Mines of Moria adds many features, many that are typical of a MMORPG expansion pack but all exactly what you would like to see. First of all the level cap has been increased to 60 giving veteran players another target to aim for. Most notably (especially if you’re a newcomer to the game) is the addition of two new classes: the Runekeeper and the Warden. Both classes are jack of all trades, masters of none in many ways. Runekeepers are very similar to magic casters. They use runes to cast spells and are able to use either healing spells or damage dealing spells. Using either increases the Runekeeper’s proficiency thus increasing their potency. However, due to the new attunement mechanics, it means you become weaker at the other type of magic eventually causing some of it to become unavailable, so it does result in having to choose a direction as it takes time to become accomplished at whatever you choose. The Warden class is more your brawler type class. It’s not strictly a tank class but neither is it a DPS (Damage Per Second) class. It uses a Gambit system which basically means you can line up combo attacks which can culminate in a special attack. The moves available range from damaging attacks to being able to self heal making the Warden quite a unique class. Besides the class additions, there is also a new Legendary Item Advancement System whereby each item gains experience alongside your character, so that the more they are used, the more powerful they become. As well as this, you can even name your items if you so wish, so yes you can finally have a weapon called ‘My massive tool’ if you wish. It’s all a very nice concept really, making your items actually feel like your items rather than just the same generic piece that everyone else could have.

Of course now you’ve got your level 50 character and the ability to have your ‘own’ equipment, you want to go exploring to level up, don’t you? Never fear, there’s a few new places to explore in the form of Moria, an underground complex within Middle-Earth (now you know where the game title comes from!). There are three new zones, with two outdoor zones: Eregion and Lothlorien but the shining jewel in the crown is the third zone, the mines themselves which are particularly impressive. They are imposing and even slightly unsettling. It really does feel like an underground kingdom and is foreboding for it. It reminds me of my old Everquest days where I really did feel like an inconsequential minion at times, easily swatted away by an angry monster. This also brings me to my next point; it’s not really a solo player’s place. It really does help to be in a small band of trusty people to explore such vast surroundings.

There is however a slight downside to all this. For those of you who love the Player Versus Monster Player battles, there is no new zone for this. You’re still stuck with Ettenmoors, however luckily it has been revamped a fair bit. Finally, it is now worthwhile for smaller PvP groups to play as capturing and holding camps is more possible. As well as this, Monster players get a ten level upgrade and a new trait system which can be used to customise their monsters. It’s a pity that there is no new PvMP zone but I’m sure it will be added in future expansion packs!

It all feels very much like a long running series of books, with Mines of Moria being described as Volume 2 and the expansion pack adds six more books to the main storyline. It might be a tad linear compared to Warcraft, but this is LoTR Online’s strength, it forms such a compelling narrative that you actually feel caught up in the world of Middle-Earth. Some of the instances are just so enjoyable, that they create such a unique and original experience. It makes a pleasant change to see a combination of the best elements of single player games (a powerful storyline) and MMOs (interactivity with real player characters and a consistent world constantly changing around you). I suspect the vast majority of hardened MMO players will be really surprised by this game and rightly so. It’s a refreshing breath of fresh air in a cluttered market. Will it cause me to jump ship from World of Warcraft? Maybe not quite, but that’s because I’d argue that it’s difficult to compare the two. Sure they’re technically the same genre, but it would be like comparing Duke Nukem to Half Life. Same concept, but one does it so much more intelligently with a much more detailed story. Ultimately, it all depends on your mood at the time and what you fancy playing. It would certainly be a tough call if I had to decide on only one. However, maybe my initial plan to spend the Winter in Northrend was a tad hasty, Middle-Earth has a certain something about it that I like.

The story behind Lich King, for once in a MMO, is surprisingly interesting and actually allows for some interaction by the player. At least if you play as a Death Knight that is. Frankly, if you’ve bought this expansion pack, you’d be mad to not try the class out as it’s one of the best new features. The class is only accessible to those players who already have a level 55 or above character on the same realm, another reason why this game is only really for those who have been playing World of Warcraft for a while. Once unlocked and a character has been created, you start out in a special area, Ebon Hold, located within the Eastern Plaguelands which covers the Death Knight starting area. For the next level or two, prepare to experience some truly impressive set pieces. The Death Knight is a class that has been resurrected by the Lich King himself, Arthas, to become part of the undead army, the Scourge. At the very early stages of your development, you learn the basics such as how to runeforge your weapons (make them even better basically) and to learn the basics behind the unique rune-based resource system that aids your class. It might all sound a little uninteresting written down on paper, but it’s actually surprisingly intriguing. Especially as the further along the quest lines you go, the more you actually pay attention to the storyline and the changes that unfold. I doubt I’m the only one but I’ve found with other class quest lines, I’m more interested in getting on with it and leveling up than actually reading the point of the quest, but due to some unique quests, I did actually pay attention to the plot line behind the Death Knight quests. It made a pleasant change, especially for a predominantly solo player such as myself. Of course, don’t expect to be one of the rare few Death Knights on the server; they’re stupidly popular at the moment and for good reason. Besides being something new to try out, they’re also very cool looking very quickly, and they’re pretty powerful too with their ability to both provide DPS and tanking abilities. What’s not to love? Besides all the obvious features provided by the Death Knight starting area, there’s also the subtle inclusion of the ‘phasing’ technique which allows players to view certain phases of the world environment depending on what place they are in certain quest lines independently from other players. Sounds confusing? Basically it means you can see an event unfold while another player alongside you, who is at a different stage than you, can’t see it. This is most obvious within Ebon Hold but also features in a few other Lich King zones, hopefully in the future it will become apparent in more zones as it opens up more opportunities for engrossing story arcs, something that can be easily missed out on in MMOs such as this.

Besides the class addition, there are also new zones abound, 9 to be exact. All these zones are primarily aimed at the 70+ players but players around 68 should be able to get by if they’re careful. Obviously the level cap has been increased to 80 so it’s nice to have some new zones to grind your way up. Luckily grinding isn’t essential for progression as zones such as Borean Tundra offer a huge wealth of different quests to complete. As well as this new dungeons have also been included with an array of methods to explore them, instances can be organised for 5 person groups, right up to 10 person raids or 25 person raids. Finally, a purely PvP zone has been added in the form of Lake Wintergrasp which aims to offer more PvP functionality in the form of arranged raids as well as new daily quests. A cynic would say it’s Blizzard’s way of dealing with Warhammer Online’s PvP features, but a gamer will just be pleased to see more on offer!

The Inscription profession has been expanded slightly since the recent patch with the ability to level beyond 375, keeping tradeskillers very happy. Plus for the more graphic conscious player, graphical improvements are noticeable with real time shadows, bigger draw distances and improved models. Amazing the difference such minor things can produce. World of Warcraft may never look realistic but it will always have a very unique charm, and Lich King has certainly improved upon this.

For current World of Warcraft players, you’ve no doubt had it pre-ordered since the release date was announced and are busy working your way through the new content already. It also doesn’t really matter what I’ve said, you’ll be happy and already salivating at the idea of another expansion pack which is inevitable. But for retired players, it’s a trickier decision. If you quit with a high level character on your account, then it’s worth coming back to experience all the new content. However if you were always a casual player with lower level characters, it might not be worth your while just yet. Return by all means (you can’t let that addiction go that easily!) but don’t pick up Lich King just yet, wait until you’re level 55+ then try it out. For the uninitiated gamer who hasn’t yet experienced World of Warcraft, much the same can be said. Lich King won’t convert you in any way as it’s not aimed at the newbie like Burning Crusade arguably was (thanks to the new class and races), so if World of Warcraft didn’t appeal to you in the first place, it still won’t now and you may as well take 50% off my overall score as it’s just not for you. Personally, I’m off to go live in Northrend for the Winter!

Once you’ve installed and patched up your game (which at the moment takes around an hour to do), you’re given a choice of servers to play on. There are currently 3 different US based servers and 1 EU based server. All the server populations are currently not too busy, and it would be reasonable to assume that in the future more servers will be added as the game becomes more popular. The character creation screen that follows offers quite a large variety of different options. Initially you are required to enter a name for your character, with the last name being most crucial as it will be used for all your account’s characters. There are then 48 different face types to choose from and a huge variety of skin tones. This game certainly excels at ensuring your character is unique compared to others within the game. Initially there are only 7 different choices for clothing but as the game progresses, you are able to collect new armour and items which personalise your look even further.

After spending many hours (or possibly minutes) creating your online persona, you are thrust into the world of Tabula Rasa, beginning with the ‘newbie’ training zone of Bootcamp. There you are taught the basics of how to play, which if you’ve played pretty much any MMO before, you will know instinctively. The only real difference in the control system is the restrictions placed on your mouse. The mouse in Tabula Rasa is fixed in the centre of the screen and used purely for aiming or firing your weapon, which initially can feel rather odd for the experienced MMO player. All other actions are performed solely through the use of the keyboard. However, give it an hour or so and you’ll be perfectly happy with this arrangement; as well as realise just how well it fits into this more action orientated MMORPG.

Action is certainly what you will come across most of the time within this game and the fast paced combat is indicative of this. Unlike many MMOs, it would be suicide to switch anything around in your inventory during a battle, as your sole source of attack (your mouse) is deactivated along with your ability to shoot things, while you’re looking through your inventory. This makes combat a lot more dangerous at times, as you need to quickly ensure that you are always prepared for any battle that may come your way. As well as this quick reactions are vital in combat, without being able to switch targets quickly, you stand no chance of surviving in what often becomes large scale assaults on your bases. It’s all extremely familiar to any FPS player, yet with a slightly odd (at first) twist on the RPG idea. Even the concept of having bases to protect is just like Capture the Flag modes in games such a Quake 3 Arena and Unreal Tournament.

However, never fear RPG fans, there is still an in-depth story and enough hidden dice rolling to make sure that this is most definitely an MMORPG, not an online FPS. Every single shot you fire is determined by some internal dice throwing to ensure that your stats play an important role within the game, not just your reactions. It does however also take into account whether you’re crouching or not and whether you’re targeting an armoured part of your opponent or an exposed area, adding a significant strategic element to the combat within the game that isn’t really seen elsewhere. We also come to possibly the most innovative feature that Tabula Rasa offers, the cloning system which is linked into the skill tree system often common in MMORPGs. Once you hit level 5 with your first character you are then given a ‘clone token’ meaning that you can create a sibling to your main character who has all the unallocated skill points you would have picked up along the way to level 5. You can then choose entirely different skill sets and classes as your other ‘identical’ character. Essentially this means that once you reach level 5 you can simply recreate yourself a number of times and then develop each character to become a different class. It’s a great system as it allows you to experiment much more easily and then settle on a specific class. Initially at level 5 you can only choose from becoming a Soldier (a general warrior class) or a Specialist (a general support class), it then expands later into a further 4: Commando, Ranger, Sapper and Technician. Then later on at level 30, into 8 classes: Grenadier, Guardian, Sniper, Spy, Demolitionist, Engineer, Medic and Exobiologist. Each of these classes offer a wide range of different abilities and advantages and disadvantages, ensuring that regardless of which class you choose you will have a different experience each time. It’s a great new twist on the concept of MMORPG classes and extremely well designed by NCSoft.

As always, to reach these advanced levels, you need experience, and how do we gain that? Through quests and grinding of course! Yes unfortunately, Tabula Rasa does still offer quests and grinding much like all the other MMOs, and in this case you will be quite often forced to work together rather than be able to solo. This in itself offers considerable benefits and pitfalls, it means the game is a lot more sociable but can make a quick 10 minute play of the game difficult at times. The quests themselves are fairly typical, there are many quests that involve you having to fetch items, kill people, deliver messages, typical MMO fodder. But luckily there is the odd bit of inspiration with some quests giving you a moral choice, whereby you can choose to help one person but not another within the same quest. This doesn’t strictly affect a lot in the game but it is quite nice to be a bad guy for a few minutes and start having NPCs talk about you behind your back. A nice small touch that is often only usually apparent in single player games like Oblivion, rather than MMOs. Tabula Rasa does often try to build a storyline around its persistent world but I can’t help but wonder just how many players will pay attention to the story. For the most part people seem to go to single player games for a storyline, MMOs to interact with real people. Forced events such as the checkpoints (the capture the flag like incidents mentioned earlier) can get irritating after a while when you were just planning on going back to your base for five minutes in between quests.

Tabula Rasa also offers a crafting system but currently it feels a bit tacked on at the end, there’s barely any mention of it within the manual or the tutorial so the only way to find out more is to ask other players. Also the same skill points you use to increase your combat abilities are used to increase your crafting abilities making it a bit silly to concentrate on crafting as you will have very weak combat abilities. Obviously you can create a clone solely for crafting but it’s not quite the same. As well as this, the actual items that can be crafted are not usually of much use so far. Hopefully in the future, a patch or two will be able to cure this and make crafting a lot more relevant to the game, as many players enjoy being able to craft their own items. Linked to this, there is currently no auction house and from what I saw during my time playing, no one was selling items to each other, ruining any chance of a player economy. Again, this is supposedly due to be fixed in a patch soon, which will hopefully create a better community within the game.

There have also been reports that there have been a number of bugs within the game, such as items not spawning for quests, random crashes and very bad lag. However I didn’t see any of this personally, so recent patches may have helped cut down any big problems. I did see some players report of problems with quests being bugged though so that is something to watch out for. There are regular patches, around once a week so this should rectify any serious problems.

Tabula Rasa is far from complete, but no MMORPG ever is when it is first released. As it stands though, it forms a good solid basis for what deserves to become an extremely popular MMORPG. Despite the strong competition of World of Warcraft and Everquest 2, Tabula Rasa manages to add some unique and innovative features to the genre such as the cloning system, and hopefully with a few more patches under its belt (adding extra features); it will be guaranteed a strong player base for many years to come. Although perhaps not a great MMORPG for a newcomer to begin with, due to its slightly sparse tutorial, it is a good example of a MMORPG and deserves to be played by many who fancy something a bit different from the relatively simplistic World of Warcraft. Go out and give it a try.

I’ll already state here that I do apologise for continually mentioning the W word but these days, it’s hard to not compare when Warcraft has achieved such a strong monopoly, at least in the West. However, Lineage 2 started out as a Korean enterprise and was never meant to appeal to the same people as Warcraft did. Instead it, and its predecessor Lineage, were aimed at a more hardcore market of MMO players: those who wanted to feel constantly challenged and to feel that they earned each level, and I can appreciate that to an extent. Back in the early part of this century, I had a long running addiction to Everquest. The original Everquest when I played it was pretty challenging. There would be ‘hell’ levels where it was even harder to level up and every level starting from 10 felt like quite an accomplishment. I distinctly remember the 30-40s being the hardest, or at least feeling like they were the worst. I never managed to get to the maximum level, they moved the level cap up to 70 just before I quit and I’d lost the urge. But compared to World of Warcraft, it was no walk in the park at all; you earned every single drop of experience. What has this got to do with Lineage 2 you ask? Well, Lineage 2 manages to be even more hardcore than that which is very much a double edged sword.

All around Lineage 2, there is a distinct ‘old school’ feeling to it. As you go to create your new character, you can’t help but notice the relatively limited choices for customisation. There are now six different races to choose from: Human, Elf, Dark Elf, Orc, Dwarf, and the new race available with this expansion pack: The Kamael; a race of creatures that look like fallen angels with one wing and an evil appearance. However, there are then only two classes initially open to your character: fighter or mystic, with only fighter available to you if you choose Kamael or Dwarf. These do expand later on in the game but at first, the options are somewhat limited. There are also extremely limited options regarding appearance which although only a minor gripe, it would have been nice to see. Fortunately the options that are available are well animated and look relatively realistic, certainly for a MMO game.

Once you’ve got your online persona sorted out, it’s time to delve into the grand world of Lineage 2, which can be pretty daunting at first for a newbie. Even those used to playing other MMOs may be a bit thrown by the control system. Rather than the typical and fairly intuitive control system of the wasd set of keys, Lineage 2 concentrates on a mouse driven control system. It ends up being simpler to move by clicking on a location you want to walk to. However, at first, it all feels a bit unfamiliar and can take you out of your comfort zone a bit. Even keys such as pressing escape to go to the system menu to log out, isn’t available. Instead you have to use the mouse to select the appropriate menu. It’s all something that takes a bit of adapting to, it’s not necessarily a bad thing, just a different way of working; but in the early stages of the game when everything is unfamiliar, it can catch you out slightly. The game is also not overly welcome to newbies in terms of the early content either. After the first simple quest, it can get a little overwhelming regarding where to go next in comparison to other MMOs that tend to hold your hand for much of the early levels. When you do find a quest, it can be quite tedious as well. I found a number of quests that seemed to revolve around killing 20 or more of one type of creature just to collect their teeth, when the teeth rarely dropped from the mob (when surely all animals have teeth anyhow?). Experience doesn’t seem to flow as quickly as, for example; World of Warcraft which is no bad thing but can get infuriating when there’s so much to see. So many non player characters will simply refuse to offer you a quest because you’re too low levelled even if you want to risk a much harder quest. Unfortunately the quests don’t even seem to add much to the storyline so they just become another way to gain more experience, when often ‘grinding’ the experience by fighting creature after creature, works out better anyhow.

However, if you persevere and find friends to play alongside, the game becomes a lot more enjoyable. You can end up quite reliant on groups but that’s no bad thing. Safety in numbers is always a good thing especially if the group you’re with works well together as a team. Besides ensuring that you can all gain levels faster, it’s also extremely wise when you consider that Lineage 2 is one of the few true PvP (player vs player) MMOs on the market. This means you can be attacked at any time by another player which gives a constant risk factor but highlights the importance of being in a close knit group. The PvP aspect of the game is both a good and bad thing. Some players will thrive in such an environment and find it much more thrilling as it is never quite safe. However for casual players it may be a bit offputting when they have to take into account other players as well as the quest or grind expedition they are trying to complete. The best method to avoid any problems would be to join a clan, a feature available in many MMOs but somewhat more crucial for advancement in Lineage 2. Knowing that you have a group of like minded teammates able to aid you if you get into a spot of bother is always handy. There are also castle sieges available regularly within the game requiring a clan to work together with some often fairly complex tactics needed to get anywhere. It’s a nice touch and an extremely interesting concept once you figure out the ins and outs of it all. Clans can also level up and form alliances enabling more features to be open to them, so the clan system on the whole is one of the more detailed systems I’ve seen in any MMO.

On the whole Lineage 2 is the type of game that you get back exactly what you put into it. It’s not really geared towards casual players as it is not exactly welcoming. It’s a slow and sometimes arduous time to reach level 80 but once achieved, it’s a huge thing to accomplish. For a casual player I couldn’t quite recommend it. They would be better off going to one of the more newbie friendly MMOs such as World of Warcraft or Everquest 2 where they are guided gently into the realms of MMORPGs and are able to choose if they want to face PvP combat or not. However, if you are a hardened MMORPG player of days gone by, you miss the days when a level up sound effect was really worth something and you want the camaraderie of requiring a group of people you have never met before in game just to gain a bit of experience: this might well be worth a punt. It manages to be strangely compelling yet equally punishing, not least of all because of some fairly weird bugs that can show up despite so many updates that should have fixed them long ago. I wouldn’t say that I was hooked on it but I can see why others may be, if you fancy a change from the more common MMOs, I’d probably recommend Eve: Online first but if you’re adamant on a more medieval style setting, give this a try. Just don’t expect to hit level 80 this year, at least not without a lot of missed sleep.

After traversing the 25gb installation, which took over 2hrs, I’ll admit to not having been in the good mood that I started in when I eagerly placed the DVD in the drive. However, overcoming my impatience didn’t take long. There’s something about Age of Conan that couldn’t help but intrigue me to begin with. I loaded up the character creation screen expecting the usual somewhat stale and removed environment of the creation screen and instead was created by an actively moving slaveship with my future new character on board. There are only 3 races to choose from and they looked quite similar (even after using the customisation options) but 12 professions to choose from overall and there are some interesting twists. For once you can actually be a priest character that can hold their own in a fight, as well as tanks/soldiers that have magic powers or the ability to provide group buffs. It’s a nice twist, and it’ll be interesting to see how it affects the game in the higher levels. The actual arcetypes consist of Soldier, Mage, Priest and Rogue so don’t be too worried about having to take forever to decide what to try. I’d suggest giving them all a whirl and see what matches your style.

Once your character is created the initial first scenes feel very much like a single player RPG. You enter the game captive on a slaveship until you are shipwrecked on the island of Tortage, your home for the next 20 levels. A cutscene commences with a man approaching to check you are still alive and telling you that your slavemaster has run into the nearby jungle and to go kill him. Until I reached the outskirts of Tortage City, I didn’t encounter one other player character, so it felt very much like a single player game until that point. At least this solved the awkward problems of starting areas being packed full of players doing the exact same thing. It felt a little lonely but I’m sure being shipwrecked on a strange island would feel a bit lonely at first. Enterting Tortage brings options, you can play in the ‘daytime’ alongside other real players much like a regular MMORPG, or you can go to the inn and enter the ‘nighttime’ where the game becomes a single player instance again. This felt a little more like a third person equivalent of Oblivion although with less depth, very handy for players with limited time however. Sometimes it’s nice to be able to gain some experience in short bursts which this enables. Overall, the first 20 levels were very enjoyable and a great introduction to the game. Primarily it gives you the chance to get used to the real time battle system which is pretty different from other MMORPGs. There is no auto attack, if you have a ranged weapon and a primary weapon you need to manually change weapons (albeit with a simple key combo) rather than auto switch a la Warcraft. You can dodge and sidestep attacks and in later levels form together combo attacks. Each mob has shield indicators on either side of it to show where it is defending, attack an unshielded area with a tap of a key and you cause more damage. It’s a simple but effective system, that although obviously geared towards the forthcoming 360 version of the game, works well and is a breath of fresh air from the usual method of turning on auto attack and going through the motions of the same attacks over and over again. There are also fatality moves which cause blood spatters across the screen, an example of why it gained an 18 certificate in the UK. It is definitely a violent and grim looking game, gone are the Warcraft, near cartoony style graphics. This world is brutal and cruel, but also visually stunning, if you have the PC specifications to back it up. It’s no Crysis but it is a big advantage to have a fast PC, especially if you like to run at higher resolutions.

Age of Conan is still a hard one to guage however, as it’s still suffering from launch problems. There are a few minor collision detection problems which I would like to think would have been noticed in its many alpha and beta testing phases. There have also been reports of a severe lack of content past level 50 and players having no choice but to ‘grind’ experience through killing mobs rather than through questing. Hopefully this will be fixed in future patches but it’s a pity for those who levelled fast of which there do seem to have been quite a vocal group who have already hit level 80, the level cap. Some players of the latest MMORPGs may also be unkeen on the return of seperate zones. Rather than a seamless world, there are loading screens which to some would detract from the experience. However, I suspect most of these negatives will be changed once Funcom take notice of the fundamental problems and will do what they can to ensure that players keep playing. I would still recommend buying Age of Conan if you’re after a new MMO. It is great fun despite its quirks and flaws, just don’t try rushing your way through the levels too quickly. Take your time, getting there is half the journey as they say. Just don’t expect a polished final product like World of Warcraft, it’s still being worked on but will hopefully develop into a great alternative to Warcraft.

Today, I’m planning an afternoon of Jericho on hard. Should be fun hopefully. If not maybe Lost Odyssey now I have the official guide to help me along the way. I was going to go through it without but I changed my mind. I’d rather do it that way now.

Also I’ve been playing the review copy of Age of Conan that arrived last week. It’s not bad at all. Technically very good for an MMORPG although I think my interest in MMOs is waning a bit now. It should get a good write up but I’ll make sure to link to the full thing when I’ve finished writing it.

Finally, in this patchy entry: Can anyone name a game where you kill innocent women just because? I don’t mean female ninjas or whatever, i.e. people that are ‘kill or be killed’ types. I mean totally innocent ones.
Just something that I was discussing the other day in a tirade about how gory slasher films can get away without criticism but not violent games despite the fact they always seem to involve some poor young, attractive woman get tortured and murdered by some random nutter. Which personally I find much more disturbing than anything I’ve seen in a game. I’m certainly not saying they should be banned (I don’t really agree with banning of anything fictional), it just seems daft that they are fine but games aren’t. I’m guessing it’s because games are a new media that the conservatives of the world (that’s conservative with a small c) just don’t understand yet.
Anyway if someone can name a game, let me know!