Okay, EQ takes too much time... what are my other options?

[Sum1]

Kodi made a comment in another thread regarding WoW that got me thinking...

How true is that "can accomplish anything in 15 minutes" really, though?

I've never played WoW and have no idea what it takes to get high end gear. In EQ to get high end raid gear you need to raid 4-6 hours a day for years (which I'm sure you're familiar with). I don't want to quit EQ, but I've been thinking about all the other shit I could be accomplishing (learning Japanese, finishing my MBA, studying for the GRE, getting ripped again, etc, etc, etc).

Anyone have any views on the matter? If I had spent the last 9 or 10 years working out and doing triathlons and shit rather than the 9 or 10 years sitting in front of a computer I might be in better shape lol.

 

[Kodilynn]

With the exception of the new Cata end-game content (ugh) the game really is the easy-mode of the MMO world. I was able to sit down, log in, do 1-2 missions in 15-20 minutes, get my rewards and then log off for work or whatever else it was I was doing. Prior to cata the instances if you got a good enough Pug (or friends) took as short as 20-30 minutes to complete with gear/money as the reward. It just didn't involve much effort and the reward was good enough (I guess?) to keep you hooked.

That's not to say that the game is for everyone - it has its critics. It hasn't been until Cata that things got cranked up a notch in end game difficulty at 85 where people had to actually try instead of just mashing buttons. Unfortunately too many people did just that and made it frustratingly annoying. While there is a ton of shit to solo and do, grouping and raiding instances and heavy reliance on PVP is where its at.

 

[400bhp4tw]

play minecraft, i started last night and did 6 hours straight its sick!

 

[Blitzkrieg]

play minecraft, i started last night and did 6 hours straight its sick!

Word. Been working on my castle now that I completed my underground fortress. Was a 200x100 block cube I mined out between stone, dirt, gravel, and some obsidian surprisingly. Took me a good 3 days alone just to nail out the dimensions and fill up any pockets I encountered.

Next is to build an escape tunnel and use minecarts to connect the underground caverns with the aboveground castle!

 

[PRWraith]

http://imdeity.com/

is the beta minecraft server I play on.

 

[htw]

Well, I have no advice for you - except, based on my past experience, WOW wouldn't be my choice. The game has merits, sure, but sense of accomplishment, to me, is as low as the sense of difficulty. Sure, you can do short sessions, make progress; get gear upgrades, xp, whatever. But in the long run, it really didn't mean any more to me than the lack of effort & time it took me to get it.

For EQ, I was never able to be a 'hard core' raider. I was in raiding guilds, but they always knew about my schedule up front. Heaven & Earth, probably was my easiest raid schedule to meet. The War Council was one I recall that I could make 2 raids 1 week, but only 1 the next. As a result, my DKP suffered. I typically couldn't afford a DKP war, so would end up getting gear a bit down the line after others in the class lineup already had it, or I got lucky and nobody else was there who could use it, or happened to want it (e.g., they might be 'saving up').

So weeks (or months) behind the latest & greatest, but that probably made it feel that much cooler when I finally got something. The same thing, in relation to leveling & AA - took me a bit longer, from having less time, but that new purchase I made with my hard-earned AA, or another level ding, and it was really cool.

I guess it just all comes down to what your end game is. Some people, want the end fast. They want the gear, the money, the levels, the AA - but it's all about the shortest road there, i.e., getting to the end - not what you did on the way there.

For me, sure, it was wanting those same things, except I never really felt the rush. People who were willing to group up and try new (or harder) missions, such as LDON, DON, etc., or just go to try mobs or zones that were not done often, that was more fun to me than the xp grinds with groups that wanted to just park & do the same shit again, and again, and again, and again... just to xp as fast as possible.

I really need to make the time to get back into the game again. I never really wanted to stop playing actively, but one of my job assignments at the time just made things too crazy for me to get any real opportunity to stay in. Then an expansion came out, and I was a 'little' lost. Then another one, and I was 'real lost'. If I would just take the plunge, and realize I need to jump back in and figure out what people are doing, what content, how to do progression, flags, whatever - then I'm sure I would be having as much fun on the journey to 90, more AA's, better gear - as I did years ago.

htw

 

[Mori]

If you like PvP, and quick max level and gear that comes quick if you work at it? I would go for private Aion server. The one that I currently play on GamezAion and it's the best High Rate server there is... and am one of the top Gladiator's on Siel server..after getting lvl 55 (max lvl) you will HARDLY EVER do PvE, after that it's 95% PvP..Also, it's a HUUUUUGE community...But, there are also private/free Aion servers that are low-rate or almost 100% retail version...

If you wanna check it out, here is the website...it's 100% free unless you decide to Donate

www.gamezaion.com

If you do end up trying this, PM me here and I'll hook you up with some gears to get you goin...

 

[rob]

Kodi made a comment in another thread regarding WoW that got me thinking...

How true is that "can accomplish anything in 15 minutes" really, though?

I've never played WoW and have no idea what it takes to get high end gear. In EQ to get high end raid gear you need to raid 4-6 hours a day for years (which I'm sure you're familiar with). I don't want to quit EQ, but I've been thinking about all the other shit I could be accomplishing (learning Japanese, finishing my MBA, studying for the GRE, getting ripped again, etc, etc, etc).

Anyone have any views on the matter? If I had spent the last 9 or 10 years working out and doing triathlons and shit rather than the 9 or 10 years sitting in front of a computer I might be in better shape lol.

So I read that as:

I have 15 minutes of time. Here are my options

Play WoW
Learning Japanese
Finishing MBA
Studying for the GRE
and getting ripped again

First thing I'd do is spend 15 minutes learning Japanese. This may help you in understanding international business, which is a perfect segway into spending your next block of 15 minutes in getting your MBA. Unfortunately you probably can't do that until you at the very least, have studied for the GRE, so you should spend the next 15 minutes studying for it.

Once you've studied the GRE, and studying is only part of the actual process, so we'll assume you actually took the test...and passed. You can now move on to your MBA. After you have your MBA, I recommend waiting/relaxing for 15 minutes...i mean, you just learned japanese, studied for the GRE, and got your MBA. It was an intense 45 minutes.

This leaves WoW and getting ripped. Those two aren't always mutually exclusive, but they typically are....so you have to pick one or the other. The problem with getting ripped in 15 minutes is...if you don't spend another 15 minutes on it again, well, you will run into the same problem. Playing WoW, on the other hand, if you don't spend another 15 minutes on it, you'll run into similar issues.

Perhaps with your new found MBA and Japanese language skills you can approach Nintendo of Japan and pitch a new game: Wii Fit meets Dungeons and Dragons. This new product will allow you to consolidate your remaining 15 minutes of getting ripped while killing a dragon for uber lewtz.

A total amount of time spent: 60 minutes (well, leaving out obvious road blocks like flying to Japan, you know, because we are being realistic here)

 

[mjtizzle21]

LOL

 

[twizzops]

Since you asked, here's my 2 cents. I personally quit playing Everquest after raiding hard core while in the military and then college. I continued to play while perusing my career as a network engineer and starting my family.

When I finally quit, I started working towards getting some certifications. I managed to get both my CCNP and CCVP. That alone increased my salary by an additional 20k along with a promotion. It took many months to achieve both certifications, but that's how I used my nights that I would normally be raiding. My wife is much happier and I feel better about myself and my craft.

I do know that if I continued to play Everquest, I would have gotten neither certification or the promotion. It took me nearly 6 years of playing Everquest constantly to realize how much potential I was letting slip away. Thankfully I just turned 30 and I realized what Everquest was costing me, and it wasn't 14.99 a month.

I have left Everquest before, but for the wrong reasons. Usually it had to do with something that happened in game, like a nerf or some sort of drama. I usually came back after a month or 2 and played constant for another year or so. It wasn't until I really thought about how many hours I really put into this and got nothing more out of it than some joy and stress. This time I quit for myself and I am currently happy improving myself instead of my character(s).

When I want to enjoy a game for 15 minutes I can usually play Starcraft 2 against someone on the ladder in that time frame or call a friend up and schedule something. 15 minutes can also easily be used to stay or get back into shape.

 

[Sum1]

hahaha.. Ironic. I'm turning 30 in a month and am in the military. My work is going well, but I feel like I could utilize the hours every evening in a more productive way.

My significant other is Japanese, so it's not really a matter of learning the language for business... I have a much more profound personal motivation.

I'm already 10 of 12 classes complete for my MBA with a GPA of like 3.95 or something (bitch in my last class had the balls to give me a B+).

I'm also about to start a major DIY home renovation, so my time just got much more valuable lol.

Thanks for the replies. I know what I should do, but I really think EQ is an addiction, which makes it very difficult to actually make the lifestyle change.

 

[dulak]

In that case, check out Eve Online. Perfect for casual gamers. Trains skills in real time which is probably the best/worst part about the game.

 

[Mori]

The Aion F2P thing I mentioned is the type of game where you can play for 30mins or however long you want...