The trial subscription for PlanetSide (an MMOFPS for those of you that don't know) that me and my brother were using ran out early Halloween morning; I haven't been able to play it for about two days now. ... So why is it still listed in my "Current Interests" table? Because I'm still exceedingly interested in the game. In fact, ever since the trial ran out, I've been wishing I could still play. As I type this, in fact, I'm listening to mp3s of the game's music which I copied out of the game's directory; you might say I'm a bit obsessed with the game right now.
Why am I so obsessive over a FPS -- a genre which I generally have little interest in -- though? Probably because the game is exactly what I like in FPS games; I mean, I've not played any other FPS that I've had this much fun with. It's an "MMO" (Massively Multiplayer Online) game with a persistant world where three empires made up completely of player characters wage all out war against each other in the fight to capture and hold various bases and facilities spread out on a number of continents. Other FPS's with online play have you in an enclosed arena with a few other people shooting it out, which I found fun for a while back when I played Quake II, but PlanetSide lets you fight alongside (and against) groups of hundreds of people. It's freakin' awesome, and craps all over every other FPS experience I've ever had.
And now I want more ... so why don't I just buy the game? Well, I'm thinking I just might do that. The game itself is only about $10, the expansion is only about another $10 (which I probably wouldn't actually bother with unless my brother wanted to chip in and pay for it), and the game comes with a month of free play time. So even if I didn't subscribe after the free month was up ($13 monthly fee, like pretty much all MMO games), that would still be a cheap price for a month of playing a game I really enjoy.
The main thing holding me back is my PC's lack of RAM. I've only got 256 MB, and after playing for a few hours at a time, the game starts to lag really bad; so much so that it renders the game unplayable, seeing as the framerate likes to drop to .2 fps whenever I get in a firefight while it's lagging like that. Now, that could be seen as a good thing, since it forces me to take a break every few hours. ... But when have I ever cared about those warnings in instruction booklets that tell you to take a ten minute break for every hour that you play? Never, that's when. If I want to play for eight hours straight, I should be able to, dangit!
So this begs the question of, "Should I buy more RAM?" I'd love to, but I'm afraid that I only have enough money to spare for one of two things before Christmas: More RAM, or Metroid Prime 2 Echoes. I mean, I think of how sweet it would be to play PlanetSide with minimal slowdown ... but then I think of how awesome Metroid Prime 2 Echoes is going to be. It's just one of those things that makes me go "ARGH!" And right now, I see no clear resolution to the problem, other than deciding not to get PlanetSide in the first place.
Oh, and If anyone happens to care, my character is Desbreko on the Markov (west coast US) server. As you can see from my certifications, I'd been specializing in anti-vehicular combat. (The Falcon Config MAX is the anti-vehicular one for the New Conglomerate). It's quite fun using the camera-guided Phoenix missiles, heh; that was my favorite thing to use, whenever I could get in a battle where there were actually vehicles other than BFRs being used. I swear, they made those things' shields too strong. When I can hit one of them with about 20 Phoenix missiles, along with other fire being poured into it, and it shows absolutely no signs of damage at all, something is wrong.
And finally, as desperate attempt to get comments (no, really, Shinmaru's the only one that regularly comments anymore -- I'm so lonely), I'd ask if anyone else plays PlanetSide on the west coast server. It might give me some more incentive to buy the game if there are some other "Otakuites" out there that I could meet up with in the game, you know? ... Though I suppose the meeting wouldn't be too friendly unless other people are also part of the New Conglomerate, heh.
