Death of a Game: Dark Age of Camelot

Darker Age of Camelot

#DOAG

[epicfail]

As of today Endless Conquest has been released and the game now has a functional, though limited, free to play option.
Enjoy.

[WhiskeyTango]

This was the greatest MMORPG of all time. 8man Emain groups. Keeping your toons in DF until Hibs took it. Getting artifacts in Trials of Atlantis. Heading out to take Relics from other realms. Will never be realized again.

I was a RR11 ML10 scout on my main. Mystic Council of Camelot guild.

I used to lead 200 man raids into Hib and Mid. 15 hour raids. It was the best time of my gaming career.

Thank you for the memories NerdSlayer.

[em_bacon]

This is by far my most favorite MMO ever. I still go back ever so often to check it out. I still get goosebumps when the loading screen theme starts playing.

[Sandwich]

Dark Age of Camelot was the first MMORPG I ever played, I played it with my dad as a kid. We'd be in the same room, on different PCs. I was Midgard, a giant rock troll thing, warrior and I remember there was so much...wonder to the world. I remember seeing this rare creature near a town called Nalliten, this kraken or loch ness sort of monster, and when we tried to look it up online, there was no information. The world was massive, it felt like every valley was truly unmapped and unknown.

[SixStringSamurai]

How after all these years the title melody of DAoC still warms my heart. Played it 12 years and loved every single moment

[skipmylou]

DAoC was the best video game I have ever played. I have so many great memories in DAoC. I still remember the day it was released in Germany. Back then people used to order physical copies of the game and you had to wait for it to get shipped to your house in order to play. I preordered the game on Amazon.

I still remember the game released on a Friday in February 2001. I came home from school at noon, checking our mailbox first thing being home. There was the physical copy, shipped on time. I was so happy and eager to play. I installed the game and logged in for the first time. I still remember how the game drew me in right away, how amazing it was playing an RPG with other people online. I rolled a Briton Scout and had absolutely no idea about classes or meta builds. Just played the game the way I felt was the most fun. Chatting with people, forming groups, exploring the lands of Albion. It was truly amazing.

A close friend of mine, who lived a few houses down the road, got the game too. He didn't have a PC at home, but we had multiple at our house, so he would always come over and we'd play together. I rerolled a Troll Thane. I remember how cool it was traveling around Midgard and steadily advancing my character.

First time RvR, going to Svasud Faste, buying a Medaillon and being ported to the lands of Hibernia. There were a few Hibs camping MTK, I remember charging down the hill with some fellow Norsemen and engaging in an intense battle. I remember sitting there, my heart racing, the sheer excitement of facing members of an enemy realm for the first time on the battlefield. This was when everyone was only around level 35-40 and not many 50s were around yet. People still went to the frontiers, to explore them, to invade enemy lands and to defend the homeland.

Later on, there community was what really stood out on our server. It was truly about realm pride. When the alliance leaders called, everyone rushed to the frontiers to defend the relic keeps or got together to carry out late night ambushes in enemy territory. And of course there were the famous 8 man setgroups, who already had a pretty good sense of strategy and organization back then and thus were dominating in RvR. I did not play that competitively back then, but it was great hearing about the deeds of them. There were a few infamous Hib groups on our server, who would regularly wipe 40 or 50 man enemy zergs with a single 8 man pbaoe group. The kill spams were glorious. You could really make a name for yourself on the battlefield.

I remember taking walks with my friend, we could talk for hours about the game. We would talk about famous players on our realm, would theorycraft about setups and specs you could play, would relive battles that had happened in the frontiers or Darkness Falls Raids we were joining.

DAoC was and is a fantastic game, I am thankful that I had this opportunity of playing the game in it's prime days. It will always be one of my great childhood memories and have a special place in my heart.

[TantalusHelmgart]

I get goosebumps reading all the comments here. I mostly played a lurikeen ranger on lyonesse, he was RR11. Missing the good old daoc times...!
Greetings to all DAoC veterans. I hope seeing some of you again when Camelot Unchained releases.

[powermonger]

I shed a tear watching this. So many great memories playing DAoC. I can still vividly remember my first night playing when the servers opened at launch. Started as a Thane in Gotar running down the road killing bugs or whatever it was. I loved the aesthetics in the game.

Over 4 or 5 years It was the one game I would return to. Wish I could relive that time again. So much fun just grouping up with random just leveling, exploring or PvPing in either the frontiers or battlegrounds.

Main things that put me off the game was Visions of Atlantis grinding to be competitive, the plague that was buffbots that killed support class players, constant nerfing and community fighting.

In all my time playing, I never played a Hibernian character once. Was always Midgard or Albion.

[hellochris]

DAoC’s wildly addictive PvP is what has kept it limping along for a long time. It is by far the most strategic, intricate and fast paced PvP I’ve ever played. I left and went back so many times because 8vX PvP is to this day the best online gaming experience I’ve ever had. Far more so than high-ranked WoW progression or WoW arena.

[MrImarket]

This is seriously my favourite series on YouTube, and I never even played that many MMOs. That’s how good your videos are. I just like understanding the industry and history of video games, and you are doing a fantastic job with those documentaries! Ps: I just became one of your patrons! :)

[TheAlja]

Best gaming experience i ever had. Serious emotions were involved here, real memories that stick with me. I am really thankful that i got to be a part of this.

[GreedeeVids]

That theme song brings back a tear to my eye. So sad that this fell from grace.

[canadianreserve]

that theme song almost makes me cry. truly the greatest game ever made

[zstew]

I still remember the Christmas when I got DAOC. I played almost all of the Christmas break, showed my friends the game and by the end of the break I have 5 other friends playing.

[nerdSlayerstudioss]

Morrowind launched in 2002 LUL. That aside, as I explain in the video. I don't hammer hard on specific details with the games patches/expansions on purpose. There's a much bigger story here, and frankly DAOC game design choices don't really even tell a fraction of their problems (budget, market saturation, good competition, abandoned for another MMO development). So whatever "story" needs to be told, in this case a less game detail specific one. As long as we can try and piece together why something failed, that's our ultimate goal with this series :). Here are some of the pop charts I used in the video.

[Praetoro]

You gave this video the true attention and love it deserved. This game was and is still unlike anything else out there. No mirrored classes and 36 overall. Realm pride, RvR, great PvE and so on. If anyone was to go back now, just have a group powerlevel you to 50 in a day or two and go into the Frontiers. If you aren’t sold after your first Zerg battle. Then it’s not for you. But if you love it, you’ll know why there’s still people playing.

Awesome video!

[calvingoh]

Nothing can replace the experience of DAOC, the endless hours of fun setting up a relic raid... unmatched.

[Redstomp]

Just hearing the title screen music gave me nostalgic chills. The amount of hours I have sunk into this game... no regrets!

[WarlogicGaming]

Accounts still active on DAoC. 17 years, 75 level 50's and hundreds of thousands of kills later I still find myself coming back when I'm bored. Best game ever made, can't wait for CU. Thanks for telling the full story from a business standpoint!

[bananamuntcher]

Nerdslayer and Mandalor crossover when? You make combined my favourite videos on gaming as they touch on the games I've never heard of but love to learn about. Keep up he amazing work!