What an excellent article !
You have articulated most of my feelings regarding the MMORPG experience. Since leaving EQ to play EQ2 and WoW I have watched many players rush through the levels to achieve the destination and constantly questioned why they would want to do this. For me the whole point of an MMO is to experience as much as you can from the world. Developing and evolving my character much as a child grows to adulthood.
Why skip the fun years ? Yes end game raiding is fun but soon becomes repetitive and unchallenging when you have to repeat it over and over again to get newer guild members up to the same point, or where the game is lacking in end game content.
EQ gave us AAXP and time and time again I find myself playing WoW and wishing I had that. It really makes things more rewarding to know that you are getting a step closer to the new discipline or skill that will improve you as a warrior or a druid etc. Instead I find myself watching the reputation bar grinding painfully forward knowing that by the time I get the required reputation the items I will be rewarded with will be no or very little upgrade value to me.
Once when playing EQ my young son accidently hit the keyboard while I was logging in and deleted my character. I was in tears - this was 8 months of my time, my personality and my creativity wiped away with a single key stroke. Luckily they were able to restore her. I didn't / don't get that same feeling of concern for my EQ2 or WoW characters - if they got deleted I would probably just think cool I can save some money. They are a filler until the next real MMO comes out.
So like you I am waiting patiently for Vanguard and praying it will live up to expectations. I am looking forward to the chance to be challenged as a player, to know that I am growing a character that is an extension of me and at the same time improving my own MMO gaming skills.
I want to thank you for writing this article and bringing some very bitter sweet reminders of what I am missing in my gaming life.
