Archeage

I decided to kick off my game reviews with a Steam review I did of Archeage.

The reason for this is because I went through this phase when I'd devour MMO's. I'd search online for a list of MMOs, write down all the ones that caught my attention and try them all out. Yet, I usually didn't play them for more than a month or two.

Archeage was the exception to this rule. It was the first MMO that I played for years (almost 4) without end. So it looked like a good review to start with, even though it was not my first Steam review:

"I have tried many MMO in the past few years and one thing I found peculiar about ArcheAge is that, despite its pros and cons, it is by far the most complete MMO I have ever come across. It has such variety and it offers so many features to explore, that I could never find another MMO that was this complete (and it wasn't for lack of searching):

- PvE and PVP (both in constant update, with new features being constantly released, to provide for endgame players)
- castle sieges
- intra/intercontinental world events
- naval battles
- land/naval trade system
- underwater exploration and treasure hunting
- pirate faction
- trial system
- pets and mounts
- gliding system through the use of custom gliders
- housing system with multiple houses and farm models (including marine houses and aquafarms)
- several land and sea vehicles (skates, cars, farm vehicles for land trade runs, ships, submarines)
- guild system
- nation system
- several events throughout the year (not just during Christmas/Halloween/etc, but during the whole year)
- new content released periodically

And I might still be forgetting something xD" - July 12th, 2016

But wait, there's more!

If you thought that was it, you were wrong.

What you've just read (if you didn't cheat and decided to skip to this part, that is) was my first Steam review on Archeage.

And now, for the plot twist: I have recently updated my Steam review for this game, on the 19th of January of 2017, to also include the following:

"Edit: Trion Worlds has completely changed the whole game. They changed the housing system, the farming system, the crafting system, the combat system, the guild system, the naval system... it is now a completely different game than the one I used to play. I ended up quitting and have no idea what kind of game it is now, so I am changing my review for this game from Positive to Negative, as I can no longer vouch for this game. Maybe it's still a great game for new players since they never got to know the old system."

So, my opinion of the game changed almost 180º. Still, this "change of heart" I had got me thinking.

Crowd pleaser... to be or not to be?

MMOs are complicated. It is not at all easy to be part of the team behind one. Different players have different play styles and therefore look for different elements in the games they play. Sometimes adjustments need to be made, for example, when people consider that some of the characters in the game are too overpowered.

However, it's not always possible to please both sides of the coin, nor should game developers be trying to. Sure, it's totally fine to make some adjustments to the game, polish some rough edges and fix some problems that were not anticipated.

However, I personally don't agree with game developers changing their game so much that it ends up becoming a completely different game entirely. I'm sure the new player base won't really matter, as they never got to know the old game; but for the old timers, I feel like it's a different story. If I wanted to be playing a different game, I would just go play a game from the competition instead. If I choose to play your game, please try not to change it so much that it becomes almost unrecognizable.

All and all, I think that Archeage might very well still be a great game for new players. It is simply just not for me anymore.

What about you? Did you ever end up quitting a game you used to like because it changed too much over the years? Let me know in the comments below.