Multiplayer Games

Danielle and I love gaming, and prefer to game together (We each have a high-end gaming PC). The problem is that it seems every game is either one of the following...

1) An MMORPG that requires you to spend hours every day consistently improving your character in order to keep up with all your friends that you join the clan of. eg. Ragnarok Online (admittedly the last MMORPG I bothered to play).

2) They are turn based and, even if using simultaneous turns, require a lot of waiting for another person if they happen to have bucketloads to do. eg. Civilization IV

3) They are scenario based games where you play the same map over and over and over. eg. Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory

So, is there any multiplayer game out there that can at least come close to allowing us to play on-and-off without ending up miles behind our friends (should it be an online game), doesn't have us playing the same small map over and over with the same goals every time and isn't turn based? We enjoy a pretty large variety of gaming styles, although RPG is probably our preferred option.

Guild wars is a no monthly fee MMO, also casual, no grinding. Dan plays sometimes :p! it's very pretty and lots to do!

You could always try Frontline:Fuels of War, coming out at the end of January. Theres a large map and diff types of obj that you take to move the fighting line further up.

There's a lot of online FPS games with custom maps (I'm assuming the ET server you played on only had the default maps). Nexuiz, Counter-Strike: Source or 1.6, and so on.

Warzone 2100 is a real-time strategy game that's free. I can't speak much for commercial RTS games because I don't play them often. Medieval: Total War and Rome: Total War are supposed to be really good.

But really if you don't want to potentially play the same maps over and over or have a game that requires you dedicate a lot of time to, you've pretty much nixed most online multiplayer games beyond Yahoo games.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Hsu

There's a lot of online FPS games with custom maps (I'm assuming the ET server you played on only had the default maps). Nexuiz, Counter-Strike: Source or 1.6, and so on.

---

I think I'm done with ET for now. The FPS custom maps tend to still end up being the same-old same-old, I've noticed. Once you get through the good ones and you're bored of them, you have to go for sub-par ones. Maybe that's just me, though.

Quote:

---

Warzone 2100 is a real-time strategy game that's free. I can't speak much for commercial RTS games because I don't play them often. Medieval: Total War and Rome: Total War are supposed to be really good.

---

I actually have Warzone 2100 for PC and for the Playstation. xD Not Danielle's style, though, really. She doesn't mind the odd game of Warcraft III though. :)

Quote:

---

But really if you don't want to potentially play the same maps over and over or have a game that requires you dedicate a lot of time to, you've pretty much nixed most online multiplayer games beyond Yahoo games.

---

I'm gettin' that feeling, yeah. :( I think I might give in to Guild Wars just to see how it goes, but I dunno.

We should play Civ 4 sometime seeing as I finally got it. :monster:

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Loony BoB

I'm gettin' that feeling, yeah. :( I think I might give in to Guild Wars just to see how it goes, but I dunno.

---

I was thinking after I posted that (I didn't see Bert's post) that GW is good for casual playing. The level cap is 20, so it doesn't really take power levelling to reach that, and if you're gonna play you can just play like a mission or a quest at a time. The worst part is organizing a party, but if you have a good guild or group of friends to play with that's made a lot less painful.

I just read about the level cap thing, should make life easier for us indeed. =]

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by DK

We should play Civ 4 sometime seeing as I finally got it. :monster:

---

Ooh, that could be fun. :D We should get a massive game with loads of people going someday.

I've been thinking about Guild Wars for about a year because some irl friends wanted to play, but we never got around to it and I never actually bought the game.

If you guys decide to play it, let me know. Would like to join in since I never got around to playing that other game... um... what was it? I downloaded it and everything.

Or hey BoB what about Hell Gate London? I'm thinking about picking that up.

or the game Fury looks good!

Guild Wars is over 2 years old, there's not going to be any more exspansions and the Areana net team is working on Guild Wars 2 now. So It might be a bad idea to check out one of these two games as the seem to both have come out in int eh last month of so. And both don't require a subscription.


Fury is looking VERY good to me.

D&D when 4th edition comes out.

Well, if we're limited to PC games here, then I agree that Guild Wars is a good choice. It's a very casual game, is online, can play with other people, etc.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Bert

Or hey BoB what about Hell Gate London? I'm thinking about picking that up.

or the game Fury looks good!

Guild Wars is over 2 years old, there's not going to be any more exspansions and the Areana net team is working on Guild Wars 2 now. So It might be a bad idea to check out one of these two games as the seem to both have come out in int eh last month of so. And both don't require a subscription.


Fury is looking VERY good to me.

---

Yeah, but will they have level caps so you can easily play as a casual gamer instead of having to log in every day just to keep up with the masses? D=

Contra 4.

We only have PCs and a PS2. :(

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Loony BoB

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Bert

Or hey BoB what about Hell Gate London? I'm thinking about picking that up.

or the game Fury looks good!

Guild Wars is over 2 years old, there's not going to be any more exspansions and the Areana net team is working on Guild Wars 2 now. So It might be a bad idea to check out one of these two games as the seem to both have come out in int eh last month of so. And both don't require a subscription.


Fury is looking VERY good to me.

---

Yeah, but will they have level caps so you can easily play as a casual gamer instead of having to log in every day just to keep up with the masses? D=

---

Fury has bo level cap, or well levels. I think Hellgates is 60 or someting.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Bert

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Loony BoB

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Bert

Or hey BoB what about Hell Gate London? I'm thinking about picking that up.

or the game Fury looks good!

Guild Wars is over 2 years old, there's not going to be any more exspansions and the Areana net team is working on Guild Wars 2 now. So It might be a bad idea to check out one of these two games as the seem to both have come out in int eh last month of so. And both don't require a subscription.


Fury is looking VERY good to me.

---

Yeah, but will they have level caps so you can easily play as a casual gamer instead of having to log in every day just to keep up with the masses? D=

---

Fury has bo level cap, or well levels. I think Hellgates is 60 or someting.

---

The first is no good to me for a few reasons - it's PvP focused and quite frankly I'm a load of crap at PvP. It's got no level cap, as you pointed out. Lastly, all the reviews I've seen so far have been crap. The latter has a subscription charge which is a little offputting (well, it has a free option but you don't get much out of it) and a high level cap means that we can't really do it for casual gaming and would probably get left behind by any friends who play the game consistently.

Reckon I'm still sticking with Guild Wars for now - at least until GW2 comes out. But I have all month to figure out if I even have the money to spend so we'll see. D= I have to buy a flat in the next two months which will be interesting as it is.

It's really not like GW is going to die off immediately with the release of GW2. There'll be plenty of people that'll stick to it for a while, enough to make it a worthwhile purchase.

Definitely a GW candidate. I hate playing it on my own, but it's great to do a quest or two with a RL friend.

AoE II, for great justice.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Loony BoB

I actually have Warzone 2100 for PC and for the Playstation. xD Not Danielle's style, though, really. She doesn't mind the odd game of Warcraft III though. :)

---

WCIII is very micromanagement based, which could very well be why she wouldn't mind. I can think of WC as having a massive multitude of maps to play, with DotA being a popular hero based variant; it's like a full run of WoW every hour. If you wanted to make your own maps, it shouldn't be too hard (if only there weren't so many options).

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Old Manus

AoE II, for great justice.

---

I approve of this. All in opposition are failures.

Ah, I know what you could do! Unless, of course, posting about roms and emulators is against forum rules. If so, then, well, get Metal Slug Anthology for the PS2. It's very similar to Contra, has really good level variety, and has 6 short games (and an edited version of one of those 6) in one. It's pretty groovy, if you ask me. It also has co-op.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Loony BoB

We only have PCs and a PS2. :(

---

Oh. I was going to say Kirby (Kirby's Dream Land 3 and Kirby Super Star are good games that you can play two player and work together), Secret of Mana, Super Smash Bros. or Bomberman. I think Bomberman still might be a possibility for you.

I'm guessing that you're not the kind of person that would play any of those games though.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Hsu

It's really not like GW is going to die off immediately with the release of GW2. There'll be plenty of people that'll stick to it for a while, enough to make it a worthwhile purchase.

---

They say they will continue with updates and events "as long as people still want to play Guild Wars"

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Bert

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Hsu

It's really not like GW is going to die off immediately with the release of GW2. There'll be plenty of people that'll stick to it for a while, enough to make it a worthwhile purchase.

---

They say they will continue with updates and events "as long as people still want to play Guild Wars"

---

Meh, they haven't even started coding GW2 yet. It's just a concept so far. You still have at least a good year and a half of playing time. Considering the fact that GW:EN just came out, it's a good bet.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Loony BoB

So, is there any multiplayer game out there that can at least come close to allowing us to play on-and-off without ending up miles behind our friends (should it be an online game), doesn't have us playing the same small map over and over with the same goals every time and isn't turn based? We enjoy a pretty large variety of gaming styles, although RPG is probably our preferred option.

---

So what you're saying is you don't want to play any of the three major online gaming genres at all?

People keep saying GW but really it's like a sports game with RPG elements tacked onto it. Once you get past the campaign (which admittedly take a while) it gets boring fast, when you end up grinding PvP rather than PvE. You may want to try an RTS, maybe something like Warcraft 3, for which there are oddles of custom maps (infact custom maps are more common in WC3 than the standard set). If you get bored of that then I don't know what else to suggest. I may say you've been overtly picky on this issue.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Captain Maxx Power

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Loony BoB

So, is there any multiplayer game out there that can at least come close to allowing us to play on-and-off without ending up miles behind our friends (should it be an online game), doesn't have us playing the same small map over and over with the same goals every time and isn't turn based? We enjoy a pretty large variety of gaming styles, although RPG is probably our preferred option.

---

So what you're saying is you don't want to play any of the three major online gaming genres at all?

People keep saying GW but really it's like a sports game with RPG elements tacked onto it. Once you get past the campaign (which admittedly take a while) it gets boring fast, when you end up grinding PvP rather than PvE. You may want to try an RTS, maybe something like Warcraft 3, for which there are oddles of custom maps (infact custom maps are more common in WC3 than the standard set). If you get bored of that then I don't know what else to suggest. I may say you've been overtly picky on this issue.

---

with 4 story lines to do I think it would be a long while before they ranoout of stuff to do. I've been playing for 2 1/2 years and have yet to beat everything and go everywhere.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Bert

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Captain Maxx Power

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Loony BoB

So, is there any multiplayer game out there that can at least come close to allowing us to play on-and-off without ending up miles behind our friends (should it be an online game), doesn't have us playing the same small map over and over with the same goals every time and isn't turn based? We enjoy a pretty large variety of gaming styles, although RPG is probably our preferred option.

---

So what you're saying is you don't want to play any of the three major online gaming genres at all?

People keep saying GW but really it's like a sports game with RPG elements tacked onto it. Once you get past the campaign (which admittedly take a while) it gets boring fast, when you end up grinding PvP rather than PvE. You may want to try an RTS, maybe something like Warcraft 3, for which there are oddles of custom maps (infact custom maps are more common in WC3 than the standard set). If you get bored of that then I don't know what else to suggest. I may say you've been overtly picky on this issue.

---

with 4 story lines to do I think it would be a long while before they ranoout of stuff to do. I've been playing for 2 1/2 years and have yet to beat everything and go everywhere.

---

Likewise here. It's a huge game, though I do agree that it's kind of like a sports game. I think the big point about GW, in contrast to other MMOs, is that it actually encourages thinking and puts your tactical abilities above the amount of time you've spent in-game. In other words, if you're into grinding, you're better with WoW or FFXI. If you're into strategy and above all teamwork, try GW.

If you guys enjoy Warcraft III well enough, try out Command and Conquer 3. That is some fast, furious RTS action right there, and it's not so complex that it takes weeks to master.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Discord

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Bert

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Captain Maxx Power

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Loony BoB

So, is there any multiplayer game out there that can at least come close to allowing us to play on-and-off without ending up miles behind our friends (should it be an online game), doesn't have us playing the same small map over and over with the same goals every time and isn't turn based? We enjoy a pretty large variety of gaming styles, although RPG is probably our preferred option.

---

So what you're saying is you don't want to play any of the three major online gaming genres at all?

People keep saying GW but really it's like a sports game with RPG elements tacked onto it. Once you get past the campaign (which admittedly take a while) it gets boring fast, when you end up grinding PvP rather than PvE. You may want to try an RTS, maybe something like Warcraft 3, for which there are oddles of custom maps (infact custom maps are more common in WC3 than the standard set). If you get bored of that then I don't know what else to suggest. I may say you've been overtly picky on this issue.

---

with 4 story lines to do I think it would be a long while before they ranoout of stuff to do. I've been playing for 2 1/2 years and have yet to beat everything and go everywhere.

---

Likewise here. It's a huge game, though I do agree that it's kind of like a sports game. I think the big point about GW, in contrast to other MMOs, is that it actually encourages thinking and puts your tactical abilities above the amount of time you've spent in-game. In other words, if you're into grinding, you're better with WoW or FFXI. If you're into strategy and above all teamwork, try GW.

---

yeah that's what I love about it. I'm not a grinder so it's perfect for me.

I would vote for AoEII. Definitely one of the better MP games out there.

Warcraft III wasn't much my cup of tea for mp. I would much rather play AoE in multi-player.

Another game in the vein of those two is Age of Wonders Shadow Magic. Has an entertaining battle system. Trouble is in how the battle system works in mp.... everyone has to watch everyone else's battles. That has been a big gripe for me.

Never Played Lords of Magic in multi-player but it is enjoyable enough for a time in single player, so that one is a possibility.

Stars! is an interesting old game that is enjoyable in multiplayer. Lots of micromanagement options though. This means that games can go on for a LONG time if you got a 'perfect' player playing with you. Normally though I can finish a game in a couple hours.

Deadlock is another simple game that is enjoyable enough in MP[though I would rather play a game of Stars! anyday].

Would you like to try Puzzle Quest? I can hook you both up with the game (on PC) and it has a multiplayer (LAN) option to play each other against. The only thing is the game, before you go on multiplayer, is single player.

Other than that, you're pretty much tired of all the multiplayer games there are -- wth DanBoB : (

If you feel like taking the time to set it up, you could try PSOBB on the Schtack Servers. But PSO really does feel very MMORPG-ish, especially with everyone always wanting to do TTF. But, if you play just for the sake of beating the game, it's a pretty fun co-operative game, almost like a dungeon-crawler. This effect can really only be had with either the GCN or X-Box version of the game during Offline Play though, because when in Online Play, well, it just feels very impersonal. When in an Offline Mode, I don't try to Level Up, I just try to win. Weapons and Armor I find on the way seem to be more of nice gifts than necessities. There is something in PSU (Phantasy Star Universe) that is similar to PSOffline, but it lacks co-op with real people. >_>

you can try Crash Bash -4 players way too funny
if you like to put some fun with play'N

ahah ha haaaa

TOTAL WAR!