MMO's, in general, are *made* like that. It's all 'grind grind grind'. I played WoW for about a total of a year. Despite the charming Blizzard touches and rather good game balance (most of the time), it still was playing the game more and more for the next carrot. Seriously, when MMO's are made, the sheer number of hours it takes to get to the end game is considered a *feature*. Nonetheless, when a new server pops up some folks still manage to get that far in a few days.
The closest thing I've found to a really 'open ended' game is the Grand Theft Auto series. They give you this huge city, lots of people to work with or against, and a plot line you can usually ignore most of the time to go out and do whatever you want. You still have rails, but they are not as present as what you'd find in the Final Fantasy series, which is ironically the most restrictive set of games I've played. They aren't really Roleplaying games as much as they are really really long movies that have you pushing lots of buttons.
Generally, I lean towards games that are abstract and really don't require much of a plot (old school shooters and fighting games) or games that make up for the lack of choice with good writing. Bioshock was *hella* on rails, but it still is one of the best games I've played due to the fantastic characterization (of everyone except the protagonist) and the gut-punch of a plot twist (which was entirely about the protagonist).
A good portion of a game's enjoyment for me actually comes down to the crunchy bits. I like certain RPGs because I find the system fascinating. I really liked Final Fantasy Tactics Advance, but I couldn't give dick about the characters.
And if the sales (by volume, not money earned) of abstract casual games are any indication, most people prefer 'Addictive Puzzle Game 4 Extreme' over 'Final Dragon Prince Tactics'.
no subject
The closest thing I've found to a really 'open ended' game is the Grand Theft Auto series. They give you this huge city, lots of people to work with or against, and a plot line you can usually ignore most of the time to go out and do whatever you want. You still have rails, but they are not as present as what you'd find in the Final Fantasy series, which is ironically the most restrictive set of games I've played. They aren't really Roleplaying games as much as they are really really long movies that have you pushing lots of buttons.
Generally, I lean towards games that are abstract and really don't require much of a plot (old school shooters and fighting games) or games that make up for the lack of choice with good writing. Bioshock was *hella* on rails, but it still is one of the best games I've played due to the fantastic characterization (of everyone except the protagonist) and the gut-punch of a plot twist (which was entirely about the protagonist).
A good portion of a game's enjoyment for me actually comes down to the crunchy bits. I like certain RPGs because I find the system fascinating. I really liked Final Fantasy Tactics Advance, but I couldn't give dick about the characters.
And if the sales (by volume, not money earned) of abstract casual games are any indication, most people prefer 'Addictive Puzzle Game 4 Extreme' over 'Final Dragon Prince Tactics'.
Ever play Doctor Mario?