Vanguard - An MMO for those that like a challenge.
Vanguard, to me at least, is the real successor of Everquest. Since one of the original creators of EQ, Brad McQuaid, is at the helm of this game, that's really not surprising. Also of no surprise is that this is actually a good thing. Before I go into much, let me start off by saying that if you are a true fan of World of Warcraft, Vanguard is most likely not for you. If, on the other hand, WoW simply bores you to tears, pay attention.
The game has been live for a little over 2 weeks now and I'm currently level 13. I also have the advantage of having been in the last 3 weeks of beta as well. I can already hear the cries from the masses. "Two weeks and you're only at 13?!” That's far too slow a pace for any game. Not true, I say. I'm taking my time and also not devoting every waking moment to it. While the game is interesting enough to do so, over the years many of us have learned to balance life and gaming. Not only have we learned to balance play time, but the game wouldn't be enjoyable to just rush through.
Why, you may ask? I think part of it has to do with its Art Director before he passed away. Some of you may recognize the name of a little fantasy artist named Keith Parkinson. Before he left this world, Keith graced us with some of the most amazing pieces of fantasy art to ever reach the canvas. Along with Larry Elmore, Clyde Cauldwell, and Jeff Easley, Keith revolutionized the fantasy art world during the majority of the 80's and early 90's. My favorite piece (my copy of which was signed years ago) is "Soth's Charge". The image of an undead knight and his group of skeletal warriors charging across a plain is simply astounding. He also did all the cover art for the Everquest expansions throughout the years. Keith's vision is clearly seen throughout the art direction of the game. Everything flows together beautifully and creates an epic world.
As most will state, there are still a lot of problems with the game and bugs that get annoying at times to say the least. This isn't some game that your neighbor created while sitting in a dimly lit basement, hunched over a keyboard on a Commodore 64 either though. The game has more complex systems than any other MMO on the market today. With that of course, there are prices to pay as it gets bombarded by the masses. It's very clear though that the developers are working hard to get the biggest issues resolved as fast as possible. With frequent patching and nightly server restarts, they are getting there. The frame rate issues alone have been drastically improved within the last 2 weeks. If you really want to know everything that's "wrong" with the game right now, go hunt the web. There are plenty of sources to scour through so have fun. I'm here to state what I really like about the game though.
First off, even though I'm "only" level 13, I'd match-up my dark elf necromancer from Vanguard against any other level 25-30 level necromancer from a different game any day of the week. With actual spell damage numbers (from level differences), I'm sure I'd get wiped, but in the ability to control the battle and run circles around them with "master of disease and death" skills from the game? I'd smoke them. This is coming from a person that LOVED playing his EQ1 necromancer for years. Trust me, my old necro is nowhere near as cool as this one.
This brings up an important fact within the game. Don't get too wrapped up on what level you are. After the first few levels in the game, you really do begin to feel like a hero (or villain). At level 10, I felt like an evil god. They really did a good job with giving you the feeling that your character really is larger than life. That's important in any game to me, but especially so in an MMO (Massively Multiplayer Online).
The other big item of appeal for me is the exploration within the game. Within Vanguard, you can, quite literally, see for miles. That simple little fact doesn't really seem like such a big deal, but it's huge. How many times have you been wandering along in a game and seen something a little off in the distance and said, "Damn... wish I could actually go there to check it out, but I can't." And the reason you couldn't in those other games? They were simply little pieces of pixilated artwork used to spice up the environment. Now let me tell you something very important about Vanguard. Not only can you see for MUCH farther distances than you can in any other game to date, you can also get there. You heard me right - if you can see it, there IS a way to get there and actually explore it!
I have a number of quests within my log that I still haven’t gotten to just because I am continually getting side tracked exploring things that looked interesting while I was on my way to a quest location. There is so much to explore, it's amazing. There was a particular path that I'd traversed a number of times, but until I did it at night (yes, the game has night and day), I never realized I had only made the trip during daylight. Well when I finally did it at night, I noticed off in the distance, tucked within a group of hills, hazy smoke rising from a campfire. It took some doing, but I got to go explore it and the feeling was awesome! I LOVE that about this game!
Believe it or not, another thing I actually like about this game is the thrill of having to keep your head in combat, or you're really going to pay the price. If you can't get to your corpse after you die and end up using the altar to summon it, you will suffer a large experience penalty. Even getting your corpse after a death still incurs a bit of an xp penalty, but no where near as much as using an altar. This actually creates a real sense of thrill and adventure. It also creates a very real thrill of victory when you (or you and your party) get through a particularly challenging ordeal by the skin of your teeth. It's been a very long time since I've really had to pay that much attention to what's going on around me - to have to hunt for a safe spot to rest while you go rush to take a restroom break or get something to drink. Even though you think you've found a safe spot, there's still a chance that some baddie is going to come wandering by to catch you unawares. It's a great feeling and one of the things I'm really enjoying about the game. While the penalties can be harsh, the sweet taste of victory is that much richer for it.
I've rambled on enough for now. Thanks for suffering through, hehe.
As a quick note, things in life are going well. Love my new job, Heather's doing great, and as far as I know, my family is currently in good health.
If anyone wants to play, I'm on the Floryndel server. Just send a message to Malyss. Safe travels and happy hunting!
The game has been live for a little over 2 weeks now and I'm currently level 13. I also have the advantage of having been in the last 3 weeks of beta as well. I can already hear the cries from the masses. "Two weeks and you're only at 13?!” That's far too slow a pace for any game. Not true, I say. I'm taking my time and also not devoting every waking moment to it. While the game is interesting enough to do so, over the years many of us have learned to balance life and gaming. Not only have we learned to balance play time, but the game wouldn't be enjoyable to just rush through.
Why, you may ask? I think part of it has to do with its Art Director before he passed away. Some of you may recognize the name of a little fantasy artist named Keith Parkinson. Before he left this world, Keith graced us with some of the most amazing pieces of fantasy art to ever reach the canvas. Along with Larry Elmore, Clyde Cauldwell, and Jeff Easley, Keith revolutionized the fantasy art world during the majority of the 80's and early 90's. My favorite piece (my copy of which was signed years ago) is "Soth's Charge". The image of an undead knight and his group of skeletal warriors charging across a plain is simply astounding. He also did all the cover art for the Everquest expansions throughout the years. Keith's vision is clearly seen throughout the art direction of the game. Everything flows together beautifully and creates an epic world.
As most will state, there are still a lot of problems with the game and bugs that get annoying at times to say the least. This isn't some game that your neighbor created while sitting in a dimly lit basement, hunched over a keyboard on a Commodore 64 either though. The game has more complex systems than any other MMO on the market today. With that of course, there are prices to pay as it gets bombarded by the masses. It's very clear though that the developers are working hard to get the biggest issues resolved as fast as possible. With frequent patching and nightly server restarts, they are getting there. The frame rate issues alone have been drastically improved within the last 2 weeks. If you really want to know everything that's "wrong" with the game right now, go hunt the web. There are plenty of sources to scour through so have fun. I'm here to state what I really like about the game though.
First off, even though I'm "only" level 13, I'd match-up my dark elf necromancer from Vanguard against any other level 25-30 level necromancer from a different game any day of the week. With actual spell damage numbers (from level differences), I'm sure I'd get wiped, but in the ability to control the battle and run circles around them with "master of disease and death" skills from the game? I'd smoke them. This is coming from a person that LOVED playing his EQ1 necromancer for years. Trust me, my old necro is nowhere near as cool as this one.
This brings up an important fact within the game. Don't get too wrapped up on what level you are. After the first few levels in the game, you really do begin to feel like a hero (or villain). At level 10, I felt like an evil god. They really did a good job with giving you the feeling that your character really is larger than life. That's important in any game to me, but especially so in an MMO (Massively Multiplayer Online).
The other big item of appeal for me is the exploration within the game. Within Vanguard, you can, quite literally, see for miles. That simple little fact doesn't really seem like such a big deal, but it's huge. How many times have you been wandering along in a game and seen something a little off in the distance and said, "Damn... wish I could actually go there to check it out, but I can't." And the reason you couldn't in those other games? They were simply little pieces of pixilated artwork used to spice up the environment. Now let me tell you something very important about Vanguard. Not only can you see for MUCH farther distances than you can in any other game to date, you can also get there. You heard me right - if you can see it, there IS a way to get there and actually explore it!
I have a number of quests within my log that I still haven’t gotten to just because I am continually getting side tracked exploring things that looked interesting while I was on my way to a quest location. There is so much to explore, it's amazing. There was a particular path that I'd traversed a number of times, but until I did it at night (yes, the game has night and day), I never realized I had only made the trip during daylight. Well when I finally did it at night, I noticed off in the distance, tucked within a group of hills, hazy smoke rising from a campfire. It took some doing, but I got to go explore it and the feeling was awesome! I LOVE that about this game!
Believe it or not, another thing I actually like about this game is the thrill of having to keep your head in combat, or you're really going to pay the price. If you can't get to your corpse after you die and end up using the altar to summon it, you will suffer a large experience penalty. Even getting your corpse after a death still incurs a bit of an xp penalty, but no where near as much as using an altar. This actually creates a real sense of thrill and adventure. It also creates a very real thrill of victory when you (or you and your party) get through a particularly challenging ordeal by the skin of your teeth. It's been a very long time since I've really had to pay that much attention to what's going on around me - to have to hunt for a safe spot to rest while you go rush to take a restroom break or get something to drink. Even though you think you've found a safe spot, there's still a chance that some baddie is going to come wandering by to catch you unawares. It's a great feeling and one of the things I'm really enjoying about the game. While the penalties can be harsh, the sweet taste of victory is that much richer for it.
I've rambled on enough for now. Thanks for suffering through, hehe.
As a quick note, things in life are going well. Love my new job, Heather's doing great, and as far as I know, my family is currently in good health.
If anyone wants to play, I'm on the Floryndel server. Just send a message to Malyss. Safe travels and happy hunting!
posted by Sandcatt at 8:37 PM
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