Well I just want to start off by saying this is a Two-part article. Because of my ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder) I tend to drift from topic to topic. So I figure here I will start by letting You (the Reader) know up front so there is no misunderstanding on the topic. I intend to Speak about both named in the title...MMOs of 2008, DX10, but also the effect of DX10 on MMOs coming out this year.
So let us start with the Major MMO releases scheduled for this year:
1. Pirates of the Burning Sea
Pirates of the Burning Sea came out 1st quarter of this year. I feel that they went for more of a cartoon like look, like WoW.聽Though not a bad looking game it has been said to be a "deeper" game than it appears. This is one of the few games that takes the genre in new directions in way of innovation instead of just graphical appearance. The ship combat/trading system is very well thought out and designed from what I've seen, though the on land combat is a bit lacking, in my opinion. The economy and trading system is player ran and is also said to be more in depth than average. In an interview about the possibility of DX10 in PotBS the response was almost negative towards DX10 referring to it as only "fancy tricks" and "blur shaders". Also it was stated that it would Never get a DX10 update.
On a personal note, I don't completely understand why they would look so hard on DX10, but I guess to each its own. Anyway moving on to the next game on the list:
2. Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures
 Age of Conan is due to release May 20, 2008 and it will be the 2nd major MMO released this year. AoC seems to be trying to push the genre on multiple fronts. To start there is a "direction based" combat system, giving the player a choice to hit left, right, or overhand. Also there are "Guild cities" that can be attacked by way of siege weapons and mounts (that鈥檚 right Siege Mounts!). AoC is also going to be the first with DX10 this year. I don't know a whole lot about what features it uses specifically, but it does appear more "lifelike" than other MMOs. On top of it all AoC is "M" rated! This means massive blood and some sort of animated nudity (hahaha). We will see how much DX10 is utilized in May.
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3. Warhammer: Age of Reckoning
Warhammer online also known as "WAR" is set to be released 4th quarter this year. As you can see from the shot above this game resembles WoW (much more than PotBS does). Now since WAR is still in closed beta, and I didn鈥檛 get in, I still don鈥檛 know too much about it.聽I do know that it will have DX10 on release, from the interviews I鈥檝e read WAR is optimized for DX9 but will be compatible with and have DX10 features.聽
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*Side Note* To me this is a game that should be checked out by all, old and new gamers, with old and new comps. It seems to be something for all types of gamers (if you can stand the cartoon look)
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Stargate Worlds
 聽SGW is set to be released 4 quarter this year, like the previous game. Being so early in development there is really nothing set for SGWs level of DX10. It will be DX10 compatible but we will not know how much until closer to launch. I do know that they are using the well known Unreal3 Engine, so it could use all of DX10s features that this engine supports.
*Side Note* Again I feel that this is one to look out for. I鈥檓 not one for space MMOs but it is built off a very long running franchise so it should be something to behold.
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Darkfall
Darkfall is a long shot to be on this list because it has no official release date. I guess I鈥檓 just hoping for this game to come out this year. Darkfall at this time has No DX10 capabilities. But that does not stop it from using the best of DX9, this game looks great from screens I鈥檝e seen. And from what I鈥檝e read this one is headed in the Ultima Online direction, meaning its completely skill based (meaning no class levels).
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Other MMOS Already out or soon to be released with DX10
There may be more out there, but this is all I could find that was official.
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DirectX 10
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As you鈥檝e seen above about half the Major MMO releases this year will have DX10. Now they are still not DX10 built because this would make it DX9 incompatible only allowing the very small % of PC users with DX10 to play. But it does show that DX10 is growing and will continue to do so. This means that in order to really see these games how they are suppose to look you will need a DX10 card and Windows Vista. I also would like to make this clear: I am no fan of Microsoft, I really don鈥檛 enjoy the monopoly they have, but at this point I am not a person who can change that. So like everyone else I must deal with it. But I will say this: Vista is by far the best OS that Microsoft has released. I say get it by whatever means you have to and give it a try, I know at first it will be kind of foreign but in time you will begin to enjoy it. Just remember that if you want to have more than 3 GB of ram used or DX10 you really don鈥檛 have a choice. And please, please make up your own mind on whether you like Vista or not, don鈥檛 listen to those who say nothing but bad about it, because it is not as unstable or incompatible as they say. I don鈥檛 have those issues and frankly never have. Just remember that it is new software built for the next generation so it does take a decent computer to run.
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Now that you鈥檝e read this very long article please tell me how you feel of this year鈥檚 games and/or DX10. I鈥檇 love to hear others opinions on these subjects.
Random DX9 and DX10 comparison Screenshots
 
Disclaimer: All pictures and logos belong to their respective owners. I do not claim any of them because none were taken by me.
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