I’ve been kind of busy. There’s also the thumbsucking pieces I submit to MMORPG.com every Wednesday (last week’s, which I didn’t repost here, was on the “No Russian” level in Modern Warfare 2, this next week’s will be about expansion packs). Don’t know how long I’ll be able to make time to write them, given how garrulous I’ve been here and all. Maybe by the time I hang it up Sanya Weathers will be ready to step back in!
A lot of you seem to really like posting in the comments a LOT. Which is somewhat cool but after a certain point it really has all been said and around comment #50 most people tend to tune it out. I briefly considered putting up forums but then realized ARE YOU FRACKING INSANE????!!!????? and stopped considering it. So, um, use some self-control or something. Or just keep the web server humming while I go 2 weeks without posting anything!
#1 by Aufero on December 1st, 2009
You’re frackin’ insane for even briefly considering forums.
#2 by ubvman on December 1st, 2009
The old LtM forums were fun.
#3 by Freakazoid on December 1st, 2009
bring back gosizdata, beeyoch
#4 by Vetarnias on December 1st, 2009
Oh, by all means, let’s have forums. You should also charge a one-time subscription fee of $10, and we could form a collective group that goes around wrecking online games.
#5 by Jarnis on December 1st, 2009
Um, we already have one set of Goons…
#6 by Njal on December 1st, 2009
C’mon, if you put up forums we could watch geldon argue with everyone full time.
#7 by Vetarnias on December 1st, 2009
If you’re really looking for something to write about, you could consider what is going on in Battlefield Heroes these days, with the price hike for items. I know it’s a shooter rather than an MMO, but I think the lesson also applies to MMO’s with cash shops.
If you’re not familiar with the system, it has two types of currency, the Valor Points (which you get for free just by playing the game) and the Battlefunds, which you must buy. Some items were Battlefund-purchaseable only, and others could be bought with either currency. So far so good, as most weapons and consumables could be bought with Valor Points.
Except that now they hiked prices in Valor Points. And not a small hike, mind you: A gun that used to cost 225 valor points for an entire month now costs 450 valor points for three days, or 20 times more. And the hike also applies to consumables, i.e. healing kits and maintenance wrenches. They got rid of all the various qualities except the highest, and now players are paying through the nose: 120 valor points for ten bandages.
Oh, and did I specify that you gain a whopping 7 valor points per match? To break even, you’d need to use only one bandage every two games, when people used to heal at the first opportunity.
So they’ve in effect done away with the old system which provided you with the means to remain competitive while playing the game for free (on the off-chance that you might enjoy it so much that you might want to throw money at it) and replaced it with a system where you could be seen as a burden to your side if you don’t spend money on the game.
I’m sure the community would have tolerated a modest increase, but not items which now cost 2000% of their previous price. So inevitably, you get the player backlash. What will that lead to, I don’t know. I’m not expecting the return to the old system, so either the players’ resolve will break, or the game will go under.
How much of this can be applied to MMO’s?
#8 by Stabs on December 1st, 2009
Welcome back and good job with the witchhunting in Aion. Burn them all!
#9 by Doug on December 1st, 2009
I’m all for forums. I’ll moderate with an iron fist. For the children.
#10 by Vetarnias on December 1st, 2009
@Doug
Well, we do seem to have a nice little community going around here. But would having forums tax Geldon’s punditry beyond a reasonable level?
#11 by Brask Mumei on December 1st, 2009
thisisnotacommunity
#12 by Iggep on December 1st, 2009
Yes, I was wondering when we were going to see you around these parts again. I’ve been busy posting in my own blog, and enjoying other blogs, but I was getting a little worried that you had gone MIA.
Welcome back! Now don’t be such a stranger!!
#13 by D-0ne on December 1st, 2009
Open a forum. It gave the people much happiness. Good times.
Just reactivate the cesspit. It’s probably still there.
#14 by Drey on December 1st, 2009
We need more blog posts about tractors, thanks.
#15 by Triforcer on December 1st, 2009
One banning would solve this problem overnight. Its gotten to the point where I won’t even click on a comment thread if I see his name on a recent post.
#16 by Doug on December 1st, 2009
Geldon? Really? I didn’t think he was that bad.
#17 by geldonyetich on December 1st, 2009
I had to point to make on the RMT topic. It took a dozen comments, but by the time I was done, most people understood what I was getting at. So I don’t think I was spamming just to spam.
Contrary to the belief of the easily confused, I don’t spam out of maliciousness. I don’t even spam at all except out of relativity of other participants being too slow to reply. However, if it’s becoming a problem, all one need to do is ask without being a dick. Such maturity was completely beyond the one and only place I’ve ever been banned from on the Internet.
#18 by Arthur_Parker on December 1st, 2009
Go on, open some forums you know you want to.
#19 by Jediblues on December 1st, 2009
The geldon doth protest too much, methinks. :p
#20 by geldonyetich on December 1st, 2009
Having had bad water pass under the bridge tends to do that.
No, I’ve come to grips with that, really. I wasn’t banned specifically for being a spammy bastard everybody was tired of seeing (though that certainly helped). I was banned for raining on everybody’s parade. There was a 4Chan-esque /b/ vibe that they were going for, scorn for the epic lawls and whatnot, and considering I tend to value over-heavily being the voice of reason, I liked to call that into question a lot.
The result? I was their personal Buzz Killington. Not wrong per se, or even a bad guy, you don’t want to see much of him during the phrat party.
I’m not sure which side Lum would consider himself on, really. (It’s hard to phrase this as though I’m not ignoring him when I’m commenting on his own blog.) When you read his articles, he tends to come up on the side of reason, but he spins it humorously. There’s a significant difference between that and /b/-esque disregard for reason for the epic lawls.
#21 by Jediblues on December 1st, 2009
Just teasing you, g, I realize some of us are more long winded than others. I tend to be one of those people, which is why I stopped posting and started working on a novel.
#22 by geldonyetich on December 1st, 2009
@Jebiblues
Yeah, I’m similarly working on my own project to channel some of that apparent energy of verbosity I have. Unfortunately, I have a tendency to procrastinate. Making games is hard. Making games solo is harder.
Still, come on Triforcer, you’re afraid to read a comment thread if I’m in it? Am I really that overpowering?
#23 by Ashendarei on December 1st, 2009
I really appreciate some of the comment discussion that goes on in these posts (not threads yet, but you never know
)
The one here ( http://brokentoys.org/2009/11/11/achievement-unlocked-user-interface-design-innovator/ ) was a particularly good discussion I thought, as it was MUCH more rational and thought out then most internet commentary you find nowadays
just my .02 though
#24 by Dar on December 1st, 2009
I HAVE DROPPED A GLASS OF WATER ON THE FLOOR. now I must get a mop or a rag and clean it up kthx
#25 by Robin Kestrel on December 1st, 2009
Oh dear lord.
#26 by Innoe on December 1st, 2009
Per the topic, nice job on the 16k bans. It took bots from 10 to every 1 real player in an area down to 9. I have recently canceled my account and will resub when that number goes below at least 5 to 1. I know you guys are working hard but out of 212 people in my guild called PRX that started Aion, 28 are left. On an exit poll on our site 91% of those cited bots and RMT as thier reason for stopping play.
Its that bad.
#27 by D-0ne on December 2nd, 2009
“Oh dear lord. – Robin Kestrel”
I call.
“X posted favorable blog post in order to get a job with X company.”
#28 by Gx1080 on December 2nd, 2009
Nice job against the pharmers. And really, considering the 400+ comments threads about Internet crazies, I see this site rather chilled out.
Correct me if I’m wrong:
Forums are a really bad idea for this site because it would requiere someone to baby-sit them, which is harder to do than baby-sit a blog because people can open threads on their own and post images. And people don’t know how to handle that. YEA, RLY.
#29 by geldonyetich on December 2nd, 2009
As long as he’s still posting up on MMORPG.com (or a similarly-equipped site) there’s really no need for a forum here, as one can just spam the forum over there. (Speaking of which, yet another LtM entry here.)
Granted, I’m a little hesitant to get involved on the MMORPG.com forum because it seems there’s a great excess of the F2P crowd which can traditionally be looked at as the crowd-too-young-to-hold-a-paying-job.
Although that outlook is probably changing now that (a) we’re in recession and (b) MMORPGs are so prolific (and were always thoroughly viral) that F2P is actually the appropriate price model for the genre.
I don’t know. Forums. Comment threads. The main difference is in who’s able to start the topics. Considering the originating topic on most forum posts, that may be an improvement. Of course, if you want to be a really productive and avoid retread (or rather, attempt to harness retread productively) you start a wiki.
#30 by Imp on December 2nd, 2009
Gx1080 said:
Forums are a really bad idea for this site because it would requiere someone to baby-sit them, which is harder to do than baby-sit a blog because people can open threads on their own and post images.
Well actually, both those activity’s can generally be prohibited in the forums admin.
I do miss the old LtM forums
#31 by mike on December 2nd, 2009
Brink back Ktalk.
#32 by sinij on December 2nd, 2009
Why start new forums when f13.net already exists? Anyways, that what LtM forums, left to its own devices ended up mutating into.
#33 by geldonyetich on December 2nd, 2009
F13 is an excellent choice, especially if you’re sick of me. Granted, I believe the place has less to do with LtM and more to do with being a gaming-related subsidiary of 4Chan these days.
#34 by hellfire on December 3rd, 2009
Come to Corp, where we’ve elevated lurking to high art?
#35 by Gx1080 on December 4th, 2009
@Imp
And what’s the difference between that and a blog with the need of registrate besides how it looks, huh?
On f13, didn’t thought that another /v/ existed.
#36 by William Purvis on December 4th, 2009
I think it takes less then 20.. but since I am only 36, I thought I would chime in…
#37 by EpicSquirt on December 5th, 2009
Like I wrote in some other comment, this is very forums 1.0 like.
Hard formatting, no hierarchy… Please consider installing a Wordpress template which allows easier formatting (without having to know all the tags) and has a threaded view for the comments.
#38 by Ritchian on December 5th, 2009
Good job on booting that many botters. I might actually come back to Aion if you do a few more rounds of bans like that… And if I get a new computer that will run the game with graphic settings higher than the lowest possible without having indistinguishable blobs for textures.
On the topic at hand, as much as I loved the old LtM forums, I can see how opening new ones here could be a sign of Lum’s rapidly diminishing mental stability.
#39 by Jackbnimble on December 6th, 2009
Speaking of the good ole days of ltm what is the current status of Whamdoodles, still in development? I’ve been looking forward to it patiently.
#40 by geldonyetich on December 7th, 2009
We’re unable to work out a deal with Doug Winger for the art assets. Apparently, he only accepts payment in the form of corrupted souls.