I figure now is as good a time as any to do my standard “This is a new game and I’m playing it so read about my opinions” post.  Click on the shiny jump for more words and pictures!

As I stated some time ago, I wasn’t originally sold by the hype around Rift.  I was content with just shooting spaceships in EVE, and I am still loving it by all means.  That said, the internet has its ways of forcing my hand from time to time *cough* every MMO launch day ever *cough*.  Due to the incredibly massive turnout that Multiplaying received from so many bloggers, friends and family of bloggers, and tweeters to join Circle of Trust, I eventually caved in after roughly 6 minutes of thought and bought the game.  It just felt like such a large collective of people I enjoy reading about and talking with all being in one place was too good of an opportunity to pass up.  Hell, I even got the Collector’s Edition, woot bag space and a turtle!

I must say I feel blessed for not having touched the game at all during the beta events.  I was able to go in with a totally objective viewpoint, low expectations, and man have I been on a gamer high for the last three days!  From the beginning of the game to now being level 30 in the Scarlet Gorge, I have been absolutely floored at how solid and entertaining this pre-launch has been.  That’s not to say I don’t have my criticisms, which I’ll get to some other time, but overall the game has just been spectacular.  The world is absolutely gorgeous, with my favorite part being the visuals of lighting and fire.

From a combat perspective, I’ll admit that its nothing revolutionary, but if so many games use the same core system then it must mean that it works, and it does.  Maybe its just because I have no heal button and am low on patience when it comes to questing, but now that I’m fighting higher level mobs I do find myself dying every now and then, or barely making it out of combat situations alive.  I enjoy PvE that isn’t mind numbingly easy.  I love having a challenge from time to time!

In regards to the story surrounding the Defiants, I wouldn’t say that I suddenly feel caught up in fighting for the cause by any means.  However, every now and then you get those quests where you know a Developer is putting in underlying dirty jokes or humor and it does add a certain charm to the game.  My favorite quest line thus far as been the over-arching story of the Stonefields.  The Defiant are trying to control the power of the Titans, creatures of the Earthen plane, for their own purposes and low and behold, you end up being the guy or girl who makes it all happen.  I won’t divulge any spoilers for those who haven’t yet visited the Stonefields, but I enjoyed having a story that progressed as I moved through the zone, eventually ending with a strong climax.

As for the Rift system.. what can I say?  It’s damn near perfection.  I’ve literally tried looking for things I didn’t like or had issues with, and I’ve thus far been unsuccessful.  The fact that at random times tons of monsters are going to spawn just to make your happy go lucky questing miserable is awesome.  That may sound masochistic, but the reason I like it so much is because it fosters such a great community from the playerbase.  Everyone knows that if you don’t shut up and put your petty differences aside, you’re screwed.  Combine that sense of unity with a fantastic open party system that is as easy to use as clicking a button, and you end up with a dynamic and entertaining mechanic that nothing else on the market can even pretend to imitate… though I’m sure they will soon enough.

Don’t even get me started on the Class System, because I could write for hours how incredible I think it is.  The tried and true saying is that “More options means happier customers” and Rift’s Class System is the perfect example of this.  The fact that I can literally switch my entire style of gameplay, on a whim, with little to no penalties, is absolutely incredible.  This sort of system really should be demanded by the playerbase of future MMOs, because there is no downside whatsoever.

The one thing I take away from Rift, more than anything else, is that it is a major stepping stone.  The first step was the Period of Creation, with games like Everquest, Guild Wars, and World of Warcraft fostering such large communities.  We then moved onto the Period of The Niche, with games that specialized and revamped major aspects of MMOs, like WAR’s RvR and Aion’s flight mechanics.  Now, we’ve reached a third major arc in MMO history, the Period of Polish.  Rift has made a clear statemnet in the MMO Gaming Industry that its not okay to release a half assed product, its not okay to have major bugs and downtimes during your launch, and its not okay to say “Coming Soon!” to major features of your game.  Trion deserves a goddamn medal for being, in my eyes, the first company to be stalwart in not launching until their game is D-O-N-E.  Sure Blizzard, you may claim that you’ve been preaching such things for years, but be honest, when WoW first launched it was absolutely horrible, and it took you over a decade to make Starcraft II, which isn’t even an MMO by the way.

In closing, if you haven’t played Rift, you should.  Just bite the bullet and play the game, because even if you’re tired of the fantasy genre or “WoW-clones” you’ll still find something enteraining in Telara.  The game literally can only improve as time goes forward, and players can actually sit with glee waiting for new content while enjoying what we have now rather than bitching about what we didn’t get from the start.  Buy the game, roll a Defiant on Faeblight, and come join the most insane and humorous guild this side of Meridian.

You’ll be glad you did, just like I am.