MMOFPS Games are all the Same!

I remember back when Sudden Attack, from GameHi, and Combat Arms, from Nexon, first launched in the U.S. I thought there would be some sort of new dawn in the field of free to play MMOFPS games. I figured in a few years time, no one would be buying console shooters like Modern Warefare 2 and would instead play free to play MMO shooters. Boy was I wrong. Both Sudden Attack and Combat Arms were GOOD games, but newer free to play MMO shooters like K.O.S. Secret Operations, WolfTeam, Soldier Front, Operation 7 and Cross Fire are ALL the exact same! Well, not the exact same, but they’re all tactical shooters where your opponents die in 2-3 hits. Graphically, each of these games are a bit different, but in terms of core gameplay, they’re nearly identical.

In terms of playable game modes, each and every one of these MMO shooters have a Counter-Strike style “planet the bomb – defuse the bomb” game mode, a team deathmatch and a free for all mode. Once Combat Arms launched its own Zombie mode – every new tactical MMO copied it! Practically every single one of these shooters have their own “zombie” modes now. Even the brand new Mission Against Terror MMO shooter from Suba Games, which launched into open beta on September, 2010 – has a zombie mode. Oh, and it has the exact same game modes that every other MMO shooter has!

There is hope though. MicroVolts from RockHippo productions is a third person MMO shooter which is launching into open beta in October. It looks and plays a lot like Valve’s Team Fortress 2. S4 League is another third person shooter. It’s by Alaplaya and has fast paced gameplay and awesome MMO music. Battlefield Heroes is third person too – and is the first free to play MMO shooter from DICE. It plays much like other Battlefield games, except with a distinct cartoony look. The game’s RPG elements give it a nice touch and helps the game stand out. Alien Swarm from Valve and Robo Smasher from KRU Interactive are original too – so props to those games for actually making something unique.

I’ve actually played every single tactical MMO shooter out there and it’s shameful how similar they are to each other. Seriously. If you’ve played Cross Fire, you might as well have played every other “tactical” MMO shooter as they all run on the same exact engine. It seems like all MMOFPS games are the same. I think there’s only one original tactical MMO shooter – and that’s Alliance of Valiant Arms from ijji. It actually looks and plays different than all the other copy cat games. It actually plays a bit like Call of Duty 4, but that’s just my opinion. It’s also one of the best MMO shooters because of its originality.

What do you guys think about all of these MMO shooters copying each other? At least we can look forward to Genesis A.D From ijji in the coming months.

MMORPGs and MMOs With Great Graphics

I’ve noticed that free to play MMORPGs over the years have vastly improved their graphics. 8 Years ago the best looking free to play MMORPG was RuneScape from Jagex, but thing have advanced forward quite fast. Nowdays, there are countless MMOs and MMORPGs that look great. The list below looks at the top 5 best looking free to play games in terms of graphics.

#1 Need for Speed World

This one came out in July, 2010 and has easily the best graphics I’ve seen in any free to play game. It’s a 3D racing MMO published by Electronic Arts. It plays a lot like RayCity and Drift City expect with much more awesome graphics. The game has an enormous persistent world where players can drive around and smash into other cars and objects. Players will need a fairly high end graphics card to run Need for Speed World with maximum settings. Graphics aside, Need for Speed World is one of the best racing MMOs ever.

#2 Alliance of Valiant Arms

Alliance of Valiant Arms is a gorgeous MMOFPS game by ijji. It’s actually a “tactical MMOFPS” so it’s not much different than other shooters in terms of core gameplay, but graphically, the game is absolutely stunning. There’s nothing like it. It actually looks as good as Modern Warfare 2, which is a pay to play game!

#3 Martial Empires

This one is also a relatively new MMORPG that launched into open beta in July 2010. The game is by Gamigo and set in a fantasy environment. Gameplay is fast paced, there are plenty of quests, but the game’s strongest aspect is its top notch graphics. The game was developed by CR-Space and is a sequel to Martial Heroes (another game by the same company). Graphically, the game looks a bit like Tales of Fantasy from IGG, except with much crisper graphics. Graphics aside, Martial Empires is a fun game that’s worth playing!

#4 Sword of the New World

This one is a bit of an oldie, as it was released a few years ago. The game is by GamersFirst and has gorgeous 3D graphics and is set in a Victorian era fantasy world. Players control 3 characters at a time, so it’s a bit like Atlantica Online, minus the turn based gameplay. The game received a major update recently and the name of the game technically changed to Sword2.

#5 Aika Online

Aika Online is a PvP MMORPG from gPotato with up to 1000 vs 1000 epic realm vs realm battles. The graphics aren’t “cartoony” like Allods Online and Runes of Magic, but rather realistic fantasy. The game has a good deal of classes and a large enough game world to keep players busy. The exp rate is a bit too low for my taste though.

Downloading Eve Online.. Again

I’m going to give Eve Online another chance. I just created my 14 day MMO free trial account and I’m downloading the game right now. I’m downloading at a cool 3MB/s so my client should be done in 13 minutes. Eve Online is a gave I’ve always wanted to get into, but for some reason never could. Twice I quit the game before finishing its tutorial. Yeah, the game is that intimidating. I’ve read a lot about it on MMORPG review sites and aside from Ultima Onlineback in 1999 it is by far the most ‘open” and PvP heavy pay to play MMORPG ever. Players can kill each other just about anywhere in the universe. Neat huh? Unfortunately even though Eve Online sounds really cool it has one of the steepest learning curves ever.

One aspect of the game I dislike is that older accounts are ALWAYS more powerful than newer one. The skill progression system is pretty random. Players gain skill all the time, even when they’re logged off with no max skill cap. With the amount of skills in the game, it’s impossible for anyone to master them all, so players tend to specialize. I mean, you could master them all, but it would take like 20+ years. Older accounts have ultimately more learned skills than newer ones – no matter what. Most MMORPGs including free to play ones like Gates of Andaron from GameForge,Neo Steam from Atlus Online and even Magic World Online from EnjoyMMO are built so no player late game is more powerful than others. The whole older accounts have more skills thing is pretty silly in my opinion. Luckily though, there are so many skill trees, it doesn’t make sense for anyone to even TRY learning everything. EVERYONE specializes, so a 1 month old player could have more skill in one type of skill than a player who has been playing for years.

Eve Online has so many interesting aspects that I really want to dive into. The game supposedly has one of the coolest in game economies ever. Even more so than Luminary: Rise of the Goonzufrom ijji, which had a stellar in game economy. Heck, I remember reading a big Eve Online bank scandal in The New York Times. How many other big in game scams get published in such a reputable paper? None. Eve Online also has a massive Corporation vs Corporation PvP system. Players can band together and form Corps which are guilds in game. These Corps can band together to form alliances, and alliances can control various outposts and territory in space. It’s not uncommon for thousands of ships to be in one area at once to battle it out. Yeah, Thousands of players. The only other game with that kind of massive PvP is Aika Online from gPotato, which boasts 1000 vs 1000 PvP.

Anyway folks. I’m almost done with my free trial download. I’ll make sure to let you know if I get passed the free trial this time!

MMORPGs I Keep Going Back To

There are a select few MMORPGs which I seem to always ‘go back’ to. Games that whenever I’m really bored I re-download, install and play. Just yesterday I downloaded Gates of Andaron again. There’s really nothing too special about Gates of Andaron, as like Runes of Magic and Allods Online, it’s a WoW clone. But for some reason I always go back to it. I really can’t explain why, I guess I just like the gameplay. I do have some major complaints with with the publisher though – most notably the lack of policing in game. There are so many spammers in the game constantly filling up the chat channels with advertisements.

Gates of Andaron aside though, there are a bunch of MMOs which for some reason I always go back to. Another one of those games for me is GunZ, by ijji. This one isn’t exactly an MMORPG, as it’s an MMO Shooter, but it’s definitely one of the best in the genre. I love the fast paced gameplay and unique set of weapons in the game. How many other MMOFPS games are there with anime-like gameplay where you can run on wall and deflect bullets with your sword? Not too many. I also like that the game has low system requirements, so I can play it on any of my computers, even my laptop. Though I recommend staying away from all MMO shooters on a laptop, as you NEED a mouse and keyboard to do well in these games.

Another free to play game that I go back to regularly is FreeStyle Street Basketball. This one is probably the most surprising, as I don’t even like sports games, so I find it interesting that I love this sports MMO so much. I guess it’s the simplistic and fun gameplay. I mean, I find other sports MMOs like Fantasy Tennis, Football Superstars and Smash Online to be really boring. I really don’t know though. I do know that the game is well worth checking out and if you haven’t played it, go on GameKiss and download it right now. You won’t regret it.

Are there any free MMORPGs that you guys go back to? If so, leave them in the comments below! =]. Aside from the games I mentioned, I also go back to Diablo 2 every now and then.