On Sunday night, my daughter asked me to share my love of
trading card games (TCGs) with her. She and I play
style="font-style: italic;">Pokémon together,
and she enjoys looking at my modest collection of
style="font-style: italic;">Magic: the Gathering
(MTG) cards. Rather than dust off my box of MTG cards, I went online to
my
target="_blank">Free
Realms
account to show her my virtual collection. I went through the novice
card battle with Sam Potts to demonstrate how the game plays and get
the feel for a beginners guide I might write. After my daughter was
safely tucked into bed with the incorrect perception that I am the best
Free Realms
TCG player ever (thank you, training round!), I felt a strong urge to
hop back in and try to find a live opponent with whom to play cards.
Thats when a thought about Free
Realms struck me: I only feel compelled to play with
others for competition. Is this intended? How integral to the game is
competition? And what does it all mean for the success of the game?
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Every quest has winning objectives and
losing scenarios.
I concluded that most of the various minigames in
style="font-style: italic;">Free Realms are
geared toward rivalry with winners and losers (even when the opponent
is yourself). Kart racing has a clear ordinal finish, and only one
player can be first. Checkers and chess have winners and losers. The
TCG? One winner, one loser in each match. Adventure missions have a
winning objective (kill whatever or rescue somebody) and a losing
objective (usually a number of knock outs). Even when I harvest, I get
a score for myself. I can try to beat my own score or get the best on
the server. Everything I do in Free
Realms involves a contest of some kind.
Realizing that every minigame in
style="font-style: italic;">Free Realms is
about winning or losing also forced me to recognize that it is an
intentional design element. The concept of e-sport and reading
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/features/in-the-trenches"
target="_blank">In
the Trenches came to mind. Clearly, competitive
or scoreboard games are very popular on the web. Why wouldnt someone
look to combine the furor over MMOs with the thrill of a good showdown?
And the short, almost episodic nature of
style="font-style: italic;">Free Realms lends
itself perfectly to this type of gameplay. Do you have only fifteen
minutes between work and dinner? Log on and run a race. Or maybe youd
prefer to play a hand of cards or run an adventure instance. Whatever
you decide, Free Realms
has an opportunity for you to get a brief gaming fix.
style="font-style: italic;">
The
fact that you always win or lose in
style="font-style: italic;">Free Realms gives
you a sense of completion (if not accomplishment) each time you log
off. Its subtle but vital, especially for the casual gamers who will
flock to this title. You always know the outcome of your play
experience with Free
Realms. I felt content at stopping with five out of nine
harvesting items collected for a cooking recipe I wanted to try because
of the minigames. In fifteen minute bursts over the weekend (between
meals, while waiting for another game to patch, or just in a down
moment), I was able to collect all of my ingredients and cook a new
dish. I never find myself mulling over what I need to do when I play
again because the world is open and, well
style="font-style: italic;">free.
Thats the genius behind the concept of
style="font-style: italic;">Free Realms; I can
enjoy it every time out because I feel a sense of satisfying completion
and I do not feel compelled to pursue any one aspect. I dont log on
for a night of faction grinding on the same mobs or harvesting nodes
monotonously in a zone. Instead I log on, follow a whim, and have fun.
I may not obsess about the game when I am not playing it, but I always
leave with a favorable impression. That might equate to
style="font-style: italic;">Free Realms
being my solid #2 subscription.
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Run
quests multiple times to get the top score.
Parting Thoughts
Being everyones second subscription game might be exactly
what Sony Online Entertainment wants.
href="www.tentonhammer.com/WoW" target="_blank">
style="font-style: italic;">World of Warcraft
remains the first subscription for the majority of gamers everywhere,
and every game that has tried to cut into Blizzard Entertainments pie
has come away with an empty fork. Maybe SOE has latched onto the secret
everyone has been overlooking: maybe games should aim to be the number
two title that complements WoW instead of trying to be a direct
competitor. Lure us in with a free game (no retail box cost) that we
can play for a long while for free. Make it something that draws us
back with instant gratification and that doesnt make us feel guilty
about wasting progress on a title besides our primary subscription.
Then maybe youll get our money. SOE might just have mine.
As a final note for those of you might be tempted to ask, no
one has bought me. I am just impressed with Free Realms. Its cool if
it seems like kiddie nonsense to you, but I am having fun. Building off
of the angle of episodic play that appeals to multiple demographics, I
might look again at Free Realms as I examine another upcoming game,
Lego Universe. Stay tuned.
Have you tried Free
Realms?
href="mailto:mailto:%[email protected]">Email
your thoughts or post them
href="http://forums.tentonhammer.com/showthread.php?t=42655"
target="_blank">in our forums!
I did some alpha testing for a game I have discussed in the
Top Ten before over the weekend. Of course, I cant talk about it yet.
I also played some more browser games:
style="font-style: italic;">Civony and
style="font-style: italic;">NationStates2. I
have mentioned before that Civony
is a game that heavily borrows elements from
style="font-style: italic;">Sid Meiers Civilization
and that it was a good game to play while doing other things at the PC
because of its real-time construction component. Let me now also add
that it gets brutal once you have played long enough for the newbie
protection from PvP to wear off. Every time I log in now, my cities
have been raided by some (much) higher level player. It killed the fun
for me, so I stopped playing. I have a feeling that
style="font-style: italic;">EVE Online players
would feel right at home in such a hostile environment.
Meanwhile, Annatar
mentioned NationStates
target="_blank">in our forums, and
style="font-weight: bold;">Reavi mentioned that
NationStates2
is in public beta. I signed up for the sequel and could best describe
it as the
href="http://www.chia.com/index.php/chia-products/original-chia.html"
target="_blank">Chia Pet of games. I log in every
24 hours to address two political issues facing my budding nation, The
Sultanate of Ralsu. Its like watching a plant grow; its not a
thrilling action-packed adventure, but you get attached to it and can
do it in only minutes per day.
Gamers in NationStates2
can form alliances with other players, set trade agreements (including
embargoes), and eventually spy on other players. Still, most of the
action happens based on rolls of the dice dependent upon the
selections I make in dealing the problems. One of my citizens formed a
group against profanity, suggesting I should ban use of swears. I chose
the opposite stance, and The Sultanate of Ralsu now has a National Day
of Swearing. NationStates2
is still in beta and has some pretty serious bugs if one believes the
posts in the forums. Still, for a free game that can be played five
minutes each day, its good fun.
One change youll see this week is that I have replaced
style="font-style: italic;">MLB Dugout Heroes
with CABAL Online
in Ralsus Watch List. The baseball game is arcade fun but flawed. It
also has the difficult task of competing with franchises that appear on
console games, which is tough enough. To top it off, it seems that the
PC demographic hardly cares about sports the way console gamers do.
For the future, I hope to explore the new system in
style="font-style: italic;">Runes of Magic that
sounds a lot like
target="_blank">Warhammer
Onlines Public Quests, and Id like to learn
more about Holic.
Free MMOs
April 30, 2009
1
Last
week: 1
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NDOORS
Atlantica
is a squad-based fantasy strategy game that breaks the mold. Players
can control up to nine characters at once in fast-paced turn-based
combat. A lot of the systems in Atlantica
are different from the standard fare on the market.
-
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/1303">Atlantica
Portal -
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/49577">Ten
Ton Hammer Review
style="font-weight: bold;">
2
Last
week: 2
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/65242/preview">
NEXON
Mabinogi
provides so many things to do that it earns its self-appointed moniker
of A Fantasy Life. Players can farm, play music, hunt, craft, go to
school and more in this fantasy land. In style="font-style: italic;">Mabinogi, combat is
not the only way to advance.
3
Last
week: 3
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/36886/preview">
( href="http://www.runesofmagic.com/">www.runesofmagic.com style="font-weight: bold;">)
Frogster
Runes of Magic
is a traditional fantasy game that uses a Dual Class system to inject a
little strategy into character planning and a lot of flexibility into
grouping. RoM has all of the features gamers want in a
subscription-based game, but theyll enjoy them for free here.
-
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/1234">Runes
of Magic Portal - href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/51449">Preview
style="font-weight: bold;">
4
Last
week: 4
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/33602/preview">
(http://www.dungeonrunners.com style="font-weight: bold;">) NCSoft
Dungeon Runners
is a hack and slash fantasy game that infuses every aspect of gameplay
with humor. DR makes fun of other games, the genre, and even itself.
This is the perfect game for a player looking to blow off steam after a
rough day at work.
5
Last
week: 5
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/34626/preview">
Gravity Interactive
Requiem: Bloodymare
is a horror-themed game that blends the traditional elements of MMOGs
with the visceral feel of a gore film. style="font-style: italic;">Requiem is worth a
look because of its fresh take on setting in MMOGs.
-
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/769">Requiem
Portal -
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/29030">Preview
style="font-weight: bold;">
style="font-weight: bold;">
6
Last
week: 6
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/32333/preview">
Aeria Games &
Entertainment
Dream of Mirror
Online puts the player in the starring role of a classic
Chinese myth. The eastern-based lore provides a refreshing twist on
MMOGs, and the multi-class system makes character development in this
fantasy game fun.
7
Last
week: 7
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/49892/preview">
Aeria
Games &
Entertainment
Shin
Megami Tensei: Imagine Online brings the popular RPG to
life in the MMOG sphere. Players can use friendly persuasion or
aggressive coercion to get demons to fight by their side. The dark
subject matter and modern setting of the game is a welcome contrast to
the enchanted glens filled with pixies we often find in MMOGs. style="font-weight: bold;">
8
Last
week: 8
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/35119/preview">
( target="_blank">www.playrohan.com style="font-weight: bold;">) YNK Interactive
Rohan
is a traidtional fantasy
MMOG with deep lore and nice graphics. The world features intense PvP,
gambling, and a few creative systems for managing gear. The level curve
steepens midway through the game while the story diminishes.
-
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/906"
target="_blank">Rohan Portal - target="_blank">Ten Ton Hammer Review
9
Last
week: 9
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/47948/preview">
( target="_blank">www.exteel.com/us style="font-weight: bold;">) NCsoft
Exteel
is a visceral PvP-centric game featuring mechs and beautifully designed
levels. Exteel
uses a lobby system to connect players, and people can upgrade their
mechs with resources found in game or purchased from the item mall.
10
Last
week: 10
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/45940/preview">
( target="_blank">http://en.florensia-online.com style="font-weight: bold;">) Florensia Western Global
The peace in Florensia
is fragile and you need your friends as well as
strong allies to fight against sinister monsters on shore and at sea.
Train your skills, experience thrilling trips through the countryside,
load the cannons and hire a skilful crew to explore the ocean. Get
ready for Florensia! style="font-weight: bold;">
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/41572/preview">
( target="_blank">http://cabal.ogplanet.com/main.og style="font-weight: bold;">) ESTsoft
CABAL
Online drops
players in a brutal world where people are on the verge of extinction.
Combat is pretty fast, and the difficulty level runs higher
than
the average game. The game requires grinding or grouping from
an
early level because of abrupt shifts in the difficulty of mobs. style="font-weight: bold;">
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/63895/preview">
( target="_blank">www.freerealms.com style="font-weight: bold;">) Sony Online Entertainment
Free Realms
is a a 3D fantasy
world designed to encourage exploration and support casual play. With
graphics similar to WoW and all the gameplay of a standard MMOG, style="font-style: italic;">Free Realms could
appeal to adults. Its many minigames and events are designed to please
teens.
-
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/287"
target="_blank">Free Realms Portal - target="_blank">Preview
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/64767/preview">
( target="_blank">http://neosteam.atlusonline.com style="font-weight: bold;">) Atlus Online
Neo Steam
is a steampunk
game set in a world where warring factions compete for a limited supply
of the resource Neo Steam. It was above average in most categories
during closed beta for the US, but it had multiple translation
problems. Atlus Online should iron out the kinks.
style="font-weight: bold;">
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/47950/preview">
( href="http://warriorepic.com/">http://warriorepic.com style="font-weight: bold;">)
Possibility Space
Warrior
Epic is ready to begin the next round of closed beta soon.
It provides a fantasy hack and slash dungeon crawler experience with
some very innovative features, including the ability to choose
different character classes for each dungeon and a Warrior Hall that
grows with the player.
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/41097/preview">
target="_blank">www.wizard101.com)
KingsIsle Entertainment, Inc.
Wizard101
is an online, wizard school adventure with collectible card
magic, and wizard duels! The game allows players to
create a student wizard in an attempt to save Wizard City and explore
many different worlds. In Wizard101,
cards are magic spells. There are
Fire spells, Ice spells, spells of Myth, and much more. The game is
free to download. To access all of the areas, gamers will need to
subscribe.
-
href="http://tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/1186">Magic101
Portal -
target="_blank">Ten Ton Hammer Review
style="font-weight: bold;">
style="font-weight: bold;">
About
This List
Please refer to the
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/features/free">Top
Ten
Free MMOs Portal to find out how to get a game you
make or like on this list.
To read the latest guides, news, and features you can visit our Free Realms Game Page.
