Multiplayer Gaming: What am I missing?

[Felon]

So, I picked up Team Fortress 2 for the 360 because it looked like a real blast. Which it in fact turned out to be.

The only snag are the other players. If you've got eight guys facing off against eight guys, you're going to have some real jerks. Law of averages. There's the little brat screaming into their mikes just to annoy people. There's the "tactician" who complains about those players who don't use mikes, only to wind up using his mike for little other than dropping f-bombs every time something bad happens to him.

Yet for some people, multiplayer is the most important element of a game. Isn't the behavior of others disappointing?

 

[Ankh-Morpork Guard]

Sometimes I can adapt to the idiots, other times I just can't bring myself to deal with it. Its a sad truth in online multiplayer gaming that can really kill it for you.

The best solution I've found?

Find a group of friends that you DO get along with and team up with them. Then you're killing the idiots on the other side and not having to listen to them. Other than that, sadly, you just have to deal with all those wonderful problems with online jerks.

 

[Cergorach]

Best method? Lead by example! If folks are getting overly loud, ask them to tone it down (nicely). Show them how to properly communicate with people, tell other that not everyone wants to use a mike. I do some Quake War: Enemy Territory so now and then, if people get really obnoxious, they are voted off the island (so to speak). Some servers are just not fun to play on, avoid those.

 

[Ankh-Morpork Guard]

Best method? Lead by example! If folks are getting overly loud, ask them to tone it down (nicely). Show them how to properly communicate with people, tell other that not everyone wants to use a mike. I do some Quake War: Enemy Territory so now and then, if people get really obnoxious, they are voted off the island (so to speak). Some servers are just not fun to play on, avoid those.

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.

 

[Vocenoctum]

I've never really gotten into multiplayer, I've done Halo 2 & 3, and a round or two of CoD4. The tactics involved rarely resemble anything logical. (Like Halo2's hopping, just... odd) It can be fun, but overall just doesn't draw me in.

And, when I play, I just mute the damn thing.

 

[Thanee]

Isn't the behavior of others disappointing?

Indeed, it is the worst part of multiplayer gaming... but there are cool folks out as well.

Bye
Thanee

 

[trancejeremy]

Online PC gaming makes Usenet look civilized and well-mannered. And IMHO, Xbox Live is even worse than online PC Gaming. Even games like Catan turned out to be unpleasant online.

 

[Cergorach]

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.

You might be right, I did some MechAssault online through Xbox Live (many years ago) and I do remember that there were a lot of annoyances online. Didn't play it online that long (didn't really like it all that much for online play), but I always thought that it was the exception instead of the rule. The crowds for the platforms might be very different, the crowds for the games themselves might be very different.

 

[Arnwyn]

Yet for some people, multiplayer is the most important element of a game. Isn't the behavior of others disappointing?

Yes, yes it is.

I don't think you're missing anything. I find Xbox Live to contain the absolute dregs of society, so I dumped it pretty fast. At the very least, I don't pay to get annoyed. AFAIC (and yes, this sounds pretty harsh) Xbox Live is the place for people who aren't accepted anywhere else. (And voice chat is the worst invention for online games evar.)

Needless to say, online multiplayer games are extremely low priority on my list of game features that interest me. (And while I love Warhawk [and Tribes on the PC!], I suppose I've only been lucky so far. Oh, and the fact that very few people voice-chat on those. Ah, bliss. Oh... and they're free.)

 

[Felon]

I think the big problem is that there's no way to filter or boot people from an XBL game, or even flag them as bad gamers. There's some method for reviewing gamers you've played with, but I never seem to find the bad ones listed.