First off the game is still in Beta and I won't be spending time on problems that come along with that. So yes there are login, lag, and quest issues but that is going to happen even after the initial release so lets get on to it.
Character Creation: You log in, pick your rule set server (PVP) and pick your faction. In my case I chose Defiant Bahmi. I rolled a mage and got to the customization, the process of making your character your own was very detailed you could change things as little as the size of the eyes to the height/build of your toon. Long story short a lot of different ways you can make your character your own.
Class system(spec):I will try and explain this with as little confusion as possible. Rift is a bit different when it comes to class systems, but while it may seem overly complicated once you get into it, well it isn't. Rift Asscended class systems is compromised of "souls" which grow as you level. So I chose a Mage and I gain a level I can then put points in the "branches" of the soul tree, conversely as you level you automatically gain abilities in the "root" of the soul tree, add to that you can have three different souls and it gets pretty daunting.
Above is an example of the system except not for my mage I forgot to take a screen shot. So I borrowed this picture
A) Is the branches of the soul tree
B)Would be the soul calling, or class
C) Root abilities
E)The points to spend
The trees to the left and right are the additional souls this person chose. Why is this differnent? Simple I will tell you how I did mine and why
Warlock: I love my WoW lock and tossing dots off so that was my decision there.
Necromancer: In this game the Necro relies on his pet to do damage and use spells to augment how effective his pet is. Not like wow were you can do dots and pet damage.
Chloramance: Allows me to bring some utility to a group along the lines of some healing.
In my tree I am going heavy on Warlock and a sprinkling in Necromancy. My goal is to do good DPS while having a pet by my side, not sure how it will work out but that's my plan. As you see the choices are vast and even if you have no idea the game suggests pairings with your main selection to help you out. If later on you find you do not like the pairings you can "respec"
This alone makes Rift stand out, this isn't a uncommon method but it is newer for those of us in the West.
Game play: If you have played Warhammer Online, or Aion then you are probably would slide right into Rift without to much trouble if not then let me go further. You have your standard MMO controls 'B' for bags 'c' for character pain and WASD for movement. Targeting seems to work well it isn't an epic pain in the ass to click on your target and you can also tab target. The controls are all fluid and functions highly customisable, the UI is also very well built but it may be HUGE depending on what resolution you play at but that is all something that can be changed.
Since I brought up the UI I want to mention that it is fully customizable you can move and size objects however you desire something that WoW doesn't really have stock. I came across a UI like this when playing Warhammer and fell in love with it there, I hate using Addons for things that I should be able to see or move already and those aren't problems you will have in Rift.
More after the break.
Graphics: Stunning, not much else I can say. If you have the hardware crank this bitch up and be blown away, however I did run into a couple spots when Rifts opened and it kicked my PC in the nuts, but it is to be expected with older PC's.
Sound: Well it didn't sound right, to me at least. I only have a mid range stereo setup and it seemed to be trying to run 5 channels some on occasion things would be feint and then seconds later I was reaching for the volume nob. This may be something on the bug list, but in my opinion sound isn't on the top of my list for importance.
Overall the game is good however I haven't been able to PvP so no clue how that rolls and it does seem kind of grindy at times. Will I be buying Rift?? Not sure yet at the moment I am lacking funds so I will probably have to hold off but in my opinion this is definitely not a WoW killer
