Curse

Argen · May 11, 2006, 05:56 AM // 05:56

A role-playing game: A game in which players assume the roles of characters and act out fantastical adventures, the outcomes of which are partially determined by chance, as by the roll of dice.

http://dictionary.reference.com/sear...playing%20game

Metroid... an RPG
Half-Life... an RPG
Guild Wars... an RPG

Anyways, Factions has been a disappointment for some, mediocre for others, and a blessing for others. The PvE content is a bit monotonous, run here do that, run there do that, run over here kill this guy, run back over here talk to him, and than go drop off these cough drops to that guy over in the slums...

Oh well, I think people are missing the point of the game, of the PvE content at least. People who like PvE should be somewhat along the lines of, "I enjoy the system, eye-candy, and combat system enough to want to play through encounters, grab some more loot, than go kill some more stuff." I'm not exactly sure what else there is supposed to be... why are you complaining if you are having to rezone and than fight through monsters you have just slain, I thought that was the big PvE factor. Do quest, kill monster, finished quest... kill more monsters and more shinies to my pouch.

The storyline is a bit smaller than the original prophecies storyline in the terms of missions but considering how difficult at least four of the missions are to achieve a Master level victory, that should keep most people plugging away at those.

Than add in the elite missions, and the plethora of additional Level 20 quests, and must say it seems that the PvE world got a decent shot in the arm...

I am a 20% PvP/80% PvE player, so I feel some of the pain; Factions was a good expansion, not sure if its a stand-alone game, simply because of the skills from Prophecies.

I'm not sure what some people are expecting... many people complained that GW:P moved too slow and lacked Post-Ascension content... ANet gave us a quicker advancement and more Level 20 quests. Many folks complained that there were not enough high-end drops, ANet revamped the drop rates, gave us additional (much better) Greens, and so forth. Many people complained that the monsters were too easy, so ANet upped the difficulty. I'm playing 1 Factions character through currently (still on the island), and have taken 2 Prophecy characters to the endgame. I may have rushed a bit trying to get the first character through, but now I have slowed down a bit and realized that I got what the community asked for.

I'm not overly impressed with Factions, nothing made me go, "Gosh darn, I gotta get me 2 of these, and tell all my friends." But it certainly didn't make me say, "This is a complete waste of money." Though the Arborstone glitch got me close to that. Good expansion, mediocre stand-alone, not a waste of money or anything like that.

actionjack · May 11, 2006, 05:57 AM // 05:57

WEll.. I have not got the game yet.. so can really only judge by what other say, and by my time with the head start...

Once thing I am concerned (which stop me from handing my money to NC soft) is the end game. Already we see that the Prophecies's excuses for End-game (atleast for the PvE part) is Farming. Farming and more farming, with the illusion that you are getting alot, yet really not. Somehow.... Faction seems like it will follow the same path.. but only fall faster and harder.

"Fancy Graphic is nice, but the true game play is the key"

Vargs · May 11, 2006, 06:38 AM // 06:38

Quote:

Originally Posted by LordMahal

This game is quickly leaning towards WOW and EQ. 30000 expansions

Wha? EQ, we can all agree with, but WoW doesn't even have any expansions. They're just now creating their first one, and it's been what, around 1 1/2 years?

Anyways, I don't have Factions, but looking at the content that it does introduce, I do not feel it is worth my $50. When the only things that excite me are the new character/weapon/armor skins, something's wrong.

artay · May 11, 2006, 06:59 AM // 06:59

lol all this fuss over something that is sposed to be fun. Just go and enjoy factions!

Andy_M · May 11, 2006, 07:07 AM // 07:07

'supposed'...

morphium · May 11, 2006, 07:18 AM // 07:18

I like how you bold lots of words. Makes your rant sound professional.

artay · May 11, 2006, 07:19 AM // 07:19

its called "slang" lol i love nit pickers (they're so fun to laugh at) *laughs*

torquemada · May 11, 2006, 07:27 AM // 07:27

I must admit I have given myself to Factions hate a bit, when I was still in the northern slums. Though not particularly appealing to me, I must say I swinged opinions.

Sure, the slums might not look appealing and beautiful. It's because your mindset is still somewhere in Tyria screaming for a Tyria clone.

Lower layers of the city, like sewers, are grand indeed, but with a different twist - something you can't connect with Tyria and classic fantasy cliches. So many people just scream "OMG UGLY" without bothering to even look.
Sure, it's a point of view, but I must admit I like it more and more.

Now that I finally made it to my Kurzick brethren, pledging loyalty to them, I'm finding some parts of the game really stunningly beautiful, like Hose zu Helzer, it's sorrounding Echovald forest and it's maps, along with cathedral interiors.

And I wouldn't necessarily say that game is shorter because map is smaller - I'm finding a lot of content. Sure, classic farming may be dead in Cantha (and it may not be, too early to tell), but now you can farm factions -not for your alliance, but for amber, etc. So I think some different playstyles will develop, but, hey, give it time, will ya?

Sekkira · May 11, 2006, 07:31 AM // 07:31

Quote:

Originally Posted by artay

its called "slang" lol i love nit pickers (they're so fun to laugh at) *laughs*

yeh wel dis iz slang 2 u no

Kaguya · May 11, 2006, 07:32 AM // 07:32

Quote:

Originally Posted by LordMahal

I dont want to blow $50 every 6 months, on a game that takes me 20 hours to beat. $50 for a game that takes days upon days, ok, but something like that doesnt come out every 6 months.

Half Life 2, full game price. Completed in ~15 hours.
Max Payne, full game price. Completed in ~8 hours.
FEAR, full game price. Completed in ~20 hours.
Fable, full game price. Completed in some 20 hours.

There really isn't games that don't take you more than 20ish hours to complete. Sure there are some, but they are quite rare. MMOs aren't really a difference, even if they take you more than 20 hours, it's full of repeating the grind, killing the same mob over and over again, doing the same raid over and over again, actual "content" is far below that 20 hours.

Besides, you can complete Factions several times without trouble, different classes have different gameplay enough to keep it interesting going the game through multiple times, plus there still are stuff to do above that 20 hours. PvP in various forms, you can sink hours upon hours at that, collecting stuff to get that phat 15k armor, capping elites, trying to get Master's on each mission etc etc.

VVV- So you are saying Anet released an unfinished product? MONAY BACK PLZ.

artay · May 11, 2006, 07:33 AM // 07:33

Think Of Factions as a big cake

and analysing and nit picking as in eating it. Do you take out the cake when it is still developing and say THIS CAKE TASTES WRONG?? NO you dont, you let the cake bake and wait till its ready b4 eating it. then if your lucky you may get a few sprinkles on top eg SF.

Lol rant me if you want, I can take it. *braces Self*

Sekkira · May 11, 2006, 07:37 AM // 07:37

No you can't.

artay · May 11, 2006, 07:41 AM // 07:41

sekkira i actually was on ur side, believe or not. I was amazed at your posts but now you kinda let me down

DJ Josh · May 11, 2006, 08:57 AM // 08:57

a.net promised the same amount of content in factions and repeated that claim after the fpe when people started commenting on the map size,they failed to deliver.to compare the 2,my first char (an assassin) took me 2 days to finish,from training to celebration area + going back and doing the luxon quests and missions + all internal and external quests,minus time for sleep/food and time with the kids i would say that is short.also there are half as many missions which is clearly stated in your titles list,that to me states half as much content as the first not the same(and this in the main element of the pve section).another of my big disapointments with the pve is that even with all the cries for them to fix the broken up story in prophthey did an even worse job on this game as it basicaly makes no sence at all:-

1)did the fortune teller have an ultirior motive for brainwashing shiro?
2)was the emporer about to have shiro killed or not?
3)why did shiro become an envoy?
4)whats the deal with the absorbing s**t from his kills in the harvest temple?
5)where was the switch from local hero to kick ass evil dude?
6)whats the deal with the death wail,and where can i cap that skill(must be an elite

)?
7)what is the link between shiro and the afflicted and why does everyone but us know that inflicted=shiro's returned yet none of them have any info on why they think this?

many more breaks in the story but i'm bored listing them.any experianced players want to test the content length make a new char and play through proph then make a new char and play through factions,do all quests and missions and see for your self the huge difference.also i think the map of cantha works on multiple levels to hide the fact that there is nowhere near the same content map wise,same again make 2 new chars and go for full exploration.

and another huge issue is the extreme limitations set on end-game content.the old statement of skill>time spent now changes to extreme farming>skill.serious who in the right mind would see all the complaints about the favor system(from both sides of the game)and then create 1 10x worse.at least with favor you had a chance of getting to the end game areas in time but no such hope in this game unless you stop enjoying the game your way and play by there ideal of how you should play.where are the choices gaile likes to speak of so often,play your way and miss out or get swallowed up in a huge alliance and grind your life away to get access(BS).then the point of weapons/items that you can't find anywhere else and you have an advantage on cash gain over the more casual or friend playing players,yet another a.net contradiction.hope you can still survive to ch4 but after many people i know and have met in-game skipping factions i know many more who have quickly binned gw after wasting their money(ito)on factions.their are many things i like about factions but overall it is a huge let down,i did have high expectations after falling in love with proph for a year.but oh well at least i gave them a chance to prove my friends right,time to switch my attention back to sony i think what with the upcoming release of the next gen.

sorry for the long post,i must have lost myself there

.

Sekkira · May 11, 2006, 09:19 AM // 09:19

Quote:

Originally Posted by artay

Lol rant me if you want, I can take it. *braces Self*

Quote:

Originally Posted by God

No you can't.

Quote:

Originally Posted by artay

sekkira i actually was on ur side, believe or not. I was amazed at your posts but now you kinda let me down

And I wasn't even ranting.

YunSooJin · May 11, 2006, 09:29 AM // 09:29

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shyft the Pyro

Oh yes. I did very much love the Celestial Ministry and their feeble attempt to feed Homeless Canthans with mirrors. But I did very much hate the fact that in order to complete said quest - which was arguably easier than others I picked up in the very same area - I had to zone out of the huge area I've painstakingly cleared and ran all over for the 3 hours beforehand, and that I then had to do nearly the same thing when completing the quest and coming back to receive the reward.

It's the backtracking that gets me the most, the need to effectively fight my way through the same exact area I've just cleared/traveled/mapped over. At least in Tyria, where more quests were tied to towns and outposts - possibly because more towns and outposts were available on the larger map - I could complete quests without zoning or at least without clearing the same zone twice.

I'm speaking from personal experience here. I am a PvE person, mainly. The more I played Prophecies, the more I enjoyed it. The longer the storyline was, the more I played. Even when the storyline was over, I kept playing, going out with the henchies and looking at the amazing scenery. I walked from Camp Rankor to Beacon's Perch just because I wanted to see what was in between. That's how I got my Tyrian Grandmaster Cartographer title.

I can't imagine myself doing the same thing in Cantha. The city is a labyrinth that leaves me with an aftertaste. The missions seem - for the lack of a better term - "jerky," and the storyline awkward. The first mainland mission and its double "Deus Ex Machina" grates on my nerves every time I have to take a guildie through it (thankfully, most parties skip the ending animation).

Factions is being sold at exactly the same price as Prophecies. Why should my definition of how much my gameplay my money can get me change, if I'm buying - for the same price, from the same company - a sequel to the game I greatly enjoyed?

I know what you mean about the backtracking. I did it on one character I plan not to ever do it again. I hate the city so much, the enemies are hard (which is nice once) and then having to fight them again with henchies is such a chore.

Xenrath · May 11, 2006, 09:37 AM // 09:37

Bear in mind Prophecies probably had a lot more development time put into it (and more time for everything else too). Future chapters will be 6 months or so if Anet stays true to their goals, not including the time spent fixing up the previous chapters and adding in more content for those ones (e.g. Sorrow's Furnace)

misthero · May 11, 2006, 09:45 AM // 09:45

When Prophecy comed out, just after a week I can remember threads on this boards with titles like:

"I have beaten the game twice, now what??"
"This game is too short"
"What am I supposed to do now?"

and here they are again..

Why I'm enjoing faction?
I remember myself 2 weeks ago loggin in GW and go HoH, directly, or GvG with my guild.
Now I log in and ask myself, "omg, what to do now? There are so many options..I can't choose.." and, know what?...I like it

Sol Deathgard · May 11, 2006, 10:22 AM // 10:22

Quote:

Originally Posted by salaboB

Now, why does my having fun or not make it okay to require heavy backtracking to complete quests, sometimes having to reload a zone to get a second quest? (And thus doubling the backtracking time, as you have to clear the paths you need again...) Fun of the entire game or not is irrelevent, the point you were arguing was that backtracking was good...right?

If you don't think it's good -- just that it doesn't make the game not fun -- then you have nothing. The original point wasn't that it was the entire flaw of Factions, just that it was a flaw Factions had.

Dude STFU, you don't like it you know what? I DON'T CARE. I'm tired of everyone saying "well people say factions suck" know what? I LOVE THE GAME everyone in my guild loves the game. as far as the OP goes, you know nothing of Medal of Honor or Metroid, that tells me that you are not a gamer, thus GW was probably your 1st game, thus you don't know that some sequls are nothing more than rehashes of previous releases, while some are completely new. You think people don't like Factions cause some morons post they don't like it? Wanna know why I haven't posted that I love Factions? cause when I'm home I'm playing the game until bed time that's why. I can't pull myself away I love it. what do I think of the backtracking? I don't mind, I like exploring new ways to my goals, and guess what, I found ways around ALL enemies if I so choose to. (sometimes I don't) And the OP says that Factions can't be called Guild Wars cause it's not about Guilds fighting, then says he's PvE... if your PvE why would you care about GvG? or PvP? There are people that rushed through and beat Factions the day it came out, I wasn't one of them, I'm taking my time, I'm enjoying myself, as are everyone in my guild, as are tens of thousands of others around the world. If you don't like the game, do us all a favor, STFU AND QUIT PLAYING IT THEN!!!!!

Fossa · May 11, 2006, 10:32 AM // 10:32

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sol Deathgard

If you don't like the game, do us all a favor, STFU AND QUIT PLAYING IT THEN!!!!!

You mean Arenanet will refund the game if you don't like it? Didn't think so.
Dude, we PAYED for this game, that gives us the right to complain about it.We wished Factions to be as good or even better than Prophecies.

I think there are a lot of reasons Factions seems short and a bit boring. The PvE content is much lesser, there aren't that many new skills to learn and most of us already know the game engine so it's not a challenge like Prophecies.

There are things in Factions I find much much better than in Prophecies, the Fort Aspenwood/Jade Quarry mix of PvE&PvP is among them. Never played PvP in Prophecies, never will (except for the snowballfights)