Instant/power leveling and Warhammer Online…

Image source: http://llbbl.com/data/RPG-motivational/target237.html

This entry is inspired by an article about power leveling in MMORPGS I read over at MMO Crunch and one about the pros and cons of instant leveling at Massively.

With the recent Q2 2008 release date delay, it looks like we’ll have a lot more time to speculate on what kinds of features we’ll find in Warhammer Online. But that’s OK, because speculation is fun and can make for some interesting exchanges of opinion!

For anyone who has played Mythic’s original MMORPG, Dark Age of Camelot (DAOC), you’ll probably be familiar with two methods of improved leveling speed: power leveling and the “/level” command. Power leveling in DAOC means that you group your lowbie character with a group of top-level players who then proceed to smash waves upon waves of high level NPCs (non-player characters… or beasties). The result is that you leech the experience points from these high level kills, which drastically increases the speed at which you gain levels. The “/level” command will instantly grant up to 20 levels to any newly created character you make, providing you already have one level 50 character in your account.

You might ask, “Why would anyone do that?!” or “Why wouldn’t someone do that!?” and I urge you to read the articles at MMO Crunch and Massively for both sides of the argument. If you continue reading THIS post I’ll examine things from the perspective of one who has a very strong background in DAOC and is eagerly awaiting the release of WAR.

I feel there are four scenarios the WAR development team can take with the character advancement in their game, where players ultimately reach level 40 (tier 4):

1. Advancement is relatively slow, but rich, interesting, and fun
2. Advancement is relatively fast, rich, interesting, and fun
3. Advancement is relatively slow and not rich, interesting, or fun
4. Advancement is relatively fast but not rich, interesting, or fun

By relatively slow, I mean getting from level 1-40 in about 100 hours of game play for a beginner and 80 hours for an advanced player (an average 2 to 2.5 hours per level). Hardcore gamers can achieve this in about 1-1.5 weeks of solid gameplay, while casuals take longer, at 5-7 weeks.

By relatively fast, I mean getting from level 1-40 in about 40-60 hours depending on your skill level and familiarity with the race (an average of 1 to 1.5 hours per level). Most hardcore gamers can achieve this in about 4-6 days and casuals in about 3-4 weeks.

I’ve drawn these numbers out of the aether, however, they do give us something to work with, and they’re pretty standard when compared to how long it takes to level in games like the DAOC and World of Warcraft (WoW). Also, these numbers factor are based on one focusing on raising his or her level, not exploring new zones, crafting, or practicing their dance moves in the village square (while AFK). Finally, these numbers are reflective of how long it should take someone to reach the “end game” content regardless of new expansions and increased level caps (even if they’re not-so-cleverly disguised as “master levels” or “champion levels”).

If EA Mythic chooses to make character advancement in WAR slow (or fast), boring, and repetitive, I sure hope they include features that support power levelling and a “/level” command. Fortunately, from what I’m reading so far, this may be the opposite. Here are some Q&As from the official Warhammer Online grab bag to illustrate:

Q: What kind of downtime are we looking at for health and power (or whatever you’re calling magic’s energy source)? A: We are actively trying to minimize downtime, and have it for MOST circumstances be measured in seconds, not minutes. The actual times are not at all set, and won’t be until we’ve done lots of beta testing with real people.

Q: How different will the quests be for each class of an army? Will the Warrior Priest and the Witch Hunter have VERY different quests, or a few token class differences while maintaining identical core quests?

A: We have an entirely unique storyline and quest suite for each of our six armies at launch. In a way, we are offering six games in one with unmatched replay ability. There are no current plans to break these quests out further by class, so your Witch Hunter and your Warrior Priest friend will be able to complete both simple and epic quests together.

Obviously it isn’t in their best interest to make a game slow, boring, and repetitive because that will just scare away customers. They’ll have much bigger issues to deal with than power leveling and “/level” commands! A complete game overhaul perhaps?

If they decide to take the road of slow, but fun and interesting, then I don’t really see a need for power level or “/level” support. The same goes for fast, fun, and interesting. You may disagree with me if your view is that the “end game” is the be-all/end-all of any game, and that’s valid. I personally believe in character investment and attachment.

I’d never knock someone for buying a top-notch character on eBay because they may have little hobby time but lots of disposable income. Heck, I’ve even sold characters on eBay once I was finished with an MMORPG… I do believe, however, that you don’t really feel much attachment to the character you bought, nor do you know all the nuances of the class (if it is unfamiliar to you). You just get something extra out of taking a character from slaying little bunnies all the way up to nine-headed, gargantuan demon spawns. Maybe that’s just me…

Anyway, I’ll be curious to see what EA Mythic decides to do with character advancement in WAR. They’re no strangers to supporting power leveling and “/level” features in their MMORPGs, so don’t be surprised if you see either (or both) of them show up one day…

What are your thoughts? Leave your “battle cry” (comment) below!

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