Author: Zubon

Guardians at the Gates 1

When I posted about barbarians at the gates last month, I did not expect the most famous one in English literature to appear in response. As it turns out, the upcoming Age of Conan has exactly what I was looking for, including PvE and PvP city-building and -defense that integrates crafting and has various sizes for big and small guilds. Ask, and the internet delivers.

My thanks to our commenters who pointed out my ignorance and cited other games doing something along these lines. Please consider this your report-out on games that have aspects of player-run, -built, or -defended cities. Add more to the comments if you think of any.

Continue reading Guardians at the Gates 1

Me-tooism, Re-blogging, and Negativity

Why have we built an internet culture that encourages negativity? If you are on a message board, replying that you agree with the original poster is often taken as pointless, content-free post-count building. Blogging “look at this great post” is sometimes described as being unable to develop worthwhile content of your own, the sort of thing you can only occasionally indulge in. If someone replies with “Great post!” there is no point to anyone doing so again, right? The only thing you can post agreement with is that someone else is wrong. You can agree with each other that someone else is an idiot.

You are only to post if you have additional content to add. Generally, that means you disagree. Even if you agree, you are extending the post away from where the original poster took it, which can easily come across as a slight in the sea of negativity.

The major exception I can think of is posting examples and stories. “Yeah, something like that happened to me one time…”

: Zubon

Wayback machine: Shiny Happy Week

Quick Hits

Peggle is fun. It’s a bright, happy arcade-style game. No, I don’t care if you can’t feel hardcore with bright colors, this is a game your kids could play, too. It’s like the Wii: my mom could play the Wii. The game gets bonus points for really wanting you to win. When you beat a level, it goes into slow motion for the final hit, and then you move into Beethoven’s Ninth and kick off the fireworks. Celebrate! Also, you get to start with a unicorn.

I did not enjoy Maple Story.

Desktop Tower Defense has a new edition out with a new enemy type, a new tower, a new challenge, fun mode, and some rebalancing. It is supposed to be harder with the new spawn enemies and point deductions for juggling, but I got my best score yet under the new rules. There was a tweak a day or two ago that I am looking forward to trying out. I am told that the 100-wave Challenge is currently impossible, but you might be just the guy to… no, those flying enemies are ridiculous.

: Zubon

Would You Pay More to Pay More?

I need little in the way of fanciness or services with regard to an apartment. So, I’d *love* to live in a really cheap one. However, it would also mean I’m living near a bunch of people who can *only* afford that. […]
So, basically, I’m paying more, to … er, be with people … who can pay more.

How much does this perspective affect your online gaming choices? Do you avoid (some) free games because of the people who can only afford to play free games? Would you be interested in an online “gated community,” whose only gate was an extra $5/month in its fee?

Long-time members of our online gaming community can comment on the drop in civility that happened when you stopped paying by the minute for online time and/or games. When you have invested several hundred dollars in your character, you are less likely to do anything to get yourself banned or become a pariah. Today, griefers and goldfarmers can get back in the game with a $30 box and back to the level cap in a month of hardcore play. It is not as if they have better things to do.

The game’s content can serve as another sort of cost that deters the archetypal foul-mouthed twelve-year-old. Do you play Vanguard because it is hard to get into, therefore dissuading the undesirables? Anyone can pick up World of Warcraft and go, but it takes a certain type of person to play A Tale in the Desert.

: Zubon

More Claims I Do Not Buy

Tales of Pirates Online advertises itself as “the most anticipated MMORPG in 2007.” Umm… This would not be the most anticipated pirate MMORPG of 2007. This would not even be the most anticipated RMT item shop attached to a Korean game port of 2007. I saw the ad at a good game, and I had to find someone else talking about it to make sure I had not hallucinated the whole thing (you can see the ad there).

(1) Why do I bother? (2) Why did I include a link?

: Zubon

Thanks and Apologies to Our Blogroll

We have a lot of great sites over to the right. I read several every day and most of them over the course of a week. Good job on providing fun adventures, good humor, and interesting ideas. Unfortunately, because I read so many, I often forget where I saw something two weeks ago when I want to reference it in a post. Sorry about that. If I write about something that you were just talking about, either on your site or as a reply at someone else’s, please feel free to mention and link that in a comment here. You may be just the genius I was thinking of. And if not, I want to hear what you have to say about things anyway.

: Zubon

Okay, This is Getting a Bit Furry

Earth Eternal [Earth Eternal] Iron Realms has released the concept art for most of the races. I am at a loss for words beyond the title, but I think the drawings speak for themselves. Something about… the torsos… I feel kind of dirty. Like, if it had actually been furry porn, that would be one thing, but… I think it’s the body proportions, which make them look like furry midgets.

: Zubon