Back in my day...

[brokeit]

My first major multi year subbed MMO was Dark Age of Camelot. It still remains my favorite gaming experience after not having played in many years. In it you had 8 man groups, that was it.

 

Some buffs had 10 minute durations, others were permanent such that you or the buffer didn't die and the buffer could only cast so many of a certain power before he wasn't allowed to cast anymore.

 

There were very very few end game pve encounters and each took a multitude of groups to take down with no "raid group" ability. Loot dropped and was lootable by the last group that had aggro before it died. Did I mention there was no real taunt so it took skill for all to play (tank to keep aggro, dps/heals not to pull)?

 

You found places by looking at a plain non interactive map and using a compass (yep a compass). You ran everywhere or took a horse (taxi).

 

End game was 99.9% pvp with 3 factions trying to control the frontier by taking keeps and relics(gave bonuses to the faction that controlled it). Some battles involved an epic 3 way, 1000 player (not a typo) brawls that would go on for long periods of time with people being rezzed and/or running back into the carnage. Venturing out alone was almost a guarantee death sentence.

 

EA has a lot of old Mythic members in its staff and even working on this game, I hope they take some of that and fold it into this game.

 

People played UO, EQ, and DAoC because they were a lot of fun and a challenge. People played wow because everyone else was playing wow and had a little bit of fun.

[ApesAmongUs]

So, OP, is your point that games used to really suck badly?

 

If you had a different point to make, you should really pick better examples.

[TheTurniipKing]

what this guy said!! people were crybabies and ruined a perfectly great game..if you wanted safe and soft go play EQ no one cared..come to UO and you werent prepared ..ah well

Actually, Trammel kind of had a point, I thought. We were kind of reaching the point where the whole of Britannia was just player-built houses.

[SWImara]

Note: I don't think all the things below were positive, I have some really awesome memories of my years gaming in early graphical and text based MMOs but it was an absurd commitment of time and was often really terribly frustrating. Still, nostalgia is a wonderful thing, and I do miss some of the "difficulties" of the good 'ol days.

 

 

• We didn't have websites that told us where to find every secret in the game, you had to talk to other players.
  
• When you got wtfpwnt by some dangerous monster and none of your friends were on, you struggled for hours trying to loot your corpse and escape.
  
• If you didn't make sacrifices and earn the favor of the Gods you died permanently (Gemstone III anyone?)
  
• The concept of not being able (due to game system prevention) to attack other PCs was foreign to me.
  
• Epic gear was genuinely epic, maybe 2-3 items on a server.
  
• If you made a mistakes while leveling up your character you were SOL there were no "respecs" but then no one had a perfect character anyway so it didn't matter.
  
• You planned how your character would progress rather than just purchasing the next set of pre-determined skills when you leveled.

 

[Eileithia]

I'm still there!

 

I really hope EQ3 harkens back to the EQ1 days rather than the current trend in ez-mode MMOs (including EQ2).

 

LOL.. I'm sure there will be a mass exodus of every MMO on the planet when EQ3 comes out. At least for a few months.

 

EQ2 was actually pretty difficult at launch. I remember it took us a little over a month to get to level 20 (Where you actually picked your final class), and about 6 months to get to 50, but it was nothing like the grid and camp-fest that EQ1 was. (3 weeks camping 1 mob for your epic in rotating shifts with all of your friends 24 hours a day) However EQ2 had more than enough content to support the slow leveling curve. After the 3-4th expansion the world shrunk substantially when you could literally take a "bell" to any zone in the game.

 

I do miss the feeling of accomplishment you used to get when you did something truely epic. (Downing Nagafen for the first time, or clearing Netropos Castle) I wish there was an MMO designer out there who felt getting to level cap in a week or two shouldn't even be possible. SLOW DOWN THE LEVELING!. The past 5-6 MMO's I've played have all been weeks to cap, instead of months or years, and then nothing to do once you get there. There's a huge difference between mindless grind, and enjoyable content, and I don't think any MMO in the past 5 years has pulled off the right balance.

 

If developers want to know why MMOs only last a few months after release it's because the content can be blown through in a few months, and there's nothing to hold the players.

 

SWTOR I figure will last me 4-6 months (I plan to play multiple classes for the story line) but once that story is done, I don't see much hope without some serious content patches for end-game.

[Dark_loki]

I find it interesting that so many people have such strong opinions on both sides. I think people are just so used to getting stuff handed to them that they can't even imagine what it would feel like to have any sense of accomplishment on something.

 

The argument of go back and play one of those old games doesn't exactly work. Mostly cause they are old and outdated. True a lot of us enjoyed the game play mechanics, but we in no way can stand to see the old graphics anymore. Plus even if we did start now there are so many people with end game characters that it wouldn't even be fun.

 

I don't understand why people want to level up quicker. Sure if you level quicker and get end game quicker then won't you get bored of the game quicker? Oh, that's right they just want to get the "epic" and "rare" gear that nearly every other high level player has.

 

I think that so many people are willing to try a new MMO shows that they are bored of what we have now. Sure maybe if a game was created, with the mechanics of Asheron's Call or Eq at their start, then you probably wouldn't have the same following that you have on WoW. But i bet you would still get a strong enough support base and player base to make a decent profit.

 

The problem here is that every company doesn't just want a profit, they want to rake in as much money as quick as possible when they put out a game. Who cares if the players only have mundane tasks to accomplish and will run out of content since they level up to quick.

[Asavar]

Cool story, OP.

[Quip]

We made our own games.

 

It's typical for you "kiddies*" to want to be spoon fed games someone else made. Why not just have the developers play them for you and change your little diaper too?

 

 

 

*Kiddies is used purely ironically to mock the sentiment of "old schoolers" who have no clue what old school is, using the word "kiddies" in a post is still reprehensible activity.

[Pokeytehpenguin]

Remember the first woman/man/whatever that you had sex with? Remember how awesome it was? Remember how much you loved him/her/it? How do you feel about her now that she's changed and you have too?

 

*EDIT -- more importantly when looking for new mates do you look for the things that drew you to that person in the first place? Do you compare/contrast your idealized view of your formers with your current?

 

I am still with her, we have been dating for over 8 years, and are soon to be married, thank you very much.

[The_Krill]

Back in my day...

 

 

 

(Feel free to add your own)

 

We played MUD and it was textbased

Edited January 10, 2012 by The_Krill

[Valperion]

Back in my day...

 

 

- We didnt have raid groups. We rangled 100+ people and made groups of 6 to try and kill one world boss. None of this 8-man easy mode content. You had to actually have a sizeable group to get things done.

 

 

- Raid buffs took 30 minutes and you liked it. There was no massive raid group. Everyone just made their small groups and took orders.

 

 

- We didnt have these instances...if you wanted to kill something you had to camp its spawn and RACE against everyone else to get it. If you didnt get it you had to wait another 7 days just to get a chance to take it down.

 

 

- If you had a weapon that had a "The" in it, it was legitmately epic. There was MAYBE two or three on the server and it was drooled over.

 

 

- Purple loot was actually epic. None of these quest turn ins, full epic gear by soloing content bull*****. Being decked head to toe in purple actually meant something.

 

 

- Orange loot was MAYBE one or two per server.

 

 

 

- You couldn't solo your way 1-50. You HAD to group because mobs were too mean to kill by yourself. It built a genuine connection across the server and people really got to know eachother.

 

 

- Getting access to an endgame zone took WORK. Months and months of work to even get INSIDE.

 

 

 

 

 

THATS THE WAY IT WAS AND WE LOVED IT

 

 

(Feel free to add your own)

 

Sounds like "Lineage 2"

 

I miss it already....

[Battyone]

I am still with her, we have been dating for over 8 years, and are soon to be married, thank you very much.

 

We don't all live such a blessed life. Alternatively, how's the weather in Norrath?

Edited January 10, 2012 by Battyone

[Darth_Kipper]

Well said original poster

[Arugess]

For the most part those old days sucked for 90% of the players.

 

I am never ever going to play a game again where if I die I need to spend 20 minutes running back to a dock where I have to wait for a boat that only comes once every 15 minutes for an 8 minute journey filled with overleveled monsters (and if they kill me I need to start over again), while the 5 other people in my party and deciding to wait for me.

 

I am never ever going to play a game again where the game mechanics require you to wait 2-3 hours to gather enough people to do something that only takes 30 minutes or less to do.

 

I am never ever going to play a game again where RMT (gold sellers) are allowed to run around with impunity, selling, advertising, and botting with no repercussions.

 

I am never ever going to play a game again where money is the ultimate commodity, and the only way to make money is to mindlessly grind for days on end, where the acquisition of "enough" isn't integrated into the actual process of questing and xping.

 

I am never ever going to play a game again where you and several other "players" some of which are RMT camp a monster spawn point over and over again to kill something that spawns once every 6 hours, much less something that only spawns once every 72 hours in rainy weather.

[TheACow]

To everyone who pretends to have played Everquest, this OP really did. I don't know him, I can tell since he's talking truth.

 

Here are my two:

 

1 -- If you died you had to run and loot your corpse, no matter what hostiles were around it, and how easily they may kill you since you got lost and went somewhere you shouldn't. (Damn you Butcherblock Chessboard and my lowbie ranger...) In addition you could give someone permission to drag your corpse to somewhere safe, but that also meant they could just loot it and take your stuff.

 

2 -- When you died you lost experience, you could lose levels.

 

1) You had to be well liked on your server or else you where dead in the water when it came to making a group

2) ( swg ) shuttles took 10minutes? ( maybe it was 20.. ) to come. the entire time between YOU WAITED

3) BUFFS ARE NOT FREE. They cost 10k / 2hours. If you died.. grab another 10k

4) O that guy hit the boss before you did? O and now you have more agro than him. enjoy killing him for no reward BECAUSE HE WILL CHACE YOU ALL THE WAY BACK INTO TOWN.

5) grinding for 2hours to die 2ce and loose a level.

[Nymaeria]

 

 

- If you had a weapon that had a "The" in it, it was legitmately epic. There was MAYBE two or three on the server and it was drooled over.

 

 

- Purple loot was actually epic. None of these quest turn ins, full epic gear by soloing content bull*****. Being decked head to toe in purple actually meant something.

 

 

- Orange loot was MAYBE one or two per server.

 

 

 

- You couldn't solo your way 1-50. You HAD to group because mobs were too mean to kill by yourself. It built a genuine connection across the server and people really got to know eachother.

 

 

These days I don't really have the time for games the way they used to be. That said, I REALLY wish the above were still in effect.

[The_Krill]

For the most part those old days sucked for 90% of the players.

 

I am never ever going to play a game again where if I die I need to spend 20 minutes running back to a dock where I have to wait for a boat that only comes once every

 

 

.............................

 

I am never ever going to play a game again where you and several other "players" some of which are RMT camp a monster spawn point over and over again to kill something that spawns once every 6 hours, much less something that only spawns once every 72 hours in rainy weather.

 

Nostalgia paints pretty pictures.

Being forced to build skyscrapers from spit and paper, we kid ourselves the experience has made us better men so we tell these young kids they should experience the Same.

While actually games are continually improving in one way or another.

Edited January 10, 2012 by The_Krill

[racsofp]

Back in my day...

 

 

- We didnt have raid groups. We rangled 100+ people and made groups of 6 to try and kill one world boss. None of this 8-man easy mode content. You had to actually have a sizeable group to get things done.

 

 

- Raid buffs took 30 minutes and you liked it. There was no massive raid group. Everyone just made their small groups and took orders.

 

 

- We didnt have these instances...if you wanted to kill something you had to camp its spawn and RACE against everyone else to get it. If you didnt get it you had to wait another 7 days just to get a chance to take it down.

 

 

- If you had a weapon that had a "The" in it, it was legitmately epic. There was MAYBE two or three on the server and it was drooled over.

 

 

- Purple loot was actually epic. None of these quest turn ins, full epic gear by soloing content bull*****. Being decked head to toe in purple actually meant something.

 

 

- Orange loot was MAYBE one or two per server.

 

 

 

- You couldn't solo your way 1-50. You HAD to group because mobs were too mean to kill by yourself. It built a genuine connection across the server and people really got to know eachother.

 

 

- Getting access to an endgame zone took WORK. Months and months of work to even get INSIDE.

 

 

 

 

 

THATS THE WAY IT WAS AND WE LOVED IT

 

 

(Feel free to add your own)

We didn't have minimaps, world maps, or any maps.

 

We had graph paper and a pencil. The fog of war was not an option or a design decision...it was simply area of the world you had not been to or did not bother mapping when you were there.

[Dark_loki]

The down side to having maps showing us exactly where we have to go, is i tend to notice that i don't memorize any of the buildings or areas. I don't pay attention to vendors names or location. Everything just kind of blurs together with an experience that is shortly forgotten.

[racsofp]

The down side to having maps showing us exactly where we have to go, is i tend to notice that i don't memorize any of the buildings or areas. I don't pay attention to vendors names or location. Everything just kind of blurs together with an experience that is shortly forgotten.

I hear ya 100%. Same here.

[Ituhata]

Pirate Isle? that's an oldie

I remember James Bond: a view to a kill text adventure... now that is a bit esoteric.

 

and yes I played pong, D&D with 1 quest taking at least a year to complete, Vic-20's, Trash 80's, Ti-44a, and my beloved Amiga 500 (yeah I have the emulator for that one!)

 

I wondered if anyone would recognize it, or even read it since it was buried so deep within.

[Brutus]

Here's mine (addendum to the new minimaps)

 

--You used /loc to find your position and your fellow players gave you their /loc to find them. You made a hotkey for it, spammed it while running, and prayed to God that you didn't run into a faction guard or some other big nasty that wanted to eat you while you ran. You did NOT go afk while running across a zone.

 

--Flight Paths? pfft... you either ran, took the boat, or found someone who could teleport yer arse... and you paid for it gladly!

[neegorzez]

I've heard EQ servers are still up and running.

 

They are indeed! Both of my accounts are still active

[Chevex]

Back in my day we didn't have no fancy computer games. We hung out in the alley behind the Safeway and we kicked rocks across the ditch......and we liked it.

[DaveyboyW]

Early days of Asheron's Call, Darktide server. 100% pvp, no safe zones.

 

If you and your guild wanted to level somewhere you buffed up and went ready to fight for it. If you died, you lost your most expensive items.

 

Loved it. Genuine war, diplomacy, friendships and hatred between players and guilds. I always thought it would have made for a fantastic sociology study, as alliances were forged and broken on a daily basis.

 

It was best in the *really* early days...no plugins or UI help. If I guy showed up and you didn't recognise his guild (or monarchy as it was) as friendly to yours, it kicked off.

 

Happy memories :-)