Well, the new Praetorian content really does up CoH's game. Take missions, for example. There's a lot of new tech that's been introduced, like contact dialogue changing in response to optional choices you make during missions. Then there's dialogue trees with contacts...which isn't new, per-se, but they feel more like an actual flowing conversation with a spectrum of responses in the new GR stuff. And in fine RPG tradition, many of the potential responses are pretty snarky. The game even currently allows NPC contacts to 'phase out'. If you make a decision, during a mission, to kill a particular character...that NPC vanishes from the outdoor zone map. For you, at least. Other players who haven't done that mission yet, or let the NPC survive...will still be able to see the NPC.
There's a lot of stuff like that in GR...there's a few other new technical twists introduced that I can think of, but there's really no point in listing all of them. What I'm saying is this...combined with the generally higher quality of actual writing...it's pretty safe to say that, yes, this IS a major improvement to CoH. The missions really are that much better.
Praetoria as a world is also pretty visually distinct. It definitely LOOKS different, and the artists did a fantastic job creating a whole new range of maps, both indoor and outdoor. The graphics are good, and they're really designed to take advantage of Ultra Mode.
The problem is that the new Praetorian content is only levels 1-20.
Now, mind you - it's really THAT DAMN GOOD. And there is much more of it than one might expect. Only 1-20, yes, but there are both Loyalist and Resistance paths available...entirely different contact trees. But ultimately, this isn't an entirely new 1-50 experience. It may well be in the future...I'd expect them to add more content to Praetoria, and if all future content is of this greatly increased quality, then that will be awesome.
It's worth mentioning that the new side-switch system takes the form of morality missions. And the morality missions really are good - they're built to the new Going Rogue standards, after all. not the old.
But because there's a cooldown timer between morality missions, it's not like you're going to be levelling exclusively on them anyway...
So. Bottom line, is it worth coming back for Going Rogue? I dunno. I think the new stuff is definitely worth checking out - but is there enough new stuff to check out? That's debatable. Certainly a lot was added with this update, content wise, but again...not enough for you to take a new character all the way to 50.
Enough for you to take two new characters from 1-20, though...Loyalist and Resistance, natch. And dinkering about with side switching is worth a go.
-- Acyl
There's a lot of stuff like that in GR...there's a few other new technical twists introduced that I can think of, but there's really no point in listing all of them. What I'm saying is this...combined with the generally higher quality of actual writing...it's pretty safe to say that, yes, this IS a major improvement to CoH. The missions really are that much better.
Praetoria as a world is also pretty visually distinct. It definitely LOOKS different, and the artists did a fantastic job creating a whole new range of maps, both indoor and outdoor. The graphics are good, and they're really designed to take advantage of Ultra Mode.
The problem is that the new Praetorian content is only levels 1-20.
Now, mind you - it's really THAT DAMN GOOD. And there is much more of it than one might expect. Only 1-20, yes, but there are both Loyalist and Resistance paths available...entirely different contact trees. But ultimately, this isn't an entirely new 1-50 experience. It may well be in the future...I'd expect them to add more content to Praetoria, and if all future content is of this greatly increased quality, then that will be awesome.
It's worth mentioning that the new side-switch system takes the form of morality missions. And the morality missions really are good - they're built to the new Going Rogue standards, after all. not the old.
But because there's a cooldown timer between morality missions, it's not like you're going to be levelling exclusively on them anyway...
So. Bottom line, is it worth coming back for Going Rogue? I dunno. I think the new stuff is definitely worth checking out - but is there enough new stuff to check out? That's debatable. Certainly a lot was added with this update, content wise, but again...not enough for you to take a new character all the way to 50.
Enough for you to take two new characters from 1-20, though...Loyalist and Resistance, natch. And dinkering about with side switching is worth a go.
-- Acyl