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

[John Buehler]

Damion Schubert writes:

> On 3/19/07, John Buehler <johnbue at msn.com> wrote:

> 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.

Indeed there is.  I've belonged to very chatty guilds.  Even there, emoting
was uncommon.  It got pretty funny at times when it happened, but emoting at
all was not a frequent thing.

> 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).

No argument from me on any of that.

> > >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.

No argument from me on any of that.  What is the role of EMOTING in World of
Warcraft?  None of this is about multiplayer games being social.  They are
highly social.  We started off with "Why is the /bow command in certain
games so weak?"  I think the game was World of Warcraft, but I can't
remember.  Perhaps it was only implied.  In any case, I don't want to lose
sight of the original premise.

JB