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I look for certain things in MMOs. Oddly enough, playing with others is not that high on my list. This is because, due to the hours I keep (what with working third shift), even people who I know who play the same MMOs are rarely on when I am.
What I do look for are things like the story, and character customization.
Over in Lord of the Rings Online... well, customization is interesting. You can, within certain limits, be a fat dwarf (or more expected, a fat hobbit), or okay, you really can't be an elf with a beer-belly... and due to their wardrobe system, you can dress however the hell you want to, and not have it affect your combat stats. And despite the fact that anyone playing it should know how the story ends, it's a fun game. And it's free (well, free-ish. It's subscriber or micro-payments, but it's pretty damned easy to play a fair chunk of the game without paying a dime.)
Likewise, I keep returning to City of Heroes because the story entertains me. I'm playing a hero, with an array of super-powers. I'm beating up the bad guys (which include Nazi-ripoffs. And anyone who says punching Nazis isn't fun is dead inside. They also probably didn't cry when Littlefoot's mom died. You may want to check if they're a robot.) I'm able to do what my class (in this case archetype) is supposed to be able to do quite well. And the character customization in City of Heroes is immense. This is largely due to the fact that none of the costume pieces are actually gear. It's a costume. I can make my character look the way I want him to look without having to worry about whether this belt or that cape, or the other piece of chest armor has better stats.
This is also why I stopped playing World of Warcraft. In WoW, if you're a particular class, there are maybe two or three "optimal" builds. There are clearly superior sets of gear. If you're not using one of the optimal builds, or don't have the best gear, you can't perform your job as well. It's still possible to do so... it's just harder, and you're going to get outperformed by people who were lucky enough to win a roll, or who have friends or guildies on who can walk them through the tough parts.
Plus, WoW doesn't have anywhere near the customization. Are you playing a male human character? Congratulations, you all have the exact same body type (large and muscular... even the mages), and there's only a dozen or so faces, hairstyles, etc. Same with every race, really. It gets boring seeing a metric shitload of characters who look almost exactly the same because they have the same gear and the same limited options.
It's sort of the same with Star Wars: the Old Republic. Yes, there different body types, and a lot more variety in facial features, scars, tattoos, etc. And with gear that can be upgraded, you can, within limits, pick a look and keep it. (My smuggler rocked the same longcoat from level 20 to level 50.)
But I stopped playing SWtOR because, as in WoW, there are only a couple "optimal" builds for each class, and the story didn't engage me once I got to the end game. Don't get me wrong... they did an awesome job on the story as you level, to the point where I wish there had been an option to keep a major enemy alive, so I could seal him in carbonite. (Vengeance is best served with those who try me left as knick-knacks in my parlour. But I digress.)
But end-game? Go do this raid. And this other raid. And this other other raid. Repeat until you have the super-elite gear and whatever else. Or there's PvP, which since I'm not playing a Jedi/Sith, I seem to get my ass kicked on a regular basis. And it didn't help that several of the people who talked me into getting SWtOR got burned out even before I did.
So, of course, I have a little reluctance when some of these same people are talking up another MMO, called "The Secret World". Sure, it looks interesting. Lovecraftian monsters, conspiracy theories, the Hollow Earth. No classes, no levels, you can change your build out of combat as you need to. Plus, one of the three factions is heavily Asian themed, implying all kinds of martial arts ass-beating. Frankly, if you can make a character that looks like a little old man, it would get me more off of the fence.
I just have to wonder if my friends (who have more disposable income than I do) are going to buy the game, play it for a couple of months, and then move on.
What I do look for are things like the story, and character customization.
Over in Lord of the Rings Online... well, customization is interesting. You can, within certain limits, be a fat dwarf (or more expected, a fat hobbit), or okay, you really can't be an elf with a beer-belly... and due to their wardrobe system, you can dress however the hell you want to, and not have it affect your combat stats. And despite the fact that anyone playing it should know how the story ends, it's a fun game. And it's free (well, free-ish. It's subscriber or micro-payments, but it's pretty damned easy to play a fair chunk of the game without paying a dime.)
Likewise, I keep returning to City of Heroes because the story entertains me. I'm playing a hero, with an array of super-powers. I'm beating up the bad guys (which include Nazi-ripoffs. And anyone who says punching Nazis isn't fun is dead inside. They also probably didn't cry when Littlefoot's mom died. You may want to check if they're a robot.) I'm able to do what my class (in this case archetype) is supposed to be able to do quite well. And the character customization in City of Heroes is immense. This is largely due to the fact that none of the costume pieces are actually gear. It's a costume. I can make my character look the way I want him to look without having to worry about whether this belt or that cape, or the other piece of chest armor has better stats.
This is also why I stopped playing World of Warcraft. In WoW, if you're a particular class, there are maybe two or three "optimal" builds. There are clearly superior sets of gear. If you're not using one of the optimal builds, or don't have the best gear, you can't perform your job as well. It's still possible to do so... it's just harder, and you're going to get outperformed by people who were lucky enough to win a roll, or who have friends or guildies on who can walk them through the tough parts.
Plus, WoW doesn't have anywhere near the customization. Are you playing a male human character? Congratulations, you all have the exact same body type (large and muscular... even the mages), and there's only a dozen or so faces, hairstyles, etc. Same with every race, really. It gets boring seeing a metric shitload of characters who look almost exactly the same because they have the same gear and the same limited options.
It's sort of the same with Star Wars: the Old Republic. Yes, there different body types, and a lot more variety in facial features, scars, tattoos, etc. And with gear that can be upgraded, you can, within limits, pick a look and keep it. (My smuggler rocked the same longcoat from level 20 to level 50.)
But I stopped playing SWtOR because, as in WoW, there are only a couple "optimal" builds for each class, and the story didn't engage me once I got to the end game. Don't get me wrong... they did an awesome job on the story as you level, to the point where I wish there had been an option to keep a major enemy alive, so I could seal him in carbonite. (Vengeance is best served with those who try me left as knick-knacks in my parlour. But I digress.)
But end-game? Go do this raid. And this other raid. And this other other raid. Repeat until you have the super-elite gear and whatever else. Or there's PvP, which since I'm not playing a Jedi/Sith, I seem to get my ass kicked on a regular basis. And it didn't help that several of the people who talked me into getting SWtOR got burned out even before I did.
So, of course, I have a little reluctance when some of these same people are talking up another MMO, called "The Secret World". Sure, it looks interesting. Lovecraftian monsters, conspiracy theories, the Hollow Earth. No classes, no levels, you can change your build out of combat as you need to. Plus, one of the three factions is heavily Asian themed, implying all kinds of martial arts ass-beating. Frankly, if you can make a character that looks like a little old man, it would get me more off of the fence.
I just have to wonder if my friends (who have more disposable income than I do) are going to buy the game, play it for a couple of months, and then move on.