How Players Can Help the MMORPG Scene Evolve
RAPTORAK
It’s no secret that most games to be released over the past couple years have been somewhat stagnant (read: they aren’t bringing much, if anything, new to the table). Amidst this situation, player hostility towards gaming news – and the games themselves – has been rising. While it’s understandable that players need to vent their frustration, it’s being done in the wrong manner. That said, I believe we can see some change. So let’s look at what we, as players, can do to help evolve the gaming field.
Realize Different People Like Different Things
One of the worst things I’ve been seeing is players putting down others that like a specific game. Different people like different things – there is no right or wrong way to feel about them. In fact, some of the most complained-about games are also the most popular (in terms of active players). So clearly there are people that enjoy playing those.
Rather than complain about a game you don’t like (we’ll look at that a bit more shortly), just accept them as they are. Don’t like ArcheAge, World of Warcraft, TERA, Guild Wars 2, (insert games here)? Ignore their news. Or at least read the information with an open mind and realize that while it may not cater to you, it does cater to some players.
Be More Vocal
Now we’re getting into vocalization. Rather than saying “I hate xxx,” or “xxx sucks!” or “you suck for liking/writing about xxx,” actually voice why you dislike it. For example, “xxx is too grindy for me” or “this is obviously P2W.” These things not only help you get your message across, but they also give valuable input to developers. Just saying you dislike something doesn’t do anyone any good – not only are present and future developers going to ignore your feelings, they’re also not going to be able to make changes. After all, if someone doesn’t know what the problem is, how could they possibly fix it? Being more open helps alleviate both the defensive stance writers/game developers take, and also help to provide information that can assist with evolving games to a much more enjoyable (for you) experience.
Be More Understanding of Writers
Understand that writers are reporting various types of information to readers. The goal is to help everyone with the information they are looking for – not just a small subset of players. As a result, many cover multiple games, including those that we personally aren’t interested in. Because at the end of the day, there are players that like those games and they’re grateful for the information, despite having their views drowned out by those that want to show their open hostility.
Tell Us What You Want to See
While voicing your opinions on what you like/dislike about games is great, it would also beneficial to voice your opinions on what games you like/dislike. I see a lot of complaints about how games are “bad” or “suck,” but out of hundreds of these comments spanning at least 40 different games (all the major ones included), not a single person has named a game they do like. If you’re afraid of being singled out by everyone else for the games you enjoy, toss me a PM. I’m fairly active and love to hear from readers. But if there’s no telling what games you want written about, just putting down every game in existence isn’t helping. It’s leading to the feeling that a lot of readers don’t like any games that have ever been released. So speak up and let me know what you like! I take community input seriously (both public comments and private messages) and love to hear from you. But make it constructive. If I don’t know what you like, I can’t possibly cater to you – it’s just a bunch of guesswork.
Leading Into the Future
I’m really hoping you all will read this and take the time to help improve my coverage of games you’re interested in, as well as help bring future games to a more desirable feel. I’m even willing to take things a bit further and do specific interviews (based on things you all want to know) with companies and people, in an attempt to help make you happier. I understand that things are a bit stale and they have been, but that’s largely due to the lack of community involvement. I’d love to change this and help evolve the gaming world, but put simply, I can’t do it without your help. So help me to help you.
All comments here are taken seriously and are read. I also read and respond to emails that are sent, so feel free to contact me via either method! Let's help transform the MMORPG world.
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