Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Rift: Oh the troubles YOU have seen...

"Nobody knows the whining I've seen..."

Yes, a spiritual to describe the dire nature of the current MMO market. Especially when it deals with a game I am really enjoying. I try my best to find the awful issues most seem to be experiencing as I read their blogs and forum posts of "Whaaa". I just can't do it.

Rift: Planes of Telara feels like a true world I can inhabit for a long time.

It has been a while since I have talked about my gaming habits, and Longasc was kind enough to remind me of what I am doing.

Playing an MMO I enjoy.


Though small, our guild of family and friends has been moving along at a decent pace. Most are in their low 40's, and we have already started to discuss endgame. The set grouping levels mechanic I have used in previous games has worked out well, though not as we planned. Instead of choosing specific days, we just noted levels and tried to play together when we could...but, hold up leveling until others arrived at that juncture.

As I continue to enjoy my travels in Telara, I note all sorts of little items that really help me enjoy this game above most.


When we journey together, finding the highest peaks and grabbing that snapshot for the memories is just one pleasure. The fact the game has so many of these "climbing" areas is a fun little side note in my overall trudge to max level. While climbing, finding little goodies like the "shinies" or more resources just adds to it.

Another measure I have taken to in Rift that I have not done much in previous games is avoiding that level grind by trying out different ways to play. Jumping into vent, chatting away while killing mobs for mats, dungeon runs with various group sizes and combinations (2 heals, 2 tanks, etc.), or straight rift running. 

Rift has opened this new playstyle and helps me through what most consider standard play.



One of the major complaints I keep reading is about mob density. Too much and it keeps you from getting to your objectives too many times. Is this the "easy mode" mentality of most players kicking in? Or is it this need to speed through and crush the roses (sniff those roses buddy or get a thorn in your....)?

I still have to wonder if it is because I avoided World of Warcraft that I can enjoy even the simplest things in my MMO of choice? Has WoW really ruined so many? 

As Tipa wrote at West Karana "I really like Rift, I do. But then, I really liked World of Warcraft, too. I was an absolute fanatic about that game for a long time. Thing is, I’ve DONE WoW. All I want from Rift is stuff I couldn’t do in WoW. "

Did this kill Rift's pleasure for so many?

Well, I will keep moving along. I have plans. Fun plans...BIG plans to enjoy every moment of a game that has really made every effort to try and be great.

They have succeeded for MY book.

Now, quit causing trouble and go play.

1 comment:

Longasc said...

I love "crush the roses"... collecting "shinies" is an aspect of the EverQuest legacy that was well worth preserving! The flexibility of roles and the soul system is a great plus, reminds a lot of Guild Wars.

I wonder if future expert dungeons will go into the "find working soul combos" that was also the case for more challenging team setups for harder dungeons/mission in Guild Wars.

Keep it up, it can't hurt to tell people why you like to play Rift. Bloggers too often take this as a given and tend to focus on problems, nothing wrong with that actually, but you know I always liked your Age of Conan adventure reports. Because that's is what makes MMOs great, the adventure. People need to write more about that! I did not even participate in the River of Souls event and know details of what went wrong. But what do I know about the zones and what people did in the areas and dungeons I did not play in Beta?

I am not kidding, so far I have read only one dungeon report, which was extremely short and lacking any detail. "We did dungeon X" + screenshot of the dead boss. That was it!

Really, some zone/dungeon/adventure reports in style of your old AoC blog postings would rock! Don't fall prey to forum discussion inspired blog posts, they tend to lose any value within weeks, while what I called "adventure reports" stay interesting for much longer. Plus having a much more positive quality in general.