This week, AbhorrentElms and Thinkertron review, MMO’s in general.
AbhorrentElms: To start this off, my opinion on MMO’s? I’m a fan of them. A huge fan of them. This is no great secret. I like to play them when I’m bored and when I’m supposed to be doing other important things. (Like writing articles.) It’s sorta something to do when you have nothing better to do than sit at your computer and rot away.

Thinkertron says: We probably don’t need to review mine

AbhorrentElms: As yours is basically… “All MMOs must die”?

Thinkertron: That’s basically it, yes.

AbhorrentElms: Any particular reason as to WHY? Perhaps a traumatic experience? WoW raped your mother and killed your father, perhaps?

Thinkertron: Might as well have. No, mostly it’s the boring gameplay. I prefer action gameplay, where both skill and strategy are at play.

AbhorrentElms: Well, have you ever thought that maybe you just haven’t tried any MMOs that require both skill and strategy? I’ve been playing D&D Online for the last couple weeks and, lemme tell ya, you can’t just tank through that. It actually takes skill and knowledge to build a decent character. And even then, you’ll have to make a decent party with varying skills and abilities to get through the game with any ease, as the quests are so varied. (The fact that I tank through with a +2 Greatsword of God Damn Win means nothing)

Thinkertron: That may be, but I’d still probably give up after a few munites. You see, every MMO that I’ve tried has similar gameplay. “Click on the opponent. wait. Click again. You win”

AbhorrentElms: Well, what about an MMO with puzzles and riddles? There’s a few of those out there.

Thinkertron: Then why not just get a puzzle game? The “MMO” bit feels a bit tacked on, and MMO’s are all about the shared experience, this is harder to do with puzzles. It’d be like having 10 people on one Rubix Cube, all trying to turn it at once. Sure, you could give suggestions, but then you’re not really solving the puzzle yourself.

AbhorrentElms: I’m thinking some people like a variety of genres in a game. Which is why they’d add puzzles or races or even PvP. Not to make it seem like blatant advertising for D&D Online, but the first few quests have you disarming traps, killing zombies, saving a town from an ice breathing dragon, and solving puzzles not unlike the plumbing from Bioshock.

Thinkertron: Well those are like petty distractions from the real game: Which lacks the reflex and skill tests that I need. People didn’t like Bioshock because of the mini-game: it was the story, characters, and atmosphere. Which brings be to another point. Story.

AbhorrentElms: Which DDO has in great quantities. They even have a DM which describes the area of the dungeon. From the skittering of spiders, to foot prints on the floor, to the smell of rotting corpses.

Thinkertron: Ah, but that’s just set pieces. Story is a certain amount of events. And even if DDO has good story, most MMO stories amount to “I NEED ITEM X. OH GOOD YOU FOUND SOME.” IF they’re feeling fancy, they’ll add in a reason why, or a second objective.

AbhorrentElms: See, I haven’t experienced any item grind in DDO yet. Most of the quests I’ve gotten in it thus far either want me to go into a dungeon, destroy something, kill a certain number of enemies, or go through and collect some important item. And the item grind quests are optional and for certain classes. (Mostly rogues) And D&D Online is based on a game that’s based around STORY. D&D is a table-top RPG. Pencil and paper. It’s played for the great story and atmosphere created by a good DM. And since it’s the creators of D&D that made the MMO… I’d assume they’re good DM’s.

Thinkertron: Ah, but that’s D&D Online. What about the thousands of other MMOs out there?

AbhorrentElms: Well, in my experience, all the other MMO’s out there? Are trying to compete with WoW. In the sense that… Well… They’re trying to BE WoW. Which is why I’m not a fan of WoW at all. It’s a rather tedious game that’s too influential in a genre of games that needs a good influence.

Thinkertron:
Speaking of influence, there are 3 MMOs I’m kind of looking forward to, and I hope they leave a good imprint.

1: Star Wars: The Old Republic
It has an emphasis on story and choice, and Bioware is making it, so it should deliver.
2: All Points Bulletin
It’s like an organized GTA online, a shooter with insane customisation.
And finally…
3: The Agency
FPS MMO, need I say more?

AbhorrentElms: I don’t think it’s necessary, no. My top pick for upcoming MMOs? Dragon Nest. Showed at E3 this year. I watched the trailer a few days ago, and as far as I’ve seen, the gameplay looks a lot like Legend of Zelda. And the artstyle is really nice and refreshing. But before we get off on a tangent.
We should probably wrap this up.

Conclusion reached?
They’re good, not for everybody, but could be better if WoW wasn’t such a glory hog. (Looking at you, Blizzard.)