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Thoughts on The Secret World
May. 24th, 2014 05:13 pmToday I finished the story quest mode for The Secret World. Which is pretty much a game finish for single player mode. So, this seems like a good time to write about it.
The Secret World is a massively multiplayer online (MMO) role-playing survival horror video game. It was created by Funcom (Ragnar Tørnquist) who also produced The Longest Journey and Dreamfall. It's my first MMO in that sort of vein (the closest to it have been Diablo II, Diablo III, Titan Quest and Torchlight II) and therefore I'm about to do the crazy thing and write about it despite having never played World of Warcraft.
The Secret World has three different factions that you can belong to (Templar, Illuminati and Dragon), although the difference between them is really only the commentary that you get back on mission completes (although it's still possible that there are different faction missions in it somewhere as I've only completed as a Templar). You run around the world with two main weapons equipped and your choice of abilities (faction choice has no bearing on this). There are three main areas - Solomon Island (zombies, Lovecraft, Vikings and native Indians), Egypt (sand, cultists, spirits and statues) and Translyvania (vampires, ghosts and gypsies). The idea is that you do quests, level up equipment, purchase new abilities and generally follow the story quests.
There are six mission types:
The most common missions are combat and side quests and these are arguably the best balanced. The stealth missions vary hugely, I've found ones I can do quickly and others that can take a good couple of hours or more. The investigations are both the best and the worst. They have some lovely ideas in them, but usually involve doing a concept to death. At least two involve endless rewatching lights flashing in morse code to determine the message as, with number co-ordinates, you need to get them exactly right.
The plot is both interesting and not quite complete. At the end of the first story section (in Solomon Island) you're left with a strong notion of who Beaumont is and knowledge of the item he had but... far less about the rest of what happened. This is pretty typical throughout. Each section can be completed, but not quite comprehensively explained. I think this is deliberate as there is extra content to pay for and to create.
I've played it through solo and I'm also playing in a group with![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
chrisvenus, ao_lai and Alistair. It's much easier in a group, although this means that solo sections tend to feel much harder. Playing solo there are places you can't do, even when you reach the end of the game (particularly in Translyvania).
Overall, I feel The Secret World comes across as a game that aimed very high and, with the investigation stuff, for deliberate real world cross-over but doesn't live up to the expectations it set. Consequently it is very frustrating to play in places. However, it's still a decent, very addictive game. And attracts much swearing.
The Secret World is a massively multiplayer online (MMO) role-playing survival horror video game. It was created by Funcom (Ragnar Tørnquist) who also produced The Longest Journey and Dreamfall. It's my first MMO in that sort of vein (the closest to it have been Diablo II, Diablo III, Titan Quest and Torchlight II) and therefore I'm about to do the crazy thing and write about it despite having never played World of Warcraft.
The Secret World has three different factions that you can belong to (Templar, Illuminati and Dragon), although the difference between them is really only the commentary that you get back on mission completes (although it's still possible that there are different faction missions in it somewhere as I've only completed as a Templar). You run around the world with two main weapons equipped and your choice of abilities (faction choice has no bearing on this). There are three main areas - Solomon Island (zombies, Lovecraft, Vikings and native Indians), Egypt (sand, cultists, spirits and statues) and Translyvania (vampires, ghosts and gypsies). The idea is that you do quests, level up equipment, purchase new abilities and generally follow the story quests.
There are six mission types:
- Story missions - advance the plot and are the way through the game
- Main/Combat missions - often to kill a specific number of a type of bad with several tiers, ending with the boss.
- Main/Stealth missions - cameras, stealth, etc.
- Main/Investigation missions - usually involve booting up the web browser as they have clues on the web, both real world and Funcom-created sites.
- Dungeon missions - Constructed for teams of five.
- Side-quests - which can be any of the main types above but are shorter and usually worth less in money and XP.
The most common missions are combat and side quests and these are arguably the best balanced. The stealth missions vary hugely, I've found ones I can do quickly and others that can take a good couple of hours or more. The investigations are both the best and the worst. They have some lovely ideas in them, but usually involve doing a concept to death. At least two involve endless rewatching lights flashing in morse code to determine the message as, with number co-ordinates, you need to get them exactly right.
The plot is both interesting and not quite complete. At the end of the first story section (in Solomon Island) you're left with a strong notion of who Beaumont is and knowledge of the item he had but... far less about the rest of what happened. This is pretty typical throughout. Each section can be completed, but not quite comprehensively explained. I think this is deliberate as there is extra content to pay for and to create.
I've played it through solo and I'm also playing in a group with
chrisvenus, ao_lai and Alistair. It's much easier in a group, although this means that solo sections tend to feel much harder. Playing solo there are places you can't do, even when you reach the end of the game (particularly in Translyvania).Overall, I feel The Secret World comes across as a game that aimed very high and, with the investigation stuff, for deliberate real world cross-over but doesn't live up to the expectations it set. Consequently it is very frustrating to play in places. However, it's still a decent, very addictive game. And attracts much swearing.
