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Visited with a friend last night. We went out, ate at a Chinese buffet, then went back to his place to watch 'Miracles'. I had forgotten just how damned /disturbing/ that show is, which is why I was up most of the night, tossing and turning and thinking strange thoughts. But that's okay, for there's a virtue in strange thoughts, no matter how dark.
Less so in the persistent image of a strange, distorted face following me into sleep. Rrr.
Happy St. Pat's Day to all! How's the Friday treating you?
Less so in the persistent image of a strange, distorted face following me into sleep. Rrr.
Happy St. Pat's Day to all! How's the Friday treating you?
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(Anonymous) 2006-03-17 07:25 pm (UTC)(link)Hey, apropos of not much, I was thinking about MMORPG's this morning on the bus -- I blame you! ;) -- and I figured out what really bugs me about them: You can't win them.
When I play games, I like to win. It's not essential, I can still have fun if I lose but it's nice. For me, games are a nice vacation from the complexities and gray shades of real life. Whether it's Crazy Eights or Axis & Allies, or even an RPG, I want to know who wins and who loses.
In most CRPG's you get to be a hero. You play somebody who matters. In MMORPG's you're just one mook in a huge crowd of mooks. Nothing you do matters. Even in games like Dark Age of Camelot or Guild Wars where players compete for territory there are continual resets, so if something you did one night should matter it will probably be washed away the next night.
In an MMORPG, I don't matter. At least when I'm playing Neverwinter I'm the star. Basically, I guess I'm saying that I want to have a big swollen head when I play a computer game. Huh. That makes me a closet megalomaniac, I think...
Log in?
Re: Log in?
*laughs* Yes, that bugs me, too. It's hard to enjoy a game when you have no effect on the world, and aren't really any different from thousands of other people out there. Some of this can be helped by finding a good RP group (although those are rare), but a lot of it is just...complete disaffection. If I just want to play for loot and killing, then I fire up D2 or something, and wade through bodies. No worries about kill stealing, or grouping, or any of that.
The more I think about it, the more the question becomes: What do MMORPGS offer that other games don't?
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What do MMORPGS offer that other games don't?
Good, good question. Something, obviously, or they wouldn't have so many people paying to play. Lessee...
a) PvP - I don't really like it, especially since MMORPG combat is really pretty lame, usually.
b) Phat Lewt and the ability to Lord it over other, lesser peons - yawn. I don't have the time or the desire to grind, and I can't get that excited about digital boots no matter how well-rendered they are.
c) Companionship? - If you find a good guild, yeah, I'll buy that. Personally, I've always had more fun playing tabletop no matter what the game is.
d) I'm out... what did I miss?
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f) A huge world to explore. This appeals to me, I admit, but not enough to override my disgruntlement in dealing with the griefers out there.
g) ...um. Hmm. Now /I'm/ out.
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I have to admit that I had forgotten about crafting. I have never personally played a game that had decent crafting (Star Wars Galaxies was horrible) but, yes, there is definite potential there. The problem I've always found is that only high-level characters can make good stuff and to get there you have to either level-grind or make 1000's of useless laser barrels. And then throw them away. And then make them again...
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I rather liked Ultima Online's crafting...there just wasn't enough to /do/ with what you made. It's the laser barrel syndrome that you mentioned. The lower level stuff often has no purpose except to be a speedbump to the higher level crafts.