Virtual Worlds : RIFT : A MMORPG By Trion Worlds : WOW !

By Avatar JayR Cela

    I'm not really much of a video game player, but recently I have been noticing more and more free to play
( up to a limited level before you actually have to start spending some real life money ) type of on line Virtual World games. Some of them are browser based, others require a dedicated client download. Rift falls into the later category, and the download is huge, once extracted it will consume 9.15 Gig of your HD. 

    I know this blog primarily covers SecondLife and an occasional romp into various Open Sim based virtual worlds along with the underlying technologies involved, but this game just blew me away. And considering all of the mediocre, and sometimes out right crappy free to play MMO's I have been testing lately. I truly felt I had to at least do a mini review of RIFT, along with some accompanying screen shots.

    I have only had RIFT installed for about a week now, and quite frankly I have spent way too many hours in utter amazement at how deep the game play is here. The graphics are incredible, ( and I was using the lowest possible settings )  as is the accompanying  sound track. But what really set it apart for me was the elaborate story line and all the clues you must uncover as you progress through the game.

    Once you get past level 20 it is going to cost you about $120 US for a yearly subscription, which seems to be the norm these days for most other games of this type. And believe me when I tell you I have tried a number of them, they usually remain on my HD for a few days, and are promptly deleted for lack of interest on my part. But RIFT just keeps calling me back for more. I seriously doubt if I will become a subscriber after level 20, simply because I have other things in life more important than becoming sucked up into an addictive Alternate Reality World where 3 or 4 hours can pass by in what seems to be a blink of the eye.

    RIFT fits the MMORPG style, explore, meet, take on quest's, build your character's level up, ya-da-ya-da-ya-da ! The difference here is the phenomenally  imaginative graphics, and the mind boggling number of option's and depth of customization available, and the number of things you must discover by trial and error. This is one complex masterpiece of game design. I think it's best to just post some screen shots, and provide some pertinent web link's afterwards.

    First off let me say this, do not expect to just log right in and start playing, as the TRION team of Dev's is constantly doing patch's that will take a few minutes or so to download before you can do so.

    These pictures do not really do justice to what you will see during actual game play, but a great game is not just made up of great graphics. If you like exploring, puzzle solving, and doing battle in a mystical setting, I believe that you will enjoy taking RIFT for a spin around the block. For more detailed information here are some link's. I highly recommend that you read the Wiki located here.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rift_(video_game)

https://rift.trionworlds.com/account/reg/account-registration-short-flow.action?experience=lite&request_locale=en

http://www.riftgame.com/en/

JayR Cela :_)