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True Fantasy Live Online - Still Xbox's Killer MMO App?
Thanks to XBN for its in-depth preview of Level 5's Japanese-developed Xbox MMORPG, True Fantasy Live Online, the long-in-development Microsoft funded title which is finally "hitting Xbox Live in early summer 2004." The piece points out that Level 5's RPG portfolio "...is stunningly impressive; in addition to Microsoft's Fantasy, the studio is developing the Dark Cloud series for Sony and Dragon Quest VIII for Square Enix", before speaking to chief game designer Akihiro Hino, who "believes it's possible to play and enjoy a noncombat character without fighting for the entirety of a lifeline in Fantasy", and the article ends by boldly claiming: "Fantasy already has more environments, enemies, vehicles, items, skills, classes, monsters, pets, and foods than any console RPG to date." Are you remotely, significantly, or excessively excited about this Xbox Live exclusive title?
"remotely, significantly, or excessively excited!"
Boy am I! I love feature bloat!
I wish companies would stop using the philosophy that 100 different swords is always better than 1 sword. I wish they'd concentrate on making the game intrinsicly fun to play regardless of what items are in it or not. Here's a concept: make a combat system for an rpg that's enjoyable IN AND OF ITSELF! What's wrong with having a game where people go and fight monsters or whatever for the fun of it rather than entirely for the rewards they get? Give me simple and fun over complex to compensate for lack of fun any day.
Checking out the article, it looks nice. But I wonder how many people may buy it mistaking it for a Final Fantasy title?
I don't know about the combat system in MMORPGs, I mean I know they are supposed to be more relaxed and easily accesible, but can't someone come up with a zelda(ocarina of time?) like combat system, where more than a dice roll affects your attack. Maybe like planetside without the human vs human comabt, and swords and bow and arrows instead of machine guns and rocket launchers. Battle would be so much more fun. The game could actually be more about fighting harder monsters even which a weak character, than spending hours and hours in some stupid cave fighting frog men to level your character to 65 and then go 'fight' the bigger and 'harder?' creatures.
pure nonsense
people clock up hours on both games because they prefer one to the other
you need depth *and* gameplay not one or the other
why do you think counterstrike doesn't have just 1 weapon and 1 map?
DAOC, for instance, had less item depth, each class at each level has an optimum set of kit. Part of the fun of Everquest was the array of items. Even though I was a specialist in 2H Axe I used to carry a set of thulian claws and a rapier. I could then choose whether to deal damage or interrupt casting. No such need in DAOC, the scope of your activity was much less.
I have played quite a few MMOs and EQ has by far the best items. We'd often just go on an adventure to get specific items even though we didn't really need them because that was the fun.
The real variety needs to be in the way the MOBs fight the party. DOACs approach was poor in this area. It wasn't until I hit level 36 that there was any difference in the way one pulls and kills the mobs (chain pulling the pygmies). However, the game was really aimed at PVP so it's slightly excusable.
As for this game, I couldn't care less.
EQ2 is the one the hardcore people are waiting for.
There are places where the networks are not touching,and there are places where they are-Boeing's Lori Gunter
pay them to do it.
Is there a free way to make first and second party games?
This is not unusual at all. Nintendo is probably the only one who doesn't, but Sony does this all the time. It's a good way to test the waters with a developer, as Sony has often contracted out games and then bought the studio. In fact, Sony did very much the same thing with Guerilla Studios to make their "Halo-Killer", and then just recently bought them out. I think EA did the same thing; hired out Blackbox for a game or two and then bought them out. Happens all the time. Suddenly it's weird because Microsoft is doing it?
Well, I can think of a few reasons:
- The Xbox is now only 149.00. If you have an out of data machine, you may spend at least that much to upgrade it.
- Ease of use. Some people may not like to use a computer, but they love video games. Open the DVD tray, drop the game in, and off you go.
half of the "new" titles coming out for the X-Box are three year old PC titles?
If you can show me that Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow, Steel Batallion, or Doom III (coming in June) have been out for three years, then I'll give you credit. Otherwise, nice troll attempt.
"Well, I am mad, and I'm a crazy fucka when it comes to tea"
In defense of "100 different swords", I have to say that the wide variety of swords, armor, etc. is much of what made Diablo II a success. I'm not saying that gameplay, fun, etc. isn't important - that's the heart of any good game. It's just that having a variety of weapons and other stuff to discover makes a game more interesting.
It actually has to do with the psychology of operant conditioning. Kill a monster or open a chest and get a weapon. If you get the same sword every time, you won't bother seeking out and killing the monster unless you happen to need the sword (which you won't need because you already have). But if there's a chance you may wind up getting a much better sword, then you're going to go out, time after time, killing and looting until you find the sword and start looking for the next one, or you give up, bored.
Operant conditioning is why gambling is so addictive. It's why people who can't afford it buy lottery tickets. And it's why having a variety of "neat" weapons in a fantasy RPG is part of what makes it fun. Even NetHack has more than one sword.
And it doesn't have to be complex. Diablo II is a very simple game to play, with a very large number of items that can be acquired by a player. None of the rare ones are needed to do well in the game - they're just neat, and a way to make your character different in its own way from the rest of the crowd.
144l. ph34r my 133t l3g4l 5k1lz!
Um, Halo came out on Xbox first and then came out as three year old Xbox title on the PC..
There are many MMORPGs that I'd like to try (Everquest, FFXI especially) but the monthly fee really puts me off. But since I'm already paying for X-Box Live (which pays for the infrastructure, among other things) they could have a very low monthly fee to pay for this game's origional contentand such ($2 maybe?). That I could stomach. I've seen a few previews of this game and it really interests me, but this is a question I'd really like an answer to.
Comment forecast: Bits of genius surrounded by a sea of mediocrity.
An XBox costs less than a reasonable CPU upgrade
Less than most decent 3d video cards
Less than a new motherboard and ram
Less than a case, hard drive, and power supply
So the better question is, (and as a Mac user, I get this *all* the time), why should I spend more on a PC when an XBox is 90% as good?
GPL Deconstructed
Half the time the PC versions of the XBOX games are crippled. Notably, many many XBOX games have co-op multiplayer abilities. None of the PC versions have this ability. :(
Halo PC has no co-op.
Lord of the Ring PC has no co-op.
Doom3 PC will not have co-op, but XBOX version will (makes me sad).
> Part of the fun of Everquest was the array of
;)
:) I stopped playing EQ 9 months ago and hadn't seen BTC's for years at that point.
> items.
Sort of. There was still always an "absolute best" that every gamer insisted on owning. The only time weapons varied were when new expansions released and people were finding new gear.
I'm not sure that there's a real solution for it. You mentioned DAoC, and they had a novel idea of giving different weapons varying effectiveness against different types of armor. I think something like that is a good start for a system that rewards all weapon choices.
Finding some way to require skill to inflict damage instead of just hitting auto-attack and damaging as dictated by an arbitrary damage rating would help too. Again, DAoC had a fair idea for this with their style system as indicated by how many games are now copying the idea.
But I agree, it still isn't quite nirvana yet. I'd like to see an MMOG utilize some form of rag doll physics.
> Even though I was a specialist in 2H Axe I used
> to carry a set of thulian claws and a rapier.
Wow, when was that.. 1999?
I would be quite interested in this if there was no additional charge except for the XBox Live subscription. In fact, I would be very interested in this game. I've always wanted to play a MMORPG like Star Wars Galaxies or Final Fantasy XI, but I can justify 15+ dollars a month plus the cost of my internet connection. What does XBox Live cost now? 50-60 bucks a year? I'm in. This article doesn't talk about subscription costs, though.
-my other sig is your mom
Damn, I KNEW we couldn't go one frickin /. article on a cool Xbox game without an obligitory troll.
And to answer your question, the Xbox provides the best of both the PC ports (games for XBox are ported to PX and vice versa, a la Knights of the Old Republic and Splinter Cell : Pandora Tomorrow), and console ports (There are very few multi-console games that don't look or play the best on the XBox, excepting SSX Tricky and Sonic Heroes), plus a bunch of stellar titles that are only on XBox (Ninja Gaiden, Project Gotham Racing 2, for example.) Xbox live is just the icing on the cake.
It's currently the best console out there in my eyes, with a Gamecube a close second (The genius of the first party games and some of the other third party games is unparalleled, but it needs more 'in the middle' kinds of games), and the Playstation 2 a distant third (I'm not that big of a fan of RPG's, a lot of the multiplatform stuff is better on Xbox, online play is a joke compared to XBL).
And I am quite looking forward to this game. I loved Dark Cloud, and I've played the hell out of Phantasy Star Online already.
And take your trolling elsewhere. We XBox fans have heard your rheteric to death, and quite frankly, we're sick of it. You're doing the equivilent of walking into a gay bar and calling someone a fag. Good thing you can't get a black eye on the internet, eh?
From the article:
"The genre traces its roots to the publication of G. Gary Gygax's seminal pen-and-paper RPG, Dungeons & Dragons, almost 25 years ago."
D&D came out 30 years ago, in 1974. Wizards of the Coast is doing various stuff this year to celebrate the 30th anniversary.
...but they really should change the name. It's like they're just throwing on 3 adjectives to make a long title that sounds Japanese. :-|
Foods. That's what's been missing from the online and offline games that I've been playing. More foods.
RaviWhen the axe came to the forest, the trees said, "Look out - the handle was once one of us."
> Wow, when was that.. 1999? :) I stopped playing EQ 9 months ago and hadn't seen BTC's for years at that point.
back end of '99 when I got my claws, gifted though.
Managed to drop them outside Freeport (friend who was suing them handed them back but i had full inventory) and someone hoovered them up.
I eventually went and camped the AOF to get some more.
There are places where the networks are not touching,and there are places where they are-Boeing's Lori Gunter
Why would anyone buy an X-box when virtually every title for it is out for the PC?
Same reason they buy a GameCube, or a dedicated DVD player, or a Mac. It "just works."
Let's say that I want to play Halo. I can either spend $400 upgrading my PC so it runs the game acceptably, or I can spend $150 on an X-Box.
I just think the game looks good, personally. Since the Xbox's price has dropped, I'll probably be picking up one soon. I never really wanted one, but I'm sure this game will make me appreciate the purchase. I also want to mod the console.
Sure, it's not EverQuest, Final Fantasy XI, Star Wars Galaxies, or any other dominant MMORPG, but it has some nice visuals. It's just something about water in games that make me really want to play it. I also would like to enjoy playing it from the confines of my couch for once. EverQuest Online Adventures didn't really do that for me.
Note. I currently play, and am a huge fan of EverQuest. Just stating that as not to show a deter from my opinions.
"Instant gratification takes too long." - Carrie Fisher
This game is being made to run on xbox live. Don't think you can use that from your PC. (Not that I have heard of yet.)
I'm betting Microsoft's contract with 5 levels dictates the game can only be played over xbox live. A decent MMO could help push alot of people to "opt in."
Also the game seems to be working to replace typing with speaking via voice, and voice filtering. From the article:
To keep players' voices consistent with their online avatars, be they brawny righteous knights, wizened wizards, tiny elves, men, or women, Fantasy uses a voice-filtering system, similar to what already exists on Xbox Live. The only difference here is that, judging from a recent playtest, these filters are actually very cool. Grown adults are audibly transformed into fairy sprites and hulking ogres, all in an attempt to maintain immersion.
This seems to my mind to indicate that a game pad will be an optimal way to play if typing is unecessary. A single platform will also help greatly with optimizing their code.
you seem to like Daoc for the same reasons I left.
In the beginning there wasn't alot of uber items, this was good because as you said Daoc is a pvp game.
Eventually they started putting in Uber items, this means to compete in pvp, you have to spend alot of time not pvping in huge raid groups. I know there's alot of players who like epic raids, but I'm not one of them. If I've got to spend 4 hours with 100+ people, and then try to get a high random number, so I can get an Uber item, and then do it over and over again so I can compete in RVR, I personally call that incredibly unnecessary, completely boring grind. So I quit. It's too bad as it was a very fun game for me up until that point.
I'm not knocking your style, I'm just trying to say that Uber items does not necessarily equal game depth for all people.
This may be too late to market to be successful without some real (ie costly) work. I still think that the MMORPG market is too crowded at this point. And since True Fantasy is coming out well after FFXI made its US PS2 debut the console market may not be there at all.
Not that FFXI is all that (it is very good though), but this type of game takes two things that are in limited supply, time and money. Time is generally not negotiable in this universe, but money... Given that XBox live requires a fee already, if MS is serious, they'll either waive a monthly fee altogether, or maybe waive it for the first year. Getting the first month free is standard for these games, so MS is going to have to go one better to get any attention. Another tactic would be a lower than usual retail price.
To the making of books there is no end, so let's get started
"Fantasy already has more environments, enemies, vehicles, items, skills, classes, monsters, pets, and foods than any console RPG to date..." ...and thanks to being locked into Xbox Live, will always be doomed to have far fewer players, crippled means of interaction and player expression and a less varied community than any other MMO. (I wonder if they'll have territory-divided servers again like PSO?)
Consider for a moment why no third party publisher has launched or plans to launch an MMO game on the Xbox. Their model doesn't work.
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