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The Daily Grind: Do you socialize differently in-game?
Some people are just naturally more social than others. Some of us have no trouble talking to new people, asking questions, making friends, and generally interacting with our fellow humans. Others struggle to even make eye contact with the cashier at the local McDonald's for fear of somehow screwing things up. But whether or not you're a social person, how you behave often depends on the situation you find yourself in -- such as whether you're in the real world or trying to get four random strangers to attack the darn skull-marked target first. There are those of us who go from being a shy and insular person in the real world to a social butterfly when we get online, and there are those of us who perform the exact opposite transformation and barely say a word. And then there are people who don't change much, who are just as shy or outgoing as they are in day-to-day life despite the change of venues. Do your social traits change when you log in? Or do you tend to stay the same in the virtual world? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of our 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 The Daily Grind!
Breakfast Topic: Beta grief
Although the Wrath of the Lich King Beta has been up for months now, I acquired my key rather late, and one thing I noticed right off the bat is that the quality of player behavior takes a sharp dive on the realms. It's a well-known fact that Internet anonymity morphs regular people into asshats, but because Beta testers are not connected to their guilds, in-game names, realms or friends, evidently, the anonymity factor hits the roof. My minty new Death Knight had her deathcharger "stolen" from her, among other things, and mobs and pick-up items are high commodities. The general chat is filled with derision and insults, and the extreme lag helps none of this. What kinds of experiences have you had in the Beta, with either surprisingly helpful players or extremely aggravating ones?
