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Button Mashers is a periodic audio podcast covering a range of topics in the gaming industry. This blog was created for myself, Tetsuotrunks, as well as a few guest co-hosts, to contribute our 2 cents on topics that really don't warrant any discussion, or to just express things that we'd like to get off our chests. Check back often, as we update frequently and feel free to leave any feedback.

February 2008
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Home » Archives » February 2008 »
MMOore of a game?
By TetsuoTrunks on 02.20.08 at 09:27 PM CST
First off, I have good news. I will now be updating regularly on a bi-weekly Monday and Friday schedule. So, every Monday and Friday evening (or Tuesday and Saturday morning for some of you), check back for a new Button Mashers post from yours truly. On one more housekeeping note, everyone make sure you participate in S. Roth's character battle. Its too late to sign up, but everyone make sure you vote on the battles! Without voters, its silly for him to go through all that effort, and then have no one vote. So VOTE! Its not even hard, its right there on the main page.

So I've had this urge lately to get involved in a very social type gaming experience. This presents a problem for me. The electronic platforms that I own are a Mac and a Wii. Aside from a bizarre white fetish that some people think I have, it leaves me rather limited. About the only well known Mac games are Blizzard titles (WoW, Diablo) and as for the Wii, once Brawl comes out, there will be that, but it still doesn't satisfy the craving I've had. It basically comes down to me wanted to get a full MMO experience. Now, I've ranted against MMOs before and my complaints stand and I still feel they are justified. That having been said, I want to try the entire ordeal from a different angle; I want to play an MMO with friends where we all start together at the beginning and advance together, at least until we're at the point where the game actually gets fun. Whether or not this will work may also depend on me purchasing a PC(as any other console would require my friends to buy the same), but its something I'm looking into. So basically what I'm asking is, what do you all think, not of the gameplay, but of the social aspects? Should we actually pursue this, or am I better off getting together a weekly poker game if I want social interaction?

But in thinking it over, MMO playing raises some questions. For example, the concept of grinding is never something I've loved, in online or offline MMOs, but I've found that at least the well made ones didn't make it seem like a chore. Chrono Trigger is a great example of this; I NEVER felt that leveling up was excess work at any point. But I think that at any point, a game should be one of 2 things. 1:engaging (when you play it) and 2:entertaining (when you watch FMVs or story sequences). And a game should go from one to the other seamlessly. But if your core idea of gameplay is repeating some of the same actions over and over and over, you had better make sure that that one mechanic is damn fun. Will playing an MMO with friends be enough to keep my interest? We'll find out...
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