Looping the Hen

Yes, it surprised me too!

I played in the 2nd Dungeons and Dragons Online Stress Test two weeks ago, and got into the Beta finally as a result of it early last week. I downloaded the 1.6gb client and started playing it Tuesday or so after work. So having 4 straight days off to play a game this past weekend, one would have expected many late nights of kobolds and magic missiles. Instead, I played 4 hard days and nights (being sick helped this along) of...Morrowind.

Not to diminish Morrowind in the least as a game that should have been 2nd fiddle. It is a testament to a 3 or 4 year old game, although it is an odd testament. I've 'played' Morrowind about a half-dozen times now, stopping and starting as the mood struck me. Each time I get back into it, I have to remember where I am at, what quests I am working on, who I like and who I don't in the game and how to use the rather clunky control setup.

Still, I've come to realize that Morrowind may be the best (even better than Baldur's Gate 2 or Fallout 2 I am starting to think) computer role-playing game of all time. It has everything my tabletop D&D games try to (and yes, sometimes fail to) have. Huge world? Check. Tons of quests and possible quests? Check. (holy mackeral check) Interesting character building? Check. (this is something I've always prided myself on...letting the characters in my worlds build fun, balanced, and interesting characters that fall way outside the boundaries of the regular classes) Spells? Not a huge variety of different effects, but more than most will need. And the good part is Morrowind lets you mix and match all of them any way you pleased. Want a spell that creates light and heals you as it shoots a lightning-damage fireball? You can do that. Check. A gazillion magic items. Yep. Alchemy? Yep. (Potion-making is pretty addictive once you get the hang of it!)

Check. Check. Check. It has almost everything, and almost all of it well-done.

What I find disappointing is the one or two things DDO does well, Character building (as far as it goes) and Dungeons, just don't seem like they will be enough to hold my attention for long. And I've been dying to like it! Some may say that is because it is still in beta. To be honest though, the game is basically done, and ships at the end of February. With the world and quests they created, I *might* shell out $50 if it were a standalone (or networked/internet multiplayer) game. But as a MMOG, it will come with a $15-$20 monthly fee attached to it. So for a year, that would be $230 or so. Worth it? Not right now.

There are only a few things wrong with the game for what it is (though what is wrong, to me, is very wrong). It is beautiful. Character creation works almost identically to 3.5 edition D&D (although there aren't as many feats). You can do a half-dozen quick quests in a couple hours if you're just time-killing. (A godsend for people without a lot of time, or kids) It is easy to find groups to play with. Still, those don't make up for what it is lacking.

The overarching problem, as I see it, is they did not need to create a MMORPG to play with the content they've provided. They are going to charge a fee for a game where a Battlenet type shell a la Diablo/Diablo II (or a Battlefield type 32 or 64 man player-owned server setup) would have been sufficient. There is no crafting in the game, and no in-game market. There is no PVP (nor will there be it sounds like). 99% of all dungeons and encounters are instanced, meaning every group of adventurers gets its own little 'world inside a world' to play in. So I don't understand why I want to pay $15 to play online, when I really will only be playing with 10-20 (30 or 50 even) other players. To be honest, my perfect game would be G-Max, his brother, Gibb (and Roach if we could get him to play), myself and a few of my local gaming buddies. And most PnP (pen and paper) players probably feel the same way.

To be honest, I was a little shocked at what I found when I first started playing. Basically (no joke), the game consists of Create Character, gather quests, enter and conquer dungeons, sell loot (the loot system is pretty good), gain level so I can go to a different part of the city, gather quests, enter and conquer...etc. Part of why I still play Eve (not that I play it really, I'd call it monitoring) is that I can fight if I want, trade if I want, craft if I want, or fly around and see some of the best scenery in a MMOG in a massive universe.

Wizards and Turbine say they are trying to 'stick to D&D'. Well, to me (and I hope to those I've DM'd over the years), D&D was always about limitless possibilities, not the very limited box they are putting the online game into. In all my years, Dungeons have played a part around 5% of the time, and the rest was spent wandering massive cities, politicking across continents, and exploring vast worlds. Dungeons, honestly, were the smallest part of it.

Will I play it? Sure, if I can get those listed above to play it with me. I don't mean to sound quite so harsh on it, I just think it may be a huge flop with PnP D&D players, especially those who have created and adventured in their own worlds.

Anyhow, I'm off and back to Morrowind and my newly crowned Arch-Mage (how is that for possibilities!?!); I'm dedicated to completing the main story arc someday (4 days straight and I'm still at least 20-30 hours away from completing it I think)!