#game experiences

[heartbeatline]

okay but like. seriously talking i wanna talk aihl. where do you all watch what are yalls team

[thaliendir]

how to troll haskill :

sit down on floor

stare at portal

trance to metronome

profit :P

[vkjmcblogs]

Game Experiences

As expected-- people are different. With that in mind, it is easy to assume that players will experience a game in different ways.

The Bartle Taxonomy of Gamers theorises that players can be broadly categorised into four groups: Killers, Explorers, Achievers and Socialisers.

The graph is not strictly conforming as there is definitely potential for overlap in a gamer’s playstyle. Since the theory is quite complex I’ll give you the shortened, very broad explanation:

Killers are competitive and focus on other players. They can be quite disruptive as they seek to cause chaos and act upon selfish impulses to inflict distress.

Achievers are also competitive, but as their names suggest they focus more on victories, trophies, or collecting rare items. They wish to climb the ranks and focus on high numbers.

Socialisers are the roleplayers, or the active member of the game’s community. They like to interact with fellow players and the game itself fades to the background.

Explorers focus on the game itself and finding everything that it has to offer. This applies to the environment, world building, character interaction, etc.

 My experience with Final Fantasy 15 (FFXV) was very positive. While I can understand the distain towards the multi-media expanse of their game, I actually love it. Only the story and world-building part not the “obviously milking money out of the series”.

In reference to the Bartle Taxonomy of Gamers, I more so fit into the “Explorer” archetype. FFXV’s expanded universe was essentially a gold mine for me since I tend to favour deep and complex worldbuilding.

I connected with the main four characters on a personal level. They were almost like friends. Written in such a human way that I was immediately invested in their personalities and livelihoods--I wanted to know more about them. I had realised that because of my borderline completionist (maybe Achiever?) habits that I was pretty much exploring every corner of the map, finishing every side quest, and pretty much spending time with the four main boys for over 100 hours. I watched secret cutscenes, heard all dialogue interactions, even saw the subtle interaction animations that played during combat.

Long term fans approach FFXV with an assumption of the experience because they are familiar with the series. They came with a bias to what the game should be and that in turn affected whether or not they were excited or disappointed with the game’s final version.

I as a newcomer to Final Fantasy had no personal prior experience with the series apart from secondhand ones via YouTube or articles or appearances in collaborative games (e.g. Kingdom Hearts). I saw the game in a purer form. No prior expectations. My investment in the open world definitely affected the way I reacted to the story and its finale. In a way I had bonded so closely to the characters I became part of the story. This fact is why I believe that some fans had such drastically different experiences to me.

 To me there are many factors that can contribute to how players experience a game. What I’ve discussed is only the tip of the iceberg.

 References:

Bartle R, 1996, Hearts, clubs, diamonds, spades: Players who suit MUDs, ResearchGate, viewed 22/07/2019 <https://www.researchgate.net/publication/247190693_Hearts_clubs_diamonds_spades_Players_who_suit_MUDs>

Zenn J, 2017, Understanding Your Audience – Bartle Player Taxonomy, image, GameAnalytics, viewed 22/07/2019 <https://gameanalytics.com/blog/understanding-your-audience-bartle-player-taxonomy.html>

[thaliendir]

so that statue in bruma , which commemorate player with appearance of best equipment ...

" what ? thaliendir , hero of kvatch and saviour of bruma , is sheogorath ? of course not , do not be ridiculous " ... :D

[thaliendir]

warning - jittery video

and here is something from morrowind , immersive madness mod for cult of sheogorath - player character seizure ! odd little comfort , actually .

[thaliendir]

one more story for now :

so , to progress in shivering isles , have to do quest for duke thadon and quest for duchess syl .

duchess syl is certain that someone plot to kill , and request help of sheogorath's chosen champion . after this , will gain temporary follower of herdir . at any point , talk to anyone and there is chance to interrogate - upon which , herdir will blast with painful shock magic .

but what happen when someone who should not get hit ... is hit ?

eventually trail lead to ma'zaddha , who was in sacellum arden-sul at this time . while try to blast ma'zaddha ... well ... ma'zaddha by chance move out of radius , and instead :

high priest of mania , dervenin , was hit . ma'zaddha is just there like , " well , glad that was not ma'zaddha ... "

still like to joke that dervenin end up with concussion from this . :D

[thaliendir]

as character , fa'zel is this cool rogue-ish type . but as player ...

well , as player , kossai can be quite goofy silly . as feature fa'zel who somehow struggle to sit on bench , then dance around aimlessly and possibly quite crudely .

( song : taverne du nain by garnet cathedral )