Game Review (early impressions): Secret World Legends
I am actually a fan of The Secret World and I played the original incarnation quite a bit, but I never beat it. When I heard funcom was revamping it and releasing it as a new game under the Free 2 Play type of design I admit I had my concerns. I was concerned it would be dumbed down so much there is almost no point in playing it like what happened with Star Wars The Old Republic, World of Warcraft, and many games before it.
Instead of people needing to learn a game, the trend is to make them so easy that there can end up being virtually no challenge. This has left me in a state where I don't typically like MMOs.
I'll admit The Secret World was one that sucked me in. I'm a sucker for horror, super natural, urban legends, and urban fantasy type settings. Throw in the fact that H.P. Lovecraft is perhaps one of my favorite horror authors of all time and the fact the first main area has some serious Lovecraftian type things going on and it makes for a very different game.
The only other MMO I've really gotten into is Eve Online and I've barely scratched the surface there, but that one is completely different.
So Secret World Legends went live yesterday for people that already had the original The Secret World. It will go live for the rest of the world on Monday.
I jumped in and began playing and am around 10th level. They have changed some things but so far it doesn't really seem like it has made it worse. I do think some of the early fights seem way easier than I remember them, but that could also be because my Hammer and Katana wielding nut job of a character deals out more damage than my past characters, but I think these intro areas might be easier. Also keep in mind I've played this a couple of times so these early quests may be easier.
It is important if you have played The Secret World before and you want any outfits, pets, etc to carry over that you go to the following site and follow it's instructions to transfer those things over to Secret World Legends.
https://secretworldlegends.com/news/legacy-transfers/
You will still need to create a new character as there are some significant changes.
So far they seem to have made the skills focused around the weapons you equip rather than having the skill wheels of before. I actually liked those old skill wheels, but then complexity does not bother me. This though seems to not really have hurt the game.
Weapons you bought for TSW will not transfer over as weapons do seem to be an area that has changed quite a bit. You can actually upgrade weapons by consuming other weapons with the upgrade menu. The NEW tutorial introduction does a good job of immediately explaining all of this. So far I don't see much confusion in this game at all.
The environment is still the same, the atmosphere and the story.
I am only 10th level so there could be a lot that changes my mind. On monday it will be Free 2 Play and if you have never played it, this MMO has one of the most unique and interesting story and setting out of all MMOs. Large portions of it you can actually play solo, and it is quite fun as a solo game. There are larger dungeons/raids that you can group up on, but the bulk of the game you can pretty much do solo.
If you are a gamer and have not played The Secret World then I highly recommend checking out Secret World Legends on Monday. IF you already have played TSW then you might want to come back and give SWL a look.
Yes, those are zombies eating a dead person. The first area has a lot of zombies, but The Secret World wraps conspiracy, mythology, horror, fantasy, modern day, tech, sci-fi, bigfoot, ghosts, demonic invasions, corporations gone power mad, Native American, Egyptian, Vampire, Werewolf, etc type things into a really well thought out world, story, etc. There is nothing else quite like it out there.
I can say that there were some immediate changes in Agartha when you get there. I don't need to say more, and it doesn't really hurt anything, and might actually end up being pretty cool. I am not actually in the part of the story where I have bothered going back to Agartha yet.
Anyway... those are my early impressions. I didn't offer any spoilers and perhaps some of you might give it a go.
This review is pure epicness. You really delve into the game with some awesome detail. I am excited for Monday. What other games do you plan on covering?
Hahahahaha... Plan? I don't really plan. I just write about whatever inspires me. I am also a game developer, musician, philosopher, etc.
So one day I write about Game Development, another music, another politics, and I write about philosophical topics a lot. I'll write about games too, but I tend to focus more on making my own and messing with game development tools than I do playing them.
I may cover some more in the future if one really tells me I should. :)
I just go with the flow. If I get interested or excited about something I write about it.
So I don't really PLAN too much. :)
hahaha, most people who blog on Steemit are philosophers, good post either way, I played Secret world 1 and didn't like it so much, maybe I should give this one a try.
If you didn't like it then what you didn't like about it would determine whether it is worth it or not. The game and world are mostly identical. They have changed the game play a bit to make it more ACTION oriented in combat, and things like that. They have simplified the interface. So if those were any of the things you didn't like then it may be worth trying. If those were not what you didn't like then you probably still won't like it.
Pretty sweet! Going to have to check more of these out right now I am loving Black Desert online does this compare with it at all in terms of open sandbox mmo? and economy driving by players? Those would be my fav types. Eve online for example minus the BS that goes on there lol
No it isn't a sand box. It has a pretty intricate and interesting story unlike any game let alone MMO.
Thanks seems interesting enough to git it a shot
Thanks for sharing your impressions. I will definitely check it out when it is available to everyone
I actually remember watching the movie kind of trailers way back when the game whasn't even released yet, and was kinda hyped about it. Then it eventually came out and never looked at it ^^
I think the story and the atmosphere live up to the hype. I think it would have made a fun Single Player Game.
I'm not into MMOs myself, but this is just how a game (p)review should be. Kudos!
I actually dislike MMOs quite a bit. I could actually write a post about all the things I dislike about them. This one manages to avoid most of that.
Thank you for the thorough look at this game. Keep us posted as you progress through the levels. No time to actually play games lately so I do enjoy a good read.
I always wanted to play Secret World as I liked the Buy it once no subscription concept. I just have a monster backlog and I haven't been playing much lately, but I'm going to try to check it out! Thanks for the info homey!
It is great. It'd actually be a pretty bad ass single player game too. One of a kind in environment, and world.
Just started playing it yesterday.....Love it!
Very nice and interesting. I will take a look at it.