Welcome
to the 1,197th edition
of Loading...
Loading... is the premier daily
MMORPG news, coverage, and
commentary newsletter, only from Ten Ton Hammer.
We all have them –
the MMOG mechanics that drive us bonkers each time we see them crop up
again in a newly released title. The things that leave us scratching
our head and wondering if the industry has progressed at all over the
years in spite of all the fancy new graphics and vaunted voice acting.
Since Halloween is universally known as a time of sharing, Reuben
“Sardu” Waters takes a look at a few of the MMOG
mechanics that haunt him in the wee hours of the night today in
Loading… Less Tricks, More Treats.
The Pulse
You vote with what you
view at Ten Ton Hammer, and the
result is the Ten Ton Pulse (
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/thepulse/">What
is The Pulse?).
Here's
today's top 5 Pulse results:
-
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/41"
target="_blank">World of Warcraft -
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro">Lord of the
Rings Online -
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/ddo">Dungeons and
Dragons Online - href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/eq2">EverQuest 2
- href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/254">Aion
Biggest
movers today:
-
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/47">Guild
Wars
(UP 7 to #19) -
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/lotro">Lord of the
Rings Online (UP 6 to #2) -
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/1234">Runes
of Magic (Up 2 to
#12)
MMO Releases
-
size="-1">8/25
- href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/1012">CrimeCraft
(release date) size="-1"> -
size="-1">9/1
-
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/860">Champions
Online (release date) -
size="-1">9/9
- Dungeons
& Dragons Online Unlimited
(release date) -
size="-1">9/15
- href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/1234">Runes
of Magic "The Elven Prophecy"
(expansion) -
size="-1">9/22
-
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/177">Fallen
Earth (release date) -
size="-1">9/22
- href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/254">Aion
(release date) size="-1"> -
size="-1">10/8
- href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/2129">Cities
XL (release date)
Releases
-
size="-1">11/3
- Dragon
Age:
Origins (release date) -
size="-1">12/1
- href="http://www.lotro.com/gameinfo/464-answer-the-call-of-war">LotRO:
Siege of Mirkwood (release date)
-
size="-1">12/1
- href="http://www.lotro.com/gameinfo/464-answer-the-call-of-war">EVE
Online: Dominion (release date) -
size="-1">12/2
- DOFUS
2.0
(release date)
-
size="-1">Early
2010
- href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/998">APB
Loading...
Daily
There I was minding my own
business and
attempting to read some quest dialog after opting to level one of my
alts in WoW rather than simply log in to snag my
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/wow/guides/seasonal/hallows-end"
target="_blank">Hallow’s End
trick-or-treat bags and scampering off into the much more visually
impressive
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/co/media/bloodmoongallery"
target="_blank">Blood Moon
event in
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/co">
style="font-style: italic;">Champions Online
like I have been all
week. Out of nowhere an alliance priest went zooming by on their epic
mount, no doubt rushing off towards the Scarlet Monastery to take a
crack at the Headless Horseman. Lo and behold the quest NPC in front of
me decided their currently offered task wasn’t nearly as
important as chasing off after the offending human (who no doubt
deserved a good Forsaken beat down, but that’s beside the
point).
As a result of the
interruption, I got to stand there in /droolcup mode
and await the NPC’s return if I wanted to actually accept the
quest he was offering, as the dialog box was unceremoniously slammed
shut in my face the moment he took off after a quarry that he had no
hopes of catching up to. Sure I could have poked my head around town to
see what other menial tasks I could perform that would no doubt prevent
the world from a doomy implosion while I waited. Instead I
snagged me a flimsy mask from the local innkeeper before logging out to
play a few levels of the awesomeness that is
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/2036">
style="font-style: italic;">Torchlight
(which
definitely gets Sardu’s Seal of Approval. If you
haven’t done so already, do yourself a favor and
href="http://www.torchlightgame.com/" target="_blank">check
it
out!)
Needless to say, the above
example is an all too common element of
frustration that’s plagued MMOGs since their inception; those
funky features that I’ll occasionally jot down on my master
list of What to Avoid when Designing an MMOG.
Since Halloween is universally known as a time of sharing this seemed
like the perfect opportunity to take a look at some of the developer
tricks that haunt me in the wee hours of the morning.
Pathing Vendors and NPCs
This one gets me every time.
While my above tale of the Forsaken NPC is
an extreme example, it drives me nuts when pathing NPCs walk away from
you, forcing the dialog window to close before you’ve had a
chance to actually read the description of the quest being offered. If
developers ever want people to bother reading their cleverly crafted
quest text, they really need to stop pathing NPCs in their tracks for
more than 10 seconds at a time.
No Dungeon Maps for Joo!
What’s the deal with
MMOGs not having in-game maps for
instances and dungeons? It’s become pretty common for players
to “discover” overland maps as a part of the
exploration process, but why don’t we ever see this in
dungeons? Does it somehow make the game more fun? Nothing says
“immersion” quite like hitting alt+tab to track
down a map on the web!
Run Away!
You’re bound to come
across those opponents that realize
things aren’t quite working out in their favor and opt to
head for the hills before things get truly ugly. But does that mean
every humanoid that you come across should exhibit the exact same AI
behavior? I always find that to be one of the more absurd MMOG
mechanics, as it leads to little more than moments of pure frustration
each and every time you find yourself staring down at your corpse due
to that runner that got away and brought back ten of their friends. I
wouldn’t mind it so much if it were randomized in some way,
but when all of Mob Type X are flagged as runners I tend to avoid
combat with them like the plague.
Those are just a few items on
my Development List of Doom, but there
are plenty more where those came from. How about you? Have any least
favorite mechanics that feel more like a development trick than an MMOG
treat? Share your thoughts right here in the
href="http://forums.tentonhammer.com/showthread.php?t=47485">Loading…
forums!
Shayalyn's
Epic Thread of
the Day
From our href="http://forums.tentonhammer.com/forumdisplay.php?f=589">Aion
General Discussion Forum
href="http://forums.tentonhammer.com/showthread.php?t=47388">Does
the lack of loot bother you?
Do
Aion's loot tables need adjusting? Most of the people discussing this
issue in today's epic thread would agree that they do. Folks have
complained of actually losing money and experience while exploring
Aion's dungeons rather than the reverse. And when certain boss mobs
drop absolutely nothing with alarming frequency, the question becomes:
where's the incentive for dungeon runs?
Are you frustrated with
the lack of loot in dungeons, or do you accept this as part of Aion's
design? Perhaps you've been luckier than some of the people in this
thread, and you'd like to gloat. Whatever the case may be, head on over
to our Aion forum to href="http://forums.tentonhammer.com/showthread.php?t=47388">have
your say.
==============================
Awesome
Quotes from the
Epic Thread
"Yeah,
I didn't like running
Training Grounds every day and see nothing. The only thing I've seen
through my runs there was an ankle snare stigma for another class. The
loot never seemed to drop. ...I left WoW because epics were
damn
near falling out of the sky. Seems you can go there and get showered in
gear or you can come here and hardly see any at all.
No grey area?"
- Sepharious
==============================
Have you spotted an Epic Thread on our forums? href="http://forums.tentonhammer.com/showthread.php?t=32559">Tell
us!
7 new Ten Ton Hammer MMOG
features today! 122
in October! 2,070
in
2009!
Today's
New Features & Guides
-
Borderlands:
PC Version Reviewed
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/76148">http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/76148
Combining the RPG and FPS genres has been attempted before, all to
varying degrees of success. The main problem developers have faced has
always boiled down to figuring out how to satisfy both camps of players
without alienating either. Has Borderlands manage to pull this trick
off? Find out as Eric “Dalmarus” Campbell dives
into the game to find out.
-
The
Cleric's Guide to Healing in Aion
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/aion/guides/classes/cleric_healing">http://www.tentonhammer.com/aion/guides/classes/cleric_healing
Healing in Aion can be a much more complex task than it is in other
mainstream MMOGs for a number of reasons. As picking the right heal for
the right situation can ultimately mean the difference between keeping
your tank alive and certain doom for your entire party, we've put
together a complete guide to healing in Aion for the aspiring Clerics
among you.
-
WoW: Nostalgia Content -
Bringing the Past Back to Life
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/76126">http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/76126
We have all the heard the phrase "back in my day we used to..." and
while most of us roll our eyes at the old timer as they wax nostalgic
about walking uphill in the snow both ways, many of us can empathize as
we think back to our favorite memories. As expansions are introduced,
World of Warcraft has become a game full of long-abandoned content and
zones that many only catch fleeting glimpses of as they power level
their way to catch up with friends. Join Medawky this week as he looks
back in time and wonders what older content would make for compelling
encounters as Wrath of the Lich King winds down and Cataclysm ramps up.
-
Champions Online: Blood
Moon Gallery
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/co/media/bloodmoongallery">http://www.tentonhammer.com/co/media/bloodmoongallery
With undead prowling the streets and wilderness of Champions Online,
your friends here at Ten Ton Hammer are pleased to offer you a gallery
of screenshots showcasing the undead goodness currently taking place.
-
Torchlight Launch Day Video
Trailer
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/76140">http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/76140
Will the wait for the Torchlight MMO be easier or harder now that the
highly anticipated single-player game from the creative forces behind
games like Diablo (and popular almost-games like Mythos) has been
released? Torchlight is a high quality dungeon crawling Action RPG
complete with three high-powered classes, the most intuitive level
editor we've ever laid eyes on, and an incredible pricepoint: $19.95
(torchlightgame.com). If you haven't seen much of Torchlight, here's
your chance!
-
New Star Trek Online
Screenshots - Space and Ground Combat
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/76139">http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/76139
Satisfy your treklust with these new screenshots sent from the folks at
Cryptic Studios, and enjoy the kicker - an excellent shot of our
favorite Galaxy class in orbit around a very familiar planet.
-
Dungeons and Dragons Online
Gianthold Adventure Pack Video
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/76144">http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/76144
You never get a second chance to make a first impression goes an old
saying, and rarely is it proved wrong. Dungeons and Dragons Online has
done just that, however, with the addition of a free-to-play with micro
transaction platform. Not content to simply rest on its new found
success, the team at Turbine is cranking out adventure packs to satisfy
the newly resurgent player base. One of the newest to enter the fray is
Gianthold, a pack intended for players in the level 13-14 range that
features ten adventures, forty-five quests and a raid. Today's video
gives wanna be dungeon crawlers a sneak peek.
Hottest Content:
-
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/75826">Ten
Ton Hammer's First In-Depth Preview of
LEGO Universe -
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/75826">Star
Trek Online VIP Q&A
with Craig Zinkievich -
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/76046">
style="font-weight: bold;">LOTRO
- Siege of
Mirkwood Live Preview -
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/76160">
Borderlands -
PC Version Reviewed -
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/giveaways/daysofthedead">WoW
- The Overpull - 10.27.09 - "Race Changing Still Broken"
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/75367"> style="font-weight: bold;"> href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/aion/editorials"> style="font-weight: bold;"> -
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/75772">Global
Agenda:
Conquest and Pricing Options Interview -
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/76028">
style="font-weight: bold;">Champions Online
-
Blood Moon Impressions -
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/76064">Night
of the Lost Souls - A Guide to style="font-weight: bold;">Age
of Conan's Newest Seasonal
Event -
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/75710">Which
World of Warcraft
Class makes the best
Tank? -
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/75371">Exploring
the Lore of Star Trek
Online Interview
Thanks for visiting the
Ten Ton Hammer network!
- Reuben "Sardu" Waters
and the Ten Ton Hammer
team
