This is why I hate MMORPGs
I haven't played Warcraft in a while, but last week I got invited to beta test the new Mists of Pandara expansion, where you get to play a Pandarian and create a player with the new monk class. So, curious, I decided I'd check it out. Of course I created a Pandarian monk, 'cause why wouldn't I? She's terribly cute, too.
A lot of the emotes haven't been created yet. None of the joke or flirting sayings have been added yet. They don't have a dance. The only emote animation they have already is the bow, and it's really cute. So far so good, I like what the expansion has to offer. I'm not really "up" on a lot of the real nitty gritty details in the game play. I'm a proud button pusher - and that goes for all games. I don't play for strategy, I play for "deargoddon'tletmedieDIEYOUFUCKERDIE!" strategy. It's worked for me all these years and I don't see me changing strategy yet. The attacks I use are all about whim, baby. It's more like "ooo, let's see what this new spell does!" Or, "I haven't used that spell in a while." Yup.
In fact, I think the only time I employ some kind of strategy is during table top RPG - I can follow the rules of that game, and besides, my characters get to use their personalities in designing their strategy and it's not about winning as it is in a video game.
Anyway, so I'm checking the game out and everything is going waaaay slow. My computer is pretty good, although it's no gaming computer, but it runs Warcraft well. I chalked it up to thousands being on beta testing, all playing in the same area as everyone wants to play a Pandarian. 'Cause, like, duh. Most of the time it's not an issue, but it was a bit difficult to do some of the early quests as I couldn't move fast enough to make it to my target before someone else did, so I ended up just sitting tight and whacking at anything that spawned before me. It wasn't ideal, but at least it got the quest done.
Once I got away from the start point, things got better and faster. The game's still a bit choppy, but it's at least not excruciatingly slow. It's almost to a point where I would call it normal - well, maybe normal for what my old computer was, and I played so long with that old hunk of junk that I kind of got used to it.
Then I get to this one area. I'm talking to this NPC about a quest and I'm watching a bunch of people near me climb up these ropes that go over the water and tie to several pillars rising from the lake. I watch them do this effortlessly. Curious as to what was out on these ropes, I gather my quests and strike out after them. It only take a moment for me to splash into the water. Hmm, not as easy as they made it sound. Oh! I think. It's probably one of those things where you click on it and it guides you onto it on its own. There had been a section like this over at the cursed springs (yes, I said cursed springs, just like in Ranma 1/2 - no Spring of Drowned Girl, though) where you had to click on the pillars and your little guy would automatically jump into the next pillar. No work involved. Saved me the effort of figuring how to jump around. So I figured these ropes were much of the same.
I do my quests and then it come back around to the same NPC again and he tells me to climb the ropes and visit one of the other NPCs at the end of the rope chain. I figured this was it, I'd get the trick to doing the ropes.
Except I didn't. There was not easy click thingy and every time I tried to angle my girl to face the rope on straight, it always overshoots and she falls into the water. Well, it's the beta, I think. Maybe there's a bug. So I ask on the general chat to see if anyone else had this issue, asking to see if anyone else got the easy click option. I wanted to see if it was a bug on my end.
What I got back was some rather obnoxious replies about being a noob and not reading directions and how to use my mouse buttons or the letter keys, and at one point a disparaging remark about Michael J Fox, which I felt was a bit over the top. Here I am, looking for real help, and all I get are "Well, get over it and figure it out, 'cause you're stupid." Honestly, it made me why to burst into tears. I got ticked off enough to send a sarcastic message about what wonderful help they all were and how good of them to be considerate of me.
After a while of trying, 'cause obviously it wasn't a game issue, it's me, I finally got fed up of going really slow only to fall into the water every time and left the game.
Now, I've been playing this game since the first edition, before any of the expansions. That's what...6 or 7 years now? Six maybe. So I've been playing this game for a while, I know how to work the game, and I'm not an idiot. But when every time I try to recalculate and I overshoot (or sometimes don't get anything to move at all), it can get very frustrating. I've never been very good at trying to walk straight in video games anyway. I kind of suck at it, actually. I tend to look like a drunk person all the time, although I'm not sure if it's me necessarily or the slowness of my computer. Honestly, on this one I'm blaming more the slowness of my computer.
There was one guy who at least tried to give me some advice "Maybe you're overthinking it." It was actually the nicest, almost helpful thing any of them said to me. He even added "I'd carry you across, but I'm a fat panda and I'm afraid we'd break the rope." I laughed at that one, letting him know I appreciated his joke even if it didn't help with my dilemma.
The sad thing is, more likely these "helpers" are 15 year old boys who have nothing better to do in their lives than to play this game 24/7, while I go out, work, have a life, play D&D, write a novel, sew, etc etc etc. One person thought I was a "he" - as if only guys play this game - and I almost corrected him, but then I thought "What difference does it make?" It's not like I'd expect him to suddenly change his attitude, and honestly if he did (and if I expected him to) then it would have been a bit sexist and I didn't want to be a part of that game.
So whatever. This is why I don't like playing with other people and meeting new "friends" on MMORPGs. They're mostly a bunch of assholes and trying to weed the good ones out from the dicks is too exhausting. Best just to play on my own. Kind of defeats the purpose, I know, but I'm used to it. It's things like this that make me think that reaching out is pointless.
I'd play with my friends - at least I know they're not dicks - but everyone's in this whole Minecraft kick right now and I'm really not into that. Malinda wants me to play, so all four of us can play together, but I know me. If I played, I'd play for a short while, make a few crappy little things, get bored and never pick it up again. There's no plot to it; it's all building stuff, and that's not my speed. If I wanted to build something, I'd buy Legos. I mean, there are similar type games on Facebook and look what happens with that - I get really into it for a few months, play practically non-stop, then I just quit, cold turkey, and never look back. I was off Facebook for a year, not touching it once - until Malinda got me into Gnome Town. Then I played a few Facebook games for a few months - I haven't played any of them in two months or more and I probably won't play them again. I get bored.
/end rant.
So anyway. Yeah. Warcraft breeds dicks. 'nuff said.
Maybe I can get Justin to do the quest for me - then I'd know for sure if it was my computer or just me. *sigh* Maybe I am stupid....but I've got the mighty power of the pen! Those bitches are so going to be immortalized as jerks in my stories! Just watch and see!