When I was first thinking why I wanted to make a forum post, I realized that it wasn’t really because of a single issue, but an amalgamation of all the things currently occurring in the pvp scene. I won’t cover everything in one sitting, but hopefully I can address some of the things happening right now in the “competitive scene” without actually really being in it. I’ll just go and type stuff now without really having a clear direction because im lazy.
I remember back in beta days everyone was very hyped and excited because the game, because at it’s core, the game was revolutionary. Nothing held a candle to it. I had uninstalled the game during orientation week in college but returned shortly, realizing how amazing this game was at it’s core and it’s b2p model. I think that’s a sentiment that a lot of people share, which is why we see the endless cycles of people leaving, and then returning sometime later.
It’s pretty clear that anet’s primary audience is the casual player. For almost 4 years now, the game’s potential has yet to be fully realized, but we still have a core group of dedicated players. It’s not really anyone’s fault though, because obviously the game’s primary purpose is to make money, and the most money is made off of casual players. PvE is great though, and the few times I do find myself fighting against mordremoth I can very much see the appeal. Maybe it’s a sense of nostalgia from earlier days, but who knows.
But that core of players is really waning, especially as we see players that are really just here for the competitive scene rather than the game take flight since the proleagues are over. It’s pretty clear when I log in and check my friends list or spvp mist initiative who is really in it for the game, and who isn’t. But motivation doesn’t really matter because we just need more people playing the game. People also may be on vacation or dealing with real life stuff too so I can’t make too many judgements.
But is motivation a factor? Players who are generally in it for the competition have arguably less devotion to the game, and less care to the game in general. They seek respect and pocket change, but again who knows when this is all a big generalization.
Also on that topic, I am very ambivalent towards proleagues because yes, more tournament and money is nice and all, but it has really separated the once tightly bound community to many cliques and teams who are fighting for a (comparatively) meager prize pool. There is much less attention to making the game better, but that also may just be a result of people being tired from trying to make the game better for 4 years. There’s a much higher level of toxicity in the game and less creativity, as people are simply trying to win more than ever. In the longterm, proleague may be far more detrimental to the game than what we can foresee now.
The purpose of proleagues is also quite clear: it’s a disguised marketing technique that hits two birds with one stone: cater to the pvp crowd while increasing the game’s population.
The current league, pip, and rewards system is also very flawed. I won’t go into too many details because of the slew of threads, but yeah it’s troubling. It seems like the system is trying to give a sense of progression to every player, but it is in fact just inflating egos and not giving a really measurable progression that matters (skill-based). But that in itself requires a higher population, and thus maybe what we have is the best we got.
So maybe this game’s core isn’t so great as we thought. Yes, the game is complex and has a a high learning curve. So then maybe this game was doomed from the start. Taking a look at other games currently, they are far more easier to understand and play, even if the actual gameplay and satisfaction may not be on the same level.
Overall, just looking back this game has been great but I’m not seeing too much of this game in the future. It’s been a good run, and sadly due to all the circumstances (with good intentions in mind) the potential of this game was so left out. But maybe this is just pessimism and we’ll see some sort of revamp. I would look to Acandis’ post for maybe more insight to how this could be done because I’m not intelligent enough to see the entire picture.
Past member of most teams NA. Retired proleague season 1+2.
http://www.twitch.tv/aeroxe
