griefing
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'Red Dead Online' will turn the tables on griefers
Red Dead Online fans have been fairly vocal about their issues with the game since its launch in November. The in-game economy, lack of missions and griefing are just some of the more commonly cited problems, but Rockstar Games is taking steps to address this. On February 26th Red Dead Online will be getting a big update which, Rockstar hopes, will improve things.
'Fallout 76' deals with trolls by making them part of the game
When Bethesda mentioned that Fallout 76 was an online game, you could hear alarm bells ringing in fans' heads. How were they going to deal with the inevitable trolls who come in to ruin other players' fun? Now we know: it's making them a part of the game. In a presentation at QuakeCon, game lead Todd Howard revealed that people who kill unwilling victims will get bounties on their heads, with the money coming out of their total cap balance (that is, currency) and reflecting their character level. They'll also be impossible to miss -- you'll see a red star on the map.
Turbine pledges to act on LotRO player event griefing
Concern over trolls disrupting and griefing player-run events in Lord of the Rings Online has been hitting our inboxes here at Massively, which is why it's good to see Turbine take an official position today against such griefing in the future. According to a post on the forums, the studio will be "making a concerted effort" to combat trolls and encourage the continuation of player-run events. GMs pledged to take action on help tickets as well as monitor such events as they occur, but said that it will limit such policing efforts to stage areas only. "We know that players moving throughout the performance area on mounts can be particularly frustrating and distracting," the studio said. "To combat this problem we're looking into what options are available to help combat this behavior in designated performance (stage) areas. We'll also be removing players who are mounted from the stage area manually in the meantime." [Thanks to George for the tip!]
Warlords of Draenor: PvP now requires active flagging on PvE realms
Have you ever been quietly minding your own business on the Timeless Isle, or attacking a world raid boss like Ordos, only to find yourself accidentally flagged for PvP due to a misclick or tab target gone horribly wrong? Earlier this year, Bashiok mentioned that one of the goals for PvE realms was to keep players from accidentally flagging themselves -- and in a tweet by Ion Hazzikostas, it's been confirmed that this has now been implemented on the beta. @holinka @swirlyball @Bashiok You must manually /pvp flag if you want to attack a player on a PvE server. No more misclicks or baiting. - Watcher (@WatcherDev) August 28, 2014 This means no more accidental flagging for players that are simply trying to DPS or quest out in the open world on PvE realms. And this also applies to healers as well -- healers will simply not be able to heal flagged players unless they choose to actively flag for PvP. Naturally this issue isn't a problem on PvP realms, but for players on PvE realms, the change in Warlords should be a welcome relief. When players make the choice to roll on a PvE realm, that choice is usually a deliberate one that's made to avoid the hassle of unwanted world PvP situations. It's nice to see that steps are finally being taken to keep PvP on PvE realms what it was meant to be -- an optional experience that you can choose to participate in, rather than be tricked into whether you're willing or not.
Watch Dogs mobile griefing app out today
Ubisoft's mobile companion app for Watch Dogs is now available on Android and iOS, and gives players the opportunity to interact with others in the game's online sections. Though the word "companion" doesn't have the same ring to it in the "ctOS Mobile" app, as players use it to mess with others' surroundings in an attempt to thwart their attempts to reach the finish line in both race and free ride modes. For instance, players within the ctOS Mobile app can control a Chicago PD helicopter and go on the hunt for their rivals, controlling ctOS devices within the helicopter's range like road blockers and traffic lights to halt other players. Mobile players will also dispatch Chicago police units like squad cars and SWAT teams and upgrade their effectiveness. As app users complete challenges, they earn experience and skill points, with which they can enhance their police arsenal as well as their own abilities. The app is free to download and doesn't require that players own the console game. Ubisoft has a list of its compatible devices on its blog. Our review of Watch Dogs, now available today, notes that the game is "a more fluid and modern power fantasy than we're used to," likening players in the game to being a wizard. [Image: Ubisoft]
The Daily Grind: Do you separate your in-game and out-of-game behavior?
CCP recently released an official statement condemning out-of-EVE harassment. In that same statement, though, the company said that in-game bad behavior is not only acceptable but essential to its version of a sandbox. The separation between player and player character is a common sentiment among MMO fans, of course, whether you're a griefer, a raider, or a roleplayer. What say you, Massively readers? Do you try to separate your in-game and out-of-game behavior, or are you the sum of your actions in both virtual worlds and meatspace? 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!
CCP: Real-life harassment 'morally reprehensible,' in-game villainy integral to EVE
EVE Online developer CCP has released an official statement regarding real-life harassment in the wake of the sandbox title's latest brouhaha. CCP Falcon says that the company, in collaboration with the player-powered Council of Stellar Management, "have agreed and would like to state in the strongest possible terms and in accordance with our existing Terms of Service and End User License Agreement, that real life harassment is morally reprehensible, and verifiable examples of such behavior will be met with disciplinary action against game accounts in accordance with our Terms of Service." The forum post also states that "the freedom to scam and commit piracy, espionage, and extortion are all fundamental to the EVE Online experience, and CCP will never change that." [Thanks Pierre!]
Here's some of the cyberbullying that happens in EVE Online
EVE Online griefers have grabbed their share of headlines during the game's first decade, but rarely have the masses gotten a chance to witness them in action. Now you can, though, thanks to a player named Erotica 1 who has publicized an audio recording of a "Bonus Round" scam being carried out via voice chat. Jester at EVE News 24 has the full story as well as a link to the Soundcloud file. It's worth noting that portions of the audio are NSFW due to graphic language. [Thanks Max!]
The Daily Grind: Does griefing in MMOs reflect a sinister personality?
A recent psychology paper picked up by Slate suggests that maybe there's more to bad behavior on the internet than previously thought. Researchers asked study participants to evaluate what they found most fun about commenting on the internet, then gave those same participants a personality test to determine their levels of sadism, narcissism, psychopathy, and Machiavellianism -- the "dark tetrad" of antisocial personality traits. (One of the agree/disagree statements on the personality exam? "I enjoy griefing other players in multiplayer games.") The researchers found a significant correlation between those who flagged as sadists and those who claimed to enjoy trolling and expressed "sadistic glee at the distress of others." While the study focused on the 5% of participants who cause comment moderators the most grief on the internet, over here in MMOland I'm wondering whether this study would map equally well to griefers in video games since we might define griefing in a virtual world the same way: causing someone distress because it's pleasurable for the griefer. That guy who ganks your lowbie and corpse camps you for an hour might not be so socially well-adjusted in the real world after all, in spite of what griefer-apologists have been claiming all these years. What do you folks think? Does griefing in MMOs reflect a sinister personality? 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!
Some Assembly Required: Pre-NGE SWG's proper sandbox PvP
A few weeks ago I ranted at indie sandbox devs who continue pumping out poorly conceived FFA PvP games. I didn't have any wordcount left at the end of that novella to propose any solutions, so I'm going to do that today. And hey, it's pretty simple, at least conceptually. All a dev team needs to do is iterate on Star Wars: Galaxies' pre-NGE PvP system.
EverQuest Next Landmark to focus on public building with possible private mode
EverQuest Next Landmark's building projects will mostly take place in public although there might be a "black box" mode for private endeavors, SOE discussed in a new roundtable discussion. The developers explained that this issue wasn't something that's ever come up in other games, since Landmark is so different. Thirty-seven percent of players polled said they would like to build their creations in public, which the team found encouraging. There was concern about griefing, which the devs said shouldn't be an issue. When you stake a claim in the world, you're the only person who can build on it unless you give friends or the entire public permission to change that area. The playerbase also expressed concern about how to keep their player studio projects a secret so that other players can't rip off their ideas. SOE will look into giving such players a way to develop in private, although Landmark will remain focused on public building. However, there will be no offline mode for building because SOE believes that it defeats the social aspect of the game. Landmark's beta will begin this winter, with dates to be announced "in the next month or so," according to Dave Georgeson. You can watch the full discussion after the break.
An early look at Phosphor's survival pseudo-MMO Nether
When I first learned I'd be jetting off to meet with Phosphor Games for a first look at its upcoming title Nether, I must admit I wasn't enthusiastic. I expected to see just another zombie-esque first-person shooter in a genre already overstuffed with shotguns and undead targets. But now that I've seen the demo in person, I might just have changed my mind. It's not really an MMO, not with 64 people on a map, but it's certainly skirting the boundaries; I'd consider it a happy marriage between Left 4 Dead and DayZ, so it's certainly the type of game fans of post-apocalyptic survival pseudo-MMOs will want to watch. The game's backstory features a near-future world, about a decade after a major mutation event called "the Cull" in the game's lore. Thanks to the Cull, the majority of the population transformed into zombies violent mutated humanoid creatures. I guess there's an attempt to avoid the classic zombie trope in Nether, but who's fooled, really?
Building the perfect fortress in Camelot Unchained [Updated]
The Camelot Unchained team has just released a new video dev blog for Kickstarter backers outlining some fairly ambitious plans for mining and construction in the upcoming PvE-free sandbox. The system will involve combinations of custom and prefab cells in which players so inclined can build up the empires and trading posts and fortifications of their dreams. And in a nod to games like Minecraft, the construction mechanics are built on a foundation of supplies procured through co-op mining gameplay. Ahead of the reveal, we asked City State Entertainment's Mark Jacobs a few questions about the systems he's proposing, from the influence of Mojang's popular sandbox to whether mining will become my new part-time job. Read on for the complete interview! [Update: As of Monday, CSE has also released the document form of the housing plans.]
Blizzard to fix exploit with Diablo III's votekick system
Playing Diablo III in Hardcore mode is a harrowing experience. No matter how good you are as a player, there's always the real worry that one careless move will mean the end of a character you've worked hard to level. Unfortunately, sometimes that careless move is simply playing in a public game, as griefers have been exploiting the votekick system to cause players to die and lose everything through no fault of their own. As it currently stands, a player who has been kicked by popular vote will be rooted in place for 10 seconds while the character is ejected. Griefers have used this to kick players in the middle of monster-heavy rooms, resulting in 10 seconds of uninterrupted monster beatdowns with no chance of reprieve. So how to fix this? Well, Blizzard plans to remove the 10 second lockout in the near future to ensure that a kicked player can still move and respond rather than get pointlessly murdered. There's no word on whether this will be a hotfix or rolled into a larger patch, but it's definitely on the horizon. Until it goes live, though, you might not want to have your hardcore characters on a public game.
Let the blood be spilled
Blizzard Community Manager Daxxarri has taken again to the forums to weigh in on a thread bemoaning level 90s ganking on PvP servers. While it is hardly news that max-level players will occasionally take the opportunity to grief or gank lower level players, indeed, it's been a state of play that's existed pretty much since the game began, CRZ has likely increased the regularity and severity of these occurrences. There seem to be two vying camps of opinion on this issue, and it's pretty clear from his posts which one Daxxarri falls into: Daxxarri This is going to sound weird, and while I do empathize with the frustration that's being expressed in this thread, this conversation still warms the cockles of my black little heart. Why? Because for too long there was very little distinction between playing on a PvE realm and playing on a PvP realm. We had inadvertently created a situation where there was little risk when leveling in the world on a PvP realm. The experiences were, for all practical purposes, virtually identical, but that wasn't what we had in mind. Life on a PvP realm can be nasty, brutish and short. Justice is in very short supply. Every action you take in the world carries with it an added level of risk, from questing, to hunting down profession materials, to simply traveling from place to place. You can be attacked at any time, sometimes by an overwhelming force. Of course, the shoe can also be on the other foot, and you'll be able to turn the tables on your attacker, or find clever ways to delay them or escape from them. Some will become roaming slayers, seeking out enemies to destroy. In short, the experience on a PvP server is different. We want it to be different, and that includes everything from honorable conflict on the field of battle to horribly despicable ganking. It's all part of the fabric that makes a PvP server what it is. Let the blood be spilled. source
The Game Archaeologist: Steve Nichols' The Realm Online debriefing, part 2
This week we continue our interview with Steve Nichols, one of the original lead developers on The Realm Online. After his work on this pioneering title, Nichols expanded his MMO resume with projects such as the never-seen Middle-earth Online (MEO), the seminal Freelancer, the PvP-centric Shadowbane, and the cult classic Dungeon Runners. These days, Nichols is with Retired Astronaut Collective, continuing to create games for all of us nutty players to enjoy. In this riveting conclusion to our talk on The Realm Online, Nichols discusses the difficulties of the game's promotions, lessons learned from his time on the project, and the sundry secrets of hanky-panky in this early MMO.
ArcheAge criminal system features jail time, player juries, and more
Bad behavior in free-form sandbox games is inevitable, but ArcheAge is adding an interesting wrinkle in the form of a criminal system which includes trials, prison time, and pirate status for repeat offenders. When you steal from protected property or kill a faction member, you leave behind clues in the form of blood or footprints. When a certain amount of said clues are turned in as evidence against you, you'll be faced with a choice of either a trial or immediate jail time upon your next death or login. Trials may increase or decrease your jail time depending on what the jurors (level 30 players who accept an invite) decide. If you end up doing time, you can kill rats, play soccer, or try to escape. While incarcerated, you lose access to your hotbars, and the penalty remains in effect for an unspecified time should you make a successful escape. While there are still several aspects of the criminal system that remain unclear, you can get a glimpse of it via the German-language video after the cut. [Thanks to Dengar for the tip!]
The Game Archaeologist: Steve Nichols' The Realm Online debriefing, part 1
It's been called one of "the internet's forgotten games," and yet there are those who will never forget the impact that The Realm Online had in their gaming lives. For some gamers in the mid-'90s, it was the very first taste of a graphical MMO. Though it was little more than two-dimensional cartoon graphics added to the then-standard MUD setup, The Realm Online nevertheless helped to forge a path to the brave new world of MMOs. The Realm, as it was originally called, was a project of Sierra On-Line. Development on the title began in late 1995, with a 1996 beta and launch following soon after. As with other early graphical MMOs, Sierra had little experience or comparisons to draw from while making The Realm but somehow made it work anyway. The resulting game featured a strong emphasis on roleplay, trade, and turn-based combat, although a robust questing experience this was not. Sierra On-Line never fully got behind The Realm, eventually selling it off to Codemasters in the early 2000s, which then turned around and handed off the title to its current operator, Norseman Games. To date, it's one of the longest continuously operating graphical MMOs in existence and can still be enjoyed by today's gamers. We reached out to one of the lead developers on The Realm Online, Stephen Nichols, who agreed to an interview on the condition that we give him a very big horn in a tent. Just kidding; the horn is from his private stock. Let's get to it!
Terror in the Mists: Clawing up the levels on a PvP realm
Playing on a PvP realm spins World of Warcraft in an entirely different direction. In this Azeroth, there's no such thing as "wait until I'm ready." Every single moment is rife with danger, even when you're merely trying to remain unnoticed long enough to race through a few dailies. Every player is ripe for the picking, whether you're fully healed and bristling with cooldowns or half-buried beneath an accidental overpull. Protest all you like -- if this isn't your cup of tea, you don't belong on a PvP realm. Danger is palpable. At any given moment, someone's likely to be lurking in the shadows with the specific intent of blocking your progress. If you're an Alliance player on Maelstrom (US), that somebody is likely to be a member of Horde Strike Force. "One of the first things you need to learn on a PvP realm is to expect the unexpected," explains Horde Strike Force GM Gug. "One of the second things you need to learn is to accept the fact that sometimes you're going to get attacked and killed by somebody or somebodies much more powerful or skilled than you are. The sooner you can absorb and roll with this, the faster you'll progress in level." "PvP leveling is not for the faint of heart," he continues. "You've got to be tough and able to react positively to negative situations. 'OK, I died but I can rez and go quest somewhere else for awhile' is a good code to live by while leveling. Don't get stuck in a rut; there are a lot of quest options out there. All this being said, the game doesn't get any more fun or alive and breathing than on a PvP realm. Once you go PvP, you never truly go back."
SOE Live 2012: PlanetSide 2 interviews emphasize universal appeal and focus on fun
Watching Creative Director Matt Higby in a failed trailer attempt or with Senior Art Director Tramell Isaac on Command Center videos, you get the idea that PlanetSide 2 developers are having fun. And talking to them in-person in an unscripted environment, you know they do. Whether listening to a panel at SOE Live or catching them randomly in a hall, their passion and enthusiasm for the game is unmistakable... and contagious. But fun wasn't the only theme present. In fact, the focus throughout the weekend convention can be described in three F words. (And no, not a one of them is the one you are thinking!) If you wanted to sum up the PlanetSide 2 message, its fun, friends, and the future. I was able to catch both Higby and Isaac over the weekend to talk with them about the emphasis on players telling their own stories, plans for bringing new players into the game, and the future of PS2. Keep reading to see what they have to say, and enjoy some Amerish concept art along with the continent's reveal trailer.
