Multiplayer Gaming: What am I missing?

[Vocenoctum]

Yeah, but RPG.net would be a better comparison to XBL,

Well, Factionalism does depend on which Faction you belong to...

Well, I wouldn't quite go that far. But I think XBL's very nature draws more competitive, wound up people. Because more casual relaxed players probably aren't into it enough to pay $50 a year to subscribe to it. Same with the constant ranking and gamerpoints. People get cuthroat over games like Uno. (Actually, I've heard a lot of horror stories about the camera support of that game)

As I mentioned, I'm not big on multiplayer FPS stuff, obviously the higher ranked players ARE into it a bit more than I am. I think the issue of Jerkishness is a separate thing from Competitiveness, really. I assume people that play hundreds of matches enjoy the game and don't want it "easier", but that doesn't mean they have to be obnoxious and sing over the mic, as it were.

A certain level of taunting is one thing, but some people are just irritating.

 

[LightPhoenix]

I pretty much only play with people I know now. I used to play with random people, but eventually got tired of people using anonymity as a mask to be total idiots. Also, as much as I am loathe to admit it, I have become a casual gamer - even when I have a free day, I find I can't sit in front of a TV/computer for more than three or four hours at the most.

I used to play WoW with some people on here, and they were all very nice. I also played a NWN game on here once with Lazybones, which was a lot of fun. That certainly makes me willing to play online with people from ENW. I think that's about the extent of my willingness to play with people I don't know though.

 

[RigaMortus2]

A certain level of taunting is one thing, but some people are just irritating.

I guess it comes down to how thick your skin is. Maybe multiplayer gaming really isn't for everyone. If you can't let obnoxiousness roll off your back, perhaps you (not you as in YOU but as in "a given person") shouldn't be playing multiplayer games.

 

[RigaMortus2]

I tend to prefer games like RPGs, puzzles, stragegy games, and the like. Unfortunately the vast majority of online gaming is either FPSs or MMOs. And just from playing MMOs and even some NWN PWs, I know there are bastard gamers out their who get their kicks to making everyone else's experience bad (which is one reason I don't want to play WoW).

I take it you have never played WoW then? If so, you would know this is very hard to achieve. To make grief for another player (also known as "griefing").

People can't kill you just for the heck of it (unless you play on a PvP server, but then, you already know what you are in for).

People can't steal your kills (as long as you hit the enemy npc first). They can hit a monster before you do though, but that usually isn't intentional.

I suppose if someone wanted to, a higher level person could follow you around a kill stuff before you get to it, but I have never seen that happen. Higher level players have other things to do than waste their time messing with lower level. Unless maybe you tick off someone who has a higher level alt and they log in to mess with you back.

Really, the ONLY annoying thing I find in WoW is the Chat banter that can happen from time to time. But that is easily remedied by (take your pick) either (a) leaving that area, (b) turning off that chat channel or (c) ignoring that person with the /ignore command (which basically mutes that person to you).

If you are really into RPGs and want a multiplayer experience, I don't see any reason NOT to give WoW a shot. Unless there are other reasons you haven't mentioned. Such as, some people don't like paying a sub fee for online games, which I can appreciate, but then there are other FREE multiplayer games out there to fulfill that (Guild Wars, Maple Story, etc.).

 

[Agamon]

No offense meant here but...have you ever been on Xbox Live?

Sadly, it is not a place of reason and sense and simply telling people to tone it down.

Yeah, it's like that.

 

[trancejeremy]

Yeah, it's like that.

Except that only touches on one aspect of it (though probably the most common). You also have a lot of racism and general creepiness (especially on stuff with cameras, like Uno. Though I've only heard about that part second hand).

 

[Vocenoctum]

I guess it comes down to how thick your skin is. Maybe multiplayer gaming really isn't for everyone. If you can't let obnoxiousness roll off your back, perhaps you (not you as in YOU but as in "a given person") shouldn't be playing multiplayer games.

Obviously "you" isn't "me" since I just mute the stuff.
That said, I mute it because it's very rare to have actual tactical/ directional chatter, it's mostly just chitchat stuff.

 

[Vocenoctum]

Really, the ONLY annoying thing I find in WoW is the Chat banter that can happen from time to time. But that is easily remedied by (take your pick) either (a) leaving that area, (b) turning off that chat channel or (c) ignoring that person with the /ignore command (which basically mutes that person to you)

The main irritating thing other players do in WoW is when I clear an area and they run by as I fight the last fellow and mine my vein. I've asked before if a team was mining an area they were clearing so as not to be a jerk myself, but I don't think any of them have answered, which I took as a no...

Same with Skinning. If someone leaves a trail of corpses and keeps moving, I skin them. If they skin one or whatnot, I just move on and leave his stuff to him.

(This of course also includes Chests in the area. You slog your way through, dying and respawning and finally reach the final guy and some shlub runs in and opens it.)

It's not even really griefing I think, so much as just inconsiderate people.

 

[Orius]

I take it you have never played WoW then?

Nope.

If you are really into RPGs and want a multiplayer experience, I don't see any reason NOT to give WoW a shot. Unless there are other reasons you haven't mentioned. Such as, some people don't like paying a sub fee for online games, which I can appreciate, but then there are other FREE multiplayer games out there to fulfill that (Guild Wars, Maple Story, etc.).

The fee's a biggie. I strongly dislike the idea of buying a game, and then continuing to pay to play it. I understand that the money is needed to maintain servers, and pay programmers who do stuff like work on patches, bugfixes, and maybe in-game officials. But even though I understand it, I still don't like it.

Also, with 10 million players, WoW just seems like it would be too big. Too many players aren't always good. Granted, they're not all on the same server at once (doubtful any server could handle that load), and more than half of them are Asian players, so they'd be playing at a different time of day anyway. Bu that's still a lot of people.

Also, right now, I don't have a very good setup at all for gaming, nor do I have the money for it either.

 

[cignus_pfaccari]

The main irritating thing other players do in WoW is when I clear an area and they run by as I fight the last fellow and mine my vein. I've asked before if a team was mining an area they were clearing so as not to be a jerk myself, but I don't think any of them have answered, which I took as a no...

Rogues and paladins have an answer to this. The rogue vanishes and the paladin bubbles, leaving the claimjumper to deal with the enraged mobs.

One of my favorite claimjumpers was a BE pally who decided to mine this mineral vein my dwarf rogue was clearing her way to. Said pally apparently didn't notice the other mobs nearby who I hadn't aggroed yet due to positioning. Oh, that was funny, especially when he bubbled...since I'd Vanished, the mobs didn't deaggro, and just kept beating on him.

Claimjumping is slightly more acceptable coming from someone in another faction. I mean, seriously. It is terribly annoying when a Hordie will try and mine the node I'm working on, though.

Same with Skinning. If someone leaves a trail of corpses and keeps moving, I skin them. If they skin one or whatnot, I just move on and leave his stuff to him.

Yah. I try and fully loot my skinnable corpses for any skinners in the area.

Also, with 10 million players, WoW just seems like it would be too big. Too many players aren't always good. Granted, they're not all on the same server at once (doubtful any server could handle that load), and more than half of them are Asian players, so they'd be playing at a different time of day anyway. Bu that's still a lot of people.

Also, right now, I don't have a very good setup at all for gaming, nor do I have the money for it either.

Depends on your setup, but WoW is very forgiving on system requirements. That's one of the reasons it's popular, because it looks decent on even low-end systems.

As for server populations, there aren't that many people on a server. I'd say, at most, about 20,000 players at any one time, and even that's stretching it. (If someone has better data, that'd be cool) I do know I see the same people over and over in Shattrath, and the zones are big enough that you don't really run into people much except in high-traffic areas.

Brad