Dealing with temporary changes in-game
Larisa's got a good rant about something I've considered before in a slightly different context: players aren't very good at anticipating how temporary game changes will work out. We, as a group (not individually necessarily), are quite quick to judgment when we see changes to the game, and the word Larisa uses is "conservatism" -- she notes the examples of the reaction to the zombie outbreak and the Children's Week batleground issues, and says that players "tossed the gift away, like spoiled kids." We (again, in general, not you specifically) have a very short view of how temporary changes will affect the game, lambast Blizzard for changing what didn't need to be changed, and very often, when the dust settles and the zombies are gone or the event is over, we realize that it wasn't so bad after all.She's not talking about class changes here -- those are more permanent changes that affect the basic rules of the game. But specifically with temporary events (I'd even throw the Brewfest controversies, and the Headless Horseman complaints in the mix), players sometimes have reactions that are way out of proportion to the events themselves. These holidays and world events are temporary: shouldn't we just enjoy them while we can?
It's definitely a valid point, and something to remember for the next time a temporary event throws off your usual routine in-game. The fact is that we players are spoiled -- Blizzard generally does a great job keeping this game fun, and so when even a little issue sneaks into the game during a temporary event. But Larisa promises that next time she gets shaken up by a temporary change, she'll give it another chance. Sounds like a great idea to me.
Filed under: Items, Analysis / Opinion, Events, Odds and ends, Blizzard, Instances
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Reader Comments (Page 7 of 7)
Xanwryn May 16th 2009 3:37AM
TL;DR version: Her opinions on everything but the Scourge Invasion I pretty much agree with. Not on the Scourge Invasion though, never on that.
I personally had no problems with the Children's Week thing. I can avoid Battlegrounds, that's no problem. But the Scourge Invasion was far too much.
Not fun at all. I think peoples rage at that event was highly justified. For the most part, I agree with her. Just not for the Scourge Invasion.
"We tossed the gift away, like spoiled kids."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bartle_Test
Anyone who loves to kill or grief would've loved the event and I did for some time, so I had the guilty pleasure of it too. But it lost it's favor really quickly for me and became so fucking boring I stopped doing it.
However, everyone else loved it and I was forced to conform to everyone else's play style because I couldn't do anything else other than conform to people's play style (if I tried, I'd just die from some plagued bastard, if I didn't, I couldn't do anything anyway with everyone dead).
At least with Children's Week it was OPTIONAL. I did not HAVE to be apart of it. I did NOT have to go into Battlegrounds to do the achievements. I don't really like achievements, personally. I HAD A CHOICE TO DO IT. Scourge Invasion? That choice got shot, stabbed, burnt and raped. There was no choice.
Gothia May 16th 2009 4:03AM
The zombie event was a total cluster flock. Blizzard not only made this stupid event mandatory, they gave power to the people I hate most in this game = the little punks that have nothing better to do other than to make other players lives miserable in a sanctioned grief fest. These events should always be optional and not force people on a PvE server to participate in this idiocy. I hope the idiot that came up with this event got fired and for all of you Blizzard zombie event fanboys - FU