I want to get a role playing game to pass my many lonely hours sat at home on my own....big sigh.

Do I get World of Warcraft or Guildwars? I know WoW has a monthly subscription fee but im not bothered if its a better game...Haven't a clue what I'm doing or asking - just found out my two mates play on line and it sounds like fun... any advice?

Similarly - does anyone know if you can play sims 2 on line in a similar fashion?

Thanks in advance...

Sims 2 cannot be played online. Not tried WOW, but will be getting Guild Wars soon for a bit of a laugh to break the spell of City of Heroes (superhero online rpg).

not into rpg but i play alot of first person shooter games online.
wow is very popular, and guildwars also sounds like a good game, unfortunatly alot of rpg's do charge a monthly rate to play online, that because you play on their servers, where as first person shooters, you can play on public servers, that anybody can rent and then let others play on for free.

i'd go with the game that interests you the most, have a look at their websites, read about the gameplay and styles

That's sound advice. The reason I opted for City of Heroes is 'cos I'm a hige fan of comic books, and used to run a Heroes Unlimited RPG group (pencils, paper, silly dice), so knew that it was for me...6 months later and I am still addicted, playing at least 3 times per week.

having played the following...

The Sims Online
EvE Online
Planetside
City of Heros
City of Villans
World Of Warcraft
Guild Wars

ALL of which require a monthly payment, except guild Wars... now heres a break down and short review of each...

The Sims Online:
Pretty much what you expect, Its The sims/sims2 but online, however you can open up your 'house' as a business, run a club or bar etc, and other people can come and visit you, and party in your club.. or you can just get a job in other peoples places (instead of how jobs work in the sims games) - all in all I rate it 7/10 - the reason being it is more of the same, with a few twists.. Has a good community and friendly people..

EvE Online:
I LOVE This Game, I just cant really afford it at the moment (the monthly) They are always updating it (CCP) and they bring out an expansion full of new stuff and fixes atleast twice per year..
This game is based in space, you have to mine minerals, and refine it to get money, you use money to buy your ships and ship upgrades, you have to research (which takes time) -- you can go on many paths, Go alone as a bounty hunter, or a Free lance anything, go as a pirate (not for new players) or you can join a corperation and do whatever your role is in ther corperation, weather it mining, construction, officer/guard, research, whatever... I suggest reading the website for more info as this game has way WAY too much to explain it in great detail here... Rating... 9/10 -- GREAT Community... Love it..WEBSITE - www.eve-online.com (http://www.eve-online.com)

Planetside:
I found this game pretty boring, as it takes time to get anywhere decent, you have to choose which path, then gain rank before you can use ships and things, and its very complicated to get starting, - the tutorial needs work (atleast it did when i played) - diddnt play for long (couple of weeks) but couldnt get into it, its quite old now too.. Rating.. Not sure what the community is like...5/10

City of Heros:
This game has HUGE potential, make your character, it has GREAT character creation, 100's of options and ways you can customise the look of your character, - you can even change the look later in the game.. You can go with different abilities(powers) weather it natural, technology, sound and many others, the controls take some getting used to, and the UI layout could use a little work.. the Tutorial is quite good, tho doesnt cover everything, so you have to ask around for help some times... overall rating.. 7/10 -- the community is a little drab, theres lots of people, but it still takes a while to get help when needed.. Once in a super group though Its a little easier..

City Of Villans:
Its basically City of heros - with different graphics, and different names for things, Its pretty much the same repeated, with villan groups instead of super groups, its all just an expansion to CoH and not much better, it does however bring the addition of an Evil HQ and PvP capabilities... Rating as a single Game - 7/10 -- as an addition to coH - 5/10 (as its not much different) -- the community is the same as CoH -- same people.. no additional subscription required if you own/play CoH

World Of Warcraft:
From the makers of Diablo, Star Craft, and the WarCraft Series... Blizzard and Battle.net do it again, this time in large scale, full 3d run around graphics, and with a monthly fee... World of Warcraft is a nice looking game, it has LOTS you can do, the world is HUGE and theres alot to choose from as far as characters to play... the UI can get REALLY cluttered though, and its very hard and long winded to start off, especially on your own if you dont know anyone who plays the game already.... I know people who play, and it was hard enough even then.. most of the time people just want to do thier thing, so if you ask for help on a quest, they will say they cant help you, or they will help later... and dont... Its good if you can get a group of friends together (5 or more) and start off at the same time, on a new server... some of the quests are very long winded, and just mob killing quests (like.. kill 10 Rabid Bore) you get alot of thoes... Some of the quests are quite hard, and some are so frustrating cause you cannot find your goal easily... I got bored VERY fast with WoW, but my subscription doesnt end till Jan 5th so ill give it another week or so to capture me :) - overall rating (up to now) - 7/10 -- the comminty... well, I dont like the community very much , for reasons stated above, theyer pretty much all for themselves, even in a guild...

Guild Wars:
I Love this game... Good looking, easy to get into, good story line, PvP, guild vs guild, great tutorial area, covers everything you need it to, decent character creation process, and lots of choices as-far as professions go... There are Story Line missions, and side-missions to unlock extra skills and weapons, or just to get from place to place... Its a big world with lots to do.. and with the upcoming expansion pack in the new year, adding a new class, new skills, and more missions, Oh, and chapter 2 of the story... all for NO monthly subscription.. Oh, and if theres a problem in the game, like a bug or something, its fixed within a few hours, with constant, live content updating, (also a better method than wow too tbh) -- Rating - 9/10 -- The community is great, friendly, and tight necked, very close... theres always people wanting to help, and wanting to team up... Ill admit tho, I played (and completed) this before i tried WoW, so I was spoiled when i went to WoW - so if you go WoW first, you may find it ok..

Over all, i'd reccomend Guild Wars and/or EvE Online (If space is your thing)


Hope this helps...


Please note: These reviews and reccomendations are MY OWN opinions and may not match that of other people.. this is not intended to offend or create an argument of any type..

Wow! Thats so helpful! My sister is a very serious gamer and she recommended guild wars... but two of my best mates admitted they secretly play world of warcraft yesterday and told me all about it and now I want to play too...

Sims on line appeals too - how do you go about that? I'll have a look on the website...

What sort of fees am i looking at?

Thanks so much for your help...:)

ok - i've had a look at sims on line - do i just join up with the normal sims 2 game or do I have to buy a special one?

I dont have a credit or a debit card - will I still be able to play?

Ghozer - do you still go on Heores or Villains? If so, what server? I'll look out for you.

I am usually logged onto Union as Arach-Knight, Betel or Beaker (Heroes) and Dark beaker (Villains). My SG (Vector 5 / Infector V) are always after new recruits, and we always look out for our friends.

seee - thats what my friends were saying yesterday! It all sounds very exciting!

Terraworld is good and it's free
http://www.terragaming.net/

I've heard about this one called project entropia.
It has a real world economy and you can convert your real money into game currency and back again. The game itself is free.
There's some guy who bought a virtual space station for £100,000 and has already made a profit subletting the rooms?!

You could do a lot worse that www.lasersquadnemesis.com - It's not a huge ongoing thing, just a series of short(ish) skirmishes. Maybe you'd fancy that?

Shaun

Originally posted by absynthfairy
ok - i've had a look at sims on line - do i just join up with the normal sims 2 game or do I have to buy a special one?

I dont have a credit or a debit card - will I still be able to play?

You have to purchase The Sims Online.. and the monthly is about £12 per month I think...

WoW is about £9 per month via Switch or Credit Card - or £10 per month with Game Cards, (Bought in 2 monthly intervals @ £20)

EvE Online is about £10 per month,

City of Heros/Villans is about £12 per month (15 euros)

Originally posted by Beakerzoid
Ghozer - do you still go on Heores or Villains? If so, what server? I'll look out for you.

I am usually logged onto Union as Arach-Knight, Betel or Beaker (Heroes) and Dark beaker (Villains). My SG (Vector 5 / Infector V) are always after new recruits, and we always look out for our friends.

Yes, I do some times, though with all the other Games I play, and with running a Multi Gaming Online Clan/Guild that plays 7 different games... (Its 6 years old on xmas day)...

But yeah, next time i log on, ill make a note of my characters name and PM it to you.. cant remember the names ;)

my all time favourite is baldurs gate. truely throws you in at the deep end in a mesmorising world of dark sinister plots whic all interweave ... "but HOW!" its totaly enthrawling. also if you know DnD rules it makes it so much more interesting.
its a bit old now but that just meansit will be cheap as chips, literally! :clap:

either that or id go for neverwinter nights.

Heya guys,

I got bought CoV and CoH for Xmas and I've been waiting until back at uni to play them (where i have broadband).

ANyoen got any advice for someone who has played lots of computer rpgs and lots of pen and paper stuff but never a MMORPG?

If anyone is willing to help out a new villain (it's fun to be evil) in advice on what a goos characterd combination and then when I've created him please lemme know!

Wilf

Sims Online looks fabulous, but a word of warning though.

DONT touch The Matrix Online with a bargepole

I bought this sorry piece of crap a few months ago and I cancelled my subscription within a week, its so bad.

However many people tell you its good, its not- its so repetitive its mental- its dire :(

Anyone wishing to buy my original by the way- its going for cheap :)

Originally posted by BrainThrust
Heya guys,

I got bought CoV and CoH for Xmas and I've been waiting until back at uni to play them (where i have broadband).

ANyoen got any advice for someone who has played lots of computer rpgs and lots of pen and paper stuff but never a MMORPG?

If anyone is willing to help out a new villain (it's fun to be evil) in advice on what a goos characterd combination and then when I've created him please lemme know!

Wilf

Best advice..have fun.

VILLANS
First character - don't choose Stalker for your first, they are a pain to play, and impossible to solo missions with. I would suggest Mastermind as you get soldiers to fight for you, so allows you to learn the game with less risk.

If you go on the Union servers (there are 2 UK servers, union and Defiant), keep a look out for Arak of Night or Dark Beaker, and I will gladly help you along if I am on.

HEROES
I love my scrapper, which was the first character I created - but he isn't the easiest to play as. I personally find Tankers the easiest to play as as they can sure take a beating, but I got bored with my tanker after a bit. Controllers can be very powerful, but not at low levels. Blasters are cool to start with, but their limited defenses means that things can get ropey pretty quickly in large scale fights.

On heroes, keep a look out for Shadarach, Arach-Knight, Beaker, Betel or Bodger and, again, I will team up with ya to do some missions.

I was gonna go for a corrupter or a brute tbh. I'm always going to have fun and i'm not a twinky player but was just curious to know if there are any serious pitfalls i should be wary of.

Thanks!

Wilf

get yourself a PS2... then buy

Final Fantasy 4,5,6,7,8,9,10 :) that'll keep you going a long while

Chrono Trigger is also good...

for PC, gotta love Diablo 2, Vampire Bloodlines, Spellforce...

I'm not a fan of MMORPG's

Originally posted by Ghozer

EvE Online:
I LOVE This Game, I just cant really afford it at the moment (the monthly) They are always updating it (CCP) and they bring out an expansion full of new stuff and fixes atleast twice per year..
This game is based in space, you have to mine minerals, and refine it to get money, you use money to buy your ships and ship upgrades, you have to research (which takes time) -- you can go on many paths, Go alone as a bounty hunter, or a Free lance anything, go as a pirate (not for new players) or you can join a corperation and do whatever your role is in ther corperation, weather it mining, construction, officer/guard, research, whatever... I suggest reading the website for more info as this game has way WAY too much to explain it in great detail here... Rating... 9/10 -- GREAT Community... Love it.

[/B]

Was addicted to this game for 1 1/2 years. Amazing game, but very hard to stop playing. In the end I had to sell my character on ebay to make me lose the will to play it.
Dont think ill ever start a mmorpg again unless im retitred or something.
I used to run a corp and the website is still online RUKS (http://www.rukm.co.uk)
Doubt the corp has anyone left in it now though :(