya
and Warrior Epic offer many controlled PvP features but again, it lacks
the natural feel of Ultima Online’s open-world, anything goes
atmosphere. Many free MMORPGs don’t even bother with PvP at all these
days, take for example Maplestory or Fairyland Online.
What is even more unfortunate is that EA chose to castrate Ultima
Online by restricting open combat and mixing foreign elements into the
game to try and make it resemble other popular offerings.
A New Beginning?
Over the years many bold developers have tried to carry UO’s PvP
banner but have stumbled before getting very far. Shadowbane comes to
mind. During its development it was hailed as the PvPers dream come
true, the MMORPG that would be Ultima Online and more. I admired this
spirit but unfortunately, the game failed to live up to its fan’s
expectations. All Shadowbane servers were permanently closed in the
first half of 2009. Now a new game has risen to claim the UO mantle,
DarkFall Online. DarkFall offers many of the same features diehard PvP
fans crave, unrestricted combat, free looting and so on. The game has
so far been attracting so many users that the publishers have had to
limit the number of new subscriptions allowed each day. Hopefully they
will fix their technical issues soon and allow anyone who wants to try
the game an opportunity to do so. Will DarkFall elevate MMORPG PvP back
to where it was during the golden age? Only time will tell.
Original Soures:
The Decling Role of PvP in MMORPGs
RPG Wallpapers
RPG Music
Recommend This If you liked this, let others know:
October 4, 2009
09:39 am | 0 recommendations | Be the first to comment
So many people complain that leveling in some MMORPG
games can take too long, and those that complain do have valid reasons,
but one argument that I rarely hear is that grinding ‘crafting skills’
takes too long. In all honesty, I feel that improving crafting skills
in most MMO Games is
a complete waste of time, as its 100% mindless grind. At least when you
‘grind experience’, you’re actually doing something, killing monsters.
Grinding crafting skills on the other hand usually involves watching a
little ‘progress’ meter fill up over and over again for countless
hours. It’s even worse if you have to ‘farm’ the materials yourself, as
killing low level monsters just for their raw resources is incredibly
boring.
Not only does mastering a crafting skill take countless hours, it’s also extremely expensive. In games like World of Warcraft and EverQuest,
mastering a crafting skill is enormously expensive, as countless
‘materials’ are needed to max out even a single crafting skills. On top
of crafting being expensive, it’s almost always useless. I actually
grinded up my Mining and Blacksmithy skills in World of Warcraft once,
and I found that blacksmithy was an absolute waste of time. 90% of the
time, in order to craft a piece of armor or equipment it would cost
MORE to buy all the materials and craft it myself than just buying the
piece of armor pre-made from another player. Very few games actually
make crafting rewarding and the only game that comes to mind in this
regard is a Free MMORPG called Luminary: Rise of the Goonzu
and that’s only because players can ONLY acquire equipment from other
players. Monsters don’t even drop equipment. Honestly, grinding
experience points is boring enough, I don’t see why anyone would bother
to grind up trade skills as well.
Recommend This If you liked this, let others know:
