WildStar: Not Just Another MMO

True or False: There are lots of MMOs coming out in the near future.

True, obviously. It seems like every year there are countless new MMOs that come and go. Let’s see, what’ve we got coming up soon…? Neverwinter, The Elder Scrolls Online, Defiance, Firefall, Final Fantasy: A Realm Reborn, Marvel Heroes. They’re everywhere you look. The genre is as over-saturated as the World War 2 shooter genre was after Saving Private Ryan.

Now, true or false: All MMOs are the same. False.

*Cue laughter*

Yeah, I know there are plenty of you sitting there shaking your head whilst saying “Ohhh, man… this poor guy. How naive. All MMOs ARE the same.” Welp, you’re wrong. You know why you’re wrong? WildStar. That’s why.

Just this past weekend, myself and fellow DontCritMe editors Nemesis and Blade took a trip to PAX East in Boston. I’d been following WildStar for a while, so I was really looking forward to Carbine Studios’ WildStar panel at PAX. Nemesis and Blade are long time WoW players, so I roped them into going to the panel as well. An hour later, all of our minds were fully blown… myself included, and I already knew a good bit about the game.

It really does look promising, but I know there are lots of negative Nancies out there who think I’m delusional, so just you wait. I’m gonna give you 5 solid reasons why WildStar isn’t just another MMO.

If you’re like me, you took one look at the trailer and you were pretty much sold. The art style really is amazing… It’s like you’re looking at a game based in the Torchlight universe, but with lasers and space ships.

From the overwhelming amount of applause during the housing video shown during the WildStar panel, I can tell that a lot of people are gonna love this. Here are some cool facts about housing: Once you buy a house, you can decorate it however you want.

The possibilities are endless. That may not excite some of you, but just wait… According to the video, logging off in your house grants you more rest XP than anywhere else in the game. And the more cool items you’ve decorated your house with, the more rest XP you’ll get. Also, one especially cool item you can have around your house is a raid portal… Oh, and it grants a buff. YES.

Need more convincing? WATCH THIS VIDEO!

Elder Game will basically ensure that players have plenty of content to explore even after they hit the level cap. The devs at Carbine said that most MMOs are great games, up until they’re over. When people get to the level cap, there’s not a whole lot to do. And that’s true. WildStar will launch with a level cap set to 50 and after that, players will be able to access Elder Game and get special content that acknowledges their hard-earned skills. Now, we don’t know a whole lot about Elder Game yet because it’s still early, but I like what I’m seeing.

Watch some WildStar videos. Seriously. You’ll laugh. Carbine definitely have a sense of humor, and they’ve poured it all into this game. It’s evident in pretty much all of their marketing that they like to have fun and don’t want yet another stale and lackluster MMO… and that’s good, because a game should be fun and have personality.

We don’t know a whole lot about war plots right now, but from my understanding, war plots are intended for elder game PvP. It basically lets you and a bunch of your friends pool your resources together and build big forts to take on other players. Also, during the panel at PAX it was hinted that you would be able to capture a raid boss, for example, and unleash it from your war plot.

Those are just a few things that I think will make WildStar stand out from typical MMOs. It’s got a lot going for it because it’s unique. These guys at Carbine, they’re just like you and me. They said during the panel at PAX that they all play MMOs and they’re just as tired of the status quo as we are. Oh, and by the way… the combat is great. I got to play a good bit of it at PAX and it plays like a dream. Also, mounts are confirmed.

In conclusion, I need this game. I need it now.

Until it launches, I’ll pray to baby Jesus every night for a beta key.

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