It used to be that players played a dice-based RPG before delving into an MMO. Nowadays, it's different. MMOs introduce placers to pencil & paper RPGs instead of the otherway round (anybody remember the DIABLO II supplements for D&D?). I won't take offense that the new D&D is heavily influenced by MMO design.
HOWEVER...
That said, MMOs are very much encounter-based (in opposition to pencil & paper's campaign-based). Very much combat-based. Very much designed for players who want a quick action fix, who want to be able to drop in and play at anytime and have some action.
Old school RPGs are story-based, heavily inspired by people who wanted to play out Lord of the Rings in real-time or live the life of James Bond. And there lies the rub.
WotC has made the game into a hack-n-slash game. All some players want to do is kill things and take their stuff. People like me, on the other hand, are the type of player who spends weeks coming up with backstory to justify his characters stats and skills, who works relentlessly with the DM to tie his character into the overall plot, who wants a fleshed out character, not just a combat machine.
David has it right when he says (paraphrasing) in a world where everyone is a superhero, no one is. Skills and story allow a character to stand out in myriad ways; not just "the guy with the vorpal sword" or the "the guy that killed Smaug" but "the sole survivor from the city that vanished" or "the guy whose who weaves baskets that sell for hundreds of gold" -- you can be those last couple at first level and do more to serve the story and the game than being just another Conan among Conans.
Also, part of the thrill of old school RPGs is the possibility of failure. What will happen if you lose to the lich? In MMOs, you regenerate and just take another shot, but in dice games, the lich might kill your family or you... and permanently. He might take over the world so you're playing in a whole new environment. Again... it comes back to the importance of story to the game. In a world where even the newbies have superpowers and zillions of hit points, where's the struggle? If good (or the players) always wins, who cares?
From the comments, it appears as if WotC has sacrificed the story aspect of the game to lure in MMO players. Is it worth it? Depends on who you ask. Some players like hack n slash. I like story and character to character interaction. But WotC might've been wise to check out White Wolf's EverQuest and Warcraft RPGs which, though far from perfect, kept much of the story emphasis intact.
HOWEVER...
That said, MMOs are very much encounter-based (in opposition to pencil & paper's campaign-based). Very much combat-based. Very much designed for players who want a quick action fix, who want to be able to drop in and play at anytime and have some action.
Old school RPGs are story-based, heavily inspired by people who wanted to play out Lord of the Rings in real-time or live the life of James Bond. And there lies the rub.
WotC has made the game into a hack-n-slash game. All some players want to do is kill things and take their stuff. People like me, on the other hand, are the type of player who spends weeks coming up with backstory to justify his characters stats and skills, who works relentlessly with the DM to tie his character into the overall plot, who wants a fleshed out character, not just a combat machine.
David has it right when he says (paraphrasing) in a world where everyone is a superhero, no one is. Skills and story allow a character to stand out in myriad ways; not just "the guy with the vorpal sword" or the "the guy that killed Smaug" but "the sole survivor from the city that vanished" or "the guy whose who weaves baskets that sell for hundreds of gold" -- you can be those last couple at first level and do more to serve the story and the game than being just another Conan among Conans.
Also, part of the thrill of old school RPGs is the possibility of failure. What will happen if you lose to the lich? In MMOs, you regenerate and just take another shot, but in dice games, the lich might kill your family or you... and permanently. He might take over the world so you're playing in a whole new environment. Again... it comes back to the importance of story to the game. In a world where even the newbies have superpowers and zillions of hit points, where's the struggle? If good (or the players) always wins, who cares?
From the comments, it appears as if WotC has sacrificed the story aspect of the game to lure in MMO players. Is it worth it? Depends on who you ask. Some players like hack n slash. I like story and character to character interaction. But WotC might've been wise to check out White Wolf's EverQuest and Warcraft RPGs which, though far from perfect, kept much of the story emphasis intact.