ImaJAN Media Network
MeltedJoystick Home
   Games  Members
Search +
Searching... Close  
Are you sure you want to delete this comment?
  
 
  Login Using Facebook
Twitter
 
     

Of MMOs and Glazed Donuts

View Nelson Schneider's Profile

By Nelson Schneider - 10/04/15 at 03:22 PM CT

Since I started writing for MeltedJoystick, I have done something I never thought I would do. I did not do this uncharacteristic thing once, but twice. What is this strange, alien, Lovecraftian affront to reason that I did? I played – and enjoyed – a Massively Multi-Player Online game.

When MMOs were first a thing, they were universally MMORPGs. And these MMORPGs took one aspect traditionally found in RPGs – grinding – and made it the entire purpose of the game. Early MMOs like “Everquest” weren’t too keen on telling a story or presenting a unique and engaging set of gameplay mechanics. No, they were intent on getting people to pay a monthly fee and then forcing everything in-game to take an unreasonably long amount of time in order to string subscribers players along for many, many months. These early MMORPGs were the games we still see stereotyped in other media when ‘normal’ characters talk about dysfunctional characters with online gaming addictions – sitting at a PC, keyboard and mouse only, playing for days on end without a break. This type of MMO could even be deadly to those with particularly addictive personality types. In short, I wanted nothing to do with a game that would a) require an online subscription in the dial-up era, b) feature grinding as the core gameplay mechanic, c) force reliance on other people to pull their weight in a party, and d) allow universal open Player vs. Player fighting.

When I made my return to PC gaming in the 7th Gen, I discovered that MMORPGs had changed. Indeed, many MMO games exist that aren’t RPGs at all. However, my first exposure to a modern MMO was indeed a Korean Action RPG called “Dragon Nest.” All of the MeltedJoystick crew played this game and found it completely different from what we expected. At first I thought “Dragon Nest” might be some sort of aberration, but when I ended up playing through “Defiance” (a MMO Third-Person Shooter), I found a number of mechanical similarities between the two that seem to be the new bog-standard for MMO games in general.

The new standard state of MMOs really pissed off the no-lifers who actually enjoyed the awful way MMOs used to be, but in exchange made the entire genre a lot more accessible. Modern MMOs are generally solo-friendly, allowing a player to simply go online and play some missions/quests/etc. or do some grinding without having to choreograph an entire party of other folks. Modern MMOs leave their horrible, super-difficult content to Raids, a special type of end-game boss battle that typically relies on one-hit party wipes to keep the no-lifers engaged (of course, if they had their way, the entire game would be as punishing as a Raid). Modern MMOs segregate PvP into special arenas, and no longer charge monthly fees (in most cases). Most importantly (and most aggravating to the no-lifers) is the fact that modern MMOs now incorporate a ‘Daily’ mechanic, limiting the amount of time a player can earn meaningful progress within a 24-hour period while simultaneously providing a player with specific goals (that provide greater rewards than simply grinding at random) that refresh every 24-hours. Some games also have Weeklies and Monthlies to motivate players over a longer time-frame.

Of course, Dailies may be a nice way to limit the amount of time terminal MMO players spend logged-in, forcing them to step away from the keyboard for a moment to do something MMO players tend to neglect, like eat or shower, but they are also a very good way to hook in other people who might not be as easily addicted as the typical MMO fan. When “Dragon Nest” offered special prizes for logging in and ‘playing’ (even if it was standing idle in town) for several hours per day during holiday events, I went out of my way to get credit. And since I was already logged in, playing some Daily quests for extra experience and gold didn’t seem like that bad of an idea. Likewise, when “Defiance” hosted special holiday-themed events in the open-world part of the game which dropped special holiday-themed weapons and weapon mods, I made it a point to play for a while every day of the events in an attempt to fully mod-out a purple rarity version of certain appealing weapons.

Even outside of time-limited events, Dailies can be an insidious way to encourage players to grind a little bit every day. Spacing out the grinding makes it less onerous, and the hour-or-two per day it takes to do Dailies isn’t the all-consuming life-suck that leveling in “Everquest” was. Despite the attempts to smooth out the jagged edges of the MMO design philosophy, the entire genre is still a lot like a glazed donut.

What? How does that make sense? Have I lost my mind? MMOs, like donuts?!

Modern MMOs start out sweet and delicious. They give the player a taste of good fun that doesn’t eat up a lot of time. It’s like going to the bakery in the morning and buying a nice, tasty glazed donut. That first donut tastes so good that it seems like a good idea to go ahead and buy three dozen of them so you can have a donut every morning. So you do. Every day, you eat a glazed donut… and for the first dozen it seems like your idea to commit to eating a donut every day was a fantastic move. So good. So tasty. Always there.

By the second dozen donuts, however, things are starting to get a little old. You’ve eaten glazed donuts every day for so long that you’re starting to get sick of them. Having a waffle or McDonald’s sausage biscuit would be a great change of pace… but you’ve got to eat these damned donuts until they’re gone.

By the third dozen donuts… ugh… “I don’t want any more donuts!” you cry. But no one hears you and you just keep plugging away at that box of donuts. Glazed donuts are notorious for their short shelf life, and now not only are you stuck eating donuts you’re tired of, but they’ve gone completely stale and turned into rock-hard monstrosities. Heating them up in the microwave just causes them to off-gas nauseating, sugary fumes that cause your gorge to rise as you bring the donut to your mouth for bite after arduous bite. As you swallow that last donut, you vow never to eat one again…

But then one day you walk by the bakery and see how nice and fresh the NEW glazed donuts look, and the cycle starts anew.

Modern MMOs are exactly like that. Once you’re committed to doing Dailies, you need to keep doing them until an arbitrary reward threshold it met – be it reaching the level cap or some other mechanic, like saving up enough of a specific in-game currency to buy a specific item. Missing a day can frequently break some sort of log-in streak or simply waste an opportunity to build-up points. Upon reaching this threshold where doing Dailies no longer accomplishes anything meaningful, it is possible to break free… but only until the next increase in level cap, or limited event, or other tool specifically designed to pull players back in.

The only way to stay free of an MMO after breaking free of it is to ignore it. Learning about new mechanics or in-game changes is a sure-fire way to restart the cycle of doing the Daily Grind until the next arbitrary threshold. Don’t walk by the bakery. Just stay away!

Share:    
MeltedJoystick Gaming Blog RSS Feed
Comments
4 comments
Name: 

Avoid spam Captcha: Sign Up + or Log In +   



 
View Nelson Schneider's Profile

Nelson Schneider

Wrote on10/10/15 at 04:56 PM CT

I agree wholeheartedly, DB. Unfortunately, Nick seems dead set on roping the rest of the MJ crew into a bunch of unsatisfying mobile phone games. Between Chris obsessing over Clash of Clans, Nick obsessing over Ingress, and both of them obsessing over Game of War - NONE of which have any point other than PvP - it's pretty easy to see why I'm the only one producing a significant number of reviews recently.

Write on Profile +

View dbarry_22's Profile

dbarry_22

Wrote on10/08/15 at 03:26 PM CT

I won't play a game unless I see an "end" to it. I really don't see the point of playing a game that requires grinding and many many hours unless I know I can beat it in the end. I do understand the argument that it's about who you play with and the enjoyment you get playing with your friends, but if that's going to be the case I'd rather play multiplayer components of games that have a beatable solo part. For example, Mario Kart, Smash Bros., sport's games, heck even FPS.

I just don't have time anymore to dump dozens of hours into a game just to do it, I have too many other games to still play and enjoy. I refuse to get in that endless unsatisfying circle.

Write on Profile +

View Chris's Profile

Chris

Wrote on10/07/15 at 09:07 PM CT

I dipped my toe in the original MMORPG, but somehow I never fell into the trap. I think all MMOs, regardless of setup, are massive time-consumers - casual or hardcore - sometimes you can do them in moderation, but if you ever want to truly advance, it's going to take part of your day (sometimes a part of every day) to do so. I think MOBAs are the same way - but purely focusing on team-based PvP (something I know we all just love). Maybe one day we'll get sucked into that world- God help us all.

Write on Profile +

View Matt's Profile

Matt

Wrote on10/04/15 at 09:54 PM CT

How true! Fortunately, I was never able to eat the donuts every day so that they didn't get too old. That being said, I remember friends in college not sleeping for days because of the Ever-crack, and the hope to sell their gear on eBay. I too had no interest in such games. But the modern MMO is tolerable and even fun at times. The negative is, as you point out, the amount of times you play through the same encounter is a bit much. I always found the desire to sell loot to then buy better gear a drive to play the level one more time. It is perplexing how to fix this. The game would become enormous with all unique content.

Write on Profile +

Bloggers

Previous Blog Posts

Archive

All Posts

March 2024

February 2024

January 2024

December 2023

November 2023

October 2023

September 2023

August 2023

July 2023

June 2023

May 2023

April 2023

March 2023

February 2023

January 2023

December 2022

November 2022

October 2022

September 2022

August 2022

July 2022

June 2022

May 2022

April 2022

March 2022

February 2022

January 2022

December 2021

November 2021

October 2021

September 2021

August 2021

July 2021

June 2021

May 2021

April 2021

March 2021

February 2021

January 2021

December 2020

November 2020

October 2020

September 2020

August 2020

July 2020

June 2020

May 2020

April 2020

March 2020

February 2020

January 2020

December 2019

November 2019

October 2019

September 2019

August 2019

July 2019

June 2019

May 2019

April 2019

March 2019

February 2019

January 2019

December 2018

November 2018

October 2018

September 2018

August 2018

July 2018

June 2018

May 2018

April 2018

March 2018

February 2018

January 2018

December 2017

November 2017

October 2017

September 2017

August 2017

July 2017

June 2017

May 2017

April 2017

March 2017

February 2017

January 2017

December 2016

November 2016

October 2016

September 2016

August 2016

July 2016

June 2016

May 2016

April 2016

March 2016

February 2016

January 2016

December 2015

November 2015

October 2015

September 2015

August 2015

July 2015

June 2015

May 2015

April 2015

March 2015

February 2015

January 2015

December 2014

November 2014

October 2014

September 2014

August 2014

July 2014

June 2014

May 2014

April 2014

March 2014

February 2014

January 2014

December 2013

November 2013

October 2013

September 2013

August 2013

July 2013

June 2013

May 2013

April 2013

March 2013

February 2013

January 2013

December 2012

November 2012

October 2012

September 2012

August 2012

July 2012

June 2012

May 2012

April 2012

March 2012

February 2012

January 2012

December 2011

November 2011

October 2011

September 2011

August 2011

July 2011

June 2011

May 2011

April 2011

March 2011

February 2011

 
Log In
 
For members wanting to use FB to login, click here
remember me
 
 

What Members Are Doing

Comments about...

New Game Reviews

NiGHTS: Journey of Dreams game review by Megadrive
Sunset Overdrive game review by Chris Kavan
The Vagrant game review by Chris Kavan
Honkai: Star Rail game review by Chris Kavan
Assassin's Creed IV: Black... game review by Nelson Schneider
Tiny Tina's Wonderlands game review by Nelson Schneider
Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart game review by Nelson Schneider
Cthulhu Saves Christmas game review by Nick

New Game Lists

Backlog by Nelson Schneider
Top Wii Games by Megadrive
My Backlog by Chris Kavan
Games I Own: Switch Digital by dbarry_22
Top Nintendo (NES) Games by Nick
Backlog by Matt
Top Game List by SIngli6
Top Game List by Jonzor

 

 

 

Contact Us Public Relations MeltedJoystick Friends    

Advertise and Business

Contacts Us

Jobs

About us

SiteMap

 

Support Us

FAQ and Help

News and Press

Terms of Use

Privacy

Hitfix.com

Amazon.com

OVGuide.com

   
Are you sure you want to delete this comment?
  
Are you sure you want to delete this blog?