Almost, WildStar. Almost.

Over the weekend we were out running some errands.  One of our stops was Target.  As per usual, I made my way to the electronics section to hang out while the wife did some shopping. I had no plans to buy anything, but you never know.  So I was looking through their selection of PC games, and much to my surprise I came across WildStar.

Sure, I can buy WildStar anytime online.  But there is something about holding a box in my hand.  I guess it reminds me of the old days when you could only buy PC games in a store.  So there I was, WildStar in hand all set to give in to the impulse buy.

I just could not pull the trigger though.  The $60 price tag just felt like too much, plus it would be my third subscription fee if I stuck around.  I was just not confident that I would get my monies worth.  I also remembered that WildStar offered guest passes.  Getting my hands on one of those might just scratch the WildStar itch.

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ESO vs WildStar

ESO and WildStar are the two new hot games.  I'm currently only playing ESO, but I still pay attention to what is going on with WildStar.  Just this week, WildStar announced their first content patch, The Strain.  Its a good time to compare the kind of updates each game is putting out.

ESO.  Craglorn is already live, and the Crypt of Hearts has been announced.  Both introduce new group content to the game.  Craglorn included a new zone for groups to explore and ESO's first trial (raid).  It also bumped up the veteran rank to 12.  The Crypt of Hearts is introducing a veteran version of an existing dungeon.

WildStar.  The Strain will introduce two new zones.  These zones have solo and group content with no level increase.  They also include new 20 player group content.  PvP considerations were also made when building these zones.

And the winner is...  WildStar!  Unlike ESO, WildStar is introducing content for all types of players.  If I played WildStar, there would be something for me.  Also, the Veteran level creep in ESO is a bit concerning, so I am happy to see WildStar not going there just yet.

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Watch Dogs and Wildstar

It's a pretty busy time for gaming with Watch Dogs being released and Wildstar's early access beginning today.  Usually, I would be pretty excited.  A lot of my Twitter and gamer friends are enjoying both games.  I normally can't resist the infectious nature of game enjoyment.  It turns out that I am immune this time and will not be hopping on board with either game.

Watch Dogs.  This game looks pretty awesome.  Big open world and hacking stuff to make cool things happen.  I should love this kind of game but it turns out I don't.  I've tried to get into Grand Theft Auto, Dead Rising and Saints Row but I only end up spending a few hours in them.  I'm not quite sure why it is, but this type of game just doesn't hold my interest.  Maybe it is the driving around... I do enough of that during the week. I don't know.

Wildfire.  Ah, new MMO's.  Is there a more fun time?  I played Wildstar in early beta and it just never hooked me.  I'm not particular interested in the setting or IP.  None of the features really make the game stand out to me, except housing.  It is very quest/dungeon focused, which I already get in other games.   The action combat is not my favorite either.  

That's not to say it isn't a quality experience.  I was quite impressed at the level of polish I saw in the game.  I know a bunch of people working on it so I really hope it succeeds.   

It feels strange to be sitting on the sidelines while people enjoy these two games.  I just can't fool myself into thinking I'll play them for any decent length of time.  Now that I think about it, I can't think of any new game that I am looking forward to.  Except for Project Venice of course :)

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Not Sold on WildStar

The big news this week is that WildStar will be released on June 3rd, and the NDA was dropped.  So that means I can talk about the game, yay!  I have been in beta for a number of months now.  As you may have noticed, there has not been a lot of talk about WildStar on this blog.  There is a reason for that.

I will say this, my first impression of the game was a good one.  It was a very polished experience even several months ago.  The game was very playable.  Graphics, sound, and gameplay systems were all good.  It has some great features, like housing and War Plots.  Although, the latter I didn't get to experience but it sounds fun.

So why didn't the game click with me?  There are a few reasons.

World.  The setting just doesn't interest me too much.  I'm sure Carbine has created a deep lore, but nothing about it got me interested.  It's a very subjective thing, so I expect a lot of people will enjoy it.

PvE.  It is a very quest oriented game.  Combine that with a setting that didn't interest me and I got bored pretty quickly.  The quests also felt pretty standard.  Conversely, ESO's quests felt more like a single player game than standard MMO fare.

Combat.  I like the idea of attack indicators.  It makes combat more interesting.  Carbine takes this to the extreme though.  It felt like every skill used this system.  It also seemed like a lot of abilities were build up ( takes a second or two to fire), so attack indicators could be shown and enemies given a chance to dodge.  This made combat feel cumbersome to me.

WildStar is a quality game that I would recommend people try.  It just may not be for me.  I will certainly keep watching the game to see how it develops.

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Ok, now I'm a little interested

WildStar is a game that has not really appeared on my radar much.  I always seemed to be under the impression that it was more of a kids game for some reason.  With their latest trailer, I seem to have been mistaken.  Although they still have that bunny race, which I could do without.

Warplot PvP certainly looks interesting and dare I say original.  The different paths also look interesting, like Settler, but I don't really know much about them yet.  So now WildStar is on my radar, good job with that trailer carbine.

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