Do you like classed or classless systems?

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Class-based systems have dominated MMOs for years, but it wasn't always the case. Ultima Online, the granddaddy of the graphical MMO, had an open system wherein players could advance in whatever field they chose. It was EverQuest that first introduced a rigid class system, and arguably World of Warcraft that made it the golden standard. And it's a kind of silly standard, resulting in class-based games like RIFT trying to be as freeform as possible while freeform games like Champions Online offer class-like archetypes. It's as if one side always wants to be like the other without sacrificing its identity.

A classless system gives characters far more freedom of progression, but it also creates degenerate environments where everyone takes the few useful skills and the rest go unattended. Class systems, on the other hand, promote a strong sense of homogenization wherein everyone of the same level has the same abilities, often with only tiny variations. So what game has the best implementation of this back-and-forth? Do you like a class-based game that has a very open skill tree, or a classless system with a wide variety of useful skills, or a game which hews closer to the core of either concept?

TH

i think that a wide variety is nice were you can make something that you like to play without being forced into something specific, Its like politics you vote for someone because you agree to some of his points but you would rather combine them so it would be one big happy thing

Thorgar wrote:i think that a wide variety is nice were you can make something that you like to play without being forced into something specific, Its like politics you vote for someone because you agree to some of his points but you would rather combine them so it would be one big happy thing

Everything in life should be approached with a pluralistic mind set, it is called freedom of choice, shoehorning someone into specific decisions by way of diminished options is a type of fascism.

Good points on the political parallel, for such a young person you have politics under perspective, a very wise outlook, kudos to your parents for giving you the right direction, and not trying to turn you into a fanatic of a specific and narrow political-ideology system.