Breakfast Topic: A whole new (international) world
by Jennie Lees 
Apr 3rd 2006 at 7:00AM
Having recently obtained an American WoW subscription to go alongside my European one, I've been spending some time playing
internationally. Surprisingly, the lag isn't a factor (at least at newbie level, because--of course--I've had to
start from scratch), and the five-hour time difference hasn't come into play yet.It's a weird mix of the familiar and unfamiliar--I'm used to seeing all sorts of European languages flashing past in General, as newly created characters seek out their countrymen. That's gone, but the countryside and quests are the same. These days, General is filled with shouted insults and puerile behaviour fit more for Xbox Live than WoW. Perhaps my Live experiences should have prepared me for people's ability to be entirely rude to complete strangers--or a zone full of them--but my WoW experiences hadn't.
When I move from European server to European server, I get a sense of disorientation when I walk around the cities and miss the familiar faces. Bereft of my guild, I feel defenceless and lost. Moving from European to American servers, however, is even odder. The cultures on the servers are different, as the patchwork amalgamations making up East and West in real life are different. From new in-jokes to a new Chuck Norris obsession, it's a whole new world.
Am I just particularly unlucky, finding a server whose General channels (Elwynn and Stormwind) were filled with insults and abuse? Is it culture shock, or something more reflective of the fact that only kids would be playing at 5AM server time? Is the bad behaviour of characters likely to put off complete WoW newbies, entering Northshire Abbey only to be greeted with a 'your mom' joke?
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Breakfast Topics
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Norvarp Apr 3rd 2006 7:46AM
I don?t know what US servers you play on. But I have never ran into these issues, nor a Chuck Norris joke, or ya mamma joke nor people been rude.. I find my server generally friendly..
If i did come into the problems you have described im sure i would not be playing WOW anymore.
Fen Apr 3rd 2006 8:03AM
Oh no, you're not the only one.
On my new server, Jubei'thos, [Alliance] General is filled with infantile humour, at best. There are of course a handful of players that do surpass this, but the majority of them cannot seem to comprehend that infantile humour isn't funny.
They also can't take hints on how to help them play the game. I've been told to 'l2p nub' several times while trying to give helpful advice.
There are times when I wish I could be Horde again...
Molly Apr 3rd 2006 8:37AM
That's how it is on Scarlet Crusade. General chat in Org can be downright painful. Goldshire and the Barrens chat are the worst though.
I have to say, I did take part in a "naked train" around Orgrimmar one night, but at least I wasn't yelling dumb things in the general chat. I keep that to party and guild chat.
elizabeth Apr 3rd 2006 8:46AM
European servers don't have Chuck Norris jokes?! Bliss! There's a reason a lot of people simply turn off general chat....
On behalf of all, I apologize in advance for what you're going to be seeing in Barrens chat soon. (I actually think the Barrens is worse than alliance low-level zones - because you've three races tossed into the area between level ten and level twenty-five or so - far longer than you're likely to stay in any alliance zone.)
Tara Apr 3rd 2006 9:20AM
Wish you could be Horde again? Ha! Barrens chat is the worst! Barrens chat has become an American synonym for juvenile idiocy! Ok. Well maybe not throughout America. But certainly whenever I talk to people about the status of general chat, many say they leave the General chat channel in the Barrens. There's only so many Chuck Norris jokes a person can stand.
Mat Apr 3rd 2006 11:30AM
As others have already stated... Barrens is pretty much the worst (especially the Norris jokes, oh god).
Once you get past that it should get better. I know on Ner'zhul the alliance channels tend to be quite easy to deal with and the Mal'Ganis horde channels are ok (with the exception of Barrens)
Marsh Apr 3rd 2006 11:51AM
I was just thinking I don't recall Barrens chat being that bad recently.
Then I remembered that was because I turned it off months ago ;P
I don't understand how Chuck Norris jokes can be compelling entertainment for months on end. I could see a week or two of it, but you think they'd find something new.
-marsh
Mike Apr 3rd 2006 12:27PM
I (and I know I'm in the minority here) love Barrens chat! The Chuck Norris facts, the inevitable "CHUCK NORRIS SUX" backlash from the Norris-phobes, the puerile jokes... It's great. It's a source of endless amusement for me.
The best part about the endless stream of Chuck references in the Barrens is the backlash that it has created. In some ways, the backlash is just as juvenile and stupid (and, consequently, funny) as the original jokes! It's great!
Jeremy Apr 3rd 2006 1:14PM
i reccomend an RP-PvP server for your next choice. even if your not into RP (im not at all, and i still play on one), the RP tag really scares away the immature types. yes, there is still chuck chat in the barrens, but its much less constant, and ive found people are willing to give you a hand a lot more than on other server types (i previously played on a normal PvP server). While i'm only 53 on that character, the drama level seems a lot lower on here as well (but the true drama always comes at 60 :P)
James Apr 3rd 2006 3:14PM
I've found after joining a really great guild with Ventrilo, that I hardly ever even look at the chat window anymore. I keep an eye out for green(guild), blue(party), or orange(raid) text and ignore everything else.
boneyard Apr 3rd 2006 5:38PM
i alwyas got the idea that the rp tag just atracts people who think it's nice to be extra annoying and mess with the rp nerds.
Bloodfeast Island Man Apr 4th 2006 11:01AM
When I first started playing, everyone I work with who play(ed) was like "Go to the Barrens, go to the Barrens.. lots of great quests in the Barrens.." So I did. The chat there was so puerile that I left all of the channels, except local defense, and made that part of my new character routine. The only time in recent memory that I actually got a message in General chat is when I started a char on a brand spanking new server. Fortunately, that first message I got reminded me, but good, why I leave those channels. I think it's somewhat a culture thing, if not, an audience thing. The most vocal of those playing are the youngest - it's not unusual to see multitudes of 12 and 13 year olds playing. The problem is that to a lot of these kids, the internet, where their actions aren't under the scrutiny of what they regard as an opressive parental unit, and thus they can get away with whatever. They lack tact, manners, and proper grammar. Lag and server outages be damned, that type of person (and I'm not saying all teens playing WoW are terrible) is what I despise most about WoW.
Daniel Axelrod Apr 4th 2006 2:35PM
My server definitely has certain periods when the childish, annoying people are on, and certain other periods where the more pleasant to converse with people are on. (And my server is almost empty at 5AM server time).
What I've noticed is that General often improves in non-newbie, well-populated zones. Stranglethorn Vale General has been host to some of the most entertaining conversations I've ever seen in WoW.
If you're aching for interaction, try to find a guild with mature people who like to converse. Your guild chat channel will at least be interesting, then.
By the way, your remark about being "used to seeing all sorts of European languages flashing past in General" reminds me- be careful using any language other than English on a US server. On my server, at least, people take offense, usually way more offense than is warranted, at anything that isn't in a tounge they can understand (for some reason they don't usually have as much problem with seeing messages in an in-game language (like Dwarven) they don't understand). The only explanation I can think of for this is that they somehow equate anyone who doesn't speak English with being a goldfarmer. (Also, don't make assumptions about USians based on that behavior, I've never met anybody IRL in the US who is insulted by somebody speaking some other tounge.)
Please consider doing a followup post on why you're playing on two different accounts, and whether you find the cost of doing so worth it.
jennie Apr 4th 2006 3:20PM
Thanks for your comments, folks. I've now played at a variety of times, and it's certainly not just the 5AM effect :) Fortunately I'm not playing Horde this time, so I'll be staying away from Barrens chat for a while, though that is just as bad on European servers... I also have to say that the worst Barrens chat I've ever seen was on a RP-PvP server, make of that what you will.
Daniel, thanks for the followup suggestion; watch this space ;)
Matt Apr 10th 2006 2:06AM
I didn't think it possible to play World of Warcraft *without* hearing about Chuck Norris.