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Fallen Earth Review: Fallen Earth Review - Edit
7.5
| Pros |
  
|
 Diversity in character creation and progression Engaging and significant crafting system Vast, open sandbox world Well written PvE content |
| Cons |
 Awkward combat Dated visuals Lack of polish Not very newbie friendly |
Fallen Earth is the type of game fans of MMOs should love to see hit the scene. From a small group of talented developers without coffers the size of Fort Knox, comes a game that hearkens back to the days of MMO-yore while giving the genre a much needed dose of originality. The game is buggy, a bit antiquated in terms of visuals, and has some rough edges that need smoothing, but in a gaming scene populated by products that are all trying to copy one another while spending the budget of a small country, it is certainly refreshing to see the little guy shine.
In a lot of ways Fallen Earth reminds me very much of EVE Online. Both are from unknown developers, had little to no fanfare at launch, and yet both managed to score a small but dedicated fan-base from day one. The latter, as we now know, grew exponentially over the years almost entirely by word of mouth, and I would not be surprised if with time and polish Fallen Earth sees the same trend. But before you start to think this game is my own personal messiah, let's get into the parts I found a little tough to swallow.
By no means am I the kind of gamer that determines whether or not to play a game based on its visuals. But after Age of Conan, WAR, Aion, and even Champions Online in the past couple of years, Fallen Earth looks nothing short of outdated. While the game's visuals have continually seen improvement through the patching process, the Apocalypse still seems a little old and rusted... though perhaps that was a design decision (READ: I kid, I kid).
Fallen Earth isn't ugly, and the artists have done a fantastic job at rendering a dystopian wasteland, but if you come into the game expecting Fallout 3 you're more likely to be disappointed. But with the improvements made since beta, I wouldn't be surprised to find this criticism null and void in a year's time.
;)
The actual animations of the critters and characters in the game world are another story. Perhaps a drawback of leaning towards a more realistic art style, Fallen Earth suffers from what I like to call "GI Joe Theatre Syndrome". The characters and enemies look like action figures being manipulated by some unseen child on a playground. On the plus side, character customization in terms of both looks and progressions is vastly superior to most any other game on the market. You'll be hard pressed to find a clone of yourself out in the wastes even if you do look like a tinker toy when fighting mutated beasties. Just do not come into the game expecting to look like a super soldier with lots of shiny loot. It is the apocalypse after all, and pretty much everything you don will be either crafted or salvaged from the remains of civilization. No massive shoulders that extend ten feet above your head or glowing tridents here, no sir.
Speaking of character progression let me state here that Fallen Earth is a hardcore gamer's MMO. I do not mean to say that you need hundreds of hours to enjoy it, but rather that an MMO rookie might find himself overwhelmed, and similarly someone expecting the usual trappings will be lost in a jiffy. There is no fast travel system to shuttle you around the game world. You can get a horse (which does not magically disappear when you dismount) and you must take care of said animal. You can requisition yourself a bike, or an ATV, or some other motorized transport as well... so long as you have the gas to power it. I would be hesitant to call this a shortcoming of the design however. The point of Fallen Earth is not to level as fast as possible and start raiding.
;)
It seems instead that players are intended to "live" in this futuristic landscape. Again, someone expecting to be able to walk from one corner of the map to another while on auto-run in a few minutes would be mightily disappointed. This isn't a game about dungeons and loot, it's about surviving the apocalypse.
Also worth noting is the fact that the game's character system is entirely classless. There are also no such things as respecs in Fallen Earth. Players are urged to make careful selection of their skills and abilities. I would even go as far as to suggest waiting to spend one's Advancement Points (AP) until you have full grasp of where they should be spent. You can get by without slotting them for a handful of levels, and in that time you should definitely refer to the Newbie Help channel in chat for all of your questions. The community is rather helpful, and I found myself in need of their guidance quite often considering how blind the game might leave you standing at first. I cannot overstate how each new player should definitely pay attention and digest the information garnered from the tutorial as well. In keeping with the fact that Fallen Earth is not "Yet Another Fantasy MMORPG", I found that upon playing the tutorial more than once I was much better prepared for life in the "real" world.
A fair review,much better than the 1st review on this site.
Overall, I agree with your "daunting yet promising" review.
In fact, I just started the trial last night. I'm 90% sure already that I'll sub at the end of the trial.
As much as I've defended STO in these forums, I have come to realize that it is too one-dimensional for my tastes. And the more I read about TOR, the less I like what I'm hearing.
So, here I go, in to the apocolypse to live the life!
Agreed. Fair review.
The part about rolling the die to see if you hit has always confused me. I've never missed anything I was aiming at (level 38 atm.)
I've heard this comment before and believe that people are experiencing it, it just doesn't happen to me :)
"open sandbox world" lolwut ? u can have open world or a sandbox world
FE cant be a sandbox is a theme park
Another clueless poster who does not know what a sandbox is. Please understand what you are talking about before making silly posts.
Good review, I think it is right on. The game has potential, I hope this game sticks around and improves.
Another clueless poster who does not know what a sandbox is. Please understand what you are talking about before making silly posts.
if u are so good post here on how many different ways you can acquire the skills needed to craft a ATV if FE is a sandbox u have options if is not a sandbox u only have on way to get said skill
i wait for your post
if u are so good post here on how many different ways you can acquire the skills needed to craft a ATV if FE is a sandbox u have options if is not a sandbox u only have on way to get said skill
i wait for your post
You play EVE so you must know it all. OKKKK!!!!
FE is not a very good mmo.. i played it for two months, most people after a month find out that there really isn't much to do besides ap grind, and everything feels like it's done for nothing. .. boo FE you could have been so good :(
After a month play? oreally, I am sure everyone will take your word for it. There is nothing else to do except for AP grind, right!!
The replies are getting interesting already and we are still on page 1. I am excited !!
Patch notes of today: http://forums.fallenearth.com/fallenearth/showthread.php?t=31584 with lots of graphics improvements. Yay!
New interview with Lee Hammock: http://www.massively.com/2010/01/06/massively-speaking-episode-83-fallen-earths-lee-hammock/
Cheers
I've been a member on fallen earth for 27 weeks 6 days :) that means i am playing since beta and what do you know i still enjoy it SOOOO MUCH. I haven't got tired of it and i tried other mmos in this time.........allods,alganon, the new LOTRO expansion, WAR......but got tired of them pretty quick and stayed true to FE because it is different in so many ways!
it's weird why dated visuals are always a bad point, if it had up to date visuals then the 1 server thing would not be a viable option due to the increased lag on all ends. it'd be less of an MMO and more of a shard/server fest.
I mean if WoW didn't have cross realm Bgs and Dungeons, it wouldn't even be high on my list.. the visuals are hardly stunning but to fit so many on a server is pretty good and it is the most successful MMO.
Unlike some others with high visuals, what did happen to Vanguard, and i hear AoC is widely popular now.. *cough* then there's tabula rasa... oh wait.... no there isn;t ;)
an MMO MUST have dated visuals as gameplay must come first, it's an MMO (object to get as many people to SUBSCRIBE to it) not a single player game (object to get as many people to buy and play it, complete it in 5 hours and trade in) :-p
not that i think fallen earths visuals are that bad, but reviewers and fanboys (not gamers) from other games have to bitch about something.
FE is a mix of Sandbox and Theme Park.
Reviewers and Gamers alike have been fed with shiny graphics for too long and since most games are just the same old same old, only graphic quality is what makes the game better than another. It's the reason why I believe players have forgotten that Gameplay > Graphics. DarkFall had similar comments that the graphics are outdated and all that crap (and quite frankly, the environment looks great but that's out of subject).
Either way, had players not been served clones with better graphics, perhaps reviewers woulld not even mention anything about "dated visuals".
---
As for Fallen Earth, the reviewer hasn't mentionned anything about Fallen Earth's story, which is pretty good in my opinion, so I'm left wondering if the reviewer skipped the quest text or not...
Looks like a pretty fair review.
After a month play? oreally, I am sure everyone will take your word for it. There is nothing else to do except for AP grind, right!!
The replies are getting interesting already and we are still on page 1. I am excited !!
Yes really, i believe that it is not a very good mmo.... and anyone who enjoys it, good for them!
On the other hand, i did see the are working on alot of my complaints (not because of them, lol) as others disliked things too, like adding item degradation..
But..
There is still very little challanging PvE content (and no i'm not talking about instanced raids) and take some time, all the 45's are feeling like nothing to do.. it's obvious it's more a "enjoy slowly" then a "rush through" type game (nothing wrong with that)
A very fair review in my opinion. More in line with what I felt should be the case when the first one was done. Additionally having known the reviewer from when I spent some time on another MMO site I have confidence in the integrity of the review.
MMORPG.com will benefit in having Murph conduct reviews in my estimation. Heck, I wanna work for the site now, lol!
Is there a non-member link so I can read the notes? Are they posted elsewhere? When I check the forum link it says I need to be a registered member to view them.
Thanks for the review. I've shared a simmilar experience in the game during my 14 day trial. I found the tutorial helpful but information planly stated by players was far more informative then the info delivered by the NPC's. I found that to be an annoyance as I wanted to grasp the basic mechanics of the game via the tutorials and not just be given a platform to Q&A the community (which I found to be extremly helpful and delightful).
I found I had a hard time getting past the visuals and with max settings things looked decent but chugged massivly in towns and dense areas. So I had to turn things down a bit and the visual loss was significant. Animation and the puppet factor also kept drawing me out of the game. Perhaps I picked a bad starting town but nature is full of color, I don't understand why the apocolypse has to be "brown-town". Even 100 years from now plants will be green in the desert, not a muted-olive ontop of brown/grey dirt.
Visuals aside, I really did find the game exciting. One thing I'd like to comment on is the lack of rolemodels. Weather as an NPC or player, I lacked any carrot to grow. Perhaps town guards with some cool looking gear would incentivize me a bit, but everyone around town was in noobie gear (the NPC"s) and the few players I saw looked just as lack-luster.
I know there exists advanced gear which players strive for and makes your road-warrior character look more like a brotherhood of steel character, but all that is hidden from you initally and maybe I've just grown to desire that carrot to lead me twards higher aspirations from the get-go.
Just my 2 cents.
My type of game...
This review makes it look worth a try to me.
I played for a couple of months at release and enjoyed the first 6 weeks. After that it felt like I was gathering to craft bullets to kill things for no real reason behind it. I'm not saying it was a bad game, it just wasn't for me, or maybe nothing holds my interest fo long anymore.
I have been looking at this game for a bit now. Just don't know if it would be my cup of Tea. I guess i will have to breakdown and try it out and see if it really will be a game i could enjoy like Eve has been for so many years now.
Very fair review.
95% of the reviews here are total crap (IE, by fanboys or people who play the game for 4 hours and think they can critique it). This one is good.
I enjoyed the part where the reviewer admitted he couldnt "get into the town based pvp conflict"...which starts at sector 2 which is level 16-18+.....so your admitting you really didnt get very far in the game?
another joke review in my opinion from a guy who couldnt even experiance endgame content which I find very enjoyable 3 months in.
FALLEN EARTH a failing grade for me but not a total lost cause.
graphics yes there plain and the apocoliptic world is not aparent enough but with some polish the graphics level is satisfactory to get the job done I liken it to star wars galaxies level graphics.
animations: yepper prety crude and stiff need some work here.
customizations: this is a two faced monster,,, yes there are plenty of customizations "possible" but they use "stat clothing" and they have no costume clothing slots or even clothing toggles so in as little as the first 15 minutes of the game 90% of your clothing "choices" are obsolete sure you can wear a baseball cap if you want to sacrafice head armor or you can wear sunglasses instead of a gasmask but few actually do ultimatly most players tend to wear the standard armor of their level as they can get it. your first real clothing is gonna be a duster and chaps....its really not a choice.
TRAVEL: one of the most anoying and negative things about FE is the lack of stratigic travel travel just between one village and another can be 10-15 minutes long even by ATV (on foot is even worse!!) this has the crippling effect of isolating players from each other this means that if your in zone 3 you most likely wont pick up and head back to help a buddy out in zone 2 as this is a MAJOR move it can take you an hour to go from one zone to the next let alone towns in the same zone. Ive sugested a steam like train way back in beta with coresponding quests support maintence and security as a train would make a great plot device, not to menton the quests for access at the different stops.
BIKES AND ATV: no vehicle physics engine!!! no customization !!! these crafted vehicles are lame ground huggers and all bikes and and atvs of a given type all look the same sure bikes are a bit faster than a horse but horses are far superior in most other respects.
CRAFT SYSTEM for the most part i was impressed with their craft system and the way they distributed the resources though some recipies did leave me scraching my head like ammo they have normal heavy rifle ammo,, effecient heavy rifle ammo,, and economic rifle ammo,,,, yet these are all the exact same ammo! heavy rifle,, yet its still 3 different stack slots in your inventory (or at least two crafted and looted) and thats true for every single ammo type !!!
FACTONS yes they have excelent definitions for their factions but they are in name only there is no real differences between a tech facton player and a vista facton player both use the same tech level gear and both ride the same gasoline driven bikes,, you would think vistas would shun bikes and have advanced horses and techs have hover bikes my sugestion is go either tech or the military facton they have better locations and better combat books. and resources near their outposts.
no shotgun physics engine shotguns are slow big bullet guns and a poor allaround gun even against zombies and the like (FE you suck)
no grenade physics engine: grenades are the ultimate in lame in FE if you dont hit your target with a slow moving lob they they miss totally as in no splash damage or AOE this includes poisons bios and acids.
crafting QUE they fix this yet? you still cant move things around your que so if you start building a long project and need to make some quick ammo or a subcomponent your screwed. (most requested BETA item)
**********
BEGINNERS GUIDE:
as soon as you step out of your pod and into the real world you have points you can spend (this is beta knowlage so possibly outdated now) you should spend points into armor use to get it to 15 (15 allows you to wear the first armor duster and chaps) also i sugest leveling your melee to 15 and the next 2h melee weapon above the stick (i cant remember what it was but its far more effective i usually prefer a weapon that ballances damage and speed , speed being near 1 second delays) you should endever to at least aquire or buy all the basic first level (11$ books) as its a real pain to get some of them later or make a multi hour trip to get them and it fills in your craft register. get yourself a horse as soon as you can,, learn to make ammo,, you can do all of the quests in all of the towns in zone 1
there is also a first aid skill/power that everyone should get asap though i cant quite remember it i think you can get it at 20-21 skill? it is effectivly a 1 hour regen buff get it,,, live it.
skills have sweet spots every 15 levels 15,30,45 ect and its better to push one skill to 15 than 3 skills to 14 as 14 gets you nothing dont bother with a gun till at 60 rifle because a 70m rifle without a scope is next to useless.
you should be crafting ALL THE TIME as combat and crafting exp both combine in the total exp pool ! if you only fight your loosing out on half the possible exp gain and definatly try to load up your que before you log even if its just ammo.
get a pad of paper and make note of where you find resources and what trainers are in which towns also not the type of mobs near a given town and their difficulty and specials this will save you mucho time later on.
while fallen earth didnt impress me enough to bother to stay past beta it might be worth another look in a year or so and see if they fixed the fatal flaws ive listed here oh and stay away from their LAMEASS death boarder as you will be walking along and fall over dead in the middle of the desert even though the map shows you are nowhere near the boarder
Very nice review and probably one of the most fair ones Ive read on this site so far.
Ill admit I was pretty critical of FE during its beta phase and didnt really give it much of a shot before I passed judgment on it. However after a stream of updates, developer love and my own time playing the trial and meeting some great people, I quickly changed my mind. Cant wait to see where this game goes in the future.
I think the review was more then fair. There was a lot of in depth information which makes me feel he at least played the game whereas the first review seemed too general to be believable. A very decent review.
I too gave this game a shot during the free trial period.
My initial knee-jerk reaction was...wow...this game is great...it is unique and is doing things that havent been done lately.
As the glamour and new car smell started to fade...I was able to get a better read on the game. While it was fun, I have to admit I am not much of a crafter. Crafting is a neccessary skill in Fallen Earth and if you as a gamer hates crafting or even dislike crafting...I would not recommend this game for you. I would however recommend you try the trial and find out for yourself.
As I said before, during the first 15ish hours of playtime I had a blast learning what does what and discovering skills and such...but after a while...it becomes a crafting grind to increase your skill so you can get to the next thing to grind so you can increase your skill. I think that is typically what "Crafters" LOVE about games and this game would be for them...unfortunatly those carrots dont work for players who enjoy more of the PvE/PvP aspects of the game.
The quests were fine, but repetitive.
I give credit to them for making a great game however....just not great for me.
Well your lack of spelling and sentence composition shows. It isn't a theme park. There is no major enemy to defeat. After the tutorial your free to do whatever you like.
You should be thankful the game just got a good review and a decent score. Most places don't give up anything above a 6.
endgame content consists of zone 3 which is has much less content that zone 2 or zone 1 and consists almost completely of PVP engame might as well be a brick wall.
LOL at the couple of fanboys who got so offended.
Didn't someone wonder why the reviewer didn't mention the quests? They must not have read the "pro's" because one of them specifically praised the great PvE quest text. Hopefully FE continues to get better. Thanks for the review.
I really wanted to try the game, as soon as my current games get boring. I have been following Fallen Earth pretty much since it was announced. There are some tiny reasons why I have not tried the game yet. For example everyone says it is not polished yet and so I'll stick to my current games for now. As I said I've been following the development of FE pretty closely and I am a bit sad, because I thought it would become F2P. No, not because of dated graphics or something like that, but I think such sandbox games have a big profit from high player numbers. I mean that is why EVE has only a single server. On the other hand I understand it is harder for small and more independend companies to start out with such a concept. P2P games also tend to have a more mature community, which is a reason I would try the game. However in the last time I see a shift. Older players switch to F2P and younger ones play games with monthly fees. I also like the Entropia Universe concept because it was a very adult-friendly saytem. However there are also more young players there.
Okay now what I intended to say in first place.
Since I generally do not agree with MMORPG.coms reviews I'm afraid this game won't be something for me.
And I have some questions:
Is the community mature?
Does real role play exist?
Are there many players online?
I really enjoyed my time with FE. I unsubbed due entirely to real life time constraints and barely found myself playing. If I had more time, I'd definately resub. The crafting got me engaged, the first system to ever do that for me. It was also the only game to date that game me the Roland, Man With No Name, Gunslinger-esque feeling whenever I played.
Good and fair review. Agree with most of it actually and much more even handed than the first review.
You should be thankful the game just got a good review and a decent score. Most places don't give up anything above a 6.
Well, you are only partly correct
www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/pc/fallenearth
Toss out the reviews by the "bozo" sites and the game fairs pretty well.
Good review, fair, balanced, and in line with my thoughts mostly. Though I disagree on the dated graphics bit, it looks pretty damn good compared to other more mainstream MMO's.
Also, to the poster who complained about the colors of the apocalypse. There is a rather artistic and atmospheric reasoning for using muted tones in an apocalyptic setting. It gives a sense of foreboding and bleakness to it. If you were wandering a wasteland filled with bright green plants and rainbow colored flowers and such, the world seems happy, hopeful. This goes counter to the entire idea of a post-apocalyptic wasteland, which is the idea of loneliness, hopelessness, and despair.
With muted grays, browns, and greens, it makes the world seem much more bleak and amplifies the idea of surviving alone in a vast, and tattered landscape. It contributes to the emotional and psychological effect the world should have on you, as you wander, explore, and "live" in it.
The post-apocalyptic setting is by far my most favorite genre of Sci-fi. It best shows mankind's strengths, weaknesses, emotional response, and social reactions to a world that has drastically changed for the worse. The emotional and psychological impact of loneliness and fear, the display of our greatest strength "Adaptability" to our environment and surroundings, the social impact it has on society, it's breakdown into a lawless, fractured shell of it's former self, and the harrowing, and challenging idea of surviving in a world that no longer resembles what we once knew.
Bright colors would ruin this, causing it to become something else entirely. Thus the reason for the muted colors.
Edit: To add to my opinion on the colors and atmosphere of the post-apoc genre, this is not to say that all hope is lost. On the contrary, this setting also shows the best of what man can offer. People banding together to provide shelter, resources, and protection from those who prey on the weak.
People working together in an attempt to provide services, technology, and resources to others in an attempt to rebuild society. Those with the skills and education applying their knowledge to the new world in the hope of bettering the lives of those left.
Among many, many other examples. The post-apocalyptic genre, to me, shows the best and worst mankind has to offer that other genre's do not.
NEW RULE NUMBER 1:
Do not review a game until you have reached maximum level and experienced at least 60% of the atainable content.
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Thats bad journalism like that that get normal players like us to buy a over rated game such as age of conan.
Myself, I ahve been following fallen Earth since it's early conception and its first beta stages, so when I took the 10 day trial I had a little better grasp on what to expect from it, unlike a stone cold fallen earth Noob. Right from the start, I find it not only beneficial to your quests and such, to fully read and understand te conversations you have with the NPCs, but it also gives you a real feel for the much dreaded situation the world is in. The story line is very well written in that the conversations coming from the various NPCs help you to understand on what side of the fence they each stand on and their need for "hush..hush"
yes I do agree that the graphics might be a tad out dated, but it seems to be quite fitting for the period the game is set in, after just a few minutes in the open terrain you soon forget how out dated they might be. There is so much that I enjoy about the game, yet because of being cottled by previous MMORPG games in giving me a boat load of pointers,tags,flags, etc so I can't help; but find where I am going, This game affords you the opportunity to freely explore while trying to find your way point , town or next NPC. The game offers a world of information at your fingertips within easy reach, while still allowing you to hide it so you can enjoy a relatively OPEN view screen.
I haven't even progressed as far as I had hoped, which is another awesome point about this game. As the review says, you are NOT forced to GRIND your butt off to get to a high level. you can explore the world, your character, crafting abilities and such. This game seems to be a very layed back game as to what you have the opportunity to do, As for the Combat system, once again, as soon as you get comfy with it, it seems to become 2nd nature.
I have been totally satisfied with my limited exposure to the game thus far,. I highly recommend it to the veteran MMORPG fan who is looking for something NEW & something different from the looong line of "cookie Cutter" games. It should satisfy you as well, as those just wanting to try and get exposed MMORPG games for the 1st time.
MonTe
I am glad to see FE having at least some success post-launch. I took part in the early testing of FE but could never get into it despite wanting too. There was just something about the overall "feel" of the game I didn't like.
Spot on review IMO.
Fair and honest.
Well done MMORPG.
My experience was that FE starts out strong - the crafting is interesting and varied, scavenging is kinda fun, it's a different kind of world - but that it wears off. Long travel times aren't fun, combat animations are weak (especially melee when you are trying to work out if you hit the target or not) and being able to easily gimp your character shouldn't be a design feature.
FE is for a certain kind of player and I'm not it. Of the players I've known who have started playing post-launch, very few hung on past their first month after the whole, 'I've got to craft HOW much more stuff?' or 'I'm doing this next bit why?' set in (or even 'I've gimped my character, haven't I?').
As for the review: it really seems that MMORPG.com went for the safe option and said, "the game is okay but it's got potential! Look at the potential!". I'm all for indie MMOs succeeding but I think FE is going to find it hard to keep growing its player base.
Given the inherent complexities involved with any MMO, I see the OP review as shallow and uninformative. I am subscribed to Fallen Earth and I play it for a short time most nights, but it does not scratch any kind of adventure or challenge itch for me. In fact, I usually enjoy it before bed like a cup of warm camomile tea.
It takes more than a bunch of sand on the ground to designate a game as being a sand box. Although the surface looks apocolyptic enough, waiting just under that fake patina is a game driven by linear systems and devoid of risk or challenge - odd in any game perhaps, but it seems conspicously absent in a world that styles itself to be something dangerous and unforgiving. The game is largely, if not completely soloable and although I have multiple bars of abilities and self buffs, I rarely need to do more than hold down both mouse buttons while pointing the big aiming circle at the mob. The mob dies, I almost never do (except when lag-sliding head first down a steep decline while exlporing). Although quests are generally well written (kudos due here), they are predictable and yes, there is the little quest indicator over everyone's head for those who just don't have time for games.
This is an MMO, and the review mentioned little if anything about the social aspect of it. And really, one would be remiss without mentioning that the game plays like a single player RPG. Having played since pre-release, I have "spoken" to only one person in the game and I have yet to group (no need, no desire). For a variety of reasons, this is the first game where I do not feel compelled to even consider joining a guild/clan.
And yet I play...almost every night. It's good enough for that, to be sure, but I think the score of 7.5 is a bit generous when measured as an MMO. Whether the game has a bright future is anyone's guess. But with some type of fast travel and player cities promised sometime in the future, I'll say this: if you want an interesting single player post-apocolyptic experience, Fallen Earth will likely satisfy your need, but hurry, it probably won't be that way for long. And as we're all looking to stretch that dollar nowadays, Fallen Earth is a bargain at twice the price.
Perhaps one of the game's most puzzling flaws, however, is its lack of identity. The dichotomy of character between the gritty desert in a post-apocolyptic landscape juxtaposed against an overforgiving game with little to no fear or challenge from its PVE makes for a schizophrenic experience that could cause many players to leave without ever knowing why.
Lastly, I cannot leave without a positive comment regarding the development and design staff. Their committment to project and process methodology is readily apparent in both their interaction with the fans/media and the relative quality of their code releases.
Fallen Earth is a good game; nothing more, nothing less.
i won't play this game cause of it's ugly graphics
Usually i would make some kind of witty response to this because i always believe gameplay takes precedence over graphics any day. This time I agree.
I really want to play a post apocalyptic MMO, but if I'm to do that I need great visuals. I just can't immerse myself in a post apocalyptic future unless I feel I'm actually in one. Fallout 3 did a great job on the graphics that I were enabled to feel part of the world. After watching gameplay videos of Fallen Earth and screen shots I just can't see myself getting that feeling with this game.
The gameplay may be stellar but as a post apocalyptic MMO I need visuals to go with it. The "Feel" you get being involved from an imaginary online world has to match up graphics wise otherwise it's just another game
Fairly good review but there is one factual mistake.
Your combat skills do not in any way determine hit or miss, that is entirely based on your manual aiming. What the skills do is they modify how much base damage you do.
The game looks at the difference between the attack skill and the defense skill once an attack hits and that difference cause an increase or decrease in the base damage. First ten point give a +/- 1% per point, the next 20 give +/-1 per 2 points and so on until the cap of +/- 40%.
Such a shame this is not a game yet launched in Europe or I would have jumped on board. As for the graphics it is an apocalyptic world, do you really need to see rust and hand crafted hand me downs in that much detail?
A review without engaging in PvP which, supposedly, is one of the biggest features? Why didnt the reviewer spend some more time and actually do some PvP before writing a review?
People who wont try and game cause it looks bad are just dumb and retarded. I will try any game out there no matter how bad it looks it matters how well it play's.
I heard Free Realms and Toon Town plays very well. You might want to give them a try.
Seriously though, to completely dismiss graphics as a factor is equally moronic. Because if it weren't for graphics then there's no reason to play any other game than UO.
I need to see more than there currently is so yes. For immersion purposes.
I have played a ton of games in my lifetime and i can honestly say that only 4 or 5 of them have i been able to fully immerse myself in just like when you read a book. I have never been able to fully Immerse myself in a MMO for several reasons.
Having said that after playing Fallout 3 and thinking of the endless possibilities of a post apocalyptic game i realize that 1. I want to play one badly 2. I want to feel like I'm in a post apocalyptic world. I can't feel that way if the graphics suck. I can have fun and run around shooting things up all day long but what it comes down to it is I want to see and feel I'm a part of a destroyed world. Graphics plays a major part in that. A post apocalyptic MMO is a mmo i would WANT to immerse myself in and not just play like any other game IE focus on leveling up and getting phat loot. If that was the case I might as well keep on playing Diablo 2 which from the looks of it I will have to.
LAG has in most cases nothing to do with high graphics. See lag can either be server side or your side. your side means your PC cant handle it, but that is normally not the case. The problem is, that once you mention one server games they need to put all of their people on one server (well thers more servers, but lets not get into details), and normally servers cant handle it which cases lag. it has nothing to do with high visuals, its server side.
funny thing if it is your side, high visuals can actually help. eve had a really old graphics engine based on CPU which was not really able to use your graphics card the way it should. so even if people went and bought high end graphics cards it didn't help, because the engine was unable to use the resources, cause it was so heavy CPU based. CCP then released a new engine which had higher quality graphics, and was also able to use the fancy graphics cards that we have nowdays, and the game ran better and faster, with higher quality graphics.
WoW should do the same, they certainly have the resources for it. see wows graphics engine suffers from the same problem. its not effective. it cant make good use of the resources in your computer, most importantly your graphics card. so when you get to dalaran and it lags on high graphic settings, you go and buy a better graphics card, but it wont help. the game wont be able to use it properly. so they need to make a new graphics engine, which will be able to take good use of your machine, and will then actually run better on higher graphics settings.
Heh. What is retarted is to buy the latest GFX card, CPU and memory and play games that does not take advantage of that.
If you dont want to spend money on your computer to make games look better than that is your choice. Alot of other gamers do spend alot of money on their rigs and want to see some results of that.
I have no problem playing, and I'm in Sweden. Lot's of europeans are playing.
According the Developers of Fallen Earth the maximum level going 150 with over 10 sectors including Las Vegas.
High end graphics is quite a double edged sword in an mmo. You could end up limiting your player base.
Depends on what crowd you are playing to as well. To get a big non-instanced world, the trade off was high end graphics. If everything was compartmentalized (heavily zoned and instanced) than that's a whole different scenario.
So maybe I'm misunderstanding you, but we have to wait 3 months before the game gets fun?
Maybe some aren't willing to do that.
I agree, I think, right now, the game that has the most room to improve and become better, is this game. It has the fun sandbox type of gameplay lots of people will like. If only our stereotype for MMO's weren't so high when it comes to graphics and combat. I think they could use revamping. The graphics compare as in to SWG graphics. Very, old. Combat on the other hand is, not as hardcore as expected. If they could improve the FPS combat, and animations. The game would be Irriestiable. Maybe use the combat system alittle more along the lines of borderlands.
Eh? The game is download only and is a world release. A recent survery showed that around 40% of the people who play it are from Europe.
I'm liking FE quite a bit. The game has a free 10 day trial for those considering it. It's not widely available in stores anywhere, so check out the game's site for download vendors. It's available internationally as I've seen quite a bit of scandinavian and russian on the boards and in-game.
Free trial, you've got nothing to lose but a bit of time and you might like it.
Jer
Since no-one else answered your questions, I'll bite.
The community is slightly above par on the maturity curve. It's a heck of a lot more mature than some (naming no names to avoid flames), and there's a chat channel devoted to new players (you auto join it) filled with helpful players to answer questions. Given that it's a single server world, people are less inclined to act the idiot.
Does real RP exist? Yes, it does. There are RP clans (as you'd expect) but there's also a really high incidence of it in the world at large. This is partly due to the community and partly due to the immersiveness of the world. You really do feel like you're in a wasteland, RP seems natural, and you'll frequently trip over people engaging in random RP out in the middle of nowhere as well as in towns.
I'm playing from Europe and have yet to log in to a dead zone. I flip between alts for crafting etc. and there seem to be people around everywhere all the time. Another benefit of the single-server world.
As I'm sure you're aware there's a free trial at the moment, accessible through the FE website - try it and see what you think.
The review here was very fair, and the reviewer obviously spent a good bit of time in-game. FE is not perfect, but as long as Icarus keep up the good work they'll have my subs money. Been playing since October and am still having a blast.
Just to the add to the last poster before me:
The game has a fairly mature audience. GMs monitor chat, which I love. You won't see anyone spamming the help or LFG channel with jokes. Try logging into another major MMO and ignoring the chat spam. Here it is normally helpful, people asking for advice.
I'm only level 14, but the world so far seems fairly populated. It's not crowded in any sense. You can ride around and not see anyone for a while. Then go to town and see people crafting or gathering up quests.
Best MMORPG since they destroyed Ultima Online when Richard and Blackie quit and Tram was introduced.
Haven't enjoyed a MMORPG so much since SWG pre-cu and tend to stay for a good number of years.
Oh and for anyone still reading this...here is a link containing comparison pictures for the graphics update that just came out today. Kinda bad timing on this review. It came out the same day the graphics got a major boost.
www.tentonhammer.com/node/78850
Edit: I'm not trying to endorse other sites. I come here for most of my gaming news on MMOs. The other site just happened to have pics of old vs new graphics.
Thank you for a fair and honest review.
Only part I don't get is people talking about the graphics. I love graphics as much as the next person. But for a few textures here and there, there is a lot of detail in Fallen Earth textures. It's true they aren't bright and shiny like say LOTR, but the detail of the textures is very good. The textures capture the feeling and mood the devs are trying to portray imho.
Cant agree with the review on the basis of crafting. While it may be more complex than more popular MMOs, it is extremely flawed. Resources are random, and higher level resources can not be used in lower level items, so you have to try and get lower level resources from noob zones, or buy them from vendors, which sell nearly everything for pretty decent prices, making crafters unnecesary. Since you bind equipment, cant sell used equipment, and never lose it by dying, once you have something there isnt much need to build it or buy it. WHich means dead economy. You also have to quest, grind, get AP in order to craft anything advanced. You can not craft anything unless you get your stats up and you cant get your stats up without getting XP killing things. The game is decent, unique, and entertaining for a while, but lack of endgame content and the enevitable focus on grinding xp makes it similar to other games.
So maybe I'm misunderstanding you, but we have to wait 3 months before the game gets fun?
Maybe some aren't willing to do that.
This game is either you love it or you hate it. Personally I love this game, Great Customer Supporter, Friendly GMs and Community. Solid PVE. This game is 20% Theme Park, and 80% Sandbox. I think those you don't like or hate this game are most Theme Park type fans.
A much better review than the first, reflects my sentiments about the game for the most part. I feel like this game has so much promise that I'm looking past its shortcomings and having a really good time.
Well, I downloaded, installed and played the game last night...other than almost 7 hours to download, install, file check'/upgrade and some problems with getting booted a lil too often....so far I like it.. Good chance I may buy/sub after my 10 day trial.
As far as graphics...I don't see them as being so terrible.
I don't usually call shenanigans on people publicly, but have you even played Fallen Earth or are you just trying to sound like you have in order to bash the game and sound more legitimate? Because everything in that that paragraph was either completely wrong or a half-truth at best... and I'm not going to bother refuting it point per point, but to say that I've been testing and playing FE since 11/17/08. During that time I have been a huge fan of the game and one of it's biggest critics. Even on this very site if you go back through my posts about FE you will see my criticisms... So I am by no means a "fanboi" jumping on anyone that even whispers a bad word about FE, but I won't hesitate if I think someone is spouting BS.
I'm a long, long time gamer. I still play weekly (sometimes twice a week) games of both Castles & Crusades (a version of D&D influenced by Gygax that plays a lot like 1st edition AD&D, but simplified) - and the shiny new 4th edition D&D that some people hate, some love, and some love to hate. I played Vampire LARPing some 15 years ago when that kind of thing was popular. I played MUDs and MUSHes... I'm a 30 year old gamer who started when he was 12, so perhaps my view on things is a bit skewed but...
I *love* Fallen Earth. It is one of 2 MMO's I play, the other being WAR for the simplistic and fun PvP WAR offers. (Say what you want about WAR but I like being able to log on, play a 15 minute scenario, and bash heads if I have 30 minutes to kill - no other game gets you in the action as fast as WAR.)
Fallen Earth satisfies a different side of my gamer nature - the side that wants to spend countless hours tweaking my character and exploring a vast, vast world while I learn how to craft, combat, and interact with an environment entirely alien to me. Fallen Earth seems NEW and exciting and fresh - I also tried playing Aion when it came out and despite repeated attempts to really enjoy Aion, I just couldn't. The cartoony graphics and the feeling that I was killing Pokemon over and over and over and over again to get to some end-game Abyss PvPvE combat that even the end-gamers said wasn't very exciting was just... not for me.
Fallen Earth is the first MMO I have been excited about in a long time, and it's definitely going to be a subscription of mine during the entire year of 2010 as I watch it grow and improve. Hell, I'll give them my $15 a month forever as long as they don't start messing around with an "item shop" or RMT.
Great review. Can't say I totally agree with you about the graphics - especially after this last patch they look pretty sweet when pumped up to optimum levels - but character animations and physics, yes, need a bit of work. A minor issue for a game that otherwise has completely captivated me.
I can give a VERY simple review because i would be accurate in every sense of the review.
IMO the entire game ,i mean almost every last shred is a 6/10.It does not do anything real bad but it does not do anything real good,there lies the problem.
If the best parts of the game are only 6 it really does not give anything to grasp onto for longevity.I can see how the lowest score being a 6 is good to some,but when i look to games to play for longevity,i look for the upper scores not the median.
I would really have to strain myself to grasp for something i could rate a 7,if i was forced at gun point i might say the large feeling of freedom,but really there is nothing that warrants a very good rating just average across the board.
No matter how you slice it, no one person here is above anyone else. No one persons opinion is correct making everyone else's wrong. This is I think something that the conceit that internet anonymity brings tends to make people forget. You are God of your world, and noone else's. Your opinion is no more right for me than mine is for you. To claim anything else is pure narcissism. This is the point I always try and get across, always find out for yourself... because your opinion is the only one that matters.
I second that!
A good review. I was part of the beta and wrote-up numerous issues with the game that were pointed out in this review and I'm sorry to hear, but not surprised, that the combat, physics, and visuals have not been updated since then. I installed the latest version of the game and uninstalled it the next day. The game is very awkward to play and feels odd. There's no real sense of immersion when walking around and participating in the so-called story. Fo rme, this game is DOA!!!!
I think that the review is quite objective but overgenerous in a final score. I,as a former FE player, would give the game a 5 or even a 4 score.
FE was fun for 2-2,5 months but after getting to lvl45 I was already so bored that I cancelled my subscription.
For me as a casual pve explorer the game became just dull right after sector 2. Sector3 is as small as s2 - once you get a quick transportation mode such as a motorcycle there's nothing left to explore.
What was gamebreaking for me was atrocious npcs' AI - constant pathing problems, mobs run and shoot trough the walls, trees and just any obstacle. Absolutely no fun in that department. No variety in high level mobs behaviour as well.
Once you get to lvl 45 there's nothing to do if you are an adventurer. The gameplay basically consists of mindless faction wheel grinding to get the max number of mutations - to become a Jedi.
Factions do not work - you go into any pvp zone to help you faction and you discover that you are fired upon by the same faction members. All pvp zones are controlled by large multi faction clans. So you ahve to side with a clan and take a hit to your faction standing.
Overall, I regret to say it, but FE fails to bring anything new or original into game genre. Mutations are your magic, crafting is plain primitive if you get the needed components.
Maybe I'm jaded because I've been playing MMOs for almost a decade, but FE just didn't pull me in. It didn't offer anything new. The graphics are dated, the interface is awkward, and I never found a reason to progress my character other than "that's what you do in an MMO". I've played and loved sandbox-style games before, but this one felt like Everquest, Tabula Rasa, and the original SWG had a hideous, mutant baby and they named it Fallen Earth.
I can't even begin to speculate what's up with the graphics engine. How graphics so bad can be so choppy is beyond me. I can play EVE or COH/COV or Fallout 3 with the graphics cranked with no issues. Not only do I get poor performance out of FE with the graphics all the way up, they still look terrible.
The gameplay may have a new combination of features but none of it feels new or innovative. I was done with clubbing spiders to death for an hour and a half to get to level 2 in 2002.
I like that I didn't feel forced to group, but I also felt like I had no incentive to group. Ever.
I'm sure some of the newer, younger gamers (or those new to sandbox MMOs at least) will love this game because it's just a different style of game. As an adult with a real job and other hobbies, I just don't have the drive or the time to live a second online life like I did in high school and parts of college.
I don't know if FE is the game for everyone, but it is DEFINITELY the game for ME.
I have fallen madly in love with this game! Now, granted....I'm an ex- UO player, and I love REAL crafting, as well.
On the maturity and helpfulness of the player base...o m g wow. THIS game can EASILY compete with LotRO on community....and I mean EASILY.
It has everything I've been looking for and thank the gaming gods it is NOT a fantasy MMO with fooking elves and gnomes and orcs. My god that shit has been driven into the ground.
The environments are so compelling, and....you know what? I'm already tired of typing about it. I played for 12 hours straight yesterday and since I woke up and made coffee this morning and have been reading my daily MMORPG forums with my coffee....I've been able to think of nothing else but getting back in the game, so....
Bye!!
One more comment before I log back in....
Pffffft. I'm 46 and a veteran of UO. You probably didn't play that long...wouldn't surprise me.
You don't like it. Gotcha. Bye! Go play something you like. Isn't variety a WONDEFUL thing?!! All games don't have to appeal to all people....
HALLELUJAH!
After reading the review, downloading the trial and playing it for the past three days, I have to say that the review from MMORPG is fair and more or less accurate. Unfortunately I did not have have an enjoyable experience playing the game for several reasons;
Now I am admitting that I did not get very far into the game, and didn't get to experience the crafting system which many people rave about, but considering how frustrating it was getting as far as I did I simply couldn't muster the enthusiasm to go any further which is a shame. Like alot of other folks I am growing weary of the fantasy settings and I was really looking forward to the post nuclear setting. I didn't think there was anything wrong with the graphics. They were not cutting edge, but they were not ugly by any means. I also like to support the smaller, less well known developers (Nevrax with Saga of Ryzom), as I feel such small companies should be supported so they can compete with the established developers. But for me, FE was not fun. Perhaps others will have better experiences than I did with the game, but I would strongly suggest attempting the free trial before purchasing the game. Hope this mini review helps anyone looking at trying the game.
Yeah, I don't get the "newer, younger" gamers will like Fallen Earth argument, at all. It's exactly the opposite - the player base is far, far more mature than the player base in most other MMOs I have played; EVE and WoW and Aion all included.
Most of the people who have spoken up in this thread about liking FE are in their 30's, 40's, or above so... yeah. Not sure how the game is appealing to younger gamers, at all. If anything younger gamers avoid Fallen Earth like the plague both for the mature 17+ rating and the fact that there is no hand-holding as there is in, say, WoW.
Fallen Earth is definitely a game for more experienced and/or jaded players looking for something new and innovative and fun. I wouldn't say it's a good starting game for young players, at all. Most of the people who complain loudest about the game, I have found, tend to be 28 years old and younger. They get their first 30K a year job outside of college and feel all grown up, like they're the only real adults left playing games. ;)
Pretty fair review, definitely agree with the promise FE holds and loving the uniqueness of this game.
I've been playing since OB and still enjoying it. I have a L28 Lightbringer with several mutations (CHOTA, Vista, Enforcer, LB), a L8 and a L2 alt. I could be higher, but I don't play it all the time thanks to RL job, family, social life, etc.
I have to agree that the level advancement is slow in comparison- but I have no problem leveling when I get into 'the groove' of it. What with getting XP by scavaging, mining, picking plants, etc, as well as crafting, fighting and questing... 'ticking' away at the level is steady. Thing is though... you tick away to get AP pts, which must reach a certain number before you technically level. It's almost like you 'mini' level (gain APs) before you Level-level.
I have done 98% of the missions in S1. The ones I didn't do, I deferred due to preference, or.. yes, a few being bugged. I am presently plugging away at S2, having done missions in several towns and 'side'/not on the map towns as well. Some missions in every sector are NOT on the map... you have to explore. Which... is kinda neat, IMHO. Being led from mission to mission is great sometimes, but finding those 'jewels' in the wastelands is even better. Kinda exciting, really. :P
I don't like to be handheld, and I have to admit, I really enjoy having to figure out what to do. I will say that I did the tutorial in beta, then again in Live and had no issues acclimating to the game. Most recently, I ran my 'baby' alt through the tutorial again... the advanced one this time, and was frustrated. Before, upon leaving the cloner, I was offered quests immediately and got to leveling. This time, I left the cloner, got my 'old nag' freebie and was able to do one or two missions before I was forced to just go out and smack prairie chickens and harvest things to level up enough to be able to accept quests from the NPC's. Didn't care for that- felt like I was wasting time by not being able to hit the missions immediately. (This was in Depot 66)
Also... frequent dying is not really a problem if you pay attention to what you're doing. Really... I think I 'really' died the first time with my main around L3 or something.. maybe more. Yes, you'll die if you do silly things like try to take on a pack of wolves or chickens or NPC's with n00b weaponry and not use tactics to hit and kite.. but if you think about what you're doing, it's not really an issue. Naturally, the better weapons and armour you have, the better you'll fare. That said... some of the creatures and NPC's are not social- so you can whap on one next to his buddy and nothing will happen. Others... the aggro range is VERY large and you can get mobbed easily (mainly in S2 though). My only real annoyance is getting shot at from jokers hiding in the bushes! Can't see 'em and no highlighting of that NPC to let you know where the shots are coming from. 'Course that adds some realism, and that's pretty rare in MMO's.. so can't complain to loudly. :)
Basically, FE is a thinking person's game more than WoW. It is not an easy or fast game... there is no real endgame. But the content is really some of the best I've seen, the graphics are pretty good IMHO, and the lag is negligable to non-existent when not in a major city like Embry or New Flagstaff. And even there, with a higher end machine with a decent vid card, it's not so bad. I have a GeForce 8800M- which isn't really high end either- and I do fine. I only lagged, locked or got the black screen of death with my lower end machine. I still have 'hiccup' lag at times in the big cities, but not so bad it is intolerable.
RP is out there... There are several active guilds that work it.
The community for newbies is great- though I wish there was some way to auto-send them the answers to the most frequently asked questions... or obvious ones. Like "where do I get a horse?" and so on. The devs have reportedly gotten a FAQs up, but most don't read them preferring to ask IG for instant gratification. :) So an IG mechanism to send them the answer in an auto-tell would be GREAT.
The game is still buggy at times, but not so much that I really notice it anymore. Most of the quests work- and those that don't are quickly rectified by the attentive GMs and devs.
The key to this game is the storyline. There are several separate storylines in progress- and it seems if you don't trigger the right NPC and quest for them, you might miss out on content. Happened to a friend of mine- we still don't know why I got a questline he didn't and got access to a big boss in Trumbull. Then again, I explore more than he does. :) Finding those isolated camps and so on really benefits you. It is really neat how the storylines kinda dovetail to accentuate or clarify events in other storylines. The NPC's quests are pretty logical and well written- even with accents at times, which is funny. What comes out is a very dark, tragic and at times infuriating sequence of events leading up to the 'present' state of the planet... and kinda makes you want to try and fix what you can- at least in your little realm of existence.
The proper usage of AP's is VERY important. I have stored up hundreds before finally selectively using some for mutations and skills & stats. One of the biggest mistaken assumptions is that you have to use the APs immediately. As stated before- do NOT until you're sure where they should go. And even then, be selective. Right now, I have nearly 200 stored AP's, a full stat and associated skill lines for my specialties, and a few of my mutations maxxed. THAT is the hard thing- resisting the urge to spend all your AP in mutations to get the cool graphics and buffs and skills. But many of the mutations have redundancies. Telepathy and Telekinesis, I think, both have some healing included in their lines. I even think they have weak rez's at high levels. Empathy, of course, is the main healing mutation- which I have. Mutations are fun... and some defense against them (as well as control of them) is essential when fighting the Shiva's Chosen- since they are just about pure mutant.
I dunno... the game isn't horrible IMHO. I enjoy playing it... and am excited about what the future holds for it. :) And no... I've not played Fallout or any other post-Apocolyptic MMO or RPG or whatever before. I've played SWG, Vanguard, EQ2, WoW, CoH/CoV, Oblivion, Perfect World and World of KungFu beta... so this- this is a VERY nice break and a refreshing change overall. :)
Take some time and read what you wrote, you might want to rethink it because you pretty much contradict yourself in just about every way possible. You actually admit it is a complicated game, yet you feel that 3 days is enough to offer an opinion on it?
Granted there are a few bugs, but nothing to the degree you indicate. I think your believability index for this board is about zero.
Take some time and read what you wrote, you might want to rethink it because you pretty much contradict yourself in just about every way possible. You actually admit it is a complicated game, yet you feel that 3 days is enough to offer an opinion on it?
Granted there are a few bugs, but nothing to the degree you indicate. I think your believability index for this board is about zero.
Ditto.
In Hoover Dam you're literally walked through equipping yourself (twice, axe and rpg), and you have a quest to heal the soldiers which shows you how healing works. It's hardly anyone else's fault if you failed to notice either of these things.
When you say you didn't get very far into the game, and with what you've said above, it looks like you didn't even make it through Hoover Dam, which is preamble and not game proper. You're introduced to crafting very quickly after landing at ANY lifenet facility, there's only a handful of quests leading up to it.
And on the learning curve, yes it's not hand-holdy, but some people find that a refreshing return to old-school gaming.
As was posted above by Kyatai (great post btw), not dying requires that you pay attention and don't try to punch above your weight. My first toon didn't die til level 5, and was a classic example of pulling without looking around first. As Kyatai also said, FE in general requires more thinking than most current MMOs, it's not something you play while watching youtube videos/tv/playing bejeweled on facebook, and expect to sail through. I guess for some that's not a good thing. Luckily for Icarus, some of us like a challenge (and when I say challenge I don't mean to imply that the game is "hard" at all, it's not, it just needs you to use your brain and give it your full attention).
I'm not sure I agree with Justarius about the age thing, but given that my forum name has my birth year in it, there may be something to the 30+ notion ; )
(edit to fix getting Kyatai and Justarius mixed up at the end there, I'm hald asleep)
Take some time and read what you wrote, you might want to rethink it because you pretty much contradict yourself in just about every way possible. You actually admit it is a complicated game, yet you feel that 3 days is enough to offer an opinion on it?
Granted there are a few bugs, but nothing to the degree you indicate. I think your believability index for this board is about zero.
Actually I don't believe I've contradicted myself at all. I don't have to reread what I wrote, I know what I said, but you obviously missed the point of my post. What does it matter if I played the game for three days or three weeks? My main message was the summary that FE was not fun (for me) for the reasons I had listed above, and I suggest that people try the free trial first. Yes, I admit (once again) that the game is more complex than alot of other MMO's I have tried, and that I only played the game for three and a half days. What? You honestly expect me to continue playing a game that I am not having fun with simply to satisfy your "superior" criteria? Incidently how long would satisfy you? Three months? Six? A year? I believe I am mature enough to form my own opinion without you checking my time card. I wrote on what I experienced in my play time, and I made that quite clear. I honestly don't see your problem, Ozmodan. I didn't write some kind of a flame thread, or a childish rant screaming that the game sucked and was a pile of crap, and I didn't write about things in the game I hadn't experienced.
But I'll tell you what Ozmodan, you want me to write a more informed and indepth review of FE? Fine, pay for my 6-12 month subscription (or whatever time limit you see fit) and I will keep playing so I can experience every aspect of the game and write a "proper" review just for you. As for my believability index, I really don't care what you feel about me, or my posts. I write what I feel and I try to give an honest opinion, if you don't like that, oh well. I am not seeking your approval.
And how would you know how many bugs I experienced? I experienced quite a few.
NavyJackal,
It is clear no-one can argue with your own personal opinion on this game but I would say that this type of mmo regardless if it is FE or another type of sandbox style mmo would not be up your street.
The thing with this type of mmo is it does not lead you by the hand at every corner and you really have to spend time learning the game or ask for advice to help you on your way.
Is FE so hardcore?..I would say not,if you pay attention from the start and move slowly while you learn how to play and take everything in I would say in 2 or 3 weeks have have the basics down and can enjoy your journey.
If on the other hand you want to rush through content and try to get high level whilst ignoring the fact it is supposed to be a journey,then yes you will struggle with a game of this type.
It is all good though,different horses for different courses.
Navy,
How can you say that the tutorial didnt teach you the basics? Ill bet 10 to 1 odds you didnt read the pop ups that come on screen. Each thing you said it didnt teach you, is explained in detail with sub menus that pop up during the entire Hoover Dam intro. Also, the first several missions just after the tutorial explain what you may have missed/not encountered in the tutorial. Im not directing this next statement at you, because I dont know how you interact online with the games, but the one thing I find that most people spamming the "help" channel with arre things they could have answered themselves if they had just read what is provided for them. What I mean by that are the sub menus I mentioned above as well as the quest and objectives. This game is unlike many other simplerer MMO's in that you actually have to read the quests and pay attention to the things that are provided for you.
The learning curve is large, but for me, its part of the lure of the game. Not sure about others, but I'm tired of the simple MMO's that are coming out so they can port to a console game.
Sorry you didnt like your experience in Fallen Earth, the apocolypse will miss you.
Yes, its entirely possible that FE just isn't the game for me. I am not entirely sure why. I loved Final Fantasy X1 and played it for two and a half years. And anyone who has played it I am sure would agree its definetly not a "hold your hand" style game. I would agree with you that FE isn't a hardcore game. In any event, I suppose I am going to have to keep searching for the MMO that suits me. Hopefully Final Fantasy 14 isn't delayed. Best of luck in your journeys.
Sounds like your playstyle didn't match the game more than the game simply being a fail.
Reason I say this is because if you reached level cap in 2-2.5 months, you are not the casual explorer type you claim to be unless you've had 8-10+ hours a day to play casually at which point I would still say you aren't casual being able to play that long.
Either way, level cap in 2.5 months is pretty quick. At 1.5-2 months I was 1/2 way to level cap(at 3-4 hours a day) but I had explored every nook and cranny of Fallen Earth, gathered resources, dabbled in crafting in every trade, and sought every quest I could get my hands on just to learn more about the world I was in. I realize everyone plays differently and I am by no means the metric by which all should be compared. That being said, I am not an amature in this genre either(UO vet).
The only way I can see someone getting to level cap in 2.5 months is if that was their sole goal. Of course once you get there, like always, people realize it isn't the zenith they thought it was(newly released game still being fleshed out at level cap like all games, even the holy WoW), realize their character is lacking in some way, or they can't compete in PvP because they missed something(like bonus AP quests) in their rush to level cap, and realize crafted stuff is the best but find crafting boring when you have to craft beginner stuff to level up when you are max level....no excitement there....
I will agree with you about the faction stuff though. This needs to be fixed. You get Deathtoll rewards no matter the faction of the player you kill, even if they are in the same faction as you. IMO, there needs to be a stiff penalty for killing within your faction or ally factions(lesser penalty for the ally factions though).
The AI argument I just don't get. Yeah, the NPC's aren't human, but they really aren't any better or worse than any other game. They move around, they change stances(prone, crouch, while shooting), they use skills like knock down. What are people expecting here? What game is the holy grail of AI for the people complaing about the AI in Fallen Earth, I'm curious.
You do realize spinning the faction wheel isn't necessary right?
Nothing new huh? FPS combat, yeah tons of those types of MMO's out. Post Apoc setting in an MMO, yeah tons of those too. Crafting that can take place while off line or adventuring instead of being tied to a crafting station unable to do anything else, yeah tons of those too. Yeah, nothing new/fresh at all in Fallen Earth.
weird... i thought this will surely stay f2p forever.
Uh, it's never been F2P...confused with another game?
Uh, it's never been F2P...confused with another game?
Just a common troll...
Sounds like your playstyle didn't match the game more than the game simply being a fail.
Reason I say this is because if you reached level cap in 2-2.5 months, you are not the casual explorer type you claim to be unless you've had 8-10+ hours a day to play casually at which point I would still say you aren't casual being able to play that long.
Either way, level cap in 2.5 months is pretty quick. At 1.5-2 months I was 1/2 way to level cap(at 3-4 hours a day) but I had explored every nook and cranny of Fallen Earth, gathered resources, dabbled in crafting in every trade, and sought every quest I could get my hands on just to learn more about the world I was in. I realize everyone plays differently and I am by no means the metric by which all should be compared. That being said, I am not an amature in this genre either(UO vet).
The only way I can see someone getting to level cap in 2.5 months is if that was their sole goal. Of course once you get there, like always, people realize it isn't the zenith they thought it was(newly released game still being fleshed out at level cap like all games, even the holy WoW), realize their character is lacking in some way, or they can't compete in PvP because they missed something(like bonus AP quests) in their rush to level cap, and realize crafted stuff is the best but find crafting boring when you have to craft beginner stuff to level up when you are max level....no excitement there....
I will agree with you about the faction stuff though. This needs to be fixed. You get Deathtoll rewards no matter the faction of the player you kill, even if they are in the same faction as you. IMO, there needs to be a stiff penalty for killing within your faction or ally factions(lesser penalty for the ally factions though).
The AI argument I just don't get. Yeah, the NPC's aren't human, but they really aren't any better or worse than any other game. They move around, they change stances(prone, crouch, while shooting), they use skills like knock down. What are people expecting here? What game is the holy grail of AI for the people complaing about the AI in Fallen Earth, I'm curious.
You do realize spinning the faction wheel isn't necessary right?
Nothing new huh? FPS combat, yeah tons of those types of MMO's out. Post Apoc setting in an MMO, yeah tons of those too. Crafting that can take place while off line or adventuring instead of being tied to a crafting station unable to do anything else, yeah tons of those too. Yeah, nothing new/fresh at all in Fallen Earth.
I have played FE for about 2-3 hours daily. I got the game in August while in closed beta, then moved into early access.
I actually enjoyed it while in S1. Then when I moved into S2 I was dissapointed as to the size of that sector and the next one,S3, about how small they are.
I did all the starter towns in S1 to get the APs. So I never rushed. But in no mmorpg game I've played the gameplay was so easy (I actually do not understand how some ppl complain that FE is hard).
I have played AO,EQ2,LotRo, VSoH. I'm a casual gamer. FE was the easiest game for me. In FE I did my crafting as the char was Rifle/Pistol/Crft.
By S3 all that was drawing me to the game was the items I would get from crafting.
I deliberatly had not spin the faction wheel - I've played the game as the devs planned it, to my undestanding. And yet by December I've quit. I have never said that FE as a game is a fail. I think FE will get attention of some crowd but will it retain it? I'm not sure.
The big part in my cancelling subscription was the news that S4 will not be released for at least 6 months.
And as FE being innovative in combining FPS and mmprpg, I've tried Neocron and SWG - don't they have the same - you aim with your aiming reticle?
And to tell the truth, I have never felt that I'm in postapoc world while playing FE - and i'm a big fan of Mad Max, Fallout etc. The postapoc in FE felt to cosy (garages everywhere, vendors everywhere).
And also I would add that the quest stories have not grabbed my attention and nad not add much for the "lore" - I really enjoyed Vanguard quests, at least I felt some atmosphere to them.
In FE one of the most stupid main stories is White Crow one. I guess, since I'm a Russian, i'm on the subject. But when I read everything in those lines I just kept laughing. Especially when they reveal that White Crows are connected to the escaped Czar Romanovs family:) plus all the stupid Russian titles with wrong translit - ridiculous.
I think that I was very objective to the game and wish it luck. But for me, I was expecting Fallout in MadMax setting but I got Wizard Warrior in a cardboard world.
I agree Fair review but the aiming and still not hitting is not my case either, I hit things I'm aiming at and hit them better when not moving or prone and get more damage with better stats etc... so it seems pretty realistic for me.
One thing is that the NPC actualy move around a bit like real people and you actualy have to try to keep aiming at them so maybe some people are not used of that, but of course that is pretty good to finaly have in a game some good AI like that.
Still pretty fair review showing anything not so good had possability to get up to par.
But the biggest reason I play Fallen Earth is the lore and the world and it is just fun to try and live in the Post Apocalyptic world.
The graphics arent really bad at all, theres really a lot there in a giant zone, somehow I think had they made them AoC quality, you would have needed a nuclear powered computer in order to run the game. Dont forget they also work off their own engine as well, so its not going to be as polished as cry or unreal which had oodles of money to be built up on.
Interesting review.
A game does have to give me a good pull from the outset in order for me to ignore the graphics. Especially for a game that I must pay for.
Shallow, I know. I also know that good graphics does not always make a good game. I do require a certain standard however.
I'll keep an eye on this game, may do the trial at some point. But not something im gona jump at unless im real bored.,
I agree that is a VERY good thing,and the reason why i bought the game was because i felt the developer was full of mature dedicated people.That means a lot to me ,to be able to see some normal chat going on,the opposite really bothers me a lot in games,almost to the point of quitting.
However you still need a game,and FE is just too generic,nothing is intriguing at least it wasn't for me.I need at minimum one aspect of the game to cry out "PLAY ME" and nothing.Crafting is average,i do not like some of it's unrealistic nature like it is basically an EVE auto craft system.Combat is very ho hum,landscape is wide open ,mostly empty.Nothing in the game has any interaction,that is a big downfall.They tried to incorporate some physics but it is for the most part wrong or done badly.
There is a few things i could see people liking,but the basics of the game are too bland,and the majority of time spent in a game is doing the basics.There could very well be some interesting mob scenes i never saw anything,i mean it is supposed to be an APOC setting,where is the unique mobs popping out of the ground?
I find it odd many people have claimed this game is fresh or does things different,when it actually does nothing different at all,it is very generic.All it is is a different setting that we don't see often,but a different skin does not make a different game.
I agree that is a VERY good thing,and the reason why i bought the game was because i felt the developer was full of mature dedicated people.That means a lot to me ,to be able to see some normal chat going on,the opposite really bothers me a lot in games,almost to the point of quitting.
However you still need a game,and FE is just too generic,nothing is intriguing at least it wasn't for me.I need at minimum one aspect of the game to cry out "PLAY ME" and nothing.Crafting is average,i do not like some of it's unrealistic nature like it is basically an EVE auto craft system.Combat is very ho hum,landscape is wide open ,mostly empty.Nothing in the game has any interaction,that is a big downfall.They tried to incorporate some physics but it is for the most part wrong or done badly.
There is a few things i could see people liking,but the basics of the game are too bland,and the majority of time spent in a game is doing the basics.There could very well be some interesting mob scenes i never saw anything,i mean it is supposed to be an APOC setting,where is the unique mobs popping out of the ground?
I find it odd many people have claimed this game is fresh or does things different,when it actually does nothing different at all,it is very generic.All it is is a different setting that we don't see often,but a different skin does not make a different game.
No professions, no limit in amount of tradeskills you want to learn is not what I would call generic. Which is an important difference, not just some minor detail.
It is the best mmo out there right now. The post apocalyptic setting gives the mmo genre some new life. You don't seem limited to anything you want to do in Fallen Earth. Alot of combat options and you can learn alot of trade skills. If you expect to finish the entire game in a week then this game might not be for some. I did not find understanding the game complex at all, it is called reading ftw! The community seems like amature crowd unlike other games where you get a ton of chuck norris jokes and constant bashing of other players. Though alot of times people go with what is more popular than what is much better.
I understand reviewers have deadlines, and I think the review was fair at the time it was written, but I think he should do a re-re-review now that the graphics patch has been released. A large part of the graphics lack of polish , and many glitches and bugs that he (accurately, at the time) reported have been fixed and the overall look of the game has markedly improved.
Langstaff
I agree, the graphics are looking better and better, note make sure you have Advanced Post FX setting on etc...
But whatever, it's probably best this game grow slowly like CCP's EVE.
Still, this game is so great in so many ways, and they got many of the things you want in MMORPG's like the ability to share guests etc... just those things that we have learned through out the years.
Sound is awesome too, the guns are all sounding different and it's like click wizzzz of the revolver type one and click booom! just sounds good.
and the group team fighting with against AI is got some thinking and action to it and imo only second to CoH but then in it's own way seems more realistic so best for this game imo anyways. But some how not re[etitive and finaly borring like CoH, imo.
That's all I got to sya for now, like I said they can grow slowly for the best anyways as far as how many people are playing although there are a continual bunch of people to group with for big areas that need groups to do missions in them like the prison in Old Kingman for one.
Spot on. Mature and level headed feedback. I share your feelings about the game. For me your description of the schizophrenia of the game encapsulates well why this game may leave some ill-at-ease with its overall feel.
A fair review!
I hate to be a graphics/polish noob, but here I go anyway:
I played this game for a day, but could not get past the cruddy graphics, horrible and triggered voice acting, and a clunky combat interface. And that is a shame because the game has great potential. The devs seem like they care. There is always a GM on to help. The storyline is awesome. The community seemed mature, and wasn't filled with 12 year olds named "4tehlulz".
But "pretty" counts, guys. It does for me anyway.
I don't think this is a classless MMO. You can use all weapons, but you must spend AP points on skills. If you don't max melee (or other) the character will not do good. So I say it has classes, they just don't want to call them Warrior or Hunter... same goes with money. They call it Chips, but it is the same like Gold that other games have.
And I say this is like a "Fanatsy MMO", it's very much look like SWG in design and it follow combat, mobs, crafting like other MMO's. It just have more crafting then maybe others. Again just other names to make it sound like it's not like the rest.
If you look behind, you see that it reminds you more and more of other games that you have been playing. Only thing this game is new with are the mounts, travle system and maybe more crafting (still it's not that special if you been playing SWG). And that it's more like single player game then a MMO.
You will see people, but you don't need them for anything. With more then 1 character slot, you can do it all on your own. Thats kind of destroy the AH ingame and the need for Clans and other social things that other MMO's have.
It still have a lot of bugs and the combat is very clunky. Animations are one of the worse I have seen. Graphics are also not that great.
I give it 4.5 points. It still need a lot of work. Sometimes I can't help asking myself If I pay to Beta test this game...
I played this game for a day, but could not get past the cruddy graphics, horrible and triggered voice acting, and a clunky combat interface.
I love the graphics. If you prefer colorful comic graphics, then that is a style thing and your decision, but doesn't make the graphics of FE bad. The voice acting is incredible and I love the humor. The combat interface is ok. I don't play other FPS MMORPGs, but as much as people complain about the UI of DF, people seem to complain about all FPS MMORPG interfaces. You get used to it if you know the keybindings.
I don't think this is a classless MMO. You can use all weapons, but you must spend AP points on skills. If you don't max melee (or other) the character will not do good. So I say it has classes, they just don't want to call them Warrior or Hunter... same goes with money. They call it Chips, but it is the same like Gold that other games have.
It's classless in so far as there are no predefined classes. Yes, there are ways how to get the most efficient character possible. However, that's the case with all games, even with those who have classes. Like talent points in WoW. According to you they make no sense, since there is only a single way how to distribute them to get the optimum. If you'd remove them from the game though, there'd be an outrage. Same with FE. There is an optimum way, but if you follow it or not is your own personal decision. Only because you do, it doesn't mean that everyone else has to do it as well. It has no fixed classes to start with or end with, so it's a classless game.
And I don't understand your complain about the chips. Each and every current MMORPG uses some kind of currency. What does it matter what it's called? Where is the problem?
And I say this is like a "Fanatsy MMO", it's very much look like SWG in design and it follow combat, mobs, crafting like other MMO's. It just have more crafting then maybe others. Again just other names to make it sound like it's not like the rest.
First, many people who played FE also played SWG. But most didn't. If it is to some degree similiar to SWG, who cares? According to many people, the old SWG was great, so if FE has similiarities to it, that's a good thing.
But fantasy? That makes totally no sense. In fantasy games are no modern scoped sniper rifles nor modern vehicles, crashed sattelites, computers etc. Sure, you can say "mutated creatures = magical creatures", but if you stretch everything so far, then you can say that all MMORPGs are identical. FE doesn't look like a fantasy game, and storywise it's no fantasy game either.
If you look behind, you see that it reminds you more and more of other games that you have been playing. Only thing this game is new with are the mounts, travle system and maybe more crafting (still it's not that special if you been playing SWG).
I read from you only negative stuff about the game. Why? If you dislike it, just stop playing it? I'm no fan of DF for example, do I still post constantly in their forums that their game is crap? Or I stopped playing WoW, WAR and AoC, does that mean I should follow your example and constantly visit their forums to post negative stuff, that often makes no sense?
Constructive criticism is good, but I see you either repeating yourself or make claims that make no sense, and never ever anything positive. So if the game is so horrible in your opinion, then just bugger off and play something else. Other people enjoy the game, why do you try to spoil it for them? Is that a "if I don't have fun, you don't deserve to have fun either" attitude? Or are you just bored?
Of course the game ain't perfect, no MMORPG is perfect. The point is that FE is enjoyable for lots of people, and I don't see why you try to spoil that. Is that some kind of meta game where griefing is taken to the next level?
It still have a lot of bugs and the combat is very clunky. Animations are one of the worse I have seen. Graphics are also not that great.
Some animations are bad (first person melee combat), some are great (compare the mounting animation from FE to that of most other MMORPGs, in which you magically appear on your mount). But hey, it's a "look, I only stress the bad things"-Fuggo-post./facepalm
Mutations are the developers' own version of post-apocalyptic magic, and can really pack a wallop as well. And thanks to the game's classless system you can feel free to experiment at will so long as you know the consequences of dipping into too many honey pots could mean gimping your character.
They may have "packed a wallop" at the time this review was written (mutations have reportedly been nerfed a lot since then) but when I tried them they totally whimpered.
Comparing the same level pistol skill to the same level of thermal mutation (the most damage intensive mutation), pistols have 5 times the DPS of thermal - and that's without even using any of the pistol special attacks. If you factor in headshots then it becomes something like 15 times.
They've an equal AP cost to raise but are definitely not equally powerful/useful.
And unlike weapons, mutations aren't FPS. It's an odd thing to play a game where part of the combat is FPS and part is point-click-select.
I came to the same conclusion.
Once you take into account the way certain skills/mutations cluster on certain statistics and the skills that you absolutely must take, there's no more real choice here than in games like WoW. The only difference is that FE allows you to potentially completely and irrevocably screw your character up with poor choices - as the skills/mutations are very unbalanced (which you only learn by using them) and there's currently no ability to respec.
As a player that has been in FE well into beta I think this review is fair and accurate
This game is great, I for one enjoy the combat, it's better than :click once and watch". Plus every patch seems to improve the game.
I like the visuals, they dont seem to be dated at all to be honest & im saying that even after playing metro 2033 on its highest quality.
I signed up for the trial about 5 days ago, and 2 days after i started playing i knew i was just going to have to subscribe, this game is absolutely brilliant.
The community is also extremely helpful, asking questions in region to help me get the hang of the game i found a clan to join in the first 4 hours of my playing & i started to find my bearings within the game. It is alot like eve online by being pretty hard to start, but once you start learning about the game mechanics then you will have no problems at all.
Strange how my browser decided to post a blank message here. No idea why and it won't let me delete it.
Shrug.
FE has a special place in my heart. I really do love a lot about the game. It's the most immersive thing I've played since EVE, the crafting system is brilliant and the FPS/Standard MMO hybrid combat is fresh (all be it a bit clunky). The progress the game has made technologically is boreline amazing as well. I used to lag on low settings in beta, but when i re-upped a couple of months ago (unsubbed since), I could run it full blown with no lag.
The game just needs more content at the mid-higher lvls, player housing/towns and more things to do as a group for me to want to sub again. Good luck to Icarus and their players!
Yes, I registered, downloaded what I thought needed to be downloaded, tand then started reading posts that you need to download something else. Well, if I hadn't foudn that post, how would I have known? I don't like that lack of a qucik start up and then the "excuses" start piling up. So, although registered, I am not playing the game at this time -- too cofusing just to start playing!
Fallen Earth is free now although I'm new to the game myself. It doesn't matter if you're an rpg fan or an fps fan, it has both with balances! It has the feeling of fallout (don't take my word for it, just me cus I'm still new) and so far a great adventure.