Endgame Viable

26 entries. 13,122 words.

October, 2006

• World of Warcraft. 2006-10-10 3:30 PM.
  • Technology
  • thomaskrehbiel.com
  
  Inspired by the recent episode of South Park, and being bored with FlatOut2, I finally installed my trial version of World of Warcraft yesterday, which I’d gotten with a video card about a year ago I think. I’ve been trying to stay away from MMORPGs because, as South Park indicated, you really can’t play them competitively unless you’re willing to join some kind of guild and give up your life, and really, what’s the point in playing a game if not to win? :) But I’ve heard repeatedly that WoW was particularly good for so-called “casual gamers” and people who liked solo adventuring, so I gave it a shot. 918 words.
• World of Warcraft Addendum. 2006-10-11 12:36 PM.
  • Technology
  • thomaskrehbiel.com
  
  Addendum: So I go to login to WoW last night to see how many levels I can acheive with a 14-day trial account, and it says the server is full and I have to wait in a queue for some 30 minutes to get in! You have got to be kidding me. That seals the deal. 257 words.
• World of Warcraft Redux. 2006-10-23 6:59 PM.
  • Technology
  • thomaskrehbiel.com
  
  Perhaps this was inevitable, but in the absence of anything better to play, I’m reversing my stance on World of Warcraft. It’s grown on me like an infectious fungus, so I paid the $20 activation fee so I could keep playing past the free trial period. 338 words.
• The Economics Of MMORPGs. 2006-10-25 3:27 PM.
  • Gaming
  • thomaskrehbiel.com
  
  The entrepreneurial opportunities from exploiting MMORPGs have certainly changed since I last played Asheron’s Call. Back then, you usually just saw people auctioning in-game gold, items, and characters on eBay. 354 words.
• To Groupers. 2006-10-30 8:40 PM.
  • Gaming
  • thomaskrehbiel.com
  
  I’d like to explain something to would-be groupers in World of Warcraft (that is, those people who obsessively invite other people into groups). 227 words.

November, 2006

• The Horde Raid On Sentinel Hill. 2006-11-13 5:21 PM.
  • Gaming
  • thomaskrehbiel.com
  
  I saw the funniest thing on Undermine last night: A full-blown Horde raid on the Sentinel Tower in Westfall. 385 words.
• The Human Experience. 2006-11-20 8:24 PM.
  • Gaming
  • thomaskrehbiel.com
  
  For anyone who might be contemplating playing World of Warcraft for the first time: Do not, under any circumstances, select a human character. Your initial playing experience will be much more pleasant if you choose a night elf, dwarf, or gnome. (I can’t speak for Horde races.) Not because those races are better than humans, but because most of the gamers who choose human characters are… how shall I put this delicately… they’re, um, retarded. 555 words.
• A Strike For The Alliance. 2006-11-21 7:04 PM.
  • Gaming
  • thomaskrehbiel.com
  
  Last night I jumped into a PvP brawl. Armsbig (level 21) was just passing through Goldshire when a Horde raiding party descended on the town. I surveyed the enemies and spotted a level 20 guy among the level ?? 233 words.
• Tales Of PvP Shame And Triumph. 2006-11-27 8:20 PM.
  • Gaming
  • thomaskrehbiel.com
  
  The Monday following a four-day weekend is boring as hell, so I’m writing these World of Warcraft tales to amuse myself and make the day go by faster. Plus, I can ramble at any length without seeing a glassy look come over the listener’s eyes. (If you’re married to a non-gamer, you know what I’m talking about. 1,652 words.
• Developers Talk About Warhammer. 2006-11-28 6:13 PM.
  • Gaming
  • thomaskrehbiel.com
  
  People who play PC games probably already knew this, but Slashdot had responses from the developers of Warhammer Online, which might be the next big MMO (scheduled for release in 2007). I’m not sure I like what I’m hearing so far, though. It sounds very group-intensive. 46 words.
• A Corporal Speaks Against Complainers. 2006-11-28 6:15 PM.
  • Gaming
  • thomaskrehbiel.com
  
  Good news, everyone! Teloiv made Corporal! I had no idea it would be so easy to gain not one, but two ranks in the WoW PvP system. 329 words.

December, 2006

• Guild Thoughts. 2006-12-12 7:30 PM.
  • Gaming
  • thomaskrehbiel.com
  
  I’ve been thinking about Guilds a bit lately. Mostly because I’ve been sick this past week and have had no choice but to play WoW just to get through the bleary, dopey, medicine-filled days. No, really. 760 words.
• Mission Accomplished. 2006-12-26 8:05 PM.
  • Gaming
  • thomaskrehbiel.com
  
  I finally got it! I saved up 80 gold and bought my Night Elf Hunter a riding cat (72 gold for training and then 8 gold to buy the actual saddle). It took me from level 40 to level 45 to save up the money. 437 words.

August, 2008

• WarHammer Online. 2008-08-09 3:34 PM.
  • Gaming
  • thomaskrehbiel.com
  
  Is anyone I know going to be playing WarHammer Online? I see it’s going to be released pretty soon (Sep 18). If anyone I know is planning to play it, I’ll probably pre-order it, otherwise I’ll probably wait a year for a free trial version to come with a video card (like I did with World of Warcraft heh). 68 words.

September, 2008

• WAR Ordered. 2008-09-16 10:09 PM.
  • Gaming
  • thomaskrehbiel.com
  
  Okay I ordered Warhammer Online (aka. WAR, which stands for Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning). It’ll probably arrive in a week or so*. 316 words.
• WAR First Impressions. 2008-09-18 10:09 PM.
  • Gaming
  • thomaskrehbiel.com
  
  Well I finally got the WAR beta client downloaded, unzipped, installed and patched up for the head start (a process that stretched over two days and nights), and I played a little bit on the Grimnir server last night. That means I got a one day head start on the retail public riff-raff, since the public launch is supposed to be today, the 18th. 590 words.
• WAR Report, Day 6. 2008-09-22 10:38 PM.
  • Gaming
  • thomaskrehbiel.com
  
  Since I can’t play WAR anymore because it now requires me to enter the CD key from the CD that hasn’t arrived yet, I guess this is a good opportunity to write down some more impressions of WAR. (Yes, once again, people who pre-order games get screwed.) 1,262 words.
• WAR Report, Day 7. 2008-09-23 10:28 PM.
  • Gaming
  • thomaskrehbiel.com
  
  …and day 2 of not being able to play because I haven’t received my pre-ordered copy in the mail yet. That part’s not surprising, but it is beyond belief that Mythic made the unbelievably retarded decision to disable the head start codes a couple of days after launch. Honestly the more I read about Mythic’s business practices, the less I want to play this game. 326 words.
• WAR Report, Altdorf. 2008-09-26 11:05 PM.
  • Gaming
  • thomaskrehbiel.com
  
  I was wandering around Altdorf the other night, which is the capital city for the Empire (ie. the humans). I don’t remember why I went there – probably to find someone to fulfill some quest. 276 words.
• WAR Report, Day Something. 2008-09-30 11:05 AM.
  • Gaming
  • thomaskrehbiel.com
  
  More notes from WAR. I don’t know what it is about MMOs that inspire a lot of commentary. I guess everyone has an opinion about how to make MMOs better. 1,414 words.

October, 2008

• WAR Report, Fizzled Out. 2008-10-14 10:06 PM.
  • Gaming
  • thomaskrehbiel.com
  
  Okay well I cancelled my WAR subscription and uninstalled it. Mrs. Krehbiel was starting to get annoyed and it was way too much of an uninspiring game to try to defend it. :) I should have stuck with my personal ban on EA games I guess. 229 words.
• WAR Report, Cultivation. 2008-10-14 10:08 PM.
  • Gaming
  • thomaskrehbiel.com
  
  One quick note on the WAR Cultivation skill: I applaud the concept – it’s a very cool idea to be able to plant seeds and grow them into herbs and things. Unfortunately the implementation in WAR is just awful. It takes about 2 full minutes to grow a single plant. 189 words.

February, 2010

• Age of Conan Free Trial. 2010-02-03 1:14 AM.
  • Gaming
  • thomaskrehbiel.com
  
  I downloaded the Age of Conan free trial a while back and played a character through level 18 (which doesn’t take very long). This is a game I’ve always wanted to try, but never got around to it until now. 396 words.
• Age of Conan Upgraded. 2010-02-11 2:16 AM.
  • Gaming
  • thomaskrehbiel.com
  
  I enjoyed the Age of Conan trial enough to plop down the measly $20 to upgrade to the full version (which gets you 32 days of playing time). 380 words.
• MMO Nostalgia Trip. 2010-02-25 12:06 AM.
  • Gaming
  • thomaskrehbiel.com
  
  I loaded up the World of Warcraft Burning Crusade 10-day trial the other night and found that, to my great surprise, my WoW characters were still available after over 3 years of inactivity. 416 words.

April, 2010

• UV’s Guide to MMORPGs. 2010-04-19 12:45 AM.
  • Gaming
  • thomaskrehbiel.com
  
  This is a brief summary of my opinion of the pros and cons of each fantasy MMORPG I’ve played or re-played in the last few months. Keep in mind that I haven’t played every character class or experienced any end-game content in any of these games. Also, I am somewhat biased toward melee classes, solo adventuring and PvE (player vs. environment) gameplay. 769 words.