Well, since this is my first real post on GB, I'll start out with an okay game. This game is a MMORPG, so I just wanted to get that cleared up.

Overall: 6/10

The game is amusing, but lacks real structure and/or storyline. Plus, I thought I'd never say this, but it has too many choices. A casual player or someone just starting out may feel overwhelmed by the different classes and races.
Also, not to be a real downer, but the game has no storyline except for a real dry one that (though the game says they are different) is pretty much the same thing for each race. Each one involves killing another tribe/clan/race.

Graphics: 9.5/10

These are top-notch graphics. I can't really go into detail because that almost sums it up, but I will say that it looks very real, and you can find yourself feeling (at times) like this could really take place.

Sounds: 8/10

The ambient noise in this game is more believable than WoW (World of Warcraft). Plus, *surprise!* the music doesn't sound like something out of a Saturday morning cartoon. The combat noises are pretty good for the most part, but I still long for the real sound of steel hitting wood/armor.

Questing system: 5/10

Here is the most common type of quest dialog/layout:

"Hi, __________! I need you to kill some ______ for me, if you do, I'll give you _______, _______, and _________. Plus, as a bonus, some really valuable __________! Get going now, before _______ realizes I'm paying you to do my job and I get fired!"

You probably figured out the last sentence wasn't part of a genuine quest text. However, by this time, you begin to feel it should be, and hope that __________ does get fired.

Character progression: 5/10

You kill things for money to buy armor and to get experience. There's not much more to it.

Combat/interface combination: 6/10

Combat is basically the same as WoW, and you don't even get as many spells starting out, making the fights much more boring.
For those of you who haven't played WoW, these two games use something called Auto-attack. Basically, you press a button and you character will attack at regular increments of time which depends on your agility and what weapon you have equipped. The interface works really well with this, though I hardly think this would be a surprise to anyone. An interface is really hard to screw up.

Jobs/Professions: 8/10

I gave this an 8 just for the fact that they spent as much time developing Crafting and Diplomacy as much as Adventuring, though they hardly compare to it.

Second opinion: 6.75/10

This game lacks a good basis for leveling up anything in it. It's not difficult to, just tedious. They need to add some kind of warping thing or make the areas smaller, because the game is literally 80% travel, 10% kill, 10% fun. So, I think that anyone who hasn't played an MMORPG before would want to skip this game, and even the people who have might find this game very dull.

Thanks for this helpful review! It sounds like one I'll definitely skip. If I ever do stick a toe into the RPG genre, it'll probably be in a kinder, gentler game (if such an RPG exists).

BTW -- I disagree that it's hard to mess up an interface. Especially in 3D games, the interface (at least in terms of controlling the player character) can easily be a problem.

H4, thanks for sharing with us. I haven't tried a MMORPG yet. Do you have a favorite?

Not quite yet. I'd reccomend Guild Wars (the very first one) for someone getting into online games. If you find you like that and "cap" level (get as high as you can), then a game I would reccomend after that would be City of Heroes or City of Villains.
CoH/CoV has more player interaction and has a more open world. You have more possibilities (spelling?) and at level 14 you can go almost anywhere and not get completely slaughtered. Most of the quests on the street are fun ones, considering the ragdoll physics they added into the game. If you hit an enemy really hard with a hammer (or something that generally causes great pain) they'll go flying, and ragdoll physics will be implemented.
WoW I personally found too easy, and after awhile, it got very repetitive as well. The lore behind it is something to see, though. It does have the best storyline of any game I've played.

Anyway, that's my take, as long and overdrawn as it was.

H4XX

I always thought City of Heroes looked like a lot of fun. My son plays WoW for hours and hours, and has offered to play with us if we ever get around to it.

One of these days .....................

Hehe, WoW's addicting. MMORPGs eat up your time like that (only if you let them). The graphics aren't really that good, but once you get into the quests and just running around, you don't seem to notice at all. I just found it repetitive, but I'm a picky person. I'm currently playing the LOTRO beta test. LOTRO is Lord of the Rings Online. It's pretty cool. It's alot like WoW, addicting.

I've always heard MMORPG's are big time eaters. But, for him, right now, it's great!

The LOTR one sounds wonderful! I love the books, and the movies.

When will it go live, do you know?

April 24, looney. I was just in the Beta test, and I have to say, it was pretty good. Very good content and keeps more to the story of the books rather than the movies.

Aha, we are in count down then. Will you play it when it goes live, or did you get your fill in the Beta phase?

I don't think I'll start it just yet. The Beta was pretty cool, but I'm not entirely ready to switch to something different yet. I'm kinda focusing on Guild Wars right now. A little later on, maybe, but probably not right after launch.