Tag: Griefing

Trion Worlds Reverses Course, Now Threatens Bans For ArcheAge Blockades


ARCHEAGE 2014-10-10 12-02-23-78

ArcheAge faces the kind of balance that comes with games that promise absolute freedom: Allowing griefing versus keeping customers. Since its launch, Trion Worlds has used the term “emergent gameplay” as a tool to pass off any complaints about players utilizing the game’s collision mechanics to block trade routes in non-pvp zones, parking their vehicles over player owned land to prevent someone from farming, and circling around buildings to prevent access to certain areas.

In an announcement posted two days ago, Trion Worlds announced that blockades will no longer be allowed in ArcheAge.

Starting on October 23rd, users may no longer set up roadblocks/blockades anywhere in the game via any means (vehicle, ships, avocados, or otherwise.) In addition, we’d like to reinforce that users may not use their vehicles, ships, bodies, or another means to block someone from planting on their private land, interactable items, or from blocking NPCs in such a way that they cannot be interacted with.

While a large portion of players posting against the changes point to the game’s player vs player systems, Trion’s own Seraphina Brennan notes that very little blockading is done in conflict zones.

(Source: ArcheAge)

DarkScape Knocks Out Griefing Via Patch


pain

In my tips for DarkScape, I made note for players to be aware of a griefing method where players repeatedly run into a bank, only to be immediately killed and explode, doing damage to those in the bank. In fact, the latest update to RuneScape addresses several points in my article. In addition to adding a toolbelt to mitigate the need to buy/haul your crafting tools around, Jagex has added mechanics to prevent one form of griefing:

The guards are also wising up to some of the methods players have been using to avoid punishment – watch this space!

According to players on the forums, guards will now use smite against the players they attack, draining their prayer instantly and preventing them from using retribution (explode on death) and keep item (allows players to keep an extra item on death).

(Source: RuneScape)

Xbox One Locks Griefers In Personal Hell


skyrim-troll

Official Xbox Magazine has a new article out detailing new, notably harsher stance on griefing. With the new Xbox One coming out, Microsoft wants to encourage good behavior while putting a damper on players shouting down their mic or sending obscenity-laced messages filled with questions about one’s own sexuality, or the promiscuity of their mother, among other topics. Rather than outright banning the player, Microsoft is working on placing them in their own personal hell, filled with the other griefers and microphone screamers. Players of low reputation will find themselves matched up with others of similarly low reputation.

“There are industry best practices we’ve looked at, about giving kudos and props to people who behave well. We’ve learned from everything we’ve seen, and we’re trying to take it to the next level. So there’ll be very good things that happen to people that just play their games and are good participants. And you’ll start to see some effects if you continue to play bad or, or harass other people en masse. You’ll probably end up starting to play more with other people that are more similar to you.”

Now, Senior Product Manager Mike Lavin has refused to call this an Xbox Hell, noting that some players might enjoy playing with other trolls. There are still a lot of kinks to be worked out, specifics to flesh out, and cobwebs to be dusted. Hopefully this will put a damper on Xbox Live’s notoriously, shall we say, talkative community.

(Source: OXM)

Let’s Talk Pathfinder’s Bounty System


At the beginning of the month, I did an article on Dominus, and their advertised bounty hunter system, making the point that it was woefully prone to abuse, not unlike many other bounty systems MMOs have attempted to incorporate over the past decade or so. Well the folks at Pathfinder Online must be after my own heart, because they’ve detailed their own bounty system that addresses many of my concerns.

First off, players are given the option to place a bounty when they are murdered (killed unlawfully) and apparently only at that point. Not only can you put a bounty on the person who murdered you, but anyone else who damaged you or assisted that person. So let’s say you are ganged up on by a fighter, a ranger, and a healer. You’ll be able to put a bounty on the heads of the fighter who murdered you, the ranger who stayed afar and pelted you with arrows, and the healer who healed the two.

In addition, you can specify who can redeem the bounty. The idea is that bounty hunter guilds will form up, and players can essentially contract a specific guild/player to be able to collect the bounty, preventing the killer’s friend from collecting it. But death isn’t the end: When your bounty is collected, you are given the option to re-issue it. Want to make a griefer pay? Keep resubmitting his bounty until your coffers run dry or he rage stops logging in.

This also raises a heavy risk for players who like to role play as red (criminal) gangs. Kill the wrong person, and you could find yourself on the receiving end of a very long manhunt. Granted, this whole system does not apply in cases of declared war, where killing is lawful. The hope is that this will prevent players from running around killing each other for no reason and to make a murderer’s life that much more dangerous.

Granted, there are still some ways to exploit this system, including the murderer being in secret cahoots with the mercenary guilds, but the Pathfinder solution is one of the best I’ve seen.

Let's Talk Pathfinder's Bounty System


At the beginning of the month, I did an article on Dominus, and their advertised bounty hunter system, making the point that it was woefully prone to abuse, not unlike many other bounty systems MMOs have attempted to incorporate over the past decade or so. Well the folks at Pathfinder Online must be after my own heart, because they’ve detailed their own bounty system that addresses many of my concerns.

First off, players are given the option to place a bounty when they are murdered (killed unlawfully) and apparently only at that point. Not only can you put a bounty on the person who murdered you, but anyone else who damaged you or assisted that person. So let’s say you are ganged up on by a fighter, a ranger, and a healer. You’ll be able to put a bounty on the heads of the fighter who murdered you, the ranger who stayed afar and pelted you with arrows, and the healer who healed the two.

In addition, you can specify who can redeem the bounty. The idea is that bounty hunter guilds will form up, and players can essentially contract a specific guild/player to be able to collect the bounty, preventing the killer’s friend from collecting it. But death isn’t the end: When your bounty is collected, you are given the option to re-issue it. Want to make a griefer pay? Keep resubmitting his bounty until your coffers run dry or he rage stops logging in.

This also raises a heavy risk for players who like to role play as red (criminal) gangs. Kill the wrong person, and you could find yourself on the receiving end of a very long manhunt. Granted, this whole system does not apply in cases of declared war, where killing is lawful. The hope is that this will prevent players from running around killing each other for no reason and to make a murderer’s life that much more dangerous.

Granted, there are still some ways to exploit this system, including the murderer being in secret cahoots with the mercenary guilds, but the Pathfinder solution is one of the best I’ve seen.

Unrestricted: A Dead Feature


Imagine, if you will, that you live in Medellin, Columbia. Not only that, but imagine Medellin is the only city, and you have no other choice but to live there. You are forced to deal with the daily life of terrorists, drug lords, bombings, kidnappings, and random muggings and shootings. The government does nothing about these murders, because they don’t have the resources, and may be in the pockets of some of these drug lords. The leaders may be manipulating data to make the records sounds better than they are. Now imagine a new city forms, where there is still a little crime here and there, but it’s more along the lines of littering, with violence much, much lower and a government that cares. Would you (We’re disregarding financial issues here) move to this new city? Of course you would!

The reason for this analogy is to focus on the point that anything looks more popular when people have no choice. In this analogy, Ultima Online was Medellin, Columbia. I’ve always referred to Ultima Online as the Wise Granddaddy of MMOs, that other titles should take wisdom from and learn from both the good times and the bad. Ultima Online was the first mainstream MMO, and the release version was also insanely unapologetic and unforgiving; but there was no competition. When Everquest was released two years later, players began flocking out of Ultima Online, and resulted in Origin pulling what I’ve dubbed the Trammel Effect, bringing major changes to the game’s pvp aspects.

Full PvP is a dead feature, and I intent to explain exactly why.

Continue reading “Unrestricted: A Dead Feature”