Starting out, What to expect?

[daydalus]

Greetings All. I recently canceled my World Of Warcraft account of of bordem and like so many before me I started the search for a new game. I played WoW for almost 2 years. I enjoyed it but came to the conclusion that endless just to get that next piece of gear was begining to drive me insane with bordem. I called it quits and started my search for a new game to fill my gaming time.

My MMORPG resume consists of Anarchy Online, FFXI, and World Of Warcraft. All three of those games had their highs and lows. I am hoping to find something now that combines more of the highs then the lows.

FFXI was a great game. The most intriguing aspect for me was combat. For me, a MMORPG must do 2 things well to hold my intrest. 1. It must put me in a posistion to create a genuine attachement to my character and make me want to see that character grow and develop. 2. It must have a combat system that is more that point and click. This is one of the things I think FFXI did so well. The "Skill Chains" created a level of depth that I had never seen in a MMORPG and added a dimension that made combat more than simply turning on auto attack and waiting for something to die. So my first question is simple. Does RYZOM have what most would consider to be a compelling combat system or is it more of the point and click varitey? In addition I liked the aspect of grouping, however It was next to impossible to get ANYTHING done without a group. Is that the case is Ryzom?

World Of Warcraft was also a good game. One of my major complaints with it however was that the community tended to be immature and rather short sighted. From only reading the posts on the forum it seems like that is definetly not the case here and I have to say that I applaud the players and developers. Creating a quality community is on the top of my list of things that make a trully enjoyable MMORPG.

And now on to Anarchy Online. AO was my first MMORPG and I enjoyed it. My major complaint was the lack of content. 99 percent of the game was find party, go to locationa nd kill mobs until you leveld. I like hunting parties but I also like to have the choice to maybe do a bit of questing. Or perhaps some crafting. (I LOVED fishing in FFXI.) Does Ryzom offer more than simply killing a endless number of mobs to get to the next?

I am currently downloading the game client to give the free 10 day trial a run. (2 hours and 30 mins left, damn you DSL, damn you!) I am very excited to login and try the skill system that I have heard so much about. Im looking forward to something other that lvling to get points, wash, rinse and repeat.

In closing, I would like to say greetings once again and I look forward to logging in for the first time and meeting some of you in game. I hope this game turns out to be my next.


Daydalus

[mugendo]

welcome to Ryzom..the good news first....the 10 day trial does not exist any more, now it is unlimited but has a level cap of 21 on your skills. There is no payment plan until you decide to stay...at that point you are allowed to transport your character to the mainland.
Enjoy yourself and don't be afraid to ask questions...there is a lot to learn

[wildy22]

Welcome to Ryzom. I am extremely new myself.

What to expect?

1. One of the first things you will need to do after creating a character is to choose a server. Cho is the new(est?) one, and the starter island is relatively busy on a nightly basis. Perhaps someone else can tell you the pros and cons of each server though.

2. Expect a different community than you are used to. Expect to get lots of help and replies as you ask questions, especially if you ask in a mature tone.

3. Expect to see more mature players actually challenge the people who may give you (and others) a hard time for asking so many questions. Expect them also to warn people that use foul language. The mature community in Ryzom seem to stick together like they are defending something extremely special. It is actually quite endearing.

4. Expect a world that blends sci-fi with fantasy in both theme and art. Expect some very impressive weather and seasonal effects.

5. Expect to see a "living" world, where animals and fauna seem to really have a purpose, instead of some random boar or wolf walking around waiting for you to kill it so you can increase your leatherworking skill.

6. Expect to need help on certain quests on the starter island and to enjoy learning how people working together can accomplish things.

7. Expect to enjoy the game the further you get into it, and the higher you level up your skills, which opens more and more of the possibilities that exist for you to play the game the way you want to.

8. Expect no loot drops from baddies - at least not in the way you might be used to seeing them.

9. Expect to have a bit of a learning curve, and to have to open your mind just a bit in order to appreciate how the game tries to be a little different. On that note, expect to go into your key bindings to either change them, or see what does what.

And most importantly, expect to be overwhelmed at the sheer handsomeness of a little Tryker named Deeken if you run into him while adventuring. I warn you now... it will take considerable self-restraint on your part not to be insanely jealous of his good looks.

Welcome to the living world of Atys!

[gretchen]

One thing that this game shares with AO is immersiveness. You know how in AO you run out into the wide open places and you are watching the night sky and the haunting music is making it feel mysterious and then a storm whips up...Ryzom has that feel of "being there." There is less music perhaps...but the loading theme in particular feels AO-ish.

The environments are truly magical. I'm on the mainland now and it's winter, and there is snow on the ground, even the buildings are dusted with snow.

Out in the wild of the jungle, there are ragus hunting mektoubs...and things moving in packs, and Yubos, bless em. I'll be almost sad to see them lose their bony costumes.

And you look down, and a bug or something burrows out of the ground, hesitates, then zooms up into the sky. Or some whisp of spirit or sap hovers nearby then dissipates. Or frogs croak and hop by a watering hole. The very ground is alive...literally.

Previous poster wildy22 put it right, there aren't just creatures standing waiting for you to poke them. Mektoubs walk up and challenge you. Creatures come to the aid of one another (moreso than on starter island.) Ragus are still pesky. Which is to say you may end up hunted instead of hunter...and wishing your Run Fast button would pop.

The skill tree is well made and the player base are great and people will stop and help you, and this game is a keeper.

[alphacen]

Indeed expect all of the above and much more.

The stanza skill system - aka "create your own skills"
It's a bit intimidating but the possibilities here are amazing. You said you wanted an enhanced combat system.. there you go! Soon, you'll be able to test and edit your skills, playing with them. In a certain way, Stanza is the "combo" system moved to the next level.

Your character is visually unique, so does your skill.

The ring system - aka create/play your own scenarios
This will certainly feed your RP, events desire. Here again, for the first time a MMORPG gives you the possibility to build your own lore, quests, events. Wait for the pvp to be implemented (atm it's only RP, quests) and you can imagine the limitless possibilities.

The craft - Aka create your own recipes.
First, the more you craft.. the better you become, as for all the skills, it's a simple feature yet so rare in MMORPGs industry! Crafting is not just about following a recipe, using "static"/"defined" materials to create the exact same item over and over and over. You will have to experiment different mats to find the best combination for the best ..no for the most appropriate item. Being a good crafter is not simply related to your crafting level: what a simple way to reward the most dedicated crafters!

The class system or lack of - aka play what you want to play
All the main classes being accessible to all players and at any given period, you will simply the branch that fits the most with your mood. I first leveled my magic one, convinced that I'll walk my way as a caster.. a week after, I am wearing a medium armor and dual daggers, leveling my melee branch. Will I level my craft, my harvester? Definitely yes... a day or another.

This leads us to the leveling speed:
Because you will never be stuck in a class you didn't want, because you can play every roles you want, your leveling speed is what you make it to be. Take your time and patiently level as much skills from as much "classes" as possible or go the highway, leveling only 1.. it's your choice and yours only.



What do you what me to be?
This is the most usual, the most annecdotic question you will see in game, when you build a party, randomly or not. I mean, you have to be a Ryzom veteran player to not be shocked by such question. As an ex-L2 player, I can guaranty you that you never ever see such question: it's simple, you are what the game decided you will be, players merely work they ways arround.

In every other MMORPGs, player classes are extremely static.. in fact, such unicity and such restrictions becomes their key feature: "Ohh, chose between an incredible warrior, a knowledgeable nuker, etc..". So, as a player, you have to chose carefully what you will become at the character creation.. while as a newb, you barely know what the game is all about, a paradoxal situation. To avoid the expecting issues, many games pushed the classes system further, creating class within the classes.. Imagine a fireman, throwing oil in a fire and you'll get an idea of the result.

Here, Ryzom's opposite system is a blessing
Let's be honest, the static classification system is the exact negation of everything we, as human and players , learn on a daily basis. Static behavior is a trademark of a dieing world.. life is all about change, adaptation.. that's what Ryzom has to offer: unique character, unique skills.


The most intriguing and beautiful part is that while also the gameplay is totally turned toward an extreme character customization, the game has a life on its own.

As mentioned above, you will no longer see mobs literally waiting for you to slaughter, animals behave like.. animals. You will no longer speak of a "hunting spot" as there aren't any : depending on the season, herbivores and their predators will move in different place. So you'd rather speak of hunting "areas".. but even then, the fauna constantly moves around, predators always chases, sometimes alone but most of the time in pack.. so to kill a specific animal, you will have to find it first, a nice definition of what a hunt is, imo.

I could also talk about the highly complex, yet fairly intuitive, logical, informative and effective in-game Interface: once again, you can customize almost anything from the windows to the chat color code.. even the targeting color code can be edited.


In the end, Ryzom could be fairly defined with one word LIFE.
Atys exists on its own and doesn't wait for you -THE player, while the constant customization of your character brings a unique and distinct identity to all of your actions and in the same time, none of your original decisions will be engraved in the marble, nothing is eternal even your equip...

Is it not what life is all about?

[arcturo]

I pretty much agree with everything you said about the other games you've played, so I feel like we're on the same page there. Seems to me like a couple things you're specifically looking for haven't been addressed:

Combat--More involved than FFXI (ignoring skillchains) but not by a lot. Customization of abilities is nice but you're probably going to have one attack set to autofire and maybe have a few others you throw in on occasion. There are some really nice combat animations though.

Hunt parties--This was your complaint with AO (and mine), and to me it's the biggest drawback of Ryzom. Getting people together to hunt is pretty much the focus of 'what people do'. In my experience the sparse player populations made finding groups -very- hard, and guilds don't seem to pick up random people for teams. So to me it has been like AO only much harder to team. It's possible to solo, but downtime can sometimes be a problem.

Content--No dungeons, quest system is threadbare. Many have told me they don't even do the quests. No raid encounters. It does have one of the best crafting systems I've seen though. And with no loot drops and no ability to repair armor it keeps the economy crafter-based.

Community--'Wildy22' said it best: "The mature community in Ryzom seem to stick together like they are defending something extremely special." There are some really good people, but the community as a whole has the most stuck-up attitude I've ever seen in an MMO. They are -very- quick to slam other games and their players: the most common insult I've heard has been "Go back to WoW." I received that in several tells my first day as I was simply asking questions to find out about end-game content. I'm sure this post is bound to stir up similar responses.

There's my summary of it, from one objective MMO player to another. Everyone else was just going to give you the good, someone had to offer the other viewpoints.

[pahya]

Hello

FFXI player since just after PS2 launch. I can tell you that, though Ryzom is an awesome game as stated and quite fun, the combat does not compair to FFXI. Honestly, in all the games I've played I've never found a game with party dynamics and balancing that FFXI contains. I've stopped looking If the community and roleplay there were not the most terrible I'd ever seen, I'd play much more, haha.

However, you were fine with WoW given though, you should still enjoy Ryzom. The combat itself might not be that dynamic but the sharing of HP/Sap/Stamina heals to do away with downtime is unique and the skill system is fun to work through

If you let yourself enjoy your character and the world he/she lives in, you'll love it here. I know I do

[acridiel]

Welcome to Atys

You might want to read this.

I hope it helps a bit.

Acridiel