Help me find a new outlet for open world PvP.

[Louie Clark]

Hi. I have a problem. I like to kill people via the internet. A lot.

Lately, I have been trying to find a game that offers amazing world pvp. This means people killing people outside of things like arenas and battleground type events. While that's all fine and dandy (well, arenas anyway), open world is where I really have a blast.

I'll try to explain a little bit of what I'm interested in, and maybe someone knows what I should jump on. I need a new fix.

World of Warcraft's pvp used to be amazing. Used to. I really enjoyed it before Battlegrounds were a thing, and even more so after the first version of the honor system hit. After battlegrounds, I enjoyed Alterac Valley the most. Sadly, that place has been ruined and Blizzard doesn't seem to have any desire to return it to how it felt when everyone was 60.

Everquest was another game that I enjoyed PVP on, when it wasn't just high level people camping newbie areas. I should take this time to explain that I am not looking to grief newbies (equal level players are fair game, though) nor would I like to try to start on a game where I am being griefed by max level people while I'm level three.

I'm even cool with turn based pvp. This is actually where I got my start. The two first games I had pvp experience on were turn based MMORPGs that no one has heard of. Unless you are an old fart like me, and grew up on AOL 2.0.

If anyone plays something that they think fits what I am looking for, please let me know. I'm willing to pick something up and pay a monthly fee, if it's great. More so if I can try a trial first to make sure I can stand playing the pve side of things. Free-to-plays are okay, but I won't waste my time on a pay-to-win title.

If anyone has a pvp group or guild on a title, I'd love to check it out and join once I get the system under my belt. I have almost twenty years pvp experience in one game or another, which is kind of sad. I know that doesn't mean much going to a new game, but I feel it gives me a good base to learn things fairly quickly and see what I'm doing wrong. Also, if possible, I prefer healing roles in group pvp.

What I'm not looking for is a game like League of Legends. Games that aren't strictly an RPG (in the sense that WoW, EQ, et cetera are) are also welcome. I'd actually like something completely new to me.

If you play something, and think I should check it out, I will. Just let me know. Obviously I'm more likely to play and put in hours if there is a trial, and if you play as well. I don't need or want my hand held, but if there's a goal to work towards like leveling up to match you, I'm more likely to devote my time to it.

Thanks in advance to anyone who has suggestions, and I'll look at them all. I gotta stop this withdrawal.

 

[Kopikatsu]

I couldn't tell if you were saying that you were completely opposed to shooters or not, but...Planetside 2? It should be getting a huge overhaul patch either today or tomorrow.

Each of the three factions can field 1200 soldiers per continent at the same time (It used to be higher but there were issues with faction stacking so the 1200 limit was imposed). Gets pretty insane at the larger bases.

 

[Louie Clark]

I couldn't tell if you were saying that you were completely opposed to shooters or not, but...Planetside 2? It should be getting a huge overhaul patch either today or tomorrow.

Each of the three factions can field 1200 soldiers per continent at the same time (It used to be higher but there were issues with faction stacking so the 1200 limit was imposed). Gets pretty insane at the larger bases.

I'm not opposed to shooters at all, I'll definitely look into this. I never played the first one, though. I'm not familiar with the series at all, really. Thanks.

 

[Smooth Operator]

Well Guild Wars 2 is really meaty in the large scale PvP department, and you can start getting into events pretty much from the start, everyone gets and equal level and equal gear so then it's all about how you play it.
You can also level up with PvP alone and I do believe Escapist has a guild going already.

 

[Valanthe]

I'd definitely post Planetside 2 as a good option, I've had a little bit of hands on with it and it's shaping up to be just as much fun as the first one.

Aside from that I'd also suggest DayZ, its map is literally ginormous, and allows for all sorts of Player vs. Player, Player vs. Zombie, Player vs. Environment, Player vs. Outhouse... you get the picture. It can be buggy as hell, as it's an Alpha mod of an already buggy as hell game, and hackers are rampant, but if you can find a decent private server, or have the patience of a saint, the game can be extremely rewarding, even for people like myself who don't actively enjoy PvP combat.

 

[Playful Pony]

I couldn't tell if you were saying that you were completely opposed to shooters or not, but...Planetside 2? It should be getting a huge overhaul patch either today or tomorrow.

Each of the three factions can field 1200 soldiers per continent at the same time (It used to be higher but there were issues with faction stacking so the 1200 limit was imposed). Gets pretty insane at the larger bases.

Yeah this is the one I wanted to recommend! It's easily my favorite game currently, and that's despite many bugs and the horribly uneven player numbers from faction to faction X3.

 

[xDarc]

DayZ has the lowest form of PvP possible; sniping. You literally find a spot, sit, and look through scope until someone comes by that you can shoot from 1000 meters away. If you are found and someone shoots at you, alt-f4, safe!

You can also go on an empty server, gear up, go to sniping spot, and then server hop into a populated server with same stuff at same spot.

This mod is the stupidest thing ever. All the fanboys keep talking up "standalone" which is supposed to fix the hackers. Seriously, half the people are using cheats in that game because they are so readily available and the engine relies heavily on scripting. They'll play cheating passively, and god forbid someone actually kills them because then the whole server falls over dead at the same time.

Stupid mod. Does not deserve nearly the attention it is getting.

As for PlanetSide2; it's a turd also. Was playing that for a couple weeks. Haven't logged in for over a month. It's not the worst game ever, but it's got so many hurdles to overcome it's blandness just don't bother.


You know what game is truly the best right now in terms of good fights with other players? Tribes: Ascend. Hands down, the best PvP game out there right now. It's F2P and you can pay for unlocks or grind them. It's fun because it's a shooter that actually makes MOVEMENT a part of the FPS game again. All the other games out there today are about camping due to console mainstreaming FPS games- Tribes: Ascend plays like a classic. It's not open world, but I started with UO in 1998 and I've seen everything the MMOs have to offer and I don't even bother with them anymore by the time WoW came out. Open World games are ultimately a huge waste of space.

I hear Darkfall finally came out, and then I didn't hear anything else. So it must be pretty bad.

 

[Louie Clark]

Yeah this is the one I wanted to recommend! It's easily my favorite game currently, and that's despite many bugs and the horribly uneven player numbers from faction to faction X3.

Well it looks like this really deserves my attention if it keeps getting mentioned.

I have Guildwars 2, but once I hit 80 I just stopped playing for some reason. The PvP there is a lot of fun and I do like it, but I'm looking for something where I can pvp people in the actual game world, while doing pve. Not just a huge arena/battleground thing like GW2 is.

That being said, the server I am on is total garbage, and if there's a decent guild from here, I'd like to move servers. I'll see if I ever get not-lazy enough to look for a post.

 

[Playful Pony]

Yeah this is the one I wanted to recommend! It's easily my favorite game currently, and that's despite many bugs and the horribly uneven player numbers from faction to faction X3.

Well it looks like this really deserves my attention if it keeps getting mentioned.

I have Guildwars 2, but once I hit 80 I just stopped playing for some reason. The PvP there is a lot of fun and I do like it, but I'm looking for something where I can pvp people in the actual game world, while doing pve. Not just a huge arena/battleground thing like GW2 is.

That being said, the server I am on is total garbage, and if there's a decent guild from here, I'd like to move servers. I'll see if I ever get not-lazy enough to look for a post.

I'm not an MMORPG fan, so I never got into that X3. Could never get past lvl 40 in WoW even...

Planetside 2 is still in BETA so there are many troubles and bugs, as you would imagine. There has already been a lot of improvement, they fix major issues constantly as well as the minor bugs. After introducing the second continent balance between factions seemed to get even worse though, I really do hope they fix that soon. It's fine for a while, but after a few hours of fighting a losing battle and being pushed right back to the Warp Gate (Main Spawn) it get's kinda tiresome... It's nice to be able to attack some, defend some. Variation is the key!

I could also recommend Fallen Earth if you want a slightly more RPGic feel. It's a post apocalyptic Free-to-Play with a pretty interesting (if somewhat flawed) combat system, where by for example critical hits are not due to some random unseen number, but because you yourself managed to aim for the enemys head or other weakspot... I havent played actively for a while though, not sure how the game is looking.

 

[Louie Clark]

words words words words

That sounds kind of neat, too. I guess I have some research to do. Thanks little horsey.

 

[PH3NOmenon]

How about guild wars 2? The WvW gameplay felt similar to the Planetside 1 to me (i.e. follow the zerg around or find 5 friends and try to draw away heat from your own zerg). Just make sure you pick a good server.

Sounds like it could be what you're after.


:edit: darn it to heck, I only read your OP. Shame on me.

 

[BloatedGuppy]

I have Guildwars 2, but once I hit 80 I just stopped playing for some reason. The PvP there is a lot of fun and I do like it, but I'm looking for something where I can pvp people in the actual game world, while doing pve. Not just a huge arena/battleground thing like GW2 is.

It sounds to me like you want to gank. You're going to need to find a game with a dedicated PvP server for that. Games with consensual open world PvP like GW2 or Planetside 2 aren't really going to fit the bill, because combat will always be large scale, and people will always be ready for a fight.

 

[Louie Clark]

It sounds to me like you want to gank. You're going to need to find a game with a dedicated PvP server for that. Games with consensual open world PvP like GW2 or Planetside 2 aren't really going to fit the bill, because combat will always be large scale, and people will always be ready for a fight.

No, not at all. Not in the sense that I would kill lower level people. I just like having that little sense of danger while I play I guess, and being able to give it to others.

 

[BloatedGuppy]

No, not at all. Not in the sense that I would kill lower level people. I just like having that little sense of danger while I play I guess, and being able to give it to others.

That's ganking! Ganking lower level players is just ganking noobs. You want to be able to catch people off their guard, and be caught off your guard. You like the spice it gives to PvE. I get it, it's cool. I was an old school UO player. I played on a PvP server in WoW for a long time. I get it.

For myself, I've just gotten tired of it over time, because the ratio of fair fights to one sided rompings (for or against) was about 1-99, and the latter got so tedious I just couldn't be assed with it any more. If you're not totally opposed to playing slightly clunky games, you could look into something like Darkfall. It's aging, and small, and VERY niche, but it's completely built around the kind of thing you're looking for. Conversely, you could just play one of the more mainstream MMOs on a PvP server. EVE is a game that should DEFINITELY appeal to you. And the upcoming World of Darkness as well.

 

[Louie Clark]

I really fail to see how attacking another player that has either chosen to play on a pvp server, or as opted in to being open to pvp combat is ganking.

 

[CarbonEagle]

EVE Online. The game pretty much centers around pvp. Yeah you can mine, or do missions, but thats just so you can afford a pvp ship and go kill someone. Also in 00 Space there are wars so epic and huge they sometimes crash the servers. And to top it all off the leveling system allows new players to catch up to older players, with the biggest difference being the number of ships you can competently fly.