“Ah James, I could not disagree with you more.”
What exactly are you disagreeing with?
“The game can't make the community communicate to the community.”
I would not argue that point with you [how is that for a non-confrontational non-committal agreement?]. I am arguing that the tools are inferior and in all honesty primitive that are provided.
“It can create the need for that to happen.”
Agree here that it makes the need. Moving from “ELITE” to “GROUP” is a good idea. From quests to instances, it is about balance. As a warrior, I know the value of a priest [and a mage]. As I said in my last instance run, “A priest is a warrior’s bets friend” to be responded to with, “And a warrior is a priest best friend”.
“So if you don't or can't or wont' get thee to a guild, or you're in a guild that doesn't help, you've got the LFG panel and general callouts in chat for PUGs.”
While I don’t disagree, but this is problematic. I’ve run enough PUG runs to know that not knowing the reputation of those you run with can be deadly . . . repeatedly.
“There are ways here to communicate with others.”
That does NOT mean they are effective or efficient ways to communicate. That is my point at the moment. The tools are the like the monkey’s with the bones near the monolith.
“I'm not comfy with partnering up wth strangers. Hence my choice to go with a guild. “
And why is that? It is cause there is no real indication of reputation in the game. It is the missing element. eBay has it. Amazon has it. WOW does not except in the MOST informal ways.
“Your take on my aggro example offers me a great chance to explain what I don't want, adn to underline the difference between emergent organic culture and something like school culture. “
For the record, I I would not implmement an agro circle . . . agree with your assessment. I merely discussed the game COULD contribute this knowledge to us. The information is there . . . doesn’t mean it adds to the gaming experience. I learned a hell of a lot about agro running with young Hal’, but more about hers than mine . . . the pleasures of being a warrior.
“The auctioneer stuff, well, that supports a game other than the one Blizzard made. I don't think they intended people to be logging in in the morning to check the morning line on mithril in order to buy and resell.”
And thus they are purposely choosing to ignore an active part of their community.
“When I'm in WoW, I'm IN WoW. And when I'm not, I'm not. (And as we all know, we've yet to see a decent threaded discussion display/app. anywhere.).”
Here, I disagree. When I am online I am online. Not sure it should matter where I am. I wish WOW Chat would interface with AIM or some other outside vendor.
“I don't like VOIP in the game because, for me, it ruins the "magic circle" as Castranova or someone has called it.”
I agree and disagree. For me it is the is difference between the informal and formal run. I hate VOIP when I’m must running and gunning. When I am somewhere really hard . . . up against the unknown . . . I’ll take all the advice I can from any source I can.
“What's next, product placement?”
Actually, SONY has already implemented this IN GAME.
“I like the separate text/chat channels . . . That's just fine for me.”
For me, that is the issue. It isn’t about what is right for you, but about the possibilities of others. I use and don’t use many aspects of WOW. I would not wish away the aspects of WOW I don’t use.
“It would be nice for a guild to have a pop up, shared, calendar, in game. I imagine some moldy old tome that sits on my toolbar and picks up guild event notices. That could be cool. It would be nice if guilds over size X could claim a meeting space in-game, you know, regulars at The Slaughtered Lamb. That could be done much like an instance in that every group has its own space even though it is the same room/space. Maybe a guild that raids well could start to acquire, as a guild, a library of dungeon maps as a reward drop at the end of a successful guild group run. Even cooler if these were "empty" books or at least able to carry some notation by GMs or some guild designated scribe.”
So, you disagree we need better communication tools, but that is a LOVELY list!
“Culture is a delicate thing. We see around us on a daily basis the results of trying to engineer it, to brute force it into a particular way of engaging people.”
What is the difference in our discussion between ‘culture’ and ‘community’? Not a challenge . . . just asking someone who could answer the question.
“I think the way a game dev should work is build the game and watch, very closely, what the locals do. When they make tools from the sticks on the ground, understand what they are tyring to accomplish and think very, very, very, carefully about whether or not, and how, to integrate that functionality within a more formal ingame structure.”
And thus our monthly NERF and BUFF . . . which is always a nerf for warriors.
. . .
You disagree with the need for better communication tools benefiting a better community?
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