MMO trials begin
Freedom is sometimes a safe haven that costs us dear. We only need to read the news to see how costly it has become in the middle-east in modern times.
Looking at my personal freedom of late, the biggest one has to be the not subscribing to an MMO/MMORPG on a monthly basis. This may not be a permanent condition, as you will see later in this post.
Now I suspect that some ex MMO/MMORPG players can be very much like the smoker that gives up their habit, denouncing the whole experience to anyone who will listen & ridiculing all those seen to take up the same habit. Personally I could be like that ex-smoker here on Sweet Flag. I could begin non-constructive arguments about MMOs & MMORPGs, trying my damnedest to slate any of the past, present or future online virtual worlds, but I don’t feel the need to do that, as I don’t regret the time I have spent playing in these worlds, no not in the slightest.
Not all of them were fun, sure & some of them were played for a very short period but overall I have some big positives to take from the whole experience that outweigh the negatives. I have made friends that I still keep in touch with, even though I no longer game with them & surely that has to be one of the best features you can get from a virtual environment, that doesn’t cost you money when the gaming ends.
So what’s are the reasons behind this post then?
Tipa recently challenged her readers to a MMO nostalgia challenge, which I don’t feel inclinded to take but saying that I do miss not being involved in a MMO or MMORPG. I still feel there’s some unfinished business to attend to in the lair of this genre, even if I agree with mbp that there’s some argument to the idea that MMORPGs could be a passing fad, I believe that we may well see more co-operative creative games emerging(see Spore & Little Big Planet) ahead of new MMORPGs in 2009 & beyond.
So to address this unfinished business, I intend to involve myself in some of the trials that certain MMORPGs offer to new players, from which I will make a judgement on how well each trial does in introducing a new player into that world & personally how I feel towards the game after the trial ends. I will be ultimately asking, would I sign up for a paying subscription?
I am giving myself some early guidelines to follow for these trials:
- The trial has to be a game I haven’t tried in recent years, so no WoW or LotrO.
- The trial has to offer the client as download & at least a few days game time.
- Within the MMO trial, I will look to make daily posts on the experience with a summary post at the end of the game trial period.
- I will score the trial out of 10 in the summary post. This is not a game review score by any means but how the trial to the game performs for the new player.
So what game is up first?
Well I have been itching to try out EVE Online for sometime now & with the recent patch(Trinity 1.1: Boost Patch Notes contains a revamped Character Creation and New Player Experience) & the further patch on April 15th, there doesn’t seem a better time to try it under the Sweet Flag MMO trial.
CCP gives new players a 14 day trial which contains a download of the client, which I have now installed on my hard drive. Playing EVE Online on this trial also allows me to address some of the great issues that syncaine’s throwing down the gauntlet the great mmo challenge post, threw up.
On a final note on the MMO trials, I will be happy to take suggestions on the next & future trials here at Sweet Flag, benefiting me & you in equal measure, as I can try something out for size in the MMORPG/MMO genre that satisfies my virtual gaming desire & for you the reader can get the feel of a trial that you may not have the time to try yourself.
Please feel free to send me an email or leave a comment with your suggestions. I would also be interested to hear from you if you currently play EVE Online or are an ex player.
§Related Posts ¦ EVE Online
April 13, 2008 at 9:04 pm
If you can, download the game via steam, and you get an extra couple days trial time.
April 13, 2008 at 11:18 pm
Trigger good spot…you get 21 days via steam download, so an extra 7 days in the bag will be great.
April 14, 2008 at 1:53 am
EvE is sandbox gaming at its finest. After a few months of playing, I’m deeply immersed in the economics of trading and production, and I’m starting to explore PVP and low-security operations (which, to be honest, you should really try to experience much sooner).
The thrill of EvE is the real risk to your investment – either time, money, or both – every time you undock your ship. It is frighteningly addictive adrenaline rush.
April 14, 2008 at 8:39 am
Hello Tim
The 3 week trial will allow me to look at depth at the new tutorial that CCP have in place but I would like to experience some PvP, as I have heard it’s the best of any MMO.
Question for you, do you feel you need to be in an alliance or corp. to progress in the game or could you solo a role like bounty hunter for instance. Are you in a corp.?
April 14, 2008 at 5:31 pm
Although I didn’t last beyond the two week trial myself I have alway felt that Eve produces the best stories of any mmorpg. I look forward to hearing your thoughts.
April 15, 2008 at 12:18 am
Thanks mbp
I am just looking at the 3 week trial period for now but who knows I may love the game enough to subscribe…
Would you say that EO seemed too complicated & could do with some clarity in its design or is that what makes EO the game it is today?
April 16, 2008 at 9:14 pm
Elf Online, try this one out its not a trail but u can look into it its pretty cool game
April 20, 2008 at 11:35 am
[...] trials: sickness delays Time sensitive trials, like the 21 day EVE Online one I began 4 days ago, don’t have a pause feature. Which is a shame really, as real life likes to butt in just when [...]
April 20, 2008 at 11:53 am
It’s certainly possible to make significant solo progress in EvE – but only in certain areas, and not to the extent that you can progress in a corporation. The key is specialization.
For instance, mining really comes into its own in a gang with dedicated miners, haulers and combat coverage. The mined ore is best utilised by characters with well-developed refining, researching and manufacturing skills. The resulting items bring the most profit in the hand of a skilled trader. Getting one character expert in these areas takes months, and cross-training even more so. Corporations allow all members to take advantage of their members’ range of specialities.
Even as a bounty hunter, you will perform better in at least a small group with a range of roles: tackling, DPS, electronic warfare etc. You can effectively solo missions up to a point if that’s your style, but many find missions repetitive.
I’m in a corporation which focuses on mining. However, even we have had some experience with other corporations wardeccing (declaring war on) us. Since I wrote my last comment, I’ve experienced the rather shocking loss of a ~16 million ISK ship in under five seconds thanks to a recently-uncloaked war target with a large rack of missiles. But I have since made up the loss with multimillion ISK profits exploiting cross-region trade routes. So you can have quite a varied experience within the one character, but once you pick something, stick it through.
Within 21 days, I expect you could build up some reasonable combat skills, find a combat-friendly corp to take you on, and get in enough PVP to whet your appetite for more.
Look for ‘Amose Amanum’ in game if you want to talk more.
April 20, 2008 at 4:18 pm
Tim your comment alone has whetted my appetite for more EO. Have missed a few days of the trial(see recent post) but should be back playing later today.
Amose Amanum eh? Will keep an eye out…
May 2, 2008 at 12:46 am
[...] planning to review fully GTA IV sometime in May exclusive to Sweet Flag, while also doing a new MMO trial. Owning now both the Wii & PS3, means gaming will be at a premium but so will my [...]