Stuff like "I hope the idiot people who made this just kill themselves after they kill their family" makes me want to quit my job and move to another industry
We are all adults, right? The people I game with to the people I work with to my friends -- they are all adults. I mean, truly the only exception to that rule in my life are my children, my nieces, and my nephews. As adults, we should be able to handle conflict, right? Itās not like Iāve never got in a fight before. I had 16 years of fighting with my brother before becoming an adult. Needless to say, Iāve hadĀ practiceĀ fighting.
Why is it so difficult to confront each other when we have issues with another person? You rationally present an issue to the other adult, he presents his rational response, then you and he come to an agreeable compromise. Isnāt that the way it works? No? Well, it should!
Itās true. We cannot handle conflict rationally. We have feelings -- ugh, feelings. Sometimes, it would be easier to travel through life without the feels. But unfortunately, without feels, we wouldnāt have some of the greatest works of art, music, or written works. So your feelings are important, and itās likely that, even though your actions might be irrational, your feelings are justified.
But what do we do when dealing with conflict, especially in online games where we are generally anonymous? The first place to start is obvious. The person on the other side of that avatar is a real human being full of real emotions and rational thoughts and feelings, just like you. Yes, you might be pissed off at that person behind that Warrior, but she might be just as appropriately upset at you.
When I run into a situation that upsets me, I try to take a step back and look at the situation rationally. Sometimes thatās impossible. Sometimes certain things set us off more than others. I had a mentor who used to tell me not to make life-changing decisions if I was hurt, angry, lonely, or tired (HALT). I believe the same thing applies here. You are not ready to handle conflict if you are hurt, angry, lonely, or tired. You will likely say or do something youāll regret later. Sometimes, we just need to take a day, then approach the other person. Or sometimes, if you take that day, you will notice that the issue just wasnāt that important, and you can both move on.
Lastly, we cannot let go of everything. Sometimes a situation hits us too personally; sometimes an issue will continue to itch at you long after the situation has passed. That is when you need to approach the person rationally and sincerely to discuss (not argue) the issue. Unfortunately, this is not always possible, especially if youāre emotionally attached to the issue. In that case, get an advocate -- a mutually trusted friend or respected person -- to help you clear up the situation. If the issue gets this far, donāt be afraid to admit that the problem could be you and accept that there might be something you can do to compromise.
This should all be simple, but when youāre buried deep in a dungeon or a discussion in VoIP, itās not always clear where rationality lies. Thatās where understanding and compromise can help make the situation better.
And if any of you think that Iām writing this for you, youād be wrong. Iām writing it for me. When someone sees me fly off the handle, they can point me to this article and remind me of what I said -- about the advice thatĀ IĀ gave. This article isnāt for you; itās to keep me accountable. But thanks for taking the time to read.
It wasn't until I joined the Nefarious Intent guild that the term of beard rubs become a everyday addition to my vocabulary. If you don't know what beard rubbing is, here is a quick definition:Ā
Beard Rubbing is aĀ formal greeting or display of manly solidarity between two or more bearded men.
Sure, it's probably been out there for awhile, but when you think of sharing a moment of greeting with another man, typically you instantly think handshakes, bro hugs, slaps on the back, and fist bumps. There are many ways to greet someone. Then came the Beard Rub...
For two men comfortable with their sexuality to rubs their facial hair together is quite an experience. It's a bonding of good friends or acquaintances. I have finally had that experience. And it was a worthy greeting between good friends. Just like the importance of gamingĀ pantsless, beard rubbing will now be a staple greeting. Share with your friends. I would for one like to see a official Beard Rubbing day.
A little less than a month ago, Massively produced its best and worst of 2013. A couple of mine actually made the list, but my favorite and a few of my other more controversial suggestions didn't make the list. I figured that you might be interested in what I think about the MMOs that came out this year, and we ones I believe will have an impact on the years to come.
Best MMO of 2013 (launched in 2013): Age of Wushu
Age of Wushu reestablished the sandbox for MMORPGs. I donāt believe that the sandbox was dead or that there isnāt a place for sandboxes in the MMO genre, but weāve not seen a good, stable sandbox launch in a long time. Although I donāt think this game will get enough credit, AoW kind of proved that if done well the western audience can enjoy a skill-based, open-ended game.
Best Expansion/Patch/Update of 2013 (released in 2013): Star Wars: The Old Republic Galactic Starfighter
Iāve said I would have rather seen the studio resources put into some other part of Star Wars: The Old Republic other than Galactic Starfighter, but thatās just my inner SWTOR player talking. This mini-expansion contains more depth and customization than a surface glance would assume.
The only reason Iām not giving Star Trek Online: Legacy of Romulus the nod is because Iāve not played it. But everyone that Iāve talked to who is a Star Trek fan loves this expansion, and well, seriously, who doesnāt want to play a Romulan?
Most Underrated of 2013 (preferably launched in 2013): Neverwinter
Neverwinter launched with a wide audience and the hopes of being a full-fledged Dungeons and Dragons MMO. But alas, thatās not what Cryptic had in mind for the game. Unfortunately, many players didnāt appreciate Neverwinter for what it was: a fun game that you spend a few minutes to a couple of hours playing to unwind from the daily stress. When I revisited the game for Choose My Adventure, I was actually surprised at how fun the game is. And I also didnāt have to stress about rotations or builds or the standard things you have to worry about in an MMO. I simply log in, pound through a couple of dungeons, then carry on with my day.
Most Anticipated for 2014 and Beyond: EverQuest Next
Youād think Iād say The Elder Scrolls Online. Although I am very much looking forward to the ZeniMax title, EverQuest Next gets my creative juices flowing. If SOE can deliver on all the promises that its announced for the title, I can see myself spending a lot of time in that game.
Most Likely to Flop in 2014 (Does not have to launch in 2014): WildStar
I know there is a lot of hype around WildStar, and I know calling something a flop is loaded. But I believe that WildStar is not going to live up to the expectations of its audience, and itās not going to be well-received by the MMO community at large. Although I give the developers props for creating a new way to implement MMO combat, I ultimately believe that it will be the biggest detriment of the game. First, it skirts the line between the traditional MMO style combat and action combat without actually being either. Then at endgame, with each ability laying down a large telegraph on the ground along with particle effects, 40-man raids will make even the smallest boss battle a giant fuster cluck.
Best Studio in 2013: Trion
Trion tops my list of studios this year for the launch of Defiance and the additions to RIFT. I believe the Defiance launch was a huge risk that paid off in the endā¦ Iāll talk more about that later. And with a housing addition, an expansion launch, and an amazing free-to-play model for RIFT, Trion showed that it knows how to listen and deliver what its audience wants.
Biggest Story of 2013: EverQuest Next
I have to mention EverQuest Next again. The buzz surrounding the two EQN titles stirred the MMO audience imaginations. I donāt know if SOE will ultimately deliver on the product, but that really doesnāt matter because these news stories go to show what the MMO audience is actually yearning for. Iāll give you a hint: itās not another World of Warcraft clone.
Biggest Disappointment of 2013: Defiance
I know I praised Defiance when talking about Trion, but I am disappointed in the game itself. Iām sure that a large part of my disappointment stems from my hopes for the game and my love for the Syfy television show that came along with it. But the aged graphics and the stiff character animation did not live up to my expectations.
Biggest MMO Blunder of 2013: Elder Scrolls Online payment model
The ESO payment model disappointed me so much that I wrote two articles about it, and it sparked Mike Foster to write a Soapbox. Iām not against a subscription, but I think it just shows how out of touch ZeniMax is with its intended audience.
Biggest MMO Innovation of 2013: Transmedia
Defiance was a disappointment as a game, but I believe that as a product it broke the mold. I really enjoyed the tie-in launch of a television series with an MMO. I donāt think other games need to copy this model exactly, but I do think that tie-ins, crossovers, and multi-media launches add value to a product. And I also believe that outside-the-box thinking needs to be encouraged in MMOs, even if they do flop.
Most Improved in 2013: Star Wars: The Old Republic
I think we all know that 2012 was not a good year for Star Wars: The Old Republic, but 2013 changed the game, mostly for the good. In most categories, SWTOR listened to its audience and actually improved greatly on the gameās systems and content. I know people are going to hate SWTOR because they claim that it ruined their childhood when it launched, but if we look at what the game did in 2013, I think we will see an evolving, growing product.
We talked about this sexy Steam Machine controller in the last post. We figured you might like a picture of it. Look at it, love it, but don't love it.
With the announcement of the Steam Machines, PC gaming officially steps out of the office and into your living room. Of course, everyone at Valve is excited about it. "The first generation Steam Machines offers something for every gamer, which is a critical part of extending Steam into the living room," said founder of Valve and Santa Claus impersonator, Gabe Newell, in today's press release.
Since the Steam online gaming community boast of 3000 games and over 65 million users, it's in the best interest of everyone to create many types of machines that fit a variety of budgets -- assuming your budget is over $499 US.
A list of 14 different PC manufacturers have hopped on the Steam Machine bandwagon, including Alienware, CyberPower, GigaByte, and iBuyPower. The lowest listed price comes from CyberPower and iBuyPower, whose system contains a quad-core AMD or Intel chip, a graphics card in the range of an Nvidia GTX 760 or AMD Radeon R9 270, 8 GB of RAM, and a 500 GB hard drive. The most expensive machines, obviously, do not list their price, but Scan's NC-10 is certainly the most interesting. It's a low profile -- dare I say, mobile? -- case with an Intel i3 processor, an Nvidia GTX 765m graphics card, 8 GB of RAM, and 500 GB hard drive.
Each machine comes with a controller specifically designed for the Steam OS and to play a wide variety of Steam games.
With the next generation of consoles hitting the shelves just before the holidays and the number of games that release cross-platform (many times releasing on the consoles before hitting the PCs), I wonder if this is good timing for the Steam Machines. Steam might be ready for your living room, but is your living room ready for Steam?
If you have not heard of the Marroblivion project, then you don't know about the project that plans to bring to life the world on Morrowind in the Oblivion engine. However, recently modders have taken this to the next level and are attempting to recreate Morrowind in the Skyrim engine, and they have blown away many fans of the game with their Skywind mod.
In the first production video, the modders explain just exactly how much hard work is dumped into this mod. The team started with eight and now have 70 different people, from artists to writers to mode designers to voice actors. Yes, voice actors.
I will keep an eye on this project, if you're interested in doing the same, check out the video above, then jump over to the Morroblivion website. If you're really ambitious, then volunteer to be a part.
As I was setting up this blog, my son saw the name and gave me a dirty look. āReally?ā he asked me. āYupā was my reply, but what I was thinking was āYouāre 15; youāre supposed to be giggling and snorting at a silly name like Pantsless Gaming because it's pantsless and butts."
Despite my son's disapproval, I created Pantsless Gaming anyway.
If you are a professional in a field that you love, sometimes you take that field too seriously. Sometimes you just need to take off your pants and enjoy it. That's what this blog is about. I'm just going to talk about what I enjoy talking about: gaming, of course.
I will likely get a few of my friends involved with this since they are also looking for an outlet to express their ideas about this wonderful world of gaming, show off pictures from conventions, and other such shenanigans. But we are keeping it casual. We will likely not be the first to mention news. We will probably be wrong some most of the time. I guarantee that we will be opinionated. But the important thing is that we will be honest.
Look for an update like this every Friday, where I tell you what Iāve been up to this week. Then the rest of the week, Iāll give you news, commentary, and other silliness. Look for videos, livestreams, pictures, screenshots, and blogs -- all without pants, of course. If you have any questions, click the link on the side. Iāll take your questions here or drop me a line on Twitter.
So take off your pants, relax, and letās talk about some games.
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