Refreshing, addictive, easy, complex... yeah this one has learned from the others!
User Rating: 9 | Rift (2011) PC
RIFT is not your typical MMO that comes out... it IS actually a finished product! This game has taken from all the major MMOs that have been out in the last 7 yrs... and rolled it into a storyline that makes playing this game very fun. Here are some examples: 1) the chars are detailed and look nice... much like what you could do in Conan; 2) the game play is very much like WoW... easy to pickup and understand (even for the novice player); 3) crafting, pvp, pve, group based, raid based... it's all here. But the one thing that I have been impressed with is how they handle grouping. When a rift forms in the world... you can easily see it at a distance and you might get a notification on your screen. When you approach the rift... you will be prompted to join the public group fighting... and once you click....WHAMMO... you are instantly part of a group... or a RAID group. Awesome!! No more "can I get in with you guys?" kind of stuff. By L6 was joining groups as large as 15... and when I leveled up to L16... the largest I was joining had 20 ppls. It was truly epic. I was not in a dungeon... I felt like I was part of a community defending my land from invaders. I just ate this up! I have played MMOs for a very long time... since back when the original Diablo came out and you had your groups of 4 running around. I have played WoW, Star Wars Galaxies, Asheron's Call 1 & 2, Vanguard, Aion, Lord of the Rings, DDO, Guild Wars, Conan, etc and I will tell you that Rift has taken the best of each and inputted those aspects into their game. Here is another example... the mail system works much like Aion, DDO, and Lord of the Rings. Their graphics are excellent in game. Wolves chase rabbits so the AI for normal aspects are in place (much like Conan). In Rift, you can dive under water and explore... much like Conan. You have mostly free roam and can take a dive with your ride off a cliff if you like (much like Star Wars Galaxies). You can jump over obstacles whether riding or not. I can go on and on... just try it. It is well worth the free 30 days they give you up front. 
