Observations of a CH noob
Posted: Thu Jan 26, 2012 1:26 am
Hi all,
Been playing for three days and, if I may be so bold, thought I might post a few early general impressions of CH to give an outsider's perspective of the game. I'll try and avoid obvious comments relating to aspects that I simply haven't yet experienced or haven't figured out - I'll probably fail. FWIW my MMORPG experience is primarily from Order and Chaos.
Community: based on forum lurking and a few in-game encounters, the community is great with a refreshing mature (ito mental rather than chronological age) outlook. Personally I find that forums are a huge part of an MMO, particularly where the in-game chat system is not exactly conducive to conversation.
Developers: the quantity and quality of developer involvement here is a huge bonus for this game. The interaction with the community is among the best I've seen - advantage of an indy game company. The fact that they're increasing focus on CH and able to expand is surely a good sign for the future.
UI: some obvious shortcomings, but the composite compass - thumbstick - POI indicator is absolutely fantastic. I haven't seen its equivalent in any iOS game (and I've played lots) and it suits this genre so well. Quest management UI is also nice. The hand drawn maps are super.
Gameplay: the one thing I can say, given my inexperience, is that I love the way mobs of different difficulty levels are mixed in the same areas. Lots of great game mechanics flow from that.
Lore: I simply enjoy the fact that this game has some soul
Graphics: plenty that could be said but I think its pretty obvious and would be unnecessarily critical. From my perspective I really don't mind some of the graphical shortcomings, in fact I think the artistic feel has some real charm. The two main issues I can see is: (1) it lacks the polish which will stop many from even trying out the game, and (2) it doesn't quite manage to hit the all important suspension of disbelief needed for full immersion. It is certain to improve.
Missing Core Features: IMHO, there are 3 missing aspects before CH is a fully rounded game. These are (i) PvP, (ii) AH-driven market economy, and (iii) crafting. It sounds like these will all receive some love in the forthcoming update. I've probably started the game at a good time from that perspective.
Profile: I don't think CH has anywhere near the recognition it deserves, there is obvious potential to grow the player base. I'm glad that the Massively Portable podcast is giving some coverage (good timing with an increasingly disaffected O&C player base). The screenshot comp is also a great (and necessary) move - plenty of potential players will or won't download a free game based purely on the App Store screenshots.
The Future: looks extremely promising
If you read this far then thanks for listening to my rambling. Looking forward to getting involved in the game.
Been playing for three days and, if I may be so bold, thought I might post a few early general impressions of CH to give an outsider's perspective of the game. I'll try and avoid obvious comments relating to aspects that I simply haven't yet experienced or haven't figured out - I'll probably fail. FWIW my MMORPG experience is primarily from Order and Chaos.
Community: based on forum lurking and a few in-game encounters, the community is great with a refreshing mature (ito mental rather than chronological age) outlook. Personally I find that forums are a huge part of an MMO, particularly where the in-game chat system is not exactly conducive to conversation.
Developers: the quantity and quality of developer involvement here is a huge bonus for this game. The interaction with the community is among the best I've seen - advantage of an indy game company. The fact that they're increasing focus on CH and able to expand is surely a good sign for the future.
UI: some obvious shortcomings, but the composite compass - thumbstick - POI indicator is absolutely fantastic. I haven't seen its equivalent in any iOS game (and I've played lots) and it suits this genre so well. Quest management UI is also nice. The hand drawn maps are super.
Gameplay: the one thing I can say, given my inexperience, is that I love the way mobs of different difficulty levels are mixed in the same areas. Lots of great game mechanics flow from that.
Lore: I simply enjoy the fact that this game has some soul
Graphics: plenty that could be said but I think its pretty obvious and would be unnecessarily critical. From my perspective I really don't mind some of the graphical shortcomings, in fact I think the artistic feel has some real charm. The two main issues I can see is: (1) it lacks the polish which will stop many from even trying out the game, and (2) it doesn't quite manage to hit the all important suspension of disbelief needed for full immersion. It is certain to improve.
Missing Core Features: IMHO, there are 3 missing aspects before CH is a fully rounded game. These are (i) PvP, (ii) AH-driven market economy, and (iii) crafting. It sounds like these will all receive some love in the forthcoming update. I've probably started the game at a good time from that perspective.
Profile: I don't think CH has anywhere near the recognition it deserves, there is obvious potential to grow the player base. I'm glad that the Massively Portable podcast is giving some coverage (good timing with an increasingly disaffected O&C player base). The screenshot comp is also a great (and necessary) move - plenty of potential players will or won't download a free game based purely on the App Store screenshots.
The Future: looks extremely promising
If you read this far then thanks for listening to my rambling. Looking forward to getting involved in the game.