Lacking Character

I was thinking today how much life would change if I stopped playing Rift and mmo's in general. It was a thought I took back right away, but I figure i'd write about it to flesh out my feelings on the matter.

Something changed from WAR to Rift in that I didn't enjoy pvp or atleast Rift's version of pvp that I didn't start doing it until my friend or gf wanted to do so. I am/was perfectly content in doing pve and rifting. The rifts were enjoyable with the big swirly colors, the dynamics of the invasions that were always random, it wasn't perfect, but it was different. Artifact collection was a more tangible and unique reward in Rift and reminded me of the collections in Farmville. When I didn't feel rushed, I would read the quest text and learn the interesting story of the war between the Guardians and Defiants.

Unfortunately my gf loves pvp and I can't blame her, she loves to heal as her bard and she's very good at it (typically top dps by 50k). It also didn't help that I did very well myself in whatever role I picked (dps, healing, tanking/harassing) as it would perpetuate the pvp matches. Granted we won alot, it wasn't my cup of tea. Winning (actually) can get boring; but losing gets boring even more. Then you run into disorganized warfronts where everyone is being rather selfish and just doing what they want (say, all dps and no healers, or tanks). No one has a strategy, or everyone is spouting their own orders. Everyone is complaining, pointing fingers and it turns into a chat room (chatting instead of playing) instead of being a competitive warfront. Then you encounter cases like last night; snotty teens (?) that taunt you from your opponent's side who tell you to "L2P" and make other rude remarks. Although I try not to let it bother me, it does, me being a rather competitive person and don't like to get into verbal sparring matches.

When I step back from it all; there should be no reason to be upset at cases like above; wherever you are, whether in an mmo, console online game or real life, we're bound to encounter griefers aka douches. They win if you get upset. Think of it differently: big talk from stealth pvp rogues. I need to classify that kind of player versus other kinds of rogues. There are rogues like my gf who play the helpful bard to heal their companions, or the ranger rogue who likes to have a companion on their travels (meat shield). There are the rogues that I play that are used to properly contain a group of monsters into manageable sizes or used to explore and find puzzles and artifacts while bypassing mobs. These stealth pvp rogues are people that are selfish and rude, that must hide in the dark and stab people from the back instead of in their face, and then laugh about it out loud. For your information, there is a very nice squirrel build waiting for you next time.

Whatever happened to "GG" at the end of the match, or giving thanks to the healers for the good job they did? Thanking the leader and party for a good raid and good loot/rewards. Being satisfied with the way a game is built, not being so obsessed with rewards but with intrinsic rewards instead. Saluting, waving, bowing and other emotes that do not including giving the bird or tea-bagging. High levels helping or being generous to lowbies. Having courteous and polite dialogues.

There are alot of good games out (Dungeons 2, Borderlands, L4D2, etc) and even more coming out (Diablo 3, Dungeon Seige 3, Heroes of Might and Magic 5/6 whichever). Today when I had my thought, I wanted a change; I wanted to try something new for a while without having to pay for a service i'm not currently using. I knew I would miss my guildies, my new friends. Knew that it was my primary form of entertainment which felt like it (mmo's vs non-mmo) gave better relaxation. Knew that this was a shared interest between my gf and I that we could do over a distance. Alot of plusses that make the minor irritants seem small.

I think what ill do is play the way I like; to not get bristled by people's rudeness (karma will find a way). To play pve and do rifting. To not be too worried about the race to lvl 50 but enjoy the journey there. To do pvp only when I feel like it and change the circumstance to be more favorable (organized premades). To spend time chasing those elusive shineys but to find time in RL for other important activities.