Virtual Reality: First Thoughts

Preface: This was written on 1/14/19. Until 1/13/19 I had never slid my head into a virtual reality headset. I was a VR Virgin. These are my unadulterated first impressions of the Oculus Rift and the games I played. Enjoy

 Yesterday I got to try out an Oculus Rift on a high-end gaming PC for about 5 hours, playing a half-dozen or so games in the process. While playing some WoW and catching up with an old LAN/MMORPG gaming buddy of mine, he casually brought up VR, mentioning that he had splurged on an Oculus Rift last year. Intrigued that I had never tried any form of VR, he invited me over to check it out; he says watching people experience their “first steps in VR” is half the fun of owning it, because you get to relive that feeling and see how other people try to interact with the virtual  world they are experiencing for the first time.

[Non-MMO] This game looks awesome. Help “Greenlight” it and pre-order it, if you’re into that kind of thing.

I just became aware of Rogue Legacy today, via RockLeeSmile’s YouTube channel, and I’m already a giddy-child-hype-machine over this game. As Nick puts it in his preview of the game, it’s like a mix of 10,000,000 and a “Metroid-vania” platformer RPG (as he refers to the in-development game, Chasm). That’s all I’ll say, as I haven’t played it myself, but do yourself a favor and watch the video posted above.

Done? Cool. Now I strongly suggest you go pre-order the game from the developer’s website and in the very least, help “Greenlight” the game on Steam.

Pondering what to scratch my MMORPG itch with

My short-lived rampant addiction to The Secret World faded after about a week or two. I definitely got enough out of it to warrant the price of the game and the first “free month,” so I’m not bitter about it, but I can definitely say I’m shocked my desire to log in came to such a screeching halt. I think I logged about 40 hours in just the first few days of having it, so when I, all of a sudden, stopped logging on it was peculiar, to say the least. I think the first thing that might have put a dent in my momentum was the fact that I rerolled away from my first character and server, in order to be able to play with a friend of mine who I had convinced enough to buy the game. I won’t lie, I was kind of looking for more excuses to reroll my character, because I was unhappy with how his face turned out (little things like that nag the hell out of me in games) and I was already thinking about trying out a more offensive/dps build, as opposed to my purely survival-focused blade/chaos tank. Besides rerolling, the Steam sale didn’t help the cause at all, as that reminded me that I have a gigantic Steam library that doesn’t get enough of my attention. Before I knew it I had forgotten about my Templar comrades and I can pretty much say I’ve moved on. For now at least. I can definitely see myself coming back to TSW if Funcom sticks to their promises of monthly content patches. There was a lot I loved about TSW and I still truly believe it’s one of the gems of MMORPG launches in the post-WoW age of MMORPGs.

So here I find myself with a dozen-or-so freshly installed Steam games, looking for an MMORPG I can log into when I want that “lose myself for a few hours with a podcast playing in the background” type of game. I tried hopping into Rift since they reactivated old accounts for the weekend, but it wasn’t seeming to grab my attention. Maybe when the expansion’s launch is a bit closer? After Rift, my mind wandered to Final Fantasy XIV (probably due to the recent ‘A Realm Reborn’ 2.0 news), Star Wars: The Old Republic, and World of Warcraft.

My deal with FFXIV is that I feel like I’m still just better off waiting for the glorified 2.0 patch to go live. I already picked up the game for ~$10 a few months ago, so I’ll be able to side-step the inevitable price increase that comes with the relaunch and version 2.0. The FFXIV I tried a few months ago, while definitely improved, was still too much like the FFXIV I played back in the beta. I’m afraid this would still be the case if I reactivated any time before 2.0

SWTOR and WoW are kind of pulling the same strings for me when I try to analyze why I am getting an itch for both of them. Both have similar theme-park experiences, class mechanics, and talent-tree layouts. Both (now) have an automated “LFG” system. Both have similar end-game experiences of either “PVP or PVE” being the baseline options. What SWTOR has going for it that WoW doesn’t is that more of it is fresh to me. The idea of starting from scratch with the Reddit guild is really appealing to me. When I try to think of what I would jump into in WoW, it all kind of starts out hazy and then goes downhill when I think about server transfer and faction change fees — all due to the fact that I just don’t know if I want to stick to my level 85 Death Knight who is a recent Horde-faction-change-victim or if I want to go back to my home of Alliance, that just feels more natural and normal to me.

Besides these heavy hitters like SWTOR and WoW, I feel like I’m somehow overlooking an MMORPG that could hit the spot just as well as these. Lord of the Rings Online? It’s never really lasted long for me in the past, and with an expansion launch on the horizon that’s just an added cost, so an added barrier of entry. Guild Wars 2 launches in less than a month, but the client’s lack of optimization throughout the beta weekends has really turned me off, and besides that, I need something now, not a month from now. Planetside 2 beta is said to start in just a few days, but how do I know I’ll be in the first wave of invites? I’ve played a bit of it during the tech test (thanks to a lucky friend of mine who got in) and that engine could use some optimization too. I’ve thought about hopping back into Diablo 3, but having done all four acts, three to four times each speaks for itself. I’m tired of repeating content in that game for such little reward. What the hell, it’s not an MMORPG anyways.

Working this all out in my head as I’m typing this post has actually helped a lot, and I’m honestly leaning towards SWTOR at this point. Rerolling a Jedi or Smuggler could be fun, and I feel like I can fill my head with a “to-do list” in SWTOR way easier (and cheaper) as opposed to WoW. After all, setting goals (both big and small) in an MMORPG is what keeps me playing them. What’s an MMORPG without a carrot-on-a-stick?

The Elder Scrolls Online is finally, officially, a thing (MMORPG)

Have a popular RPG franchise? Make it an MMORPG and keep making revenue past the initial purchase! Cynicism aside, I’m super excited for this. I’ve loved the Elder Scrolls games since Morrowind. I find the game world and setting to be the perfect blend between high and dark fantasy, hitting the sweet spot in my fantasy-nerd taste.

Game Informer had the exclusive details on this and revealed their cover for the June magazine. The Elder Scrolls online is being developed by ZeniMax Online Studios, a studio from Bethesda’s parent company, ZeniMax. Read the Game Informer link for more exclusive details.

Be sure to check out the Game Informer exclusive tomorrow, when a teaser trailer will be unveiled, along with the first screenshot of the game following in the afternoon. I’ll be sure to post them here, as well, as soon as I see them!

My Path of Exile / Diablo III Conundrum

With the Diablo III beta coming to a close earlier today, I felt it a fitting time as ever to give my thoughts on Diablo III (more specifically, the limited beta content) and how it relates to my recent-found fondness for Path of Exile.

For those out of the loop, Path of Exile is a free-to-play, isometric, action RPG by Grinding Gear Games that is currently in closed beta. I feel like I have to give that little “what is” spiel every time I mention Path of Exile because it seems PoE is being unfortunately overshadowed by the Diablo III launch hype. It’s a shame really, because I think the people who would enjoy PoE the most are the same people who played the Diablo II ladder for all these years leading up to Diablo III. PoE is a straight up, no holds barred, homage to the Diablo II era of isometric, hack’n’slash, role-playing games. There are times when I’m playing PoE that I have to seriously stop, do a double-take, and say to myself “yep, they just did that,” as I note something that is a whole-hog taken from Diablo II and implemented slickly into PoE. Some quick, off the top of my head examples are the UI, the inventory (item tetris…with no auto-arrange), and the overlay map (why did you change this Blizzard?!). At the same time, PoE isn’t just a rehash of Diablo II; there are plenty of new additions, innovations, and sharpening of mechanics that make PoE a worthy alternative to Diablo II or Diablo III. The combat feels super tight and the flow of enemies as you venture into unexplored areas seems endless at some points; you never really feel safe. The skill system is unique, in that your abilities/skills are encased in color-coded gems that you socket into your items at will. These gems level independently (as long as they’re in a socket and the item is equipped) from your character, and from what I’ve seen so far, are mainly retrieved through quest rewards. And of course, the thing that sticks out to me the most about PoE is the robust skill tree.

The skill tree in PoE is absolutely breathtaking. It is easy for people to dismiss the PoE skill tree as “just a bunch of boring passive stat gains,” but I think that’s sidestepping the point. If you’re an RPG gamer like me, you live off the stat changes, passive skills, and advancement of your character being dictated by player choice. I don’t care what the hype says, Diablo III has less choice than Diablo II had and drastically less than PoE has. I’m not saying this is an objectively bad or good thing, I’m just stating it and I think people should accept it like I have. The counter-argument is that the “choices you do make (in Diablo III) are more exciting and noticeable.” I’ll humor that argument, but it can’t be proven until May 15th. The Diablo III beta was just too small of a vertical-slice of content and levels to actually see any of the intricate skill/rune builds play out.  Maybe I’ll take back all I’m saying a month from now. Maybe I’m just a sucker for skill-trees and the visual representation of choice and advancement that Diablo III has removed.

I’ve been in both Diablo III and PoE closed betas for about equal time, and I have definitely put the majority of the time between them into PoE. Despite Diablo III having obviously less content unlocked, I still believe my time spent in PoE is telling of how I feel about the games. I’ve barely scratched the surface of PoE, having yet to dive into any of the advanced “Leagues” or get a character past the level 15-20 range, yet I’m already sold on this game. My first play-through of the Diablo III beta left me with the epitome of “meh” in my gut. There was nothing grossly wrong with it, but I think I was just expecting something more. I’m a strong believer of judging a game by what it is, not what it is not, and with that in mind, Diablo III should be a fantastic game and I’ll definitely be taking advantage of my WoW Annual Pass free copy of Diablo III come the 15th of May, but I’m extremely interested to see how I feel about it, especially next to PoE, after the “meh” taste it has left in my mouth.

EVE Online Apocrypha/Retail launch snuck up on me!

Another day, another MMO to get excited about. The retail (re)release of EVE Online is just days away now, dropping on March 10th, and I feel like it totally snuck up on me. I’ve been waiting to give EVE Online a fair shot and pick up the retail box from the moment they announced it months ago, had no idea the day was almost upon me. I’m flooded with great games to play, but this one may rise to the top of the queue.

*suggest the HD version*

Brannoc (Aventurine employee): 1 / Random irc troll: 0

EDIT: Obviously this could be 100% fake and just something crafted up by an extremely bored QQer. I was not in the actual mIRC at the time to witness the “chat” and the first place this popped up was on a DF guild’s website forums. Read for entertainment purposes only, as I did.

Here’s a gem I’ve found from a Q&A Brannoc had in IRC earlier. This has at least put a smile on my face in light of this launch fiasco.

ShockWave: atleast good you finaly take the time to talk to us Brannoc
<@Brannoc> I’ve been trying to do that all day, ShockWave
[Yew]Greg: do your fucking job
<@Brannoc> I don’t think you can be anymore informed than you are greg, I’d say your statement is mostly loaded with fail

[Yew]Greg: Well heres a little helpful peice of advise if you ladies plan on keeping any sort of player base. Even in the shittiest circumstances, atleast tell us to just “fuck off we’re working on it”. Thats all most of us want to know.
<@Brannoc> I’d be happy to tell you to go fuck yourselves! But a lot of people say that’s bad PR
<@Brannoc> so…I’m trying not to

Brannoc: 1 / irc troll “greg”: 0

Full transcript can be found here.

Selling Darkfall: Why is Aventurine doing such a poor job?

When trying to explain the allure of Darkfall to friends or people on the internet, I’ve found it pretty daunting task. It’s a bad sign when user-created YouTube trailers do a better job of selling a game than the official website or developer does. From the lackluster website to the lack of information flow into the United States, it’s easy to see why Darkfall is getting overlooked by many who haven’t already been following it for years.Wading through YouTube clips of the game and user-created trailers throughout the last week has sparked more life into the game for me than Aventurine has in the last 4 years.

Update: Adding this excellent walkthrough of the GUI (watch it in HD)

Excellent user-created explanation and trailer for Darkfall Online

If you’re going to watch *one* Darkfall youtube clip

…let this be it.

Basically a small group of 9 takes out an incoming zerg of about 20. Aventurine should use this clip for marketing. I’m sold.

(watch it in the HD quality)

About time: Dwarf Slayer / Orc Choppa

I realize I’m not exactly on the cutting edge with this news, but I honestly wasn’t sold until I saw the NYC Comic-Con demonstration of the classes in action. I’ll definitely be reactivating my WAR subscription when Orc Choppas and Dwarf Slayers drop into the live game. They sound amazingly fun to play with their berserker combat mechanic and play style, not to mention the Dwarf Slayer’s top-notch art design. I’d have to give the nudge to the Slayer on the principle of style alone, because well, the Orc Choppa just looks like a Black Orc dual wielding.

Watch these videos from NY Comic-Con and be sold:

NYC Comic-Con 09: Call To Arms Walkthrough Part 1 (Dwarf Slayer)

NYC Comic-Con o9: Call To Arms Walkthrough Part 2 (Orc Choppa)

Both classes will be rolled out as part of the “Night of Murder” ongoing live event, specifically in the “Bitter Rivals” portion of the event. Be sure to check back here when those patches start to roll out, I’ll be sure to be checking them out and reporting back.