Worth Playing – Gods Will Be Watching
It's HTML 5 and give me headaches in Internet Explorer 10 on Windows 8, but works great on Chrome.
It's part of Ludum Dare 26 which is a weekend gaming contest of some sort (too busy trying to beat the game instead of researching).
Go play it - it's fun, and I haven't won yet which is really getting to my self esteem.
My critical analyis is that it needs to be more theme-park and less sandbox. Or, it's just a Friday morning and I am being silly.
18.07% Fun
I played a lot of League of Legends during season two. It is a game that fulfilled my PVP spirit and as my first (and only) MOBA had a lot going for it in the way the games played out. It is kind of like baseball - your individual effort really has an impact on the team as a whole, but you can win (and lose) regardless of how you do. The team and it's ability to work together at the end of the day is how winners are determined. One amazing player on the team can tip the scales, and LoL has a pretty neat sweet spot of group vs solo play.
Add in a ranking system, roles you can't auto-join as (but must be filled to win the most effective way) and internet anonymity and you get the expected ass-shattery. So much so that I decided to quit. While Riot has a team of PhD's and behavioral studs doing some interesting work in the space, the truth is, the results weren't there.
I started tracking how my games were ending up to personally judge my experience in the game. I focused on removing my emotions from it (in the name of SCIENCE!) and to be as accurate as possible. The goal, for me, was to see what it took to have fun games in LoL - I didn't have the aggregate data to play with that team PB&J (Player Behavior and Justice - for Riot - fun name!) had, but I had my hours. I tracked 167 games - which average around 45 minutes each. That's over 125 hours of gaming for me. Here is what I found.
9.64% of all games were decided because of a troll pick or intentional feeding. (someone purposely meant to lose)
15.66% of all games were decided because of an AFK (one team missing 20% or more of their team)
56.63% were lopsided (20 minute surrender or should have been. Only one team had a legit chance of winning)
All of that means, only 18.07% were 'close' or 'good' games. That's around 1 in 5, and if that is what it takes to make a good MOBA, then you can count me out.
I am only bringing this up because I recently read/watched this article at Gamasutra that talks about player behaviour and the things that Riot are working on in that arena.
I am going to try and replicate my own experiment and see if it has gotten any better. I loved the game - but the investment of only getting 20% 'good' time while playing it wasn't worth the headaches of the other 80%.
More Lawsuits
Got this little Diddy hot on the heels of the EA suit.
"If you had a PlayStation Network account, a Qriocity account, or a Sony Online Entertainment account at any time before May 15, 2011, you could get benefits from a class action......"
for more information clicky here
I'm guessing I got it because I am in their database already. I'd rather have Canadian Tire Money than Station Cash though.
MMO Bucket List
One raid boss that Ascension always had issues with was Al'ar. Not sure why, but he was particularly nasty. So much so, that while we got everything down around him, we never killed him in particular. I hated Al'ar.
I remember one night, when I was on healing duties on the add pickup (good old GreenTeaBag, Druid), everyone had died except GTB and Al'ar was under 1% and he was last druid standing. he ended up dying, and that was the closest we ever got. It's historical in our little group of friends and raiders because that was the night he threw his mouse against the wall in frustration. Oh, Al'ar, how I hate thee.
Today, I logged into my 90 Prot Pally and killed him in minutes. Not nearly as satisfying as it would have been in the old days, or in our 25 man raid group that bonded and was a great team - not even close to that. It never can be.
Still, I can cross it off my MMO bucket list, at least.
Do you have anything on your MMO bucket list?
I Am So Weak
Despite my obvious and clear negative reaction to the original thought of supporting Mark Jacobs, a couple things happened that was a tad silly and makes me a soft person. No no, not that kind of soft but mushy nostalgic soft. First, I tried to find the Stratics boards which were the main boards I used to chat it up about DAOC. Weren't they the official boards at one point? Either way, they are changed but still there. It shows that I have made over 700 posts there back in the day, but alas, only a handful of them are find-able. I guess they migrated and/or scrubbed the hell out of the old boards.
A little google-fu took me to these boards where I recognized names from the server from 2001. And it felt strange yet nice to reconnect and then I realized - the same feelings that made you dislike or distrust a dev (fairly or unfairly) are the same that made you feel connected to the people within that gaming community. And that's the key, isn't it - that there is any feeling whatsoever, in a MMOSCAPE dominated by apathy. Who cares what happens in any recent MMO that doesn't require people to make the game great in the first place.
So heck, go support Camelot Unchained. The $5 you spend might just make meaning in an MMO again. Even if it doesn't, that's just one less trip to Starbucks this week. I even give you permission to cancel your WoW subscription 10 days early this month so you can afford it.
(yes, I know it doesn't work that way. But it should, no?)
Funny enough, I managed to convince a DAOC rep (now EA.. damn you!) that I had enough intimate information about my old account, that even though I didn't have the email address for it anymore.. its mine again. There is no free trial, no 'welcome back' not a thing! But hey, I'll buy a month - if only to remind me why it badly needs updating and that supporting CU was worth it.
Scarcity and the Canadian Lynx Story
The Canadian Lynx is an interesting predator. It lives almost solely on the snowshoe hare - and is very effective at catching, killing, and eating them. While that is not particularly interesting in itself (a cat predator eating a bunny for dinner) what is fascinating is the lifecycle the Canadian Lynx is doomed to repeat.
Because the Lynx is so effective at catching and killing the snowshoe hare, and as the Lynx breeds and adds more to its family, they end up almost hunting the snowshoe hare to extinction. At this point the Lynx population start dying off because of the scarcity of food. There ends up being a tipping point where the Lynx has almost hunted itself to a dangerous level of near extinction - at which point, the showshoe hare starts repopulating. Rinse repeat. Every 10-14 years or so.
Nature works in such fantastic ways - ideally, if Nature were sensible she would introduce another predator to hunt the Lynx (humans can hunt them, but they are typically in very remote and unseasonable locales) thereby keeping the lynx population fairly consistent, also keeping the snowshoe hare consistent. This does not happen.
In gaming terms I do not believe the population of gamers is growing to the extent to support the companies that make the games, and the excess of titles that are on or coming to market. We are the snowshoe hares and companies are the Lynx. I think we are seeing the result of the nature of the market adjusting for this realization though as games are funded in other ways and the profileration of the indie genre as a viable way of game making once again. This creates different payment and cost styles and overall is healthy for the environment. It is a positive adjustment.
This Lynx metaphor is also a good one for our economy which requires being in a perputal state of growth. Eventually that growth will not be realized and things will reset. Hopefully we are smart enough to not be doomed to repeat like the Lynx.
EA’s Hat Trick
CEO resign? Check.
Voted America's WORST Company (again!) ? Check.
Part of a class action settlement, that anyone in the USA who bought any (or all) of three titles, on any (or all) of four platforms? And you can make up to 8 claims for a total of $162.96. ?
Check.
http://www.easportslitigation.com/
This is old news, I am certain, in blognation but I am always out of the loop.
(I know the order is wrong too - but hey, that's the order I heard of the events.)
I Am Alone In My MMO
Amazing things have happened in MMO advancement. Graphics, systems, play styles, game modes, etc. etc. etc. We have come a long, long way from multiple week grinds to get a level and losing all of your items (and even levels) upon death. Most of us, while we may look fondly back on the memories of those times, never, ever ever want to go back there again.
It was good when it was good. It was all we knew.
It forced us to need each other.
Not just EQ, with it's punishing death penalties and XP bars that wouldn't move for days.
I'm talking DAOC as well. In that game if you didn't have players you didn't really do anything. And when you were doing anything you had to always be on your toes in case there were other players.
Both had their own special magic because of the other player component. Both of those games made ties that have lasted the test of time, wow clones, and free-to-play bonanzas. Is anyone making them now?
GW2 - beautiful game. I leveled to 40 on it without being in a group, and barely working alongside other players. Granted, I went into that game solo, but wow - trying to talk to people in that game left blank stares and worse. After 40 levels of solo content, I just stopped logging in.
Even WoW - in a guild there, but WoW is so antisocial now. Log in, solo dailies, do a 5-man heroic, logout - all without typing a word. There are people there, but they might as well be NPC's. It's like I'm dancing with myse-elf. And sadly, I'm in a guild. What happened to epic guild chat? Green /gu flying up and down the screen? Too many buttons, and no downtime happened.
The only conversation I have had with anyone is my foray back into Blood Bowl. Matchmaker online puts you 1v1 and there are 2:00 min turns - turn based. So you have 2 minutes to chat to your opponent while he is making his moves, and he chats back while you are making your moves.
Downtime = Chat. Chat = connecting. Connecting = sense of belonging/camaraderie. Which all equals paying the monthly fee, continuing to play, contributing to the community, etc.
Maybe I am doing it wrong, but what I wouldn't give for some downtime.
Les Miserables
No, the headline isn't even a half ass metaphor for the emotional state of the typical MMO veteran player right now.
It's about the movie/musical/video game (wait - what?)
Les Miserables is one of those instances where I really am reminded how little I know, and how uncultured I am. The movie is the first experience I had with Les Mis (that's the trendy short form, right?) and of course was driven by my wife's desire to see it more than mine. She had participated in the school play when she was a kid.
I just thought Les Mis was a play, and always was. That is certainly what it was to me. Cue instant Wikipedia interest article to learn that:
- It is a book written in the 1860's
- The English version is 1500+ pages
- Has a really engaging and interesting plot line
- Is ruined by singing
Maybe that last line isn't fair, since Les Mis is most famous for that - but after reading the plot summary of the original works - damn, that would make a really deep and disturbing visual feature. The singing part feels like it ruins what could have been completely amazing movie if they focused on the plot and character development.
Due to the time period I am sure the book doesn't read so smoothly.
Besides being utterly embarrassed I didn't realize the musical stemmed from one of the great literary works of all time (arguably) is that completely my fault or the fault that modern day society only consumes it from broadway?
Keep Camelot Chained
I have a love/hate relationship with Marc Jacobs.
Love for DAOC - I left EQ for that game, and played it hard and religiously for years - even after Trials of Atlantis came out. I played on the testserver (Pendragon) and submitted bugs, and was active in the community. The guild I was a part of at the time lead the Midgard Alliance on the server. Heck, I'm still friends with people I played there with. It was a nice community.
Hate is way too strong of a word - I don't hate anyone really. More of a distrust. Severe distrust. Just look at WAR and how that turned out. I know, I know, he (and everyone else) is blaming EA but that kinda feels like a copout. When you are in a leadership position, act like a leader. If things were so bad and you knew it was going to flop because EA was forcing your hand, fix it. Be the leader you claim to be at your new (and old) gig. At least go down fighting. Instead, he lied to his faithful supporters knowing the game was going to ship as a terrible piece of software unable to live up to the hype he created and paid for.
Right now, MJ sure looks like a guy who got lucky once, and capitalized on it. Now he wants you and I to make him lucky again.
While the PR behind Camelot Unchained - the foundational principles, et al all read great - why not try that in WAR? If those elements are so critical for success, why didn't you - as the leader of the team creating WAR - put those in there? Did you not realize it until the megaflop? If you did realize it, why didn't you do the right thing?
Then I read that he will put in 2m of his own if Kickstarter hits its goal of 2m. First I thought it was a nice gesture. Very cool. Then I realized, if he has 2M liquid he can go to a bank to get 2M more. Which means he is probably avoiding the banks because they will have strings attached to their loans. Whereas Kickstarter "loans" come free and no strings attached. He can allay the donating player base with a fancy blog post here and there, try doing that to a banker and their covenants.
Run for the easy money that you don't have to be responsible for to anyone - except gamers and gaming news. It just feels against the spirit of Kickstarter. Guys like MJ should, you would like to believe, be able to go out and get a job with his resume. (If he can't, that just cements my concern). Isn't the spirit behind Kickstarter to give opportunities for those via an alternate funding model who would have a hard time getting it otherwise?
Maybe it is just history, and maybe I am giving CSE too hard of a time here, but can you blame me for being a bit cautious?