September game-o-rama September 7, 2009
Posted by Bill in Games, General Stuff.add a comment
I’m a long time Word of Warcraft player (since it started in 2004). It’s just the latest in a long line of computer games that I’ve enjoyed. I’ve continued to try new games as they become available, looking for new ways to waste time that would be better spent blogging.
Recently, two games have gotten my attention: Champions online, a super-hero based online role playing game (MMORPG), and the Dungeons and Dragons Online reboot.
Champions was a no-brainer for me. I’d played the paper and pencil version back in the ’80s. Back then, the game had an elaborate system for creating super heroes with just the abilities a player wanted. I was interested in seeing if they were able to translate that into a 21st century online game.
Dungeons and Dragons Online (DDO) was more of a surprise for me. Out of the blue, I’d received an e-mail, letting me know that (since I’d played the original version of the game), I was entitled to a free upgrade to the new version. More to the point, DDO is now what’s called a “free to play” game, not requiring any subscription fee. How could I go wrong?
Fast forwarding a bit, I’ve been playing Champions Online for a couple of weeks (first the open beta, and now the released game) and have been playing DDO for the weekend.
Both games do some things well. They don’t just rehash the game mechanics that Blizzard has fine tuned in World of Warcraft. Instead, they’ve successfully created games that push into other areas of entertainment.
For Champions, it’s the super hero aspect of the game. Instead of a short list of possible “classes”, they allow you to use their framework to build a character that you want to play, complete with designing your superhero outfit. The game is still pretty rough. My first two characters were rousing failures, as I learned the ins and outs of character creation. I’m still struggling with the game, stuck at a point where it feels like I’m beating my head against a wall.
Overall, DDO was a big surprise for me. Like Champions, the graphics of the game leave a lot to be desired, after the downright beauty of World of Warcraft. And, the user interface is unlike anything that I’ve experienced elsewhere, much more keyboard bound and less mouse oriented. However, the game is quite solo-friendly, more so than other MMORPG’s I’ve played. It makes for a nice diversion from the commitment of a game like World of Warcraft.
The upshot of all of this is that both games will be on my shelf for a while. I purchased six months of Champions play time in order to get into the Start Trek beta, later this year (how could I pass that up?). I may not continue with Champions after that, unless I figure out just what I’m not doing right. DDO may have a brighter future. I like the lack of any required commitment in the game. They have a micro-transaction system to purchase various game items, which I’m not hating (since I do the same thing with my XBox 360 subscription). If the game continues to entertain me without some big amount of offline effort in “figuring it out”, I could stay a happy player for a long time.
Star Wars Resurrection June 2, 2009
Posted by Bill in Games.add a comment
I just watched a trailer for the upcoming Star Wars MMORPG, The Old Republic. It looks very good (though I don’t know why the head of the Jedi looks like an older Obi Wan, confusing).
I’ve signed up for updates. This isn’t a big deal; I sign up for all of the promising new games. Sooner or later, someone will figure out how to compete with Blizzard and World of Warcraft. Of course, that may be Blizzard themselves, with their double secret MMORPG project in development 
…
