IGN Tera Review - "Action Packed"

bakimono Profile Options #131

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lol... SMH at people saying it's no different from other games. Spoken like true bads that likely group up for *everything* unless it's open world and taking on small groups then face tanking them. Next you'll hear people say CoD's combat is not that different since all you do is click.
Jihoko Profile Options #132

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I can't possibly believe EdgeTO is a real person and those are his real opinions. I prefer to believe he's a paid rep from NCSoft, however unlikely... because believing that anyone could be that determined to bash a game without getting paid to do it fills me with existential dread.

The idea that the combat is "basically" the same as tab-target games is so far off the mark it makes me wonder if the people making the argument are playing the same game. Lets see, in tab-target games can you:

strafe projectile attacks?
leap out from under mob smashes, swipes, etc.?
use visual tells to try and stay on step ahead of the mob?
get attack bonuses for hitting the mob in the back, not firing/attacking from behind the mob, but your attacks actually hitting a fairly narrow spot in the mob or player's hitbox?

I could go on, but the obvious answer to all of them is "no" and trying to equate Tera with tab-targeting is ridiculous. Aiming in a bam fight isn't that hard because of their size, but it is somewhat difficult to always hit them in the center of the back *while* avoiding their attacks. Unlike other games, it is actually a fairly narrow area to get the back hit bonus, not 180 degrees. Anyone just standing there attacking aimlessly is doing it wrong. That was the only criticism that was close to having any validity, but it doesn't either unless you're ignorant of the mechanics.

As for the game being so easy that you can solo most mobs with your eyes closed... please post a vid of you soloing an equal-level BAM. You're welcome to have your eyes open, because it would be impossible to do so with them closed and I want to give you a chance. Sadly, my guess is you couldn't do either when you're so ignorant of how Tera's combat works that you play it like a tab-target game. This is really the issue, not Tera's combat. All the ex-WoW (or other similar MMOs) players have a hard time adjusting to the combat, and instead of trying to use it to their advantage they play it exactly as they would WoW instead of taking full advantage of the action-combat to increase kill efficiency.

I'm an archer and I'm constantly amazed when I see people solo questing and pulling one mob at a time. Archers supposedly have some of the weakest AOE damage and yet it's still 5x faster to pull mobs in groups of 6-10 and AOE them down. It requires a lot of precision to do correctly (lining up mobs to make sure I get full value out of penetrating shot, among other things) and it's rewarding because I complete a standard "kill 10" quest in a minute or two. I *could* play it like WoW and pull each mob one at a time, never requiring any precision or fast-thinking, but I choose not to because only someone terrible at the game would do that.

That's basically how Tera was designed: WoW players too conditioned to learn anything else can get through the solo game and instances when they're carried by others without ever changing their habits, but those yearning for something more will be rewarded when they take full advantage of the combat system.
EdgeTO Profile Options #133

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Jihoko on 05/27/2012, 09:08 AM - view
I can't possibly believe EdgeTO is a real person and those are his real opinions. I prefer to believe he's a paid rep from NCSoft, however unlikely... because believing that anyone could be that determined to bash a game without getting paid to do it fills me with existential dread.

The idea that the combat is "basically" the same as tab-target games is so far off the mark it makes me wonder if the people making the argument are playing the same game. Lets see, in tab-target games can you:

Sigh. I'll humor you.



Jihoko on 05/27/2012, 09:08 AM - view
strafe projectile attacks?
leap out from under mob smashes, swipes, etc.?
use visual tells to try and stay on step ahead of the mob?

Did you not see where I covered this in my comment? I specifically stated: "Now, the avoidance mechanics are actually there and way better than your typical MMO (although I feel like Vindictus has better collision detection with dodge rolls, where as Tera allows you to roll right through monsters and relies more on momentary invincibility). But aiming? It's an over-hyped joke. "

Also, there are MMOs (DCUO, GW2, for example) that provide tab-targeting as an option, which also allow avoidance of projectile and smash attacks through damage avoidance/reduction mechanics (dodge rolls, player-triggered blocks). They too provide visual "tells" to allow players to manually avoid larger attacks.



Jihoko on 05/27/2012, 09:08 AM - view
get attack bonuses for hitting the mob in the back, not firing/attacking from behind the mob,

Perhaps this is news to you, but a number of MMOs incorporate flanking mechanics into their games. Positional damage is nothing new and not exclusive to Tera or "action-MMOs".



Jihoko on 05/27/2012, 09:08 AM - view
but your attacks actually hitting a fairly narrow spot in the mob or player's hitbox?

You're kidding, right? BAMs are huge.. you would have to be deliberately trying to miss them provided you're in range and actually facing your opponent. Outside of BAMs there are smaller minions and "normal" mobs that may be more difficult to hit (if you're incredibly horrible at aiming) but ridiculously easy to kill in comparison. And so many attacks have an AOE or cone effect. There are few exceptions, but please don't tell me you're actually trying to argue that there is some aiming skill involved in PvE content.

I find it odd that you even mentioned "hitting a fairly narrow spot in the mob". Are you talking about Tera or Vindictus? Because Vindictus is the game that has "break offs", or armor/body pieces that can be removed (and acquired as loot) by hitting a specific location a specific number of times.



Jihoko on 05/27/2012, 09:08 AM - view

I could go on, but the obvious answer to all of them is "no" and trying to equate Tera with tab-targeting is ridiculous.

Perhaps you should go on, because as far as I can tell you have yet to even properly start.



Jihoko on 05/27/2012, 09:08 AM - view
As for the game being so easy that you can solo most mobs with your eyes closed... please post a vid of you soloing an equal-level BAM. You're welcome to have your eyes open, because it would be impossible to do so with them closed and I want to give you a chance.

Are there actually people playing Tera who can't solo BAMs? This is news to me. Why are you acting like it's an impossibility? And who mentioned killing BAMs with their eyes closed? I'd love to see that real-life Jedi in action too. And (unless I missed it, which is certainly possible) I don't think anyone in this thread mentioned BAMs being easy, so I'm not sure why you're even wasting time on that particular rant. I certainly didn't, and you seem to be aiming your comments at me.

I will go on the record as saying that non-BAM content is stupid-easy to the point of being boring and not fun to fight. In my opinion it hurts the game. BAMs are the only challenging PvE content in Tera. Personally, I would prefer the game be littered with BAMs and "normal" opponents that are as dangerous as BAMs, but with smaller health pools. The amount of time it takes to solo a BAM can start to drag on after a while and, while they're entertaining in moderation, I prefer my "normal" fights to only last about a minute or two.

Honestly, I'm not sure how you went from "easy to aim at BAMs" to "easy to kill BAMs". Nobody suggested the latter. More focus on reading comprehension and less on ranting, please.

As for your NCSoft comment at the start.. don't be a fool. I guess it's simply impossible for a gamer to be dissatisfied with certain aspects of a game? They must be a mole sent here to stir up trouble, right? They couldn't possibly just be interested in providing feedback in the hopes that the game will improve. I realize you would rather just pretend the game is perfect and nothing needs changing, but not everyone is as easy to please as you. Seeing as you're the one thinking the game should remain in its current state.. perhaps *you're the spy trying to sabotage it..!" /le-gasp-tin-foil-hat

:P
Edited by: EdgeTO 12 months ago
Abriael Profile Options #134

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As a fellow game journalist (that happened to write his own review of the game, mind you), I'm rather appalled that a site as large and visible as IGN lets incapable goons like this writer wannabe handle their reviews, especially for complex games as MMORPGs.

Not only a lot of his points simply don't make sense (some do, but TERA isn't a perfect game,of course), or are more flaws of the genre than of this game in particular, but he uses an extremely hyperbolic tone that makes it look like he's intentionally trying to make the game looks as bad as possible.

The final jab that says he's so eager to play GW2 and TSW kind of uncovers his cards. It seems like a fanboy of other games felt threatened by Tera and used his visibility on a major gaming site to bash it and plug his future games of choice.

It's twice as laughable because everyone in the industry even remotely in MMORPGs already played the beta of TSW, and everyone knows that the game is in a pityful state at the moment. The fact that this dude hypes it up like it was something any superior to Tera removes any credibility from his review.

The sole fact that he concludes the review of a game by hyping competing games that haven't even been released (one of which isn't even near to release), shows an utter lack of professionalism and work ethics. As a colleague, I honestly feel ashamed for him.

Unfortunately some sites do let this kind of people write. Amateurism and lack of worth ethics are a big flaw of modern game journalism.
mdcdeve Profile Options #135

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Hm .. i agree, the review isn't the best. Comparing games in a review is a yes, but hyping is certainly a no. Tera is a game i've actually been enjoying with some friends, the first MMO i've liked in quite some time. Top down dungeon crawling such as diablo has never really interested me for long, always felt like a grind after killing 1000's of the same groups of enemys before any quest or story related event happens.
EdgeTO Profile Options #136

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Abriael on 05/27/2012, 11:33 AM - view
As a fellow game journalist (that happened to write his own review of the game, mind you), I'm rather appalled that a site as large and visible as IGN lets incapable goons like this writer wannabe handle their reviews, especially for complex games as MMORPGs.

Not only a lot of his points simply don't make sense (some do, but TERA isn't a perfect game,of course), or are more flaws of the genre than of this game in particular, but he uses an extremely hyperbolic tone that makes it look like he's intentionally trying to make the game looks as bad as possible.

The final jab that says he's so eager to play GW2 and TSW kind of uncovers his cards. It seems like a fanboy of other games felt threatened by Tera and used his visibility on a major gaming site to bash it and plug his future games of choice.

It's twice as laughable because everyone in the industry even remotely in MMORPGs already played the beta of TSW, and everyone knows that the game is in a pityful state at the moment. The fact that this dude hypes it up like it was something any superior to Tera removes any credibility from his review.

The sole fact that he concludes the review of a game by hyping competing games that haven't even been released (one of which isn't even near to release), shows an utter lack of professionalism and work ethics. As a colleague, I honestly feel ashamed for him.

Unfortunately some sites do let this kind of people write. Amateurism and lack of worth ethics are a big flaw of modern game journalism.


Frankly, you seem way off the mark, and guilty of reading more into his comment than is actually there. His closing statement was this:

"Bluehole's MMO debut occasionally makes desperate, clawing grasps at greatness (see: BAMs, dungeons, combat's rarely applied nuances), but seems mostly content to trudge along nonchalantly without ever really applying itself. I'd hand this one an “A for effort,” but most of Tera – beyond its combat – is out-and-out lazily designed. No doubt there's a wealth of promise here, but as is, I can only recommend a subscription to avid players who've completely exhausted other, more robust options like WoW or Rift, or absolutely cannot wait any longer for Guild Wars 2 or The Secret World."

To me that last line is simply saying two things:

1) That MMOs like WoW and Rift offer more substance and features than Tera (absolutely no question there, especially WoW which has so many years of live development behind it).

2) That Tera shows promise, but in it's current state he is only willing to recommend a Tera subscription to gamers who have moved on from other more robust MMOs (see above), and to those who can't be bothered to wait to try other upcoming MMOs (such as GW2 or TSW, which are currently the only ones on the near horizon).

Where you see a "GW2/TSW fanboy showing his hand", I see someone making a common sense recommendation. If GW2 or TSW were not scheduled to launch for several more years, then that editor likely wouldn't have even mentioned them. Had The Elder Scrolls MMO been right around the corner, I'm guessing he would have mentioned that game instead. He was very simply naming upcoming MMOs as options, and suggesting MMO fans try out Tera if and only if they lacked the patience to wait for something that may or may not be potentially better.

You can accuse him of not having a lot of faith in Tera based on his experiences with it, but to accuse him of being a fanboy of other MMOs? You're reaching so hard there you're in danger of dislocating a shoulder.
msoltyspl Profile Options #137

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Amene Lvl.60
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I will go on the record as saying that non-BAM content is stupid-easy to the point of being boring and not fun to fight. In my opinion it hurts the game. BAMs are the only challenging PvE content in Tera.


And only as long.

How many times one have to solo some bam type to feel challenged in any way or form ? Furthermore - with completely ruined lvl60 repeatables due to egg/box removal (removal not even exchanged for anything whatsoever, and because the producer had bad struck of luck) - there's little actual reason to even touch them. I won't even mention what L60 bams even drop per average.

Also, the variety at L60 - "ow" content essentially stuffed into 4 areas (of which 3 could be nicknamed [endgame] bluehole). roughly 5 bam types to fight (devastator, ufo, moloch, beetle, monkey). With eventualy few more in lower level areas if someone wants to stretch it (and bore oneself to death). Everything else - down the drain.

Whole Shara continent should be 60-only area (especially considering leveling pace), with stuff so good in it people wouldn't even think about dumb, sensless, neverending instance farm.

For the record - let's also keep in perspective that "bams" are marked as 5 or at worst 3 people group mobs - and in such configuration they are helpless, pointless, defensless boring meatbags to beat and move to the next that spawned. So the difficulty flows well with the rest of rather unispiring solo content (with occasional rare exceptions here and there - mostly some remains from past elite-mostly zones). Content which again - in 59-60 zones - drops down in difficulty rather extensively and starts reminding Island of Dawn.

IGN review - opinions about site aside (well excused for the most part) - is pretty fair. Combat system is the single point of defense here. The rest is factory line korean mmo. With bag of the same mistakes amusingly repeated, again. And ironically - everything made worse under EME's hands.
Yassha Profile Options #138

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Abriael on 05/27/2012, 11:33 AM - view
As a fellow game journalist (that happened to write his own review of the game, mind you), I'm rather appalled that a site as large and visible as IGN lets incapable goons like this writer wannabe handle their reviews, especially for complex games as MMORPGs.

Not only a lot of his points simply don't make sense (some do, but TERA isn't a perfect game,of course), or are more flaws of the genre than of this game in particular, but he uses an extremely hyperbolic tone that makes it look like he's intentionally trying to make the game looks as bad as possible.

The final jab that says he's so eager to play GW2 and TSW kind of uncovers his cards. It seems like a fanboy of other games felt threatened by Tera and used his visibility on a major gaming site to bash it and plug his future games of choice.

It's twice as laughable because everyone in the industry even remotely in MMORPGs already played the beta of TSW, and everyone knows that the game is in a pityful state at the moment. The fact that this dude hypes it up like it was something any superior to Tera removes any credibility from his review.

The sole fact that he concludes the review of a game by hyping competing games that haven't even been released (one of which isn't even near to release), shows an utter lack of professionalism and work ethics. As a colleague, I honestly feel ashamed for him.

Unfortunately some sites do let this kind of people write. Amateurism and lack of worth ethics are a big flaw of modern game journalism.


Yes this is the impression I got as well. If you read the Cataclysm review after the Tera review it is blatently obvious that a reviewer's pre-bias toward a game has waaaay too much of an impact on the score and review.
Abriael Profile Options #139

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EdgeTO on 05/27/2012, 01:34 PM - view

You can accuse him of not having a lot of faith in Tera based on his experiences with it, but to accuse him of being a fanboy of other MMOs? You're reaching so hard there you're in danger of dislocating a shoulder.


It seems to me that you're reaching quite hard to justify him.

1: A game reviewer with any work ethics will review a game for what it is, avoiding comparison to other games unless strictly necessary. The final jab with the ame dropping of other games is easily transliterated to "don't play this game, go play those other games that are better, or wait for those other two games that will be better". Especially the second part is laughable, considering that TSW is in a state of absolute disrepair, and no game reviewer worth his salt would ever deem a game as far in the future as GW2 (on which there's still a *lot* of work to be done and that still has a lot to prove) as a superior alternative until it's much nearer to its release.
It's simply not done, and any writer that does it instantly loses any credibility and semblance of professionalism.

2: his overdramatic, hyperbolic, almost mocking tone (in laughable sentences like "Bluehole's MMO debut occasionally makes desperate, clawing grasps at greatness") clearly shows that he's either trying to intentionally make the game looks worse than it is, or he simply is a very bad writer.

A simple rule of any kind of journalism is that if you can't express a concept without hyperbole, you should be a novelist, and you probably won't be a good one anyway.
qw12po09 Profile Options #140

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Clearly Enmasse didn't pay IGN enough to get a top review.

Lets be honest, all it requires from a game is money for IGN to give it a good review.