Breakfast Topic: Compete or Cooperate?
by David Bowers 
May 30th 2007 at 8:00AM
For me, World of Warcraft is definitely a cooperative game. I've never really been a competitive person, and I always like seeing people around me succeed rather than fail. I enjoy PvP sometimes for the challenge of it, for working out the problem of how to win a battle against intelligent opponents, so it's true that I also like competition in moderation, but things like rankings and phrases such as "I pwn your face!" mean nothing to me.Some people I know, though, just thrive on the thrill and the glory of smashing their opponents into bits, melting their faces, and generally causing mass depletion of health in all who oppose them. Others have been captivated by the next big upgrade, and they really love the feeling of achievement that comes from acquiring gear that few others have.
Which is more important to you? The joy of united cooperation, or the thrill of competitive glory?
Filed under: Items, PvP, Breakfast Topics, Raiding
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Gurrash May 30th 2007 8:13AM
For me it is a mix of the 2 that keeps me going.
I love the thrill of getting server/faction firsts. But at the same time I thrive on the team spirit and bonds that are formed when trying to achieve this.
If I really had to choose though, I would say co-operation. Getting the occassional "/tell GJ on Mag" just doesn't compare to being part of a team that works together for hours to get a job done.
Lunar Wolf May 30th 2007 8:27AM
Competition is as much of a factor as cooperating to me. Without cooperation, competition is too hard to bother performing. Without competition, cooperation is boring and fast. A mixture of right and left to bring balance to a game.
Ranja May 30th 2007 8:46AM
I don't think any of the points of view are mutually exclusive. It seems to me that in any given day of play you will find most folks will switch up between these various modes as the situations warrant. Having said that, I think you are overlooking an option which I'll call "uncooperative play." I've seen plenty of that after a long week end of AB on the Alliance side. I'm seriously considering petitioning Blizzard for the option to be able to shoot my own team mates on occasion. Perhaps they could put a BG cap on it of say no more than 8x per round if you the leader of the BG Raid Group. This would be useful for those guys that auto-enter the BG on lunches and sit the entire game at Trollbane Hall, putting us as many as 3 players down the whole game. Or those irascible numbskulls who can't follow the most basic instruction. "Go to the BS" to which their obvious response is "lrn2pvpUnoobz!" On second thought, perhaps and unlimited cap is in order.
vespa May 30th 2007 8:50AM
well i pld quake2/3/4 for 8 years before i started wow last september and the reason i was attracted to wow and the reason i play it as much as i do is definately because of the co-operative aspect.
i do pvp from time to time as i do enjoy the occasional blast round AB or EOTS, but if i want some competative gaming action i just have another blast on q4.
nothing compares to the excitement and sense of achievement from slaying a boss that you've been working hard as a guild to down for a while, like Gruul etc. (though winning clanbase cups is also a lovely feeling :)
Vespa
Twilight's Hammer
Tridus May 30th 2007 8:58AM
An interesting follow up might be to ask what roles people prefer to play, and see if there are any conclusions to be reached between if people prefer competitive over co-operative play and what they wind up doing while playing.
I play a healer (by choice, not just because I want a raid spot), and I don't really go for competitive play in WoW at all. I don't care about world firsts, server firsts, PvP, or anything like that. But I have been known to go on raids I really didn't want to simply so that everybody else could have fun. (Thats actually a bad idea, and doing it too much can really kill your enjoyment of the game.)
Come to think of it, I'm not sure I've ever met a truly competitive healer.
Medros May 31st 2007 6:25PM
Coopetition is the best way.
Braz May 30th 2007 10:11AM
Except for the handful of players who are in serious contention for world-first kills, top arena ranks, and other major achievements, WoW is a cooperative--and on the other hand often solitary--game.
Personally, I prefer to play both aspects of the game depending on the situation. I enjoy a good instance run with friends, but I also enjoy the competitiveness of pvp (world and battlegrounds). I like the spontaneous competition that sometimes occurs when question or farming. My competitive side comes out in these situations, so I'll see who can kill mobs the fastest, or who can get to that mineral node first.
@5 I rolled a Priest alt not too long ago, and I am very competitive (at least by nature, not in being at the top of the arena charts or raid progression).
Tolento May 30th 2007 11:07AM
I thrived on competition for the better part of a year as I climbed the old PVP ranking system and achieved rank 14. The constant PVPing turned me into a mean dude...in game and even spilling out into RL. Competitive play became an obsession for me. It cost me a job and almost a serious relationship.
Then Blizzard made the PVP gear I slaved over for 12-18 hours a day for months available to anyone and everyone. Made all the stress seem rather pointless.
Now I only raid cooperatively with my guild. I'm much more happy and sane these days. I still take pride in trying to outdo the other DPS on the DamageMeter, but not to a crazy extent. Life is too short.
Coherent May 30th 2007 3:13PM
I prefer a combination of the two. I like to cooperate in small teams while in moderate competition with other teams in pursuit of a larger goal.
So: I don't like bloodthirsty competition, I like fun competition where everyone gets to play an important role and you still have the thrill of a larger conflict.
Juliah May 30th 2007 8:01PM
I prefer cooperative play, and I totally agree with you about rankings and smack talk.