Loading... When More is Not Enough

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Updated Sat, Aug 29, 2009 by Ethec

Welcome to the 1,154th edition of Loading...

Loading... is the premier daily MMORPG news, coverage, and commentary newsletter, only from Ten Ton Hammer.

What's at the heart of the game-jumping common among MMO gamers these days? Karen "Shayalyn" Hertzberg stands in for today's Loading... and shares her perspective on why times such as these remind her of the restlessness of many gamers during EverQuest's heyday. Are gamers only in it to win it, or does the dream of an online community still survive? Read on with Loading... When More is Not Enough.

The Pulse

You vote with what you view at Ten Ton Hammer, and the result is the Ten Ton Pulse (What is The Pulse?).

Here's today's top 5 Pulse results:

Biggest Movers today :

DUST 514 (UP 108 to #17)
CrimeCraft (UP 18 to #16)
Runes of Magic (UP 4 to #11)

Recent MMO Releases

7/21- FFXI "Moogle Kupo d'Etat" Addon (release date)
8/4 - World of Warcraft Update 3.2 (content patch)
8/25 - CrimeCraft (release date)

Important Dates

9/4 - 9/6 - Penny Arcade Expo (PAX)
9/15 - 9/18 - GDC Austin
10/1 - 10/3 - EVE FanFest

Upcoming Releases

9/1 - Champions Online (release date)
9/9 - Dungeons & Dragons Online Unlimited (release date)
9/15 - Fallen Earth (release date)
9/22 - Aion (release date)
10/9 - Cities XL (release date)
Early 2010 - APB

Loading... Daily

(Thanks much to Karen "Shayalyn" Hertzberg for stepping in on Loading today!)

Recent studies on addiction show that all animals--from birds to rodents to reptiles to humans--share the same pleasure receptors within their brains. One conclusion is that we’re all hardwired to seek more of the same when it comes to those things that “reward” us with a pleasurable experience.

But, conversely, we also seem to be hardwired to grow weary of the same ol’ same. I don’t have links to any scientific studies to bear this out, but we humans know it to be true. We see plenty examples of how the experiences that once brought us pleasure suddenly don’t seem as fulfilling as they were when they were new: drunks can become junkies, once-loyal spouses can become philanderers, and people with a sweet tooth can become compulsive overeaters.

You don’t have to be an addict to understand the basic human need for novelty; we gamers know it all too well. Many, if not most of us, talk fondly of our first MMO--it was our first high, so to speak. And while it was fun while it lasted, we’ve been on the prowl for something to recreate that feeling of newness, of discovering this pleasurable activity for the first time, ever since.

Way back in the heyday of my EverQuest years there was a segment of my guild’s population we referred to as The Game Jumpers. We gave them their own forum on our discussion board, and we grew accustomed to their comings and goings. When one or more of these guys vanished from EverQuest for a while, we knew it was because they were out there experimenting with new MMOGs. And their stories always played out the same. Game Hoppers X, Y and Z would leave for the uncharted territory of the latest and greatest new game. Unless the game completely sucked from the word go (and some of them, of course, did), they would post glowing reports to the forum trying to woo us to their new land. But The Game Hoppers always ended up back with the rest of the guild in EverQuest before long, muttering about how that Big Flashy New Game showed promise initially, but in the end just didn’t deliver the excitement they were craving. They blamed it on certain mechanics or a general lack of substance.

It would be unfair to say that the games since the days of EverQuest and Ultima Online have lacked substance, though. In many ways, they delivered exactly what gamers said they wanted--things like more solo-friendly content and less downtime. And the MMOGs since EQ have introduced mechanics and tools that we simply don’t want to live without these days.

So, why is it that developers are delivering more and more with each new MMOG launched, and yet gamers seem less and less satisfied with them? One quick spin around the Ten Ton Hammer forums reading comments is all it takes for me to determine that the gamers of 2009 are a restless lot. We watch intensely as a game ramps up for launch, and we hang our hopes on a promise that this game could be The One--exactly the game we’ve been looking for since we left that one aging game that converted us to MMO gamers in the first place.

I’ll venture my guess. MMOGs have evolved as they’ve become more mainstream to meet the demands of gamers who have limited time to play and yet still want to accomplish something each time they do. It’s a necessary evolution, and yet it’s led us away from the one thing that has given games like EQ and UO longevity--community.

Let’s face it, at the core of every MMOG is one basic principal: repeat this action--whether it be questing or killing monsters or cranking out crafted items--and you’ll get a reward. It’s the same principal underlying the mechanics of pleasure--do this (eat chocolate, smoke a joint, drink a beer) and you’ll feel good for a while. But over time, pleasure-seeking alone only leads to ennui. You can push the same pleasure buttons over and over, and yet enjoy the experience less and less.

None of us wants to return to the dark ages of MMOGs where looking for a group meant running around with an LFG tag over your head and hawking yourself and your skills in /ooc. Few of us would be able to play a MMOG that forced grouping or expected us to endure marathon gaming sessions in order to accomplish anything. An EQ redo is not the answer to the restlessness within the MMOG community--you only need to look to solo- and casual-friendly World of Warcraft and its 12 million subscribers to know that’s true--but building community is. The next big game for you, and for everyone else, is clearly going to be the game in which you can engage in those pleasure-inducing activities repeatedly and yet avoid the inevitable boredom because you’re among friends.

How can developers bring the massively back to massively multi-player online games? How do you build community around an innately repetitive game to make that repetition seem much more fun? I don’t pretend to have the answers. Maybe you do. Share your thoughts and ideas in our Loading... forum.

Shayalyn's Epic Thread of the Day

From our Aion: General Discussion Forum

Aion Open Beta Announced!

Our editors are deft and quick when it comes to publishing news as it breaks, but every now and then our readers and community members are so laser-focused on a game that they beat us to the punch. In this case, new member purplehayes found evidence of open beta and headstart dates for Aion on Twitter. Our own volunteer Aion Guru, Sepharious, confirmed it, and...we're off!

Are you ready for Aion's open beta, headstart and launch? Want to talk about it with other excited gamers? Jump into the action on our forum.

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Awesome Quotes from the Epic Thread

"Well it's about damn time, them slackers!"

- RawGutts
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Have you spotted an Epic Thread on our forums? Tell us!

4 new MMOG home-grown articles today, many from BlizzCon! 78 in August! 938 in 2009!

New Coverage and Guides At Ten Ton Hammer Today

Features:

World of Warcraft Cataclysm Q&A with J. Allen Brack (Premium Members only until Monday)
Ten Ton Hammer and a number of fansites and community representatives were invited to a Blizzard press conference with J. Allen Brack, Lead Producer on World of Warcraft. We had a chance to voice a few questions from our WoW community as Brack touched on a number of hotbutton and general interest topics for WoW players.
StarCraft 2 Preview from BlizzCon 2009
In our next piece of Blizzcon 2009 coverage we take a long look at the many panels of Starcraft 2. Who was cast as Kerrigan? Is stuff going to blow up in a shower of blood? Are dynamic kills going to be in the game? What do they have in mind for custom maps to compete with things like Defense of the Ancients? We get to the bottom of this in our next article.
Heroes and Monsters in Diablo 3
BlizzCon 2009 wasn't just about World of Warcraft. Diablo III also made an appearance with the announcement of the new monk class. Several Blizzard developers walked us through the process of creating a monster in the game, and then the floor was opened up to fan questions. Join us as we take a look at the Diablo III goodies offered at BlizzCon '09.
World of Warcraft Cataclysm Preview for Paladins
The ink isn't even dry on the Cataclysm literature and we're furiously digging through the information to find out what it all really means. Medawky laid out an excellent review of the total changes for Cataclysm, but for more specific class information, we look at how Cataclysm may effect Paladins. There are many significant game changing decisions that have been made, we won't know the true extent for quite some time. That doesn't stop us from making some educated guesses though, does it? This week we look at the Cataclysm Preview for Paladins.

Guides:

Gold Farming in Wrath of the Lich King
Everyone needs or wants gold in World of Warcraft. It's only natural to want to be wealthy and be able to afford all of the cool mounts and shiny 8,500 gold rings. Getting the gold is the hard part, but with David "Xerin" Piner's latest gold farming guide you can't say that any more. Xerin gives a realistic approach to farming gold and some neat tricks to make it easier. You don't even need to pay a single dime for this cool information. So come over and find out how to fill your pockets full of gold to get all of the cool items and gear you want.
Aion Spell Lists: The Cleric, Ranger, and Spiritmaster
The path to Ascension is fraught with danger at every turn. Only strength of will and an intimate knowledge of your abilities will allow you to complete the journey intact. In an effort to stave off defeat, Dalmarus has scribed the secrets of three more classes this week to aid you in your quest for immortality.
World of Warcraft Hunter Races
So, which race should I play? This is one of the most basic and frequently asked questions among Huntersfirst beginning their adventures into the World of Warcraft. To most veteran players this question seems simple and easily answered resulting in any real answers to it being given. This week Mem attempts to reach out a helping hand to those Hunters who are in pursuit of the ideal Hunter race.
World of Warcraft Blacksmithing Guide Updated
David "Xerin" Piner has given our blacksmithing guide for World of Warcraft a fresh coat of polish. Our blacksmithing guide has been reworked from the ground up to provide you with all of the information you desire in an easy to read format. Do you seek to wield a hammer against the mighty anvil and create weapons and armor and bust sockets into gear? Already do? Well come to our blacksmithing guide that's got a little bit or a lot of something for everyone!

Giveaways:

Fallen Earth Beta Key Giveaway
A little less than a week remains in the Fallen Earth open beta, so seize your chance to test out the game prior to launch with a key from Ten Ton Hammer!

Ten Ton Hammer - Taking MMO Gamers to the Next Level!