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Most antisocial MMO I've ever seen...
Meridion
Member UncommonPosts: 1,495
And I seriously mean it. And I've been playing these games for 14 years straight now.
That's on my personal scale of course.
Why?
This game has zero bonding requirements. For everything you can do at endgame, you can zerg or PUG your way through. Encounters that really need planning and strategy are scattered far and few; And even then, you PUG (or pick up your vent friends), some carebear explains the encounters, if everything goes smoothly nobody talks, if you fail people quit without further notice. End of story.
There is practically no communication going on aside from meeting up with your buddys in Vent/TS and trashtalk in zonechats as there is no trading aside from what I lovingly call "the stock exchange", no need for coordinated world PvP what I lovingly call "the zerg ball", no roleplaying which I lovingly... erm wait, whatever...
Everything else is top notch, its the hell of a fun experience leveling to 80, it even comes close to a single player game with player driven NPCs.
But at 80, you're a sociophobic loner in a black uniform lfging for other loners that hopefully don't want to talk but zerg down some random mob...
I'll keep playing - with my vent buddies that transferred over from other games - but to be honest, the moment I re-entered LOTRO for Riders of Rohan it took some 200 yards until some player walked up to me, /bowed and whispered "hey, wanna quest together?" and it took 2 hours until I knew his real name, that he was a father of two and been playing LOTRO for 4 months...
... 180 hours into GW2 and I have zero people on my friendslist aside from the guys I already brought over.
That's hardly the way I interpret the term "multiplayer".
M
Comments
Well, you are right.
GW2 is like the COD of MMO(RPG)s. It's pure fast food with no longtime motivation. It's the least evil atm that's why people are so hyped about the game.
You should check out Planetside 2. It's way more social, people are grouping up all the time and everyone uses voice. Hell, the players even cooperate without being grouped. I was suprised when I first started playing it. Unfortunately it is more of a shooter, so if you don't like shooters...wait for the next game again?
I saw more players helping each others without needing to even ask in GW2 than I had players helping me in the 5+ years I'm playing LOTRO. Go figure. Part of the reason is because in LOTRO, you are punished for helping another player (and that player is punished too), while in GW2 it's encouraged. Fun part is LOTRO actually copied GW2 for that concept in Rohan (shared mobs).
And the nice little idyllic scenario, some random guy walking up to me and asking me to quest with him, never happened at all... and I play on Laurelin!
Respect, walk
Are you talkin' to me? Are you talkin' to me?
- PANTERA at HELLFEST 2023
It takes 2 to tango. our guild is a constant hub of activity, and we actively look for people out in the field to encourage them to join our growing community. A community is what you make of it, all GW2 does is remove the blockers while also not bloxking solo play for those that wish it. The social players will continue to socialise the anti-social or happy loners will continue to do what they will.
rpg/mmorg history: Dun Darach>Bloodwych>Bards Tale 1-3>Eye of the beholder > Might and Magic 2,3,5 > FFVII> Baldur's Gate 1, 2 > Planescape Torment >Morrowind > WOW > oblivion > LOTR > Guild Wars (1900hrs elementalist) Vanguard. > GW2(1000 elementalist), Wildstar
Now playing GW2, AOW 3, ESO, LOTR, Elite D
Lol... @ all the MMO whiners are getting more and more damn pathetic.
Next you will complain that MMO, has too many players zerging.
Oh wait nvm lol.
Pardon my English as it is not my 1st language
I don't get this kind of posts....
I had to ask people in map chat to come to this specific place so we can do a group event together or asked for help with my PS sometimes... I even experienced people walking beside me and asking me if we'd explore the map together or do some events so it goes easier (and that happened more than 5 times so far). The thing is, we never had to group up! I think that's the main problem what gives the people the feeling of "anti-social" game, when actually it's far from it... Also, I had more random people walking towards me whne I was dead and rezzing me than I had in any other mmorpg.
Tho I don't do much of pugs because it goes way better with my guild when talking about explorable mode dungeons.
But everything in this game (as I've seen it) encourages people to play together...
"Happiness is not a destination. It is a method of life."
-------------------------------
This x 100000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000.
In WoW i've never meet ppl in the open world that would help me. They all tag mobs, ignore u when u are near death and if u ask them to join a group, they decline.
In GW2 on the other hand, i've met tons of ppl that revived each other, helped each other, i never ignored any player, always helped to kill the mob etc.
And u know why? Because GW2 support social game like this, the dont divide ppl by having old and pointless mob tagging mechanic...in GW2 everything You do brings profits. You ressurect someone? Bum xp, You helped me kill the mob? Bum u got xp, dynamic event contribution and loot. No mob stealing. In GW2 i'm actually happy when i see other ppl around me, while in other MMOs i'm pissed off cuz they are tagging my mobs or gathering my nodes.
In GW2 i made friendship with some ppl, when we pugged dungeons. I've never meet those guys before, but thanks to pugs (that were succesfull) we play together now, while in WoW or Rift and its dungeon finder i know literaly noone on my realm except my guild mates.
And if u ask me, what game is more pro socializing, i will definetly say GW2.
No im not GW2 fanboy i see many flaws in this game (some zerg DE's, not deep and complicated dungeon and world bosses mechanics, WvWvW is still kinda chaotic etc), but saying GW2 is game with the worst social aspect is not true.
Its really weird too. Guildwars 2 promotes group play yet... its not social play? Ignoring all my 'feelings' on the game it just really makes my mind nearly implode with how confusing it is. Your around people and they are doing stuff to kill the same mob as you but your not playing with them. Your killing the same boss to finish the event but your not really playing together. Your charging that door in WvW yet your not actually 'with' that person.
Its a real awkward experience with this game when it comes to being social. You just have 0 social interaction despite having stuff involving others being around going on like crazy. Its almost like it phased out players into being NPCs that move and help you but have nothing beyond them doing flashy moves and happening to throw aoe that enhance your effects to really be behind them. Its... really surreal and weird to think you can be in a zerg of 20 people and yet have 0 interaction with any of them.
Your doing stuff because it benefits you... and you really don't help people you just... do it for yourself that happens to help them but your not even interacting with them and you really have no desire to but you are doing it for them but for yourself and... /mind implodes.
Seriously How does a game have so much 'random grouping for a single goal' yet one of the least social experiences in an MMO to date?
What else is there to say, really?
Respect, walk
Are you talkin' to me? Are you talkin' to me?
- PANTERA at HELLFEST 2023
Funny, I feel completely different. It is very social to me. When I see other players I welcome them (unlike other games).
Also, having a guild changes the complete experience. Guild is the most important social part of the game.
Guild Wars 2 Youtube Croatian Maniacs
My Guild Wars titles
Fixed. Generic statement that works for any game.
Thing is GW2 is made that helping others actually benefits you. Your not really doing it for their sake but because you get something out of it. Not a bad thing of course but at the same time, can you really consider that interacting since its mostly out of self gain your doing it? Not saying its bad to give 'benefit' for helping others but its a valid reason why people do it.
Self-pity imprisons us in the walls of our own self-absorption. The whole world shrinks down to the size of our problem, and the more we dwell on it, the smaller we are and the larger the problem seems to grow.
In other games, you actually no longer stop to help other people because you get insulted for it. Yeah, in both WoW and LOTRO, I got insulted (several times) via whispers because I stopped to help a guy who seemed in difficulty against a bunch of mobs. I got called "leecher", "kill stealer", "f..k off your ruining my XP". True story.
Never happened in GW2.
Respect, walk
Are you talkin' to me? Are you talkin' to me?
- PANTERA at HELLFEST 2023
Well, that requires some ignorance of mob tagging and how xp is handled.
I presume, it can happen in GW2 as well. You just haven't stumbled upon the Uninformed yet. (Of course you can't make a surmise that they don't exist from lack of anecdote)
Self-pity imprisons us in the walls of our own self-absorption. The whole world shrinks down to the size of our problem, and the more we dwell on it, the smaller we are and the larger the problem seems to grow.
I have to assume you didn't play WoW for long, as someone lending a hand (buffing, rezing, helping with a mob) was a fairly common occurence on the three servers I played on. Hell, I even followed the druid code, and ran into quite a few other-faction druids who did as well.
And frankly I don't buy the tagging-is-such-a-big-deal crap, for the most part it has never really matter nor does it seem to in GW2. I hit a mob and it's tagged, so someone goes and kills the mob ten feet away instead of helping me with mine. Do I care? I hit a mob and it isn't tagged, so someone hits the mob I'm hitting. Again, do I care? Helping me? I guess, for all the difference it makes. It's hardly what I'd call social, or really even help. To be honest half the time when I see someone else beating on my mob I'm not even sure if they're a player or an NPC, nor, sadly, does it even matter.
Which is really the crux of the whole social aspect, or lack thereof, in GW2 -- the difference between other players and NPCs is, for the most part, neither obvious nor relevant.
Actually i am in several guilds. (dutch guild, rp guild, PvP guild, pvE guild) which allowed me to meet many many nice people. Also i am ver vocal in map chats, which also gave me some nice conversations.
Its not game mechanics that make lousy communities, its lazy players.
Best MMO experiences : EQ(PvE), DAoC(PvP), WoW(total package) LOTRO (worldfeel) GW2 (Artstyle and animations and worlddesign) SWTOR (Story immersion) TSW (story) ESO (character advancement)
It MAY happen in a newbie zone, eventually, from someone not familiar with the game. What I tell in my posts is something that happened at higher levels, several times, in several "WoW clone model" games with mob tagging. I don't think you will ever meet anyone level 20+ in GW2 which will insult you for helping him because you "leech", "steal kills" or "ruin his XP".
Result: I stopped helping people in those games. The only exception I make is when I'm on a character with resurection abilities and I see a dead player, then I will try to rez. But otherwise... some guy fight 5+ mobs? Good luck to him. Last time I helped, I got insulted, that's enough for me. Even healing "leeches" XP... go figure.
Respect, walk
Are you talkin' to me? Are you talkin' to me?
- PANTERA at HELLFEST 2023
Difference with this game is you are rewarded with XP for reviving allies and the such. This does promote a sort of good-will feeling.
I don't find this game to be really any more or less social than any others, really. I guess it's what server you play on. But it's not this Kumbaya love circle some others would try to make you believe.
Take it for what it is.
I was just wondering that to myself actually: When exactly was the last time I played a game where executing a "kill steal" was even possible, even by accident.
Certainly prior to 2004. Maybe prior to 2002.
How long will it take to "die out" of teenage aggressive gamer lore?
Self-pity imprisons us in the walls of our own self-absorption. The whole world shrinks down to the size of our problem, and the more we dwell on it, the smaller we are and the larger the problem seems to grow.
EvE would be at the Top of my List.
" GoonSwarm Recuriting Poster "
MAGA
For some players game being social mean:
a) there is small amount of conflict between players in a game.
b) game is constructed in a way that helping is always profitable (xp, gold, etc)
So for this approach social game means that anti-social behaviour is not possible(or very limited) and also that player perfromance & success is very independant from other players.
This way is more similar to modern medium to big city life. There is plenty of people and people are independent to 99,999% of them. Achieving things is not tied to directly to social things as means to get certain things and actuall getting them are not tied.
For other players game beign social mean:
a) cooperating, grouping, talking and generally knowing people and interacting with them allow those players to achieve things that they would not be able to achieve if they would not put an effort to get to know and cooperate with other people.
b) game is constructed in a way that your reputation matters and being an ass can affect you because game is creating small para-societies (servers) and if you behave bad you will be outcast for most players and ostracized.
So for this approach social game means that game is creating pseudo-society in which bad behaviour is disencouraged and success is at least partially dependant on other people either because you cannot some things alone or / and because magnitude of success also partially depends on social interaction with other players.
This way is more similar to ancient-medieval societies or in much lesser degree to modern small village / small town societies. Number of people is small enough(up to few thousands) that you're not totally independant from them. Achieving some of things can be tied to socialising, cooperating and 'fitting in' with others.
Thoose games need that mechanic for a sepcific reason, just like GW2 needs their xp sharing for a reason.
ANd also why Turbine needed to add it to make mounted combat in LotrO work.
I have never heard anyone being called kill stealer or leecher in LotrO, because it doesnt work that way.
If WoW = The Beatles
and WAR = Led Zeppelin
Then LotrO = Pink Floyd
I agree 100%. If players really want socializing they would talk to each other. I don't see how LFG is social. It seems like people want game to force people to socialize. Forced socializing, what the hell.
Guild Wars 2 Youtube Croatian Maniacs
My Guild Wars titles
I'm finding GW2 no more socialable nor any less socialable than any other MMO. Heart/DE zones is just you typical zone in any MMO, cities do have a bit lower immature chat but then again LA has an epidemic of gold sellers, much worse than any MMO I've seen which GW2 is the only new MMO I joined at launch since SWTOR.
People talk in dungeons which is typical, but all in all GW2 does lack any sort of real grouping mechanic. Sure one can help out in DEs but that requires zero communication and most people tend to not bother with dungeons as numerous people haven't even touched duingeons or touched very little of it in my guild.
But really the social aspect of MMO belongs in the guild setting anyways. However I do think that there is too much of a lack of stranger grouping teamwork. Like public dungeons of some kind or how in WoW the used to have elite mob areas where one had to have a little group.