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General: MMOWTF: The Waiting Game
Stradden
Managing EditorMember CommonPosts: 6,696
Weekly MMORPG.com columnist Dan Fortier talks about what happens to MMORPG players when we're waiting for our next big game.
It seems to me that MMO players spend a lot of time waiting for something cool to happen. You wait for your group; wait for a spawn; wait for a specific drop; wait for that item to finish being crafted...the list goes on and on. We seem to define our game experience by the amount of time it takes us to do something and it's not uncommon for a player to spend far more than half of his online time just waiting for the cool part of the game to start. This article, however, is going to spare you that tired rant and focus on another waiting game that is just as common: Waiting for a game you've been watching to be released. Join me on a little textual adventure this week as we quest for answers to the secrets behind the Waiting Game.
Read the whole column here.
Cheers,
Jon Wood
Managing Editor
MMORPG.com
Comments
Actually, I am not "waiting". If I am in the mood to talk and "socialise", then I don't log in my characters...I come here and see if there is something interesting to see, learn or if I can inform peoples about the great games I found!
See, playing CoV or CIV IV: Beyond the Sword is cool and fun, but...often before or after I start playing either game, if I don't feel like playing for any reason, just like reading and/or talking/socialising, then I come here. Now, this is not the ultimate socialising site niak niak niak, just a little something between information, talking and the like, at my own disposure, when I want it (not in real time, a forum, so I do it when I want).
But spending my time on these forums is a LOT funnier then playing a game that doesn't deserve my time. I rather "earn" back my 100% ranking on MMORPG.com then to earns some DKP or whatever incredibly lame and silly most MMOs are trying to make me do. But as you saw, atm I am not that much in the mood of "earning" my perfect score, and I have a moderator to blame with the release of CIV IV: Beyond the Sword, both events combined explain why my ranking is dropping...and will prolly keep dropping.
CIV IV: Beyond the Sword is quite weird, there is a scenario that is kinda like a RPG; and if it was not for the awkward point of view (my troubles to see the map as it should be), then I would prolly be playing that scenario endlessly right now. Many other cool scenarios as well.
- "If I understand you well, you are telling me until next time. " - Ren
I have to disagree. If I am playing a game that has raids and I am waiting for the raid to form, that is somewhat true, but that is a rare occurance as most of us don't have the game time available to raid, so when I play, don't fool around waiting for anything.
There are people out there that do spend time waiting for things, but I believe you are talking about a small minority.
I can add an extra angle by saying im not only waiting for "a game" but waiting for the release of several different games and additions t others. I don't want to resub Vanguard till the server merge is complete. I enjoy WoW but with the new expansion I don't see much point in paying beforehand and trying to find things to do. Then theres AoC, Warhammer, Pirates of the burning sea, Chronicles of Spellborn all of which im watching.
The simple fact of the matter is, the game that gets my attention is the next one to be released, unless I really dislike it.
I refuse to play games that require me to wait on any of the things mentioned in the column's opening paragraph. (Looking for a group is an active process, by the way, so if you are sitting around and waiting, you deserve to be bored.)
As for the OTHER waiting game, I'm happy to say I'm finally over putting all my gaming eggs in one basket. I no longer pick an unfinished game and pray that it will be the best thing ever.
The article does make an interesting point about hype. Now that I think about it, hype is probably the worst thing a developer can do, as it always leads to broken promises and disappointment. And release dates. Hype leads to release dates, which no sane developer should ever set until the thing is working right.
Remember how hush-hush Blizzard was about the details of WoW? They basically didn't share any news about the game until they were sure it was IN and WORKING. Blizzard is smart.
Yes, the best course for any MMOG is to lay off the marketers until just before release. Shut up about your game until you actually have a game. It will be far easier to impress people if you can truthfully tell them about the all the awesome things your game can do, as opposed to sharing your dreams of all the awesome things you wish it could do.
Myargghh...
This is why I only play console and single player games nowadays. I've gotten tired of the different waiting games that are prevalent in so many different MMORPGs. Ultima Online was the only game that really kept my interest for a few years, way back then.
I'm playing the 'other' waiting game now though. I'm waiting for Chronicals of the Spellborn and Pirates of the Burning Sea right now, oh and star trek online too. Although, I have a feeling Chronicals of Spellborn is gonna just be another dead weight.
The doll would surely say, "I do not want to be human!" although her master wants her to be even more.
I agree with an earlier post, if your waiting and don't like it you deserve to be bored.
I play the waiting game because I choose to sometimes. If it can't be helped as in waiting for a group or raiding party then that is probably the only thing I can accept. Not for long though. Or if I'm socializing while I wait then it isn't noticed as much. I tend to do that if I drinking more often then if I am not.
As for waiting for a game to be finished, well...can't be helped. Most games have to hype their game in someway. It's marketing. The point about when to is another question. I agree that these gaming companies shouldn't be hyping features that just don't work. Or at least work the way they say until it is. It's more of if you talk the talk then walk the walk of the talk. "Gotta be hittin on all cylinders".
Recently, in my wait for AoC( maybe it will be good, maybe it won't), which is really the only game I'm waiting for, I have been subbing my time in MMo's for stuff like battlefield 2142. Stuff like action games. Stuff like rpgs. Stuff like fighting games. My Wii however is getting less play. 360 is way up.
Add in waiting for your kid to go to sleep, waiting for your group to get back from vacation, waiting for your buddy to get online, waiting for that next great spell, waiting for that next screenshot, the next great patch etc etc.
I finally gave up for a while and went and bought a PSIII. It almost feels weird to log in and play a game for a change. Maybe WAR or Conan will change that this year. Oh yeah, they both have been postponed.
I agree with pretty much all of this article.
It raises for me a question that I hadn't considered...that some, perhaps many, of the people who frequent the forums for unreleased games will never be happy with the final product. If this is true, how should developers weigh input from forums, etc.? They want to make a game that meets potential subscriber expectations. However, if those expectations cannot ever be met, should their input be given a lot of credence?
In other words, how much effort should developers give to making people happy who will wind up getting frustrated and leaving anyway, because they will be chasing the next buzz?
All MMO's in one sense or another follow the "Chasing the Carrot" method to get players to continue paying monthly subscription fees.
It's only natural that MMO players would also "Chase the Carrot" when it comes to following the development of a new MMO.
It's all at the very heart of the business model that makes successful MMO's a HUGE cash crop.
Note that I said "successful MMO's."
MMO's aren't for players who need instant gratification. Never have been, never will be. The boundries have started shifting towards more "involved" and "action packed" MMO's, however at the core The Waiting Game is what MMO's are all about.
Hopefuly, with a good game, even the "waiting to do something cool" will still be fun and engaging, which I believe is in very large part to the community / friends people form in game.
Chasing the carrot has nothing to do with waiting. In fact, "chasing" implies an active process. "Waiting" is passive.
Semantics, you know what he meant. He implied that waiting for the next thing to happen is apart of the mmo experience. If you involve yourself in this genre...your doing what most(my opinion as I do not actually know) has, will, or is doing. Waiting on something. Just because you're being active in a game doesn't mean you're not waiting to raid, or for that matter waiting for the next big xpansion, next big game.
Which kinda means that the genre as a whole has you chasing the carrot. Shit! Life has you chasing the carrot. MMO's are virtual worlds.
i like the TABLE game ,is this game like that?
Usually when I find myself "waiting" too much is when I move on to another game.
EQ1 was my 1st MMOG, but as the expansions kept getting cranked out I found myself waiting more and more to just be able to do anything. I'm not talking raids, it got to the point you couldn't cross the street without a group. So I moved on.
Same thing happened with DAoC when they released Trials of Atlantis, game became all about waiting around to maybe get that artifact, hope Darkness Falls is open so you can begin grinding demon kills to level said artifact up. Again, I moved on not long after that.
As for waiting for a new game, I'll try em as they come out. Probably Age of Conan is the only one I'm really waiting for per se. However, I'm not preordering it nor am I going to play Day One. I will read release reviews, read forum posts, etc and decide if it really is worth my time and dollars.
I find it weird that players will login to an MMO to chat. $14.99 per month for a chat program...weird. My wife does it a lot. I don't like it. I always pick on her "Why am I paying $14.99/month for a chat program? Go use MSN Goofball!". She eventually does SOMETHING other than chat, but I think it's weird. I don't know why we login to do stuff like that.
Why don't they remove a general chat and create an incentive to use private messaging. Or, only allow group discussion....I don't know. Chatting makes no sense to me in an MMO i guess.
Well I can somewhat understand the desire to login to "just chat". Players make friends as they play (usually) and sometimes they are just "hanging out" as it were with their online friends. I've seen many times a friend/guildie just pops on to say hi and chat for a bit before going to work/school. In older games like EQ1 this was very common as typically you were chatting to kill time until you could get the group/raid going.
Personally, if I don't have the time or desire to play then I will chat for a bit to be polite to any friends/guildies on and then logoff.
The waiting game is a really good title for this discussion, because i wait every single time i get a MMORPG. I wait for the next game to come out. It all started with EQ, and now im looking for something better, almost like a drug. The only reason im looking for something better though is because they were messing with my "drug" while i was on it, and thats a no-no, no gamer likes that. When someone goes into a server, they picked that server because of the rules and gametype/style. We dont expect them to switch it up on us when were level 55.
Theres way to much to type... Basically i want a PvP game, with looting. Thats all. Someone will probally tell me, well have you heard of this game? Go play it, its free. Yes, i have heard of those games, the free ones suck. Im not just a PvP person, i like PvE implemented too, and very well. We the people implement our PvP storyline, so no one needs to touch it, only the gamers will see the PvP story unfold. Every real PvP fan knows this, guilds and true alliances are forreal, not because the game sais this is ur friend. It happens when u dont set boundaries, the community really becomes a community. WoW doesnt really have a community from what ive seen on my server, i might as well go and play an offline roleplaying game, because getting to 70, and then going to pk some other people on the otherside of the world, is just boring. The whole PvP system and 2 side teams thing is in full swing, it doesnt even work, but it seems nobody really cares. - i dont wanna see another game using its alliance or horde method, maybe on a different server, but for the whole game, no.
I like jacking people. I like people jacking me, yes i said it. I like people jacking me. If you play on a server with looting, you know what the deal is. I dont enjoy losing my items, but i know when i play, hey, lets play my hardest, because if i dont, i lose. Your character really starts to become how good, you yourself are at the game. In every aspect, even how smart. Why cry about being jumped? You know not to run through Deathdark Forest by yourself, what did you expect? Making friends, and searching for the right guild comes into play on a server like this, because certain guilds take care of there guild members, and vice versa, the member takes care of the guild. The waiting game i assure everyone, when it does come out, it will make so much money, that every carebear will be blown away - cause they always say, "nobody even likes PvP that lets you gank, go play a FPS!" All it takes is for that one company to have the balls and pop the cherry of the MMORPG genre, and make that PvP game, keeping in mind, they need atleast as good of a PvE system as WoW lol, which should not be hard at all (the PvE system i mean).
Darkfall, and Age of Conan are the 2 games im looking forward to right now, other then that, upcoming MMORPGs can kiss my ass, cause i kno their not gonna be good. Real Talk
Pain is weakness leaving the body.
I agree that I am too waiting for a high class pvp system, but if it's going to have FFA, there has to be limits. Probably not appropriate for this thread, buuuuuut hey...FFA should imo be in a skill based system only. Why? Fairness. Test your luck. Yeah, you may be taking a chance on getting robbed walking through that forest. But don't fret...you may just be better than your opponent or opponents.
I also think that your personal items shouldn't be able to get looted. It should be you have random drops just like mobs. Why? Because it's not a matter of being good or you will loose that coveted item that you just spent all your hard earned gold on, it's a matter of NO MATTER WHAT...YOU ARE GOING TO LOSE ANY ITEM YOU HAVE! Only question is as to when. Which basically means don't get attached to nothing. Oh, yeah....and your dead body is being camped and have been robbed for your gold, your weapons, your underwear. Log out...come back in a week.
I am waiting for AoC also. Too bad it got pushed. As for Darkfall, it's going to be in first person. That's what I read anyway...huge turnoff.
*Edit* Just went to Darkfall's site and under the little section it asks what camera view will be used. The answer given was something to the effect of more on this soon. Guess they are undecided now. I read in an article last month that the devs wanted this to be first person and wouldn't steer away form this.
Well, it steers me away because I like seeing my freaking armor in medieval fantasy games. Especially when in most MMO's gear matters.
Bah, chatting is half the fun. Aw....c'mon..
For you old Daoc'ers...nothing like running out to old Emain and chatting to a friend while you're on auto run and get jumped...your friend seeing this tell:
"so, there I was, telling that guy where he could stick it, andggastr435454367y3w4524..
Damn..I died.
That use to be hella funny, lol....now everyone uses ventrillo, bleh.
D.