Poll: MMOs: Do you play them?

[Da Orky Man]

MMOs are a popular topic of discussion on this here forum, but how many of you actually play them? Myself, I occasionally play Star Trek online, but only becasue it's free. I also spent a good portion of my early secondary school years playing Runescape, the only reason I really put it on the poll.
Anyways, for discussion value:
What MMOs do you play or have in the past? And what do you think makes the standard MMO grind-to-victory model so compelling?

 

[BloatedGuppy]

Wording of the poll is kind of tricky. I played WoW most, but I WILL be playing Guild Wars 2 most, so I picked Guild Wars, even though I'm not presently playing it at all, and I didn't touch the original game much.

I do take issue with this:

...the standard MMO grind-to-victory model...

Because it's a commonly issued misconception of MMO game play that it's universally "grindy" and devoid of entertainment value. Most modern MMOs are actually quite entertaining to play. They're just not always entertaining to play after the 500th hour, and due to the "bottomless" nature of the content many people not only play for hundreds if not thousands of hours, they come into the game EXPECTING to play for hundreds if not thousands of hours. I can't count the number of people who played a game like, say, TOR for several hundred hours before charging the forum and loudly complaining that there was "no content".

Ultimately, if you're an individual with poor impulse control and you can't determine when an experience is no longer rewarding and therefore it is time for a break, then it's possible that the MMO genre is not for you. But the genre hasn't been particularly "grindy" for over a decade now.

 

[Daystar Clarion]

Played a lot of Guild Wars back in the day.

Will probably get GW2, be interesting to see what's changed.

 

[StriderShinryu]

I sort of still play Lord of the Rings Online but it's been quite a while since I logged in for more than an auction house check. I do definitely enjoy them though and wouldn't be averse to playing as much as I used to if one came along that struck a chord with me. Right now my main issue (besides my ancient PC that I'm still waffling on replacing) is subscription fees. The one coming MMO I'm most interested in is Secret World but as LOTRO has proven you can get a great MMO experience without having to pay a monthly fee, I'm just not convinced Secret World will offer enough to make me want to shell out that much again.

As for what MMOs I played in the past. I've tried quite a bunch but still hold The Matrix Online as the best I've ever experienced and it's shadow looms large over any MMO I've tried since. It had it's flaws to be sure but the core of what it was is forever going to be, to me, the perfect MMO.

 

[Da Orky Man]

Wording of the poll is kind of tricky. I played WoW most, but I WILL be playing Guild Wars 2 most, so I picked Guild Wars, even though I'm not presently playing it at all, and I didn't touch the original game much.

I do take issue with this:

...the standard MMO grind-to-victory model...

Because it's a commonly issued misconception of MMO game play that it's universally "grindy" and devoid of entertainment value. Most modern MMOs are actually quite entertaining to play. They're just not always entertaining to play after the 500th hour, and due to the "bottomless" nature of the content many people not only play for hundreds if not thousands of hours, they come into the game EXPECTING to play for hundreds if not thousands of hours. I can't count the number of people who played a game like, say, TOR for several hundred hours before charging the forum and loudly complaining that there was "no content".

Ultimately, if you're an individual with poor impulse control and you can't determine when an experience is no longer rewarding and therefore it is time for a break, then it's possible that the MMO genre is not for you. But the genre hasn't been particularly "grindy" for over a decade now.

The only MMOs I've ever played are Runescape, Star Trek Online, and the EVE online trial. They're all grind-fests. I'm just speaking from experience. I can't afford to keep playing MMOs for long.

 

[Sixcess]

My most played, currently, would be Fallen Earth, though I usually split my time between four or five different games - not concurrently, I hasten to add. I enjoy the exploration, the freedom, the world building, and even the gameplay. It's only as "grindy" as you want it to be.

 

[Mr Cwtchy]

I currently play LOTRO most, as I am subscribed to it. Not playing much at the moment though due to burnout. Still, looking forward to Rohan later this year.

 

[Jynthor]

Used to play LotRO a long time ago, before it went F2P and that was definitely the MMO I put the most hours in, I loved that game a lot, and the Moria expansion was goddamn amazing for a Dwarf fanboy like me. Second in place would probably be WoW, played retail a few months and played with some friends on a private server after that(A server as close as it got to the real deal). There are many others I played for a short while. Warhammer Online, Age of Conan, Aion, SWTOR.

Now I have discovered my attention span sucks for MMO's, I play for a month and then I start playing other stuff. Thus wasting a month worth of money.

I will definitely check out Guild Wars 2 because of this, not only does it look great but it doesn't have a monthly fee.

 

[Scarim Coral]

Technically Guild Wars isn't a MMO per say since the map is created per character/ party not a single huge map per sever but that is the only game I have played from the list. Either way that is soon to be change when Guild Wars 2 is out.

 

[Shrapenel92]

Other, I did play WoW for a while, but the grinding and subscription fees got on my nerves, I'm holding out for Guild Wars 2, I'm so excited I even bought the Collector's Edition! I'm one of THOSE guys >.<

 

[madwarper]

Other. I play LotRO, best example of a F2P model I can think of. You can earn in-game currency to unlock content, rather than actually having to pay cash to get it.

Also, GW2 seems interesting. If it only has a purchase cost and not a monthly subscription, I'll look into it.

 

[BLAHwhatever]

League of Legends, as theres nothing to do in WoW at the moment

 

[Kinokohatake]

I am MMO free. Can't understand a game that has no ending and I pay $150 bucks a year for endless grinding.

 

[cjspyres]

It has been my experience that Eve Online is the most interesting MMO to talk about, but is really boring to play. That might just be me though. Lately I've been playing Champions, DC Universe, and Dungeons and Dragons Online. Yeah, I'm stuck playing f2p for a while.

 

[Fr]anc[is]

I do not play games that get more expensive over time, that is absurd. I am patiently waiting for TOR to go F2P or at least subscriptionless. Also been meaning to look into Allods, I just never get around to installing it.

 

[Niishke]

I play EVE Online. It's easier to part with my $15 every month if I'm playing a game where making other players buttmad is not only allowed, but encouraged. It's basically a griefing tax, and they let you play the game as a bonus.

 

[pure.Wasted]

Wording of the poll is kind of tricky. I played WoW most, but I WILL be playing Guild Wars 2 most, so I picked Guild Wars, even though I'm not presently playing it at all, and I didn't touch the original game much.

I do take issue with this:

...the standard MMO grind-to-victory model...

Because it's a commonly issued misconception of MMO game play that it's universally "grindy" and devoid of entertainment value. Most modern MMOs are actually quite entertaining to play. They're just not always entertaining to play after the 500th hour, and due to the "bottomless" nature of the content many people not only play for hundreds if not thousands of hours, they come into the game EXPECTING to play for hundreds if not thousands of hours. I can't count the number of people who played a game like, say, TOR for several hundred hours before charging the forum and loudly complaining that there was "no content".

Ultimately, if you're an individual with poor impulse control and you can't determine when an experience is no longer rewarding and therefore it is time for a break, then it's possible that the MMO genre is not for you. But the genre hasn't been particularly "grindy" for over a decade now.

Yup.

Voted for WoW, it's the only MMO I've ever played outside of beta/trial. Did the trial for EVE twice, though, and I won't be surprised if I do it again. It has this great distinct vibe that, thankfully, I only need a couple of hours to recharge on for months, if not years. Played LOTR:O beta and trial as well. Big meh.

If WoW is a grind to you and you don't like grinds, then you're right not to play it. But it isn't, or hasn't always been, a grind for everyone. There's so much to do in it, and, believe it or not, "exploring the world" was actually a thing you could do back in vanilla, before everyone was in a guild and you'd look pretty silly explaining over mic why you're swimming around the Hinterlands, before you needed to be all caught up, gear-wise, with everyone else because you needed to progress together, so wasting time on peripheral stuff became less of an option.

Levels 20-30 took me ages to get through because just when I thought I was done having fun world PVPing in Hillsbrad, I moved over to Ashenvale, and whaddayaknow Astranaar's getting raided now on a daily basis. No exp, no loot, no progression, just fun. That was allowed.

It'll take something really interesting to suck me back into MMOs. Titan might do it. Otherwise, something EVE-esque with a focus on player-built worlds.

 

[cjspyres]

I play EVE Online. It's easier to part with my $15 every month if I'm playing a game where making other players buttmad is not only allowed, but encouraged. It's basically a griefing tax, and they let you play the game as a bonus.

Eh,I don't really see the point of playing a game if it's only to piss other people off. Even if I don't particularly like playing EVE online, I absolutely respect the idea of it. It's amazing really. A completely player driven world. It's just a shame that some of the "players" only want to grief.

As a side note, there is a difference between griefing and playing a game with the intentions of defeating your opponent.

 

[Niishke]

I play EVE Online. It's easier to part with my $15 every month if I'm playing a game where making other players buttmad is not only allowed, but encouraged. It's basically a griefing tax, and they let you play the game as a bonus.

Eh,I don't really see the point of playing a game if it's only to piss other people off. Even if I don't particularly like playing EVE online, I absolutely respect the idea of it. It's amazing really. A completely player driven world. It's just a shame that some of the "players" only want to grief.

As a side note, there is a difference between griefing and playing a game with the intentions of defeating your opponent.

I'm aware of the difference between fighting and griefing. Being a member of Goonswarm I'm very familiar with both. The Eve player base (which is horrible) would make anyone want to be a griefer in between all the wars of conquest.

 

[renegade7]

EVE!

CLUSTERFUCK COALITION FOREVER!