Rift: Planes of Telara
Review
Challenge Accepted!
by Andrew Hallam
reviewed on PC
Looking For Group
As you'd expect from any modern MMORPG, Rift features the usual endgame and alternative levelling experiences. PvP is unlocked at level 10, allowing players to compete in the usual PvP activities such as capture the flag and so on. There's nothing new here and certainly nothing that can amount of Warhammer Online's current level of PvP excellence, but it is a welcome addition all the same. As well as PvP, there's the obvious addition of dungeons and instances just to add something for people who reach the current level cap of 50 to do.
Currently, there is only one raid encounter, with more on the way, and since Trion has so far delivered on its promises of ongoing tweaks and refinements, it will be exciting to see what they come up with as more people reach the endgame content. However, the current selection of 10 dungeons offer a nice alternative to the Rift invasion element of gameplay. At the moment, players are still trying different combinations or specialisms, so group gameplay is a bit hit and miss at the moment. As with most MMORPG's, it's best to just join a friendly guild and do stuff with them as they can no doubt offer the guidance new players will need in this scary but exciting new world.
Farewell Old Friend...
As a veteran of World of Warcraft, Lord of The Rings Online and many other MMORPG's I find the task of getting into a new MMO to be daunting, as in my experience, most are only set apart by art style and storyline alone, mostly following the same gameplay trend. While Rift by no means breaks this tradition, it proves that there is still space to grow within the genre. As mentioned at the start of this review, Rift takes everything good to come out of the MMORPG genre over the past few years and makes it even better.
What is even more astounding is how polished the game is. As a sort of tradition within the genre, MMORPG's are cursed to be full of bugs on release, but surprisingly, Rift is the most polished of the lot on launch day. That Trion has managed to not only meet, but smash every promise, hype, and expectation they and the community have set for them over the years is a testament to the love and devotion that has gone into Rift.
Of course, those amongst you who are tired of the wave of fantasy MMO's that seem to have spawned from WoW's success will unlikely be enticed into joining the ranks of MMO players by Rift, it will no doubt surprise you to see that within a genre ruled by one game, there is still room for competition. Of course you can never beat a monster like WoW, but Rift is the closest anyone has gotten to creating a game that can. If you're tired of Warcraft and are finally looking for a true alternative world to explore and conquer, look no further. Rift is all you need...
9.0
fun score
Pros
A true Warcraft beater. Intuitive additions to standard formula
Cons
Some minor bugs. Quests a slight let down
