Thursday, June 28, 2007

Wait, So I Actually Have To Know What I'm Doing?

I mentioned a few weeks ago that I had attempted to take a look at Shot Online, but thanks to the updater not working properly, that attempt had failed. I gave it another try this week and, luckily, the game updated itself without a hitch.

I'd been meaning to try Shot Online for quite a while, long before it became a part of the gPotato family (as an aside - why the hell is it called gPotato?) but I had never managed to get around to it. The idea of a golfing MMO, as strange as it seemed, really appealed to me. Mario Golf: Advanced Tour had successfully proved to me that there is indeed something magical in combining golf with an RPG, so why not give it a try online?

I'm not quite sure what I was expecting, but this definitely wasn't it. I guess that, because of the MMO elements, I was figuring the golfing portion would be a little more forgiving. Don't get me wrong, it isn't realistic, but certain things (putting, for example) are quite a bit tougher than I thought they'd be. I guess I was expecting Shot Online would be to golf sims what Space Cowboy Online is to flight sims - ie. not one.

Approaching the game with a different mindset, I could see myself getting into this. It's just so far off from what my expectations were that it's going to take some getting used to.

Thursday, June 14, 2007

Crap Out

Well, the plan for today was Shot Online, but the updater won't work so I can't get the damned thing to launch. That's was I was banking on, so I'm fucked. See you next week.

Thursday, June 07, 2007

You Can Totally Go Home Again

I have to admit, I'm kind of surprised that Eternal Lands is still kicking around. There was a time when it was one of the only playable free MMOs out there, but now those free to play, pay to win MMOs are a dime a dozen (or a dollar a potion, if you'd prefer).

I know it sounds like I've defected, I mean, the game does run on Linux, but it's not open source - go for Planeshift if that's what you're looking for (actually, Planeshift deserves another look from me at some point) - so what is Eternal Lands' continuing draw all about? I used to play quite a bit, so you'd think I'd know, but you'd be wrong.

When I played, people were constantly complaining. Complaining about the in-game economy, complaining about the GMs, complaining about the fact that people could pay for items to make them stronger (and look how that one took off), and generally complaining about everything else that could be complained about. But, apparently, it wasn't that bad, because they're still playing it. Really, what did I expect, they play an MMO - they're bound to complain.

Honestly though, when I last saw the game pop up on The Tome, I had a little twinge of nostalgia. Then that nostalgia turned into me wondering if my old character was still around, or if (the more likely option) a server wipe had caused him to vanish into the ether. And now I'm downloading it again.

Why? I have no idea. But apparently there are a few other people who feel the same way.