Whats the buzz ? Please read, thank you!

[Guest]

I am usually very quiet on the boards here, just reading, asking a couple of gameplay questions, etc.
The main reason is that english is not my main language and I find it hard to be precise and really express the things the way I would like to.

But the latest uproar concerning the turn in finally made me overcome my shyness.

Whenever there is an event, people complain about the "rewards" in the end (candle of love for example).
The reward should be participating in the event itself.

Ok, if there is an item to earn - fine. If not, fine as well, as long as I am having fun during the event.
If I am bored killing the same creatures over and over again just to hoard some items that could prove useful in a possible future turn in I will just stop doing so and do something in the game I enjoy more.
I am not going to spend hours and hours to collect things to maybe turn in for other things one day if I am not enjoying it - makes absolutely no sense.

I personally have spent a couple of days in glow and after it became a bit boring killing shadow wisps, etc I decided I´ve had enough and waited for the next stage of the event.
If I don´t have collected enough items now - no big deal, I will probably be able to buy the items I want sooner or later - if I want any that is - because I have used the time others have spent in glow for things I enjoyed much more and did not stay there and hoarded items just in case they will be worth something one day.
BUT (big but) this also means I have enjoyed the time I have spent in glow and also the event so far. And here on the boards I read so many comments from people who are saying they hate killing the same monsters over and over again - but they still do it just in case ???? Something seems very wrong here...

We are here because we want to be here, noone forces us to do anything. Noone forces you to get this or that item; you cannot "complete" this game.

I mean people, this is a game after all! Sorry, but most people are behaving as if they were hired by some company to fulfill dreadful tasks. I just don´t want to beleive that most people are here to make money (ingame and/or RL) but I sometimes get the impression.

If you are saying "there is nothing in this game for me anymore exept for the live events" and you dont like the live events then you should ask yourselves the question whether you really still want to be here.
Sometimes I get the impression the only reason for some people not to leave the game is the amount of items and riches they have collected and they just don´t want to see them decay.
Sorry but this reminds me of tales of old rich man who hate to die because they can´t take their Rolls Royce with them...


Also, what is a "bad" or a "good" item to get from a turn in? I really think this is very much a question of personal preference.

For example, I really like things that remind me of something I have been a part of. I think a customizable T-Shirt is a very nice reward (if they don´t make it "too" customizable that is

).
And yes, the first iron katana a friendly smith has made for me at the brit forge back in 98 means more to me than any orny or crimson I have aquired since. Maybe this sounds strange to some of you, but thats probably just the way I am.

Earrings: finally something to put in a more or less neglected slot, great idea. Useless for elves? Maybe, but now if a person opens your paperdoll you will have beautiful golden dots in your ears (manly roar)!

Tbh, I think that most of the people who are complaining about so many things and who are threatening to leave all the time, secretly love this game big time

.
And if I am wrong here, they should - for their own sake and mental sanity make their threats true.
(continuous anger is a dangerous state of mind and no, I am not a buddhist)

Dont get me wrong: yes there are things I would like to see changed as well, but they are not ruining my gaming experience - if they would, why should I stay?
Because I already have a castle (I don´t) and some server birth rares (I don´t either) and it took me such a long time and "boring grinding" to get them?

Beleive me, I have been playing this game for a long time now, and there are still many things I don´t know about. This makes it great and a new adventure waits every day if you go out and look for it. But don´t do things you don´t enjoy just for the prize (you have to do this in RL often enough - no need to do it here) or you will start to hate this game.
Btw. I was a solo player for the first years and after I got a bit bored I discovered that a good chat with some folks who are willing to spare some time can be very rewarding - more rewarding than killing swoops for 100K/hour.


Thanks for reading, sorry bout my probably very childish school english (I am 36 year old just in case you were wondering

).

Hephaistos of Europa

 

[Fayled Dhreams]

You would be in the crowd .... that actually "gets it" ...
a small crowd indeed ... but ... well ... there it is ...

AND
Better written than most of late.
Grammar, style and punctuation.
High marks ...
Focus and expression
High marks
tone ...
darn near perfect


Welcome

Well met And fare well.

 

[Guest]

Well said =) (and very well written =D)

 

[imported_Farsight]

I feel the same way. Then again, I just sold a bow for far less than I could have sold it for, simply because I know that she'd have my back in many a scrape with or without the powerful bow. I much prefer my friends to have the good stuff, even if it means that I won't.

It's all a matter of perspective. For some people, the shinies are the game. For others, it's the companionship. Most people lie somewhere in between.

 

[Belmarduk]

@ OP : Good post

 

[uo addict]

Thank you for your excellent post (and your English is very good, really!). I think we do need to get things into perspective.

I think the reason behind the Gimme Gimme Gimme attitude is that the game is open-ended without a specific goal. A lot of people like to be able to measure their progress. Since most of us have maximized our skills a long time ago, we need a new measure. Since we can no longer gain in skills we want "Stuff" as a measure of our success and progress. And to show we are improving, this stuff has to be better than the stuff we have already.

That is the psychology. Philisophically speaking, those who have the maturity and wisdom to value themselves other than simply for their possessions will probably be happier in the long run than those who always want more!

 

[Tazar]

9.9/9.9/9.9

 

[imported_Evilminion]

**STANDING OVATION**

Thank you very much for stating what should be obvious but apparently isn't to many.

 

[Guest]

Thanks for your friendly comments about my english! I am sure my english teacher would be a happy man if he could read this (if he is still alive that is)!

@ Fayled Dreams: and this from the "master of posts" himself!
No really, more than once has one of your remarks made my day (after I figured it out)!

@ Belmarduk: grüße von Wien nach Graz! (sorry, could not resist, I really thought I was the only active austrian player left)

@ uo addict:

I think I know exactly what you want to express but I would like to comment some of the things if you don´t mind:

"I think the reason behind the Gimme Gimme Gimme attitude is that the game is open-ended without a specific goal."

Which in my oppinion is the best aspect of the game because it lets you set your own specific goals (whatever they might be) and change them as you like.

"Since most of us have maximized our skills a long time ago, we need a new measure. Since we can no longer gain in skills we want "Stuff" as a measure of our success and progress. And to show we are improving, this stuff has to be better than the stuff we have already."

Just a thought: we have certainly maximized our skillpoints but have we really maximized our skills? I surely have not and doubt I ever will. Not meant in an esoteric way btw. I am really talking about the game here...

"Philisophically speaking, those who have the maturity and wisdom to value themselves other than simply for their possessions will probably be happier in the long run than those who always want more!"

Well, what can I say? One will find this sentence in many wise books - probably starting long before the bible was put together - (and nowadays even in not-so-wise pseudo esoteric weekly magazine articles) but you know what:
It is definitely true for me!

Hephaistos of Europa

 

[Lady_Rachel]

*Applaudes*

Very well written sir!

Sometimes I think it is not so much what the next reward is, or pixel to be obtained, but that some are so used to a structured game where the goals are written out for them that they have difficulty with a sandbox type of game.

And there is nothing wrong with that. UO has some of those features in it.
Quests to be completed. New events periodically to be involved in with new items to discover, trade, sell, use or collect.

The boredom sets in when they have completed those quests and events and have no set direction to go in next. Where someone else may go about RPing, adventure in a dungeon, craft or just enjoy Sosarian life, those more used to a structured game are left saying..." What's next? I need something to do! "

At times I am sure they may feel their ' reward ' didn't meet their expectation for all the game time and effort they put into it. I guess you have to ask yourself, "Am I having fun or is this a grind? " In the end it is all about enjoyment of a game we pay for. If you aren't enjoying that aspect of the game, then move on to a bit you do enjoy.

Have fun and Be Safe

 

[dwayneDibley]

I agree 100%. Well said

 

[Guest]

Wow ... just wow! Nicely put and puts into polite words the thoughts I have had for a long time.

Thank you.

 

[Guest]

<blockquote><hr>

Whenever there is an event, people complain about the "rewards" in the end (candle of love for example).
The reward should be participating in the event itself.

[/ QUOTE ]

I agree. Only problem is thats not how the developers set these events up. They put out an event that is fun for a few days, then rapidly becomes pretty pointless, as nothing you do or don't do has any effect (that we know of) then let that weeks worth of event run a month with no update, but keep people in there playing the the promise of a turn in from the get go.

What does this say? It says you are here to farm items, you participation otherwise is fairly irrelevant. This may be different for future stages of the event, but thats what we have right now.

Then they release some boring/lackluster rewards (into a system over bloated with uber items, so that anything short of arti level rewards seem pointless) after some people had been slaving day in and day out for weeks to get items for the turn in they were told was coming, as which was the only reason to fight the spawn, see "rewards" many of which are LESS appealing than the items being turned, and they get huffy.

I mean how do they NOT see that coming? I really don't understand it. Anyone who's been playing this game for any length of time could have told you that people would be disappointed.
And after soooooooooo much time with absolutely nothing in term of events or content going on, they really should have made sure this one kicked more ass. I know theres more to come, but so far I'm not terribly encouraged by the way the event has been handled so far.

 

[Guest]

<blockquote><hr>

And after soooooooooo much time with absolutely nothing in term of events or content going on, they really should have made sure this one kicked more ass. I know theres more to come, but so far I'm not terribly encouraged by the way the event has been handled so far.

[/ QUOTE ]

Hey these people prob work 12+ hrs a day, Fixing bugs, workin on the expansion, fixing factions, readin the gimmie gimmie posts, adding content, You should feel lucky that they used some time to work on the event. I havnt stepped a single foot into it but it appears there has been some work put behind it.

 

[Guest]

Very Well Said! What you said and the way you wrote it in English are both great.

 

[imported_Xana Banana]

Bravo

 

[imported_Hawkeye_Pike]

I absolutely second that. Well put!

I also am dreaming of events people do join for the sake of the event, and not for some items or rewards.

However, to my opinion the Development Team makes events more about items (maybe not intentionally, but they do). I do not like at all that looted items have to be hoarded and turn-ins are announced. This has nothing to do with roleplaying (and UO is a roleplaying game after all). And it leads to massive whining, complaining, and always some players will feel discriminated (in most cases unjustified).

Thus, I wish the event managers would put more focus on the dynamic evolvement of an event instead of thinking out turn-in systems which do not meddle with pvp balance. Also, I wish that unexperienced players were not left out of the adventure.

 

[Guest]

*applauds*

What a refreshing read!

I have many of the same feelings as you. I play UO to enjoy some free time and have fun. If I ever felt like my gametime had become a job or chore, I would try a new in-game activity, or simply take a break for a few days. I would continue to enjoy UO if there wasn't anything new for quite sometime. I suppose I enjoy my experiences more than anything...working together with others while fighting, saying a simple greeting in passing another player, meeting new friends and spending time with long-time companions.

Your English and writing composition is excellent! *nods* Certainly no reason to be shy...I look forward to reading more of your thoughts in the future.

 

[Guest]

<blockquote><hr>

Hey these people prob work 12+ hrs a day, Fixing bugs, workin on the expansion, fixing factions, readin the gimmie gimmie posts, adding content, You should feel lucky that they used some time to work on the event. I havnt stepped a single foot into it but it appears there has been some work put behind it.

[/ QUOTE ]

Nonsense. First of all, I do applaud the work the do, that doesn't mean the have the assets to do it right, OR that they make all the right choices, cause they don't. Second, while I will applaud a job well done, I fully expect the game to be worked on and improved, as we all should.

A lot of us have been supporting this game with our money for a decade now, and its annoying when things are annoying. I honestly am fairly indifferent about the whole affair atm, because its really just not too interesting, and as such I haven't been logging on or paying much attention to the game at all.

But to suggest it's entirely the players fault, this attitude of
items &gt; experience/adventure is just wrong. They have been designing events in this way, in a manner that doing otherwise will not only prevent you from gaining rewards, but also net you jack squat. Magincia was unsavable (wasnt it? I dont remember honestly) , you can kill 1000000 shadow lords and they just keep spawning...

You see where I am going with this. The opidan invasion was great. It gave us an oppurtunity to not only get collectables, but to actually be able to make a difference. The recent events however have no been designed with this in mind. And I already summed up the whole turn in let down in my inital post in this thread.

So don't blame the players.

 

[Guest]

<blockquote><hr>

Hey these people prob work 12+ hrs a day, Fixing bugs, workin on the expansion, fixing factions, readin the gimmie gimmie posts, adding content, You should feel lucky that they used some time to work on the event. I havnt stepped a single foot into it but it appears there has been some work put behind it.

[/ QUOTE ]
Whilst I agree with the op (very well written by the way), what you seem to be missing out from your statement there Kaleb, is that the devs actually get paid for doing this. Its their job.

They are paid to add content, fix bugs etc etc. Whilst any customer base has its fair share of moaners, some of who will never be happy, they are still paying customers and within their rights to state their feelings when they feel shortchanged. I dont feel the slightest bit sorry for the Devs .... if what they say is true, they all love this game and they actually get paid every day for going into work and working on it. Sounds ok to me. I fully expect them to be beavering away like ... well ... beavers, in order to give us a product worth paying for.