Welcome back to part 1 of my analysis of the debate between veterans and casuals over the validity of hardcore oldschool games. For those that missed Part 1 in which I built up how this debate came about, check it out here. Now on to a look at how this connects to MMOs.
To learn more of the two gaming preferences I spoke of, I did a small research project on the MMO spectrum here in the Philippines. Might I say that I actually saw what I was looking for. According to my research, most of the players in this country dislike modern MMOs. This includes WoW, Warhammer, DC Universe Online, and RIFT. No matter how broad or awesome an MMO is, 90% of the gamers here would rather grind in Ragnarok and RF Online Gold than embark on an epic quest to save Azeroth from certain doom. I myself enjoy modern MMOs and the cutting-edge features they offer compared to the grindfest some oldschool MMOs bring.
For this section, I interviewed Roan41, an RF Online Gold player who claims that new MMOs are NOOBish and trash (feel free to shoot him). According to him, questing makes the game extremely easy, and that grinding levels your personal skill level far faster than running around on delivery missions. I can't deny that a lot of people share the same insight regarding MMO gameplay, though it is sad that most people deny themselves of MMO evolution simply because they are fully satisfied with a game from the past. I have nothing against RF Online; in fact, I love it. But if we aren't open to change when it comes, the good changes are never going to survive and evolve the industry.
To expand my research, I asked my 13 year old nephew to play a couple of classic games. Note that he is quite good at games like Halo, being able to finish the darn thing at the legendary difficulty. After purchasing a second hand NES console for our little experiment, I quickly asked him to play the first Contra game. I was utterly shocked after seeing him die two times after the first bridge. He ranted a lot, and like any good uncle, I was there to write down everything he said. First off, he said that the graphics were pure trash, and that it was really hard to see the bullets even though the game was being played on a 50" screen. The lack of lifebars was also a big issue for him (and no, I did not teach him the 30 lives cheat). After wasting all three continues, he said that the game was pretty impossible to finish, and that it was purely ugly aesthetically.
