So I have finally reached the end of the road with “Rift“, I think.
It has been one hell of a trip, all the way from early closed beta until now, and I have to say, I haven’t really regretted it at all. Sure, there have been the down times, moments when I wasn’t exactly happy with Trion Worlds, then later Gamigo. But those times were generally brief, and didn’t last all too long.
But if that’s the case, why am I walking away from a Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game that I have held in high esteem for over a decade? Well, there are two, big reasons behind my decision.
- Money. My wife and I are cutting costs, in an effort to save as much cash as possible to put towards home repairs and improvements over the next few years. While “Rift” isn’t exactly expensive, and I could play it for free, if I chose to, every time I do I end up breaking out my credit card, then only playing for a few months before moving on to something else for a while. That simply isn’t going to help our cause.
- Gamigo. It seems more and more likely that Gamigo is going to be shutting down “Rift” sooner than later, as they have done recently with “Defiance” and “Defiance 2050”. So the last thing I wanted to do is pay for my Patron access, only to see the game shut down, even if I got a refund on the unused time. It just isn’t worth it, and the end looks to be very, very close now.
So, what will I miss most about “Rift”? Well, the community, especially during the early years (2010-2012, or so). People were so excited and involved in the game. The RP community was pretty strong, and when some found out I was doing a video podcast for the game, they were really happy and interested in what I was doing there. All in all, the game was great, among the best I’ve ever played.
I’m going to miss it.
