DDO Is it worth it?

[zhemis]

Ok, I played DDO back when it was a monthly subscription fee. But Turbine kept double billing me and so after a frusterating time with customer service I cancelled my account and got that extra money back. After it turned free I started playing again for awhile. I didn't play long because I didn't know anyone. My wife was playing and she didn't like it so when she quit so did I. A few months after that and no interaction at all with Turbine I started getting email notifications saying a new account was added with my email address blahblah. The one you get that says "congrats on your new account" This happened like three times. I dealt once again with a less than par customer service. Though I never found out who got my email or who shared it or if it was a bot or whatever it was just another nail in the coffin for me for DDO.

Which leads to the question: Has DDO improved enough that it's worthwhile now? Or is it still a less than stellar game?

 

[packedcracker]

I'm a VIP, and I've been playing on and off since beta, and nothing has ever happened to me along the lines of what your describing. I think you just got very, very unlucky. I think it's worth downloading and just playing whenever you get bored. They've been putting out lots of free stuff, (Mired in Kobolds is great) so even if you don't subscribe, it's worth putting in an hour or two every once in a while. And if you don't have anyone to play with, me and my friends would love an extra party member.

 

[ghirmeshk]

I love DDO. I, too have been there since 2006 and I never get bored with it. If you are looking for a new twist on the game, feel free to roll up a character in our Permadeath Guild as well. We are on the Sarlona server. We have lots of friendly members that will glady help you learn the ropes. You can find us at:
http://extremeexplorers.guildportal.com
Also, most servers now have a help channel. If you type a description of the type of guild you want into that channel, people will answer you.
DDO has lots of new features, lots of new dungeons and many new things on the horizon. Now is a great time to try it again.

 

[Crimson_Dragoon]

I've only played a little bit of it recently, but considering you can play it for free now, its worth it to start up again. There's a lot of content there for a mostly free game (I say mostly since it has microtransactions).

 

[Hurr Durr Derp]

Nah. I've tried it out a few times since it became 'free', but I didn't find it that good. I might be a bad judge because I dislike most MMOs, but even considered to other mainstream MMOs I found it to be pretty dull.

Still, I suppose there's no harm in trying a 'free' game. The only thing you stand to lose is some time.

 

[Kalari]

First off sorry to hear the troubles you went threw but I do agree it sounds like a rare instance.

With me my only troubles with ddo come from the points system which they have been on the ball with after inital complaints. And last years vast and mysterious garbage which thankfully stopped and now we even have our games director addressing us (and this is after his wife the producer just had a baby). So they really are working hard on ddo weve had over 1 million people try our game and if only a fraction are staying that says much about our niche little mmo.

here are the reasons I still play ddo after 3 years

1. Combat, no matter what you say about other mmos ddo is not push button mashing you move with your opponent mobs and fight real time so if your up against a kobold or devil you are fighting for your characters life. Ive tried other mmo's after ddo's combat and I cant play them I love being able to run and cast, fight toe to toe with an enemy that if I slip up thats it. And I think thats our main hook to the game.

2. Large world but not large enough to need extra traveling. in fact most of the towns are easy to run about its very hard to get lost after a few hours play in our towns. Our dungeons take awhile but thats how it should be.

3. Immersive dungeons with traps clues to read and Gary Gygax dm'ed our Delera's graveyard quest. Yes if your into D&D and was a Gygax fan he narrated one of our quests along with Dave Arneson who narrated our Ruins of Threnal quest and both have commemorative items that you can get as a special end reward and keepsake. Any dnd fans would love to hear these legends voice since sadly they are no longer with us.

4. Great community sure like every game and with the influx of free to play we have our mix of personalities. But unlike any other game ive played Turbine fans are like a family even if we fight amongst each other we rally behind the game we love and we tend to be mature and friendly towards our playerbase. Ive enjoyed meeting people around the world thanks to ddo and continue to meet and make friends via the game.

5. its free so the only thing it costs you is time and if you like it you can go premium, vip or stay free and make it to 20. I have a guild member who has done this twice, I think hes sadistic but he has managed to unlock things in game just by playing and has not paid a dime to the game yet. So there is a lot of other reasons to play but this one is a good one if every.

Ps according to our new state of the game address more things outside of combat will be coming to armor change addresses that were an issue and guild housing on the horizon ddo is becoming a more polished well rounded game without losing the combat we all know and love.

 

[doctorwhofan]

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/9.182424-Who-is-Turbine-Re-March-Mayhem-2010#5414361

THat has the links...all of them

As for DDO. I love it. 4 years and counting. I have never had a problem with DDO, so you might have been hacked. Andthey are pretty good about refunding money. I'd say try it. I mean, it's FREE. Even if you want to buy points for the store, you can use Paypal.

Give it a whirl...

 

[opsneakie]

I have been playing D&D pen&paper for years now, so I'd like to think I know a thing or two about the system. I also gave DDO a good couple of afternoons of my time, so really all I have are about 2 cents to add to the pool.

DDO's combat is meh, really just a mouse-button mashing instead of button mashing, although being able to actually run around and stuff is certainly cool and immersive and such. The quests are so-so, but that's not really the point of Dungeons and Dragons.

The point is Dungeons. Also Dragons. The dungeons are absolutely stellar. They've got traps that it actually takes skill and timing to avoid, tons of monsters, they're often non-linear (massive triple bonus points), and they even have a DM narrating stuff, which is a nice touch for those of us who played the pen and paper games. The instancing alone is worth giving the game a try.

Ultimately, the slow crawl of leveling turned me off the game, along with their free to play model being fairly so-so, all things considered. You get 2 characters or something, and your race and class are pretty heavily restricted. I guess they do have to make money somehow, and I'd definitely consider picking DDO up sometime again in the future, but probably only if they drop the XP curve a bit. Grinding the same dungeons for six hours to get 10% of a level is less than riveting.

 

[Kalari]

Well its true the free will need some work but it was just implimented september of last year its still being refined. They started out where you couldnt even get past level four without sigils which they have now removed and as more people try ddo for free and leave feedback (something not many companies even bother with) I think free to play will see even more perks. And yes leveling can be slow for some but I know many people who can get to 20 still in less then a month just not really all the fun to rush it to me. I have 16 characters on one server and over half of them are at 20 or 1 or two levels away from that, so ive been taking my time with the new crop.

Ive played every class in the game even though I am positive that I cannot play a straight fighter to level 20 even with the cool Kensai prestige stuff. Im working on my barbarians which has been more fun then Id ever imagined and a Paladin..my first non chaotic non neutral goody goody character and shes been a blast and can solo stuff when im not in the mood to group.

On other servers I have other builds that I work on in private but there is always something to do and I think after a little longer they will have it where free to play have even more quests to utilize without unlocking they just added two high level quests to that pool last month.

 

[Kistilan]

Grinding the same dungeons for six hours to get 10% of a level is less than riveting.

Were you 4 levels above the dungeon's difficulty or something?

I'm just asking because I'm a "Scholar of Adventure" at the DDO Forums. There are 10 of us. And I wrote the first guide on how to level QUICKLY. It's quite old now (based on late 2007 DDO), but the same rules apply.

I've rewritten a personal and very non-disclosed guide on how some groups can level to 20 in less than 24 hours. I've seen guys do so in a week or less. With XP pots it's even faster now.

The first four levels can be achieved by grinding Bonebite, Info is Key, Bringing the Light and Garrison's Missing Pack on elite runs. It can all be done in 2 hours. Level 5 and 6 can be accomplished with a good "runner" on Elite Tangleroots parts 7 and 9: if you're still short on level 6, go to Deleras next and voila, you'll be level 6 and cruising to 7. Then you hit Gwylan's and Stormcleave for 8-9. At 9 you run Tharashk Arena multiple times in 7 min runs on norm/hard and finish off with an elite.

That entire process... 10 hours with a semi-proficient group with 1 good leader and some savvy weapons. For a very new group with 1 good leader but not so savvy weapons, 15 hours. That's almost level 10 in 15 hours.

Grind 10% of a level in 6 hours? That was just a bad day in the PUG, not the typical game.

 

[Johnnyallstar]

I didn't really get into it, but a guy I work with loves it, and so does his wife.


For a free to play MMO, I'm waiting on Vindictus....

 

[ghirmeshk]

And they just announced that guild housing will be on AIRSHIPS in DDO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Indecipherable]

Tried it, didn't like it. What makes DDO fail online is that the combat does not translate well at all and the excitement that roleplaying has cannot be captured with dungeons against AI. There are many other games with much better plot, interactivity, consequences, and gameplay mechanics and DDO lives only with its F2P nature and name.

D&D is great, I play it weekly. It's that DDO is nothing like D&D.

 

[ghirmeshk]

Tried it, didn't like it. What makes DDO fail online is that the combat does not translate well at all and the excitement that roleplaying has cannot be captured with dungeons against AI. There are many other games with much better plot, interactivity, consequences, and gameplay mechanics and DDO lives only with its F2P nature and name.

D&D is great, I play it weekly. It's that DDO is nothing like D&D.

True there are differences. I have been playing D&D for 25 yrs. It still has much of the feel. For me, the combat system that you mark as a detriment is what makes me love it. It is RP with real time fighting instead of click and wait. This makes teamwork and communication key. Parties have to act like adventuring parties, not tea parties. I have been there for four years and still have fun with it every time I log on. If you get into a few good groups or a good guild, it may change your mind. It is a party game. PvE. The PvP is weak, but that has never been what D&D was about to me. It was about party--this game offers that.