Sweet, just got accepted to the Planetside Beta.

[Slaughter]

How long ago was this Squid.. to my knowledge is hasn't been that way very long.. of course I also haven't been above 50 very long..

[[AK]Squidly]

Nah, it was the treadmill... no real point. Gather experience, level, buff your character with no sting of death.

[Slaughter]

Ah... sometimes there is a sting to death.. trust me...

[Widowmaker]

Unless you have a cleric in your pocket to give you the res then indeed it does sting. I have only ever gotten a handful of rezzes and just ate the significant exp loss. Not everybody is a member of some uber guild with all classes in the 60+ range.

Planetsides "leveling" features do not bother me even if it is capped at level 20. Everybody will cap out on levels, yes. But is that not the same on any other MMORPG? From what I have seen, and I have dabbled with most MMORPG's out there including EQ for the playstation 2, all it takes to reach the highest level is time playing. Some people have more help and get there in less time, others (like me) are more casual and will take longer but I could still get there if I wanted to spend the time. So the only real requirement is time, eventualy anybody can reach the highest level.

An MMORPG is generaly all about leveling since levels and loot are realy the only way to get more powerful that in the end it is all about levels and loot. Hence they make the curve pretty steep to reach the top end but if you can spend the hours in front of the computer you can get there. Planetside has a flatter line of "leveling" since the focus of Planteside is not the levels or loot it is the battle itself. You do not need levels to get more powerful you learn how to move and shoot better (well, move the mouse better). Hence they do not need to make a steep climb with stiff death penalties for the game to be a challenge. Remember that even MMORPG developers admit they create the leveling curves in order to add a challenge to the game, that is not needed in a FPS since the other human shooting at you provides the challenge.

I have not payed a lot of attention to the marketing hype of Planetside (I learned long ago not to listen to game hype since it never lives up, the marketing people who write that junk usualy have never even played the game much less care about it). So I do not know if they have hyped up any RPG aspects or character management. If they did then ignore that, what RPG elements that are there are thin and more tuned toward picking what kind of fighter you want to be and specialize in that so you will have a "role" in a squad. Or you can do a little of everything so that you can solo but won't have access to the great equipment. So in that there is a bit of "role" playing just not the standard leveling treadmill (there is still some treadmill but that is not the focus of the game).

And since, as we know, death comes much more frequent in, say, Tribes 2 than Everquest or DAOC a simaler xp loss death penalty would be amazingly frustrating.

But to each his own, some will like planetside, some will love it, some will not like it at all. I love it so far and I hope you all do too.

[Slaughter]

Aye, I'm not in an uber guild.. but I always manage to be in a group with a 90%+ rez cleric.. so I don't eat too much XP loss..

And you're right, its all about time invested.. I could be 55 in EQ by now if I wanted to be.. but I don't have the time.. with balancing school and Raven Shield I'm left with little time for EQ... more than likely I will ding my first AA before I hit 52.. mainly because the time I am putting into the game is done raiding. I don't like putting time in to find a group, toil around with dying a lot (cause all the LFG tool has done is lead to bad groups for me, some good.. but lately bad) it just becomes a big pain in the arse.

[[AK]Palooka]

Having never reached the high-level game, you have NO IDEA how bad the exp loss is in EQ, Squid. Believe me, it does sting. In the high-level game, a rez is a must every time you die. People like Wid take way longer to get into the high levels than most because they never ask for rezzes. The first time I quit for good was right after I lost level 54 for the fourth time in the Plane of Fear, where I died three times in a row and only got one rez (here's a hint: don't bind yourself in PoF). I was about ready to chuck the computer out the window; in less than five minutes, I literally lost a week's worth of work. EQ can be terrifically frustrating.

[Slaughter]

Aye, its pretty bad higher up I hear... 51 isn't bad at all.. a little more than normal.. but not too bad.. was grouped with someone that was lvl 57 once and they were about 1/4-1/3 through and lost 57... so I guess the death penalty there is pretty high.. Up through 50 the death penalty is only 10%..

[[AK]Bribo]

Pay for play suxx0rs!

[[AK]Squidly]

The EXP treadmill sounds about as interesting as getting my fingernails pulled out.

[[AK]Palooka]

I've gotten more enjoyment out of EQ than any game I've ever played, so I don't mind paying a monthly fee. Besides, MMORPGs are a completely different animal; it costs a lot of money to host and maintain all the servers that EQ requires. Plus, they put the monthly fees to other good uses, like putting out expansions and constantly patching. What other game in history (with the exception of UO) has been continually updated for more than four years after release?

How is the experience treadmill in EQ different than just about any other roleplaying game? The drive to improve your character by gaining levels and wealth is what makes EQ and other RPGs so damned addictive. No other game in history has given players the same sense of achievement that EQ has.

[Widowmaker]

I used to hate the idea of montly fees but EQ broke me of that. That 9.99 a month is nothing, now it is 12.99 a month and that is still nothing. That is the cost of a movie, or a diner, or half a pizza or whatever. And the hours of enjoyment I get are countless. Besides, while I was playing EQ I did not feel the urge to buy new games that came out as I was perfectly happy with EQ.

They are a far cry from the "free to play games", some are better and some aren't it is up to you to decide what is worth paying for. I realy like having a game that changes, stuff gets added and NO CHEATING! Yep, when cheats are found they are dealt with imediately in these games. When your paycheck is dependant on others enjoyment of your game you tend to be quite active when there are people disrupting that enjoyment on a mass scale such as cheating causes. Granted UO had it's fair share of cheating and there will always be somebody trying to work the system but if it is found it is dealt with.

Anyway my reservations about pay to play are completely gone. Some have said "I payed for the game, no way I should have to PAY TO PLAY IT!" and they might be right. But if you are a skier you could buy your skis. Does that mean you can ski for free? No you still have to pay to use a slope (unless you are a cross country skier then you often have to pay for a permit or pay a user fee for a trail). So a skier has to shell out money to buy his ski equipment but then still has to pay to use it. Computer games can be seen the same way, I bought the equipment and software (game) but have to pay a fee to use it. And that fee, if you think about it, is realy small unless you go overboard and subscribe to a bunch of games (myself is an example, had to cut back drasticaly on my montly fees).

Pay to play realy does not suck as much as many think it does. You do get value for your cash, you milage may vary as some games are better than others (who in the hell would pay to play The Sims Online? Well, besides Palooka that is... I had to get a Palooka jab in somewhere).

[[AK]Squidly]

The activities you engage in are repetitive and boring (to me). Play through Morrowind for an illustration in the differences.

Some folks are wired to enjoy endless beastie hacking...I'm not I guess.

[Widowmaker]

So, Squid are you saying then that the Sims Online appeals to you? No monster hacking at all

Planetside has no beastie hunting, if it is attacking you it is another player except for some defensve turrets (just like Tribes) that are both static and they have turrets that someone with the advanced enginering certs can place along with motion sensors and such.

[[AK]Palooka]

The Sims Online is about the last game I would buy. It's just a glorified chatroom.

[Widowmaker]

But... But... you can have this guy, right? And he can get a job, right? Then he gets up and goes to work, then comes home, pee's, does dishes, watches TV and sometimes goes and visits other people. That sounds so exciting to me, almost like actualy having a life! Hey, he can even play video games to keep busy, you can play a game watching your character sit at a desk and play a game! That sounds soooo interesting to me.

Yawn.