I’ve played a lot of MMOs. I’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe. Attack ATVs under fire off the Oshur gate. I watched ice-crystals glitter in the darkness near the shoulder of Arthas. Tiered PvP rewards in the rain… Actually, you probably believe all of those things. So you understand that, after all that, I might not want to start another MMO. Another fantasy MMO. Another fantasy MMO that looks awfully like WoW, Aion, WAR…

It’s so easy to damn this game for its familiarity. Yet, even the developers admitted to us that Rift isn’t particularly original in most regards; they were happy to say that it was a portmanteau of all their favourite games and all the MMOs they’ve worked on (lots). However, as those games were packed with good ideas and as the developers know what they’re doing, learning from experience is not a bad thing. So MMO veterans (which is y’all) will recognise the button-chaining and tab-targetting, the ability to survive ankle-shattering falls with barely a whimper, and the useless pets; but you’ll praise the mounts at zero level, the ease of getting the various currencies and the huge world of optional quests. (more…)