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Is Warhammer Online afraid of WoW? Lead designer says no photo

Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning finally shipped last Thursday, and the inevitable question is already on the lips of industry and MMO fans alike: does the game have a chance of putting a dent in World Of Warcraft's feverishly dedicated user base, or will it be forgotten in the shadows of Blizzard's reign of online gaming?

Lead designer and Mythic studio co-founder Mark Jacobs commented on the issue, telling Gamasutra in a recent interview why he feels ready to go up against WoW:

"We're not saying we're going to beat [Blizzard], but we're not afraid of them ... we have our own hook; that's [realm versus realm combat], and we're pushing it and we're pushing it, just as we're pushing other innovations in the game. Blizzard is number one; we don't mind being number two, especially if it's a competitive number two. I can't worry about that."

Sounds reasonable, and a sight more logical than the Denis Dyack approach. I haven't plowed a decent amount of time into an MMO in years (although I'll likely resume for the release of Shin Megami Tensei: Imagine Online), so it's hard for me to say if I think Warhammer Online has the chops to be number two. Will you tak ea break from WoW to give it a spin?

[Thanks, Joe]


Continue: More Warhammer Online stories





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26 comments | showing # 1 to 26

Lightthrower's Avatar
Lightthrower at 09/22/2008 12:01
Wow? Dat iz for runts! Git' da' squishies!! WAAAAAGGGGHHHH!
DarkTravesty's Avatar
DarkTravesty at 09/22/2008 12:04
i already did, it didn't last long but i can say i at least gave it a shot.
TheHunter234's Avatar
TheHunter234 at 09/22/2008 12:13
I've been hearing all about Warhammer in the various chat channels of WoW, so it seems to have made an impact on the playerbase, but personally, one MMO is all I can handle at a time.
MrSadistic's Avatar
MrSadistic at 09/22/2008 12:14
I played the Warhammer beta, and thought it was pretty crappy. I didn't see what the hype was all about.
dotdigsgames's Avatar
dotdigsgames at 09/22/2008 12:26
no I'm too busy prepping my WoW toons for Lich King!
Milhouse's Avatar
Milhouse at 09/22/2008 12:33
I'm a long time Warhammer fan, and the game really nailed it pretty well. A really fun game, especially if you work as a team.
Mogg's Avatar
Mogg at 09/22/2008 12:33
I was never a big WoW player, but after a weekend of WarHammer, I'm hooked. Its a great game and worth trying out.
TheGreatMango's Avatar
TheGreatMango at 09/22/2008 12:36
I'm thoroughly enjoying WAR at the moment. There are so many ways to level, it's crazy.

Wanna explore? Ok!

PvP? Alright!

Giant World quests involving 20+ people that restart about 2 mins after they finish? Yes! Oh, and you give me loot depending on my performance, AND you'll even cushion me if I such at enough of these?! Yay!

Normal Quests? Sure, if you're a square...

The only thing more I could ask for is my Orc Melee DPS class, a bit more depth to crafting, and Skaven. Kbye.
king3vbo's Avatar
king3vbo at 09/22/2008 12:37
Dat RvR iz wot makes de gamez good, ya gitz
mr geo's Avatar
mr geo at 09/22/2008 12:51
Shin Megami Tensei MMO FTW!!!
Valthonis's Avatar
Valthonis at 09/22/2008 12:53
@TheHunter234: Every new MMO release has it's ripples through the WoW playerbase as those who want an excuse to play something else see them coming closer and closer. Before WAR it was Age of Conan... before that there Tabula Rasa & Hellgate: London... before that, it was LOTRO and the Matrix Online...

To those caught in WoW's gravitational field, it's always nice to look up at the other passing MMOs and say "I'm going over THERE!" Some never work up the gumption to leave, others come back after deciding it wasn't worth it... and some go for good.

Funny thing is, there's never enough who go for good to put a dent in Blizzard's population numbers.
BattyAdroit's Avatar
BattyAdroit at 09/22/2008 12:54
I'll be sticking with EQ2, thanks.
bluemeep's Avatar
bluemeep at 09/22/2008 13:08
I'm enjoying what I've seen so far. My only real complaints are the lack of variety in classes and crafting. I know they plan on addressing the former in patches, but I don't know if they plan on going beyond what they already have for the crafting segment.

The public quests are fucking brilliant.
Demtor's Avatar
Demtor at 09/22/2008 13:08
Meh, those playing WoW right now will keep playing. Good for them. For me, who needs WoW? I've got everything I've wanted in a PVP focused MMORPG. Everything cool from the Warhammer world and then some.

There is never a time where you aren't rewarded for playing. You'll always have things to do, even if you only had an hour to play. Exploring, RvR, Scenarios, Public Quests, and omg exploring. Some of the area's are very complex in detail. You can get lost pretty easily but thanks to the useful map with quest details that work in conjunction with the tomb of knowledge (of which I swear by and read all the time) this game is quite fun to get in to. I'm having a blast.

Don't want any PvE? Just run through everything at lvl 1 until you get to the first RvR and start hacking away. Soon enough you'll be ranking up and getting better equipment without even killing a single mob. I love it.
Etelmik's Avatar
Etelmik at 09/22/2008 13:23
I'm on the train for how awesome WAR is compared to WoW. I just wrote a cblog post on it.

I'd say I'm hoping it get big, but honestly, I just need enough for the server I'm on and enough that the game doesn't fold and doesn't suck (AoC, I'm looking at you).
faultymoose's Avatar
faultymoose at 09/22/2008 13:24
I deleted all of my WoW toons tonight, including four level 70 Sunwell geared toons, for no reason other than I've done the MMO thing, thanks. Warhammer looks almost identical, and I haven't played it at all so I can't make any calls about the gameplay. But the last thing in the world I want to do is get hooked on another epic time sink.
Tull's Avatar
Tull at 09/22/2008 13:26
I've avoided MMORPGs like the plague that they are but being a Warhammer fan from its days as a pen-and-paer game during the early 80's right up to its tabletop gaming self through the past 20 or so year I had to try WAR. I can say that WAR is fun and has hooked this previously anti-MMO gamer. I may try WoW in time, but from ex-WoW players now playing WAR has told me it may not be worth the time to make the switch later on. Plus, the PvP and RvR are as advertised and even more.

Now if they can continue to work on improving what has worked so far and fixing what hasn't then I may just invest the monthly fees to continue playing past the holidays.
snotrocket's Avatar
snotrocket at 09/22/2008 13:28
I played the beta and it was ass! Played open beta and it was a little better but still ass! Playing retail now and it looks 400 times better, smoother and much more than you would imagine. I haven't played WoW in months and WAR is filling that spot all to much :(

The RvR is where it's at in this game. Just so much to do for player verse player interactivity compared to WoW.
xSledgewick's Avatar
xSledgewick at 09/22/2008 13:38
@snotrocket: Ass? Is that good or bad?

"It's ass..." WTF.
Natural 20's Avatar
Natural 20 at 09/22/2008 14:45
I know a fair number of players in WAR and so far I've been hearing a lot of good things about the game. I personally am waiting a month to see if Age of Conan lack of endgame syndrome rears its ugly head.
Foe's Avatar
Foe at 09/22/2008 15:26
I've been playing it all weekend and it's great. RvR is a great mechanic and it really seems like it will have staying power.
Eschatos's Avatar
Eschatos at 09/22/2008 16:04
I'm loving it so far.
indigoinc's Avatar
indigoinc at 09/22/2008 16:09
So far the game seems like something I'll be playing for a while.
Sol Kyoshiro's Avatar
Sol Kyoshiro at 09/22/2008 17:59
This game is awesome. And for those that haven't played it and say it looks the same.

Pshhhh.

its like comparing books at a store. There all shaped the same, some have the same amount of pages, even similar cover art. But when you get into it and read you'll quickly realize its not the same.

If you like PvP I find it very hard to think that this game wouldn't entertain you.
The Johnggernaut's Avatar
The Johnggernaut at 09/23/2008 06:11
XP for killing players. Looting players dead bodies (but you don't take any of their stuff, it's just newly generated rewards). Sieging Keeps. When you can level up only in PvP or PvE or both, you really feel like it's 'your game.' You're doing it how you want to.

No class in the game is your standard rogue or warrior. You've got your Witch Hunters, Squig Herders, Black Orcs and Chosen, etc... It's unbelievable how much there is to the game while keeping everything straight and to the point. Had the smoothest launch of any mmo I've ever Beta tested or played at launch. I'm diggin it.
Anti-Everything's Avatar
Anti-Everything at 09/23/2008 11:09
I've played the hell out of WoW, I was always into instances and raiding. I never enjoyed the battlegrounds or arena. Needless to say I was reluctant about WAR but bought it anyways.

Having said that, RvR is awesome. I can earn experience, more even, than PvE questing, and I can join seamlessly from anywhere in the world! Quests are supplementary to RvR, not the other way around. It's likely that I will pay for a subscription once my first month is done, wheter that leads to me not getting Lich King right away, who knows.
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