How social are you?

[Goettel.4389]

I rarely initiate a conversation in-game, but I always respond. I love to help out, so I always keep an eye out if anyone I ride by seems to be struggling, but prefer to do a /bow instead of have a whisper afterwards. So: not very social :-)

[SkyShroud.2865]

The idea of old mmorpg is built upon grind.When you are grinding, you eventually build a group of people to grind with you.You then build friendships over time, even if you don't want to. I mean is just weird to not know the people who grind with you hours after hours, right?Likewise, it is also important to find that one priest or tank. You build up contacts.Of course, where do you find these people? Back then there isn't LFG features or sites so you join a guild or look around on the map or map chat.In guild, people who formed from start to the end game form a solid community, they do things together, they also start conquer the world together, you gain guild pride. Likewise, as you level through, low level items tend to get obsolete and possibly can be shared/loan/given to lower level guildies. Now, your guild become helpful.

In this game, you don't grind.Gears are relatively easy to get.Fashion war? MehzSo on what thing can you build a group of people?Not many actually. There are very limited activities where you will need to build like minded players. I can only think of pve raid and wvw.

[Fozzie.5370]

@Doo Lally.8594 said:My end game of choice is WvW. The chat is generally insipid, immature nonsense from teenage boys with fluctuating hormone levels and/or basement-dwelling man-childs who have low self esteem. I tend not to contribute unless it's a call out for help or I've had one too many Whisky's to drink. I rarely go into Discord as it's another level of nonsense up the scale. Generally I only talk to guildies on voice or a raid guild that I have past (good) experience with.

My block list gives definition to the word 'Infinite'.

Lmfao so true :joy:

[joneirikb.7506]

I tend to be "passive social", as in I respond to peoples questions in chat, I rez downed players if I'm not busy fighting, I help a player I see struggle, etc. But I don't really go out of my way to seek out others (my fault).

On the whole I find the entire game to be designed from the bottom up as a Single Player game, with an Multiplayer/MMO aspect thrown on top (A bit like BDO actually), almost like but not quite as obvious as in GW1 where the entire game felt like a Single Player game with a badass Co-Op multiplayer mode incorporated from the bottom into the game.

As such, I find that the largest problem with the game, is that there is so little reasons to party up. Now before people freak out (again), I'm not saying that everything in the game should need to party up, but that there was more variety. Basically Open World Tyria teaches you that you can go around and spam 1 and 6 and never bother to learn your class/character. Had more areas in OWT actually had some areas where enemies gathered up, was stronger, etc, that would encourage players to either party up, or at least call out in mapchat so they can build a small 10+ zerg to do that.

Example Kessex Hills (edit: mixed up zone names, corrected) have the centaur camp area to the west, it's one of the more enemy heavy areas in OWT, and back at launch it was an area I was very careful about, because I might get overwhelmed. Nowadays, I just stand in the middle and kill things left and right. If this area got toughened up a bit: more veterans, better use of siege, a few centaurs with better builds with more synergy, altered patrol patterns, more patrols with more varied mixes of enemies. It could get a bit too hard for most players to solo, but easy enough for 3-4 players to work together.

Something like that, one most OWT maps, would likely help a somewhat.

Edit: Forgot to add that the part of the game I always felt did the social aspect the best was WvW, it's the only place (outside of good guilds) that I've felt any kind of community. PvE is just too shallow and simplistic for building that.

[Sonja Teh Trapper.7012]

love everybody that is social in pve, wvw an pvp an everybody is helpful in guilds your in also

[kratan.4619]

Rarely do I speak to others in-game, but I do travel to help out if someone asks or stop if it looks like they may need help, at this time I will at least do the "TY" "YW" thing.

[Wizler.8192]

@Game of Bones.8975 said:I must be somewhat social or I wouldn't have answered this thread.

I... nevermind. Hehe. I'll start typing a response, overthink it and reword it, then decide that my response isn't really necessary so I delete it and move to a different discussion.

I don't usually initiate conversation but I'm responsive to others. I feel if somebody speaks they at least deserve a reply.

[Thornwolf.9721]

Why bother when this game is so casual, and can be solo'd in pretty much any mode? I mean really. The nesscescity isn't there, and I have yet to meet anyone in the community that I'd like to call 100% friend or get to know them. I come and go; Which is probably why I don't play hardly at all anymore because the game is not fun in its current form and I lack the bonds that would keep me playing.

Where as other mmo's I have friends who play them, who I enjoy playing with and so on. Raids are boring here, and pointless frankly I feel like ESO did the whole shtick better despite it not being as "Pretty" (Subjective, I find this game revolting in the way armor looks and the partical effects that have become WAAY to abundant.) But Im not the desired niche this game caters too, nor am I a part of the target auidence. I've asked for cosmetics I enjoy and the only thing I've ever gotten remotely close to it is the ravens mantle/helm, So there are a lot of factors here.

! * Remove armor specifications, to increase transmog potential since heavy/light/medium really doesn't make a difference. No matter your class you will get killed if hit hard enough, the silhouette argument doesn't hold up due to outfits/costumes. This would give the fashion wars community a reason to converse and people a reason to ask people "Hey what chest-plate is that?"

! * Increase the difficulty like with HoT, one thing HoT did right was force people to communicate and play together. This is an MMO-RPG you shouldn't be able to solo EVERYTHING, regardless of how casual you are. If you can't see past that and get over that it is NOT healthy for an MMO-RPG to allow you to play it like a single player game, then this genre of game is not for you and should not cater to you. Because in doing what it has done, it has harmed itself and a prime example is WoW as its current incarnation is more in-line with the solo journey. And it has suffered for it because of the fact it lacks the sort of magic and community it had in its early days, ESO does this differently. Zone quests/story stuff is solo-able, however the endgame becomes more centric around talking and doing things with other players (Dungeons, raids, champion stuff, even pvp) and sure you can solo que for them but there is no guarantee you will get through the content. It's built to be something you do together with your friends.

! * Give races a purpose, whether this is cosmetic differences or more customization or DARE I say it unique traits that make races mean something. A good player can overcome any form of racial benefit but this would get people talking. We could see charr only guilds make a come-back, and have communities form around this idea and it would give roleplayers something more to add to their stuff.

! * Make it so you can only join one guild, and make guilds matter. Bring back guild wars, alliance battles and the like and make it so being in a guild is worth-while and having a guild filled with people you enjoy gaming with becomes a boon. Because right now guilds are a waste of time and serve no purpose outside of petty cosmetics which are pretty lame, and low level social stuff (Which honestly is not why people join them, those sweet gathering nodes you can unlock is why people have guilds now a days. As well the boosts you can get to magic-find or whatever may have you.)

! * Bring back the trinity, give us tanks so that way we can have roles that need to be filled. This would then allow for us to be social and look for tanks, healers and GOOD dps which makes people more aware. It forces people to know their class and learn their class. Where as now alot of the time we just get medicore stuff, and because the trinity isn't here we get a support-dps and a bunch of dps elite specs.

! * Stop trying to reinvent and fix something that isn't broken, why do you think everyone is waiting for the "Next" big thing. Because when the true next big mmo comes out it wont be successful from gimmicks, pandering or lootboxes it will be successful because it uses the foundation of what was and builds upon it. Not trying to do away with it because "Its too hard".

[Dawdler.8521]

Social enough to post random replies to threads, not social enough to contribute anything of value.

[Omega.6801]

I'm interacting with other players where the game wants it from me. In my case that's WvW, Raids and sometimes map events/metas. The game otherwise doesn't give you much to do together, every other community content is also community created like weekly guild missions your guild organises or other community events. The game turned to be a massive single player RPG with PoF I guess, it started earlier when ppl criedd in the forums that they can't solo open world stuff and that having to get other people to play with would contradict the "play how you want" sell of 2012. ANet obviously bought into the crying and made GW2 the most soloable MMO, imho to the detriment of the community.

[HnRkLnXqZ.1870]

I try to play with as less prejudices as possible. Every new player I meet is by definition a nice person. If the player acts weird or talks crazy stuff, I always assume he has just a bad day. I do not care about gender, religion or anything else people use to identify themselves. I only judge them by their taste in fashion, both naming and dressing their characters.

If I see something interesting in map-chat, I contribute my opinion or help with information. I try not to engage in say-chat communications, because I am in most cases not addressed anyway. When people whisper me, I always try to be polite. That is not always possible. I further try to resist the use of sarcasm and irony in the game, because ... it almost never works as intended. In most cases you just offend people who do not know the context or are not into it at all.

I whisper strangers when I like their outfit or have an idea to help. If I annoy another person and get blocked, it bothers me. I do not like being hated. But it happens once in a while.

The place I am the least social? WvW. Chat does not work there as usual. People just brag about fights or use it for strategic commands (or spam passwords like crazy). Asking questions there leads most often to pure ignorance. Asking or answering questions is often seen as weakness. That does not mean I have no conversations in WvW. I have met a couple of nice people there, both helpful and talkative.

PUG parties are also a bit of a problem for me. Since people focus on performance analysis, I constantly feel that my performance is secretly tracked when I am in party with randoms. While I personally enjoy difficulties and improving after wipes, I get really nervous when it happens in parties with pugs. I do not obey the meta as the only truth in the world, so I live in constant fear to be pointed at as the only reason we wiped. As a logical consequence, I do no longer run any content that includes randoms for almost a year now. I like doing that content with my guild, because we do not care about performance, only fun. But my guild is mostly inactive. The day they start analyzing performance of players during meta events, judge and approach players who "don't contribute their part," I probably move on to another game.

I try to avoid conflicts, dramas and rather act behind the curtain in my guilds. 90-95% of my entire communication in gw2 is done via whispers/pms/mails.

[alcopaul.2156]

i am casual social. meaning ill talk to you if say i notice you with me from the keep to the other side of the map. i say "nice" or "gj" when we pwn players together.

but that's about it.

i used to be social when i was younger - (20's). had a famous guild and talked to constant persons/guildmates until they didn't play anymore.

now, i find that my perspective has been changed. it's not about the number of friends or people who like you anymore (with these lots of friends on facebook or lots of instagram likes meme). it's knowing your priorities (in rl or in leisure time like games). i'm in late 30's now and i listen to music that most millenials or post millenials don't know. and by that alone, i can say that there's already a barrier. and that is probably why consumer goods come in batches.

i could join a guild but i chose not to. not that i'm asocial, i just log, pwn stuff, log off. or just log, do pve and log off. or just log, do pvp and log off. and most of these WvWvW guilds have a premade group build that have characters equipping some funky sigil or rune or something like that.

and i am marked/known to my server as a trashtalking troll.

so that's the giveaway.

blame it on my Your Math Teacher [MATH] experience, where we trashtalked heavily the players of "balanced" builds after pwning them.

[VDAC.2137]

Sometimes I feel like just wondering the world with just my mount for company, but generally, I think I’m more social in the game than rl. I’ll join others doing metas or random events, help others when I can, rescue when I can and as others have said, I’ll often comment when I like someone’s character design, mount, etc. This is usually received positively, occasionally silence, but I figure they just didn’t see the message or prefer to keep to themselves and that’s totally cool too. :)

[lezbefriends.7516]

I socialize a lot in text chats... to the point where I’m ignored because it sounds like I’m rambling on to myself.

I want to socialize in VoIP, but anxiety and awkwardness keep me from doing so. I know that I would just ruin everyone’s fun being myself.

[Sugar Min.5834]

I never say 'hi' first to anyone in game unless i need their help or have a question to ask :D

But i always greeted back when someone says hi or hello. Sometimes when they start a convo, i will chat with them if i am having my break or in the mood to talk.

But when the chat gets weird or too many personal questions are being asked, I will just stop, excuse myself and makes for a quick run, thanks to my mount ^^

I like and enjoy someone in a squad or in the map who likes to make fun of bad situations instead losing their cools over them. Players who joke every now and then, as long as they are not offensive, help to perk up serious boring mood. These players are rare these days. As rare as this game's rare drops...

I missed the time when there are people who are more sociable and patient, and will go all the way to help you when you approached them. Maybe it's because years ago, i played only PVE and the community there and then, although not the friendliest, had more kind and helpful souls.

In WvW, most players only care about getting into a fight, winning or getting their pips. Many don't res downed players anymore, even when they are just next to the them -.-

A long time ago, i used to add players into my FB friends list but not anymore. Now I am more wary and careful. But, sometimes i really have the yearning to add players who asked " are you a real girl? " and then kicked them out as soon as they see how ' real girl ' I am lol

Guess I am very sociable considering my long post here :o

[Tukaram.8256]

@"kratan.4619" said:Rarely do I speak to others in-game, but I do travel to help out if someone asks or stop if it looks like they may need help, at this time I will at least do the "TY" "YW" thing.

the "TY" "YW" thing...That is the extent of my usual conversations in game. :)I only heard of discord this week... what happened to Team Speak (we used it in City of Heroes)

[Neve.7134]

I love to chat a bit in /say or /squad about easy things, but I'm not much talkative in /guild cause I'm new and kinda "stranger" for the guildies, I see they prefer discord over chat and that's not really my thing.During the world boss rush I tried to talk and help a bit more on map but I saw that none was answering mostly so I just dropped it and play it "brainless" like the others. I understand that some might be focused or afk, but I felt alone during the rush even though I had like 100 people around me O.o

[Sugar Min.5834]

Oh about voice comm. I never, never like them.

Once and only once, I was in TS to try it out but i cannot remember which server i was in then. Those commander callouts, crossed conversations, shouts, troll noises, total noise pollution.

Someone suggested lowering the volume but I have a better idea, I don't join at all, like ever.

I still prefer text. Even if you missed out on some chats, you can always back track.

[lezbefriends.7516]

@Mil.3562 said:Oh about voice comm. I never, never like them.

Once and only once, I was in TS to try it out but i cannot remember which server i was in then. Those commander callouts, crossed conversations, shouts, troll noises, total noise pollution.

Someone suggested lowering the volume but I have a better idea, I don't join at all, like ever.

I still prefer text. Even if you missed out on some chats, you can always back track.

Why not just lower the volume?

[Tukaram.8256]

@Mil.3562 said:Someone suggested lowering the volume but I have a better idea, I don't join at all, like ever.

I still prefer text. Even if you missed out on some chats, you can always back track.

This. So much this ha ha :)

[Hashberry.4510]

I keep the volume at zero.

[Ol Nik.2518]

@Chingalling.1208 said:How social do you tend to be playing gw2?I prefer not to be social.

In what ways and in what areas of the game are you most or least social?I am the most social when I command a squad. Those orders do not get issued themselves...

And would you prefer that more interaction was incentivised?Thanks, but no, thanks. The game rewards system already pushes people to play in groups: Zergs always generate more loot than solo players or small groups. There is absolutely no need to force people to talk.

[Zaklex.6308]

We are now in the year 2019, social interaction, whether in a game or out in the real world has been diminished to the point of almost being unnecessary, at least for most things. I posit that it is less necessary in an MMO today than it was 20 or even 10 years ago, just like it's less necessary in the real world...that is the direction the world is moving in, and gaming along with it.

[serialkicker.5274]

@crepuscular.9047 said:too much of GW2 contents are a 1 man army, would like to see Anet have a 'Dark Soul event week', buff up all the mobs to the point that you need a 10men raid squad to kill a rabbit at Wayfarer, that would teach the newbies what it means to be 'social' in an MMO means

Clearly you never played Dark souls, lol.

On topic: Depends on my mood and what I'm doing. I always say hi when joining a party/group and if they don't answer, I'll leave.

[dceptaconroy.7928]

I talk to my wife and watch stuff on telly while playing. She doesnt find me that funny anymore. So I just talk to myself or the screen. I'm not getting into any arguments..yet. If you're talking about the game I mainly pvp so I get my daily salt exchanges there. Good times if you take it for what it is... people pressing buttons and getting emotionally invested in an avatar.