Warhammer Online Pro vs. Con Editorial - Will WAR Succeed?
Thousands of anxious players are awaiting the release of Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning, but will they really receive the game that they truly desire? Will the WAR rise up to be the shining new king of the MMOG mountain, or will it fail as so many other MMOGs have done in recent years? This is the argument that Cody "Micajah" Bye and Danny "Ralsu" Gourley took on with their Pro vs. Con editorial, and it's up to you to use your own judgment and decide which one has the correct line of thought on WAR. Read the article, then post your own opinion in our forums!
Quote:
Just like World of Warcraft did back in 2004, Warhammer Online is not trying to reinvent the wheel when it comes to gameplay. On the contrary, the developers at Warhammer Online seem to be expressly trying to improve the gameplay elements that they began in Dark Age of Camelot and have seen progress throughout the life of that game and modified in other MMOGs like WoW, EQ2, LOTRO, and AoC. In fact, Warhammer Online even bears a fairly striking resemblance to World of Warcraft, at least in the fact that the graphics are a bit more stylized than what players have seen in many other MMOGs (and this is also the general style of the Warhammer unverse). All of these elements should keep more players around WAR than in the previous games.
Good read overall. I was a bit put off by the tone of the Con article, and being told "I Told You So" at the end of it was a great assumption and made me regret agreeing with any of his opinions. Not to say there weren't some concerns in common there. I don't expect Mythic to get it right 100% at launch, but they are doing the best they can, which is all we can expect.
The Pro article, though starry-eyed was a much smoother read. Maybe I'm biased? I always expect something good rather then assume failure. Some revel in bringing down the level of joy optimistic people have. Perhaps this is the case here?
Was a good read but in the "Cons" using DD0 as an example of a IP gone awry is just not valid. DD0 was a terrible game. It's not because it was a D&D IP that it didn't do well, it did bad because it didn't even meet the fan's of D&D approval.
In any case I think Warhammer will do well and I'll cross my fingers that it does extremely well.
Agreeing with xanadu's comments, the Con article gave me a regretful feeling, and I was therefore reluctant to agree with him on such a large assumption. I had no problems agreeing with the Con article on the subject with EA, since I don't like EA at all. It's been a long concern of mine, ever since the merge, that EA would sort of, force something on Mythic and try to broaden the game to appeal to all types of gamers, thus completely destroying the game. It leaves me wondering what Mythic will do if that situation ever arises?
Overall, I thought both articles were a great, intelligent read, and I'm glad they both took the time to write all that up. Aside from the "I Told You So" at the end of the Con, both writers were thorough in their views and made no biased assumptions.
If I had to 'side' with one of them, I'd have to go with the Pro article, being the Warhammer enthusiast that I am. Warhammer Online has the recipe for success, and I wouldn't doubt that Blizzard knows it. World of Warcraft, as mentioned, rose to the top above Everquest, which was the king at the time. Why? Because they did something new, innovative and addictive. It revolutionized the online gaming industry, and while Warhammer might not achieve that dramatic title, why can't Mythic rise to the top above World of Warcraft, or at least, compete on an even level with them? I for one, don't think it's impossible, and I think that Mythic has the ability and the mindset to do such a thing. Their developers are quite experienced, and the special confidence in the way they talk almost assures me that their game will flourish.
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I actually think that the release of the lich king or w/e the expansion is called, is a good thing for WAR. Since all the pvp players and the pve raiders whom grown tired of WoW will have to start all over with the expansion. See all their gear be wortless a couple of hours after release and all the rep they gained means nothing
That i think will make them more likely to play WAR since they basically have to restart from "1" anyways.
Although i dont see all the "hard core" PvE raiders leaving WoW anytime soon, they enjoy killing computer controlled mobs for purple loot far too much
But every true PvP player will drop WoW in an instant if WAR is all it seems to be :duck:
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Being very skeptical about external power influence forging the game to their liking even if that means being in direct contradiction of the developer team design and wishes, a legit and valid concern?
Yes, very legit. It is EA that we are talking about okay the new CEO is less 'i r Game God of all, you bow now!(Insert Strogg voice)' but give him a year or two and the investors will have created another one. Especially if some games don't sell so well and suddenly no-more-mister-nice-guy.
Suits making MMO's = Bad MMO aka WoW clone, "We must make a game for all ages! for everyone either casual AND hardcore, PvPer AND Carebear"
IP being made into something it is not and actualling doing more harm then good very possible but i don't think this is true for this game although many people still believe that Warhammer should've sticked to what it is good at Strategy Games, The class imbalance and side imbalance can be major issues, But DDO is a bad example, that game should've been name "dungeons & more dungeons online" with very little variety, making you beg for a pair of dices, pen and paper after a while.
Turn it, spin it around flip it upside down, make it do a double flip.
War looks like WoW "yes but this and this and that..." and how many people of those millions are going to spent time finding out all the differences?
If looks like it people think it is like it, perception error but many people having the wrong perception and suddenly it becomes a truth amongst many.
The game really has to have something WoW or any other game doesn't offer AND is enough to make them come back, if you have tested the game and you didn't really had that 'magical feeling' begin praying to the mmo gods.
This is were AoC got lucky, despite it being a pool of bugs and annoyances (i'm not playing and haven't done so over a month), many untested and unreleased features, the combat system sets it appart.
Either you like it or you hate it but if you like it and start playing your old MMO you get the need for that system.
Remember initial sales in a MMO world does not mean much.
However the future isn't all grim and i think should have a big enough following to atleast hit the minimum of 200K subscribers but believing that Warhammer will rise above World of Warcraft subscribtions. Dream On.
World of Warcraft DID NOT make something new or innovative. No it didn't.
It had an easy ride on the name fame bandwagon (x2). It made an all easy friendly MMO a monkey could play.
Easy, annoyance free, Familiar setting, Familiar company that took every excisting feature that fit the themepark setting. A+ on research, F on originality.
Does that mean that WAR is a bad game, nope. You need much more then a well developed game to come near 4 million subs.
The 'i told you so' comment is valid but it is normal that you all go on the defensive i would've done so to 12 months ago if the topic was about AoC.
Just so everyone is aware - Danny used to have a blog titled "I Told You So" and that was always his final line. That's why it was used; not to make everyone feel bad.
It may have been a bit out of place in the article, but it was his call.
I will say this the Con piece took the Easy EA IS THE DEVIL approach that one might expect to read with tinfoil hat firmly in place...
Remember EA earned that -title- for valid reasons in the past and that bad after taste will be there for many more years.
However EA is not unique, it's just the most know.
In general outside influence in a game production by suits is never a good thing, especially looking what game is being hold up as a succes these days.
Warhammer Online Pro vs. Con Editorial - Will WAR Succeed?
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