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Sept. PC gamer with free WOW trial!

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Pachinko

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Anyone else pick this up ? it also has a demo of dungeon seige 2 on it , which by the way isn't much better then the first although I suppose if you want a 3D diablo it's the closest thing to it.

But yeah, world of warcraft 14 day trial is included on the disc, I'm going to assume its the complete game that you'd find on a retail shelf , becuase if you decide to keep on playing it it bills your account like normal.

Coming from someone who isn't too fond of MMORPGS, this game actually doesn't seem to bad, combat while still watch and wait for the most part plays out atleast 3 times faster then FFXI and it only took me 10 minutes to gain a level instead of 35, and I could actually accomplish a quest at the start of the game unlike FFXI.... where you have to level raise for 3 hours before even attempting a quest would be advisable. The graphics seem stuck in the GEforce 2 era in alot of ways but that's kind of plus becuase people with computers that are more then 4 years old can actually play the game as long as they have the 4 gigs of HD space atleast...

Anyone else pick this book up and try out wow for the first time ?
 
I've been wanting to get into World of Warcraft for quite a while, and today I was just about to go out and buy it. This sounds like a really good deal (maybe too good), could you or someone else please completely verify whether I could simply get away with picking a copy of this instead of the retail version? Thanks in advance.
 
Don't do it! lol. I cancelled (for the second time) this morning.

It's really addictive, and I had played previous MMO's. :( It's the fact that everything is *somewhat* easily attainable. Maybe this only factors in if you've been a part of previous MMO's. Like the previous poster mentioned FFXI. In WoW you can always do something and it seems so much more productive. I guess it is more productive in the end.. which makes you want to play even more at least IMO. Seriously, play 1-40.. get your first mount.. ride around, cry a happy tear and quit.

It's been said but the graphics aren't incredible, however the game is gorgeous. It's a huge RAM hog.. I would be hesitant about firing it up at 512 MB of RAM.. it really requires 1 gig to run ok everywhere. You'll do fine out soloing but heading into a major city or in any PvP you will lag like crazy as it swaps to your HD.

Anyway like all Blizzard games it is absolutely excellent in what it tries to do.
 
it is prolly like a friends gift pass in that it will require a retail game cd key after the 10 days in order to keep playing (50$) then you get a free month then the sub kicks in (15$)
 
as far as I can tell it's the full game, I mean it takes up like 2 gigs on the demo dvd in that issue of PC gamer.

yes it is addictive, well gotta run
 
It's probably like the trial that comes with the retail game. You install the program on your friend's machine, plunk in the trial key, and when it expires you need a retail key from the boxed version to continue your subscription.

Edit: woops, already been stated :D
 
oh hey I found the fine print on the side of the PC gamer disc to give everyone some finality to this -

"Your unique authentication code good for 14 day sof WOW gameplay is located etc etc, in order to begin playing you will need to create a free trial account, including your credit card info . lYour credit card will not be charged for this, to continue the adventure beyond the free trail purchase a retail copy of wow and play for an additional 30 free days. only after this period will the monthly fees be applied."

The demo disc does oddly contain the full client, so you pretty much are just buying a cd key to enter in when the 14 days runs up from the sounds of things.


I got confused becuase the demo disc menu , that is when its actually running the pcgamer gui off the disc , has a note about being able to play the game after the 14 days if you want to start paying. I'll go with the fine print on this though and assume that you do in fact have to buy a retail copy to keep playing the game, honestly It's worth trying out anyway, you pay only the cost of the magazine for this 14 day trial and you can check if it A- runs on your machine and B- if you actually like it.
 
Pachinko said:
I could actually accomplish a quest at the start of the game unlike FFXI.... where you have to level raise for 3 hours before even attempting a quest would be advisable.
Click to expand...
Not to derail your thread, but I've always wondered something: If Final Fantasy XI is such a shitty game, why don't people point out actual flaws with the title, instead of making things up to make the game look bad?

And just to add a disclaimer to that: I honestly have no idea how you feel about the game overall, Pachinko, so I'm not trying to imply that you think it's "shitty." It's just more of a general question spawned by your fabricated complaint (see quote).
 
Yeah, I got mine in the mail last week and was VERY tempted. BUt I don't need another digital crack activity in my life right now. Besides, I promised my fiancee that I wouldn't play anytime before X-Mas. ;)

Also It was nce to see a nice quality trailer of Prey and Hellgate:London. ;)
 
I got a CD Key on eBay for $40. This is a nice way to get into the game on-the-cheap....$40 for your first month-and-a-half.

I'm still not sure whether the game is legitimately good or just a hyper-compulsive obsession that's ultimately empty. I started to get bored with my character once it seemed like I couldn't level very quickly and couldn't do any more quests by myself.
 
You can ALWAYS do quests by yourself, but you might have to go somewhere else for a while, pick up the quests you didn't do and level up through that a bit, until you can come back to your original location and continue there.
 
WOW = false sense of accomplishment

Most people seem to reach lvl 60 and when it gets slow they finally realize this.

Or they continue playing more and more to compensate for the lower rate of accomplishment in 2 hour instances. Or start a new character.
 
The 14 dollar trial sounds like a really good deal. I bought the game back near release and had my fill a week before the first free month expired. I could have easily gone on playing but there was no addictive must keep leveling feeling that I use to have with EQ. The day after I stopped playing I felt satisfied with the game and little interest in playing anymore.

Unlike EQ, you can really be having fun/doing stuff five minutes after you first log on. In two weeks you can probably be well into your twenties in WoW. Much higher if you go hardcore with your playing time. You can see a large part of the WoW world(redundant?) in just those two weeks.

I have to believe Blizzard knows this about their game. That even with the huge number of people currently subscribing, people have no problem dropping the game and never returning. Just about everyone I know who have played the game have stopped after a few months at most.
 
TheInkyVoid said:
The 14 dollar trial sounds like a really good deal. I bought the game back near release and had my fill a week before the first free month expired. I could have easily gone on playing but there was no addictive must keep leveling feeling that I use to have with EQ. The day after I stopped playing I felt satisfied with the game and little interest in playing anymore.

Unlike EQ, you can really be having fun/doing stuff five minutes after you first log on. In two weeks you can probably be well into your twenties in WoW. Much higher if you go hardcore with your playing time. You can see a large part of the WoW world(redundant?) in just those two weeks.

I have to believe Blizzard knows this about their game. That even with the huge number of people currently subscribing, people have no problem dropping the game and never returning. Just about everyone I know who have played the game have stopped after a few months at most.
Click to expand...

If the game had some kind of Alternate Advancement past 60 like EQ had there'd be a reason to keep playing once you hit 60. Right now there is none aside from farming Instance or PVP armor sets.
 
teh_pwn said:
WOW = false sense of accomplishment

Most people seem to reach lvl 60 and when it gets slow they finally realize this.

Or they continue playing more and more to compensate for the lower rate of accomplishment in 2 hour instances. Or start a new character.
Click to expand...

False sounds a little harsh. Maybe accelerated sense of accomplishment?

WoW reminds me of a kid complaining they want ice cream every night. They finally find someone to give it to them, Blizzard, and after a short time they don't want to every touch ice cream again.

Taking out so much of the pain and suffering in games like EQ ends up making the highs you get from accomplishments significantly lessened in WoW.
 
SiegfriedFM said:
Personally I'm not much for pain and suffering when playing games though :)
Click to expand...

With WoW there is almost nothing I will remember from my time playing other than it was a pretty world that I had a pleasant time in.

I will remember many situations in EQ for the rest of my life.

* The absolute terror of running from unsowed and nightblind from Freeport to Qeynos as a human monk in my early teens

* The hair standing on end and shivers running through my body repeating to myself over and "please don't let me die here" running my teenage monk through giants and mummies in Southern Ro on my way to Innothule Swamp.

And so on. And I remember the utter exhiliaration after making it through those types of experiences that I've never had in any other games.
 
TheInkyVoid said:
With WoW there is almost nothing I will remember from my time playing other than it was a pretty world that I had a pleasant time in.

I will remember many situations in EQ for the rest of my life.

* The absolute terror of running from unsowed and nightblind from Freeport to Qeynos as a human monk in my early teens

* The hair standing on end and shivers running through my body repeating to myself over and "please don't let me die here" running my teenage monk through giants and mummies in Southern Ro on my way to Innothule Swamp.

And so on. And I remember the utter exhiliaration after making it through those types of experiences that I've never had in any other games.
Click to expand...

* The first time I entered Beholder's Maze in beta hearing rumors of Minotaurs there and being awed at the size of the canyon walls back in the old 3Dfx Voodoo 1 days.
* Running through North Karana always looking over your shoulder for a Grif.
* Running up the cliffs in East Karana to Highpass hoping you don't fall to your death.
* Killing wolves in Qeynos Hills and learning why Holly is such a hated bitch (her fate is told in EQII and it's hilarious).
* Exploring the islands in Ocean of Tears after jumping off the boat.
* Having to /con guards in a new area to make sure they won't slaughter you on sight.
* Falling off Kelethin. Oops.
* Unrest trains.
* Lower Guk trains of death.
* Blackburrow elite trains.
* Oh, and Sol's Eye. Those invisible floors dumping you into lava were evil and made it the most dreaded "Old World" dungeon.
 
SiegfriedFM said:
You can ALWAYS do quests by yourself, but you might have to go somewhere else for a while, pick up the quests you didn't do and level up through that a bit, until you can come back to your original location and continue there.
Click to expand...
Well yeah, I can always do quests intended for people 5-10 levels below me, but why would I want to? The point is I'd like to do some solo quests that are at my level. Stuff below me is too easy, takes a long time, and doesn't reward with very good XP.

Not sure how I feel about instances either. I wish they would put you up against powerful enemies instead of normal ones that just have a ton of HP. Seems really tedious to chug through, taking a minute just to down one enemy.
 
border said:
Not sure how I feel about instances either. I wish they would put you up against powerful enemies instead of normal ones that just have a ton of HP. Seems really tedious to chug through, taking a minute just to down one enemy.
Click to expand...

I wish the instances were more like old EQ "dungeons" where it wasn't limited to just you and your party. I like being able to go into a dungeon and solo for a while and then get in a group there if I want to from a pool of all of the other players currently in the dungeon.

Sure you run into camping issues and trains, but that small frustration is worth it for the social aspect that the WoW instances completely lack.
 
ToyMachine228 said:
Do a ton of people still play World of Warcraft? I might just pick it up someday...
Click to expand...

"Blizzard's World of Warcraft is now officially the largest MMOG in the world, with the title boasting some 3.5 million paying subscribers worldwide - including 1.5 million in China, where the game only launched in early June."
 
Littleberu said:
"Blizzard's World of Warcraft is now officially the largest MMOG in the world, with the title boasting some 3.5 million paying subscribers worldwide - including 1.5 million in China, where the game only launched in early June."
Click to expand...

thats insane
 
TheInkyVoid said:
With WoW there is almost nothing I will remember from my time playing other than it was a pretty world that I had a pleasant time in.

I will remember many situations in EQ for the rest of my life.

* The absolute terror of running from unsowed and nightblind from Freeport to Qeynos as a human monk in my early teens

* The hair standing on end and shivers running through my body repeating to myself over and "please don't let me die here" running my teenage monk through giants and mummies in Southern Ro on my way to Innothule Swamp.

And so on. And I remember the utter exhiliaration after making it through those types of experiences that I've never had in any other games.
Click to expand...

you're just crazy, thats all that is.

Demigod Mac said:
None of you n00bs have been in Molten Core, I presume.
Click to expand...

Or maraudon, LBRS, UBRS, Dire Maul, ST, BRD, etc.

to be quite frank, I just see a bunch of jealous EQ haters.

Littleberu said:
including 1.5 million in China, where the game only launched in early June."
Click to expand...

:lol :lol :lol :lol :lol
 
http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/thread.aspx?fn=wow-general&t=4220681&p=1&tmp=1#post4220681

In order to protect our player base from abuse, we have placed some restrictions on accounts created using the promotional 14-day trial version of World of Warcraft that is available through certain magazine publications. Please be aware that these restrictions are only in place during the trial period; players who decide to purchase a retail copy of World of Warcraft and activate their accounts will be able to continue adventuring with the same characters and take full advantage of all features included in the retail version of the game.

During the trial period, characters on the promotional accounts will be able to advance up to level 20 and accumulate up to 10 gold. Use of the auction house and mailbox, player-to-player trade, and access to the in-game chat channels will be unavailable for the duration of the 14-day trial period.

Please note that the above restrictions do not apply to the trial accounts included in the World of Warcraft collector's edition.
Click to expand...
 
I cancelled my account three days ago.

The guild I was in was farming Molten Core & Onyxia regularly and quite frankly it got very boring. I was holding off until I could see Blackwing Lair and after seeing the god afwul mess that it is that was the last straw.

After you kill all the top tier bosses numerous times and it just becomes running instances for better gear it gets very mundane and repetitive.

Level 1-60 is Great
After Level 60 is terrible even if you are in a good guild. End Game sucks
 
TheInkyVoid said:
With WoW there is almost nothing I will remember from my time playing other than it was a pretty world that I had a pleasant time in.
Click to expand...


Not sure that we're playing the same game at all. Everything you mentioned from EQ I can match in WoW.

Did you play with friends? Because that's what makes memorable MMO experiences.
 
krypt0nian said:
Not sure that we're playing the same game at all. Everything you mentioned from EQ I can match in WoW.
Click to expand...

The key things that made those things memorable was a deep fear of death. I don't mean having to run from a nearby graveyard to get your 10% durablility loss. I mean running from Qeynos to Freeport and dying in either Highpass or the revamped Kithicor, losing experience, and then having to make a two hour run back completely naked to get your gear. When you have that fear in you, it makes those things he describe more rewarding when you survive the experience.

I'm not saying that death system was good, just that at the time it made such things memorable.
 
ManaByte said:
The key things that made those things memorable was a deep fear of death. I don't mean having to run from a nearby graveyard to get your 10% durablility loss. I mean running from Qeynos to Freeport and dying in either Highpass or the revamped Kithicor, losing experience, and then having to make a two hour run back completely naked to get your gear. When you have that fear in you, it makes those things he describe more rewarding when you survive the experience.

I'm not saying that death system was good, just that at the time it made such things memorable.
Click to expand...


That's one way to look at it sure. That said I have many memorable experiences from WoW.
 
Pachinko said:
I could actually accomplish a quest at the start of the game unlike FFXI.... where you have to level raise for 3 hours before even attempting a quest would be advisable.
Click to expand...

3 Hours? Wow, you can do your first quest at level 3 in that game it doesn't take 3 hours for me or anyone else I know, not even the first time I played it.
 
Idono, in FFXI during the beta I played has a red mage hume in bastock and only got up to level 7 or 8 I think, my computer at the time couldn't run the swamplands to the south at better then 4 frames per second so I couldn't do that quest and I recall having to kill a good 10 bee's to gain my first level.


I wound up buying the game for 30 bucks canadian awhile back and played it off and on for about a week but still couldn't find the enjoyment, the game simply isn't layed out in as user friendly a manner. You kind of fend for yourself, I played that time has a black mage in sandoria , a hume again to boot. I never did clear the first actual quest to go look for some dude at a tower becuase the enemies near the tower were to powerful to solo attack for my pitiful mage , even with all the learnable spells at my disposal.

If I had to give complaints that whats his face from earlier in this thread could read it'd be-

Combat is too slow, the weaker enemies can take longer then a minute or 2 to kill. In WOW the weakest fodder takes less then a minute if you play your abilities right. The game seems better balanced as well, in FFXI there weren't nearly enough weaker enemies to kill to get the ball rolling at the start, you are stuck killing bees for a proggressivly smaller amount of experience until level 3 , then you can start taking out the odd mutant shrubbery , but you have to heal for 2 minutes or more between fights , lest you get killed and lose a ridiculous 10% of your current experience. I'm of the opinion that dying should not penalize you at all, and warcrafts penalty is tolerable, in fact until someone pointed it out in this thread I didnt' even know what the penalty was.

So to sum it up simply, I find FFXI too hard. WOW is easier and thus I have more fun with it. Not that it's a slouch though , once you get past the first little section the game really opens up a bunch in terms of size, number of quests and difficulty. The monsters start attacking you on sight. FFXI does this as well with some enemies but again, that goes back to my original combat complaints. A fight in WOW is 2 minutes tops , a fight in FFXI is 2 minutes minimum.

If I really had to reach, I'd say FFXI depends to much on partying to achieve many of its results , this is moreso goign by the beta becuase I played the full game for only perhaps 6 hours or so and didn't try to party up with anyone.

Instant satisfaction > slow satistfaction
 
Pachinko said:
Idono, in FFXI during the beta I played has a red mage hume in bastock and only got up to level 7 or 8 I think, my computer at the time couldn't run the swamplands to the south at better then 4 frames per second so I couldn't do that quest and I recall having to kill a good 10 bee's to gain my first level.


I wound up buying the game for 30 bucks canadian awhile back and played it off and on for about a week but still couldn't find the enjoyment, the game simply isn't layed out in as user friendly a manner. You kind of fend for yourself, I played that time has a black mage in sandoria , a hume again to boot. I never did clear the first actual quest to go look for some dude at a tower becuase the enemies near the tower were to powerful to solo attack for my pitiful mage , even with all the learnable spells at my disposal.

If I had to give complaints that whats his face from earlier in this thread could read it'd be-

Combat is too slow, the weaker enemies can take longer then a minute or 2 to kill. In WOW the weakest fodder takes less then a minute if you play your abilities right. The game seems better balanced as well, in FFXI there weren't nearly enough weaker enemies to kill to get the ball rolling at the start, you are stuck killing bees for a proggressivly smaller amount of experience until level 3 , then you can start taking out the odd mutant shrubbery , but you have to heal for 2 minutes or more between fights , lest you get killed and lose a ridiculous 10% of your current experience. I'm of the opinion that dying should not penalize you at all, and warcrafts penalty is tolerable, in fact until someone pointed it out in this thread I didnt' even know what the penalty was.

So to sum it up simply, I find FFXI too hard. WOW is easier and thus I have more fun with it. Not that it's a slouch though , once you get past the first little section the game really opens up a bunch in terms of size, number of quests and difficulty. The monsters start attacking you on sight. FFXI does this as well with some enemies but again, that goes back to my original combat complaints. A fight in WOW is 2 minutes tops , a fight in FFXI is 2 minutes minimum.

If I really had to reach, I'd say FFXI depends to much on partying to achieve many of its results , this is moreso goign by the beta becuase I played the full game for only perhaps 6 hours or so and didn't try to party up with anyone.

Instant satisfaction > slow satistfaction
Click to expand...


I understand to an extent. Leveling is fairly tedious and the game relies a lot on partying, but I can't understand your complaints about the time. It never took two minutes for me to kill anything haha I don't know if you're just generalizing like saying two minutes might as well just mean a long fucking time. But it was never that long if you fought Decent Challenges. The first few levels do suck, but if you use the Check option it makes it so much easier. Maybe it's because I read the whole manual on my way home after buying it, so I knew what to do when I jumped online. I've played WoW and one of the qualms I have with it is the satisfaction in the long run. There wasn't much that interested me later on and I didn't care for the community either. With FF XI, the community was very nice and friendly. I didn't have the same experience on WoW. And getting to level 60 was much more satisfying on FF XI then on WoW.
 
EQ fans are the scum of the mmog player universe but in this case I agree with them. Once you hit 60 there is nothing to do. Its fun up untill that point though.
 
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