Pwning the Hearts and Minds

I have some experience with the phenomenon. It doesn’t take much – maybe only an image or two – to get a four year old interested in pop-cultural franchises. Cases in point: the kids were very into “Indiana Jones” without ever seeing a movie or before we had the Lego Wii game. Why? I dunno. The ride at Disneyland we walk past without being able to go on? Advertisements on Billboards? Commercials? The overwhelming merchandising? Kellen is also fascinated by Spiderman and Ironman…and has actually seen neither of them in more than snippets of action (though they did get their picture taken with “Ironman” during a promotional thing at Best Buy a few months ago…).

But nothing has prepared me for the overwhelming obsession for all things WALL-E. Billboards elicit shrieks of discovery. Commercials require immediate parental acknowledgment. Shirts sporting the diminutive droid’s likeness *required* purchasing. Oh, and what a hit Lorelai was with her pre-school classmates sporting her new WALL-E garb. And the movie Isn’t. Even. Out. Yet. Sure, Pixar can spin gold out of straw. But the kids don’t know that!

Marketing “for teh win”, I guess.

June '08 Perspective of MMOs

(Subject to change without notice.)

Quick-takes on the MMO Worlds in my field of vision as of this posting

AGE OF CONAN: Fresh out of the gate, this world still has the energy of youth about it. It’s definitely not the end-all, be-all, but it’s pretty and plays well. My main concern is that the “normal” mode is trivial and at this point in the leveling curve (32/80), and with most of my guild members higher level,there’s no incentive to slow down and make it more difficult (epic mode). The most intriguing thing for me is the prospect of the goal-based PvP. In this respect, the BattleKeeps sound like they have great potential. Need to see how they do dungeons, too. I’m going to continue marching on and we’ll see…

VANGUARD: This game has the best mechanics and graphics that I’ve experienced. I still love my cleric (dinged 38 last night). It’s just that the world currently feels “hollow” due to the small player base and possibly even more importantly, the design/use of the cities and the NPCs that "populate" them. This title has been the cliched poster child for what can happen to you if your MMO isn't sufficiently "polished". All ye developers take heed and push back yer release dates lest ye be compared to poor, cursed VG:SoH. VG also is the keeper of that dubious trophy: the "Unfulfilled Potential Cup". I hear that each developer, investor, and Brad McQuaid Apologist gets to take the Cup home for one day and fill it with their tears. Still, the game has gotten remarkably better. Is it possible to reclaim critial mass? SOE did it once with EQ2...

EQ2: The most vibrant game world including both players and NPCs. It’s a great place to visit, but I wouldn’t want to adventure there. I’m being a little unfair as the game has improved hugely over time. I still feel uncomfortable with the emphasis on AoE tactics and feeling lost as a healer, especially. Still, I love visiting my "house" and perusing the pets, trophies, and other artifacts I've collected over time. What a great idea to have each character's house be a virtual museum to commemorate their past adventures and achievements.

WOW: This is a great game to Duo in. Hold the MM, I'll just have the ORPG portion, thanks. I’ve been absent from Azeroth for more than a year and I know that other people feel “done” with this game but I’m sure someday I’ll go back and level a Hunter up. This is probably my favorite game to “level” in. I’d also like to try some Battlegounds as a Hunter. I’ve got no sense of urgency; it’s just something I think I’ll likely do someday. I’ll echo the sentiments of others in that I feel the Alterac Valley Battleground was simply an amazing play experience… A huge PvP battle with lots of minor goals and one big victory condition. Alas, when last I played it was mostly just farmed for honor as the opposing sides waved to one another and rushed their opponents’ leader. Bah!

EQ1: The siren call of EQ1 sings its sweet (but illusory) song of Nostalgia. No, it will never be the same… But there’s still no game that pulls more idle thoughts or memories than does this one. It doesn’t have all the bells and whistles of the new games, but it’s got a sense of balance, and scope of content that hasn’t been matched. Current fantasy: having a group of players starting up new characters and progressing through content with a one-night a week group adventuring night and getting them to the real content (post 50). Darn you, Tipa!

WARHAMMER: Now that Conan has launched, the Hype Machine and Fan Boys have their hopes and dreams pinned to this title. Large numbers of people are bound to be disappointed simply due to the fact that such diverse people are all so invested and it's unlikely that one title can be all things to all people. Most intriguingto me is the potential of well done goal-based PvP elements.

EVE Online: Another “some day” game. The main barrier to entry on this game is its steep learning curve. The benefits are that it’s a skill based rather than level based game and that’s a completely different theme. I love the fantasy theme, but sometimes…

More Nice Places to Visit, But Still Don’t Think I Want to Play There Anymore:

CITY OF HEROES/VILLAINS: I expect I’ll show my kids around Paragon City next time a free weekend comes around. Because, you know, flying is just plain cool…and my son seems to really like Super Heroes. Go figure. ;-)

Star Wars Galaxies: Speaking of non-fantasy themes my kids love… I think next time I subscribe to a Sony Station Pass, I’ll have to show them Naboo. I haven’t played since…well, since before the NGE fiasco. So it’ll be like new to me, too.

These Two Years Intentionally Left Blank...