MMO: Why do people not play together?

Being in a guild is the number one way to play with other players imo. Not all guilds are time consuming.

I've been playing with the same guild of people for about 8 years now across many games. We all know each other pretty well and can insult each other and joke around without anyone getting offended. I have a really bad taste for PUGs ever since playing Dungeons and Dragons Online for a long time. Gaming for me is much more enjoyable when I know my party members know what they're doing to keep things efficient. This is why I rarely ever party with randoms.

But the number one reason I solo in this game is because I don't have to share resources with others. I don't even group up with guild members in this game unless we're trying to tackle a specific quest are difficult area or someone needs help. Such as when one of my guildies needed someone to help him tame some spiders to get his taming up. I helped him by kiting spiders while he attempted to tame them for about 2 hours. He gave me one as compensation though. I'd be much more inclined to play in multiplayer mode if resources weren't first come first serve. As in, each node can be harvested by separate players, but that could lead some people to multiboxing for resources. Also, if multiplayer wasn't so laggy at times.

 

We're sharing a sandbox. I don't need to have you help me build a sandcastle for me to appreciate the idea that I'm not alone.

Some kids will build a bigger sandcastle as a group, others will try to knock the sandcastles down.

Like it or not, all of these people are involved in a community.

It's not so much that the MMO genre "evolved"; it's that MMOs are casting a wider net and a large portion of the people caught don't want to deal with some of the crap that comes with community when the other people are anonymous.

 

stepping onto soapbox...

This is the main reason I play FPO or SPO and very rarely MMO. I believe I can mostly trust people that are friends that i have played many games with (in my guild) and I enjoy grouping with them very much. We have a lot of fun because there is mutual respect and trust that we are all on the same page and will not end with someone getting stabbed in the back when they least suspect it.

In contrast, I really don't have time for all the drama that seems to always come with MMO's. In my many years of experience, "some" anonymous people in MMO's just do what they want, when they want, regardless of the effect it has on others (la-la-la) and I really want no part of the trauma drama that results. I just have no time or patience for peoples BS and why should I have to deal with that anyway? Just to be clear, I am not talking about the few of you that actually care about the effects of your actions on others and also actually care about helping other people in general (kudos by the way for you all have a lot more patience than I do and I heartily applaud you for that).

So I play the game the way I want, I have tried to be the social butterfly and be friendly towards others in the MMO environment but time after time it just proves to end the same way with me getting disappointed in humans yet again. So for me it is just not worth the effort anymore. End of story....

stepping down from soapbox...

 

I think all the explanations in this thread cover one point very clearly!

~Time Lord~

 

Great discussion in this thread, and I'm gonna quote you all on it! For me, being mostly a single player gamer my whole life, I delved into it with UO. Why? I loved Ultima VI & VII. The open, seamless world was such a great shift in gameplay. It felt so immersive. However, it is a single player game. I had an end at some point so that world goes away. When I saw UO was using that same seamless style, I was instantly hooked. I knew it was going to be a challenge as a natural introvert but I gave it a shot. Started in October '97 (account still active!) and went through all of that PK nonsense. If you like it, great, but I don't and hated that they could just gank me whenever. I'm a cooperative player by nature, not into competition at all. They made Trammel and Felucca and all of a sudden I was a 'care bear'. Whatever, you're just mad you can't kill whoever you want. So, bad first impression of other people. LOL. But, in the end, I played it because it was persistent. It was a living world with no end boss to finish the game. I could log in and time has passed while I was away. I loved that aspect. Others certainly didn't appreciate it. "Why do you play an MMO, then? Multiplayer is right in the name?" Shut up, that's why. No, seriously, I would try to explain but it fell on deaf ears. Oh, well.

I went through a lot of games since then while keeping UO active. I can't even think of them all. EQ, AC, AC2 (yeesh!), DAoC (probably my favorite, I even PvPed in the battleground to siege the central keeps. What a blast!), WoW, LotRO, Neverwinter, I know I'm forgetting some. I'm a glutton for punishment.

I did notice a trend starting to form. The less and less of a power gamer I was becoming as I got older, I saw people taking it to the extreme. Elitists, best gear, best builds, min/max to the max, the only 'real' way to play. So, yeah, I ran into trouble. Sometimes I'd get sucked into the rat race, but mostly not. I liked playing the character I liked, period. I grouped a lot and then grouped less and less as it became more work and less fun. I've been called newb even though I'd played since launch (hate that term), you're not wearing the right gear, your build is all wrong, why are you using that spell during boss fights? L2P your class, dude. Ok, enough.

So, yeah, I solo, like 90% of the time. I'm a quiet introvert and I don't play well with extreme extroverts, which there are many of in my experience. Could be I've had bad experiences, sure. I've been in a few guilds across the games but that required too much time invested when I usually didn't have it. I couldn't just raid a dungeon for 6 hours straight, I have stuff to do, I need to take breaks here and there. It sucks adulting, we all know it. I did one full raid into Caer Sidi in DAoC. 40 people, I believe. I think I was helping. It was a bunch of running through, stopping only to fight bosses and then a wild light show of particle effects and then the next one. The ending boss was ridiculous. It took forever, you had certain people wiping, clerics rezzing while other groups were in, whittling him down, dealing with adds, ugh. Last raid I went on and how old is that game now? LOL.

TL;DR: I agree with these quotes, they speak to me. I'm an introvert, don't group often at all.

^ This.

Unfortunately, yes. Consistent time is tough.

Yep, I could be on for an hour and need to do a few things before bed. Someone wants to group and I hate being an old poop. Even worse when they RP. I would love to do this but it's either type for an hour or play. Stinks.

Yes, I've tried to initiate in other games and this which is understandably tough for me. Usually you get ignored but there have been games where I've been made fun of, sure.

It stems from my single player personality, but yes. I like to 'stop and smell the roses' now and then. I may not have done a quest area and don't want to just run though it with someone who's done it 100 times. I get it's boring for them but I'll just solo it then so I can take my time.

+1000 for the great quotes! (is that even a thing?)

MMOs were MMOs at one time but I noticed a growing contingent of soloers and/or casuals that want to be involved. I think end game players see us as hurting their game experience by having things made easier to accommodate our playstyle. It's an MMO after all. If you don't have the time required and don't want to group, don't play. I disagree, and clearly games are taking that into account since we make up a good portion of the population. I'm not asking anyone to stop what they're doing but you're gonna have to move over a bit and make room because there's nothing wrong with the way we play either.

 

1) Lag
2) Lack or goals, common or otherwise. The game isn't really finished yet and I have no idea what I'm doing. There's no point to a group of people doing this.
3) Competition rather than synergy. In say GW2 nodes and drops are more or less duplicated so that it's stupid not to work together.

 

Your experience couldn't be further from mine...I intended to play SotA Online Multi-player in a mostly solo fashion just to see other people in the world, but now every-time I'm in a scene and I see another person I ask if the want to team up.....and 99% of the time they say yes. I must have been asked to join about 10 guilds now after teaming up with various guild dudes...(declined all)

This is the most social fun I've have in a game in a long time...

I even have a semi-regularish group of "friends" now that when we see each other online we attempt to team up...Last night was awesome shout outs to:
Wyce
Cunning Stranger
Kor
Essex

And the multitude of guilds that let me run with you...


*Edit please add more tools to sort and manage our friends lists, mine is getting out of control.

 

Yep this is also my other reason

 

I played UO on the day it was released. In a sense it was a grand social experiment. I loved all the people roaming about.

I didn't like the PK - although I did see a place for it - it just got out of hand. I used to bait the PK'ers by dressing as a jester, hurling Monty Python inspired insults at them, sicking my flock of rabbits on them, and then fleeing towards town to let the Guards take them out.

I usually play solo; but, like informal groups if I'm in an instance, etc. I only have a few hours. I find guilds too exclusive to outsiders (not all- but in general- at least in perception) so I have rarely joined one. I like to interact with others and try to be helpful.

The mean people get bit by rabbits. Not enough people playing online with each other IMO.

It would be good to give incentives for people to play multiplayer online by giving more XP, loot, exclusive drops, etc. The game will make more money and last if it is filled with online interactions.

Keep it fun, be fun.

 

I want to play in MPO, but I'd disillusioned by humanity. Nearly every time I'm on in MPO, except to attend community events, I meet one of those people who makes me weep for our future, so I end up switching to FPO to avoid those types. I'm glad to have joined a guild where folks seem pretty decent, so that will be a nice step forward. Plus, I'm trying to level up crafting, which is all but impossible except in SPO.

To date, I've done a lot of mode switching. I hope to do less moving forward.

 

Just to prove a point...jumped in for a quick lunch time run through Twins foothills, I see some dude I never met before named Lapis... I used my famous pickup line "wanna team up?"...."sure". Good times, 1.5 hours later, another friend added to the list.

Dam if only meeting new people was this easy in real life...

 

In my case I dont have the time to dedicated to play all that much in an Alpha or Beta stage project...I pop in and out now that the last wipe is done, but Am limited in my time.

 

Nice to see another BrownCoat

 

I think this is part of a broader trend in gaming that extends beyond MMO's. It seems that once people establish their core group of online friends they are usually content staying within that group. When Ultima Online launched, there were no pre-existing guilds and most of us didn't know anyone else, so making new friends was just part of the game experience. Now whenever a game launches, many players join as part of an established guild and they can experience the full game with that guild My understanding is that console gaming has changed in similar ways, where global voice chat is being used less and less, with most players forming parties and only chatting with their friends. I didn't own an Xbox in the early days of Xbox Live, but I have heard that it was much easier to meet people and make friends in those days, whereas today very few people will even talk to you.

 

For me the sole reason for me playing Friends online or Single player online only is because creatures and resource nodes are not plentiful and since resource are not instanced in multiplayer for everyone like GW2 I am better off not being in multi-player. I wish this weren't the case but there's no reason to fight for the few creatures and resources available in each small scene if I don't have to.

 

You part of this Brown Coats? I'm there in SC too.

 

I usually play on SPO and is not for the resources. I only play with people when some of my friends are connected. I don't want to be disrespectful with the players that come and talk to me and reward them with my silence... so I prefer to be alone.

Anyway, the world is still running with or without me. The market is open, the vendors are full, players in the streets having fun together, etc

I think this is the sense of the selective mode... If you like chat/share or be a loner/greedy it's your decision

 

My wife and I play together but seldom group up with others. We are just anti social. I don't even have a Myface account.
JK, but in all honesty, we are just enjoying duoing atm but will definitely group up for more group related content, ie... bosses, crypts, etc...
Years of guilds behind us so absolutely no issues playing well with others, on or off TS/Vent/Discord.

 

I would say hi but I don't know how to get to resolute.. =) Hell I used to know how to get to Owls head but now I can't find the boat around or in Adoris to get me there.

John

 

I've found that the main reason why people don't play together in open world games is because different people prefer a different pace of gameplay. To someone who likes taking their time, explore everything, carefully go through fights pulling one monster at a time, and just generally working through the game at a steady pace it very quickly becomes stressful and frustrating if even just a single person in the group likes to rush through everything, pulls tons of monsters, never stops to look at anything, and sets a much higher pace. Likewise for someone who likes to get through content quickly and efficiently and is always trying to push how many enemies they can take on simultaneously it gets frustrating to team up with someone who slows them down, takes unnecessary detours, and isn't always going to be there to dive into the fight.