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All of the latest Mists of Pandaria newsBreakfast Topic: WoW on the go
by Josh Rose 
Nov 20th 2010 at 8:00AM
All of us have a life outside of Azeroth. People always say how much more important real life is than the game. However, if we say we are going to be somewhere in the game, shouldn't we take that commitment as seriously as one in the real world? If we tell our guild or friends we will be there for a raid or to PvP, shouldn't we do our best to not let them down? Isn't telling your WoW friends that you will be somewhere and simply not showing up without any notice just as bad as if it were your real-life friends?
Since I am a tank for my guild, I pretty much have to be at almost every raid. In order to make raids when not at home, I have raided on laptops and at other people's houses, just so I don't let people down. By not always playing on my home PC, I have learned to be a minimalist with mods as well as learning what the minimum settings I can still effectively tank with. This has allowed me to maintain most of my real-life and in-game commitments.
Have you ever had to play WoW outside of your own home to fulfill your social obligations? Do you have a gaming laptop for this purpose? Have you played at a friend or relative's house on their PC? Do you have different UIs or mod setups for your PC and laptop?
Filed under: Breakfast Topics, Guest Posts
Reader Comments (Page 3 of 5)
Swifteye Nov 20th 2010 9:42AM
@Kath: I mean no disrespect, but from the sounds of their posts, I do believe the posters you a replying to live a fair distance from their families, while from the sound of your own post, I gather you DO live near your family.
I live 600 miles from my family, and while I do bring my laptop and play WoW occasionally when I go to visit, it's strictly casual, I do not make any concrete WoW plans and am fully prepared to stop WoWing at a moment's notice to hang out with my folks, because I hardly ever get to see them.
On the other hand, I remember back when I did live with my folks (or even after I'd moved out of their house but was still in the same city)... "familiarity breeds contempt", and I certainly needed a break from them every so often.
So I do think you'll glean something different from the aforementioned posts if you just look at it with a slightly different perspective. ^_^
BubblePriest Nov 20th 2010 9:56AM
Call me addicted, but I think I'd have a blast playing WoW with my sister when I visit her this winter. My dad doesn't personally play (I've resisted inviting him because I know once he discovers he can make his own addons that's all he'd ever talk about), but I know he really thinks the game is interesting and likes to watch her play, so he certainly wouldn't mind.
Unfortunately, I have a PC that I'm not hauling to Nebraska for a two week visit, and am not inclined to tie up my dad's computer for seven hours to download WoW, Burning Crusade, WotLK and Cata.
ithalaine Nov 20th 2010 10:19AM
whenever i or my familiy are near (and we live about 200 miles apart) we always meet up. I play only on a laptop and often have it with me but i never go on it when im with them because as my sister would say its anti social. hang out with your family have fun with them trust me its better to spend the time when you can with your family then playing wow
Grizzleton Nov 20th 2010 11:47AM
@Bubble: No need for a reinstall of WoW... Just copy your entire Warcraft installation onto an external USB drive, and bring that with you. Copy it onto the borrowed PC, drag a shortcut to the launcher or wow.exe to the desktop and you're good to go. I had the game transferred from my laptop to my new PC in no time. Not needing to "install" WoW is one of its best features, IMO.
thenighthawk Nov 20th 2010 9:02AM
I sure have... I spent 5 years on the road for work, and played from a variety of laptops... playing with the built in trackpad sucks btw, but it's doable. I've had great cablemodems with sub 100ms pings, and I've had hotels with 1700ms averages.
Now that I don't travel nearly as much I don't have as much time to play... how ironic.
My travel schedule has almost never lent itself to raiding, and I became something of an altoholic -- 7 80's so far, and an 8th at 79.
For several years, I used Microsoft SyncToy and a USB drive to keep my WoW installations in sync.
Lately I've been using Windows Live Mesh to keep my addons and wtf folder synced between work, laptop, and home, and it's been working pretty great.
Jinx Nov 20th 2010 9:01AM
I'm not really comfortable playing outside of my home, especially when I'm supposed to be visiting relatives or on a vacation. A simple post on your guild forums telling others you'll be away for a specific period will save you from the awkwardness of it all. I just find it to be too much trouble, ranging from problems like "where to sit" to "sorry my internet connection here sucks and all I'm doing is slow you down".
Kathadelle Nov 20th 2010 9:25AM
I keep my Wow game folder backed up on an external hard drive. I can plug it into any computer and run the game right off of that with the exact mods and setting as on my computer.
Rufio Nov 20th 2010 9:25AM
Yep, and what a great game that let's you do that eh? /Respect
John Nov 20th 2010 9:51AM
"Have you ever had to play WoW outside of your own home to fulfill your social obligations?"
I admit that I had to disappear for a few hours last year on Christmas Eve to play! I was at my in-laws so I didn't feel too bad. Everyone was like "where is he?" and "what the h is he doing?" Pathetic? Kinda, but it sounds like I'm not the only one who has done it.
Pudwhack Nov 20th 2010 9:25AM
I always find it amusing when the age-old arguement of "in-game obligation" and "real life has priority" comes up. We all live different lives and find value in different things. Is it really such a negative thing to have a very social online life? And is it really so aweful to find enjoyment in-game more appealling than real life socializing?
I think people should be allowed, without criticism, to find happiness and fullfilment where they choose.
John Nov 20th 2010 11:35AM
Well said.
woxingma Nov 21st 2010 12:44PM
There is a difference when you talk about traveling though. I participate in many RL activites to which I've made commitments: A recorder quartet, a basketball team, a group that plays D&D. When I travel I must let them know I can't be there. While I am traveling I can't participate.
Basically I have to make the choice between these activities and traveling; I can't do both at once.
But I am heading to my parents (1000 miles away) for thanksgiving. I am bring my laptop and they have good internet. All of the sudden I CAN choose to participate in a game during the short time my family has to be with me. If I treat my online commitments like my RL commitments, I should NOT be playing while I visit.
So RL is not the same as wow. Sorry.
Untippable Nov 20th 2010 9:29AM
I used to have different UI setups for my laptop and my desktop but with 3 accounts and 2 computers it got hard to keep up to date. Recently I started using AddonUsage to choose lightweight addons and am able to keep 60+ frames on my laptop with full addons. Other than graphics settings I'm giving up nothing!
Bartender to Dominos
ButtonFacade to rActionbuttonstyler
Recount to Skada
Raven to SimpleBuffBars
Changed everything for me.
whitfield Nov 20th 2010 9:27AM
I don't understand why so many people complain about not being able to afford a gaming laptop. It's called getting a job that pays worth a shit. /IB4 people complaining there's no jobs when they barely finished high school and have zero skill sets
BubblePriest Nov 20th 2010 10:09AM
And I don't understand how so many people with clearly deficient social skills get jobs when we have a 10% unemployment rate.
whitfield Nov 20th 2010 10:15AM
That's a good point. Retards are some of the most friendly people.
Chetti Nov 20th 2010 11:16AM
Skill sets are skill sets, there are lots of jobs out there if your skills meet the requirements. I have a degree and I can't find a full time job. I'm not complaining about my part time job that will be going away as soon as the university I work for goes on winter break, I'm grateful to have a job at all. I've submitted resumes, just haven't gotten calls. Another recent graduate I work with has 2 degrees, different skills, is in the same boat that I am, and is having the same call-back problem. Its a matter of what is available.
There will always be people who complain they can't afford top of the line whatevers. I don't own a "gaming laptop", the one I have runs wow just fine and I'm having no issues with it and see no reason to spend twice as much on a new one when I don't need it.
By the same token, there are always people that will complain about not having money yet at the same time they don't want to work. This is off-topic of course, but it stems from the reply.
Oni Stardust Nov 20th 2010 11:35AM
I do have a job that pays "worth a shit", but I also have a house payment and a full compliment of bills. And then there's the groceries and household items (light bulbs, cleaning supplies, etc) I have to keep stocked up. On top of that, I always try to keep a decent size buffer in case of emergencies. And at this particular point in time I need to see about getting some Christmas presents.
And in the middle of typing this comment I had to get up and cut a check for the guy that's gonna fix the hole in my ceiling.
I could afford to buy a nice gaming computer, but it wouldn't be a good idea. And seeing as how their are plenty of players out there with more expenses than me, it's probably safe to assume that many of them are in the same boat.
ithalaine Nov 20th 2010 4:10PM
you forgot the most important point most of us arnt so arrogant as to have no friends therefore we spend money on night/days out with them. exluding money needed for bills food etc
BubblePriest Nov 20th 2010 9:34AM
Kind of a tangent, but I dislike seeing the WoW > RL theme repeated because I think it misses the point. WoW is a social obligation. I put it on the same level of commitment as any other social obligation.
If I make plans to meet a friend for drinks on Thursday night, I'll make an effort to be there. However, if my mom calls and says "Grandma's in the hospital please come," she's not going to think very highly of me if I say "Can't Mom told my friend I'd meet up for drinks tonight." So I'll call my friend and tell them I can't make it.
WoW gets the same level of commitment. I will absolutely contact them (assuming it's possible) if I said I'd make it and find out I won't be able to. My guild deserves that level of respect, just like my friend deserves not to be sitting at the bar alone wondering if I'll show up. RL encompasses a wide variety of things. Some of it trumps WoW. Some of it does not. Common sense and not a blind adherence to RL > WoW is something I'd like to see more of.