Episode 9 – Chicken Play clucks!

In this episode Jason ventures boldly back into the dangerous world of J.R.R. Tolkien to play as a heroic…chicken.  Jim joins us to discuss what he’s been playing, his take on the MMO genre and we all discuss on-line romance and those raid group know-it-alls we all love so much.

8 Comments to Episode 9 – Chicken Play clucks!

  1. Jim's Gravatar Jim
    September 13, 2007 at 3:33 pm | Permalink

    Thanks again, Jason, Mark & Noah for having me join you. Had a great time!

    Cheers!

  2. Daniel's Gravatar Daniel
    September 16, 2007 at 2:30 pm | Permalink

    Great show, as usual. Thanks for the warning about the Chicken Play in Lotro. I won’t be questing for the fowl cloak any time soon. This show was very timely, too as I just encountered several know-at-alls arguing during a raid in EQ2. The love connection in game was a little frightening, but funny just the same. I have now listened to most of the podcasts and Channel Massive has moved up to my top 5 podcasts. I have played all of the games that you discuss and I am curious. You all seem to mention EQ2 the least of all MMOs. Now, certainly, WOW is the most popular, but does that make it the best? I played it for a while and became bored at the cookie cutter artwork and story. I was also put off by all of the children playing the game. The best thing about WOW is that it can be played on almost any crap system. That is one of the main reasons that it is so popular. I find EQ2 to have a much more mature audience. As an avid gamer at 42 with 3 kids, I prefer my MMOs to be mature. WOW is like playing in a preschool sandbox. It’s a great game, but the community is much, much better in EQ2. Anyway, great show, keep up the great work.

    Daniel

    Bronx, NY

  3. Daniel's Gravatar Daniel
    September 17, 2007 at 11:15 am | Permalink

    I wanted to add that I was finally able to download and listen to your first podcast and I listened to your EQ2 report with amusement. I’ll agree that the character models are not the best, but that aspect of the game never bothered me. I’ve always felt that the story behind the many classes and races was comprehensive enough to make the game consistently interesting. It is also worth noting that you need to at least get off of the newbie island before the game gets really compelling. You should level up to about 10 on the newbie island and then jump to the regular zones with your toon. As far as the graphics engine, I am unaware of any MMO with a better one. I’m very picky when it comes to games, especially with limited playing time available, but after trying every MMO out there, EQ2 seems to give me the most overall bang for the buck. I should add that I am a station pass holder and I also play Vanguard, and Galaxies on the same account. You should also definitely retry EQ2 using a modded interface such as ThorUI (my favorite) Additionally, adding EQ2 maps to your interface is a great addition as it gives you detailed information about mobs, poi, etc. This is an immense aid when completing quests. I was really surprised to hear about your opinion of the graphics. I am still amazed at the detail and quality of the artwork and graphics in EQ2 and I’ve been playing it for two years. I can’t stress enough the importance of community in an MMO. The community in WOW, while certainly the largest of the MMOs is definitely lacking in quality and maturity. That’s not to say that there are many great people playing WOW and many great guilds, but the sheer number of players yields the largest number of a-holes. I really got fed up with these whining little kids demanding that I dual with them in WOW so they could “check out some new spell.” I was like, “No thank you, I’m busy doing something else.” Many of these punks would not take no for an answer and they would follow me around harassing me to dual. WOW PVP should be called “Gank Me” Nothing more exciting than dying at the hands of a 13 yaer old 20 times; NOT! If I want to get killed by little kids, I’ll play Halo, thank you. In any event, I liked WOW as a game and I loved the interface, but it became very dry to me after less than a year. The graphics in WOW are underwhelming, to say the least, but if you like the pseudo-medieval/Robin Hood look, you’re in for an animated treat! My favorite thing about WOW is that you can play it on just about any system and it will run fairly well, albeit with the underwhelming graphics. My hat is off to the engineers who designed the WOW engine and I really believe it is that compatibility factor that has pushed WOW to the top of the MMO heap. I am curious to hear if any of you have tried Vanguard or any other MMO/RPG. So far, you guys seem to talk about City of Heroes the most. For me COH and COV were okay, but I became bored with them quickly. This is coming from a guy who grew up collecting comics! I left when they took away the Nazis…that was a stupid move! The Council has to be the lamest bad-guy group ever. I rank the Council right up there with the idea of having Jedi Knights sit around and talk in the last three SW movies…dumb! Thanks again for the great podcast…keep it coming.

    Daniel

  4. September 18, 2007 at 2:56 pm | Permalink

    Check out Episode 10 of the podcast to hear a few rumors about The Fifth Column and their possible return!

  5. September 18, 2007 at 2:59 pm | Permalink

    Oh yeah, one more thing. I have to agree with you (Daniel) completely about the immaturity of a lot of players in WOW. I think that’s why I’ve been gravitating back to COH/COV as my main MMO for now. The user-base just seems older, wiser, and more mature. I also think this player base tends to have a good sense of humor and doesn’t take itself quite so seriously as other games.

  6. Daniel's Gravatar Daniel
    September 18, 2007 at 4:58 pm | Permalink

    Mark, yes, that really was the biggest issue I had with WOW. It’s tough being an adult gamer sometimes, hah! I didn’t mean to overstate the case, however, because I still enjoyed WOW while I played it and I still think it is a great game overall. I was just never that crazy about the artwork like you guys seem to be. It just seemed very flat and bland to me. I did love being able to play it on my laptop though. Thanks for the tip on the Fifth Column, that certainly sounds hopeful. If I keep listening to the show, I’ll end up playing COH again. For now, I’m still enjoying LOTRO and EQ2 for my MMO fix. We’ll see…

    PS Keep those Lotro segments coming, I enjoyed them all so far. I love the trait system as well.

  7. Giacomo's Gravatar Giacomo
    September 22, 2007 at 9:54 pm | Permalink

    Hey, new here. I heard one of you is in the Gods and Heroes Beta (don’t know names yet) If so hit me up in there (Giacomo).

  8. September 25, 2007 at 4:49 pm | Permalink

    I am in that beta and I sure will! My in-game name is Bahne.

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