Leif Johnson: Strictly speaking, a proper endgame doesn't exist right now in the beta; that's for launch. The open beta set the level cap at 42, so that's still eight levels away from the retail cap of 50. Even so, it's possible to get some idea of what lies on the horizon by looking at the dungeons. Take the Iron Tombs, for instance: This is the first five-man dungeon that players in the Defiant faction (Rift's "evil" side) come across while leveling. Some find it challenging; some find it easy. I've played in both camps, and I think it's just right for a starter dungeon, and it introduces some decent mechanics early. One chamber has you pulling some swarming wraiths to orbs mounted on the floor so you can weaken and kill the monsters. If you're away from the orbs, you're probably going to die. That's not a boss fight, but it shows that Trion's working's hard to make Rift's dungeons engaging from the first time you step inside. And, predictably, the dungeons increase in difficulty as you level.
You currently have to find groups for these by spamming "looking for group" in chat, but the developers announced a short while ago that they're going to implement a dungeon-finder (similar to WoW's) in time for launch. At Level 50, Rift will offer two tiers of "expert" dungeons with more difficult encounters and, of course, appropriate loot. Instanced raids were originally available for 10 and 20 players, but Trion recently decided to make instanced raids available for only20 players. That said, it still adds up to a lot of content in the open world for 10-man "rift" raids, and that's one of the things that looks like it could distinguish Rift from other MMOs. I wish I could say more about the endgame raids... but right now, it looks like we're going to have to wait for the game to launch.
Ryan Scott: Alright, well, take us out with this one: As a rabid World of Warcraft player, do you have any interest in putting your favorite MMO on hold for a while to check out Rift once it's officially live?
Leif Johnson: Of course, if only to see whether it lives up to the hype. Rift is certainly the first MMO besides Blizzard's beast that's held my attention in quite a while, and the comparative difficulty (and the rampant social interaction) reminds me of the good ol' days of classic WoW. In some ways, it's even better, since you can automatically join groups during rift events without having to beg for a raid invite. I also like the thread of experimentation I've found in dungeons, when players try out the often-wacky combinations that Rift allows for.
Funny enough: The comparisons to WoW are now so common in the beta channels, that mentioning WoW often results in an instant ignore. But I don't see how you couldn't make the comparison to either it or Warhammer Online. In fact, I just realized that the whole Rift concept bears a strong resemblance to the elemental invasions in classic WoW, even if it's better-implemented.
And then I find myself comparing the world and the characters; I'm a little torn on this one. For one, I like that my mage actually places his staff on the ground instead of letting it simply hang by his side. I like that you can customize your avatar's facial features to a surprising extent, even if the races all look a little too similar. But something about Rift's combat seems flat, and I'm not really sure what it is. If I get tired of Rift, I suspect that this will be the culprit. The spells often seem strangely muted, and they lack the satisfying sounds and animation that I'm accustomed to. I often find my attention wandering when I'm fighting a particular enemy. Nothing's really wrong with switching from one ability to the next, but I don't find myself enjoying the sight of my character smashing skeletons around. I'm quite sure I'm not alone in this.
I'm also a sucker for impressive visuals, and Rift rarely disappoints in this regard. Even some of the player-versus-player battlegrounds (or "warfronts") are breathtaking, and I'll never forget the sight of a colossal, decaying bridge as I finished the starting zone and found myself standing by the water's edge. Still, I wonder how well it will hold up. It's become rather cool to bash WoW's graphics as being outdated, but the cartoony style is what's allowed the world to endure this long. It ages well. Whether this oh-so-serious style that Rift is drenched in can pull off the same success... well, that remains to be seen.
So, yes, some fumbles keep me from being too enthusiastic, but I think Trion's done a good thing here, and I'm willing to give it a go once it's live. For one, it certainly looks like it's going to be more stable that WoW was at launch; the only bug I've encountered is one that keeps me from seeing names above characters no matter how much I reset or fiddle with the settings, which isn't too major, all told. In the end, I don't think it's the prophesized "WoW-killer" by any means (and what is?), but it certainly provides a viable alternative.
And you know what? Somewhere, deep down, I want my suspicions to be totally wrong here.
