high_jinx

i've just been thinking lately about how i have all the gear, including a nice pc, steam, a ps3, and a bluetooth headset... yet i still 99% stick to single player mode or games in general.

for instance, borderlands is probably my favorite game right now, but only barely tried the multi player.

the most social i ever was online was probably on wow, but even then i never guild raided or even used voice or vent much.

whats your ratio of solo to online play? if you're like me and came from the old school of non-line games, how did you make the jump? finally, how do you find friends that you can vibe with on there without having met them first?

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-my phobia drowned while i was gettin down.

Jinn

I was a nintendo to super nintendo to genesis to sega cd to n64 kind of gamer, but once the original EverQuest came out I kind of jumped on board. I can't really even play single player games anymore, because of the value-added enjoyment of virtual boasting and playing with or against other players. I get so bored of single player games if I can't show people all my cool stuff. Borderlands is a great example of a game I couldn't imagine playing without showing people my new awesome acid rifle while we did some online questing. I'd wager most people online are OK to deal with.. even the 12 year olds I can handle as long as it's a cooperative game like Borderlands. I say just jump into it and play with random people.. actual friendships will develop relatively quickly.

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"I'm typing on a computer of science, which is being sent by science wires to a little science server where you can access it. I'm not typing on a computer of philosophy or religion or whatever other thing you think can be used to understand the universe because they're a poor substitute in the role of understanding the universe which exists independent from ourselves." - Willravel

EventHorizon

sometimes video games function better as stories to be told rather than social entertainment.

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Does Marcellus Wallace have the appearance of a female canine? Then for what reason did you attempt to copulate with him as if he were a female canine?

Quote:

Originally Posted by canuckguy Pretty simple really, do your own thing as long as it does not fuck with anyone's enjoyment of life.

Alchemus

I'm a mostly story mode gamer. Almost all of my gaming is done offline. The few games I have played online include Assassin's Creed Brotherhood, Killzone 2, and Tron Evolution (which was surprisingly fun). I do think this will change when Star Wars: The Old Republic is released though. I prefer playing with people in the same room, so fighting games are my biggest non-line multiplayer experiences.

high_jinx

ok so i've tried borderlands online a couple times now and also dipped into tf2 a bit. it's not bad but it's a little too random... i'll get d/c'd at random in borderlands and in both it's pretty much too busy to start chatting. i don't really see how i'll make friends online. i might have to bump into some people in town and play with them eventually i guess. or i could go back to wow.

__________________
-my phobia drowned while i was gettin down.

ironpham

As far as tf2 is concerned, it took me a REALLY long time to start making friends. I think it was like a year before someone decided to add me as a friend. The trick there is to become a regular on a server and do something to get noticed (being really good or doing some extremely goofy stuff like taunt killing). Alternatively, you could just start adding people yourself and hope someone sticks.

In general, if you want to make friends over games, you just have to start talking. If you say/do something wrong, they're not going to care. Besides, you shouldn't worry about what other people think of you. Just jump in and start having fun.

Check out the L4D2 thread and you'll find some people there who are setting up times to play that. Join on in.

Also, if you want to add me on steam, here's my id: Steam Community :: ID :: DOOMTRAIN

I haven't played too many games recently, but that doesn't mean I won't if you ask me.

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Vaultboy

I bought my XBox for the social aspect, and I rarely play single player only games these days. Playing with my Xbros (many of whom have become irl friends) is definately more fun. The only single player games that have endured for me are RPGs, and I probably only put in 60% of the time in to them that I used to. On PC, the only games I play these days are pvp.

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"Failing tastes of bile and dog vomit. Pity any man that gets used to that taste."

Baraka_Guru

I enjoy the social aspect of gaming, but I understand the difference between that and game story or immersion.

The problem I have with MMOs is that I like roleplaying. When I go to a place like Azeroth, I don't like being reminded that back on earth there are leet-speaking trash-talking idiots. Powergaming and metagaming are the norm in WoW, and that's fine, but it would also explain why I prefer questing. Solo questing is fun to me, because it makes me feel heroic. I've had many cases where one or two quest partners were with me and into the game enough so as to not disrupt the immersion. The talk was mostly talk of the game in terms of lore and quest elements, rather than about abilities, leveling, and gear drops. That and joking around, of course.

I'm coming from old-school roleplaying. And I spent a couple of years on a "heavy RP" server of Neverwinter Nights, where overtly breaking character in the open is frowned upon and consistently doing so can get you banned. That server represented the best online game experience I've ever had. Full of dedicated players and dungeon masters alike.

Your positive experiences in gaming are based on what you like and going out and finding it. Sometimes it can be difficult, and sometimes you have to compromise and take what you can get.

There is a lot out there now. It's just a matter of doing the research and then following up.

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Knowing that death is certain and that the time of death is uncertain, what's the most important thing?
—Bhikkhuni Pema Chödrön

Humankind cannot bear very much reality.
—From "Burnt Norton," Four Quartets (1936), T. S. Eliot

high_jinx

i have a very similar background. i did a lot of pen and paper games from d&d to tmnt etc... and if i don't have 1) an enjoyable story line to follow and 2) someone to react to it and share it with, i can't stay focused on it. exhibit A is that i have about 40 toons in wow but have never had a max level character.

i just haven't had any success in teaming up with someone that shares all those pve quests in wow or borderlands and i think if i score that it'd pop the cork on my online gaming.

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-my phobia drowned while i was gettin down.