Initially I'll be mostly after the experience of seeing and learning new things the world has to offer. I will also fantasize about how my character fits into the big picture and set goals for where I want them to be in the future.
When I've grown familiar and that experience becomes more sparse, so to speak, I will actively seek to join groups to hang out with and engage in some of the challenges the game has to offer while taking progress as it comes (so I can potentially see new things again as my character grows into it). Ideally those players should be a mix of new and familiar faces, not just guild groups or some clique of friends that are just doing their own thing.
Depending on the community and how well the game lends itself to personalization of a character in relation to the setting (see my first point), I may also engage in RP. But it only works for me if there is IC conflict between players' characters and if the game itself allows players to make meaningful decisions that are more than just make-belief (like supporting different factions and being able to empower or undermine them in some way). It's not interesting when everyone is on the same page and all you can do is sit around a campfire gossiping.
dorotea said: ... I have to admit that I enjoy a game session most if I make some progress. Harvesting useful materials, gaining part of a crafting tier, getting some experience points, knocking off a quest or two - any of these. ...
slow and technical combat that requires teamwork and communication. also, vast dungeons where you cannot possibly complete in a single session so you actually have to make a choice on where to camp. essencially, it's the social interaction that I miss the most and the newer generations of mmo's don't seem to offer much of that as all that's required of you is to join a pug through an automated system then spam combos/ae's all the way through a short predefined path then the loots are distributed automatically. the whole process involves 0 social interaction which moots the point of them being mmo's.
.blockquote]Kilsin said:
What type of experience, in a typical play session, are you typically looking for in an MMORPG like Pantheon? #MMORPG #communitymatters
Personally, I would like to have two kinds of experiences: first is in line with Trasak's post, as I think that implies an established group of friends and framework- like a quest- that we are deciding what to do or finding out to do from exploring. Second, is if I have no plans in mind. For this I want to hear players talking or saying hello, maybe going to a dungeon or a place and seeing if anyone has room, or even sit for a half hour or so shouting if anyone wants to come with me to another city where we can see what things are like there. we may even split up when we get to the city, or not, but random stuff like that.
Lastly, The one thing that will be the common experience of all players just form logging in and is shared by all: fear. Varying degrees of fear, the fear the game teaches that I cant do this alone, or the fear from knowing what your class limitations are- I don't think I should go there. The fear of knowing those monsters in that area are much much stronger than you but you have to run through to get somewhere else. a kind of horizontal leveling idea, the concept being: 6 level 50's taking down a giant for the tenth time is - meh, whereas 20 level 1's, or non-leveled but horizintally skilled level nothings, taking down a giant...is epic. the fear is still there.
You know.. I actually don't have a list of things that I am looking for in this.. I could say I want this or that, but that puts my spin and expectations on it. I'm just looking forward to an experience that you guys are creating for me. I am thrilled with what I have seen- and honestly I think going into it and seeing everything you have done will be reward enough for me.
My ideal session would start with a bit of crafting and trading while chatting with friends and the guild.
If some sort of plan for a friends group or a guild activity evolves then that will probably shape the rest of the session, else I'll go explore somewhere new and maybe start or join a PUG.
Can't wait!
Kilsin said:What type of experience, in a typical play session, are you typically looking for in an MMORPG like Pantheon? #MMORPG #communitymatters
I'll join in with Trasak's reply and add the following;
I'm looking for an experience, where you log in and not every session has a 'fresh' start. Some times those multiple sessions are required to reach a goal; dungeon, craft, travel, achievement.
A typical session would require interaction with various players online. The off sessions would be those where I'm doing stuff solo.
A typical session would be related to; exploration, discovery, crafting, advancing through enemy lines with a group. (2 is also a group,Note: I'm not saying farming or completing dungeons in 1 session) The off sessions would be those where I try to sneak through enemy lines or harvest at a risky location.
A typical session would require me to think and plan in advance, weigh the ups and downs of decisions and act on that accordingly.
A typical session allows me to experience a sensation of ingame time span and distances. Things that require time or distance should actually feel like it. An off session would be where updates/wanted areas or players are within close proximity or when using fast travel options nearby.
I want to gather a group, discuss our options, then get to it!
But the main tenets of what will bring me joy the most and keep me coming back for more are: community, adventure, feeling ive made some sort of progression, PHAT LEWTS, Uber L3wts and also coming up with strategies to destroy my enemies.
I really think this is better answered in terms of what I really dont want. What am I NOT looking for?
I am not looking for a game when I log in the only valuable progression for my character is found through a dungeon master queue.
I am not looking for a game when the only way to gain currency at a decent rate is to grind quests that reset on a daily/weekly basis.
I am not looking for a game when I have zero valuable connection between other players and decide if I am not enjoying my session I could alt-F4, pretend my power went out and have zero consequences.
I am not looking for a game when there is no social interraction between other players other than the chatty mc chatsters on the designated global chat that eventually is implemented in every single game.
I am not looking for a game when there is a roadmap to how I should be playing instead of how I want to play.
I am not going to get all of these in a single game but hopefully a satistactory middle ground at best =).
1) Large world.
2) Extremely long, difficult and dangerous travel (ie where players are required to plan groupings over the week due to travel times).
3) Long and difficult encounters (Where combat is so long that DPS solutions are not a viable option).
4) Reliance on others to excel (the world is designed for groups, not solo).
5) Risk/Reward balance in everything from travel, combat, and exploration (rewards must be obtained by how they were designed, not purchased on a vendor)
6) No social mechanics designed to force a particular play style or interaction behavior (no invisible wall mechanics, trivial loot code, leashed mobs, grey mobs not agroing, etc...)
7) Harsh death penalties and naked corpse runs (no having your gear transfer with you in death and make penalties that can result in level loss)
8) No class vs class balance, only class vs content balancing.
9) Option to play on a server where there is no FTP access.
10) Option to play on a detailed rules server that may be configured to the above conditions (including forced first person perspective with no 3rd person camers accessible at all).
11) Leveling taking 8 months to a year for people who play 30+ hours a week.
Tanix said:...
10) Option to play on a detailed rules server that may be configured to the above conditions (including forced first person perspective with no 3rd person camers accessible at all).
...
I understand and feel the draw of this, but the more I think about it the more I think it needs some caveats. First person has always felt overly restrictive due to the field of view issue, you just don't get your almost-180 degrees of view from looking at a monitor. That being said, I don't have a surefire answer for that other than maybe a HMD, and I'm pretty sure that is beyond Pantheon's scope (at least currently). Maybe having some buttons to "glance right" and "glance left" to mimic turning your head 45 degrees or so.
But yeah...a 3rd person camera floading 10m behind you, freely rotateable, is definitely immersion breaking. That being said, it also definitely helps with situational awareness, and if it is an option, I'll definitely use it in grouping situations, because I wouldn't want to be the chanter who wiped the group because they didn't see the add from the left. Solo...maybe not.
Irriaden said:Tanix said:...
10) Option to play on a detailed rules server that may be configured to the above conditions (including forced first person perspective with no 3rd person camers accessible at all).
...
I understand and feel the draw of this, but the more I think about it the more I think it needs some caveats. First person has always felt overly restrictive due to the field of view issue, you just don't get your almost-180 degrees of view from looking at a monitor. That being said, I don't have a surefire answer for that other than maybe a HMD, and I'm pretty sure that is beyond Pantheon's scope (at least currently). Maybe having some buttons to "glance right" and "glance left" to mimic turning your head 45 degrees or so.
But yeah...a 3rd person camera floading 10m behind you, freely rotateable, is definitely immersion breaking. That being said, it also definitely helps with situational awareness, and if it is an option, I'll definitely use it in grouping situations, because I wouldn't want to be the chanter who wiped the group because they didn't see the add from the left. Solo...maybe not.
1st person makes it a true virtual world, but yes vission is restricting. Understanding what is going on in a large group fight is easy with the 3rd view.. I always like using the Gnome illusion spell as an enchanter, because it allow me to have a lot of mobilty if I was in the mood to stay in 1st and handle CC.
tough call I can go either way on it.
This is hard, It used to be a whole bunch of things, now what I'm looking for is a lot more specific. Doesn't make it easier on the devs I assume, but I'm hoping they make the game they want and I just live in like intended. If I were to say a couple things, I would like to be able to accomplish things quickly. But without a group collider. An LFG window isn't a bad thing. But I don't want to auto group up with a bunch of randoms. I want to be able to log in with the 2-3 hours I have and accomplish something tangible. Whether it be grouping and doing a dungeon, crafting, harvesting, I don't mind what it is as long as I'm able to jump in and do it right away. That was the beauty to me with Vanguard it offered a lot of different things to do with little time. EQ was basically the exact opposite lol
Often times in Vanguard I'd find myself logging in and harvesting for hours and hours. It was relaxing, profitable, and fun. So I hope the harvesting system is equally as important as it was in Vanguard. It's important to not only have those aspects, but have them matter as well. Same with Diplomacy. Didn't like the thought of it when I first heard about it on VG but it didn't take long for me to realize the benefits and see how fun it was. Every character I had ended up having diplomacy maxed or nearly maxed.
So After all the rambling what I want most now that I am grown up and have a family with kids, is to be able to log in with a couple hours or play timeand really have some fun. I don't want it to take a couple hours to get things going. If that means a solo aspect I'm fine with it. I played a lot of wizards in my day simply because they could kill solo and kite. Doesn't mean I'm a loner it's just using my time the best way I can.
Irriaden said:Tanix said:...
10) Option to play on a detailed rules server that may be configured to the above conditions (including forced first person perspective with no 3rd person camers accessible at all).
...
I understand and feel the draw of this, but the more I think about it the more I think it needs some caveats. First person has always felt overly restrictive due to the field of view issue, you just don't get your almost-180 degrees of view from looking at a monitor. That being said, I don't have a surefire answer for that other than maybe a HMD, and I'm pretty sure that is beyond Pantheon's scope (at least currently). Maybe having some buttons to "glance right" and "glance left" to mimic turning your head 45 degrees or so.
But yeah...a 3rd person camera floading 10m behind you, freely rotateable, is definitely immersion breaking. That being said, it also definitely helps with situational awareness, and if it is an option, I'll definitely use it in grouping situations, because I wouldn't want to be the chanter who wiped the group because they didn't see the add from the left. Solo...maybe not.
When EQ released, it had no alternate cameras. You had first person view, thats it. Over time, they added various camera views you could switch over time (but no real 3rd person view as you know it today).
The point of the first person view is not to provide realism in the sense of a view that has the same range we do, but to provide the same concept of being limited in your view. That is, even we can not see around us at once, nor behind us without looking in that direction. A glance view is also an acceptable addition to simulate looking to each blind spot area and when used in conjunction with turning to see around an area, it provides a practical sense of play.
That is, in release EQ before the cameras you always had to be aware of your surroundings. It was actually a learned player skill to be able to function in a group and pay attention all around you. People who were not careful would back up too far into another mob, not pay attention to a pather and end up attacting them as an add. Also, you had issues where a person would start taking damage, but would not immediately know it other than they started losing health, were interrupted in cast, or were sitting medding and had a mob come along and crit kill them fast.
In groups it was important, in solo it was equally important. This made the game extremely nerve wracking at times, and areas felt very dangerous because you could not see everything from a god like view. I think the reason people think first person is "restrictive" is because it is... it is a natural defense mechanic to want to see all around you. Third person view or cameras to see around ones self really are just a form of visual cheat for a player to take note of their surroundings without the constant need and effort to be aware and careful.
There is nothing wrong with liking the 3rd person view, but like I said, I would love a server were everyone is forced to first person, no exceptions as it would greatly enhance the play experience for myself and people who appreciate this form of play.
Depth.
There should be details to make the game feel like a living world. Reward players for paying attention to the details.
A play session should allow people to slowly make progress, but you should still feel like there's more to do. Give me a reason to keep thinking about the game. A reason to keep coming back.