The Anti WoW

I was not a big fan of massive multiplayer online games before I fell victim to WoW. I think I mentioned previously that I had a brief experience with Star War Galaxies. I had also tried out City of Heroes for month as well and left in frustration. Needless to say I had a sour taste for the genre before getting into the WoW beta in October of 2004. I was bowled over by Blizzards master piece, they took all of the fun elements of SWG and COH, cut the fat and polished to a fine gloss.

The experience wore thin though, prompting my departure five times in the last three plus years. Not any thing I would directly attribute to the game, but it is designed to become even more of a time sink once you reach the highest level (if you let it). Progression raiding can take up to 6-7 days a week, maintenance raiding 2-4 and that doesn't include farming for materials and repair cash. The pvp was fun, but became redundant. Hence my most recent retirement.

So what does it take to get a hardened MMO rookie to try another MMO? I'm shooting at 1 for 3 at this point so I'll say it takes a lot. The Agency is the first game to have such potential. It is the casual MMO that Blizzard tricks new WoW players in to thinking they are playing. It is anti WoW. Relying on action style game play with a RPG twist. The premise being two factions that coexist in an action movie style world. There is U.N.I.T.E which is your classic bond style organization, super slick, nondescript covert action in a tux. ParaGON is the polar opposite, mercenaries with big explosions and a cigar clenched tightly in their teeth.

It can be both a FPS and third person platformer and the graphics ring of The Incredibles and Team Fortress 2 (No One Lives Forever as well). If done right the game could be a smash to play and for SOE's coffers. I have a few concerns though...

1. SOE's track required includes so many missed opportunities that it is hard to count, Everquest was their last and only successful game.

2. Similar to Huxley's lofty goals, The Agency is attempting to conquer new fronter by melding multiple game types and genres. There has not been a game to accomplish what they are attempting and the biggest title in the space (WoW) is just a refinement of an already proven model.

3. The game is being developed by Sony and as such it is coming out for the PC and PS3. It is not unreasonable to project red headed step child support for the PC, even though the PS3's market is limited.

In any case watch some developer walk throughs and some of the other trailers and see how cool it is for yourself. I will be here on the bandwagon, fingers crossed and playing my DS till we see if it can live up to its hype.