Tag Archive: hardcore

TOR Might Wind Up a “Clone”– Why Is That Bad, Again?

It’s been interesting to watch how the public interpretation of The Old Republic has changed since it was announced. It went from godsend, to F2P (oh noes!), to godsend, to the current point of “It’s a WoW clone” disappointment. On one hand, I empathize with people that want something new and are tired of the …

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LotRO’s Death Penalty Just Doesn’t Fit; Do MMOs Still Need Death Penalties?

I’ve had an interesting few days in LotRO. Namely, they’re interesting because I’ve found myself logging out within minutes of getting online. The reason is that, as a result of some unfortunate logout positioning, I come back online in the middle of a fight. Without fail, I’m always at about 30% health and unbuffed. Being …

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Guided Experience: How Much Handholding is Too Much Handholding?

Over the course of my last couple years MMO hopping, I’ve noticed a great divide in how some games approach progression. Effectively, your time in a game can be broken down into a series of micro activities and macro activities. Micro activities would be things such as questing, crafting, and exploring the zone you’re in. …

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Why MMOs Need Exclusive Content

One of the biggest trends to sweep MMO gaming is accessibility. It’s all about making sure everyone can do everything now. Yet, I think there’s a difference between the two. Accessible does not mean that everyone can do everything. Rather, it means that everyone has the reasonable opportunity to try. There’s a difference there, but …

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