Damion Schubert addresses the concerns of some players that BioWare is simplifying content to make it more accessible for soloers.
This is hardcore gameplay, and we have to figure out how to get the solo player in a position where they want to take part in this, where they feel comfortable with the social circles, where they feel like they can be contributors.
He asserts that the solo focused player is a real MMO archetype that designers should acknowledge.
People don't imagine being a serial killer, but they certainly imagine being Batman. If you really think about it, being a loner is an inherently social thing. You can't be a loner in a single-player game because you're not setting yourself apart from somebody...
He also breaks solo players into ten distinct sub-groups.
The New Kid in Town
While some designers think new players should be crammed together and forced to group, these players are better served when allowed to learn on their own.
The Daria
This group prefers to play alone while enjoying their fellow players as attractions to be watched like any other game content.
[Darias] see other people as a tragedy; they see them as a joke. They don't want to group with anyone in the Barrens, but they think they're good fun anyway. These are the people who like to slow down for car crashes.
The Sociopath
This player, like the Joker in batman, operates outside of the socially acceptable confines of other gamers and is particularly hard to design for.
Mr. Lunch at his Desk
With the time restrictions imposed by busy adult schedules, this group is focused on bite sized manageable content they can do at their own pace away from group restrictions.
The Introvert
Being socially awkward is something that exists on-line as well as off, and these players find solo play to be safer than putting themselves out there.
The Adrift
These players are awash in the sea of interpersonal drama, like from guilds breaking up, and are solo because of these issues.
The Unworthy
MMOs are inherently competitive and as players reach the upper echelons they may find themselves solo because they are cast aside by their peers due to gear or skill deficiencies.
Vacationers
Vacationers use MMOs as escapes from everyday life. These players may have no interest in developing or experiencing social interactions; they simply want to exist in the online world.
The Commitment-phobic
There are many reasons why a player may fall into this group, but these players would rather go it alone than worry about the issues that come along with making social commitments.
The Garbo
This player simply wants to play solo for the sake of it. This player type actively chooses to be alone and is distinctly different than players who are lonely.
Finally, Damion Schubert asserts that the goal of designers should be to encourage these players to step out of their shells and experience the complex social gameplay MMOs offer.
One of the things we have to acknowledge as MMO designers is that our magic -- our secret sauce, this stuff, the raids -- this is hardcore stuff. This is hardcore gameplay. Even a basic raid is incredibly hard for players to grasp and get comfortable with. This is hardcore gameplay, and we have to figure out how to get the solo player in a position where they want to take part in this, where they feel comfortable with the social circles, where they feel like they can be contributors...
Be sure to jump over to Massively to check out the entire article.
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Posted 3/10/2011 4:56:01 AMSo, I join guilds and all I really do in them is help guildies when they run into trouble. I still mostly solo.
Back in Dark Age of Camelot it was a little bit different because I wanted to be able to beat the dragon with as few people as possible. We eventually got it down to 9, then it was back to soloing.
I just enjoy it more. Having said that, I am playing TOR for the story and if I can find a good guild I will play the flashpoints with them and I will raid with them at least once for each encounter.
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Posted 3/10/2011 12:03:36 AMI don't mind playing with others, but I have a real low tolerance for "gamers" that have nothing better to do than shriek abuse and profanities over Ventrilo. Also, real life that has to take precedence over "the guild". The typical BS one finds in WOW has damn near ruined the entire MMO genre for me.
Most of the time, I'd just rather game on my own. To that end, the stories, solo-play, crafting, etc, have to be interesting enough on their own to make the game worth the subscription fee.
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Posted 3/8/2011 10:54:09 PMWanting to do something is the opposite of being forced into doing something. Be given opportunities to learn in ways that feel safe, as he mentions in his article, so that you feel more comfortable grouping with others and contributing is not the same as pressing people into groups.
This is a Massive Multiplayer Online rpg. It is not a single player rpg. I think many people believe the multiplayer aspects of MMOs provide reasons for people to continue to subscribe after reaching level cap, i.e., 'the secret sauce'. If that's true, they'd be silly not to analyze why some people don't take as much advantage of the multiplayer aspects of these games and try to remove real or perceived roadblocks so that more of them want to do so. It just sounds like good business to me.
Likewise, they'd be silly to upset a large market of people who just want to solo most of the time. By categorizing solo'ers into different groups, I think they will remove roadblocks for some and still provide a great solo experience for others, because that's probably going to make them the most money.
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Posted 3/8/2011 7:08:30 PMMassively Multiplayer doesn't equal group play preferred...that is the biggest fallacy these developers keep bringing up.....
You play a great game like Dragon Age, Mass Effect, Baldurs Gate etc for 50 hours, maybe a little more, maybe a little less and then hopefully there is an expansion or DLC to further your adventure with that character.....and after that?
Your story\adventure is over....50,60,80+ hours of time invested into a character\world that basically ends abruptly....
and therein lies the appeal for an MMO....the adventure never ends...you can keep investing in that character, keep progressing that character, new content continues to be created....the game world itself is "massive" compared to a single player RPG...the story quite simply doesn't end, until YOU choose for it to end....
I think certain game developers are starting to try and find ways to incorporate group play w\o the constraints of "forced" grouping and that is a good thing...
The only way another MMO is going to unseat WoW, is to offer a gaming experience that is incredibly dynamic\ever-changing, visceral\exciting to play, offering loads of customization, and where content isn't "gated" by play style
When the fundamental reason people play your game doesn't revolve around the next shiny "uber" piece of gear, but instead is tied to a desire to actively participate in the unfolding events of the world you created...THEN you will have truly "broken the mold" and achieved the next REAL breakthrough in MMO gaming...
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Posted 3/8/2011 6:22:08 PM- View User Profile
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Posted 3/8/2011 12:06:48 PMPeople are way too individually apart to be boxed into these silly narrow perspectives. Nothing but commercial rubbish that'll set every individual reading the article into a "what percentage of x type am I?" spree just to think about this game a little more.
The only smart thing I read was: "You can't be a loner in a single-player game because you're not setting yourself apart from somebody."
Then ten seconds later I'm reading about how they plan to press every solo-minded player into the groups I'm going to be in in SWTOR because:
"One of the things we have to acknowledge as MMO designers is that our magic -- our secret sauce, this stuff, the raids -- this is hardcore stuff. This is hardcore gameplay. Even a basic raid is incredibly hard for players to grasp and get comfortable with. This is hardcore gameplay, and we have to figure out how to get the solo player in a position where they want to take part in this, where they feel comfortable with the social circles, where they feel like they can be contributors".
Self-contradicting, mm?
You don't "need" to get the typical solo-player in groups and raids, you just need enough solo content for them to play the game they want to. Besides, I don't want all these typical solo-players in my group just because the game developer views things that way. People become unhappy when they're out of their element and this leads to trouble.
I'm not saying they wouldn't preform admireably, not saying they would lack the skill or not saying they wouldn't have the gear to preform their function - they are simply not "that kind of people" and would become unhappy in groups.
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Posted 3/8/2011 1:52:56 PM"Self-contradicting, mm?"
His 10 categories include some people who would want to get more active in grouping and socializing, designing the game so that they feel they can contribute something too is a worthy goal. Agreed that not everyone can be easily slotted into a single (or any) category, but that does not make the categories flawed or worthless.
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Posted 3/8/2011 1:52:14 PM- View User Profile
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Posted 3/8/2011 6:41:28 AM- View User Profile
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Posted 3/8/2011 5:31:08 AMI would say i'm sometimes in the unworthy category but realized it was supposed to be me who was unworthy? I meant everyone else mwhohahaha SUPEREGO away
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Posted 3/8/2011 3:13:34 AMThis explains much...
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Posted 3/8/2011 1:02:44 AM- View User Profile
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Posted 3/8/2011 1:25:18 AM- View User Profile
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Posted 3/8/2011 12:46:21 AMThe real problem lies not in the people who are determined to solo or cannot find time for anything lengthier, rather, it is the toxic antisocial behaviours of those who are doing the group content that is so offputting.
As a consequence of game design so much in MMOs isn't done for fun anymore, rather the meaningless pursuit of meaningless "acheivement" and if you decide to stick your head above the soloing parapit it is so often shot off by the kinds of people you simply would not associate with if they behaved that way in real life.
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Posted 3/8/2011 4:44:55 AMBeing socially awkward is something that exists on-line as well as off, and these players find solo play to be safer than putting themselves out there.
The Adrift
These players are awash in the sea of interpersonal drama, like from guilds breaking up, and are solo because of these issues."
I think from what you are saying you can apply these two.
Also this is a dev talking about their product, and they are not going to say the community might be bad so you might want to solo. That is a given that there will be some bad apples. However, as Jasinn said there are more social-able people out there that people in general can socialize with so that should also be considered as well. Which means if there are good people out there, but a person refuses to explore on the soical platform that exists in MMO's it is because they are introverts, or are the drifters from a bad situation or experience.
edit:
If these people who would not want to group had a good experience instead, they would not be saying it is better to solo. Also I must question whether these people are sensitive to what they consider anti-social and generalize to include almost everyone. We should be able to laugh at ourselves sometimes, and take things easy, or we will be bothered by too many things. It is how I have adapted, and noticed how others have too. Maybe these people take things too seriously.
A suggestion to help could be that a PVE server or RP- server would be better for a more social experience compared to a PVP server. Not sure, but I have played only on PVP servers, and not others, and met a lot of very competitive and aggressive personalities, but also met some really friendly cool people.
You might run into someone rude, angry, or whatever anti-social behavior but it is an interesting experience and trying to communicate with them in some kind of fashion to help them, or just to observe them is an experience of its own. I personally find nerd rage funny at times. I don't provoke it, or encourage it, but when it happens it does not bother me. I suppose I am different, and don't mind a bit of the bad with the good.
Also If someone insulted me online I would see that as a challenge on how to best deal with the situation without getting angry, and offering some kind of retaliation. I suppose I got desensitized by it, tbh. But, it's like being angry that a bird chirps in the morning. It is a bird. It is in it's nature. It is normal.