That's it, I'm broken.

[Dog Pants]

I'm starting this thread vaguely wondering what tangent it'll take because I'm bored.

Playing LotRO today I realised, I'm all mmonged out. After CoX, Warcraft, Tabula Rasa, AoC, and now this, I've saturated myself with what amounts to a very similar game in different settings. I find myself playing LotRO and feeling after 8 levels how I feel when I load up any of the others and think 'more quests, I just can't be arsed'.

Please someone release something different. Huxley, Jumpgate 2, TSW, Earthrise, anything. WAR might provide some relief, but it's still fantasy hack'n'slash when all's said and done.

Pic unrelated (and nicked).

[Dr. kitteny berk]

I'm mostly mmo'd to death, I've gone back to CoH, because it's different, and genuinely funny at times.

[Hehulk]

Has derek tried RTS gaims recently?

[Dog Pants]

If by Derek you mean me, I've been borked in that respect since Command & Conquer.

[Roman Totale]

Playing LotRO today I realised, I'm all mmonged out.

I had the same epiphany the other week whilst playing LotRO. There's nothing wrong with the game per se, there's just nothing different about it.

I'm really, really bored with a lot of games at the moment, and I can't wait for something suitably epic to come along (probably Fallout 3). The last week when I had no computer, I had no cravings at all to get back to gaming (other than drunken CoD) - except for the super beardy SLA and SR games, but they're not computer games so it doesn't really count.

On that subject I had a bearded wet dream the other night about a SLA MMONG. It was awesome - dark, gritty, rainy streets, the huge walls of the Cannibal Sector etc. In the dream it was a truly massive game with incredible AI - investigation BPNs really had to be worked on. From what I remember, every mission you did affected your eventual position in SLA, and you could also try working for DarkNight (although these were sometimes loyalty tests by SLA).

God I wish they could make that game.

[Dog Pants]

I don't go down that road, it just gives me the rage over every identikit fantasy mmo that comes out. How hard would it be to design a grim near future urban MMO that had a Bladerunner (game) style investigation feel? It grips my shit that nobody out there making mmongs have any fucking imagination. Still, gives me time to write for SLA.

[Dr. kitteny berk]

I had the same epiphany the other week whilst playing LotRO. There's nothing wrong with the game per se, there's just nothing different about it.

So very, very hard.

[Hehulk]

On that subject I had a bearded wet dream the other night about a SLA MMONG. It was awesome - dark, gritty, rainy streets, the huge walls of the Cannibal Sector etc. In the dream it was a truly massive game with incredible AI - investigation BPNs really had to be worked on. From what I remember, every mission you did affected your eventual position in SLA, and you could also try working for DarkNight (although these were sometimes loyalty tests by SLA).

God I wish they could make that game.

While I'm not wishing to shit in your corn flakes here, a cynical person would look at what you just typed and say so, your wet dream is to run around doing what NPCs tell you to do?

Just need seeing any big distinction general game models aside...

[Dog Pants]

While I'm not wishing to shit in your corn flakes here, a cynical person would look at what you just typed and say so, your wet dream is to run around doing what NPCs tell you to do?

I don't get that from what he said at all. That's more like what traditional MMONGs do. A MMO version of a bona-fide SLA campaign would have you listening to a lot of people and trying to get the truth out of what they tell you (usually so you can find someone to shoot at).

Just need seeing any big distinction general game models aside...

I don't even understand this bit.

[Dr. kitteny berk]

While I'm not wishing to shit in your corn flakes here, a cynical person would look at what you just typed and say so, your wet dream is to run around doing what NPCs tell you to do?

That's pretty much the basis of all MMOs.

I do like what Roman said - the way I read it, it, it seems much more open and requiring thought, rather than go to A, do B, Get C.

Just need seeing any big distinction general game models aside...

Sorry, nope, I can't work those words in that order.

dark, gritty, rainy streets, the huge walls...

God I wish they could make that game.

CoV?

[Hehulk]

Apart from the game models, backgrounds, textures etc used by the different games, we're all in agreement that your average MMO is basically the same game with one or two unique things bolted on.

What Roman just described, just from where I'm sitting, at the core (Which is why alot of us seem to be really bored of) it sounds the same as every other MMO that's come out since WOW. Go to location, get quest/mission/job from NPC, complete, repeat.

[buzzmong]

Er, Neocron's (old) but a bit gritty like mmong.

I do concur with the game drought though, I've just played through Vice City again, got hold of Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire (as I've just wanted it for ages), have been playing Star Trek: Starfleet command II and also had a pop at Soldier Of Fortune 1 again.

Might install Star Wars Supremacy again as it's top strategy action when on medium and the sides are pretty much perfectly balanced, not to mention dealing with multiple rampaging fleets is quite fun.

Fallout 1 might get reinstalled as I've flibbled up Fallout 2's save near the end and I'm really about 2/3 levels too low for the oil rig.

Games are just so samey these days, Spore I want to try because it's different, which reminds me that I need to find my Black and White 2 cd's and put that on.

[Dog Pants]

I think you're reading what you want to see into what Roman said. His description was pretty brief, but I got from it a MMO version of the pen and paper game. You wouldn't be looking for the NPC with the exclamation mark over his head then skipping through the text, you'd be having to work out which one of millions of NPCs was the one you needed to talk to, then finding them, then possible having to catch them, then listening to what they said so you could try to work out who you had to talk to and where you had to go next. I suppose put like that it does sound similar, but if you'd played my SLA campaign you'd know it wasn't.

[Dr. kitteny berk]

I think you're reading what you want to see into what Roman said.

[Roman Totale]

Dog Pants explained what I meant better than I did. It was probably a bit vague if you've never SLA'd before, but yes - there would be no nice big exclamation marks over the NPCs heads.

The irritating thing about "investigation" quests in current MMONGS is that there's bugger all thinking required - you don't even have to read the text half the time, just walk to where it tells you to on the map. If MMONG SLA every did exist, there'd always be a possibility that you could end up interrogating a drunken bar man for half an hour before realising that he actually knows dick all and is of no use to the investigation (which might not sound ideal, but you get what I mean).

All we need to do is get enough money together to found a games studio now.

[buzzmong]

I picked the keywerds out, mainly dark and gritty to offer a small suggestion to tide off the cravings as an SLA mmongmegger doesn't exist yet.

Unless you're responding to le hulky, in which case: carry on

[Dr. kitteny berk]

The irritating thing about "investigation" quests in current MMONGS is that there's bugger all thinking required - you don't even have to read the text half the time, just walk to where it tells you to on the map.

AoC's were pretty good, shame about the game though.

[Dog Pants]

I picked the keywerds out, mainly dark and gritty to offer a small suggestion to tide off the cravings as an SLA mmongmegger doesn't exist yet.

Unless you're responding to le hulky, in which case: carry on

Yeah, I was responding to Hulky and you ninjad in there. I'm currently downloading Anarchy Online, seeing as it's free now. Can't do any harm.

[Hehulk]

I suppose put like that it does sound similar, but if you'd played my SLA campaign you'd know it wasn't.

That's going to be where I'm falling down then

[Dr. kitteny berk]

That's going to be where I'm falling down then

Or you could stop thinking every MMO has to abide by some rules you've set for them in your head.

I know nothing of SLA really, but from the forum posts about it, I'd got a fair idea what Roman was trying to describe.

Just approach stuff with an open mind.