My Review of Vanguard
This is my review of Vanguard...particulary interesting here because I mostly compare my experiences there to my experiences in Horizons. Horizons being my dominant point of comparison. Based on a 1-10 scale...with 10 being the highest. * note..I play on next to lowest graphics settings
Graphics~ 9
Beautiful graphics. The trees sway in da weend not just in one direction but in several directions. Each leaf is visable and appear to move also. The water looks great. Character models are very detailed. Slight ding for some stiff animations with some mobs.
Adventure~ 8.5
Quests are everywhere and vary greatly. Some string together as a nice story others are simple kill or delivery types. Combat is complex including bridge attacks and finishing moves. Combat animations are great ..fluid and varied. The world is massive. Flying mounts are in game. Ships are in game. You can swim and fight underwater.
Craft~9.0
I have not gone too deep into crafting. I think the score would go up if I did. Crafting has been alot of fun. Great animations. It's a true mini game within the game from controlling the temperature of a smelter to cooling / cleaning a piece with solvents to bandaging yourself should you get over zeoulous. Yes ..you can actually hurt yourself crafting ..from cuts to arm sprains. There is alot more to it..but I don't wish to write a novel here. You can build ships, house for personal plots, furniture. Furniture can be placed anywhere you want in your own..custom built house. Can even display trophies.
Performance~7
This ones a tad tough. I have a high tolerance level for poor performance ( ty Hz ). With an AMD 3500, 1 gig ram , Nvid 6600 256vram setup..I get 20-30 fps with next to lowest settings and grass turned off. This is with no tweaking. I am fine with this. Moderate stutter and such as terrain loads and 10sec lag when crossing different " chuncks " . This has improved greatly past couple of weeks and I expect it to improve more over the next month.
Comminity~9
I have come accross nothing but helpful, fun and interesting players. My questions get answered. I get buffed randomly all the time while I travel about by strangers. I have yet to have one negative experience on the PvE server. Different story on the PvP server though. I would score it a 6. PvP players were often rude. Did not answer questions readily. Had lots of obnoxious jokes in world chat. I score on PvE server because that is where I will main.
Customer Service~8
I haven't had to contact them directly for anything. I base my score on the announcements made in game. Petitions can be made in game for GM if one gets stuck..they will get you out. Their are 2+ GM on each server at any given time. They do a good job with commuicating with the player base via chat announcements and postings.
Overall rating...8.5
I think that is very good for a game that has just launched. I expect that score to be 9.5 within 1-3 months.
I would have scored Horizons a 3.5 on its launch day.
I forgot about Diplomacy...this too is a mini game within game. It shows massive potential. One guild mate of mine completed a diplomacy quest that gave +25 to everyone crafting in this one particular town for an hour ! And it does that everytime someone completes the quest. It's done as a card game..with responses being on cards..which are played against npc responses. If played correctly...the rewards seem to be great and can effect the entire server!!
Anyone else playing Vanguard...feel free to post your review here too !!!
