game-hopper
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The Daily Grind: Why so much hate for MMO tourists?
MMO hobos. MMO tourists. MMO locusts. MMO vagabonds. MMO hoppers. MMO jumpers. MMO dabblers. "The MMO Burnout crowd." So many names for people who move from MMO to MMO, and none of them nice! We don't pin these labels on people who sample the best of other forms of entertainment. If you devour a Firefly marathon one night and descend upon The Hobbit the next, we don't call you a cinema locust. If you play soccer today but tennis tomorrow, we don't sneeringly describe you as a sports tourist. If you read T.S. Eliot this week and J.K. Rowling the next, I'm not going to deem you a book hopper and kick you out of the cool kids' book club! Not everyone sees MMOs as worlds that must be lived in for years to be appreciated or enjoyed, and I doubt I'll shock anyone by arguing that many MMOs aren't even designed for long-term consumption; some studios plainly expect us to come and go and return again later as we might return to a beloved old book. I myself prefer a cozy, long-term sandbox home, but I can understand why other people choose to dabble. So why all the hate for the so-called MMO tourists? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Free for All: Are MMO transients bad for the industry?
I hate downtown Dallas. When I was a kid, it used to be the place to go. We would drive several hours to see a punk rock show, stare at the cool people we didn't have in Oklahoma, and then drive back. Back then, Dallas was a paradise. Now that I am older and have played in bands for nearly 24 years, I realize Dallas is a pit. I hated playing the clubs there. One of the major issues that the city has run into is what to do about all of the homeless people. I hate to sound like a jerk, but right now you can't go into downtown Dallas without being asked for change a dozen times or asked to "look at this spider bite." (This did happen to me once, and it it was nasty-looking.) Despite my attitude of understanding for people in all sorts of situations, I still wonder what a city is supposed to do with a constant influx of people, people who do not reside permanently in the city yet continue to pass through? You can't tax them. MMO gamers who enjoy multiple games are often talked about as though they are the pitiful homeless. While I can see some parallels, I think that such a judgment is not only insensitive but the opposite of the truth. Let's look at the variables past the cut.
The Daily Grind: How does game-hopping affect your relationships?
Game-hopping is a time-honored MMORPG tradition. Whether it's born of a basic sense of wanderlust, a dissatisfaction with the genre, or an earnest love for anything and everything massively multiplayer, many of us play multiple MMOs. The game-hopper ranks are growing too, as the free-to-play model gains traction and financial barriers to the tourist lifestyle are getting lower (or disappearing altogether). One thing that won't change is the fact that not everyone likes to jump around, and sometimes guilds (and even friendships) can be strained by the incessant infidelity. Today's Daily Grind is all about your gaming relationships and the toll exacted on them by the glut of games around every corner. Do you game-hop with your friends or your guild? Do you forge ahead alone? Have you been left behind? How does game-hopping affect your relationships? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
The Daily Grind: How many games can you play at once?
Most of us here at Massively play multiple MMORPGs, and we're betting a large majority of the readership does as well. Whether it's the standard main game and one or two flings on the side, or the game-hopping manifesto that compels us to try anything and everything that comes down the pipe, everyone has his own method for enjoying his favorite genre. The only problem is that of time. Personally I don't have enough of it, as I could retire tomorrow and still never get to try all the games that interest me. Currently, it's all I can do to manage two "main" games and sample several others on a weekly and sometimes monthly basis. What about you, Massively readers? How many MMOs can you realistically play at once?
Diary of a game hopper
Are you a game hopper? Do you find yourself continuously dissatisfied with the quality of MMOs, yet continue to jump on the latest and greatest upon release? I think it's safe to say that there are many game hoppers out there, especially as the quantity of games sharply increases.In a recent editorial piece at IGN, Char gives us an idea of what it's like to be a fairly extreme version of a game hopper. As an example, "I have been known to be out in the world somewhere, questing or adventuring when I will just stop, log out then head to the account screen of the particular game in question and just cancel, never to go back." The article goes on to explain reasons that they've left a particular game and moved on to others. If you often find yourself doing the same thing, or feeling the same way about the current selection of MMOs, you may want to take a look at this article. It's entertaining, and brings up some very valid points on how some games can so easily lose their customers.
