Snips and Snails and Puppy Dog Tales

Landscapes, too. Everything in WoW is so big, colorful, cartoony. I remember how... stone Sandy was. Grey. Looked like it was really made of stone.

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achika-soladia.livejournal.com

I still think a great MMO would involve Blizzard devs and SE artists and writers.

Sometimes.

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Yes. Alas the SE folks would all end up with exploded heads, and the Blizz folks would push them into PvP arenas and kill them endlessly out of frustration.

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Blizz holds our hand so nicely through everything, bends over backwards for us... so why do I miss getting smacked around by SE?

I think it was the challenge. It's nice being given stuff, but there is something to be said about fighting the system (which obviously wants to crush your spirit...*fist shake at SE*) and winning. Much better feeling then "Here is gear, go away."

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Yeah... Remember how in CoP half the battle (sometimes more than half!) was just getting to the fights? True-sight, true-hearing mobs... Powers and oils, magic aggro... Crazy times!

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Half the time our answer was "TRAIN TO ZONE!" and then we'd go pick people up for 5 or 10 minutes.

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Ha ha, yes. Oh the good old days! Omnonnom dirt.

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quistie.livejournal.com

I believe I mentioned this earlier in a post on my LJ, but the challenge is absolutely essential. If the rewards are just handed to us on a silver plate, our brains will reject them. Fairly or not, compliments from total strangers are much more noteworthy than compliments from loved ones.

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Yep, which is probably why I feel so little connection to WoW. Nothing much feels like an effort at all. Hitting max level or max crafting level makes me roll my eyes more than anything else. It's all just so silly-easy.

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lokyst.livejournal.com

Yay! I admit every year or so I go back and watch them too... :x

I couldn't go back though. It's like *that* boyfriend that you stick with because the highs are so amazing, but omg the lows...

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Agreed. I'm sort of happy that Thistle can't be recovered. I could never ever start over, and I'm not interested in buying a leveled character. It's Thistle or no one, so... There's no going back, and that's very likely a darned good thing.

It's great watching the videos though! Thanks for keeping them online. :D

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Wow, I totally shouldn't have glanced at your LJ. Seeing screenshots of FFXI...Looking at it like a breakup is right. My brain put it in exactly the same terms as a former relationship - That bitch was padded-room crazy, was super high maintenance...but the sex was out of this world.

Looking at screenshots from way back (even if I didn't actively run with that group then) makes me consider going and saying "Hi" to the old game, maybe have a couple drinks...

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That bitch was padded-room crazy, was super high maintenance...but the sex was out of this world.

Ha! I think that perfectly sums up the relationship with FFXI. :D

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quistie.livejournal.com

If it will make you feel better (?), CoP isn't the same anymore—not even remotely. I happened to be helping people with the Promyvions and the minotaur missions last night, and let's just say it's a good thing I had good company. We beat the clear time for two of the BCs without trying all that hard, and later on I let the minotaur swing at me (and missing) while waiting on the beast to draw-in the rest of my group.

So...yeah, this is what CoP is like in 2011. I have some good memories of CoP, but this is something else entirely.

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Blah, that's so sad to hear. I mean, it makes sense, I couldn't have been the only person it made quit, but still.

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iniadelphinae.livejournal.com

FFXI is radically different than when you left.

CoP has no level caps anymore, so everything pretty much up to and including (for some jobs) the Ultima/Omega BC is soloable.

And while having Sea and CoP finished is nice, it is no longer so important because nobody really does anything with CoP content, and even a Rajas Ring is not an uber piece anymore (though it is still okay).

The main focus of FFXI now is Abyssea, 3 add ons that completely changed the game. SE is trying to get people out of there with boosts to Campaign and new battlefield systems, but Abyssea where it's at.

Honestly, the game has been made much easier. Level caps have been removed from all storyline battles (though you still have the pain of travel and cutscenes). Exp per kill outside Abyssea has gone from about 25 exp for an EP kill to over 100 without any sort of band. Fields of Valor and Grounds of Valor give further boosts to exp. NPCs actually tell you what they want for a lot of new quests (they didn't go back and change the old ones).

Crafting has taken a hit since pretty much all the best gear is obtained in Abyssea or Trial of the Magians. There's still profit to be sure, but it's largely in consumables (not food).

Honestly, it would be kind of overwhelming to come back at this point. You would definitely want to come back with a support network in place to help get you through all the changes - getting started in Abyssea, LBs, etc. Also, there's still no RP really. And... you were on Midgard iirc? That server is gone now, can't remember what world got them.

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Midgar folks got sent to Quazi-however you spell it, and unfortunately there's a Thistle there already, which I suspect Thistle-me couldn't be recovered.

Going back isn't an option at all without my old character. I could never start over, and it's probably better that I just be happy with my memories than experience how different things are now. (Though some of the changes sound good! Killing crafting makes me sad though.)

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iniadelphinae.livejournal.com

Even if you came back on Thistle (probably renamed), you'd need that support. The level cap is 90 right now (going to 95 in the next month or so), so there are several LBs. They are all just fetch quests, with one mini-game in there, but the items only drop from level 70+ mobs.

To do just about anything in Abyssea, you need cruor and atmas. You need help getting started with those (atmas require a group of at least 2-3 to obtain anyway).

And

voidmagus has another sad point. All that Sky, Sea and Salvage gear is pretty much obsolete. Even if you don't really enjoy Abyssea, you don't have much choice if you want good gear. And the +1 gear isn't even the best gear, it's just the "acceptable" gear you are expected to have now. SE introduced augments to Sky gear so far via Synergy (Sea and Salvage augments are probably up later), but the augments are random and rarely even equal, much less better than, AF3 (aka Empyrean).

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Yeah... It really sounds like I should just be happy with memories of how things were. All this is interesting to read about, but I suspect going through it would be less so. (Especially since other than you I know almost no one still playing.) I had almost forgotten how solo unfriendly FFXI is. I have no great love of WoW, but at least I can solo endlessly and easily to level cap.

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Abyssea is what finally did my account in. All the work for sky, and sea...pointless. Any gear you had was basically rendered obsolete by AF3+1, which was easily obtainable with a small party, or even solo. Even salvage gear was just crushed, and the group I ran with had been doing bi-weekly salvage runs for a year. All that work tossed out the window.

I had some good times in Abyssea before I left, but it just wasn't the same game. I'm still looking for one to replace it - no luck so far.

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That's the problem with MMOs, and part of why I'm keeping WoW at arm's length. Whatever you get, gear or access or anything, has to be made obsolete so people will chase after the next new thing. WoW is so much worse about this than FFXI (was? is?). Get gear so you can get better gear so you can get better gear so you can get better gear... new expansion replaces top level gear with quest greens. It's so amazingly pointless. At least a rat in a maze gets cheese at the end.

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FFXI was good about that for a while. The Magian weapon trial system was a good one - your weapon is still a good one, but if you spend the time working on it you can upgrade a Magian to even better...as level cap increases, you can continue to upgrade that weapon. They included Magian trials for the top-end weapons (Relic, etc) so that those stayed great. But armor...especially the people who had worked 2+ years to get the salvage sets. I'd quit over that too. I understand the business and game design decisions that go into it, that you need to make new gear for people to lust after, but does it really need to be easily obtainable AND makes everything you have totally obsolete?

I know, old argument. That's why I have tried to stay away from MMOs, but the siren call is strong...I hit WoW for a bit, RIFT for free trial (is so similar to WoW but has some improvements on WoW's formula)...EVE seems like it should be complex/challenging enough, but my first 3-day trial didn't get me over the learning curve.

I want the challenge and progression, especially something I can play seriously sometimes and casually others. MMO is the only category where the game lasts long enough to fit what I want (I've known that forever - back in the days of EQ, Asheron's Call, Lineage2). But I guess I'm stuck until something new pops up.

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The Magian weapon trial system was a good one

Is that the one where you have to kill 10 of each ... erm, were they called NMs? I think that's it, the named/elite/rare mobs.

I found the greatest MMO ever... that no one will be able to play.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6V0o3TjB2Tw&feature=player_embedded

Does that not look like the coolest thing ever?

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quistie.livejournal.com

Some of the magian trials do involve killing NMs, but not all of them. Two of my magian trials (for Surya's Staff) involve releasing bottled pixies, and a good number of them involve killing a certain type of regular monsters under a certain condition (day of the week/weather/etc).

Technically, all of the empyrean armor pieces can only be obtained through magian trials as well, and all you have to do is to collect the corresponding seals. You can kill NMs for seals, but you don't have to. I quested for most of mine.

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This is kind of an obvious thing with MMO's but it goes double with EVE. You really need to try and get into a corp if you choose to get deep into it. There is so little to do in that game that isn't player driven that the experience will definitely be low if you don't surround yourself with some good people. Of course it also helps alleviate EVE's learning curve. (http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3088/2335016192_6003c39c4c.jpg)

I had tried EVE for a month or 2 but couldn't find a solid group to my liking so I left it behind. I barely scratched the surface but had so much fun and had so much stuff to look forward to it was awesome. Also the strategic feel that game has really helps as well.

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hehehe. I originally saw that graphic as the learning curve of Dwarf Fortress vs other games. I don't mind a huge learning curve. I even LIKE it. And I've heard that about a corp...I almost got recruited but I was still on a trial, etc (and I remember thinking "I need more monitors if I'm going to play this), so it never actually happened.

A huge part is how much I resist joining clans of people I don't know. It seems silly given how fondly I remember FantasyInsanity and the various LSs that came after. But even those I joined at behest of RL friends...I am shy, even behind a wall of anonymity (I'm even worse IRL. When first meeting people, I sit quietly and stare at them. My wife jokes about how the kitten and I handle visitors the same way).

Maybe I'll give EVE another shot. RIFT was fun but I hit the cap for the trial, and I could already see I was following a similar pattern I followed in WoW- I can play this game by myself? Then I will! Which is a bit of a shame. RIFT is like WoW with better (less cartoony) graphics, and the constant World/Rift Events with yummy loot based on participation that you can participate in at any level was awesome.

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I had read a bit about RIFT and talked with some people at work who played it. Seemed like the idea of the world invasions was something that was a great way to spice up the game a bit, like besieged was.

I think the idea of being able to play by yourself was something I liked about EVE. Ya, there wasn't much to do if you were without a group but if you ever needed to get away from interaction (for whatever reason) just go jump through a worm hole and go mining for hours on end. Plus there was something oddly relaxing about flying around an asteroid for 5 minutes while the mining laser did it's thing.

But ya, I completely understand where you are coming from with joining clans and such, it tends to be how I work in RL as well. I tend to merge into groups, sneak in as the quiet guy, then sort of morph out into my regular opinionated sarcastic form once I've infiltrated the core.

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Ha! Love that cartoon.

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