Related Sections: MMOs
A look at the Warhammer Online player community
Gamasutra published one of their uniquely thoughtful and discursive articles*, this time on the Warhammer Online player community. Writer Michael Walbridge has some insight into what sets this MMO apart from the competition. For instance:If you try [Warhammer Online] alone, it'll feel lonelier than some other MMOs. For starters, grouping requires less communication, which enhances play time but lessens bonding or memory of other players. I've not yet added a single person to my friends list because it simply doesn't enter into my mind.
I'm not sure I necessarily agree that this is the case in higher level grouping, during the player vs. player battles, but the game's automatic grouping definitely streamlines out those opening social moments after the 'sup'. You know the moments:
"You getting wolf pelts?"
"Yeah, want to help me kill that boss?"
"You pull."
"Been playing long?"
"I just started. Pretty cool so far."
"This is my alt."
I particularly liked Walbridge's point about the structure of the Warhammer world.There aren't long flights or waits for boats to pick you up, either. The Auction House has few items, and there isn't very much to do in a city. Training for your abilities is located in almost any spot that has a cluster of NPCs. The crafting and economic system are minor and nothing close to the scale of those in EVE Online or WoW. There simply isn't any reason to sit around and chat because of boredom, economics, or forced breaks due to game design.
One thing Warhammer Online doesn't seem to concern itself with is world building. It's not so much a carefully crafted place (I still think Lord of the Rings Online is the best-case example of this) as it is a carefully crafted game.
And I certainly agree with Walbridge when he concludes:...as the game is right now, it cannot be fully understood or fully reviewed until a large number of players have reached the highest mountain and can view the valley...
I haven't been able to play over the last week or so, and I miss the game terribly, but I look forward to being able to come back once the player base has worked its way out into the entire world (not to mention once a few minor complications have been patched out of the game).
(Thanks to Slashdot for this!)
* Never mind that it's technically from one of their sister sites.
By Pete S at 4:17 PM ON 10/07/08
I dunno how much faith I can put in that article. The game has been live for what? 3 weeks? I think its pretty early to draw *any* conclusions.
I enjoy the game a lot, and definitely will renew for a month and re-evaluate a few weeks into that second month. MMOs can suddenly go stale very quickly in my experience.
As to the quiet... I think that's kind of random. Unless Candymancers are on several servers, the author is playing on the same server I'm on (Averheim) and there's ample chat in parties for my tastes. But then I'm there to play a game, not listen to Chuck Norris jokes.
I always immediately turn off the /general channels in these games anyway, so I don't miss that. If you're looking for an MMO where you can sorta play the game but mostly chat with random strangers then yeah, this one probably isn't for you.
But I still think we've got at least another 3-4 weeks before we can really look at Warhammer critically.
By Marcin at 4:17 PM ON 10/07/08
Those seem pretty spot on. WAR checks every checkbox, to the point that even your off-the-beaten-path wanderings have been pre-seeded with Tome unlocks, but it doesn't have much soul to go with all the bullet points.
On the other hand, is it really worth it to complain that there isn't a dull moment? ;) I find that my casual, want-to-group-on-my-terms playstyle is frighteningly compatible with Warhammer. We'll see what happens at Tier 4.
Going back in; I just finished Chapter 6 with some completely random people, courtesy of the Open Group system. Time to see what Chapter 7 is about.
By malkav11 at 7:02 PM ON 10/07/08
Not much to do in a city? I'm a bit mystified by that statement. What other MMO has as much stuff to do in the big capital cities? Certainly not WoW - I hated having to go to Stormwind or Orgrimmar or the Undercity (and never *did* go to most of the others) because they were enormous and sprawling (and hard to navigate) but ultimately empty. Collections of trainers and merchants and the occasional NPC conversation, very little else.
Altdorf, by contrast, has already delivered a couple of dozen quests (more unlocking as each star rating is obtained), exploration unlocks, many and lively NPC interactions, three PQs (that I've found. there are doubtless others.), and five instanced dungeons (the three Sewer instances, the Warpblade Tunnels, the Sigmar Crypts). Not to mention little random encounters around the place. Skavens in barrels, daemons summoned by prostitutes, that sort of thing.
Do you eventually exhaust its possibilities? No doubt. There can only be so much content in any given zone. But Altdorf *is* content, in a way that large cities in other MMOs I've played haven't been.
By gibon at 5:25 PM ON 01/02/09
Greate game. I like it a lot. I played warhamemr online for 3 month and really enjoyed it. The game is few month now so please be patient, some bugs and issues will be fixed in time.
Cheers
gibon:
Greate game. I like it a lot. I played warhamemr online for 3 month and really enjoyed it. The game is few month no...More »