[Megathread] Wildstar - Now F2P

[Razael]

Speaking of crafting. Is it correct that crafting will be its own separate class that is separate from battle classes? Or is it going to be similar to FF14 where you can switch between crafting and battle classes?

I enjoy crafting in MMOs but I don't want to have to roll a "crafting alt" in order to enjoy it.

FF14 crafting is extremely well done IMO, and very very addicting. The only thing that comes close to it is EQ2's crafting system (only played with it on release so not sure if it changed)

Nah, its a traditional system as far as i'm aware since at creation screen you can only choose faction, race and battle class, and you can't change your class in the middle of the game like FF14 either. So that system is out of the picture imediately. What i can't confirm is if you're restricted to 1/2/3 professions or you can change at will like GW2 for example.

[Stormkhan]

Wildstar is in many ways trying to be classic WoW with some of the recent `easy-fast-got-used-to-stuff` (e.g; UI stuff, fast travel etc).

It will work, but it won`t be revolutionary. Some elements, such as crafting as mentioned earlier, will be traditional style, very wow-esque.

[RoninaThorstone]

Wildstar is in many ways trying to be classic WoW with some of the recent `easy-fast-got-used-to-stuff` (e.g; UI stuff, fast travel etc).

It will work, but it won`t be revolutionary. Some elements, such as crafting as mentioned earlier, will be traditional style, very wow-esque.

Exactly, it will be like Rift. Small but successful.

[Arlee]

Hmmm... something they didn't address in that Wildstar Wednesday post was if someone from a different server could be part of your guild or circles. I would say part of your guild would be an obvious no. I hope they allow for cross server membership in circles though. I am guessing no on that one as well, but I feel like that would make circles much less useful :/

[RoninaThorstone]

I still can't get over the fact that they are planning on using a traditional server structure.

I feel like anthropologists should go to carbine studios to study what life was like before technology.

[ShimmerSwirl]

I still can't get over the fact that they are planning on using a traditional server structure.

I feel like anthropologists should go to carbine studios to study what life was like before technology.

I agree. They are already going so far with the cross realm dungeons, BGs, chat, friends etc, its hard to see the benefit of having individual realms if you're already doing all of that.

If you look at WoW you can see the evolution of the need for such cross server tools, but since WoW was already ingrained with individual servers they came up with the hybrid system they have now. But Carbine starting with a new game does not need to use those band-aid type techniques that Blizzard does, they can just make the whole game a megaserver right from the start. Hard to understand why they didn't. Its almost like they just looked at current WoW and wanted to do a direct copy of it for whatever reason; the two systems seem almost identical.

[Darksoldierr]

Probably they built up the core of their network design 4 years ago or so, when this cross realm feature wasn't such a clear "must implement" bonus.

Plus with the feedback they got from the first wave of betas, i highly doubt they have the manpower to build their server design from the ground up.

[Deleted]

Probably they built up the core of their network design 4 years ago or so, when this cross realm feature wasn't such a clear "must implement" bonus.

it really isnt a must implement feature.. even from the handful of people who look at this thread there are people who dont like or want cross realm open world play.

[Jinxz]

wtb new beta leaks...

[Kelimbror]

wtb new beta leaks...

Really hard for people to do that while the beta is inactive.

[Deleted]

now if they could only remove the instant respawn.. but i guess the 30 min timer isnt too bad.

[akaTheDude]

^^^^^^ oooo I love this video!! This looks great

[Mister K]

Damn that looks awesome!

I agree, megaserver would have been fantastic instead of what we have in WoW, the multi-realm server structure. While that structure is cool, having your own realm community and all, it's sort of in the past and in todays age, a megaserver is just the better option.

[Kelimbror]

Damn that looks awesome!

I agree, megaserver would have been fantastic instead of what we have in WoW, the multi-realm server structure.

Except that game allows you to group across realms both in the open world and in instanced content on same server types. PvP with PvP, PvE with PvE, etc. They are also stating to do virtual merges where servers are being merged with all of the positives and none of the negatives.

The difference is that WoW has to adapt from a design they created 8 years ago. For that game, it's much too large a change both technology wise and for the playerbase to just smash the entire game into one clump. However, Wildstar had a chance to do it right from the start. In this case, I'm willing to say this is a perfect example of how MMOs are outdated the second they launch due to the way they are developed.

What Wildstar is doing was revolutionary 6 years ago, when they started planning the game, but unfortunately it's now an old hat. THe reason why we likely see less innovation in the genre is because any games trying to be too future oriented likely don't get picked up by publishers because they aren't a safe investment. So instead of getting radically different games made by big companies with money, we mostly get baby steps towards a new direction while smaller, F2P games try out the experiments.

[RoninaThorstone]

Except that game allows you to group across realms both in the open world and in instanced content on same server types. PvP with PvP, PvE with PvE, etc. They are also stating to do virtual merges where servers are being merged with all of the positives and none of the negatives.

The difference is that WoW has to adapt from a design they created 8 years ago. For that game, it's much too large a change both technology wise and for the playerbase to just smash the entire game into one clump. However, Wildstar had a chance to do it right from the start. In this case, I'm willing to say this is a perfect example of how MMOs are outdated the second they launch due to the way they are developed.

What Wildstar is doing was revolutionary 6 years ago, when they started planning the game, but unfortunately it's now an old hat. THe reason why we likely see less innovation in the genre is because any games trying to be too future oriented likely don't get picked up by publishers because they aren't a safe investment. So instead of getting radically different games made by big companies with money, we mostly get baby steps towards a new direction while smaller, F2P games try out the experiments.

This is so true.

Small, instanced F2P games (vindictus, warframe, starconflict, ect) act as incubators for ideas that, if successful, are eventually assimilated by larger, AAA production games.

I lol'd so hard when I got SWTORs survey about their next expansion. A 3rd of the questions included starconflict... Which SWTOR is doing it's best to incorporate into their game.

And vindictus was the vanguard for the wave of action MMOs we've recently seen like TERA, NWO, Dragon prophet, ect.

There are some really interesting mechanics that are being developed right now in the F2P mmo area. It will be interesting to see which become popular, are appropriated, and expanded upon in a AAA mmo in the future.

[Deleted]

The open world PvP video shows some good concepts. I am less impressed by the visuals of the telegraphs though - they look absolutely awful, even in a cartoon world. Just compare the telegraph visuals of Wildstar to those of Neverwinter and Tera in particular and GW2's aoe outlines (they don't really have telegraphs in that game).

I am also not impressed by the over-use of telegraphs in PvP. What is the point? You learn to play against any class in any RPG with casting and animation cues already and DEEPLY learn them to be even moderately successful. These cues are not gone. Unlike PvE, they are also fixed per class. Adding telegraphs for everything in PvP also does not increase the breadth or pace or anything else beyond the limits of existing PvP systems. So, all you've done is added a supplemental cue that can be intentionally exploited to mislead an enemy. Good players will just learn to ignore them or consider them side-effects in chains of attack.

Even in a game like GW2, with its large range of classes and huge range of profession + gear build combos, the use of telegraphs in PvP would be totally redundant and needless visual complexity. What is Wildstar doing with its combat gameplay of such complexity that merits such a system?

Without any further info, maybe it is the opposite.... Are they trying to handhold completely traditional MMO tab-targetted players, like from WoW, into an action combat mindset by overusing telegraphs? If so, is it considered just a part of the help system and can be optionally disabled? It's as if we have gone back in time to 2010 and pre-Vindictus. I thought Wildstar was meant to be 2.5gen possibly even 3rd gen MMORPG?

I don't get it!

[Kelimbror]

Without any further info, maybe it is the opposite.... Are they trying to handhold completely traditional MMO tab-targetted players, like from WoW, into an action combat mindset by overusing telegraphs? If so, is it considered just a part of the help system and can be optionally disabled? It's as if we have gone back in time to 2010 and pre-Vindictus. I thought Wildstar was meant to be 2.5gen possibly even 3rd gen MMORPG?

I don't get it!

It was misleading fluff speech, nothing more. It's a tab target, hotkey MMO with minor innovations and refinement of core systems. The telegraphs allow a greater degree of communication from the game to the player and from players to players. It's not hand holding, it's just communication. It will allow them a great degree of complexity and less than static content, since there will be no excuse that the game didn't tell you what to do.

But in any case, best to not imagine this as anything more than a traditional MMO brought mostly current.

[Deleted]

It was misleading fluff speech, nothing more. It's a tab target, hotkey MMO with minor innovations and refinement of core systems. The telegraphs allow a greater degree of communication from the game to the player and from players to players. It's not hand holding, it's just communication. It will allow them a great degree of complexity and less than static content, since there will be no excuse that the game didn't tell you what to do.

But in any case, best to not imagine this as anything more than a traditional MMO brought mostly current.

There will always be excuses. If anything, relying 100% on telegraphs, say for PvE, would surely limit the types of encounters possible. For a WoW-esque game, i.e. with raiding, that would be detrimental. For example, what about raid-wide debuffs (particularly stacking ones) or encounters where there are no good choices, only the least damaging one. Are they going to shade their telegraphs "pink" or "grey" for such things?

Can you imagine a fight like Algalon the Observer from WoW with a telegraph system, lol? And even if you could, would it be anywhere near as epic when you completed it?

But thanks for the correction of my expectations"

[Kelimbror]

There will always be excuses. If anything, relying 100% on telegraphs, say for PvE, would surely limit the types of encounters possible. For a WoW-esque game, i.e. with raiding, that would be a death sentence. For example, what about raid-wide debuffs (particularly stacking ones) or encounters where there are no good choices, only the least damaging one. Are they going to shade their telegraphs "pink" or "grey" for such things?

Can you imagine a fight like Algalon the Observer from WoW with a telegraph system, lol? And even if you could, would it be anywhere near as epic when you completed it?

But thanks for the correction of my expectations.

What makes you think that there won't be debuffs simply because of telegraphs?(not an attack, an honest question)

There will be no difference in instanced content from a systems standpoint other than all special abilities affecting the play field will be telegraphed. The mobs still do autoattacks, still put dots on you, etc. By all accounts it will be exactly like traditional instanced content, with the exception that they can specialize and complicate the way abilities are used on the field.

As a side note, some of the difference in the experience will come from the potential to use player telegraph attacks in order to use aoe cooperatively and to strategically position things to this benefit. As well, the healers will have a unique experience as only some of their heals will be targeted.

[Kelimbror]

The whole telegraphs thing seems way overblown, as if people think it's a new MMO innovation (it's not, really) and that it's going to be this gigantic shift in how MMOs are played (it's not).

Correct. It's just an advancement and refinement of principles that are already used in many traditional MMOs. They clearly aren't going to market it like that though.