Games that were better before patches/expansions

Topic.

Patches are and expansions are good things, usually, but sometimes they can really diminish or destroy a good game experience. I miss the original WoW.s It seems like before its expansions, it was more about enjoying your time leveling your way through the game, rather than doing a whole bunch of grind work to get to the "good stuff."

Morrowind and Oblivion's expansions opened their respective worlds up a bit, but they didn't always feel like they were actually part of the core game (even though they were attempting to be,) and as a result, the game felt a little lop-sided and incohesive.

Does anyone have an example of a game you felt was better before a patch or expansion was released?

Topic.

Patches are and expansions are good things, usually, but sometimes they can really diminish or destroy a good game experience. I miss the original WoW.s It seems like before its expansions, it was more about enjoying your time leveling your way through the game, rather than doing a whole bunch of grind work to get to the "good stuff."

Morrowind and Oblivion's expansions opened their respective worlds up a bit, but they didn't always feel like they were actually part of the core game (even though they were attempting to be,) and as a result, the game felt a little lop-sided and incohesive.

Does anyone have an example of a game you felt was better before a patch or expansion was released?

dos4gw82

You never played Vanilla WoW did you?

Most people around here would probably be too young to remember what happened to Star Wars Galaxies. I still cry every day for what SOE did to that game. It was a real gem, but they absolutely destroyed it with some of the worst patches in video game history.

Most people around here would probably be too young to remember what happened to Star Wars Galaxies. I still cry every day for what SOE did to that game. It was a real gem, but they absolutely destroyed it with some of the worst patches in video game history.

ImprovedMind

Yep, like 30+ mixable classes, down to 9. Linear quests, instead of open. Killed all the challenge. Woo... click here to be a Jedi. Yea worst patches in history of games. I hate SOE.

Most people around here would probably be too young to remember what happened to Star Wars Galaxies. I still cry every day for what SOE did to that game. It was a real gem, but they absolutely destroyed it with some of the worst patches in video game history.

ImprovedMind

Oh man I'd repressed that. Before they revamped the combat system that game was so good. Not to mention the "everyone gets to be a jedi" patch. I miss my guild city on the moon of Naboo :P

I sometimes worry that Team Fortress 2 is changing too much. I don't think it's necessarily worse than it used to be, but it's certainly very different to how it was 3 years ago.

I'm grateful for Valve's faithful ongoing support for a 3 year old game, but it could get to the point where they've changed it too much and it becomes more bloated and complex than it was ever meant to be. Hopefully it won't come to that.

I sometimes worry that Team Fortress 2 is changing too much. I don't think it's necessarily worse than it used to be, but it's certainly very different to how it was 3 years ago.

I'm grateful for Valve's faithful ongoing support for a 3 year old game, but it could get to the point where they've changed it too much and it becomes more bloated and complex than it was ever meant to be. Hopefully it won't come to that.

broken_bass_bin

Yea, this. I've been inactive from TF2 for a few months and then I come back and I'm like, Mann-Co wha? It's a good idea to put into the game but the whole game is radically changing, I just hope they don't change the interface again. It was good enough as it was.

Most people around here would probably be too young to remember what happened to Star Wars Galaxies. I still cry every day for what SOE did to that game. It was a real gem, but they absolutely destroyed it with some of the worst patches in video game history.

ImprovedMind

Team Fortress 2, was a brilliant shooter when it came out... Now its a gimmick game based on grinding and a stupid obsession with vanity items.

SOE is pretty notorious. NGE for Star Wars: Galaxies, BFRs for Planetside, all the changes in Everquest 2. Everquest 2, where the community has been asking for new armor models since the launch of the game and 6 years later we get them, as purely cosmetic items that need to be bought with real money. Thanks SOE.

I sometimes worry that Team Fortress 2 is changing too much. I don't think it's necessarily worse than it used to be, but it's certainly very different to how it was 3 years ago.

I'm grateful for Valve's faithful ongoing support for a 3 year old game, but it could get to the point where they've changed it too much and it becomes more bloated and complex than it was ever meant to be. Hopefully it won't come to that.

broken_bass_bin

WoW before arena. I did a lot of arena myself and enjoyed it quite a bit, but it never felt like the pvp I was really looking for in an mmo. I prefer large scale battles.

I know they're supposedly implementing rated bgs in Cata, but it's just too little, too late.

Diablo 2 :P nah i mean the game was a lot less strict before the patches (could go to hell in multiplayer really easily) but still was a tough game, but was easy to get rushed where now they have certain lvl limitations, i thought it was better without the patch cause i played through that game so many times and was boring playing through thoroughly in normal and nightmare where i just wanted to go to hell....ab_geee_eee

[QUOTE="ImprovedMind"]

Most people around here would probably be too young to remember what happened to Star Wars Galaxies. I still cry every day for what SOE did to that game. It was a real gem, but they absolutely destroyed it with some of the worst patches in video game history.

d3c3b4l

I knew Star Wars Galaxies would come up in this discussion, I never played the game before the NGE but I heard they pretty much changed the game completely :\ Although i'm loving the game it's terrible that a company would do that.

Fallout 3, patches ruined the stability of the game especially with mods. Gta iv, the same.dakan45

Team Fortress 2, was a brilliant shooter when it came out... Now its a gimmick game based on grinding and a stupid obsession with vanity items.

Whiteblade999

Indeed, instead of playing now you see the chat flooded with "I need this item to make x". It's just shocking. Instead of using these bloody items, play the damn game! Now it's more about the items than about the shooting.

Vanilla WoW was fun, and so was EQ1. But most MMOs are more fun at release if they aren't totally buggy or unplayable.

I really disliked the patch for TF2 as well (the random item drops specifically).

[QUOTE="Whiteblade999"]

Team Fortress 2, was a brilliant shooter when it came out... Now its a gimmick game based on grinding and a stupid obsession with vanity items.

yourmajesty90

Indeed, instead of playing now you see the chat flooded with "I need this item to make x". It's just shocking. Instead of using these bloody items, play the damn game! Now it's more about the items than about the shooting.

[QUOTE="dakan45"]Fallout 3, patches ruined the stability of the game especially with mods. Gta iv, the same.Animatronic64

Vanilla WoW was fun, and so was EQ1. But most MMOs are more fun at release if they aren't totally buggy or unplayable.

I really disliked the patch for TF2 as well (the random item drops specifically).

vertex68

All I can think of is SWG, I personally never bothered reading about patches at the time but I remember when the NCU was released the server community (Tarquinas) completely died.

I guess I could say WoW was at a sweet spot in TBC, not too buggy or annoying like vanilla or too streamlined and, again, annoying like WotLK.

battlefield 2 - i liked being able to rack up 100+ kills in a bomber plane. i also liked the helicopter surviving more than one rocket :(

plus the expansion packs diluted the online player spread too much.

[QUOTE="vertex68"]

Vanilla WoW was fun, and so was EQ1. But most MMOs are more fun at release if they aren't totally buggy or unplayable.

I really disliked the patch for TF2 as well (the random item drops specifically).

d3c3b4l

Personally i loved EQ before the LUCLIN expansion. It felt like it made the game waaaay smaller because the nexus pretty much let you travel wherever you wanted and took the fun (or maybe hassle?) out of getting a druid/wizard to port you or making the massive journey from one continent to the next. That and it was really buggy and the new models required upgrading many PCs

IIRC for Jedi Knight 2, in the vanilla version of the game online, the strong saber stance basically allowed for one hit kills or somethin. Whatever it was, it got nerfed and then in the next patch, it was that ****** backstab move that was overpowered. Ahhh the days of 'assfighting' and swinging your saber at someone while backpedaling towards them.

Runescape? Lol. You can't take people loot in the wilderness.... :roll:

Expansion pack = Crysis Warhead. People say the story has better pacing and its better optomized, but for me its been more glitchy (the only level I had problems on Crysis was the Reckoning), and I don't really care for what I have played for the story. Eagle Team are a bunch of Jarheads who can't even aim a gun... the most useless allies ever.

Crysis was better...

Soulstorm made Dawn Of War worse than in the Dark Crusade iteration.

Definitely Star Wars Galaxies, which is a good example that not every mmo needs to play like WOW. Another one is Runescape, the wilderness was what made RS fun to me and thats gone now.

As a few others have said: Team Fortress 2. With nearly 2000 hours I'm finally getting sick of it, and not because of the gameplay, but the stupid "Mannconomy" and the comminuty non-stop with hats and item obsession.

Most people around here would probably be too young to remember what happened to Star Wars Galaxies. I still cry every day for what SOE did to that game. It was a real gem, but they absolutely destroyed it with some of the worst patches in video game history.

ImprovedMind