In my Single-Player Life, I’ve jumped immediately from Borderlands into Metro 2033; thanks to Steam’s standard operating procedure, an amazing sale on Metro 2033 let me pick it up practically for a song, and I’m glad I did. Very glad. Metro 2033 has turned out to be, without a doubt, one of my top games of the year (did it come out this year?). Between the story, which I loved, the pitch-perfect tone and atmosphere, and the amazing visuals, I am hooked.
Between the two games, I haven’t been putting in much time in any MMO. LotRO, for now, consists of logging in once in the morning to run a few reputation quests and, of course, beat my head against the brick wall that is the “Poorly Hidden Chest”. Still no Aged Deed for Drannos…and I’m not holding out much hope at this point. Hopefully Turbine will either get enough backlash from this event to make them think twice about using this particular system again, or they will make it a yearly thing and give all of us not-so-lucky players another shot at the pretty pony.
And, yes, I know I probably sound like a petulant child at this point, but I’m still pretty annoyed at the whole situation. “Luck” rarely plays out for me, in the Real World or online, so I’m used to putting my back into it and investing effort to make progress. That won’t cut it this time.
Borderlands had me for 80+ hours (according to Steam); Metro 2033, though far shorter in it’s single-player component, has had me for far, far longer. Both have been amazingly fun, and both scratched an itch that has been coming on for a long time; the immersive and energetic gameplay of shooters is a welcome change from the strategic nature of MMO combat. But I’ve always been partial to post-apocalyptic settings, and Metro 2033 is so well done, with so many small details adding to the overall experience, that I keep going back to see if I can find anything new.
Both games have me thinking about MMO shooters, and why there really aren’t any yet; at least, none yet that achieve the same frantic fun that comes with a good FPS married to the depth and quantity of story/content traditionally present in your standard MMO. I had high hopes for Dust 514, and then for the zombie shooter being developed by Undead Labs but as both are slated for consoles and never PCs, that pretty much rules them right out. Maybe Earthrise? Or The Agency? The Fallout MMO? Never know, and we can only dream.
In the meantime, I’m slowly making my way back into LotRO through my long-neglected alts, and debating between firing up S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl or Dragon Age, two Steam purchases I never gave their full due. Either way, I’m finding a renewed energy for MMOs, and gaming as a whole, as we come to the closing weeks of what everyone will undoubtedly refer to as a “dry season” for the genre.
pix'led life 