Navigating in MMORPGs
The Lord of the Rings Online was my first major MMORPG. I started playing in late 2008 and quickly discovered that there was a necessity to become familiar with the game world. Although the game provides quick travel options they were not ubiquitous at that point and often a player would simply travel on foot to travel costs down and to take the most direct route. Back in 2008 you could not own a mount until level 30. Hence I began “learning the maps” in the game and to this day still remember how to travel from one side of Moria, to another. The maps in the base game remain clear in my mind as they were so well trodden. Not so those in the regions. There are far more stables with fast mounts present in the game now and so convenience trumps any requirement to become so familiar with newly added zones. Nowadays Standing Stone Games designs new zones that tend to funnel players through them from quest hub to quest hub.
The Lord of the Rings Online was my first major MMORPG. I started playing in late 2008 and quickly discovered that there was a necessity to become familiar with the game world. Although the game provides quick travel options they were not ubiquitous at that point and often a player would simply travel on foot to travel costs down and to take the most direct route. Back in 2008 you could not own a mount until level 30. Hence I began “learning the maps” in the game and to this day still remember how to travel from one side of Moria, to another. The maps in the base game remain clear in my mind as they were so well trodden. Not so those in the regions. There are far more stables with fast mounts present in the game now and so convenience trumps any requirement to become so familiar with newly added zones. Nowadays Standing Stone Games designs new zones that tend to funnel players through them from quest hub to quest hub.
After considering the wider matter of maps in general in the MMO genre, it seems that most of them seem to be lacking in some fashion. The biggest problem is that traditional in-game maps are two dimensional views of three dimensional environments. LOTRO, Star Wars: The Old Republic and Guild Wars 2 are prime examples of this. Furthermore maps in this genre tend to be initially devoid of specific detail. This is to encourage exploration which then populates a map with NPC, fast travel points, crafting stations etc after they’re discovered. Another issue, especially in fantasy games, is that the maps themselves are designed in a stylised manner and are frequently not accurate in the sense that an Ordnance Survey map is in real life. The Elder Scrolls Online at least addresses the issue of multi-layers maps, allowing players to switch between levels. But it is far from perfect. The MMO does allow you to set a waypoint which can be a godsend.
As maps can prove so “unhelpful”, I find the most practical thing a game can do to help me with navigation is to provide a highly visible landmark which can be used to orientate players. Weathertop is a prime example of this in the Loneland region of LOTRO. The crumbling fortress on the highest hill in the region dominates the map. Having line of sight helps you make quick decisions when travelling and find the direction you need. Guild Wars 2 has gone all in on the concept of verticality and three dimensional environments. Does it make for interesting and complex world design? Yes. But the main problem is you cannot easily set a destination and travel there. As you seldom have any line of sight, often the only way to a location is through trial and error. Usually through “bandit territory”. It is intensely frustrating especially as there is much XP gain to be had via discovery. It makes me miss Neverwinter and its sparkly trails that can optionally lead you to your destination.
Navigating in Star Trek Online is the polar opposite of most other fantasy based MMOs and a very straightforward process. Especially after 2015 when developers Cryptic revised the galaxy map dividing it into four clearly defined quadrants, rather than sectors which were separate instances. The point and click navigation between planetary systems in sector space is simple and easy. If you wish to navigate by hand you can manually fly around at your own leisure. However, until you earn the transwarp travel skill it can take some time to get from one side of the map to another as a low level player. There is no cost associated with travel in STO. Unlike SWTOR which charges the player for the fuel used to travel across space. Both approaches are compliant with their respective lore of each franchise.
I find travelling and exploration a major source of enjoyment in MMOs. If I’m confronted with a blank map, then the first thing I want to do is open it up and see its details. I’ll often go exploring first off, rather than playing through mission or quest content. This isn’t always a shrewd decision as I can find myself in zones I am ill equipped to travel. Bu for me, looking around the game world is part of a game attraction, especially if it has a rich and diverse environment. Sometimes I will log into LOTRO and ride around Middle-earth just for the pleasure of it. Sadly, that is not the case for all MMOs. Take SWTOR, which has some industrial themed, city based maps that are a never ending maze of corridors and walkways. Overall I would like to see more games in the MMO genre having some sort of Grand Tour option or game mechanic. A means for peaceful exploration as an alternative to the usual narrative driven progression.
A Month in Gaming
I last wrote A Month in Gaming post in December. Quite a lot has changed over the last two months. I have abandoned Cyberpunk 2077 as it has totally failed to hold my interest. I just couldn’t get on with the first person perspective. I also stopped playing Neverwinter, despite the game having many appealing elements. Sometimes, when you start an MMORPG that has been running for years, you feel so “behind the curve” that the prospect of catching up with everyone at the endgame is too daunting. And because the Call of Duty franchise has a yearly lifecycle, a new iteration of the game was released in November. Black Ops Cold War subsequently replaced the reboot of Modern Warfare and a lot of the new games content subsequently bled through in the free Battle Royale version. I’d been playing Warzone since last April and it was beginning to get a little stale. So I didn’t buy the latest Battle Pass and decided to move on. And then there’s The Lord of the Rings Online. Let it suffice to say I have completed as much of the latest “mini expansion” as I require and the game is now “on hold”.
I last wrote A Month in Gaming post in December. Quite a lot has changed over the last two months. I have abandoned Cyberpunk 2077 as it has totally failed to hold my interest. I just couldn’t get on with the first person perspective. I also stopped playing Neverwinter, despite the game having many appealing elements. Sometimes, when you start an MMORPG that has been running for years, you feel so “behind the curve” that the prospect of catching up with everyone at the endgame is too daunting. And because the Call of Duty franchise has a yearly lifecycle, a new iteration of the game was released in November. Black Ops Cold War subsequently replaced the reboot of Modern Warfare and a lot of the new games content subsequently bled through in the free Battle Royale version. I’d been playing Warzone since last April and it was beginning to get a little stale. So I didn’t buy the latest Battle Pass and decided to move on. And then there’s The Lord of the Rings Online. Let it suffice to say I have completed as much of the latest “mini expansion” as I require and the game is now “on hold”.
Moving on from what I’m not doing, to what I am, Star Trek Online has been keeping me busy and providing the majority of my gaming entertainment. I have also spent some time perusing various online game retailers back catalogues, to see if I can find something new (or old) that interests me. The latter of these activities is an ongoing undertaking and I have not as yet found an RPG or action game that takes my fancy. Multiple titles fill my “wish lists” but for the moment none of them particularly excite me. Fortunately, STO has been the source of my fun over Christmas and New Year. I created a new TOS era Federation Captain last February and I initially played through the bespoke story arc for that faction. I resumed playing this alt over December and focused on getting them to level cap. As the game's content scales to level, I then started playing through all the major stories in order and benefitted from some of the mission rewards being level appropriate.
I won’t spend too much time waxing lyrical about STO here as I have done that in other posts. I will say that being a licensed game of a major franchise does have advantages and that STO can be very “Trek-like” at times. Most of the missions (apart from some of the earliest ones in the game) are fully voice acted, lore heavy and well conceived. As with LOTRO, it’s often the little touches that will raise a wry smile because of some minor canonical reference. For example, there is a Horta hidden in a side passage of a mine in one particular story. If you defeat the Romulans attacking it you receive the accolade “No Kill I”, which is a joy for any Trek aficionado. Replaying through the various stories was a pertinent reminder as to where this MMOs strength lie. Another noteworthy achievement was that I finally saved sufficient funds to buy the 10th Anniversary Legendary Starship Bundle and have finally got a Tier 6 TOS era Constitution Class ship. I love the Jefferies’ Phase II Constitution Refit skin.
Over the course of February I shall continue with STO, especially now in light of the new Klingon Recruitment Event, which seems to have been very well received. I shall also seek out a new game if possible. At present I’m considering The Council, as it’s an investigative RPG with a focus on dialogue, as opposed to an action driven game. I may have a second attempt at Infectious Madness of Doctor Dekker, as I never managed to complete the story last time round. So far, none of the big triple A titles coming this year particularly excite me. But it’s not as if there’s a shortage of good games to play. It’s really just a question of trying to find the right one for you. No doubt I shall return to LOTRO, as and when they have a content update. I still have Fall Guys installed for when my Granddaughters come and visit.
A Month in Gaming
November proved to be a very productive month, gaming wise. I had to self isolate for 14 days, due to coming into contact with someone who had tested positive for COVID-19. Hence I had far more leisure time than usual. For a second month I applied myself to progressing through the new “mini expansion” in The Lord of the Rings Online. The new zone is a two phase map. The first is Elderslade, a mountainous region to the North of the Wells of Langflood. This area contains mainly story quests. The second phase, called War of Three Peaks, is the same zone but during a period of open war between the Dwarves and the Orcs. Quests here are mainly repeatable slayer and achievement quests. I did not discover this until I had completed the first round, so to speak, only to be offered exactly the same quests again by an NPC. As I had reached maximum rank in reputation for this new faction and there were no rewards of any note for me to spend my barter currency upon, I simply stopped playing through this content.
November proved to be a very productive month, gaming wise. I had to self isolate for 14 days, due to coming into contact with someone who had tested positive for COVID-19. Hence I had far more leisure time than usual. For a second month I applied myself to progressing through the new “mini expansion” in The Lord of the Rings Online. The new zone is a two phase map. The first is Elderslade, a mountainous region to the North of the Wells of Langflood. This area contains mainly story quests. The second phase, called War of Three Peaks, is the same zone but during a period of open war between the Dwarves and the Orcs. Quests here are mainly repeatable slayer and achievement quests. I did not discover this until I had completed the first round, so to speak, only to be offered exactly the same quests again by an NPC. As I had reached maximum rank in reputation for this new faction and there were no rewards of any note for me to spend my barter currency upon, I simply stopped playing through this content.
Naturally, I was somewhat disappointed by this development because it highlights how developer’s, Standing Stone Games, have padded this content update so they can sell it as a “mini expansion”. However, I moved onto the new Mission system and spent some time exploring that. The missions themselves are fairly straightforward, instanced areas in which the player has to undertake a couple of tasks. Kill a boss, find so many supply crates etc. The difference here from other instanced content is that the enemies are more reactive. Some Orcs self heal or if not killed quickly, call in reinforcements. Some are a little trickier than others. There’s one where you have to destroy doorways to stop Goblins from spawning in Goblin Town. Crowd control skills are useful here. There’s another droll mission in which you have to dance and drink with “partying” Goblins. But overall Mission’s fails to offer anything overtly different. Again there are reputation tiers and deeds to achieve. But they offer paltry rewards, so why grind through them?
I did however, move a lot closer to maxing out both my Legendary Weapons. I was generously helped by a kinmate, who donated a substantial supply of Anfalas Scrolls of Empowerment. Hence all my legacies (apart from the main ones on each LI) are now at level 83. I’m sure given time, I will be able to acquire sufficient Anfalas Star-lit Crystals to max out the main legacies and finally close the book on the entire LI system. It is nice to see that my recent re-equipping with gear from Adventurer’s Loot Boxes and levelling up of my LI has really improved my overall combat experience. Killing enemies is now a lot quicker with critical hits occurring quite frequently. But I now feel that I’ve done as much as I can with LOTRO for the present. I may participate in the new raids, should my kinship re-appear over Christmas. But until there is new story content and tangible rewards to pursue, this MMO will be placed on a backburner.
Throughout November, I have been playing the latest event in Star Trek Online. I must admit that I’m getting quite fed up with this approach to new content from Cryptic. I like stories couched in classic Trek lore and there hasn’t been enough of such content this year. So this is another game that is going to be relegated to intermittent play over the next month. Q’s Winter Wonderland festival is due to start next week but sadly it is not offering anything that I want. And then there is my ongoing return to the MMO Neverwinter. I’m having fun but there are many aspects about the game that I’m not impressed by. This is another MMO which trivialises all gear progression below a specific level. Then there is the excess of currencies in the game. I suspect I will get to level 60 or so and then decide that it is time to move on. It’s a shame because I like the combat style and the way the Warlock class handles. I suspect that December may be an odd time where I struggle to find a new game that interests me. However, I already have an eye on returning to Dauntless.
Video Game Tutorials, Again
I’ll try and keep this post concise so it doesn’t sound like a rant. It is intended to be a legitimate complaint. I just find it dispiriting that this topic has raised its head yet again. I am currently playing the MMORPG Neverwinter, a game I haven’t touched for 7 years. I created a new character and am currently working my way through the low level quests. So far the game has had a few tooltips appear on screen and the occasional voice over pointing out issues of importance. Overall, I have seen neither hide nor hair of what I would define as a tutorial. I have managed to bluff my way through the game so far, by drawing upon my experience in other MMOs. As this is a game developed by Cryptic, there are elements of the interface that are similar to Star Trek Online. However, this and my general knowledge of other genre games can only help me so far. I knew that sooner or later, I was bound to be flummoxed by something and today this finally occurred.
I’ll try and keep this post concise so it doesn’t sound like a rant. It is intended to be a legitimate complaint. I just find it dispiriting that this topic has raised its head yet again. I am currently playing the MMORPG Neverwinter, a game I haven’t touched for 7 years. I created a new character and am currently working my way through the low level quests. So far the game has had a few tooltips appear on screen and the occasional voice over pointing out issues of importance. Overall, I have seen neither hide nor hair of what I would define as a tutorial. I have managed to bluff my way through the game so far, by drawing upon my experience in other MMOs. As this is a game developed by Cryptic, there are elements of the interface that are similar to Star Trek Online. However, this and my general knowledge of other genre games can only help me so far. I knew that sooner or later, I was bound to be flummoxed by something and today this finally occurred.
I have three mounts at present in Neverwinter, although they are just horses and nothing fancy. The latest one that I’ve acquired is a little more interesting than the currently equipped one, so I decided to swap them around. It’s a totally innocuous and reasonable request, as well as something that is easily done in other MMOs. However, it took me over 30 minutes to determine how I did this and I was far from pleased when I finally found a solution to the problem. I was expecting to go into my Collections and set a new default mount there, in a similar manner to The Elder Scrolls Online. As this option wasn’t available I thought maybe this is done via my Stable panel. No joy there, so I looked in my Appearance panel. Nope, that didn’t work either. So I found myself doing something I hoped not to do so early on in playing Neverwinter and tabbed out of the game and searched Google.
Let it suffice to say that due to the various changes that have been made to the game and the mount system over the years, it took a while to find a correct solution. It’s also worth noting that as this game is also available on consoles, you have to ensure you search for a PC specific answer. It turns out that you have to select the Mounts tab, then Current and you are presented with an image of your default mount and its respective skills. If you click on where it says Appearance, a new window opens up and you can choose a new mount. It’s a simple solution, apart from the fact that the game provides absolutely no information or clues about this. Nor is there any indication that where it says Appearance is infact a clickable button. I simply discovered this by accident when I clicked in the wrong place in error. After my annoyance over this esoteric functionality subsided, I was left wondering how many more straightforward tasks are hidden in Neverwinter due to poor or indifferent UI design.
Now this anecdote may seem to some as trivial. However, let us step back and look at the situation from a broader perspective. I’m currently enjoying the early levels in Neverwinter and there are lots of new players. Not everyone will have prior experiences with the genre to draw upon. I came to a complete standstill with this problem and found the whole matter infuriating. I don’t think it unreasonable to assume that for some, this incident would prejudice their view of the game. A player that is being thwarted and not having fun, has no reason to stay. Not all gamers want their leisure activities to be one of the twelve labours of Hercules. Simply put, things like this can lose customers. Hence, good tutorials, tooltips and prompts are extremely important. A gamer should never have to leave a game to find out how to play. That’s the game’s job.
Return to Neverwinter
I originally tried the MMORPG Neverwinter during its beta test in early 2013 and having checked my original notes I wrote at the time, I enjoyed it. I think the main reason I didn’t persist with the game was due to not having a major connection to the franchise and that there was a lot of competition from other MMOs at the time. If memory serves my only niggle during the beta was that you couldn’t use your skills while moving. Combat is therefore a question of running, attacking and then repositioning your character. Although you can dodge or perform a variation thereof, fighting in the game is not what I would define as “action combat”. It is more of a hybrid of old and new MMO fighting styles. However, that notwithstanding, I decided to finally re-install the game and give it another go. A lot has happened in the intervening 7 years and Neverwinter is now more polished and has a lot more content to offer.
I originally tried the MMORPG Neverwinter during its beta test in early 2013 and having checked my original notes I wrote at the time, I enjoyed it. I think the main reason I didn’t persist with the game was due to not having a major connection to the franchise and that there was a lot of competition from other MMOs at the time. If memory serves my only niggle during the beta was that you couldn’t use your skills while moving. Combat is therefore a question of running, attacking and then repositioning your character. Although you can dodge or perform a variation thereof, fighting in the game is not what I would define as “action combat”. It is more of a hybrid of old and new MMO fighting styles. However, that notwithstanding, I decided to finally re-install the game and give it another go. A lot has happened in the intervening 7 years and Neverwinter is now more polished and has a lot more content to offer.
I logged into the game and tweaked a few settings. Next, I decided to ignore a previous character and start a new one from scratch. Rather than try to relearn how to play an existing Half-Elf Wizard, I chose to create a Human Warlock. I made my choice by reading the various tool tips and have decided to see exactly how far I can progress in the game, just by relying upon the information provided by the tutorial. In the past, I’ve often researched a new MMO in advance, to ensure I don’t “make any mistakes”. This time round, I’ve elected not to make work for myself and thought it would be an interesting experiment to just fly by the seat of my pants. I like MMOs but at present do not want a major learning curve. I’m mainly looking for fun. It may be a case that eventually I have to go outside of the game for information. However, this way at least lends itself to writing about my experience.
So why a Human Warlock? Well none of the other races grabbed my attention, apart from the ones you have to pay to unlock. Until I’m sure I’ll be playing Neverwinter for a while, I’m not going to spend any money. As for the Warlock Class, it basically struck me as being the same as a Mage/Wizard without having to dress like a keyboard player in a Prog Rock band. This may sound trivial but I get really bored of the aesthetic and sartorial confines of mainstream fantasy preconceptions. Any sort of Wizard or person who dabbles in magic is instantly saddled with a rocking a “Ming the Merciless” look and it gets old real fast. Plus I want to be able to play a ranged DPS class and avoid a bow, which is another tiresome cliche. So the Warlock is a good compromise. It also plays well with the combat so far proving to be fluid. That may just be down to the fact that I’m playing at low level and the enemies are hardly robust. But so far there seems a straightforward rhythm to the skill rotation.
I am interested to see in the days and hopefully weeks to come, whether the story holds my interest and if it does anything unusual compared to the standard fantasy genre fodder. I’m glad that the NPCs are all fully voice acted and that dialogue interactions are handled in a similar fashion to The Elder Scrolls Online. I find a lack of voice acting quite jarring if I come across it in an MMO. Another thing I’m curious about is how long I can play Neverwinter before it becomes apparent that I have to spend some money or else I’m “hobbling” myself. There appears to be something similar to a VIP subscription so I will look into that further if and when it becomes appropriate. Perhaps I will finally gain some insight into the popularity of the official Dungeons and Dragons franchise. It’s another popular culture touchstone that I’m aware of but that has passed me by over the years. Hopefully I can answer all these questions in a future blog post.
MMO Tropes: Shipwrecked
I have played more than “a few” MMORPGs over the years. It’s an enjoyable (and accessible) genre of video games. But like any other type of game, MMOs have a fairly standard formula based on a handful of game mechanics. There is levelling, gaining experience and the acquisition of skills and points. Gear such as armour, jewellery and weapons come and go as you progress through the game. Then there’s crafting, trading and gaining “gold”. Another key aspect is the social dynamic. Often there’s content specifically designed for groups to complete. But this homogeneity also extends beyond the systems that underpin the games. The MMO genre is rife with its own set of tropes; recurring themes and motifs that have become established and ubiquitous. All of which are ideal material for a hastily produced, lazily conceived, recurring blog post.
I have played more than “a few” MMORPGs over the years. It’s an enjoyable (and accessible) genre of video games. But like any other type of game, MMOs have a fairly standard formula based on a handful of game mechanics. There is levelling, gaining experience and the acquisition of skills and points. Gear such as armour, jewellery and weapons come and go as you progress through the game. Then there’s crafting, trading and gaining “gold”. Another key aspect is the social dynamic. Often there’s content specifically designed for groups to complete. But this homogeneity also extends beyond the systems that underpin the games. The MMO genre is rife with its own set of tropes; recurring themes and motifs that have become established and ubiquitous. All of which are ideal material for a hastily produced, lazily conceived, recurring blog post.
So where to begin? Ah yes,let us start with a commonly used trope that conveniently affords game developers with a means to orientate new players. Because it should never be assumed that a player is by default familiar with the basics of the game that they are playing. Hence many MMOs need a simple plot device at the start of a game that can justify or accommodate the need to explain everything. And one of the most common of these is the “shipwreck” trope. It covers all bases from a narrative perspective and is convenient. The new player finds themselves washed up on the beach, which is often a starter area and then has to go through some basic tasks that orientate them. These include movement via WASD keys, obtaining a weapon and combat, gaining XP, using consumables and interacting with NPCs. At first glance it’s a perfectly good idea and it achieves what it sets out to do. But if you encounter it too often it gets old very quickly.
I first ran into this particular MMO trope when I played Age of Conan, circa 2009. The game had (and unless it has changed still does) a character creation process that starts on a ship in which you are a galley slave. As expected the ship sinks in a storm and your character is subsequently washed up on a beach on the island of Tortage. Cue the game tutorial. Then in 2013 when I played the Beta Test of Neverwinter, I encountered this trope for a second time. This time foul beasties destroy the ship you’re on and you wash up on the shore to again start a tutorial. If you play The Elder Scrolls Online, this plot device is used at the start of the Ebonheart Pact storyline. There is currently an ongoing Beta Test for another MMO (due to an NDA I cannot mention by name) that begins with yet another shipwreck and integrates it into the tutorial. This trope is also commonplace outside of the MMO genre and can be found in other games such as Monster Hunter: World and Risen and The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening.
Some old adages are themselves cliches but I still consider that there is some truth in “familiarity breeds contempt”. While playing this new MMO that cannot be named (go on, guess, it’s hardly difficult) I was somewhat disappointed when this trope was trotted out, as it further reinforced my opinion that this particular title doesn’t offer anything new. However, it is important to remember new players and that this title may well attract a lot of people who haven’t played an MMO before. Considering the marketing clout of the company that owns the developers, this game when released on August 25th, may well gain some initial traction. Bearing that in mind, the “shipwrecked” trope that I find hackneyed may well be an innovative and useful plot device to those who have not experienced it before.
A Welcome Return or Just Repeating a Mistake?
When I first started playing MMOs, it was very easy to maintain a degree of “gaming monogamy”. The Lord of the Rings held my attention for two years, without any distractions because everything was new to me at the time. But eventually, the allure of other genre titles became too great that I moved on to pastures new. And so I spent between 2009 and 2014 trying numerous other games. Star Trek Online, Age of Conan, Aion, Guild Wars 2, Star Wars: The Old Republic, The Secret World, Neverwinter, WildStar and The Elder Scrolls Online to name but a few. If a game took my fancy, I would invest a great deal of time and make substantial progress. Conversely, if the “shoe didn’t fit”, it was quickly dispensed with. For example World of Warcraft never “clicked with me. It’s no reflection on the game itself. I just didn’t warm to any aspect of it. Similarly, the reality of EVE Online was vastly different to what I had imagined and expected.
Aion. July 2011
When I first started playing MMOs, it was very easy to maintain a degree of “gaming monogamy”. The Lord of the Rings held my attention for two years, without any distractions because everything was new to me at the time. But eventually, the allure of other genre titles became too great that I moved on to pastures new. And so I spent between 2009 and 2014 trying numerous other games. Star Trek Online, Age of Conan, Aion, Guild Wars 2, Star Wars: The Old Republic, The Secret World, Neverwinter, WildStar and The Elder Scrolls Online to name but a few. If a game took my fancy, I would invest a great deal of time and make substantial progress. Conversely, if the “shoe didn’t fit”, it was quickly dispensed with. For example World of Warcraft never “clicked with me. It’s no reflection on the game itself. I just didn’t warm to any aspect of it. Similarly, the reality of EVE Online was vastly different to what I had imagined and expected.
Hence, I’ve left numerous MMOs behind me in my gaming wake over the years. Games that I learned were not for me. Or were they? The thing is, I’m not immune to cognitive dissonance. I’m quite capable of holding two contradictory ideas simultaneously. Namely, that hardy perennial among gamers, “I know I didn’t like [insert game title here] last time I played but maybe it’s changed”. And so due to a combination of factors, I have recently found myself revisiting several MMOs I have previously parted company with. Because of the recent coverage of Guild Wars 2 on the Massively OP Podcast, I decided to reinstall the game and return to Tyria. Much to my surprise, I rediscovered that I had three characters at level cap. A Human Ranger, a Norn Warrior and a Charr Engineer. My primary alt was still based in Queensdale which brought back pleasant memories of the “Choo Choo” or Queensdale Express. In fact within a few minutes of pottering around the zone, I began to recall how the various game systems and mechanics work. It began to feel like putting on a comfortable pair of slippers. And then I ported to the Maguuma Jungle and things rapidly went South.
Guild Wars 2 Beta. April 2012
The Heart of Thorns expansion killed my enjoyment of Guild Wars 2. If memory serves, I lasted until summer 2016 and then I quit the game. The “verticality” of the new zone and the grinding for Mastery Points to get the gliding skill and such like, were and remain the primary problem. That and the fact that this expansion made playing solo demonstrably harder and more reliant on others. Path of Fire may well do much to redress these issues but I’ll have to trudge through the first expansion before I can reap any benefits of the second. And as I play MMOs for primarily for pleasure and do not welcome any enterprise that “gets on my tits”, to coin a phrase, I shall be progressing no further in Guild Wars 2. I mistook the MMO for an absent friend because I was focused on my enjoyment of the base game. But the first expansion remains just as frustrating as it originally was and so all I’ve done is repeat a mistake by reinstalling things. I won’t get fooled again. No honestly, I won’t.
Neverwinter Beta. March 2013
So, fresh from this lesson, I decided that it would be a really good idea to ignore what I had just learned and retry Neverwinter. This a game I haven’t played since the beta test in 2013. Unlike Guild Wars 2, I really couldn’t remember much about the game. The only things that stuck in my mind was the combat which was a curious action hybrid. But beyond that, the game didn’t leave that much of an impression upon me. I was most surprised when I found my original avatar still available. However, for practical reasons I think it best to roll a new alt as I have no idea how the game plays. But over the next day or so, I will give this MMO another go. It’s odd that despite being an inferior game to Guild Wars 2, this is the one that seems to be more welcoming. Perhaps I didn’t play sufficiently to become prejudice against Neverwinter. Or may be after a while, suppressed memories will come flooding back. Perhaps my experiment to revisit older MMOs is already a forgone conclusion and these games have been abandoned for obvious and legitimate reason. Either way, it all makes for ideal material for a blog post. If there are any interesting developments I’ll keep you posted.