Guild Wars 2

I wish that I got +1 one this more.

A lot of folks have legitimate complaints. There are bugs, there are bugs in DR, there are balance issues. I understand that. MMOs are big releases and it can be frustrating if you are hampered.

That said, there is a huge difference in how one criticizes or makes a complaint. The majority of posts I see are rants, and a lot of that subjective. “Fix this Now”. “Don’t tell me how to play”. “this is kitten!”. Etc. It seems many of the posters here lack basic social etiquette. I’m sure I’ll get flamed for saying that, but then I believe it to be true.

Those of us with a genuine love for the game can still be annoyed by the bugs and the imbalances and other issues. We can report it, we can suggest, and we keep playing. To the posters that rant and rave like a spoiled child, well I suggest you go elsewhere.

Well said, OP.

First of all, welcome to the forums. Excellent first post.

And I agree. A guildmate and I were discussing this very thing last night. He moonlights in another guild whose whole world seems to rotate around WvWvW, and as far as they’re concerned the game is “dead”. We can’t figure out how anyone could possibly get bored in GW2 when there is so much to do and enjoy. Sure, some things are glitched, but they’ll eventually be fixed…there’s plenty to do in the meantime. It boggles the mind.

But you’re always gonna have people like that. Just disregard them and get on with having a blast.

:)

Nice first post. All I can say is, to be a game designer these days, you have to have a thick skin, because the internet is where all the mean kids hang out. Some of the complaints are legitimate, but a lot of the complaining is just unproductive. I’m just glad people don’t decide whether or not to buy a game based on the forums, because if that was so nobody would ever buy computer games ever again.

Tanith.5264:

Sure, some things are glitched, but they’ll eventually be fixed…there’s plenty to do in the meantime. It boggles the mind.

But you’re always gonna have people like that. Just disregard them and get on with having a blast.

:)

I’ve come across a couple of glitches. Before reporting I checked the forum to see whether they’ve already been noted somewhere and then just moved on. Sure it’s annoying at the time but yeah they’ll likely be fixed at some point. I guess I’ve just been around these games long enough to have experienced that this weeks ‘omg the sky is falling’ to some people will be forgotten in month when another ‘omg’ comes up. (as long as it has been fixed of course).

It’s not that criticism is not valid it’s the freak out type that’s not really constructive and you have to sift through. Would I love a perfect game from release? Sure I would. I just don’t expect it. There will be bugs, and when bugs get fixed there will be other bugs. Things will change, especially with character balance. No MMO I’ve played isn’t in a constant state of class tweaking. This months OP class will be on the bottom in some other months. Rinse and repeat. In my other game during a year and half playing my main has been bottom, middle and top and I’ve watch my friends mains go through the same pattern. Same thing happened in my older game. Adjust, feedback adjust, feedback, adjust.

I don’t see why this game would be any different.

A large part of the negative atmosphere is probably the generation gap. Another large part is the group that wants this game to become more like <insert their previous game(s)>.

I play an Elementalist. Yes, I’m a bit frustrated and tired of the constant reduction in power, but I hold out hope that the balance and bug fixes will eventually come. I still enjoy playing the Ele in PvE, and still prefer that character to my others (330 out of 380 hours).

Bugs are always present. Programming on the side and professionally for over 20 years has taught me that. Any non-trivial program will have bugs. A huge program cannot ever be perfect, and an MMO is ALWAYS in constant flux with new things and balancing, so there are always new bugs and unseen bad interactions between old and new code.

As long as I see a fair number of bugs resolved, so the new ones don’t get too far ahead, and the developers and testers are doing their jobs effectively. A number of things cannot be amply tested for prior to release, because of population issues. A large population WILL do things that are unpredicted and not tested for. Testers also have limited time, massive workload, and are in general horribly under-appreciated. I know this personally as I worked as a professional tester and documenter (thankfully not for a game company).

I imagine the worst part about making games is that you have to make them for gamers.

I can’t help but feel it’s an age gap as well. This game seems designed for people like me: with fulltime job, partner and children (on the way). People who simply cannot afford to game hours and hours a day.

Those who complain that they are bored or have run through all the content, they are probably the ones who CAN game hours a day (teenagers, students). And yes, I can imagine a game (any game) will become boring if you do this.

Which is all fine, but let’s face it: there are not a lot of MMO’s out there for people like me. Other MMOs have either a sub fee (which kind of “forces” me to log in to get my money’s worth – even when I am too tired to game) or a gear treadmill (ie: you simply cannot play with the rest of the players if you are unable to put in the required time).

And the bugs… well. Last sunday I wanted to complete Queensdale with a couple of friends, but one skill point was bugged so we couldn’t. You know what we did? We shrugged, moved on to the next area, and next time we’re going to play those characters, we will go back to queensdale to see if it’s fixed yet.
The game’s only a couple of weeks old. Bugs are to be expected. Imbalances are to be expected. Nerfs and buffs are to be expected. Getting frustrated about them serves no goal, other than ruin the fun for yourself.

Arsenal.2601:

I imagine the worst part about making games is that you have to make them for gamers.

Funny, and likely true!

I think criticism is a good thing for continuous improvement.

Sadly, a lot of people with complaints resort to flaming and shouting and general unresolved anger management issues. That’s the stuff I can do without.

I like the game but it also has some things I feel can be improved. No need to start name calling towards Anet, but I’ve made a couple of suggestions and made some comments.

Oh well…people are people I guess

@Jalliah: I can agree. I think different people react to bugs differently.

Something that gives entertainment shouldn’t warrant all these rant posts on forums. Tips a tad absurd.

YES to everything you said. Since when did constructive criticism become “this”. Whatever goes on in this game community is depressing and I’m thinking, if 60 bucks is so important to you that you can start a flat out hate group over one tiny bug then maybe you should be out working and making some more
money? if for a second I feel that a bug bothers me I first remember to be patient because I sure as heck can’t create anything this amazing and second I take a while to appreciate that I can move and cast, I can jump, I can spend all day playing without reading and quest text and just see how unique and great this game is. If people don’t know how difficult something is to do and have no chance of doing it themselves they should not comment “it’s so simple Anet”, “why isn’t this fixed yet Anet”," why did you nerf this Anet"

I think most people are annoyed at the fact that patches aren’t tested. These patches introduce a lot of serious new bugs.

People now have a higher standard for games. This game I believe was released too early and wasn’t polished enough. I believe they wanted to come out before MoP and the customer suffered. There are a lot of people who left this game and didn’t complain at all. Just look at all the guild actives… I bet most of them are less than 50% of members.. more around 25%. I’m patient but gamers don’t have to be patient anymore.

With today’s gaming industry there are so many options for gamers to spend their time. People have a lot of great games to choose from. People will no longer waste their time on a buggy game.

1. MMO’s went mainstream so more people = more complaints.
2. MMO forums have always been a haven for those types.
3. No game is “The new WoW” so people get frustrated.

Combine those with some bad patches/botters/whatever and you have tons of hate posts.

I’d be interested in seeing the ages of people who post on gaming forums, in relation to their attitudes. I wonder if there’s a study on that somewhere.

I do agree that it’s most likely an age gap. Everyone in our guild is 35+, and we love this game.

Stevoli wrote: (can’t quote today for some reason)

“…….

I’d be interested in seeing the ages of people who post on gaming forums, in relation to their attitudes. I wonder if there’s a study on that somewhere.

I do agree that it’s most likely an age gap. Everyone in our guild is 35+, and we love this game……"

Probably on to something there…same in our guild. The older folks love the game. The few younger ones we had have already moved on.

My guild is a mixture. The core was a GW1 guild, and as people from that guild tried other games, they all picked up their own groups. When GW2 started, it put the Aion group together with the FFXI group, DDO group (where they picked me up), Tribes group, WoW group, and Tera group. While the core is mostly older, mid-30’s+, some of the new additions are younger.

A lot of the younger ones have left, frustrated that this game is not like their last. The one young person from the DDO group remains, probably because of the similarities in mentality between DDO and GW2.

The older core group plus several “strays” they picked up elsewhere who are also older all remain, and still enjoy most of what there is to offer here.

Sarisa.4731:

A lot of the younger ones have left, frustrated that this game is not like their last.
…
The older core group plus several “strays” they picked up elsewhere who are also older all remain, and still enjoy most of what there is to offer here.

Starting to see a trend here. I played DDO for quite a while myself, great game to play with friends.

FyreHawk.6892:

@Jalliah: I can agree. I think different people react to bugs differently.

Something that gives entertainment shouldn’t warrant all these rant posts on forums. Tips a tad absurd.

I think most of these angry kids who end up rage quitting and posting rants on the forum before they go, instead of just leaving quietly, treat the game more like a job and a competition that they feel they need to become the best as quickly as possible, as opposed to something to be done for fun and to destress.

And guess what? I bet people were whining up a storm in WoW as well when it was only a couple months old and didn’t have all of the content it does now yet (the few original dungeons, one set of “endgame” tier gear to work for, etc…). Sorry, but a game that’s been live for a little over a month isn’t going to have all the content of one that’s been out for years right off the bat.

Also, MMO does not necessarily mean endless game experience. Everything has to end at some point, and that includes games (until they add new stuff, but some people are just too impatient to wait for it…).

Yea, I think it has a lot to do with your maturity level, that….and combined with patience will create a huge rift in communities. I think all the temporaries are starting to flesh out vs. the long timers.

The guild I’m in is 21+, not 30+, but also not 18 and younger. I think the amount of fun, if it could be measured quantifiably, is directly proportionate to your time, maturity, and expectations. People most likely move on if something doesn’t turn out as expected. Why try and change something into something it’s not???

FyreHawk.6892:

People most likely move on if something doesn’t turn out as expected. Why try and change something into something it’s not???

You would think that’s how some of these people would act, but they don’t. They hang out on the forums complaining about anything and everything, and then claim that they love this game, and just want to see it become better. (Most likely more like their old MMO)

Yea it’s no different then when u go to a doctors office. If the diagnoses you believe the doctor gave isn’t correct you go somewhere else, either way you still have to pay the co-pay.

You always gamble with MMOs. You can read as many reviews and watch as many youtube replays that you want to, but you’d never know until you start getting into the knitty gritty of the game. If its not what you want come back later, it’s not like you per month anyways.