As the years go by, I find that I have LESS time to game, which is the opposite of what I was expecting. Being an empty nester and established in my profession, I had it in my head that I’d be able to game more as time went by. Instead I have a high pressure job and multiple entrepreneurial ventures depleting my energy and gobbling up my time. I also keep telling myself that I want to finish writing one of my false-start novels some day too.
The myriad of things pulling at my strings makes me more particular about the games if any, I play. There are always a dozen things I could be or should be doing; that treading water in a game I don’t REALLY ENJOY is a thing of the past. The more games I try, the more disappointed I become but clearer about what I’m willing to spend time doing versus what I’m not.
Existing the EQN Landmark Adventure
Over the weekend I submitted a Support Ticket to be refunded my Trailblazer purchase for Landmark. I was not unhappy with the building tools. I was not disappointed with game mechanics. What I didn’t anticipate was that the world would be so full yet feel so empty. All the claims taken but I don't see a living soul. There are very FEW player structures. There are no NPCs yet. It’s mostly you, yourself and your claim. All the great builds on YouTube, linked in the forums, posted on Reddit and the alike, represent a very small portion of the claim population. For the most part it’s crickets and dead space.
As I mentioned in an earlier post, I wasn’t motivated to start a new project after completing my claim. I made templates of the individual structures, the whole structure and all of the custom objects I created Since the most recent patch I could tweak it with the newly added recipes which includes plants and trees but it wasn't enough of a temptation to for me to log into LM. It had the opposite effect. I felt more strongly that without “game” elements, Landmark wasn’t going to be something I’d do very often and decided to wait for EverQuest Next.
Barrier of Entry is Raised
I’ve played a slew of RPGs and MMOs over the years. I’ve enjoyed excellent ones, mediocre ones and a few clunkers. By this point, I know what I like and don’t. I’m open to being surprised which is why I continue trying games that might not be my thing. However, it has become increasingly crystal clear, that for me to stick with a new MMO it has to be BETTER THAN other the alternatives where I’ve already invested a considerable amount of time.
If your game has old school quest mechanics, you can’t be as good as WOW. You have to be much better than WOW or I can return there for a couple of months and see Blizzard’s new content with classes I already know and enjoyed. In fact, I’m not really interested in old school questing. What you really need to do is be MUCH BETTER than Rift or GW2 in graphics and art style, dynamic content, active combat and interesting classes. You might have a prayer if with a great story and only some of the other elements but not much of one, hence my departure from FFXIV and SWTOR. And don’t even think about me signing on for a subscription unless you’re superior to all other entertainment options I have at my disposal.
Time Trumps Cash
It’s not a money thing. It’s increasingly a time thing. The less I have of it, the higher the barrier of entry is for a game to gain my commitment. It has to be fun AND respect my time as valuable. Don’t expect me to do pointless grinds, filler content or phoned in quests. That may be just what the doctor ordered for some but it’s a quick insta-ban for me.
I think you're going to struggle to find any MMOs that meet those exacting standards. In fact, I'd question whether any MMO we would recognize as part of the existing lineage would ever be able to meet them. Leaving quality issues aside, if you were able to remove the "time-consuming" element I'm not sure you'd be left with something I'd consider to be an MMORPG.
The genre isn't necessarily predicated on "pointless grinds" but it does seem to me to be defined at least in part by prolonged, repetitive activity. It's certainly been the case that designers have tried to ensure that people can get *something* done in short 30-60 minute sessions but few MMOs, even those overtly pitched at a "casual" audience, have tried to make those sessions the mainstay of gameplay.
I can't immediately think of any MMO I've played, regardless of target audience or genre, that hasn't expected a commitment numbered in dozens, more likely hundreds, of hours from anyone looking to progress beyond the dabbling stage. Not that there's anything wrong with just dabbling.
As for Landmark and its low population, I posted something about just that topic only yesterday. I think all but the most obsessive builders have done as much as they wanted in alpha and other than doing their dutiful testing of new content drops as they come along most are now waiting for beta. I do agree that as yet there isn't much, or indeed any, MMO in there. The game elements should be arriving fairly soon when beta rolls in but until then we're all biding our time.
Posted by: bhagpuss | March 10, 2014 at 01:56 PM
I'm not looking for games to take less time. It's that the level of quality needs to be high to garner any of my time. That's a huge difference.
Filler content, sloppy mechanics and phoned-in quests are issues I have tolerated in the past when I had more leisure time. I was a bit more forgiving in game quality. These days it's the opposite since I have less time. Plus the industry has matured to a point where we shouldn't have to accept those issues in so-called AAA games.
It's too easy to return to WOW, GW2 or Rift. Games where I clearly enjoyed them enough to play multiple characters to end game and dabble in new content they have to offer, than tolerate a sub par experience in something new.
I've hit a point where I'd rather watch TV, a movie or watch videos on a good YouTube channel than play someone's rushed to release game. If this is the only time I have for entertainment today, it's going to be spent judiciously.
If I have a "meh" feeling about clicking the icon to launch the log-in screen, I don't even bother.
Posted by: Alysianah | March 10, 2014 at 02:39 PM
Im a seasoned gamer also - won't say how seasoned....but I played an Atari 2600 as a kid. Ive played just about every MMO out there to varying extents and I can identify with much of what is being said. I agree with MMO's needing to really be top notch to earn my video gaming time these days. For me, the key to keeping my interest is customization, updates, and player based housing/shops. I dont think an MMO has really hit on these aspects perfectly yet. The best hope for me right now seems to be Wildstar. Remember Star Wars Galaxies system of setting up shops and cities in the persistant world? It was something really unique that has not been really done well in any MMO Ive played and I think something that would really set apart a good game into a great game.
All that said, I love MMO's and will likely give it at least a weekend of my time even if I have low expectations just to see what it's about.
Posted by: Danny | March 11, 2014 at 03:52 PM
I am the same more or less. I will at least give it a try hoping it's better than I expect. I'm still hopeful of finding the magic again in another MMO. It's possible. I didn't like GW1 very much because it wasn't a shared MMO world but I simply adored GW2.
Posted by: Alysianah | March 11, 2014 at 09:44 PM