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Denver, 7:07 AM
Sun Nov 22
17 posts in the last 24 hours
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11/02/09
11/02/09
11/02/09
11/02/09
10/15/09
10/15/09
The ingame shop uses turbine dollars, but you can earn them ingame slowly, or buy them with a credit card.
Ill be honest, I started playing when it went free, and I spent about 15 bucks to buy a few quest structures and some containters for items.
The game is by far the best free MMO around, its pretty feature complete and recommend everyone give it a shot.
Just be warned, the Dungeons and Dragons way of doing things might seem a bit odd to the simplistic ways of WoW. Don't be overwhelmed. #turbine
10/15/09
Wow what a surprise...not.
Now all they need to do is turn that 40% increase into paying customers.
Though they may be able to get by on the 80:20 rule #turbine
10/15/09
10/15/09
The game has a mix of free, micro transaction n paying customers, so not exactly clear on what their increase is. #turbine
10/15/09
09/29/09
I've moved on to Aion. I want a more PVP focused game and I want a larger playerbase. I want a more satisfying grind where there is a good balance between skill (choices in combat) and time commitment (how amazing your gear is). I want more customization (my dude looks uniquely badass as opposed to EXACTLY LIKE EVERY OTHER ELF). Oh, and I want wings. Everything else just feels dated now.
After saying all that, I still stick by my original statement that LOTRO is a good game. If you love Lord of the Rings, you should give it a shot.
09/30/09
(And you were so proud of your goat.)
10/01/09
And once you're awesome, why bother even playing anymore. Right!?
As for the Adventurer's Pack: I really don't like the idea of someone getting a goat after I grinded for it, simply because they were willing to shell some cash. So yea, it seems like they are starting something horrible. But I don't really think they are going to do a bunch of them a la DDO. I think they want us to pay for the server space because it costs money. Maybe.
09/20/09
Successful MMO's are all about evolving according to the desires of their player base. Warcraft overtook Everquest because Blizzard was eager to please players and they consistently adapted the game to make each type of play (grouping, questing, soloing) more convenient. I realize that many old school MMO veterans feel like Blizzard is coddling its user base, and while they have a valid point, they aren't the primary demographic anymore. The mainstream is where the big money is, so MMO's have gone mainstream.
I'm not a programmer or game designer, so I can only speak from what I've observed, and it seems to me like consoles are growing more similar to computers with each new generation in terms of functionality and user-interface layouts. But for the time being, computers have a serious edge in terms of flexibility (both in terms of software development and customization within the user base) for several hardware generations to come.
09/20/09
The other issue of interest is how similar the Cell SPUs are to the original Emotion Engine in the sense that RAM is limited but bandwidth and processing power is available in huge quantities.
[arstechnica.com]
Granted, the PS2 is still around and is largely considered to be last generation's technology, but the fact doesn't change that the Cell SPUs are functionally similar to the Emotion Engine. The only real difference would be the fact that the Cell SPUs can be synchronized or used asynchronously. Other than that the development attitude really shouldn't be too different from developing for the PS2.
At least that's how I see it.
09/22/09
09/20/09
09/20/09
There are so many other problems. Let's put it this way, if MMOs did eventually migrate to the consoles, they'd be a lot different to what we consider a 'traditional' MMO these days.
09/20/09
But entertain me, what are the 'so many other problems' that stand in the why?
09/20/09
09/20/09
Lack of control customization-FF11 has customizable controls.
Fixed UI is something that is a issue and isn't.
Limited controls-Macros. FF11 has them.
Commuication issues - Keyboards are $10 dollars and again FF11 makes it possible to play using largely only macros. Both systems have chatpads which function like keyboards anyway.
Subscription fee-Sony charges the developers anyway and any MMO will have servers run by the MMO makers so the only fee you will pay is the monthly membership fee. Live's yearly fee and the monthly fee i'll give you are a issue.
And you don't need a mouse and keyboard to play a MMO. You can do it on a controller.
09/20/09
I've played FFXI exlusively with the controller... it's a tiny bit of a PITA, but that game is dumbed down enough to be playable with it. Other MMOs will have to be chopped down to 11 or so controller buttons, or cascading menus. Just means more time is spent telling what you want the game to do than actually playing. I still liked FFXI tho... driving across the world on a CHocobo laying down with my feet up was way better than sitting at the KB.
09/20/09
I still loved FFXI tho, despite it's controller interface.
09/20/09
You can play FFXI with an Xbox LIVE Silver account (i.e. no Gold account required). You still have to pay the same monthly Sony fee as you would on the PC or any other platform, but there are no additional charges imposed by Microsoft. Also, as far as I know, there are no in-game differences between Gold and Silver accounts.
Whether this will always be the case remains to be seen, I suppose. FFXI is one of the few (if not only) games on Xbox 360 that allows online play without a Gold membership. It is also (I think) the only game that is allowed to require a hard drive. It is an exception in the 360 game library.
If console MMOs become mainstream, I'm sure Microsoft, Sony, or anyone else would try to interleave their own platform benefits, possibly charging for them in the process.
09/20/09
And the man is right. PSO may not have been a 'true' MMO, but Everyquest Online Adventures is and FF11 sure was. People claiming he doesn't know what he's talking about need to go look at those games. Heck FF11 allows you to do something WoW still doesn't, that is have one toon and level out as many jobs as you want on that one character. Now of course if you level all 15 something jobs to 75, your bound to have storage issues but after so many years, SE has worked out a way around that too.
In fact, for MMO's to really even start to reach the numbers that could challenge WoW, you need a PC/console mixed MMO. The only downside is that after so many years the console may make it harder to add graphical improvements, meaning as new shiny stuff comes out, PC owners may get upset.
For all of it's mistakes (And they were largely done by SE simply not understanding the MMO market like they do now), FF11 was very, very groundbreaking and has one of the longest stories out of all of the FF games spanning a huge cast of characters. The only fault is that because the game was built more around the 'work together' model, this caused the game to be solo unfriendly, something WOW got very, very right when it came to leveling and story missions. It also led to a high level of competing in between rival guilds/Linkshells over limited loot and HNM's.
Still to discount that Turbine's Honcho is incorrect is highly shortsighted. A console only MMO would in fact have less to worry about when it comes to cheaters, depending how locked down it is.
09/20/09
09/20/09
09/20/09
09/20/09
Star's auto-promoting threads is gawkers problem. We've complained about it loads, if you wish you can email them (tips at kotaku dot com) and add your voice so stars only manually promote comments.
09/21/09
Ok, I'll put my serious pants on as well:
I don't enjoy MMOs, so I am not at all interested in seeing them on consoles. I think MMOs are more suited to PC as PC-gamers are more hardcore and more willing to invest hours upon hours of their lives into a virtual world. MMOs (unless tailored to appeal to the action-oriented mentality of the average console gamer) will not sell on home consoles.
^There. Now I can take my serious pants off. Miserable sods :P
09/21/09
Also you'll find many console gamers will plough hours into games as well so don't dismiss them.
But yes, if you don't want to be eaten alive then don't make comments that make you sound like an idiot :D
If you'd made that post your original point then you may of started a decent thread.
09/21/09
But you are right. From now on I will keep my serious pants on at all times when posting on Kotaku (although I will keep my idiot kilt close-by in case of emergencies).
09/19/09
I don't think that consoles are necessarily "superior" for the next generation of MMOs (traditional or otherwise). Some MMO types work well on just one one system, and some work well multi-platform, so we'll end up with both kinds. With the broader diversity of systems that MMOs are being developed for, the MMOs themselves will probably diversify. There's already a few examples of this happening, such as APB and The Agency. Of course, until they're released we have no way of knowing how much of an impact they'll have and if they'll survive or not - sometimes MMOs that break the mold don't last very long at all, such as Auto Assault. Then again, perhaps MMOs will diversify independent of console influence simply because the current formulas will grow stale.
There are pros and cons to console MMOs versus pc MMOs, but ultimately I think it's just a subjective thing. In theory, developers will make various styles of MMOs for various platforms and we can choose from a wider variety of MMOs to play. If there's something for everyone, then there will be no need for everyone to just agree on one platform and one MMO type.
09/19/09
The only real "downside" is the PS3 doesn't come with a USB mouse and keyboard...but that doesn't even count as a legitimate downside since you can buy them for cheap.
FFXI and the upcoming FFXIV are pretty much meant to be played with console controllers with keyboard in lap, BTW.
09/20/09
Sorry... but you have unrealistic expectations of microsoft and sony's generosity.
09/20/09
@Vonhert: I'm sorry. I've been able to use a wide range of $10 keyboards with my 360 and PS3 for years.
Oh and this.
09/20/09
09/19/09
No?
Well then, case closed.
09/19/09
09/19/09
09/20/09
09/20/09
09/19/09
09/20/09
09/20/09