[MUD-Dev2] [OFF-TOPIC] A rant against Vanguard reviews and rants

[Damion Schubert]

On 3/19/07, John Buehler <johnbue at msn.com> wrote:
>
> These are not the sort of players who are looking to get to know other
> people or are interested in presenting a sophisticated facade of a role -
> which is what subtleties such as emoting are most closely aligned with.


I suppose this isn't a shocker to anyone, but to the vast majority of
players,
the 'role-playing' part of the RPG acronym is an anachronism.  Players play
to be around each other, and to socialize.  Some even play because they
appreciate the stories, and the quests.  Bust most do not play to pretend
that they ARE a big burly troll.

What is probably more of a shocker is that this is also true of many
pen-and-paper sessions I've been part of.

The ability to communicate, yes.  The question in my mind is one of what the
> players are attempting to communicate.  My experience has been that
> players
> communicate data about the game far more than spending any time at all
> with
> communicating anything about themselves as players or as characters.


So what?  They're talking about themselves and the tactical/strategic issues

ahead of them.  They gossip about other players.  They complain about the
people running the game.  They give noobs quest hints.

There's plenty of socializing in mass-market MMOs.  Yes, only a small
percentage of it is 'role-playing', but it is not the caveman-like world of
silence and grunts that many people imagine.  People play these games
because *they like to be around other people* - the idle chatter that
other people contribute is vital to the feel of the game (go play in an
empty WoW zone like Silithus to really feel the difference).

> >Chatting and emoting in Second Life? Definitely.  In World of Warcraft?
> > >Does it get me my tier 3 gear?
> >       It does if you do it to the right person.
>
> "The right person" is the key.  The "right people" aren't playing World of
> Warcraft.  They're all over in Second Life, chatting and emoting.
>

I think you dramatically underestimate the high-level social dynamics in
a WoW or EQ uberguild. Here's a hint: the high-level social dynamics of
interpersonal interactions are so intense that the resulting guild drama
is a severe design challenge in making a social environment to players
hoping for a more casual experience.

--d