I used to do serious end-game content in the vanilla/TBC era. I took a long break, caught the tail-end of BFA, and am now playing SL (obviously). Has anyone else who played around then noticed an increase in the nastiness of certain players, sometimes in general but especially in PUG mythics?
I know, I know, it’s a PUG, what do you expect. But I don’t recall players being soo…entitled, rude, and just plain a@@holes a few years ago. Maybe it’s because long-time players have gotten so used to the alternate reality of MMORPGs that they think others they interact with online are not real human beings? Or just feel like they are badass because of their gear?
I realize it’s an online game and I should grow thicker skin. But I’m just sort of surprised, frankly, by things players have said, e.g., in mythics where another player (sometimes me, I admit) didn’t do the right thing or get the mechanics down right or whatever. It’s everything from “you’re sh*tty, go learn your class” “you suck and should be thankful I’m carrying you” to much worse.
I’d like to know if these Big Bad folks in the royal purple gear talk to people in real life this way. I guess I’m just disappointed in what WoW is increasingly becoming!
"Go, go! Fast, fast! I am the god of the damage meter. If you do less damage than me you are a lesser form of life on earth. I am faster than light, you hear me Einstein! I pull 30 mobs at a time even with 5 AOE cap. Because I am the best. If you are new and not know what happening. YOUR FAULT! Begone peasant. Removed from group " ~ Inside their minds
I have a theory - and, if you think that you fall into the following description, it’s your problem, not mine:
The average PUG Mythic Raider is someone whose attitude on the game tends to be a little toxic and they put off players in actual formed groups. The same words that they say to you probably got them kicked a few times. Meanwhile, in the real world do they talk like this to real people? Probably not. Their lives are probably pathetic and sad and doing well on a game with other people gives them a chance to feel good about themselves - even if it’s at the expense of other people.
Society has become meaner, nastier, and far more judgmental. People in tight m+ groups and people in guilds are also this way, it’s just not usually openly directed at other people they associate with.
I’ve just stopped dealing with it. It’s not every time, and there are many good people in the game, but the frequency with which I encountered this kind of ugly behavior has gotten to the point that I’m tired of dealing with it. There’s enough of that in the real world.
Yes it’s a pretty common problem. You’re going to be told to get over it by everyone, though, because ignoring the problem is easier than trying to fix it.
The biggest change that facilitated this was the rise of dungeon finder, which was cross-realm (meaning no accountability on a server level). The level of anonymity increased substantially because in a game of millions of players you likely will never see that person again, ever, so they feel free to say whatever they please – and you see it.
That’s a very good point. Another thing I forget was when I started playing MySpace was still a thing, YouTube was in its infancy and no one had even heard of Twitter, Twitch, or Instagram. There actually was still a sense of community when you knew everyone you raided with. Now, it could be anyone and they might just be jerks that weren’t even BORN yet when the game first came out…
