It's not just this game, it's pretty much every game. Also the social rewards are fairly lame, and for the most part grouping in this game slows your leveling progress down. So people generally don't bother. And those that do, group in guild.

As a matter of fact, yes! And in my honest opinion, it's still THE most inaccessible MMO community out there due to the fact that nobody bloody talks to one another in-game and the more active guilds had completely ridiculous 'entry requirements'. No hope for small talk that wasn't peppered with stat-jargon outside of the forums, and on the forums there's still epic QQ over Pandas. It's a damn shame too because I actually enjoy the game insofar as the lore and combat, just hate the attitudes of the players and their lack of drive to partake in some fun co-op with people outside their tight-knit cliques.

 

Community without real communication? Madness.

 

Oh they talk, just about things we've all dealt with and heard in high school.

The very moment someone says LFG for dungeon, one of three things happen:

 

1) General chat becomes as silent as a grave (loved saying LFG for that reason alone:D)

2) Everyone jumps down the poor fellow's throat, calling them names or other expressions that are exceptionally vulgar and end it with "Use the *********** tool! That's what it's there for!"

3) Someone goes on about how they soloed said dungeon regardless of the fact that said person asking is at level of dungeon or undergeared compared to the pompous dimwit.

 

Ah, the days of WoW.

 

But yeah, it seems today's MMO community for the most part, wants nothing to do with. . . well, community.

Granted the way things are handled doesn't help matters much, but I still have hope.

I rarely accept grouping/flashpoint invites, but that's only because I get interrupted a lot and do not want to be dead weight, or I always seem to get invites right before I'm ready to log off or am just finishing up.

 

I do try to respond encouragingly and politely when someone asks though, I appreciate the offers even if I can't accept. I generally don't invite people (unless there's a group of people in line and we are having to wait FOREVER for some boss to respawn, ect.) because there have been many times where people have been very rude on other MMOs and I don't like to be yelled at.

 

It is fun to meet new people though. Even if it "messes up" I'm almost always amused by PUGing, unless the people are just horribly mean. I think given how much trashtalking people see on other game forums though it can be intimidating. I feel safe tanking or healing for my guild, since no one is going to scream about my performance and treat me like dirt if I mess up (though they may offer some suggestions, which is great!). I have never been screamed at in a PUG, but I have seen people be horrible on boards and naming names, and while I don't *think* my performance would ever be that bad, crazy people are crazy and I don't want to have to deal with someone going nuclear over a game. So...anyway, that is why I can be a bit cautious. I'm willing to give people the benefit of the doubt though, especially if they're nice/polite over /w.

I can understand that completely, what I still cant understand is how the hell AN ENTIRE PLANET can just fall as silent as if taken by the plague...As if a million voices suddenly cried out in terror, and then suddenly silenced. I feel something terrible is happening.

 

Maybe they have a bad motivator.

My reason is that I'm an angry, bitter, jaded individual where MMOs are concerned (Not outside of gaming, thankfully) and have been burned by people one too many times to be anything but asocial.

 

Pity really, I used to be one of the friendliest shaman puttering through LOIO.

I hope more than anything that this is not the "New Trend" in MMO's, I fear if it is I might quit playing them all together. If so-called "professional gamers" want to waste their time being self righteous shmucks that don't play along with anyone properly. Then I say that the lot of them go find a new game to play, perhaps something like CoD. ooooo or even better, designate a bunch of servers for just those types of people. Leave us with the players that ACTUALLY want to team up.

 

It's not a new trend. It's always been like this. That's why devs have been scrambling to find ways to overcome them - because so much content was there rotting and so many players were finding it hard to break into social clicks. It's every single MMORPG. Aways was, is and ever shall be. Any that believe their game will be different, that their players will be different is nothing but delusional.

Some people like to talk first, then team up.

Most of the time there is that one troll or ignorant guy who gets all fuzzed up if you start talking in general chat, makes smal talk impossible.

7 in 10 times I team up with someone who did not talk in general chat, it ends in me leaving the group, because they start pulling EVERYTHING or you have to wait for them to paint their nails while you do a heroic quest.

If some small talk rolls out prior to a team up there is never a real problem.

Chatting trough typing is a big sign of "I can use the keyboard".

Edited April 4, 2012 by Karenai

Some people like to talk first, then team up.

 

Yeah, this is why I dont keep LFT tag active on myself.. I dont want to randomly jump into an unknown pick-up-group.

 

Plus I want to do my own storyline missions immersively and adding even one extra person to the normal quests tends to make the combat complete anti-climax. Maybe devs should add more heroic 4+s.

I don't know why people prefer to be quiet. In my case it is usually due to nobody being around. If I talk in general and don't get a reply, I turn on a movie to help get through the more boring parts of levelling. I miss the first weeks of the game where there was constant chatter in general.

Some people are shy and will not talk much.

 

They feel uncomfortable even talking to people on the internet so sometimes they just never answer looking for groups or even talk in general.

 

I know a friend who is very shy and will only talk in the guild. She just feel uncomfortable trying to talk in general.

 

Sometimes they just need a little help and a little acceptance instead.

 

Quite a few i know like this also. We have members who cant shut up for a minute lol and some who dont say much but know we are there for them should they need help.

The shy ones, trying to get them onto teamspeak is an effort though -

I find it really funny when one person will come to a new world that has a dead chat and say "X amount of people here, no one is talking". And right after that the entire populace partakes in good conversation.

..at least for a while.

Until the one who initiated it leaves. Then we're back to radio silence.

 

Do they haz no backbone? Afraid to talk when their shining social butterfly is gone?

 

It's sad

 

I'm a shining social butterfly who randomly invites people to pvp and forces them to Ilum or no heals in teh warzones. No Ilum, No heals.

I'm a shining social butterfly who randomly invites people to pvp and forces them to Ilum or no heals in teh warzones. No Ilum, No heals.

 

Good on you, sir. Now come to The Ebon Hawk : )

It's not a new trend. It's always been like this. That's why devs have been scrambling to find ways to overcome them - because so much content was there rotting and so many players were finding it hard to break into social clicks. It's every single MMORPG. Aways was, is and ever shall be. Any that believe their game will be different, that their players will be different is nothing but delusional.

 

This. People are people.

 

 

I hope more than anything that this is not the "New Trend" in MMO's, I fear if it is I might quit playing them all together. If so-called "professional gamers" want to waste their time being self righteous shmucks that don't play along with anyone properly. Then I say that the lot of them go find a new game to play, perhaps something like CoD. ooooo or even better, designate a bunch of servers for just those types of people. Leave us with the players that ACTUALLY want to team up.

 

"Since you won't play the way I want you to, get out!" ... well done!

Edited April 4, 2012 by SableShadow

Honestly, this game isn't really designed with having a flourishing social community in mind. The reason is that there is practically no content that you're required to do to progress the story that forces you to group. People can and do complain about games that have this element, but at the same time, they have the most flourishing social communities. Final Fantasy XI for instance had the most social community I've ever seen. There were large parts of the game you couldn't even access without grouping up and going through missions, and along the way you made friends and became a part of the community. Not to mention it was pretty much impossible to exp any other way. As much as I hate grinding exp in any game (even single players,) it gets people to group up and socialize.

 

Its not for everyone, and I understand that, but if a game wants a social community they're going to have to push their players to it and ignore their initial complaints, because in the long run it will get the result and the community (and players) will be better for it. After a year of FFXI I was no longer playing for the game, but rather for the friends I'd made and the fun we were having. Years after we've all stopped playing, my guild still takes vacations together in a large group, people flying from around the world for it. I can't even imagine making close friends like that through SWTOR because I just don't see the same type of community minded approach to content.

 

That said, I really enjoy the fact that this game hasn't made me group up. My husband and I are lvl 37 and to this point have done essentially everything with just the two of us (with the exception of a few Heroic 4's) and we really enjoy it. There aren't enough co-op games in existence, and this game has filled that void for us. We're not opposed to grouping, but we both enjoy the freedom of being able to stop randomly in a safe place and play with the dog, go to the bathroom, or any number of other things that we might delay if other people were waiting on us. Like a lot of people, we likely won't group up unless we have to, because the game content is perfectly enjoyable without it.

Brother, I've got to be honest: I'd rather this game were not a massive multiplayer game, but rather a game just I and my wife to play together on. Even so, if somebody asked me to team up, I'll consider it - and have once or twice.

 

Amen, amen, and amen.

 

I wanted KOTOR3 that my wife and I could play together. This is the closest there is.

 

As far as "why pay 15 bucks a month," that's chump change. A pint of Guinness is six bucks, a glass of a nice Cabernet is 12 to 15, and I've paid $40 for a glass of vintage Port. Fifty cents a day for entertainment is nothing.

because in the long run it will get the result and the community (and players) will be better for it.

 

Why?

 

I dispute your assertion that arbitrarily making it necessary to group will improve the community or especially the players.

 

Can you substantiate your thesis?

I am personally not against grouping, but i only like grouping up when its required, especially since i want to see the classes' storyline, being in a group, its not going to be possible, because my choices might not win the roll and so ruins the story outcome for me.

 

Another problem with me and grouping is that i never, EVER want to skip conversations, i must have been through Black Talon and Esseles around 20 times or even more since the game came out and i have yet to get bored of the conversations in the flashpoints, but others obviously just see it as a means to get better gear and commendations and nothing more.

 

Hence why i avoid all group content where possible, i have never had my social above social I......ever and the only downside is i can't buy the social gear, which tend to be for consulars and inquisitors anyway and useless for anyone else.

I guess I fall under the "shy" player category. But I'm not afraid to talk in general chat. It's kinda like you get shot down with silence if you do though. I'm always asking if anyone wants to do a group mission, I have never received a response, not once. And after so many times of asking with no one responding, I just kinda give up and do my own thing. The only groups I have gotten into are always people not saying a word and kinda just standing there and I have to do everything. It's like, what is the point!

Why?

 

I dispute your assertion that arbitrarily making it necessary to group will improve the community or especially the players.

 

Can you substantiate your thesis?

 

Because making people group creates a community through the necessity of interaction. If you simply can't progress without grouping up, then you either quit the game or you group up. The majority of the time people will group up. When you group up, you meet people you otherwise would not have met, and perhaps in future you'll adventure together again. If this is happening throughout the game, for everyone, you quickly build a network of friends, just like you would have in real life. Friends, friends of friends, acquaintences etc. The end result is a community. Right now, SWTOR feels like an RPG with an auction house. I'm sure this isn't the case for everyone by any means, but it is for myself and many others. I'm not saying that's a bad thing either, (I'm actually quite happy with it,) just making a statement.

 

With regard to making the players better, there's something to be said about being able to work together in a team setting and accomplish a difficult task. (The same can be said about accomplishing something difficult purely on your own.) Learning to trust that your party members will do their job, and knowing that they have put that same trust in you, and you living up to it. The feeling of accomplishing something as a group creates a sense of comeradery and belonging. Without getting to philosophical, humans are naturally social creatures and desire these things. By obtaining them, even in a video game, you're better (happier, more fulfilled etc) because of it. For most people (not all) we play MMO's because there is a social aspect to them, and thus there is a desire/need, at least on some level, for social interaction, thus the potential for a benefit is there.

 

With that said, I'm not at all advocating that BW should suddenly implement a requirement of having a group to accomplish certain tasks. As I said, this game simply isn't setup that way, and I'm glad for that. I'm just saying that I don't expect this community to flourish socially until people have to interact. Take it for what you will.

Without reading every page of this thread, the common link seems to be people wanting a partymate to skip through the dialog. If people are going to be so rude as to make you skip the dialog, why would you comply with their request? You are paying good money for this game, and you should be able to enjoy it. It's as simple as not hitting space bar. I always read the dialog, and personally, I don't care if people get annoyed with me: it doesn't matter one bit. If they're going to try to impose their will on me, I'm certainly going to impose mine on them.

 

It's kind of ridiculous to refuse to party with people if your reason is "I can't stand inconveniencing people." Stand up for yourself politely and say you like to read the dialog.

General chat doesn't make or define a community.

 

It's almost painful every time I am on a starter planet and someone says "Wow, 100 people on the planet and no one talking? Some server community" and goes off to another server hoping for WoW barrens chat.

 

Yet there are thriving events going on all the time - it's just that the majority of them are set up through means other than general chat. Namely guilds, forums, whispers, LFG, etc. I'm on a roleplay server called Lord Adraas and it's actually insane how much stuff is always going on, I'm always able to find groups within 5 minutes. Yet there's always people complaining about "General chat" like it's the holy grail of communication. In my opinion, it's more like a gutter only incidentally used for finding groups, but mainly for bored or immature people to troll.

 

My preferred communication method with strangers is simply bumping into them, asking them nicely if they need help, would like to group up, or are interested in doing so-and-so flashpoint or heroic. Simply sending off a group invite with no explanation is likely to get you ignored, so put some effort into communicating rather than just halfassedly saying "LFG Heroic" in general chat and being frustrated at having no response.

 

Not intending this post to be rude, but grouping requires all parties to be interested and benefit. If you're only looking to do quests on your schedule, without waiting for people, then it's going to be difficult. If you're looking to help others and make some friends along the way, give it some time, even if it means not skipping every dialogue with spacebar or spending a whole five minutes to help someone with their class quest.

Edited April 5, 2012 by Jenzali

The biggest issue I've seen is that people always expect everyone else to do what they want, not being willing to change their game routine in order to do group content. Just last night I decided to help a group with the Tatooine world boss during some of the later questlines I was doing. I never post LFG messages, instead I operate on more of a "I've got the quest/I've got the time, why not?" Yet on the other hand I'm by no means a sociable person and at times I prefer a quiet chat. As I stated previously everyone needs to be more willing to do things when they've got the time and opportunity, even if that means holding off on another quest for a couple of minutes.

Because most people playing online games don't actually enjoy playing a game, they enjoy getting a reward.

Some people are shy and will not talk much.

 

They feel uncomfortable even talking to people on the internet so sometimes they just never answer looking for groups or even talk in general.

 

I know a friend who is very shy and will only talk in the guild. She just feel uncomfortable trying to talk in general.

 

Sometimes they just need a little help and a little acceptance instead.

 

True. When I look for groups for heroic missions I usually not only spam the global chat but send a couple of tells as well and it's astonishing how effective this seems to be.

My reason is that everyone is in some kind of rush. It's stressful to always have to be chasing after people who won't stop to let you breath. As far as I'm concerned it's the people who rush through everything in groups who are anti-social, not the people going solo. Solo I can take a moment to chat on general, or send a tell to a friend. In a rush rush rush group I can't do anything but get stressed out trying to keep up and contribute.

 

I love to talk, and I enjoy socializing, but in my experience a group prevents either. That said, if I found a group of people who like to take an easy pace, I'd happily join in.

Edited April 5, 2012 by SliceAntilles