EA's Betting That Bashing WoW Will Sell More Old Republic
- Thread starter Greg Tito
- Start date
Bashing WoW is old, it's tired, it's meaningless and empty.
People complain about it, ***** about it, say people that play it are less then people, less then gamers.
I'm sick of that, it's obscenely ignorant.
I'm damn sure myself and almost every other person that plays WoW understands it has flaws, we know them well. Trying to use them as a marketing tool just makes you look desperate, I expect more then that from anything BioWare is involved with.
So play nice EA, if BioWare has made another masterpiece it will speak for itself.
I'll tell you if it's comparable after I've tried it, I'd like nothing more then a game that is better than WoW, having a better experience and more enjoyment from a game is what I want.
Depth and story from an MMO? Sign me up.
More interactive content?
More exciting combat?
I've heard it before, from every half tired attempt to 'dethrone' the only game in the genre worth mentioning.
All you need to do to win is deliver.
People complain about it, ***** about it, say people that play it are less then people, less then gamers.
I'm sick of that, it's obscenely ignorant.
I'm damn sure myself and almost every other person that plays WoW understands it has flaws, we know them well. Trying to use them as a marketing tool just makes you look desperate, I expect more then that from anything BioWare is involved with.
So play nice EA, if BioWare has made another masterpiece it will speak for itself.
I'll tell you if it's comparable after I've tried it, I'd like nothing more then a game that is better than WoW, having a better experience and more enjoyment from a game is what I want.
Depth and story from an MMO? Sign me up.
More interactive content?
More exciting combat?
I've heard it before, from every half tired attempt to 'dethrone' the only game in the genre worth mentioning.
All you need to do to win is deliver.
I daresay that leveling those first 15 levels in WoW is almost perfect in WoW at the moment. The Cata changed what ppl thought they knew about leveling up in a MMO
Hehe, Bioware was probably just asked the question, "How well do you think TOR will stack up against WoW?" They probably had to make this comparison. Eh, I'll wait and let their works speak louder than their words. I've played WoW and Rift, and all the other major popular MMO's out there. As far as Pay2Play games go, my favorite is probably still Champions Online. I think I've been spoiled by actions MMO's and action rpg's. Its really difficult to play the less intense point-click combat games now. That being said, the setting and universe in TOR appeals to me way more than games with fantasy settings. Back in the day, SW Galaxy's was my favorite game. I still say it let you do more with elements of the game than any MMO I've seen since (until that update). Mainly, I loved the ability get away from point click at will and to jump into real time space combat. I thought that was awesome. I'm really looking forward to seeing what this game brings to the table in that regard.
I could be wrong here but the games themselves might be similiar in style of play, however, they ARE from different worlds. Literally. Claiming that a Star Wars based RPG will surpass an already dominant gaming community is a bold claim. It doesn't even have to be Star Wars. Whenever one limits their game to a certain criteria, they also limit the number of people who would ponder purchasing the game. But Star Wars is a pretty opinionated series of movies/games. Lots of people love Star Wars, the same amount do not or have no interest in the force. WoW has its niche, yes, but it seems to me that it's much more broad than EA's contending title. It's a made up world, same as the lightsaber-swinging epic, but it immerses you in a world that's more unfamiliar and you feel like you are the character rather than following another movie script. Bottom line: Star Wars, I think, may have to stretch the barriers of the mold it has so expertly cast these past thirty years it has existed.
TOR isn't looking to break new ground. Even their own selling points seem to indicate it's going to be just like WoW.Greg Tito said:
The claim is that WoW limits the player's attachment to the experience. You get quest, you do quest, you get next quest, you do quest, you go to next area in the chain of quests. It's like waiting in line for a roller coaster. Everyone seems excited about what's at the end, but the entire experience sends everyone along the same path and about the same rate.
Looking at how guided/scripted TOR will almost certainly be (due to this heavy emphasis on story and voice acting), it's going to be the same. It'll be like waiting in line for a roller coaster, but one of those lines that has pretty decorations, sound effects, and TV screens along the way in an attempt to distract you from the wait. The ride is going to be the same, and you just can't hide the rails.
How exactly do people interpret those words as "bashing"? Bashing is saying someone else sucks. And the closest thing to that from what he said was the shopping list thing, which anyone who's played WoW for more than 5 minutes will know it's more a fact than something to be branded as bashing.
The only thing EA have said so far when talking about WoW is that they're ready to go up against it. They've said several times they don't hope to dethrone it and replace it (at least not right away) and they've pointed out several times it's one of the finest works of creation within the industry.
There's been 0 bashing, what they HAVE done is shown that they're not afraid of it. That they aren't worried about it as competition because they're going with a different IP, a well experienced and highly regarded studio and going for less copying, more doing things their own way and that they're trying to get a whole new host of gamers into the MMO market through their game (the single player crowd, the intent being "come for the story, stay for the MMO")
As for the "it plays like WoW", of course it does. It's an MMO, it's the same genre and it doesn't do much to innovate on the first thing anyone notices - combat. But Saint's Row 2 plays like GTA San Andreas. Battlefield: Bad Company 2 plays like Modern Warfare. Fallout 3 plays like Oblivion, Dragon Age 2 plays like NWN2, there's countless examples. That doesn't mean those games don't do things their own way and bring something both good and new to the market and looking at their popularity, it certainly doesn't mean they're unsuccessful.
The only thing EA have said so far when talking about WoW is that they're ready to go up against it. They've said several times they don't hope to dethrone it and replace it (at least not right away) and they've pointed out several times it's one of the finest works of creation within the industry.
There's been 0 bashing, what they HAVE done is shown that they're not afraid of it. That they aren't worried about it as competition because they're going with a different IP, a well experienced and highly regarded studio and going for less copying, more doing things their own way and that they're trying to get a whole new host of gamers into the MMO market through their game (the single player crowd, the intent being "come for the story, stay for the MMO")
As for the "it plays like WoW", of course it does. It's an MMO, it's the same genre and it doesn't do much to innovate on the first thing anyone notices - combat. But Saint's Row 2 plays like GTA San Andreas. Battlefield: Bad Company 2 plays like Modern Warfare. Fallout 3 plays like Oblivion, Dragon Age 2 plays like NWN2, there's countless examples. That doesn't mean those games don't do things their own way and bring something both good and new to the market and looking at their popularity, it certainly doesn't mean they're unsuccessful.
Microsoft used to have everyone using all of their products. IE was used for browsing along with security. The monopoly that MS had was ridiculous. However, as Mozilla, Google, and Apple came up in quality, Microsoft has had to fight harder for its position. That was the point. While the IE9 takes a lot of grief, it's gotten a lot better. Still, the Android does dominate smartphones. It's more or less that Microsoft lost a lot of their advantage that came with a lot of innovators taking their market share in various ways.Serris said:
"On multiple levels we're highly differentiated and different from World of Warcraft. We're not being slavish or imitating them at all. We're doing our own thing. We're doing our own unique way. BioWare and Blizzard have been around for almost the same period of time. They've built incredible audiences. They have their own unique cultures, and they do things very differently."
The fact that he even had to justify this makes the suspicions rise. But oh well, its only a star wars game
The fact that he even had to justify this makes the suspicions rise. But oh well, its only a star wars game
Many people LIKE the shopping list quests, because it's relaxing and they can easily socialise at the same time. A huge portion of the WoW subscriber base would fall in this category.
Every time a new MMO comes in and is claimed to be a WoW killer, hardly anyone mentions the fact that they are likely to have different target audiences.
Examples of target audiences that many (not all) other MMOs ignore in one way or another:
* People with outdated hardware that runs WoW fine in low or medium graphics, but can't run your super advanced pixel shaded one-billion-poly engine.
* Casual players who just want to do the odd quest and socialise (and don't care about detailed involvement with talking to characters and getting emotionally attached)
* People who have very little time to dedicate to MMOs
* People who like a particular setting (futuristic, swords and magic, steampunk, etc.)
This is somewhat of a generalisation, but developers need to understand that if they want an MMO to succeed, they need to design it with many target audiences in mind. If you're not targeting a specific audience that WoW does, you're unlikely to "steal" those players.
Get back to me when your MMO can at least cater for a fair demographic of WoW (or any other MMO) before saying "this is a killer".
Personally, I like DA2. I also like DA1. But then again, i'm not a hardcore RPG fan. I like most games with a good plot.Saintcole said:
And I find that review of ME2's plot laughable. The whole thing is just some guy whining because it wasn't what he wanted. Kind of like another person i could mention...
My thoughts exactly. That's a lot that doesn't quite line up in this article, as other people have already pointed out.dogstile said:
I agree with all your points. I do. I'm a WoW player, and have been from launch until about a week ago, having to quit due to lag issues (stupid university housing internet packages...).fierydemise said:
However, your post also sums up what I feel is the wrong way to critique a new MMO. Comparing it to a game which has been 6 years in development is just a little bit unfair, I think. Blizz didn't have any MMO experience going into WoW, either - just like Bioware. WoW is only the polished machine it is today because of it's 6 years of success. Regardless of whether ToR lasts that long, I can't imagine it will be unplayable or unenjoyable. If it retains a player-base, it will develop and obfuscate from there. Such big ventures have to start somewhere.
I also see your point on the issue of WoW's sense of humor, but I personally am looking forward to the seriousness of the ToR story. I like the Star Wars universe, and I love Bioware's storytelling. WoW's constant comic references and cartoony style, which I did enjoy at first, wore very thin after a year or two of subscribing.
Personally, I like DA2. I also like DA1. But then again, i'm not a hardcore RPG fan. I like most games with a good plot.
And I find that review of ME2's plot laughable. The whole thing is just some guy whining because it wasn't what he wanted. Kind of like another person i could mention...[/quote]
Yes me stating that taking RPG elements out of dragon age was a bad decision makes me a whiner. ME2 had a horrible plot, now if u can accept a game that was just a giant side quest then good for you
And I find that review of ME2's plot laughable. The whole thing is just some guy whining because it wasn't what he wanted. Kind of like another person i could mention...[/quote]
Yes me stating that taking RPG elements out of dragon age was a bad decision makes me a whiner. ME2 had a horrible plot, now if u can accept a game that was just a giant side quest then good for you