Why is 2006 seen by many to be the best year for RS?

[BenDover]

I didn't like 06.

[PereGrin]

There were 2 times I really loved rs. One was when I started in classic. Playing with real life friends, still not used to the game and learning all the new stuff. new stuff put me in awe. This lasted through the start of rs2, till end of 2005, when i became a member.

 

Second was just before, during, and after the release of dungeoneering. I love the skill, and I had a really tight group of friends I played with. 2 in particular that I did nearly everything with. Starting with dungeoneering, all those friends have quit over the years. And I the only update I have really liked since dungeoneering is ports. The rest is sort of mediocre, or just bad. Mostly, I liked the game when I had that first group of friends. That is the time I would like to return to.

[RU_Insane]

It was the best because PvP was the endgame content and skillcapes weren't released yet.

 

People underestimate the importance of pvp endgame. With pvm endgame, there's two options:

1. Bosses are farmable and people will complain about lack of challenge

2. Bosses are challenging and people will complain that they aren't farmable

 

Pvm has been dominant for six years now and people still dont realize that "challenging" and "consistently profitable" are mutually exclusive boss qualities.

 

With pvp, the more skilled you are, the more money you make. If you suck at pking and/or are too afraid to take risks, then you can go farm bosses or skill for less money per hour where there's less risk involved.

 

There's also the fact that bosses are completely predictable and static, whereas other players are always using different equipment, combat styles, and tactics. When you're fighting the exact same opponent using the exact same strategy for hours on end, it gets pretty boring after a while.

 

Rushing and pjing also hadn't grown out of control yet in 2006.

 

Finally even if you were too afraid to risk your stuff, Castle Wars and Fight Pits were still a lot of fun even though they were just a big money sink.

 

I really like this explanation. I may not agree with all of it, but damn if it isn't well thought out.

[Kirschen]

Three reasons as to why I liked 2006 in spite of the middling graphics:

 

1) I could focus on my friends and interacting with them and not get looked down upon for not focusing on the more ambitious aspects such as reaching level 99 stats and everything. I could basically focus on doing things without a care in the world and still have plenty to do. Given Skillcapes were a recent concept at the time, it did give me some ideas of what to do still.

2) The metagame was not firmly established at the time. I am not anti-metagame by any means, but I wasn't really enjoying discussing goals and achievements with others later in my RS life on account of hearing too much of how they were going to achieve their desired objectives and not so much as why. I simply kept hearing too much of the same damn thing over and over.

3) Jagex was, in my opinion, had their standards on a higher level than the abysmal level it is currently at (read: low). They weren't prone to missing dates and pushing them back and a certain group didn't buy them from Andrew and Paul.

 

I will admit that 2006 did have its faults and some left more to be desired. Overall, I found 2006 one of my favorite years to play Runescape with the only regret being that I wasn't a Tip.Iter at the time.

[Yoko Kurama]

It was the best because PvP was the endgame content and skillcapes weren't released yet.

 

People underestimate the importance of pvp endgame. With pvm endgame, there's two options:

1. Bosses are farmable and people will complain about lack of challenge

2. Bosses are challenging and people will complain that they aren't farmable

 

Pvm has been dominant for six years now and people still dont realize that "challenging" and "consistently profitable" are mutually exclusive boss qualities.

 

With pvp, the more skilled you are, the more money you make. If you suck at pking and/or are too afraid to take risks, then you can go farm bosses or skill for less money per hour where there's less risk involved.

 

There's also the fact that bosses are completely predictable and static, whereas other players are always using different equipment, combat styles, and tactics. When you're fighting the exact same opponent using the exact same strategy for hours on end, it gets pretty boring after a while.

 

Rushing and pjing also hadn't grown out of control yet in 2006.

 

Finally even if you were too afraid to risk your stuff, Castle Wars and Fight Pits were still a lot of fun even though they were just a big money sink.

 

I don't quite agree. PVP was never the endgame or the core of the game for most people. It was at one time something a lot of people did, but it was never a majority. Skillers/Questers/Boss hunters were always here and outnumbered the Pkers. Pkers were regarded as obnoxious and immature brats who would do things like griefing or shouting obscenities at you while they fought you. There was always a touch of antagonism there; and that is probably why when the Wildy was finally removed in 07 (as a PVP thing, anyways), the exodus of Pkers did not seem to garner much sympathy from other communities.

 

I would also dispute your narrative about rushing/pjing; they seem to be have always been around.

 

I enjoyed Castle Wars and Fight Pits, as did many others, but it was a fun distraction, never a core part of the game. A lot of people don't like PVPing and never really have.

 

And it is also not true that PVPing was the best money. Boss hunting (barrows), for most of RS, or Slayer back in 2005, gave it a reasonable run for its money.

 

As for bosses, the thing is, they usually are very challenging, despite their farming -- the problem is that Jagex often releases new super gear that makes them very easy to camp and that is when they become farmable and prices actually go down. It is quite possible to have challenging and profitable bosses. And RS has historically had those, it is just that sooner or later the balance tilts.

[Platinum_Myr]

The main PvP money thing was the statues.

[Sy_Accursed]

 

It was the best because PvP was the endgame content and skillcapes weren't released yet.

 

People underestimate the importance of pvp endgame. With pvm endgame, there's two options:

1. Bosses are farmable and people will complain about lack of challenge

2. Bosses are challenging and people will complain that they aren't farmable

 

Pvm has been dominant for six years now and people still dont realize that "challenging" and "consistently profitable" are mutually exclusive boss qualities.

 

With pvp, the more skilled you are, the more money you make. If you suck at pking and/or are too afraid to take risks, then you can go farm bosses or skill for less money per hour where there's less risk involved.

 

There's also the fact that bosses are completely predictable and static, whereas other players are always using different equipment, combat styles, and tactics. When you're fighting the exact same opponent using the exact same strategy for hours on end, it gets pretty boring after a while.

 

Rushing and pjing also hadn't grown out of control yet in 2006.

 

Finally even if you were too afraid to risk your stuff, Castle Wars and Fight Pits were still a lot of fun even though they were just a big money sink.

 

I don't quite agree. PVP was never the endgame or the core of the game for most people. It was at one time something a lot of people did, but it was never a majority. Skillers/Questers/Boss hunters were always here and outnumbered the Pkers. Pkers were regarded as obnoxious and immature brats who would do things like griefing or shouting obscenities at you while they fought you. There was always a touch of antagonism there; and that is probably why when the Wildy was finally removed in 07 (as a PVP thing, anyways), the exodus of Pkers did not seem to garner much sympathy from other communities.

 

I would also dispute your narrative about rushing/pjing; they seem to be have always been around.

 

I enjoyed Castle Wars and Fight Pits, as did many others, but it was a fun distraction, never a core part of the game. A lot of people don't like PVPing and never really have.

 

And it is also not true that PVPing was the best money. Boss hunting (barrows), for most of RS, or Slayer back in 2005, gave it a reasonable run for its money.

 

As for bosses, the thing is, they usually are very challenging, despite their farming -- the problem is that Jagex often releases new super gear that makes them very easy to camp and that is when they become farmable and prices actually go down. It is quite possible to have challenging and profitable bosses. And RS has historically had those, it is just that sooner or later the balance tilts.

 

 

The boss thing, in some ways, is a self fixing problem once we reach the game's limits:

Once we have lvl 99 gear across the board and simply cannot become more powerful bosses can be feasibly designed for that tier that can't easily become under-powered.

 

Of course there's also the notion, which may be a wise move, of putting in some sort of scaling combat of level to fight on bosses so that lower bosses either can't be killed for drops by those too high OR can't be farmed easily due to scaling. The trouble here also comes, however, from said boss drops being a vital source of mid-range gear that ought to hold a certain degree of affordability.

[The Onion]

Because the game was simple and the comunity was the best.. thats just what i think tho..

[V O R K]

The main PvP money thing was the statues.

 

I don't even... What a joke :facepalm:

 

Just hybridding at MB with dharok/ahrims/whip :mad:

[Yoko Kurama]

 

 

It was the best because PvP was the endgame content and skillcapes weren't released yet.

 

People underestimate the importance of pvp endgame. With pvm endgame, there's two options:

1. Bosses are farmable and people will complain about lack of challenge

2. Bosses are challenging and people will complain that they aren't farmable

 

Pvm has been dominant for six years now and people still dont realize that "challenging" and "consistently profitable" are mutually exclusive boss qualities.

 

With pvp, the more skilled you are, the more money you make. If you suck at pking and/or are too afraid to take risks, then you can go farm bosses or skill for less money per hour where there's less risk involved.

 

There's also the fact that bosses are completely predictable and static, whereas other players are always using different equipment, combat styles, and tactics. When you're fighting the exact same opponent using the exact same strategy for hours on end, it gets pretty boring after a while.

 

Rushing and pjing also hadn't grown out of control yet in 2006.

 

Finally even if you were too afraid to risk your stuff, Castle Wars and Fight Pits were still a lot of fun even though they were just a big money sink.

 

I don't quite agree. PVP was never the endgame or the core of the game for most people. It was at one time something a lot of people did, but it was never a majority. Skillers/Questers/Boss hunters were always here and outnumbered the Pkers. Pkers were regarded as obnoxious and immature brats who would do things like griefing or shouting obscenities at you while they fought you. There was always a touch of antagonism there; and that is probably why when the Wildy was finally removed in 07 (as a PVP thing, anyways), the exodus of Pkers did not seem to garner much sympathy from other communities.

 

I would also dispute your narrative about rushing/pjing; they seem to be have always been around.

 

I enjoyed Castle Wars and Fight Pits, as did many others, but it was a fun distraction, never a core part of the game. A lot of people don't like PVPing and never really have.

 

And it is also not true that PVPing was the best money. Boss hunting (barrows), for most of RS, or Slayer back in 2005, gave it a reasonable run for its money.

 

As for bosses, the thing is, they usually are very challenging, despite their farming -- the problem is that Jagex often releases new super gear that makes them very easy to camp and that is when they become farmable and prices actually go down. It is quite possible to have challenging and profitable bosses. And RS has historically had those, it is just that sooner or later the balance tilts.

 

 

The boss thing, in some ways, is a self fixing problem once we reach the game's limits:

Once we have lvl 99 gear across the board and simply cannot become more powerful bosses can be feasibly designed for that tier that can't easily become under-powered.

 

Of course there's also the notion, which may be a wise move, of putting in some sort of scaling combat of level to fight on bosses so that lower bosses either can't be killed for drops by those too high OR can't be farmed easily due to scaling. The trouble here also comes, however, from said boss drops being a vital source of mid-range gear that ought to hold a certain degree of affordability.

 

 

 

That's years down from the road, at the bare minimum. That doesn't really fix bosses now, or for all the previous years. It's a terrible solution.

[Sy_Accursed]

I never said it was ideal, but it is an undeniable eventuality with the current system and all told at their current pace it doesn't seem that far off really.

 

I mean in the past 12 months we have gained T90 dual wield weapons across all 3 classes, with only thrown and arrow missing. Plus we have T85 tank armour and 1 set of T90 power armour, with a 2nd enroute.

Plus we are due a ports upgrade that has every chance of filling out more T90/85 armourment and Mod Mark has mentioned they do have plans for the T90 2h weapons.

Not to mention T70 and T60 arrow tier was recently completed, alongside a good chunk more of T60 being filled out in general by BotD (most crucially to magic)

Plus of course the QBD, KK and Vorago with Barrows deluxe on the horizon too.

As far as progression to maxed out combat gear in the game goes the current rate would suggest we may get there in a mere year or 2.

 

At this rate I'd expect the end of 2014 to of:

1) Completed T90 power armour tier

2) Possibly begun T90 tank tier

3) Filled out the remaining gaps in ranged (T60-T80 thrown and T80 shieldbow)

4) Seen at least some of the 2H T90 weapons (and the other ranged items) appear.

[Ammako]

alongside a good chunk more of T60 being filled out in general by BotD (most crucially to magic)

I don't know about that.

We already had Dragon maces which are pretty much the exact same as Dragon warhammers, we already had Dragon darts (identical to Throwing axes) and we already had the Obsidian staff/God staves (identical to Dragon battlestaff.)

Doesn't help that the Warhammer/Throwing axes/Battlestaff require completion of Birthright of the Dwarves to wield, considering anyone who would use them cannot complete the quest.

[Aiel]

BotD filled in exactly zero tiers. It requires 85 in a combat stat, and gives t60 rewards, so basically we got tier 60 weapons that require 85 strength to use. Whoever thought that was balanced needs to get their head out of their ass. Also we didn't need another tier 60 staff.

[Sy_Accursed]

I know much of the dragon stuff is duplicate on weakness, but never the less it does 'complete' the tier as far as jagex is concerned with all the metals offering the same items.

 

Equally I am aware the reqs to get it vs use it are entirely stupid, but the same can be said of many dragon items and of course in terms of actual usability it is stupid and useless but from the Jagex completeness viewpoint it does fill things out.

 

I guess I derped on the staff a bit, I thought there wasn't any t60 staves but meh I'm not expert on where all the weapons landed in magic now.

[Saradomin_Mage]

I know much of the dragon stuff is duplicate on weakness, but never the less it does 'complete' the tier as far as jagex is concerned with all the metals offering the same items.

Where do metal battlestaves come in in this?

[Sy_Accursed]

They don't, that one is a curveball for sure.

[Wkw]

There is only T90 bolts. Not arrow or thrown.

[Sy_Accursed]

T90 dual wield weapons across all 3 classes, with only thrown and arrow missing.

 

...

 

4) Seen at least some of the 2H T90 weapons (and the other ranged items)

 

 

There is only T90 bolts. Not arrow or thrown.

 

I did kinda cover that in the original post from which this branch of debate stemmed.

 

The necessity of actual t90 arrows themselves is questionable though. I mean T70* and T80 function perfectly well without actual arrows through ammo-providing bows.

 

*I am aware T70 got arrows due to dark bow now, but it lacked them for many years and worked just fine.

[V O R K]

I just wish they revived bolts in one way or another :\

[Mylez]

I just wish they revived bolts in one way or another :\

 

Agreed. I miss the functionality of the Rune C'Bow and Diamond/Ruby (e) bolts a LOT more than I miss weapons special attacks. I also find it hard to find a good Ranged weapon. My Royal C'Bow is constantly nearing 0% (this is the second one I've made). And I much prefer a good one-handed C'Bow so I can use a shield.

 

Maybe I should DG more and obtain Chaotics. I dunno.

 

OT: 2006 was a great year for me also, but as previously mentioned it's more about the people I knew, my situation at the time (& my age) combined with the simplistic nature of the game, compared to how it is now.

 

I'm not bashing RS3/EOC in any way, I just really enjoyed things when they were simple. But again, it's already been mentioned that the game needs to evolve and can't stay the same way forever. Hurray for change!

[Ammako]

*I am aware T70 got arrows due to dark bow now, but it lacked them for many years and worked just fine.

Uh... about that...

 

 

[Sy_Accursed]

 

*I am aware T70 got arrows due to dark bow now, but it lacked them for many years and worked just fine.

Uh... about that...

 

 

 

Your point being?

 

Crystal bow never had matching arrows as it self-supplies the ammo.

Prior to this weeks update there were no T70 arrows.

 

I was not remotely saying there was no arrow weapon, I was saying there was no actual physical arrows to be had as items.

Just like there is no T80 arrow item to get with the Zaryte bow.

[Ammako]

Why even bother saying that they had no arrows when they had bows with no ammo, which does exactly the same thing?

 

I thought it was obvious that what was meant by "there is only t90 bolt. not arrow or thrown" is "there is only t90 bolt-type range weapons"

[Sy_Accursed]

Why bother marking a sarky post with a picture of a crystal bow to a post whose wording and line of thought was clearly talking about there being an actual arrow item?

[Fallstar]

The prestige system wasn't out.