5 replies to this topic

[Jiyu Mononoke]

Greetings,

~ First, I just don’t think the little hidden friends list cuts it. It’s a minimalist tool that’s a pain to use, almost seems like an after thought. It needs a vast overhaul. Not just an upgrade, but a complete redesign of the social mechanic that’s built in to the game. Something that allows us to really make a community inside this game…. Not a hidden sidebar (LoL) … So….

- Something I’d like to see MWO (PGI) work on is an improved social area, much as we had with Ye-Old Mplayer (game site) and MW-2, where Factions, Houses, Units, Teams, clans etc could make “Chat Rooms” to hang out in. It could incorporate voice (or not?) and would facilitate the ability to have one faction or unit walk in to another’s room and make a challenge. From there the two teams could make a drop rooms and launch a private battle. PGI could have set amount of permanent public rooms for the factions, houses, clans and mercs, and individuals could make rooms either inside (or outside too?) to suit their needs. If a unit (guild) wanted to make their own permanent room inside the appropriate faction/house/clan, maybe have an MC fee for the first x-members that would comprise of the leadership core. Each member could then have a small MC fee attached if they wanted that unit’s emblem on their mechs. This room would track the groups progress, victories, losses, areas held etc. Poorer groups could still do free rooms, but the room would disappear when the last person left (or moderator dissolved it) and would not track anything. Maybe have a 24 hour limit on free rooms to avoid prolonged camping. This system would be incorporated in to the “mechlab” so that it’s unitized in to the game as a whole.

- The stats, wins/losses and eventually planets conquered could be tracked and managed here as well, and be available at various levels. If viewing the faction’s room as a whole, you would see that factions progress. Units could choose to keep their stats private if they desire.

- Maybe have a mechanic built in to see the mechs and loadout your team mates are taking prior to a launch so that everyone can plan their builds. Have a mini-mech lab built in, where one can quickly and easily swap pre-owned weaponry prior to launching, thus maximizing team and tactical loads. Once the team is assembled, and the load out’s complete, the team could launch against whatever challenger had thrown his/her hat in your ring. During this setup, teams/challengers could set certain rules like max ton per game or mech, weapon/equipment limitations etc. maybe even be able to choose maps and map-conditions as well.

- I think something like this would be a great addition/tool for community warfare, and would encourage more people to play longer/hang out more via enhanced social outlets. I remember logging on to Mplayer and seeing Mech-Clan rooms lined up like little desk-top icons, finding my “Dragon Wind” clan room, and having a great time B-Sing around with the team while getting ready to make a challenge to the clan next door who whooped our a$$es last time. The social outlet led to a terrific environment that kept us coming back, playing more, and encouraging other friend to get the game and join in. It encouraged team and group play that didn’t get matched until I started playing WoW and joined a guild. I think PGI could seriously benefit from the creation of a visually appealing social arena inside the game interface itself, have a largely free component, and an MC driven special component to bring some income to PGI. If done right, the community warfare aspect, combined with a social setting/mechanic would give the game a greater appeal to many players. I know I’d play ALOT more if it was easier to hang out with my buds inside the game, sharing game stats, planning, and plotting, showing off builds visually, and knowing the neighbors might come hassle us asking for an a$$ whooping

-- Your thoughts?? Ideas?? - please keep it constructive, maybe we can give PGI some food for thought and they'll make us a good place to hang out and really get this game going.

Freebrth




- Anyone remember old Mplayer.com from 1998 (Mech Warrior 2 -online ... helluva lota fun!)

[Aresye]

It's been brought up before, but like most things that seem like common sense to add to a multiplayer game, they probably won't even consider it.

Kind of sad how games in the late 90s and early 2000s had better social systems for multiplayer than what we have today.

[Triordinant]

Aresye, on 02 August 2014 - 11:49 AM, said:

Kind of sad how games in the late 90s and early 2000s had better social systems for multiplayer than what we have today.

The world was different then. The Internet and everything related to it was shiny and new. It was like discovering a new continent. Then the corporations came with their CREAM (Capitalism Ruins Everything Around Me)...

[Scratx]

Let's see if they actually build any of this with the upcoming Community Warfare.

I'm not really holding my breath.

[Jiyu Mononoke]

Aresye, on 02 August 2014 - 11:49 AM, said:

<snip> ... Kind of sad how games in the late 90s and early 2000s had better social systems for multiplayer than what we have today.

Ya, i agree 100%, but I also think that shows how easy it would be for them to build us some sort chat section accessible by a tab. Just put it up there with the "HOME - MECHLAB - SKILLS" Tabs so you can log on, find some peeps to hang out with, and then spend more time logged to the interface. PGI really needs to find a way to keep people logged in and playing, being interested, and "Talking", it’s simple marketing really.

I work around retail (huge multi-billion dollar retail actually), and marketing is rule #1 to a products/stores survival. Part of that rule, is encouraging word of mouth to bring in new people, and methods to keep people in your store once there. People who like an environment spend more time and money there. I myself log in to MWO every couple of days, and I’m usually on for a few rounds then off. I’ll jump on and off a few times throughout my play-days, but there is nothing there to really encourage me to hang out spending a couple hours straight playing or logged on the interface.

I really DO love the game, been playing Mech Warrior / Battle Tech (Battle Droids) games since I was a teen in the 80’s. I’d like to see this one really bloom in to a full blown community style game where I come for the environment, friends and camaraderie… not just blow up a handful of mechs then bounce for a while. Give us the tools and a reason to make a real community, and they’d have one.

There are some good groups out there, and they are doing their best on their own impulse, but it’s hard when you have to log in to a chat server, use the half-baked friends list (in the UI) that my new-playing friends can barely find, then group up and finally click in to a launch…. Not to mention the two programs don’t always mesh well. By then half my play time is gone. If I could simply log in to the game, find my unit/clan/merc room and launch from there… it’d be SO much easier, smoother, and way more intuative and functional. It would afford group interaction even when I have limited time, and would encourages us all to group play instead of a couple quick solo games.

Edited by Freebrth, 03 August 2014 - 06:57 AM.

[Aim64C]

Triordinant, on 02 August 2014 - 01:48 PM, said:

The world was different then. The Internet and everything related to it was shiny and new. It was like discovering a new continent. Then the corporations came with their CREAM (Capitalism Ruins Everything Around Me)...

Actually, if you look at some of the most popular games and mediums these days (steam) - they became popular because of their effective social systems (WoW) more so than they were popular because of the actual content of their game (grinds, serial deathmatch).

The social systems and environment makes it feel as though you are a part of something.

Granted, this is less of the case as games have shifted toward console consumers - but even those include voice lobbies and support friend and friend-based matchmaking systems that focus more on putting people who want to play together together rather than trying to put 'balanced' teams together from thin air (because anyone familiar with sports can tell you what happens to 'all star' teams).

The main reason why the social systems of console games have lagged behind the computer world is because of the general lack of input method for console games. Games center around the controller in consoles and their user interfaces are more simplistic and limited. Even then - Xbox got the early success it did in the west from the online multiplayer support and games like Halo that appealed to multiplayer environments.

The fact is that most games produced by major corporations these days have a community or 'friends' element. Even single-player games released through Steam have achievement and trading card systems built into them (for a reason that sort of eludes me, but someone spent $1.60 on one of mine some time ago). These are all systems designed to appeal to a community and to get people talking about/sharing the game and the game experience. The Steam Workshop has been an excellent medium for this.

MWO, however, is basically a Zynga 'battle card' game in overall gameplay design. You drop into a match that really has little consequence, 'see who wins' - maybe upgrade a few things, then roll on to the next mostly inconsequential match. Rinse. Lather. Repeat.

Granted - PGI didn't put in a system where you can only 'drop' 4 times an hour unless you pay for 'premium time' or 'special drops' - but neither did they place in the most basic of guild affiliation systems seen in any of the carbon-copy facebook games out there.

What we are seeing in the case of MWO has less to do with capitalism and more to do with what happens when corporations are dictated by government (fascism - often brought about by ideals of socialism).

This is a classic case of copyrights being abused within their purpose. The founding entities of MechWarrior and Battletech are no longer around. The point of a copyright is so that those who create a unique title or brand can own that title or brand. Once the founding entity is gone - the copyright should no longer be recognized.

Of course, doing this would completely break the process of mega-corporations merging. While there should be some limited ability to transfer or sell a copyright - the purpose of the copyright under what we have, today, is simply a form of corporate control. MechWarrior isn't "PGI's" - and it isn't "Microsoft's" - it isn't really anybody's, at this point and the copyright exists merely as a passive means for the owner to generate revenue (which usually ends up being a massive corporation with numerous salaried lawyers that can be tasked with enforcing even the most mundane infringement at little cost to the company).

In a truly free, capitalist market - a group like MekTek would have created a MechWarrior game years ago and Microsoft wouldn't have been able to say squat about it because FASA would have been the only entity entitled to enforce the copyright.

Now, even the individuals who originated the IP in the first place couldn't capitalize on that IP without first going through Microsoft.

It is an issue where the government created the concept of the copyright and has (predictably) directed that concept toward allowing crony capitalism to embed itself into a fascist system of law.

http://freenation.org/a/f31l1.html

That's an interesting view on intellectual property rights concerning Libertarians - who are a group that has long been divided on the issue of copyrights and patents and gives several examples of complications introduced by copyright laws and how issues of 'piracy' were handled before copyright laws.