Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) generates Pressure to Pay to Win (PTP2W), so I think that is part of a studio's strategy to rake it in.
Good advice about it being Okay To Take Your Time and It's Okay to Take a Break, but whoever listens to good advice?
I never understood the power gamer. I get min-maxing but not blindly blazing through everything a game has to offer as fast as possible. I understand that people enjoy games in different ways, but it doesn't seem like a power gamer is actually enjoying the game, they are just enjoying getting to the end fast regardless of the game. They are usually the same people that complain a few weeks after the game releases that the game is boring or lacks content even though they generally skip all of the content.
This may be a result of what Scot said; developers making PTP2W games that almost encourage this so they can start to make money.
I don't generally, if ever, read through all of the quests. I am fairly methodical about going through all the steps and soaking in the game as a whole.
Unfortunately, the rise in microtransactions and F2P actively encourages rushing through or outright skipping content. In the worst cases, content is created solely to be a hassle in an attempt to pressure gamers into spending money to avoid it.
Just another facet of the "Be careful what you wish for" warning about F2P and cash shops that never got heeded.
I never understood the power gamer. I get min-maxing but not blindly blazing through everything a game has to offer as fast as possible. I understand that people enjoy games in different ways, but it doesn't seem like a power gamer is actually enjoying the game, they are just enjoying getting to the end fast regardless of the game. They are usually the same people that complain a few weeks after the game releases that the game is boring or lacks content even though they generally skip all of the content.
This may be a result of what Scot said; developers making PTP2W games that almost encourage this so they can start to make money.
I don't generally, if ever, read through all of the quests. I am fairly methodical about going through all the steps and soaking in the game as a whole.
It's important to understand what they might enjoy. If we only apply what we enjoy in games then it's difficult to put ourselves in their shoes.
One idea is that a "power gamer" is looking for one or more of several things: to be highest level first, part of the highest level club as soon as possible, looking for the power that being high level brings, especially if it's a pvp game.
They aren't necessarily looking to enjoy quests or smell the roses or take in the world as its made.
They want the accolades, power and (possible) respect/awe that being top dog brings.
Like Skyrim? Need more content? Try my Skyrim mod "Godfred's Tomb."
"Power gaming" if by that you mean ultra-fast leveling and i-leveling makes sense in PvP games where levels and items make you much stronger. I get that competition.
I've never gotten it in mostly PvE games or even games where the PvP power is "normalized."
It's not like the "end-game" of most MMOs is so attractive compared to everything that came before that it justifies the rush but it must be to a sizeable portion of the player base otherwise XP pots and instant boosts to high levels wouldn't be such hot sellers in cash shops or AHs when you can also get those as tradeable items in games.
In ESO players pay ridiculous amounts of gold for anything related to player-crafted XP boosts be it the potions, recipes to make your own or the ingredients needed. Also, double XP is a feature of almost every single one of their seasonal events.
So... I think those of us who don't get it might just be in the minority in 2022.
"Social media gives legions of idiots the right to speak when they once only spoke at a bar after a glass of wine, without harming the community ... but now they have the same right to speak as a Nobel Prize winner. It's the invasion of the idiots”
― Umberto Eco
“Microtransactions? In a single player role-playing game? Are you nuts?” ― CD PROJEKT RED
People get different things out of gaming and play accordingly. It's okay to take one's time and also okay to not. So long as each is playing the way they enjoy things are well sorted in my view. I don't see why how others play should be a matter of anyone's concern, aside from people cheating in PvP or somehow getting improper advantage otherwise.
Well in truth most players are in a hurry...I dont know if it is to brag about how great they are or just to finish quickly and move on to the next game.....I also look at how many must play at launch and will pay top dollar to do so.....Many of the youtube vids are about blowing through content as fast as possible.
Also , I always take it slow for ex. I Never use a mount in LOTRO unless grouped ..
I take my time explore and enjoy the world's.. That applies to every game I play ..
I also never use a guide , always much more satisfying and rewarding figuring things out for myself ..
My time in UO was the only game that I really, truly, enjoyed.
Many Players learned to relax early on. UO wasn't set up for "the ding" like games that came after it. And Players watching their skills for gains were unhappy with the "slow" (seemingly) pace. But as often said back in the day,
"Just play the game and your skills will seem to go up fast."
And just enjoying the game and all those choices, picking what you liked to do, was more rewarding to me than "levels."
I mean, what other game had a large, multi-server Guild like 'The Fishing Council of Britannia'?
Despite the fact that fishing was about as useless as it got.
And those players didn't suffer at all on power scale. But they did what they really enjoyed.
I approach most MMO's as virtual worlds to "live" in. And I'm not in a hurry to get to the end of that "life" in the game.
Sometimes I will try to boost my XP if I'm getting close to unlocking a new power that could change the way I play the game. And with a bad case of alt-itis, I sometimes boost my alts to get over content I've already done before.
But I try to avoid speed-runs, I'd rather spend the time to look at the environment, read the dialogue, and just live in that world. I especially dislike multiple speed-runs through the same dungeon in an effort to get the right drop at the end.
Screw that Me Laddio, we're busy! Its up up up the ziggurat, lickety split!! And no mistake!
You know that odious little phrase? "If you're not paying for a product, then by default you are the product." Well this behavior is a direct result of that mindset. Quite a lot of people aren't playing these games for the fun of it, they're playing to be seen. To be recognized for their mad skills. With little visions of becoming the next Ninja or Amouranth dancing in their heads.
There's a lot more to it then the rush to end. Most content in between is fetch quests, kill x of this. Not saying there's not a quest here or there or even a game that breaks the mold. Its just the vast majority is end heavy in terms of being able to do cool things. Would you rather kill 15 rats or get with your guild and kill the badass dragon in the super cool dungeon? Its a sense of getting past the mediocre and getting to what the game is really meant for. I think of it more of a design flaw than anything. Which then gets certain areas severely overlooked. Its something some single player games get right, Ghost of Tsushima, FF7R and most recently Elden Ring has loads of stuff in each areas. Things that can be missed, side quests you can come back to. How often do you "need" to go back to lower level areas in MMOs?
Maybe the pace should change in mmos, more about the adventure and less about the end game?
If you don't rush to the end on launches these days you end up in the dregs. The people you'll group with are absolute zugs who you couldn't possibly fathom can breathe without assistance.
So your options are -
1. Rush to the end, play with tryhards/neets/locusts
2. Take your time, play with people even more frustrating than in group 1.
3. Only play MMORPG's with a group of friends and enjoy gaming.
For me, unless 3 is an option I don't even install.
You know something is corrupted when it acts exactly as the opposite it is supposed to be.
There is the incredible idea that the game really starts with the “endgame”.
Yes, awesome idea, let’s start at the end! The end is the start! Same difference (another oxy-moron-ic expression)! One day the players will start the real game, which is the end, uh… no, I mean yes, sort of… I mean they will reach the endgame, which is the start of the game.
with amazon's mismanagement, i dont think many people will stick around much longer. i still enjoy it, and expect it to be on BDO levels eventually, as i don't imagine many will stick around for the 1350-1370 dead zone.
I am currently having a blast in City of Heroes. I started playing this game when I was invited to beta City of Heroes almost 19 years ago. That was magical and after all these years I am back in and loving the chaos that is grouping in this game. We had 8 masterminds in a group and if you want chaos that is chaos just a couple of days ago and I was grinning from ear to ear.
I have a few okay 5 okay 6 masterminds I am playing and I just play slowly when I solo and I have no urge to rush and when I get into a group it goes faster but just reading every mission and the random conversations by the NPCs and the villains or heroes trying to kill you has been a salve really. No bots except for mastermind ones trying to sell you currency for cash, a community that is so helpful they are discussing stuff long after the answer was given.
Playing at your pace not worrying about missing out is one of the best things you can do for yourself when playing a game. The sheer amount of experience (I don't mean that kind of experience for levelling) you forgo while you chase after that prize that is almost never worth what you gave up in the rush.
As games that you enjoy become for me at least harder to find even when games are being released it is a blessing that these older ones are still there. While you may never recapture the moments you felt and saw when you first played it , playing it the 7th or even 10th (who's counting) time can be a marvelous.
You know something is corrupted when it acts exactly as the opposite it is supposed to be.
There is the incredible idea that the game really starts with the “endgame”.
Yes, awesome idea, let’s start at the end! The end is the start! Same difference (another oxy-moron-ic expression)! One day the players will start the real game, which is the end, uh… no, I mean yes, sort of… I mean they will reach the endgame, which is the start of the game.
Uh…
It's not all that incredible of an idea when you consider that most endgames negate the value of everything you earn along the way. That makes it the only place where the rewards will be meaningful for any length of time due to the rapid character advancement of today. People rush to it to enjoy a slightly less brief feeling of achievement.
One of the reasons I like ESO - all the quests are voice acted - I actually listen to them if it is the first (or sometimes second) time through. I can play, when my friend gets on who plays all the time we can still group and do some dungeons duo for a challenge.
I also like COH for my 90% solo game - fun and interesting.
SWTOR - is pretty much a solo game with grouping to do some flashpoints, again voice acted so fun to go slow and not worried about keeping up.
DDO used to be fun, till I just got tired of the same thing every 20/30 levels...
EQ was the first one I played a lot of, back when I was young and had crap tons of free time, its problem for me today would be required grouping I would fall behind not playing all the time, and just leveling to where I could eventually do the high level stuff would be rough (EQ solo was pretty rough at the beginning, they made it better over time, but it was still a pretty 'group centric to get stuff done' game.
You know something is corrupted when it acts exactly as the opposite it is supposed to be.
There is the incredible idea that the game really starts with the “endgame”.
Yes, awesome idea, let’s start at the end! The end is the start! Same difference (another oxy-moron-ic expression)! One day the players will start the real game, which is the end, uh… no, I mean yes, sort of… I mean they will reach the endgame, which is the start of the game.
Uh…
It's not all that incredible of an idea when you consider that most endgames negate the value of everything you earn along the way. That makes it the only place where the rewards will be meaningful for any length of time due to the rapid character advancement of today. People rush to it to enjoy a slightly less brief feeling of achievement.
Which is why an MMORPG where development resources are pooled into the leveling experience, instead of backloading the most exciting content, is a needed change of pace. DAoC, even, had a lengthy grind and lots of PvE content despite it earning its name via PvP. Everyone seems to have forgotten that the overarching point of PvP in DAoC was to keep your realm's DF doors open, which was a *PvE dungeon*.
It's quite amazing to see how fully developers seemed to have missed the point.
Everything is so streamlined these days. It’s fun and convenient, but I do sometimes miss the old days in Everquest when things took time, and conversation was as much a part of the game as earning xp and loot.
Vault-Tec analysts have concluded that the odds of worldwide nuclear armaggeddon this decade are 17,143,762... to 1.
You know something is corrupted when it acts exactly as the opposite it is supposed to be.
There is the incredible idea that the game really starts with the “endgame”.
Yes, awesome idea, let’s start at the end! The end is the start! Same difference (another oxy-moron-ic expression)! One day the players will start the real game, which is the end, uh… no, I mean yes, sort of… I mean they will reach the endgame, which is the start of the game.
Uh…
It's not all that incredible of an idea when you consider that most endgames negate the value of everything you earn along the way. That makes it the only place where the rewards will be meaningful for any length of time due to the rapid character advancement of today. People rush to it to enjoy a slightly less brief feeling of achievement.
Which is why an MMORPG where development resources are pooled into the leveling experience, instead of backloading the most exciting content, is a needed change of pace. DAoC, even, had a lengthy grind and lots of PvE content despite it earning its name via PvP. Everyone seems to have forgotten that the overarching point of PvP in DAoC was to keep your realm's DF doors open, which was a *PvE dungeon*.
It's quite amazing to see how fully developers seemed to have missed the point.
That would lengthen the process, but ultimately not change the end result. In MMORPGs where characters progress in power but the content remains fixed there will always only be a narrow band of content applicable to a character at a time. As time goes on and more characters level the population would still be clustered at the endgame and that is where further development will always be most needed.
Essentially, such a game is always in a state of planned obsolescence and the current endgame content is still what matters most to the most, and must still be focused on the most to retain players.
For that not to be the case new content must not obsolete older content, but endless character progression in power doesn't work well with that.
Comments
It's definitely not helped by the rise in daily content that make games feel more like obligations.
This may be a result of what Scot said; developers making PTP2W games that almost encourage this so they can start to make money.
I don't generally, if ever, read through all of the quests. I am fairly methodical about going through all the steps and soaking in the game as a whole.
Just another facet of the "Be careful what you wish for" warning about F2P and cash shops that never got heeded.
Also , I always take it slow for ex. I Never use a mount in LOTRO unless grouped ..
I take my time explore and enjoy the world's.. That applies to every game I play ..
I also never use a guide , always much more satisfying and rewarding figuring things out for myself ..
Shut up Scorch.
One idea is that a "power gamer" is looking for one or more of several things: to be highest level first, part of the highest level club as soon as possible, looking for the power that being high level brings, especially if it's a pvp game.
They aren't necessarily looking to enjoy quests or smell the roses or take in the world as its made.
They want the accolades, power and (possible) respect/awe that being top dog brings.
Godfred's Tomb Trailer: https://youtu.be/-nsXGddj_4w
Original Skyrim: https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/109547
Serph toze kindly has started a walk-through. https://youtu.be/UIelCK-lldo
I've never gotten it in mostly PvE games or even games where the PvP power is "normalized."
It's not like the "end-game" of most MMOs is so attractive compared to everything that came before that it justifies the rush but it must be to a sizeable portion of the player base otherwise XP pots and instant boosts to high levels wouldn't be such hot sellers in cash shops or AHs when you can also get those as tradeable items in games.
In ESO players pay ridiculous amounts of gold for anything related to player-crafted XP boosts be it the potions, recipes to make your own or the ingredients needed. Also, double XP is a feature of almost every single one of their seasonal events.
So... I think those of us who don't get it might just be in the minority in 2022.
“Microtransactions? In a single player role-playing game? Are you nuts?”
― CD PROJEKT RED
My time in UO was the only game that I really, truly, enjoyed.
Many Players learned to relax early on. UO wasn't set up for "the ding" like games that came after it. And Players watching their skills for gains were unhappy with the "slow" (seemingly) pace. But as often said back in the day,
"Just play the game and your skills will seem to go up fast."
And just enjoying the game and all those choices, picking what you liked to do, was more rewarding to me than "levels."
I mean, what other game had a large, multi-server Guild like 'The Fishing Council of Britannia'?
Despite the fact that fishing was about as useless as it got.
And those players didn't suffer at all on power scale. But they did what they really enjoyed.
Once upon a time....
------------
2024: 47 years on the Net.
Maybe the pace should change in mmos, more about the adventure and less about the end game?
So your options are -
1. Rush to the end, play with tryhards/neets/locusts
2. Take your time, play with people even more frustrating than in group 1.
3. Only play MMORPG's with a group of friends and enjoy gaming.
For me, unless 3 is an option I don't even install.
You know something is corrupted when it acts exactly as the opposite it is supposed to be.
There is the incredible idea that the game really starts with the “endgame”.
Yes, awesome idea, let’s start at the end! The end is the start! Same difference (another oxy-moron-ic expression)! One day the players will start the real game, which is the end, uh… no, I mean yes, sort of… I mean they will reach the endgame, which is the start of the game.
Uh…
I have a few okay 5 okay 6 masterminds I am playing and I just play slowly when I solo and I have no urge to rush and when I get into a group it goes faster but just reading every mission and the random conversations by the NPCs and the villains or heroes trying to kill you has been a salve really. No bots except for mastermind ones trying to sell you currency for cash, a community that is so helpful they are discussing stuff long after the answer was given.
Playing at your pace not worrying about missing out is one of the best things you can do for yourself when playing a game. The sheer amount of experience (I don't mean that kind of experience for levelling) you forgo while you chase after that prize that is almost never worth what you gave up in the rush.
As games that you enjoy become for me at least harder to find even when games are being released it is a blessing that these older ones are still there. While you may never recapture the moments you felt and saw when you first played it , playing it the 7th or even 10th (who's counting) time can be a marvelous.
It's not all that incredible of an idea when you consider that most endgames negate the value of everything you earn along the way. That makes it the only place where the rewards will be meaningful for any length of time due to the rapid character advancement of today. People rush to it to enjoy a slightly less brief feeling of achievement.
I also like COH for my 90% solo game - fun and interesting.
SWTOR - is pretty much a solo game with grouping to do some flashpoints, again voice acted so fun to go slow and not worried about keeping up.
DDO used to be fun, till I just got tired of the same thing every 20/30 levels...
EQ was the first one I played a lot of, back when I was young and had crap tons of free time, its problem for me today would be required grouping I would fall behind not playing all the time, and just leveling to where I could eventually do the high level stuff would be rough (EQ solo was pretty rough at the beginning, they made it better over time, but it was still a pretty 'group centric to get stuff done' game.
It's quite amazing to see how fully developers seemed to have missed the point.
MMO start when I say that $hit starts.......
Working on my relic GS in XI atm, after nearly 20 years.
Vault-Tec analysts have concluded that the odds of worldwide nuclear armaggeddon this decade are 17,143,762... to 1.
That would lengthen the process, but ultimately not change the end result. In MMORPGs where characters progress in power but the content remains fixed there will always only be a narrow band of content applicable to a character at a time. As time goes on and more characters level the population would still be clustered at the endgame and that is where further development will always be most needed.
Essentially, such a game is always in a state of planned obsolescence and the current endgame content is still what matters most to the most, and must still be focused on the most to retain players.
For that not to be the case new content must not obsolete older content, but endless character progression in power doesn't work well with that.