EVE is a sandbox with land mines, deal with it.

Posted on October 18, 2007 by SynCaine

Stole the title from a forum poster, name escapes me now. Sums up EVE well though.

Posted in EVE Online | 7 Comments

Group work.

Posted on October 18, 2007 by SynCaine

When I think of Dungeons and Dragons, one of the first things that come to mind is a group of players sitting around a table and adventuring together. From its very foundation D&D is designed to be a group activity. Each class serves a very specific role, and is fairly limited to it. Rogues pick locks and disarm traps, clerics heal, fighters fight, mages cast spells. When taken outside of that base roll, the classes don’t do so well. Rogues have a difficult time fighting alone, as do clerics, and mages are extremely weak once something survives that first burst of damage from a spell.

With that kind of base, one would think D&D would be the perfect system for an MMO, which are all about interacting with others, right? Well as most people know, Dungeons and Dragons Online is overall a disappointment, while games like Neverwinter Nights shine. Why is it that a system designed to be played by multiple people works so well in a single player game and fails in the massive field?

I think PART of the reason DDO failed was that is forced players to group, which works well when you have a set group of friends that meet and play, but does not work that well when you log online and group with random people. The problem is that everyone plays differently; you have people who just rush through everything for the end reward grouping with those that like to take their time and explore. Either the rush player gets bored, or the quest is ruined for the explorer, but one way or the other a player is left upset with the game and the system. When you take the game offline, and let one player control the entire party, you allow them to play at their own pace without interference, maximizing the enjoyment a player gets.

Posted in DDO, MMO design, NWN2 | 4 Comments

Vanguard, NWN and EQ2. Plus more FPS talk!

Posted on October 17, 2007 by SynCaine

Some quick FoH forum reading about Vanguard reveals that a good amount of people are still not all that happy with the game, while Darren over at Common Sense Gamer reports that the latest VG patch has increased his performance notably. As FoH points out, more devs from the original team have been let go, and a Plantside developer has been promoted to the top spot. I’m not exactly sure what that means, but if nothing else it should make watching VG development more interesting. Still waiting on that free trail…

In some random act of godly intervention, NWN2 decided to run at 60+ FPS last night. Yea, about 30 FPS more than it usually runs at. I just don’t get it, I really don’t. I was honestly afraid to turn it off, knowing that the next time I launch it, it will be back to 30, or maybe drop to 10 or so. The workings of that engine continue to boggle the mind.

Speaking of FPS, the gf and I played a bit of EQ2 last night, and entered Neriak for the first time. And likely the last time. Walking near the crafting area reduced the game to a slideshow for me, and resulted in the gf plummeting to her death more than once thanks to a broken slideshow on her comp. Hopefully we will be able to enjoy all the other zones in the game without having to return to Neriak, as it really was dreadful. We are moving on to Nektulos forest, which I THINK is the next zone we should be in at level 19, correct?

Posted in EQ2, NWN2, Vanguard | 8 Comments

Just work with me here, please…

Posted on October 16, 2007 by SynCaine

If there is one thing I hate about playing games on a computer vs a console, it’s the constant graphic tweaking and fiddling. On a console, when you put a game in, that’s it. It’s already configured exactly how the developer intended, and everything works. The frame rate stays consistent, the graphics don’t bug out, and you don’t get overheating at the most random times. At least 99% of the time, hi xbox360.

With a computer, even when you pull the latest 5 grand plus high-end monster out of its box, the first game you play might run at 5 FPS when you are looking at a wall with everything turned down, or you might get 60 FPS on a mid-range system on a brand new game with everything maxed. It’s all over the place, and with little rhyme or reason. Worse still, you can spend the next few days downloading drivers, patches, work around who knows whats, and in the end make things worse.

Granted some games work much better than others, but it’s become routine to install a new game and the first thing you do is check for patches. And more often than not, you find one; fixing things that make you wonder how the game ever got out the door in the first place.

This little rant is thanks to Neverwinter Nights 2, a wonderful game that is STILL plagued with technical issues a year after release and one expansion under its belt. For one, it has some type of memory leak, becoming unplayable after more than an hour straight. This is easily fixed with a restart, but non-the-less it’s a pain. Even worse are the random graphic abnormalities, from polygon tearing to spell effects becoming giant pixels. This is most annoying because it happens at random, so you might be 30 minutes into a play session, having a great time, and all of a sudden your fireball spell goes from a gorgeous eruption of flame to giant orange pixels of crap. Nothing says emersion like your web spell grinding your game to a slideshow and blanking the screen in a white blob of nothing.

What’s a shame is that NWN2 really is a great game, a true RPG experience with great characters and an engaging story. If it ran without a hitch, it would be a true joy to play, but sadly it remains in love/hate status due exclusively to its technical issues. I would love to give Obsidian credit for continuing to support the game and trying to resolve its issues, but after a year of patches, the issues continue, and that is somewhat unacceptable.

Posted in Console Gaming, NWN2 | Comments Off on Just work with me here, please…

Dear CCP, could we get some elves in EVE?

Posted on October 15, 2007 by SynCaine

Over the weekend the same thought hit me again and again; CCP needs to make a fantasy version of EVE.

I know I know, blasphemy, but hear me out.

CCP has already proven they can create an open-ended world MMO that not only brings a slew of unique features, but also has some of the best balance, in both combat and economy. They have a game that is very hardware friendly while looking amazing, a server setup that is not only unique but a major feature itself being one giant world, and the ability to weave a great deal of compelling lore. I believe the major reasons holding EVE back from having WoW-like numbers are

A) It’s not a major franchise like Warcraft

B) It came out from a then unknown developer.

C) It’s Sci-Fi

D) It had a terrible launch

So with that said, let me lay out my vision of EVE with Elves. The words in parenthesis will be the EVE equivalent.

First you start with the same structure as the world in EVE, meaning you have a central area that is newbie safe and protected, and the outer areas are open pvp with little NPC interference. Each ‘zone’ could be its own province (solar system), a few provinces form a kingdom (domain). You travel within a province using teleport platforms (warp drive), and between kingdoms using special teleport towers (jump gates). The same area is protected by a guild of wizards, able to teleport to any offender and deal with them quickly (hi sec Concord), while the outer areas that are less safe will have soldier patrols to try and keep the peace (low sec Concord). Random gangs of thieves and other unsavory characters roam the mines and forests (NPC rats in asteroid fields).

Skills would be similar to EVE, no levels. Instead of spaceship command you get something like weapon proficiency, which each skill leading to others. You start with daggers (frigates), advance to short swords (cruisers) and eventually get to the top end stuff like bastard swords and two handed weapons (battleships). Other skill areas could be devoted to armor types, magic skills, rogue-like sneaking abilities, etc. Just like in EVE, you could focus on a few skills, becoming a master swordsman or a powerful mage, or go ‘jack of all trades’ style and get a little of everything. Long time players would eventually be able to craft the fabled ‘tank mage’, although even at that point more growth would always be possible. Non-combat paths would also be very viable, with crafting and trade being major areas to focus on.

Items would work in a similar manner as they do in EVE, in that on death they can be lost, and the idea of a ‘unique’ or ‘epic’ type of item does not exist in the way they do in WoW. Crafting would be extremely important, as players would be constantly demanding gear to replace what they have lost, or looking to upgrade. Markets would be kingdom based, enabling inter-kingdom trade. Replacing hauler class ships would be horse caravans, and they would again be a prime target for thieves (pirates) looking for a quick score.

The end-game would consist of guilds vying for control of the outer kingdoms, especially ones which hold mineral rich mines (asteroid fields) or are key routes in trade/travel. Guilds have the option to build castles and other defensive structures, hiring NPC guards, as well as building up a market and other town functions. Rival guilds have the option to bring some siege equipment (dreadnoughts) to try and tear down a castle, or they could send a smaller force and simply disrupt a town (gang raids).

Wrap all this up in some well known fantasy franchise, perhaps something like the Wheel of Time world by Robert Jordan (I say this because I’m currently re-reading the books, and they are great), give it ample time to be developed so it has a solid launch, and put some half naked female on the cover of your box, and bam! 10 million subs… right?

Posted in Combat Systems, EVE Online, MMO design, World of Warcraft | 8 Comments

More offline gaming goodness.

Posted on October 15, 2007 by SynCaine

I had somewhat of a quiet weekend, dominated by watching sports. The good news is the Pats are 6-0 and by far the most dominant team in the NFL. The not so good news is the Sox lost on Saturday in a game they really should have won.

As for gaming, I played a good bit of Neverwinter Nights 2, getting my character to level 9 and working my way through the main campaign. As I mentioned in my previous post, there are some advantages to playing a single player game after being almost MMO exclusive for so long, and I realized another advantage over the weekend; the ability to play the game at your own pace, and not really worrying about how your character stacks up to others. In an MMO your character is constantly compared to others, be it gear, your spec, or your class/race choice. Offline, you are free to create whatever silly combination you want, and at no point will anyone tell you that you made a mistake and created a gimped character. This aspect has made NWN2 more enjoyable for me, as I no longer worry about maxing out my party and using every item to it absolute max. I load it up, go talk to some NPCs, and quest lag free in the world Bioware and Obsidian have crafted. It’s almost like a vacation from my normal gaming routine, and I’m enjoying it.

Posted in NWN2 | Comments Off on More offline gaming goodness.

Mask of the Betrayer, and the joys of single player.

Posted on October 12, 2007 by SynCaine

It’s funny how enjoyable a single player game can be when you have played MMOs almost exclusively for the last few years. On a whim, and because direct2drive type buying methods always get me, I downloaded Mask of the Betrayer last night, the first expansion to Neverwinter Night 2. I’ve had NWN2 since release, but back then it was a buggy piece of ish that I just could not get into, so it’s been sitting on my hard drive for quite some time now, being that game that I knew I would get back to, but needed some catalyst to do so.  Well last night MotB was that catalyst, and after some quick auto-patching, I was back in the Forgotten Realms.

Having never finished the original campaign, I figured that would be a good place to start, and since it’s been some time since I played, the game overall feels fresh to me. It has some really great graphics that now actually run above 15 FPS, and the voice acting is top notch. Plus it’s D&D, which for some reason just works for me, silly clichés and all.

I still plan to give EVE Online and EQ2 plenty of gaming time, but now I also have the option of a quick 30 minute burst with NWN2, something not possible in an MMO. Another forgotten luxury of the single player game is the ability to stop at any point without losing anything, perfect for when that annoying RL throws you a curveball. Once I get a little further into it, expect some more commentary, but for now, I’m just going to sit back and enjoy the ride, at my own pace, without worry.

Posted in NWN2 | 2 Comments

Warhammer delay thoughts.

Posted on October 10, 2007 by SynCaine

As many other sites/blogs have reported, the Warhammer Online beta has been suspended for two months, and instantly rumors sprang up as to why this happened. Some people took the now usual ‘doom and gloom’ perspective and assumed the game was in trouble, while a few made some attempts to put the delay as a positive. I’m somewhat on the fence, for the following reasons.

As Mythic has indicated before and now, WAR went into beta much earlier than most MMOs, and I think the reason for this is somewhat obvious. When you are making a PvP focused game, one factor above all else will make or break your game, balance. If you release a game that has broken and overpowered aspects, the player community will attach themselves to this, and when you go to fix it, you will get flamed eternally for ‘destroying my favorite class’. And before you are able to get things back in balance, many of your players might be upset that they picked a weaker class, and leave even before you have a chance to fix it, spreading negative word of mouth in the process. As we have learned from other MMOs, once negative word of mouth is out, it becomes VERY difficult to reverse that line of thinking. One look at Vanguard should make that very clear.

Now, like Mark from Mythic recently stated, they have a LOT of data from the last beta, enough to make changes to the game that they believe will be positive. Filtering data and making sure you address the most important issues is always a problem when you have a rabid fanbase that will harp on the most obscure and random things, often times enough so to skew the perception of the overall fan base. Look at WoW and the massive focus on raiding, due in part to the small but very vocal forum posters that always demanded more content. This skewed the perception so much that TBC had a massively ridiculous end game, full of progression barriers. Only after release did Blizzard realize this was a mistake and dumbed down the raiding, removing many of the previous requirements. Even so, you still have the guild destroying Karazhan to deal with. And as expected, the forums exploded again with raiders complaining that Blizzard tricked them and that they had to work harder for their epics. If nothing else, Mythic is making an attempt to avoid this, by taking the data they have and putting it into focus.

Somewhat related to the point above, Mark made the point that if they allowed more testers in now, they would very likely get a re-hash of the issues raised by the current testers. As they stated, they have enough data to refine the game for the next two months before they will need more data from the testers, and by that point the previous issues should be resolved.

Now all that said it is very possible WAR might not be shaping up as well as Mythic had hoped. It is entirely possible that the feedback from the beta test was so negative they realized they need to re-work a great deal of things, and rather than shock the testers each week, they instead pulled the test down and are going to privately make the changes. We really won’t know until at least the next phase of beta, when those that have seen the current build will be able to compare it with the one coming in two months.

Mythic has also not announced a delay for the game, and while many think it is coming, until it does it leaves the possibility that a beta shutdown was part of Mythic’s plan all along. Again I’m on the fence about the whole issue, but I could see it going either way. I ‘hope’ that the delay is all part of the plan, as I personally have high hopes for WAR being the next ‘it’ game.

Posted in MMO design, Warhammer Online, World of Warcraft | 1 Comment

The Return of the King.

Posted on October 9, 2007 by SynCaine

Over the weekend news broke that Bungie Studios is leaving Microsoft and once again becoming an independent studio. For those not too familiar with Bungie, they are responsible for some of the best videogames ever created, ranging from Marathon (FPS), Myth (RTS), and of course Halo. Before the Microsoft acquisition, I personally always considered Blizzard and Bungie on the same level, both being top-notch developers. Blizzard had Warcraft, Bungie had Myth. Blizzard had Battle.net, Bungie had Bungie.net. Blizzard had the failed Warcraft adventure game, Bungie had Oni. Neither studio seeks to reinvent the wheel when going about game design, each simply takes an existing formula and refines it, creating a gem among its peers.

Now unless you where a big fan, most do not know about Marathon and Myth simply because Bungie started as a Mac-only developer, and later did not have the marketing muscle to really promote its games. That said, for those that have played those games, you know they were far ahead of the curve in terms on innovation, and overall had a blizzard-like level of polish that was clear to see.

Marathon had a deep story for a FPS, similar to Dues Ex, a game that came out years later. Marathon also had features such a duel wielding weapons, second modes of fire, and NPC teammates long before all those become standard. It also had a multiplayer game that rivaled Doom, and in many ways surpassed it. Problem was, it was Mac-only, and hence saw a very small audience.

As for Myth 1 and 2, they were the first games I was truly addicted to, going so far as to hold the worlds #1 spot in Myth 2 on Bungie.net. To this day I consider Myth 2 one of the all time great multiplayer games, even above Starcraft and Warcraft 3. The Myth games were also ahead of their time, using a 3D engine long before those become standard. Bombs would roll down hills, arrows traveled farther if shot from high ground, and you could spin the camera as you wished. Myth also featured a great storyline and used cel animation movies for key parts. Its online component, played on Bungies version of Battle.net, was amazingly deep and user-friendly, again with features that only now we consider standard.

When I heard the news that Bungie was going solo, I was ecstatic, as this means one of the best studios is once again out of Microsoft clutches and free to create games THEY want to create, instead of pumping out a Halo each time Microsoft finds itself behind in the console war. What the next project will be for Bungie is unclear at this time, but I would not be too surprised if they venture into the MMO space. While generally over-crowded, I have no doubt that Bungie could create something fantastic, something that finally pushes the genre beyond WoW 2.0. Either that or they plan to compete with Blizzard once again in the RTS space, releasing something to compete with Starcraft 2.

Time will tell, but at least for this fan, the future for gaming is a little brighter.

Posted in Bungie Studios, World of Warcraft | Comments Off on The Return of the King.

No go on Pirates, EVE cherries.

Posted on October 8, 2007 by SynCaine

I wish I could give some comments on Pirates this morning, but it seems the stress test filled up rather quickly Friday night. I’m still not sure what kind ‘stress test” you can have when you limit the amount of people playing that greatly, but I guess that’s why the game is not coming out till late January.

One more point, it would have been nice of Fileplanet to inform people that they were out of account keys BEFORE you had to download the 4+ gigabit file; nothing like downloading for close to 5 hours and installing a game only to find out that you can’t play. Nice first impression for a game that is desperately hanging on to some sort of spotlight, and now one that will be crushed a month after release by WAR.

Moving on to games that I actually could play, I had a fairly successful weekend in EVE. The bank account is sitting around 70 million ISK, and I’m currently selling a good amount of items on the market to get more. Hopefully once everything is sold, I will be at or over 100 million. I also finished a nice 10 part level 3 Storyline mission sequence, completing the final mission with some help from a fellow Corp member who almost lost his tech 2 Cruiser. (Thanks again Reddice) Part 10 consisted of 8-9 Raven battleships, along with a slew of Battlecruisers and other ships split into two groups. The mission states you can rush in and go for a quick kill of the control tower and warp out, but that seemed a bit risky, so instead I called in some help and just cleared the entire area. At 1.2 million per battleship, the bounty money was great. Speaking of killing Battleships, I got my first solo kill on a Scorpion in an earlier mission. As Reddice put it, I finally ‘popped my cherry’, although I still need to kill ANYONE in PvP, but I’m guessing that will come shortly, especially as our Corp draws closer to moving into low sec space.

Posted in EVE Online, MILK Corp, Pirates of the Burning Sea | Comments Off on No go on Pirates, EVE cherries.