Comments on: My Newest Elusive Metric

By: yunk

yunk — Mon, 06 Aug 2007 18:51:56 +0000

I suppose Blizzard is thinking about this to a certain extent, with the reduction of allowable buffs. This lowers the TTF since you don’t have to spend as much time farming in order to be at 100% ability. (even if it was just getting mats for mana pots, though at the beginning of MC I farmed dragonscale too for others in the raid) That’s one of the major reasons I stopped raiding, not the raids themselves, but the rest of the week that I spent farming to prepare. It just felt like a job.

By: Verilazic

Verilazic — Wed, 01 Aug 2007 21:57:59 +0000

I would say that some things with a long TTF can be worth the extra time. Some are not, but there are certainly some things for me in WoW that have a long TTF, but are completely worth it. When I don’t have the patience for a long TTF, I do something that’s shorter. Or I go play a completely different game. People’s minimum TTF is almost as elusive as the game’s actual TTF.

By: yunk

yunk — Wed, 01 Aug 2007 20:14:03 +0000

I don’t see what my other choice is. Yeah I could run out and start adventuring and just vendor / AH stuff, but then later when I need those items I have to spend more to get them. So basically I’d trade time now for having to spend more gold later. Sure I could sit in the AH for 30 minutes, but that kinda defeats the purpose and is the same problem.

I don’t know a single person who doesn’t have bank alts in WoW or LOTRO, even my extremely casual friends do who only play a few times a week. If there weren’t a design problem, then so many players wouldn’t be forced to make alts to hold all the crap needed for adventuring, we’d only have “fun” characters we like playing, not bankers.

By: Cyndre

Cyndre — Wed, 01 Aug 2007 18:15:22 +0000

Hmm.. no one forces you to AH, or manage inventory. I find the economic game to be the most fun part to be honest. I am a baron of industry in LotRO right now. My AHing has netted me 4G 500s in just 27 levels, enough for my mount which is 8 levels away.

I think people put too much emphasis on accomplishing everything, and undermine their own TTF allowance. In yunk’s example, those are self-imposed obstcles. You could just charge out and be mid quest in as long as it takes to get to the quest giver, which in WoW or LotRO is usually less than five minutes.

Good raid guilds have a TTF in under 30 minutes. If the raid invites start at 6:45, first pull should never be more than 30 minutes away, with the best guilds getting starting in just 15 minutes.

Design isn’t always at fault for these challenges. No one forces players to choose the play style or guild management style that they end up with.

By: Julian

Julian — Wed, 01 Aug 2007 18:05:05 +0000

That’s another good angle to approach the issue of TTF, yunk. Are we putting too much complication/crap/”design” between player login and his fun?

How much is too much?

By: yunk

yunk — Wed, 01 Aug 2007 14:30:01 +0000

So many games I spend the first 30 minutes manipulating inventory, mailing between alts, and auctions. I don’t really want to do this, but I have to in order to free up inventory space so I can go adventure, and make sure I have the items I need in my inventory. This really drives me crazy, it’s like all this busy work I have to do before I can start playing the game.

What can solve this? Unlimited inventory? Perhaps with some categorizing not just one huge list.

By: Pete

Pete — Wed, 01 Aug 2007 10:54:06 +0000

Phenomenon that’s worth discussing is how hardcore people have a sort of minimum TTF: if it’s fun too soon it’s too easy, or something. This certainly applies to raiders…