03-17-2005, 03:35 PM
I'm with you on hardware. While I desperately want to go from my 512MB of RAM to 1GB. I can play the game quite well with my current rig.
I'm with you on Bugs and NYI. Nothing really game breaking (though it's close when a quest NPC doesn't work, VC escort comes to mind). Things could have been done better, most of it is just frustration factors. NYI is going to get more and more frustrating if they can't get the servers working. I think some of the server issues have delay content as well.
Character equipment is a bit different for me. I've stated several times that the crafting system is a disappointment to me. While it is nice that it doesn't become a game in itself to craft that is also bad because I really wouldn't mind doing it full time if it meant having a real impact on the world. World impact is very minimal in this game. It is nice that for majority of the game though you can survive just dandy with stuff you find lying around on carcasses and from quest rewards. Crafting can help supliment it but you don't need it. You don't need any enchants or armor kits or any of that. The twinking at early levels doesn't completely change game balance. It makes it easier, but it is nothing like the difference between twink and no twink in D2 for some classes. But this very same system does start leading you down the paths you are mentioning. There isn't a wide variety and the higher you get, the more optimal becomes "go farm this". Of course you can survive very well into the 40's without optimal. I haven't seen end game, can't comment beyond that.
Solo and casual really depends on your baseline. Compared to D2 or D1 this game isn't even remotely close to solo/casual play. Compared to other MMO's this game is hugely casual and solo friendly. Not all content is, but since you can get level capped and skip that content that is pretty friendly. The game is an MMO it has to have content designed for groups. The elite quests provide that. I know Treesh is much more frustrated with the Instances and the elites than I am. I just figure that when I die a lot to them in 2 or 3 person groups that I should be because the stuff is designed for 5 man groups of the same level as the mobs. I'm also not as frustrated by having to leave an are and quest elsewhere as she is, despite wanting to be more efficient and not just travel around all over the place. But overall I do think they delivered on their promise to be solo and casual friendly.
Server stabilty is the big issue and there were warning signs all through beta, not just raids and such. I've talked with Ruvanal and been told that crashes coming out of instances were common place and other stabilty nightmares. The open that I got to do for the whole time (thanks to a lurker providing me with a key for the part that was only open to current beta testers) had major major problems with the item database issues that we still see. I've only really beta'd other MMO's but from what I've read WoW's servers are very bad for an MMO that is surviing. Others have been worse, but they didn't really reach critical mass, they were already obviously dead 4 months in.
Another annoyance I have is that Kalimdor feels a lot less finished than the Eastern Kingdoms. Horde or Alliance content on that side. The quests don't feel as well planned many of them don't seem to have the same humor and tone. It isn't just the difference in the worlds geography either. They just feel more rushed. It just feels like another part of the geme wasn't done on release but Blizzard fell to the market pressures.
Ah well, my finacial situation will drive me away before anything in the game right now. I'm fortunate to have altitis and server hoping isn't a real problem for me, so the big issues I can avoid. They are just more frustrations.
I'm with you on Bugs and NYI. Nothing really game breaking (though it's close when a quest NPC doesn't work, VC escort comes to mind). Things could have been done better, most of it is just frustration factors. NYI is going to get more and more frustrating if they can't get the servers working. I think some of the server issues have delay content as well.
Character equipment is a bit different for me. I've stated several times that the crafting system is a disappointment to me. While it is nice that it doesn't become a game in itself to craft that is also bad because I really wouldn't mind doing it full time if it meant having a real impact on the world. World impact is very minimal in this game. It is nice that for majority of the game though you can survive just dandy with stuff you find lying around on carcasses and from quest rewards. Crafting can help supliment it but you don't need it. You don't need any enchants or armor kits or any of that. The twinking at early levels doesn't completely change game balance. It makes it easier, but it is nothing like the difference between twink and no twink in D2 for some classes. But this very same system does start leading you down the paths you are mentioning. There isn't a wide variety and the higher you get, the more optimal becomes "go farm this". Of course you can survive very well into the 40's without optimal. I haven't seen end game, can't comment beyond that.
Solo and casual really depends on your baseline. Compared to D2 or D1 this game isn't even remotely close to solo/casual play. Compared to other MMO's this game is hugely casual and solo friendly. Not all content is, but since you can get level capped and skip that content that is pretty friendly. The game is an MMO it has to have content designed for groups. The elite quests provide that. I know Treesh is much more frustrated with the Instances and the elites than I am. I just figure that when I die a lot to them in 2 or 3 person groups that I should be because the stuff is designed for 5 man groups of the same level as the mobs. I'm also not as frustrated by having to leave an are and quest elsewhere as she is, despite wanting to be more efficient and not just travel around all over the place. But overall I do think they delivered on their promise to be solo and casual friendly.
Server stabilty is the big issue and there were warning signs all through beta, not just raids and such. I've talked with Ruvanal and been told that crashes coming out of instances were common place and other stabilty nightmares. The open that I got to do for the whole time (thanks to a lurker providing me with a key for the part that was only open to current beta testers) had major major problems with the item database issues that we still see. I've only really beta'd other MMO's but from what I've read WoW's servers are very bad for an MMO that is surviing. Others have been worse, but they didn't really reach critical mass, they were already obviously dead 4 months in.
Another annoyance I have is that Kalimdor feels a lot less finished than the Eastern Kingdoms. Horde or Alliance content on that side. The quests don't feel as well planned many of them don't seem to have the same humor and tone. It isn't just the difference in the worlds geography either. They just feel more rushed. It just feels like another part of the geme wasn't done on release but Blizzard fell to the market pressures.
Ah well, my finacial situation will drive me away before anything in the game right now. I'm fortunate to have altitis and server hoping isn't a real problem for me, so the big issues I can avoid. They are just more frustrations.
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It's all just zeroes and ones and duct tape in the end.
It's all just zeroes and ones and duct tape in the end.