SmakenDahed

MMO community connection:

Random Ogre Thoughts

Chapter 1: Introduction

What is your name (your online persona/alter-ego, what have you)?

SmakenDahed

What is your connection to the gaming/blogging/podcasting community (your chance to plug yourself here)?

I’m just a gamer who blogs about random things that I feel like writing/venting/ranting about.

Please take a minute and describe what your blog/podcast is about.

It cannot be categorized. I talk about games, politics, hockey, odd events, games, and what ever else pops in my head. I’m not in it thinking I’m a journalist or part of the media and I’m not out to save the world, I’m just trying to stay sane and blogging is a good release.

Where were you born? Where did you grow up?

I was born in Montreal, Quebec (Canada) and spent the first 18 years of my life all over (and off) that island.

Where do you live now?

I am currently living in Ottawa, Ontario (Canada).

Your level (age) is somewhere in the range of (pick one): 10-20, 21-30, 31-40, 41-50, 51-60, 61-70, 71-80, 81-90

31-40

What do you do for a living?

I do software testing. My official title is Senior Software Verification Specialist, Lead. My job entails manual testing, automate testing, performance testing, load testing, security testing and probably some other types of testing I can’t think of at the moment.

If you could reroll your career, what would you be?

I wouldn’t change my job, but I would gladly change the content I test to something more… fun.

List five random things most people don’t know about you.

• I’m proficient in three different styles of martial arts
• I have taken courses on writing
• I have a wicked temper
• I am surprisingly patient (which is good, given my temper)
• And … I think my memory is already starting to fail me.

Feel free to discuss any family you have here.

I have a wife, two boys here. I’ve got a mother-in-law (who is driving me crazy), sister-in-law (…) and brother-in-law from my wife’s side. On my side I’ve got two uncles, one aunt, three cousins, my sister and her husband in the area. Rants about the mother-in-law and her antics almost have legendary status on my team at work.

Chapter 2: Origins

What kind of games (if any) did you play as a child before you got into video gaming? Did you play with family, friends or was it more of a solo activity?

I played a lot of games with my older brother and his friends, but also spent an equal time alone playing with various toys. I got into RPGs at a really young age (eight) and haven’t really looked back. When I didn’t have my nose in a book I was usually out getting into trouble with friends.

What other hobbies and/or activities did you have as a child (sports, music, etc)?

I got into martial arts around the same time I got into RPGs, the main reason was that my mother was going back to school to become a microbiologist and some of the evening courses where in seedy downtown neighborhoods. My dad tends to be an all or nothing type of guy so he signed the whole family up. I was a first degree black belt in Shaolin Kempo Karate at about 12 or so. Other styles I picked up were Shirynjiru Kenkokan Karatedo and Jiujitsu.

I spent a lot of time outside playing, exploring and getting into places I probably shouldn’t have been.

Were you ever exposed to pen and paper role playing games? What was that experience like?

I was eight years old and it was a lot of fun. It was pretty simple, monty haul/hack and slash, but good fun. I’ve played a fair number of RPGs over the years, though my favorite has to be Shadowrun. I’m currently playing a P&P session with a group of guys every Wednesday night (I think it’s almost been 10 years if not close to 11 now).

Did you read much as a child? If so, what did you like to read (books, comic books, etc?) Please list some favorite authors, titles, etc.

I read comic books and novels. I was reading Tolkien at eight but was also reading a lot of Piers Anthony’s Xanth series. I usually read what ever my parents had around at the time. For comic books my favorites were X-Men, Spider-man, Ghost Rider and Rom the Spaceknight.

Would you say that any of these games or books had an effect on your later appreciation of computer gaming and ultimately MMOs? Please explain.

Definitely. I always loved using my imagination and thought it would be great to be able to play these types of games on computers so I could play them when ever I wanted (as in, not needing to gather friends together and organize actual sessions). Eventually, I got into thinking of how great it would be to play these games online and quite some time ago I got talking with my brother-in-law about how cool it would be to have a massive, online virtual world to play in with all sorts of people from all over the world. It was funny, we started planning how it could be designed and he found Ultima Online was just released. It was a lot of what we thought would be cool (from reading the instructions) but we never bother playing it.

How were you first introduced to video games? How old were you? What was the platform?

Atari, I think. My uncle had Pong, but I don’t really remember it. I can remember playing Space Invaders, Night Driver and Combat at my uncle’s place. I think I was 5 or 6 years old – I don’t really remember.

Did you ever play coin-op games at the arcade? What was that experience like?

Definitely. There were tons of arcades where I was growing up, we had one place that was about five minutes walking around the corner from where we lived. I played all sorts of games there, half of them I can’t remember the name of. I also spent a lot of time just watching others play as well.

What was the first video game you can remember playing that really made an impression on you? Please explain.

Wizardry I on the Apple 2 (actually, a clone called Golden 2). It used 5.25″ floppies and you had to swap disks for saving and stuff (my dad was a hero when he bought as second floppy drive!), but it was in 3d! Heh. I was about seven or eight and the damn ’small humanoids’ picture scared me. Pretty silly thinking back to it.

I learned about farming there (thanks Dad!). We would farm the Murphy’s Ghost statue room for +1 magic weapons and stuff. He also showed me some minor exploits like creating a back up disk for characters, loading characters, giving all their gear to one other party member, renaming them, then transferring over the back up so you ended up with an infinite amount of gear to sell off. He also taught me about mapping and things like that.

I still remember a good number of spells. ‘di’ was the rez, ‘dios’ type words were for healing, ’tiltowait’ was the big nuke. It amazes me what I remember about older games. Oh, I still have coordinates memorized for the garrison room in the Castle in Bard’s Tale – the room with four groups of 99 Berserkers? I used to teleport up there with some hefty tanks in the first ranks, two sorcerers and fill the last slot with a character I wanted to level. I’d then just Mind Blade the four groups with the two sorcerers and by the end of the fight the 6th slot character would get a ton of levels. (From the entrance coords were 2 up, 5 north and 12 east – that’d put you at the door).

What gaming consoles have you owned in the past?

Atari, Sega Genesis, Nintendo, Playstation, PS2, Wii, and PS3.

Feel free to share a story related to your gaming experience as a child.

I remember playing D&D with my parents, it was only one session but I remember it like it was yesterday. The module was Palace of the Silver Princess and I was playing a Halfling (basic D&D the demihuman races were classes heh). We came across a long hall where there was a storeroom and a kitchen. My father listened at the door of the kitchen and heard what sounded like goblins making a bunch of noises. He made us all go back to the storeroom and roll some kegs of ale to the kitchen door, then knocked and hid back in the storeroom. After a couple of hours we checked on the room and could hear the goblins singing drunkenly in the kitchen. We open the door and attacked, taking advantage of their drunken state. It was a lot of fun.

Chapter 3: Online

Were you ever exposed to MUDs?

I heard of them from the brother of a girl I was dating. He was pretty into them though his sister was telling me he was getting too into them at the expense of his school work. I thought it was sort of weird that people could get so into something like that when it was just text. Marriages? Politics? Weirdos…

What was your first MMO experience?

EverQuest. It was the year it came out, though several months later. I couldn’t tell you the year. I was previously playing online Quake 2 in a clan organized by someone who became a really good online gaming friend (over 11 years now). We were a little frustrated by a mishap during a tourney and felt the clan we competed against took advantage of their position as organizers to turn what should have been a win into a loss. Some other folks had been talking to my friend about EQ and we decided to give it a shot.

Man, the subscription fee was a big hurdle for me to over come. I wasn’t used to buying a game then having to continue to pay monthly to play.

We started Erudites, he insisted on playing an Erudite because it was the best caster race and he wanted to play a Wizard. I was easy going so I made an Erudite Paladin (ouch). We played for several hours and go hooked pretty quickly after figuring out how to do stuff. Toxx Forest was a load of fun especially given the darkness and lack of nightvision. We had all sorts of fun doing some quests, exploring, dying, trying to find our corpses.

I’ve been hooked ever since.

If possible, list all the MMOs you’ve played extensively.

• EverQuest
• Asheron’s Call
• Anarchy Online
• Dark Age of Camelot
• Planetside
• City of Heroes (Villains)
• Star Wars: Galaxies
• Asheron’s Call 2
• Guild Wars
• EverQuest 2
• World of Warcraft
• Dungeons and Dragons Online
• Vanguard
• Tabula Rasa
• Age of Conan
• Warhammer
• Lord of the Rings Online

I think I’m forgetting one or two.

What is your current MMO of choice, or perhaps, what are your current MMOs of choice?

I am currently playing World of Warcraft where I have a level 80 Ret/Prot Paladin in mostly T7 (or T7.5) gear. I’ve started an alt to play along side my five year old son (refer-a-friend).

Which MMO have you spent the most time playing? How long would you say that has been?

Everquest. It’s hard to say how long, but probably a couple of years in total.

Have you reached level cap in any MMO? If so, which ones?

I don’t look at hitting level caps as all that big a deal because I know it’s a matter of time, however, I have hit the level cap in EverQuest, EverQuest 2, World of Warcraft and I was really close in VG before I threw in the towel.

Loki taps you on the shoulder one day to inform you that you have fallen victim to one of his elaborate pranks. The world you’ve been inhabiting of countless MMOs to choose from and play has merely been a dream. In reality only one MMO exists. After laughing at you for a bit he decides to take pity on you and allows you to choose which MMO will remain. Which one would you choose and why?

At the moment, I’d have to say World of Warcraft simply because I’m playing it with my son and I’m having a lot of fun watching what he does and has fun doing. I’ve recently bounced around trying out some of the older MMOs I left behind and they were fun for a bit, but not something my son is interested in; while WoW has him hooked (at least as hooked as we allow him to be).

Are there any MMOs currently in development that you are particularly interested in? Please explain.

I’m curious about Champions Online and DC Universe, but those will probably just be a distraction. One in development would be Copernicus (38 Studios). I enjoy a lot of what the people involved in its development enjoyed or created so I’m hopeful about that one. Star Wars: The Old Republic is another one I’m interested in but I don’t think I’ll be swept up by it.

Feel free to share an interesting or amusing anecdote related to your MMO gaming experience.

I mentioned a long time gaming buddy, we started in Quake2 but moved into EQ. We bounced around from game to game for a bit until we heard SOE was releasing a brand new server that did not allow transfers – enter Stromm. He convinced me to give it another go – a real go at it this time because it was going to be the last time we ever played that game.

With that in mind, I created an Erudite Cleric named Fabinusar (the same name that was randomly generated for my very first character; an Erudite Paladin). I figured it’d be the first name I used in EQ and the last. He created an Ogre Shadowknight named Conflict. We duoed a lot of the content, adding the odd person into the group here and there. It was the first time I played a Cleric, usually I played the tank role, so it was a lot of fun. I was excited for every spell and every time I got a new one I had to try it out to see what I could do with it which meant rearranging my spell bar every time.

That added a little chaos to our sessions.

Before he was able to Feign Death, I used to use Lull/Pacify type spells to single out a target which he’d pull. It worked so well we’d hit dungeons with just the two of us.

We were in Upper Guk working our way into the Jail area. We were setting up to Lull and pull each one of the five or six mobs in the center of the Jail room. Now I just had access to Stun so I put it on my spell bar wondering what sort of use I could get out it.

Guess which spell I cast instead of Lull?

A lovely train ensued. The corpse recovery run was pretty fun too (I never carried a second set of gear).

Chapter 4: Preferences

At your peak, how much time per week would you say you spent gaming? How about now?

30-40 hours then, about 15-20 now – if I’m lucky and willing to sacrifice sleep (which I am).

When during the week are your regular play times?

I tend to be a weekend warrior; I play Friday night and usually weekend mornings. I do hop on after 9pm for a couple of hours when I feel up for it. That’s usually when I do my farming or tradeskilling. The guild I am in raids from about 8pm to 11pm Tuesday, Thursday and Friday so I try to make those when I can.

Generally speaking, are you more of a social creature in MMOs (grouping to quest, joining guilds, etc.) or something of a lone wolf?

All of the above. If I’m tired, I tend to just fall into what ever I’m doing and run about solo. When I’m more awake I’ll group up or build groups to hit what ever or I’ll pop into some PVP, BGs or otherwise. When I’m in a guild, I do try to be social, though I tend to miss a lot of chat if I’m into a dungeon or raid.

(My gaming friend would say I miss tells too, and it’s true. I’ve had to use ChatAlert type mods to put certain chat channels right in my face – the little pings in games like EQ2 doesn’t always work)

Have you made any lasting friendships through your MMO experience? Please explain.

Hell ya. One I’ve already babbled about (Frank: Airstrike, Damogoth, Kaldonar); met in Quake2 LMCTF when I was organizing my clan’s side and he was on the other team. We were in email contact setting up a time and date. I was a little nervous contacting people outside the clan because I was expecting to get some corpse-humping asshat but the guy was completely polite, understanding and pretty easy going.

The match came about and my side was horribly overmatched (being more in to RA2 and not really being organized for CTF). The end result of a 30 minute match was a 3-0 loss to my clan. It would have been worse but I held their flag through most of the match. They capped twice when they finally got me and a third time when another clanmate was carrying the flag. I got hold of it again and kept it for the remaining time (I think I had it for about 28 minutes).

They were good sports and good winners.

In the following weeks I’d occasionally end up on a LMCTF server (I didn’t play RA2) where he was playing sometimes on the same team and sometimes not. When we were on the same team we’d dominate with me on D and him nabbing their flag. When we were on opposing teams we sort of canceled each other out.

End result was we had a lot of fun and played really well together be it defense or offense. He ended up asking me if I wanted to join his clan and after some thought I did. Eventually we formed our own then went into EQ together.

In EQ I met up with another guy I’m still playing games with today (Chris: various names starting with Cel). Frank had actually met him and we all got along eventually tried other games together.

Before logging into a game, do you already have a course of action planned out in your head, or do you just sort of do whatever you feel like once in game?

I usually have some sort of plan. Farm, tradeskill, explore, PVP or do some instances. I’ve often planned what we’ll do for a session ahead of time and invited people by sign up.

When you have less time to play, you want to spend more time playing and less time waiting or trying to build a group so I like to get that sort of thing out of the way before hand.

When playing MMOs do you tend to just play one at a time or do you take more of the smorgasbord approach?

Yes and no. I usually don’t subscribe to more than one MMO unless I’m starting to get bored of the one I’m playing in which case I’ll sub to another and play it at off times. I’d rather get somewhere in one game than halfway in a bunch of other games – that’s just me though, I don’t force my expectations on others.

Do you tend to supplement your MMO gaming with other PC, console or tabletop games?

Again, when I’m getting bored I’ll binge on some other PC game or console game. I play D&D with a group of friends (almost) every week for about 10 years now so my MMO gaming is on top of that.

Are you something of an altoholic?

Only when I’m first starting a game and when I first started playing a MMO. I’ll experiment with all sorts of classes to see what I enjoy. At the moment, I tend to focus on a character until it hits the cap then I might create an alt to play with. I currently have about five alts in WoW but I also have a max level Paladin (Ret/Prot) who raids.

Do you find yourself multitasking while gaming (perhaps watching TV, talking on the phone, out of game instant messaging, playing another game, or even listening to a podcast)?

I sometimes listen to a podcast or music but no, I usually focus on the game when I’m playing (spouse and children permitting). I might have online radio streaming a hockey game to me or I might have the TV on with hockey going in the background, but I’m not watching it (it’d hurt my neck to see the screen from where the computer is).

Do you find yourself having much MMO discussion off-line, perhaps with friends or family?

Not so much anymore. I talk about it with my son, in my blog but not so much with my friends.

Have you ever felt that you game too much? If so, how did you cope with that?

Yup, I have felt that way but I don’t feel it ever goes on long enough to impact work or my social life (generally, I play a lot when I’m on vacation). I don’t? It’s a hobby I enjoy. It gets pushed aside if I need to do work or if I need to go to family events or if I need something more important than entertainment.

Since you started playing MMOs, have you ever taken a break from the genre? If so, please explain.

Yes, I’ve taken a few breaks here and there. The most notable was before the EQ Stromm server was released. I didn’t touch a MMO for several months until my bud got me thinking about it. I’ve taken a few other breaks but never really for any particular reason.

Chapter 5: Blogging

When did you first start blogging?

The blog started in October of 2006 with my first post being about boredom with currently available games. Surprisingly enough, I’ve lasted another three years and survived my boredom.

Why do you blog?

It’s an outlet. I vent about various things, talk about some interests or topics of interest or share things that just seem a little screwed up. I don’t guarantee quality, I don’t guarantee researched posts, but I do promise you’ll get my thoughts on things (often my thought process). My blog is my own, I don’t do it for anyone else but I do like arguing with commenters even if I agree with them.

Do you have a schedule or some sort of routine you try and follow when blogging?

Nope. I just blog when I get a moment and have something to unload or a thought on something.

Is there some grind involved in blogging? If so, what is it and how do you cope with it?

If it took effort then I wouldn’t be doing it.

By contrast, what do you find pleasurable about blogging?

Just getting things out of my head and out there, whether people read it or not. I do get a kick out of how people react to it.

How many people offline know you blog or podcast?

Very few actually. There are three guys that also blog from my D&D group that read my blog from time to time and another one that doesn’t. There is an online friend (Chris) that reads it from time to time (I even posted a review of his for NWN2: Storm of Zehir which actually gets a bucketload of hits). Aside from that? No, I like to keep somewhat anonymous so I can rant and vent and be a jackass.

What advice would you give someone who wanted to try their hand at blogging?

Focus on the goal of the blog or podcast but don’t be shocked if you never see any comments – any idiot with a computer and internet connection can blog (I’m living proof!). Do it for you, not for others.

What is something you know now that you wish you had known when you first started?

I can’t really think of anything. I guess that means I know it all?

Can you picture a future where you will hang up your keyboard and no longer blog?

Blogging is so easy (and free therapy), I can’t imagine stopping. I could picture changing the content of my blog but I couldn’t imagine stopping.

At your funeral, what song(s) would you have played as your corpse is set alight and cast out to sea on a funeral barge?

Say Hello 2 Heaven, Temple of the Dog. I love that song.

Crookshankz

MMO community connection:

The Gaming Goob

Chapter 1: Introduction

What is your name (your online persona/alter-ego, what have you)?

Crookshankz

What is your connection to the gaming/blogging/podcasting community (your chance to plug yourself here)?

I started blogging about MMO’s by accident really. One of the SOE dev’s (Grimwell) posted on his blog a “hard core challenge” asking people to only allow your toon to die 7 times and then delete him. And, you had to blog about your adventures. I took up the challenge and lost interest in it, in roughly a month or so but, I kept the blogging. I found it a good way to kill time at work. I started at crookshankz.blogspot.com and ended up changing over to http://thegaminggoob.wordpress.com where you can find me now.

Please take a minute and describe what your blog/podcast is about.

My only real theme is MMO’s. Mostly it is a diary of what I did the night before or what I plan to do in the future in an MMO world. Sometimes I will gripe about aspects of games that annoy me but, I’m not opinionated enough to do that regularly.

Where were you born? Where did you grow up?

Up until the 4th grade, I lived in Glenn, Michigan (close to Saugatuk). Then my family moved to Davenport, Florida and I lived there until my 20’s.

Where do you live now?

Deltona, Florida.

Your level (age) is somewhere in the range of (pick one): 10-20, 21-30, 31-40, 41-50, 51-60, 61-70, 71-80, 81-90

31-40

What do you do for a living?

My fancy title is a Network Operations Center Technician. Mostly I just answer the phone here and there, and kill time in a small, dark room with no windows.

If you could reroll your career, what would you be?

I’m currently trying to reroll, to become a teacher.

List five random things most people don’t know about you.

• I once tipped over my high chair as a baby and cracked my skull.
• When I was 8 I wrote a full length Batman Comic Book
• Spending most of my day on a phone makes me not enjoy built in voice chat in games.
• I am horrible about cycling through hobbies.
• I enjoy drawing, painting, play the guitar and ukulele and write. All very poorly.

Feel free to discuss any family you have here.

Once upon a time I was married to the Wicked Witch of the West. I got tired of waiting for a house to fall on her, so we divorced. Afterwards, I met my current, wonderful wife and have an awesome stepson (age 11). I feel I am truly blessed with the best family I could ask for.

Chapter 2: Origins

What kind of games (if any) did you play as a child before you got into video gaming? Did you play with family, friends or was it more of a solo activity?

Pre 4th grade I was all about some baseball. I either played with my cousin who was quite a bit older or my dad. We had to use “ghost men” to stay on the bases for us. 4th-7th was 4 square at school and High School I could be found every day at the local basketball courts.

What other hobbies and/or activities did you have as a child (sports, music, etc)?

As a child? hmmm. I played video games back then quite a bit. I was an avid comic book reader, collected baseball, basketball cards. I’d also wrote and drew quite a bit.

Were you ever exposed to pen and paper role playing games? What was that experience like?

I tried quite a few times to play D&D. Back in my High School though I had a hard time finding people to play with. So trying to play usually consisted of me and 1 other person and we spent the time just rolling random characters.

Did you read much as a child? If so, what did you like to read (books, comic books, etc?)

As a child I read quite a bit. Hardy Boys, Encyclopedia Brown and A Wrinkle In Time. I was also an avid comic book reader. (I was taught to read by Spiderman).

Would you say that any of these games or books had an effect on your later appreciation of computer gaming and ultimately MMOs? Please explain.

I guess in an off way. Reading when I was younger taught me an appreciation of the Fantasy Genre. I read a lot now and they are pretty much all either Fantasy or Sci Fi. On the same note, all the games I play are either Fantasy or Sci Fi.

How were you first introduced to video games? How old were you? What was the platform?

When I was very young, my uncle had the original Pong. He would let me play it when I would go over and visit. I must have been maybe 4 or 5ish and still vaguely remember it. I also remember being a bit upset when I was 6 because my Dad was willing to pay $275 for an Atari 2600 but wouldn’t buy me a $7 toy (my priorities were confused back then).

Did you ever play coin-op games at the arcade? What was that experience like?

I use to play coin-op games like crazy. My dad use to work late night at a resort at Disney World. When I hit 15 or 16 he would get me into Disney and I would run around there until it closed. Then I would go over to his hotel and he would give me a roll of quarters. I’d play until he got off work. I did that once a week for a few months. Even when I was 20, and working at the local mall. I knew a guy who worked in the mall’s arcade and he would give me free games. So I’d go in there and play Street Fighter II during my lunch breaks.

What was the first video game you can remember playing that really made an impression on you? Please explain.

If I can still remember playing Pong at pre-5, I would think that counts.

What gaming consoles have you owned in the past?

Atari 2600, Commodore 64 (if that counts), NES64, Game Cube and the Wii.

Feel free to share a story related to your gaming experience as a child.

I when we first got our Commodore 64. We would go and buy Compute! Magazine (I think that was the name of it). And in these magazines you’d get pages of code for games to type in. You’d type it by hand, then go through and recheck it, save it too cassette tape and then execute the program. That was how we first started gaming on it. The process took days.

Chapter 3: Online

Were you ever exposed to MUDs?

My MUD experience is really limited to null. Early days I did play almost all the InfoCom text adventures. Zork, Planet Fall, ect, if those come close to counting.

What was your first MMO experience?

My wife worked on me quite a bit to give EQ a try. At the time, I played FPS’s and was afraid I’d get sucked into MMO’s. Wouldn’t you know it, I finally gave in to my wife (was there any doubt) and got sucked into MMO’s. If my /played is accurate that was early 05.

If possible, list all the MMOs you’ve played extensively.

• Everquest ~ 53 Monk, 53 Druid
• Guild Wars ~ many 20 builds
• Everquest 2 ~ 80 Shadow Knight, 80 Conj, 80 Troub
• Wizard 101
• Runes of Magic

What is your current MMO of choice, or perhaps, what are your current MMOs of choice?

Right now, I am MMO of choiceless. I’m just randomly playing various MMO’s waiting for something I’m actually intrested in.

Which MMO have you spent the most time playing? How long would you say that has been?

I’ve spent a good chunk of my MMO time playing EQ2.

Have you reached level cap in any MMO? If so, which ones?

Guild Wars, and Everquest 2

Loki taps you on the shoulder one day to inform you that you have fallen victim to one of his elaborate pranks. The world you’ve been inhabiting of countless MMOs to choose from and play has merely been a dream. In reality only one MMO exists. After laughing at you for a bit he decides to take pity on you and allows you to choose which MMO will remain. Which one would you choose and why?

Uhhh….Star Wars: The Old Republic? Right now, I’m not that into any one particular MMO so that mean ole Loki can take all his MMO’s and just leave me a pile of money

Are there any MMOs currently in development that you are particularly interested in? Please explain.

The Old Republic has my geek DNA pulsing like crazy! Also, I really think it’s about time that 38 Studios starts giving up some info on the game they are making. 38 Studios has such an all star cast, and if they can’t make a kick butt MMO I will have to consider not gaming ever again (no pressure guys).

Feel free to share an interesting or amusing anecdote related to your MMO gaming experience.

I think this posting was the closest thing to an anecdote I ever wrote. It’s fairly lengthy for this format but, if you get a chance, it will explain the goober in me.

Chapter 4: Preferences

At your peak, how much time per week would you say you spent gaming? How about now?

I shudder to think at my peak time. Maybe 5-6 hours per day on my weekdays and 10-15 per day on my weekends at my peak. I try to justify that much time as both my wife and son game as well so, we were all playing together. No one was being neglected. Now, maybe 10-15 per week.

When during the week are your regular play times?

Friday – Monday’s usually 9:30ish pm – 11:00ish pm and Tues – Thursday on my days off when I can find the time or the interest.

Generally speaking, are you more of a social creature in MMOs (grouping to quest, joining guilds, etc.) or something of a lone wolf?

Me being a shy person, I play alot with just my wife and I. Every now and then, I will join a guild that I click with most of the people in it.

Have you made any lasting friendships through your MMO experience? Please explain.

Yes. That’s why you find me going back into EQ2 for instance. I love the people in my guild there and we resub for a month just so I can say hi to them. I have quite a few of them on my facebook and I’ll keep in touch that way or via emails here and there.

Before logging into a game, do you already have a course of action planned out in your head, or do you just sort of do whatever you feel like once in game?

Just depends on how into the game I am. When I was hardcore EQ2, I usually had my time spent out. Now I’ll log in with a generic goal but not really a game plan.

When playing MMOs do you tend to just play one at a time or do you take more of the smorgasbord approach?

Right now I’m doing a Smorgasbord approach. I’m in between mmo’s just killing time until a game shows up that I’m actually interested in.

Do you tend to supplement your MMO gaming with other PC, console or tabletop games?

Here and there I will. The family gets into some Guitar Hero and Sims 3.

Are you something of an altoholic?

Huge, Huge, Huge. I never understand how people always play just one class without ever trying anything else. When I start playing an MMO, I’ll fill up my character slots with everything I may be interested in playing. And then just through playing them all I will start gravitating to what I actually like playing the most. I’m also big into matching Race, Class and name. If one of these things are off, I’ll have to remake the toon. (I’m just weird like that).

Do you find yourself multitasking while gaming (perhaps watching TV, talking on the phone, out of game instant messaging, playing another game, or even listening to a podcast)?

Not really. Sometimes I may listen to a podcast if I’m crafting. Usually though, I just game.

Do you find yourself having much MMO discussion off-line, perhaps with friends or family?

All the time. I’m surprised none of them have just told me to “Shut up, you’re rambling about non-sense”

Have you ever felt that you game too much? If so, how did you cope with that?

I’m fairly no-nonsense. When I feel I’m gaming too much, I just game less.

Since you started playing MMOs, have you ever taken a break from the genre? If so, please explain.

I have tried but, usually I just go back to MMO’s in a matter of days.

Chapter 5: Blogging

When did you first start blogging?

As I stated I started crookshankz.blogspot.com when Grimwell posted his hard core challenge. Later I switched from blogger to wordpress and changed the name to thegaminggoob.wordpress.com. On hind site, the name kind of makes me feel like a goob but I’m think I’m pretty much gonna stick with it.

Why do you blog?

Because I simply don’t have enought time sinks.

Do you have a schedule or some sort of routine you try and follow when blogging?

Not really. When I game, I just write about it. When I don’t game, I don’t.

Is there some grind involved in blogging? If so, what is it and how do you cope with it?

Nah. My blog is fairly laid back. When it feels like a grind I simply don’t blog.

By contrast, what do you find pleasurable about blogging?

I blog so I’ll talk about gaming less.

How many people offline know you blog or podcast?

The handful I actually talk to.

What advice would you give someone who wanted to try their hand at blogging?

Figure out why you want to blog and what type of blog you want to write. Use that as your guide lines.

What is something you know now that you wish you had known when you first started?

Your wife will pick on your misspelled words and poor grammer.

Can you picture a future where you will hang up your keyboard and no longer blog?

That time is definately coming soon.

At your funeral, what song(s) would you have played as your corpse is set alight and cast out to sea on a funeral barge?

Rainbow Connection?

Jenna

MMO community connection:

OMG-RL!1!

Chapter 1: Introduction

What is your name (your online persona/alter-ego, what have you)?

Jenna. Funnily enough, this is also my real-life name.

What is your connection to the gaming/blogging/podcasting community (your chance to plug yourself here)?

I am the co-host of OMG-RL!1!

Please take a minute and describe what your blog/podcast is about.

Shawn and I give our advice about real life to gamers who don’t mind putting their problems out there for all the world, or our three listeners, to hear. We strongly recommend that people take this advice because we have gathered it by making every single mistake possible in our lives.

Where were you born? Where did you grow up?

I was born in Underwood Hospital in Woodbury, New Jersey. I grew up in West Deptford, NJ right next to Woodbury, NJ.

Where do you live now?

Now I live in Harrisburg, PA. This is the state capital of PA. You should know that.

Your level (age) is somewhere in the range of (pick one): 10-20, 21-30, 31-40, 41-50, 51-60, 61-70, 71-80, 81-90

I am exactly 35.

What do you do for a living?

I am a computer programmer. YAY! I love it!

If you could reroll your career, what would you be?

I would be a computer programmer. YAY! I love it!

List five random things most people don’t know about you.

Isn’t this like that Facebook thing? And since most people reading this have no idea who I am, aren’t there many random and non-random things that are not known about me? Oh well. Let’s see.

• I have a statue of Mickey Mouse dressed as a Jedi.
• I’ve lived in 7 states.
• I once hung myself from a tree (do not do this).
• I have two Doctor Who scarves knitted by two different men.
• I’m not that good of thinking of truly random things about myself.

Feel free to discuss any family you have here.

I am an only child, which I highly recommend to everyone. My Mother and Father are actually the best parents on the planet. No, really, that’s actually official.

Rivs

MMO community connection:

Way of the Chosen

Chapter1: Introduction

What is your name (your online persona/alter-ego, what have you)?

My Birthname is Christopher Cavelle.  My real life longest standing nickname is River, and most of my toons in the various games follow some sort of naming scheme that has River, or Rivs in it. My current toons are Rivs in WAR, and Rivzok in WoW. Most people just call me Rivs though and that’s just fine.

What is your connection to the gaming/blogging/podcasting community (your chance to plug yourself here)?

I run a website Way of the Chosen.  I also have a personal blog, Chaotic Ramblings.  I use to have a WoW blog but I shut that down.  I just felt like everyone else was doing a better job at saying what I had to say.

Please take a minute and describe what your blog/podcast is about.

On my gaming blog it concentrates on the Warhammer Online game, with special focus on Chosen, and that class.

Where were you born? Where did you grow up?

Born and bred in Illinois. I grew up in Tinley Park, Illinois a south burb of Chicago.

Where do you live now? In the Town right next door to Tinley Park, called Orland Park, IL

Your level (age) is somewhere in the range of (pick one): 10-20, 21-30, 31-40, 41-50, 51-60, 61-70, 71-80, 81-90

I’m 36

What do you do for a living?

I’m a Network Administrator

If you could reroll your career, what would you be?

Poet-Warrior

List five random things most people don’t know about you.

• I really would like to make my own brand of whiskey.
• Some people just know me as River, they don’t know my real name.
• I use to bounce at bars for a living, I’m like Patrick Swayze just uglier.
• I’m the Ice Cream Eating Champion of Tinley Park. I won an eating contest.  I go to defend my title in July.
• There was a time in my life when I didn’t want anything to do with computers.

Feel free to discuss any family you have here.

I have a small family: mom, dad, one brother, several nieces, and nephews though.  My brother is a busy guy.

Chapter 2: Origins

What kind of games (if any) did you play as a child before you got into video gaming? Did you play with family, friends or was it more of a solo activity?

I remember playing Atari 2600, games like Combat with my brother and Pitfall. Then I moved to the Commodore 64 some of the biggest games I played were the Bards Tale and Gold Box Series.

What other hobbies and/or activities did you have as a child (sports, music, etc)?

Football, Wrestling, Track. I loved GIJOE and Transformers.

Were you ever exposed to pen and paper role playing games? What was that experience like?

Yes I played several D&D, Star Frontiers and Marvel Role Playing to name a few.

Did you read much as a child? If so, what did you like to read (books, comic books, etc?) Please list some favorite authors, titles, etc.

Yes I read religiously, too many titles to list.  JRR Tolkien was the king. RA Salvatore is one of my favs as well.

Would you say that any of these games or books had an effect on your later appreciation of computer gaming and ultimately MMOs? Please explain.

I think a lot of the RA Salvatore books and a lot of games. Also the Bards Tale and Gold Box series, or D&D computer games really influenced me to go into MMOs.

How were you fist introduced to video games? How old were you? What was the platform?

I remember I think I was 7 or 8 when I first saw Pong on the Atari 2600, and I was like Whoa.  The rest is history.

Did you ever play coin-op games at the arcade? What was that experience like?

Dear god yes, I remember just living in the arcade. But some of my fondest memories comes from Street Fighter 2, me and my friends would just go at it all day, and I loved it.

What was the first video game you can remember playing that really made an impression on you? Please explain.

So many for so many reasons. Bards Tale because it was like entering another world where I controlled these people and solved puzzles. Then Street Fighter, because I got to go toe to toe with people, and I am a bit of a competitor.

What gaming consoles have you owned in the past?

Atari 2600, Intellivision, Playstation, Xbox, Dreamcast. Sega Genesis.

Feel free to share a story related to your gaming experience as a child.

I remember ditching school, and playing Combat on my 2600 with my brother for hours.

Chapter 3: Online

Were you ever exposed to MUDs?

Nope

What was your first MMO experience?

2002 was the year. I was playing Aliens vs Predator 2 like crazy. I was part of a Clan called Hell’s Elite Legions. They were starting a new chapter for a game called Dark Ages of Camelot. Since I just recently got laid off, I had A LOT of time on my hands, so they needed healers and I decided to start a cleric.

If possible, list all the MMOs you’ve played extensively.

• Dark Ages of Camelot – Cleric 50
• World of Warcraft – Mage 80
• Warhammer Online – Chosen 40.

What is your current MMO of choice, or perhaps, what are your current MMOs of choice?

World of Warcraft and Warhammer Online

Which MMO have you spent the most time playing? How long would you say that has been?

World of Warcraft since beta in 2004.

Have you reached level cap in any MMO? If so, which ones?

Yes DAOC, WoW, and WAR

Loki taps you on the shoulder one day to inform you that you have fallen victim to one of his elaborate pranks. The world you’ve been inhabiting of countless MMOs to choose from and play has merely been a dream. In reality only one MMO exists. After laughing at you for a bit he decides to take pity on you and allows you to choose which MMO will remain. Which one would you choose and why?

Hmmm. Tough question. I would like WAR to stay because I love the Lore, and the RvR aspect of it.

Are there any MMOs currently in development that you are particularly interested in? Please explain.

Star Trek Online – I want to be a Klingon, and Captain a Bird of Prey – KAPLAH!

And Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. – Evil Sith Lord…hello!

Feel free to share an interesting or amusing anecdote related to your MMO gaming experience.

So many, One of my personal favorites was after a raid in World of Warcraft where I was playing my Alliance Mage. Usually Mages open a portal to main city, usually Ironforge. Well players just assume Mages would teleport them where they want to go. So I worked things out with my Mage brethren. We opened our portals all to Darnassus. They all clicked on them. All the mages heard on vent was, “Damn Mages!” It was great…So the lesson here is always look before you click. Heck some of my guildies still look before they click one of my portals.

Chapter 4: Preferences

At your peak, how much time per week would you say you spent gaming? How about now?

During Peak I would say 40-50 hours a week, usually these days around 20 hours.

When during the week are your regular play times?

Sunday through Wednesday, weekends are hit and miss depending on my social calendar.

Generally speaking, are you more of a social creature in MMOs (grouping to quest, joining guilds, etc.) or something of a lone wolf?

More of a lone wolf, but I have made friends in the MMO community.

Have you made any lasting friendships through your MMO experience? Please explain.

Yes some of my old guildies who have been gaming with me since 2002 are good friends of mine now.

Before logging into a game, do you already have a course of action planned out in your head, or do you just sort of do whatever you feel like once in game?

I would say it’s more of a guideline. Ok I need to run this dungeon, or I need to get some of these type of points, or farm these crafting mats. If something pops up where I’m needed, or sounds like fun. I go.

When playing MMOs do you tend to just play one at a time or do you take more of the smorgasbord approach?

Usually one at a time, but now a days it seems like I’m playing two. So I don’t know how long I can keep that up.

Do you tend to supplement your MMO gaming with other PC, console or tabletop games?

Not really, I’m a dabbler in that regards, I may play something else for a little bit to check it out…but it’s always back to MMO’s

Are you something of an altoholic? No not really.

Use to be, unabashedly. Then I had all these mediocre toons running around, when others would have awesome toons. So I decided just to work one toon at a time.

Do you find yourself multitasking while gaming (perhaps watching TV, talking on the phone, out of game instant messaging, playing another game, or even listening to a podcast)?

No I wish I had that kind of brain power. LOL! But I do listen to my mp3 player when grinding.

Do you find yourself having much MMO discussion off-line, perhaps with friends or family?

All the time, I do write a blog ya know. But it’s great when people come up to me and go…”Oh you play that, or this.” Finding out people who are active in MMO’s that you never knew before. It’s exciting.

Have you ever felt that you game too much? If so, how did you cope with that?

Yes I feel I do game too much sometimes, then again I’m a single guy, no kids, a lot of free time. It’s better then being addicted to something else say crack…but crack is probably cheaper. I may have to reconsider….just kidding.

Since you started playing MMOs, have you ever taken a break from the genre? If so, please explain.

No, I love the genre.

Genda

MMO community connection:

`

The Grouchy Gamer

Chapter 1: Introduction

What is your name (your online persona/alter-ego, what have you)?

Everyone knows me by Genda, although my first name is Paul. I picked it up when i started playing EQ. I hit the random name generator, it suggested Gendan. It was taken, so I dropped the “n” and Genda was born. It was my first RPG and I really had no idea how to come up with a name.

What is your connection to the gaming/blogging/podcasting community (your chance to plug yourself here)?

I started out online when Sigil was choosing fansites for Vanguard. They were going to do an official “Affiliate” program, and I decided that it was something I could do. I thought I’d pick up some help along the way, which I did, but it was mostly me running the site. That site is VanguardCrafters.com. I was going to do a lot more with the site, but as it was coming out of my pocket and the game wasn’t developing into what most of us hoped for, I decided to keep it as it is, which is pretty much in its pre-release form. During that time, I started blogging because I wanted a place where I could post opinion pieces outside of the “official” fan site. That blog has been going since late 2005 as thegrouchygamer.com. Because, well, I am. Still have both of those sites up and running. I also operate casualtiesguild.com because no one else in the guild is stupid enough to volunteer to do it.

Please take a minute and describe what your blog/podcast is about.

When the blog first started, it was mostly about Vanguard stuff and general MMO commentary. It became a LOT about Vanguard when the fit hit the shan over at Sigil in May of the following year. I was afraid the blog was going to become a “Bash-Sigil and McQuaid” site, so I consciously moved it into a different direction. My time doing the official site had given me access to more and more people in the industry, so I tried to incorporate their perspective with mine, sometimes agreeing but mostly not.

Where were you born? Where did you grow up?

I was born and grew up in Southern California. I don’t really miss it. Well I do miss going to Angels and Lakers games.

Where do you live now?

Austin, Texas. It’s a long story.

Your level (age) is somewhere in the range of (pick one): 10-20, 21-30, 31-40, 41-50, 51-60, 61-70, 71-80, 81-90

51-60 Working on leveling this character though.

What do you do for a living?

I sell computer bits, large and small.

If you could reroll your career, what would you be?

Actually, still in the computer business, but on the IT manager/director/CIO path.

List five random things most people don’t know about you.

• I’m not a bad dart player. Pretty good at Foosball too.
• I met my wife playing an MMO.
• I’m a big Baseball fan.
• I’ve traveled extensively in a previous position. All over North America, to Hawaii, and to a few places in Europe.
• I’m taller than you.

Feel free to discuss any family you have here.

Gotta keep something private. I have 3 kids, all still in school. I think that’s all I want to say.

Chapter 2: Origins

What kind of games (if any) did you play as a child before you got into video gaming? Did you play with family, friends or was it more of a solo activity?

My gaming was mostly relegated to board gaming and puzzle gaming before the electronic bug struck. I was a FIEND for Mouse Trap, not because the game was good (it wasn’t) but because of the Rube Goldberg device that was part of the mechanism. A couple decades later I found myself just as enthralled with The Incredible Machine on the PC. I tended to play games with mostly family when I was a kid.

What other hobbies and/or activities did you have as a child (sports, music, etc)?

I played a lot of sports (mostly baseball and basketball. Played some football later. All team sports), did model rockets, and loved table tennis. I was very competitive so no one would play with me but my dad, and he tired when I started beating him consistently.

Were you ever exposed to pen and paper role playing games? What was that experience like?

I never was. I know. I was deprived.

Did you read much as a child? If so, what did you like to read (books, comic books, etc?) Please list some favorite authors, titles, etc.

I read voraciously as a child, but mostly non-fiction. By the time I was in 4th grade I had read the World Book Encyclopedia cover-to-cover (all 20-some volumes.) To this day, my head is full of useless information. I later got into some select fantasy. Like many, it started with Tolkein.

Would you say that any of these games or books had an effect on your later appreciation of computer gaming and ultimately MMOs? Please explain.

No, I think my MMO involvement came mostly from my playing games in general, and some RPG’s in particular.

How were you fist introduced to video games? How old were you? What was the platform?

I first played video games on an old console, and I honestly don’t remember which one it was. This is a sure sign that I’m getting really old.

Did you ever play coin-op games at the arcade? What was that experience like?

Oh, yeah. Many a quarter dropped from my fingers into obscurity in the name of standing at the box and gaming. I played a lot of these games the same way I played everything else. By the time I got a little older, I had learned to tone down the outward signs of my competitiveness so I could find some people to play with me. Played a LOT of pinball and quite a bit of Asteroids, Missile Command, and Mortal Kombat.

What was the first video game you can remember playing that really made an impression on you? Please explain.

When I got my first computer in the mid-80’s it was a Mac. I got a game, Wizardry, I think it was, that totally captured my imagination. I made maps on graph paper, played WAY too late at night, and really learned to love the genre. Before that, there were tons of console games I loved, but never anything like that.

What gaming consoles have you owned in the past?

Coleco Vision, Atari 2600, TurboGrafx 16, NES, N64, Genesis, SuperNintendo, Intellivision, PlayStation, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Game Cube, Wii, XBox, Xbox360, and some others I’m sure I forgot.

Feel free to share a story related to your gaming experience as a child.

I remember doing some of what I would consider gaming with a friend at school.  He had a playroom that was huge at his house and we set up a slot car track. We spent hours tweaking our cars trying to make them go faster or stick to the track better, then would race each other for hours on end. I loved the competition and the little cars flying around the track. Still think about those days to this day.

Chapter 3: Online

Were you ever exposed to MUDs?

I wasn’t. Like Pen and Paper, I somehow missed that era.

What was your first MMO experience?

Like a lot of you, Everquest was my first. I started in early 2000, introduced by some friends that I played foosball with. Once I started, I was hooked. I couldn’t believe how rich the content was and how many things there were to do. I also really liked how what you did had consequences. If you died, you had to go find your body or you lost your stuff. That was cool back then.

If possible, list all the MMOs you’ve played extensively.

EQ 61 Druid, Lineage II 33 Archer, SWG Master Architect, World of Warcraft 66 Shaman, City of Heroes 30 Controller, City of Villains, Everquest II 36 can’t remember what the SK is called, Vanguard (don’t get me started, trust me,) LotRO, Tabula Rasa, EVE, Age of Conan, WarHammer 30 Squig Herder, and World of Warcraft again. Also leveled a Lock, Mage, and Priest in WoW.

What is your current MMO of choice, or perhaps, what are your current MMOs of choice?

Playing World of Warcraft – Horde on a PVP server.

Which MMO have you spent the most time playing? How long would you say that has been?

It’s close between EQ and WoW. I may have more total time in WoW because I have Altitis so bad. I’ve leveled a LOT of different characters there. On my main in EQ, he was retired pretty much right after the level cap was raised for PoP with around 100 days played. My current WoW main is right at 56 days played. About 35 of those days were played when he was capped at 60.

Have you reached level cap in any MMO? If so, which ones?

See above. EQ and WoW when the level caps were 60 on each.

Loki taps you on the shoulder one day to inform you that you have fallen victim to one of his elaborate pranks. The world you’ve been inhabiting of countless MMOs to choose from and play has merely been a dream. In reality only one MMO exists. After laughing at you for a bit he decides to take pity on you and allows you to choose which MMO will remain. Which one would you choose and why?

That’s hard. I could play the “what could have been” game and say SWG for it’s potential, but the game just didn’t support that. EQ was so important for it’s time, but that has passed. I’d have to say WoW, because then I’d be sure to have plenty of people to play with.

Are there any MMOs currently in development that you are particularly interested in? Please explain.

The Copernicus project at 38 Studios is really the only one holding my attention at all at the moment. I am a little disillusioned with the state of game development at the present time, and I am really hoping these guys can do something different.I like what I hear from Shwayder and Moorgard, but I’ve fallen for smooth talking and cheap wine before. I’m also a little piqued by what Blizzard might be working on.

Feel free to share an interesting or amusing anecdote related to your MMO gaming experience.

Where is Burned Woods this week? This isn’t my work, but trust me, and if you are an MMO fan, this is a MUST read. Some EQ acronyms are worth finding out about to understand the story. I wish I could take credit for this one.

Chapter 4: Preferences

At your peak, how much time per week would you say you spent gaming? How about now?

About 40 hours. That was during my EQ raiding days, and that was around a full-time job as well. Still today, I do about 30 hours a week. That’s probably peak for me these days.

When during the week are your regular play times?

Every night after work for a few hours, and most of the day on the weekends around events we have. Right now, we are fully engaged in gaming so it’s pretty regular. It’s not always like that.

Generally speaking, are you more of a social creature in MMOs (grouping to quest, joining guilds, etc.) or something of a lone wolf?

I tend to be more social, but I definitely have my lone wolf side as well. Most of the time, it’s me and Tarkheena duoing. We love playing (especially dungeon crawling) with others though. Right now, we just started back on our WoW Horde characters (who have been retired since BC came out) so we are leveling, trying to get to 80 so we can run with the rest of our guild. We’re not being crazy about it but that’s where most of our effort goes.

Have you made any lasting friendships through your MMO experience? Please explain.

Absolutely. Besides meeting my wife playing EQ, there are all kinds of people that we still keep in touch with and have for years.

Before logging into a game, do you already have a course of action planned out in your head, or do you just sort of do whatever you feel like once in game?

Usually we have something planned. There’s always a big goal hanging out there in front of us (right now, that is running 25-man Naxx.) To get there we have to level, so we know right now when we log in that we’ll be questing. There are times when we log in and ask “What do you want to do? But that is less often any more.

When playing MMOs do you tend to just play one at a time or do you take more of the smorgasbord approach?

I usually have more than one game going, which drives Tark nuts. Mostly I concentrate on one, unless there is a big new release out that I want to try out. Rarely any more do I do more than two though. Most of them are so demanding that there is no way to play that many effectively and have a job. Now if I could get a sponsor…

Do you tend to supplement your MMO gaming with other PC, console or tabletop games?

If I’m really into the game I’m playing, no. I tend to have laser focus on the game or task at hand. If it’s losing my interest, I’ll go to other computer games, then to the XBox or the PS3.

Are you something of an altoholic?

Yes. I have a main and usually a couple of alts that get a decent amount of attention. Currently I have a Shaman main (73), and a Mage (54) and Lock (46). Hmmm, guess I lean toward casters. My Mage doesn’t get much play time now that my wife has her mage to 75. Let her lose interest though and I’ll trot him right back out.

Do you find yourself multitasking while gaming (perhaps watching TV, talking on the phone, out of game instant messaging, playing another game, or even listening to a podcast)?

Always. There is a flat panel mounted on the wall where we play above the desk that is usually on, and I have another computer (I used to 2-monitor my box, but didn’t like the small performance hit, so I unretired a box for browsing and 2-boxing.) that is right next to my main gaming machine.

Do you find yourself having much MMO discussion off-line, perhaps with friends or family?

Any time I get the chance. Most of the people where I work now are not gamers (that I know of) so that doesn’t happen at work. Most of my guild lives locally, so there is an opportunity to get together every once in a while and we do.

Have you ever felt that you game too much? If so, how did you cope with that?

I’m sure I game too much. I don’t smoke or drink or chase women though, so I feel like of the possible vices in my life I’ve chosen one that is relatively less objectionable. Plus, it’s something my wife and I do together which continues to be a bonding experience for us.

Since you started playing MMOs, have you ever taken a break from the genre? If so, please explain.

Yes, from time to time I’ve stepped away. Most of the time it’s in the wake of a disappointing new game and me having the feeling that I wasn’t ready to go back to whatever I was playing right away. During those times, I tend to immerse myself in the meta-game. In most cases, the meta game is at least as interesting as the actual games themselves. That’s how anyone ever came to know who I was, otherwise I’m just another player like everyone else.

Chapter 5: Blogging

When did you first start blogging?

I started in the gaming community with a fansite. Talk about jumping in with both feet. That was vanguardcrafters.com, obviously a site for crafters in Vanguard. I opened that in March of 2005. As that progressed I wanted more of an outlet for my personal opinions that a fansite wasn’t appropriate for. So in November of that year I started my blog. I didn’t post much at first. Seems like that is repeating itself now. I’m currently working on a new site for an upcoming game. Evidently I AM a glutton for punishment. I’m also going to get my blog going again. No, really. For sure this time.

Why do you blog?

I never really thought about it. I started to get some things out of my system. That resonated with a certain audience, so I was encouraged to continue. It kind of made it’s own momentum from there. I still like thinking and talking about gaming. So that’s gotta be the main reason.

Do you have a schedule or some sort of routine you try and follow when blogging?

I used to. Sometimes that just isn’t possible to keep up though. When I’m going well I’m trying to write four or five times a week.

Is there some grind involved in blogging? If so, what is it and how do you cope with it?

Absolutely there is. Once something is scheduled it becomes a commitment. Commitments carry responsibility and responsibility can be a grind. I also am prone to writer’s block. Once that sets in, it can be a self-fulfilling prophesy. I can’t write well when I’m under deadline and uninspired. So I try harder, which leads to a block. Then I feel bad about missing a post… you get the picture.

By contrast, what do you find pleasurable about blogging?

I like all the interaction with people who have like interests. I even like the debates with people who think my ideas are total crap and fabrications. I’ve had a few of those, especially during the emotionally-charged Sigil-splat era. I really enjoy all of it except trying to do it when I can’t.

How many people offline know you blog?

A handful. Some of the guys I used to work with, a couple of my wife’s co-workers. The people in my current guild don’t know, and I kind of like that.

What advice would you give someone who wanted to try their hand at blogging?

If you are going to commit to your audience, make sure you have something to say and a real charter to fulfill. I have a particular way of looking at things, and that is what sets my blog apart from some others. Don’t be controversial for the sake of controversy, but don’t shrink from it either. Let your angst show. Try to be transparent and never lie. Be yourself, amplified.

What is something you know now that you wish you had known when you first started?

I wish I would have known about some of the cool software tools. I’m still learing about that and trying to update my blog. I also would have tried to set more realistic goals for myself.

Can you picture a future where you will hang up your keyboard and no longer blog?

Yes. I’ll probably always have a web presence though. If I’m not blogging I’ll have a fansite or something. I’m not planning on stepping away but I think I could if I were ready to do so.

At your funeral, what song(s) would you have played as your corpse is set alight and cast out to sea on a funeral barge?

Immigrant Song (Led Zeppelin) – do the math, if you are a fan of obscure internet culture.

Brian

MMO community connection:

`

Blue Kae

Chapter 1: Introduction

What is your name (your online persona/alter-ego, what have you)?

Online I go by Blue Kae. It has no meaning, beyond I like blue and it matches my initials. I made it up when I wanted to get online with my Xbox 360 and needed to find a gamertag. Since then I’ve been able to stay pretty consistent using it for Steam, Xfire, GAX, Twitter, etc. That is also the name of my primary Eve Online character. In other games I like to stick to the lore so I try to come up with whatever is consistent with Tolkien, Warhammer, etc.

What is your connection to the gaming/blogging/podcasting community (your chance to plug yourself here)?

My only online presence is at http://www.bluekae.com, I haven’t hosted or guested on any podcasts, at least not yet.

Please take a minute and describe what your blog/podcast is about.

My blog is primarily gaming related since that’s what I do with my free time at the moment, but I don’t intend on limiting it so I may talk about woodworking, home brewing, or anything else I get into and develop strong opinions on.

Where were you born? Where did you grow up?

I was born in Heidelburg Germany (Dad was stationed there in the army), but I grew up in a small town called Aurora in south-eastern Indiana (think Cincinnati).

Where do you live now?

I live near Indianapolis, Indiana.

Your level (age) is somewhere in the range of (pick one): 10-20, 21-30, 31-40, 41-50, 51-60, 61-70, 71-80, 81-90

31-40

What do you do for a living?

Software developer.

If you could reroll your career, what would you be?

Fiction writer.

List five random things most people don’t know about you.

• I’m left handed.
• I brew my own beer, stouts of course.
• I had dual-citizen ship between US and Germany until I was 18.
• I have two Parker Latitude stainless steel pens that I love to write with. I keep one at home in my office and I carry the other in my laptop bag.
• All of my MMO characters are male. I’ve tried to play female toons, but I’ve never been able to spend more than an hour on any of them.

Feel free to discuss any family you have here.

I’m married and we just had our first child back in October. Being a parent is simultaneously the most fun, frightening, and frustrating thing I’ve ever done.

Chapter 2: Origins

What kind of games (if any) did you play as a child before you got into video gaming? Did you play with family, friends or was it more of a solo activity?

I grew up out in the country so we rode dirt bikes, played army in the woods, and swam in my above ground pool.

What other hobbies and/or activities did you have as a child (sports, music, etc)?

I had/have very little hand-eye coordination so my hobbies were music and reading.

Were you ever exposed to pen and paper role playing games? What was that experience like?

My very first experience with pen and paper RPG’s was in the boy scouts. A group of older boys were running an AD&D campaign and I remember sitting for hours and watching. It was neat because it was like getting inside a Tolkien story. I don’t remember how long after that, but I got the D&D Red Box game as soon as I could.

Did you read much as a child? If so, what did you like to read (books, comic books, etc?) Please list some favorite authors, titles, etc.

I read quite a bit. My mom used to pay me to read books because she’d read/heard that it helped with intelligence. My reading was all books, no comics (that didn’t happen until college). I used to read anything fiction I could get my hands on. I read the entire Hardy Boys series from my elementary school library. My most memorable experience with books was reading Tolkien’s Hobbit and Lord of the Rings during the course of a summer when I was 10. That summer marked the point when I primarily read fantasy and science fiction. My favorite authors as a kid were: Tolkien, Alan Dean Foster, and David Eddings.

Would you say that any of these games or books had an effect on your later appreciation of computer gaming and ultimately MMOs? Please explain.

Completely. My experience with Tolkien drew me to D&D which drew me to MMO’s. Computer gaming and later MMO’s were a way to get into role playing games without having to find other local people to play with or coordinate schedules.

How were you fist introduced to video games? How old were you? What was the platform?

I started with a Texas Instruments 99 and besides some educational games, I used to type in game programs from magazines and save/load them from audio tape.

Did you ever play coin-op games at the arcade? What was that experience like?

There was no arcade near where I grew up, but I did get some time briefly in college before they all disappeared.

What was the first video game you can remember playing that really made an impression on you? Please explain.

The Bard’s Tale on the Apple IIe, I spent hours and days playing that and creating characters complete with background stories.

What gaming consoles have you owned in the past?

Nintendo Entertainment System, PS2, Xbox, and Xbox360. I have a big console gap between Nintendo and PS2 where I solely played PC games.

Chapter 3: Online

Were you ever exposed to MUDs?

I had some exposure to MUDs in college although I can’t remember the names of any of them. I ran across some references to different games on various Usenet groups and tried a few out. I liked the concept, but I don’t remember getting very deep into them. I found that I preferred single-player RPG’s with some graphical element to them.

What was your first MMO experience?

My first MMO was EverQuest which I started a few months after launch in fall of 1999. I developed an immediate and intense addiction to the game that lasted for about three months. When I would get home from work I would boot my PC and while that was going change out of my work clothes and throw a pizza in the oven. Once I was set for the night, I would login and play for eight hours. So my days were work for eight hours, play EQ for eight hours, and sleep/commute the rest. This lasted for about three months until I burned myself out. It’s nice when your ADD can cancel out your OCD. I played for another six months after that in a more sane fashion before quiting.

If possible, list all the MMOs you’ve played extensively.

• EverQuest - Wizard
• Dark Age of Camelot – Shaman
• Anarchy Online – Adventurer
• Star Wars Galaxies – Marksman/Scout
• EverQuest 2 – Wizard 41
• World of Warcraft – Hunter 45
• City of Heroes – Blaster 28
• Guild Wars – Elementalist/Mesmer 13
• Lord of the Rings Online – Hunter 60
• Eve Online – Missions/Mining/Indutry 14 million Skill Points
• Warhammer – Dwarf Engineer 24

What is your current MMO of choice, or perhaps, what are your current MMOs of choice?

I am currently playing Lord of the Rings Online and Eve Online.

Which MMO have you spent the most time playing? How long would you say that has been?

I played City of Heroes the longest at 3 years, although LoTRO is fast becoming the current all time leader. Of course having a lifetime subscription kind of makes that the default.

Have you reached level cap in any MMO? If so, which ones?

I’ve ony reached the level cap in LoTRO, first to 50 about two weeks before Moria was released and again to 60 once the cap was raised. I tend to obsess and then burn out pretty quickly on most MMO’s, so hitting the level cap in LoTRO was a pretty big deal to me.

Loki taps you on the shoulder one day to inform you that you have fallen victim to one of his elaborate pranks. The world you’ve been inhabiting of countless MMOs to choose from and play has merely been a dream. In reality only one MMO exists. After laughing at you for a bit he decides to take pity on you and allows you to choose which MMO will remain. Which one would you choose and why?

That’s difficult, but I would have to say LoTRO. I am a huge Tolkien nerd, plus Turbine has had an excellent track record of supporting the game.

Are there any MMOs currently in development that you are particularly interested in? Please explain.

I’m most looking forward to Star Wars: The Old Republic. I would be excited regardless because of the IP, but I’m interested to see Bioware’s story-driven approach to MMO’s.

Chapter 4: Preferences

At your peak, how much time per week would you say you spent gaming? How about now?

My peak was probably 60 hours a week when I was a bachelor and could get away with it. Now that I’m married and a father, I’m usually in the 20 hours range with most of that on the weekends.

When during the week are your regular play times?

I play a little at night after my wife and son go to bed, but my consistent playtime is weekends from evening until whenever I drag myself to bed.

Generally speaking, are you more of a social creature in MMOs (grouping to quest, joining guilds, etc.) or something of a lone wolf?

I’m a lone wolf probably 90% of the time. I group occasionally when I need to, but I’m very picky about joining guilds and I usually don’t put much effort into tracking one down that would be a good fit.

Have you made any lasting friendships through your MMO experience? Please explain.

Nope. Mostly being a solo player with the occasional pickup group doesn’t lend itself to developing friendships online. There have been two groups of players, one in DAoC and one in CoH, that I got pretty involved with, but the friendships didn’t last past my time in the game.

Before logging into a game, do you already have a course of action planned out in your head, or do you just sort of do whatever you feel like once in game?

Depends on the game. When I log into EVE I usually always have plans, but I’ve found that’s necessary for a sandbox game. With LoTRO, I often have no specific plan and just get on to play.

When playing MMOs do you tend to just play one at a time or do you take more of the smorgasbord approach?

I used to limit myself to one active subscription at a time. As the genre expanded that became more difficult to do. My rule now is two at a time, but I’ve bent that rule a little by getting a lifetime subscription to LoTRO. I’m currently paying for EVE and CoH, which is my one serious and one nostalgia/experiment subscription. I’ll drop CoH sometime soon and pickup EQ2 or something else, I had resubscribed to WoW for a month before CoH.

Do you tend to supplement your MMO gaming with other PC, console or tabletop games?

I play PC and console games as well. My PC tastes are mostly RTS games like Warhammer 40k Dawn of War and Sins of a Solar Empire. I play a lot of Xbox 360 games as well like Fable 2, CivRev, and RockBand 2.

Are you something of an altoholic?

Depends on the game. In EverQuest 2, I only every played my Gnome Wizard Mallon, but I LoTRO I have 6 of the 7 characters slots filled. In the original EverQuest I used to create a character, play to level 5 or 6, then create a different character and start over. In DAoC I only played my Troll Shaman Nallas. Usually I just identify too strongly with my initial character and never develop any interest in playing through the starting content again. LoTRO especially has been different because I enjoy pretty much all of the classes.

Do you find yourself multitasking while gaming (perhaps watching TV, talking on the phone, out of game instant messaging, playing another game, or even listening to a podcast)?

I’ll often listen to podcasts while playing, although not if I’m grouping. TV, phone, and IM are too distracting, and music isn’t distracting enough.

Do you find yourself having much MMO discussion off-line, perhaps with friends or family?

No, most of my family and friends don’t play games at all let alone MMO’s.

Have you ever felt that you game too much? If so, how did you cope with that?

I like this quote from Russell Bertrand: “The time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time.” http://quotationsbook.com/quote/39255/

I often hear people talk about feeling bad about time they waste playing games, but the question I always like to ask is, “What would you be doing instead?” There’s not much difference between playing a game, reading a book, or watching TV for an hour. Of the three, watching TV is probably the least healthy for you. The level of social acceptance of TV versus video games is something that has always bugged me, but fortunately is changing as more gamers become parents.

Since you started playing MMOs, have you ever taken a break from the genre? If so, please explain.

Absolutely. I took a break after DAoC, but that’s because there was nothing new I was interested in. Since then, I haven’t taken a long break from the genre, but I will occasionally take a few weeks or few months off. Usually in that time I’ll be focused more on console or single-player PC games, or on another hobby like woodworking or home brewing.

Chapter 5: Blogging

When did you first start blogging?

I started blogging in September 2008 with Blue Kae. It’s my soap box for anything gaming related either PC or console. I may expand into comics, movies, etc. but so far gaming issues have been the only things that I felt a need to write about. I’ve recently started writing for QuillDragon, which is a new fantasy literature blog launched May 2009 by Regis from the Wizards & Wenches Warhammer blog.

Why do you blog?

I’d had been reading blogs (mostly gaming blogs) for quite a while, and then I discovered podcasts. I rarely commented on blogs, I was usually content to read the post and sometimes the comments, but almost never moved enough to comment myself. I finally started my own gaming blog because I had some rants related to DRM that I needed to get on “paper”.

Do you have a schedule or some sort of routine you try and follow when blogging?

I don’t have a regular schedule. I generally try to have at least one post a week, but if I don’t have something worth saying I’m fine with not posting. Sometimes a news story or a gaming experience will cause a flurry of activity and I might post two or three times in a day.

I do most of my reading from Google Reader and I have about 70 gaming blog subscriptions, more with comment subscriptions. I do my reading from work during spare moments and in the evenings after my wife and baby are asleep. Sometimes during my reading I’ll get an idea for a post and I’ll stop and put together a draft, although I may just comment on author’s post instead. Which one I do depends on how much I have to say about it, I don’t like to do link outs in comments but I will link to the original post that prompted mine.

Is there some grind involved in blogging? If so, what is it and how do you cope with it?

Not for me. I felt a little pressure early on to try and make sure there was always something up on the site, but I got over that pretty quick. I’m passionate enough about gaming that I usually have something I need to post about in any given month. If I do start to feel a grind, I’ll probably step back for a bit.

By contrast, what do you find pleasurable about blogging?

I love the writing. It’s an opportunity to organize and clarify my thoughts. Sometimes I’ll start a post and delete it because I realized I didn’t have enough to say on a subject, and sometimes I’ll intend to put up a quick note and write a screen-full. I also like the conversational element, I’m still excited anytime I see comments on a post and so far I’ve always been able to respond.

How many people offline know you blog?

Only a few. I don’t generally bring it up and it doesn’t come up much in conversation. I talk about it occasionally to my wife and to a friend of mine whose an MMO gamer. Most of my friends and family are not gamers or geeks for the most part and very few of them listen to podcasts or read blogs.

What advice would you give someone who wanted to try their hand at blogging?

Writing is deeply personal, so my only advice would be to do it because you need to, not because you feel like you should or are trying for money or popularity. Don’t try to imitate anyone else. Pay attention to grammar and spelling. Find other blogs about the same subject matter and make constructive comments, but don’t include you’re site link in the comment, if people are interested they’ll click on you’re name and find your blog.

What is something you know now that you wish you had known when you first started?

I had been reading other blogs for so long before I started my own, that I had a pretty good handle on what I wanted to do and how I wanted to do it. The only thing I wish I had done differently was started sooner.

Can you picture a future where you will hang up your keyboard and no longer blog?

Nope. Anything is possible, but I can’t imagine coming to a point when I don’t want to write/blog. I may take a break at some point if it becomes a grind, but I’m sure I would always come back.

At your funeral, what song(s) would you have played as your corpse is set alight and cast out to sea on a funeral barge?

The Overture from the Barber of Seville, it’s an excellent piece of classical music and the sound track from my favorite Looney Tunes episode.

Wiqd

MMO community connection:

`

iMMOvation

Chapter 1: Introduction

What is your name (your online persona/alter-ego, what have you)?

Wiqd

What is your connection to the gaming/blogging/podcasting community (your chance to plug yourself here)?

I run a blog called iMMOvation.

Please take a minute and describe what your blog/podcast is about.

iMMOvation is where I discuss my ideas about game design and try to constructively build upon and redesign the ideas that are already out there. It focuses on currently existing ideas as well as hypotheticals.

Where were you born? Where did you grow up?

Born in Ipswich, England and grew up in Elgin, Scotland. Move to the US and have lived in a number of states.

Where do you live now?

I currently live in Las Vegas, NV.

Your level (age) is somewhere in the range of (pick one): 10-20, 21-30, 31-40, 41-50, 51-60, 61-70, 71-80, 81-90

21-30

What do you do for a living?

I am currently an IT Engineer and have been one for a good 15 years now.

If you could reroll your career, what would you be?

Game Designer, definitely

List five random things most people don’t know about you.

• Went to school in a farmhouse that Prince Charles attended.
• I love sleeping with stuffed animals
• I’ve had more than a few supernatural experiences
• I’ve been married and have a son
• I’ve only changed my online handle once in my life (used to be Rest In Peace)

Feel free to discuss any family you have here.

I was married once upon a time and had somewhat of a miracle baby during that time. My previous wife was told by doctors that she would never be able to bear children, but lo and behold she did become pregnant and the baby was delivered without issue. He’s a very smart little boy who currently live in Germany with his mother. I am currently (after 9 years of self searching) engaged again to a wonderful gamer girl named Dana. I couldn’t ask for a better woman by my side.

Chapter 2: Origins

What kind of games (if any) did you play as a child before you got into video gaming? Did you play with family, friends or was it more of a solo activity?

I always loved board games and imagination (toys) games as I grew up.

What other hobbies and/or activities did you have as a child (sports, music, etc)?

I played sports in elementary school for a little league football team. I’ve always been artistic and creative, so writing and drawing have existed in my repertoire for a long time. I tried playing the trumpet for a bit, but music never caught on for me as a hobby.

Were you ever exposed to pen and paper role playing games? What was that experience like?

I was exposed to it in my early teens and have been playing it ever since. I started with AD&D 2nd edition and have played a number of games. I won’t touch vampire P&P games though

Did you read much as a child? If so, what did you like to read (books, comic books, etc?) Please list some favorite authors, titles, etc.

Love(d) reading. My first set of books were the Shannara series by Terry Brooks. I haven’t yet read Wheel of Time, but I’ve read a few of R.A. Salvatore’s books and some Anne Mcaffrey stuff as well.

Would you say that any of these games or books had an effect on your later appreciation of computer gaming and ultimately MMOs? Please explain.

I think the introduction to the fantasy world helped, but seeing as how I’m attracted to futuristic MMOs as well, that can’t be ALL the reason. I don’t really compare MMO worlds I frequent to any books I’ve read, I just see how their take on “fantasy” compares with others out there. I do it for the sanctity of the book really. I don’t want to ruin a book’s world by going “it would be better if it had…”

How were you fist introduced to video games? How old were you? What was the platform?

I don’t remember the exact age, probably around 7 or 8, but my first system was the Nintendo Entertainment System. I had seen other systems for sale, but that was my first owned system.

Did you ever play coin-op games at the arcade? What was that experience like?

I played coin-op games any chance I could. I remember flocking to them in pizza joints, movie theaters and the actual arcade places setup just for gamers. I miss those days and I miss coin-oping. I was quite sad when I first saw console games that outdid the arcade counterpart.

What was the first video game you can remember playing that really made an impression on you? Please explain.

I think that would be Sonic. I was old enough to be able to form impressions on my own and I played every Sonic game from beginning to end.

What gaming consoles have you owned in the past?

Genesis, SegaCD, 32X, Nintendo64, playstation, Dreamcast, Playstation 2, Playstation 3, Xbox, Xbox360, Wii, Gamecube, Gameboy, GameGear, PSP and some others (NeoGeo, etc).

Feel free to share a story related to your gaming experience as a child.

I remember when Rampage first came out for consoles and I was SO happy. I took it over to my friend’s house to play it and we ended up staying up ALL night to do so. I think we stopped when we realized there was no end, but that was at like 4am. Then we played Contra

Chapter 3: Online

Were you ever exposed to MUDs?

I only played a few MUDs, but none that I clearly remember. My gaming back then was almost strictly console based, with the PC games being single player. For the games I did play, I really don’t think they affected me as much as others.

What was your first MMO experience?

My first MMO was Everquest back in 1999. I loved and still love the experience of EQ. The world seemed massive and many of the mechanics and ideas used are things I’d like to see redone in current MMOs. I feel EQ was an appropriate difficulty despite its shortcomings and the recent move to easier, more dumbed-down styles of play really hurt the industry.

If possible, list all the MMOs you’ve played extensively.

Everquest (expansions up til OoW), Asheron’s Call, Asheron’s Call 2, Anarchy Online, Star Wars Galaxy, Dark Age of Camelot, Everquest 2 (all current expansions), World of Warcraft(all current expansions), Lineage II, RF Online, Eve Online, City of Heroes, City of Villains, Tabula Rasa, Lord of the Rings Online, Age of Conan, Warhammer Online.

There are others, but these are the ones I’ve spent the most time with.

What is your current MMO of choice, or perhaps, what are your current MMOs of choice?

I recently resigned to having just 1 MMO on my plate while I wait for something actually good to come along. That choice is Everquest 2.

Which MMO have you spent the most time playing? How long would you say that has been?

I played EQ for about 5 years and have played World of Warcraft and Everquest 2 for about the same amount of time now.

Have you reached level cap in any MMO? If so, which ones?

I’ve hit the level cap in about every MMO I’ve ever played, if only to quit just after I like seeing everything in a game before I toss it.

Loki taps you on the shoulder one day to inform you that you have fallen victim to one of his elaborate pranks. The world you’ve been inhabiting of countless MMOs to choose from and play has merely been a dream. In reality only one MMO exists. After laughing at you for a bit he decides to take pity on you and allows you to choose which MMO will remain. Which one would you choose and why?

Honestly, whatever MMO I come up with to finally make If I had to choose just 1 from the current picks, it would be Everquest 2.

Are there any MMOs currently in development that you are particularly interested in? Please explain.

I’m interested in any and every MMO that’s in development at any given time. I do my research and try to alpha / beta as much as I can, avoiding open betas at all costs. Mostly it’s to see what, if anything, these companies are doing different with their game, but I can honestly say I’ve been pretty disappointed in the last few years.

Feel free to share an interesting or amusing anecdote related to your MMO gaming experience.

Well, despite my aversion to WoW, it’s where I met my current fiancee, so it wasn’t all bad She was actually my guild leader, introduced to me by someone else in WoW who thought we would fit perfectly. She was right

Chapter 4: Preferences

At your peak, how much time per week would you say you spent gaming? How about now?

At one time gaming was all I did from the time I got home from school til I went to bed and all day on weekends. So anywhere from 40-80 hours in a week.

When during the week are your regular play times?

Now it’s a bit after work, then a good portion of the day on my weekends when I don’t have anything important to do.

Generally speaking, are you more of a social creature in MMOs (grouping to quest, joining guilds, etc.) or something of a lone wolf?

I’m a mix. I love the idea of guilds and camaraderie, but there are times I’d like to be left alone, just like in real life.

Have you made any lasting friendships through your MMO experience? Please explain.

I’ve made many friends, many enemies and met my fiancee through MMOs. I’ve even connected recently with people I used to play with and recognize, but never knew I’d see again.

Before logging into a game, do you already have a course of action planned out in your head, or do you just sort of do whatever you feel like once in game?

It depends on how much fore-knowledge I have on the game. If I’ve been in beta, I know what to do and where to go, but if I skip the beta I usually just meander around and experiment. In beta, my focus is on bugs, so I just meander around looking for them

When playing MMOs do you tend to just play one at a time or do you take more of the smorgasbord approach?

I used to play as many as I could to get a good sampling at any one time. I’ve recently resigned to playing 1 MMO at a time though, to get more out of it. The constant switching when I would get irritated wasn’t conducive to a good gaming experience.

Do you tend to supplement your MMO gaming with other PC, console or tabletop games?

All of the above. I have one of almost every console ever made (and I still play the older ones from time to time), I have a couple games for the PC (the ones I’d like to get more out of graphics wise than I could from their console counterparts) and my friends and I meet weekly to play tabletop RPGs.

Are you something of an altoholic?

Before WoW I hated alts. I never saw the point in them because there was so much to do with just 1 character. WoW came along and made leveling easy, limited crafting to 2 options per character (1 gathering, 1 actual profession) and thus the need for alts due to lack of entertainment after having all the gear I wanted on 1 character, grew.

Do you find yourself multitasking while gaming (perhaps watching TV, talking on the phone, out of game instant messaging, playing another game, or even listening to a podcast)?

Depends on what I’m doing. If it’s not involved I’ll watch TV or talk, but if we’re running an instance or grouping to do other stuff, I pay attention. I do listen to outside music over in-game music a lot though, regardless of what I’m doing and I use Skype to talk to my friends while we play.

Do you find yourself having much MMO discussion off-line, perhaps with friends or family?

With friends, yes. Family not so much. All of my friends game, so our conversations naturally go that way. It gets quite funny when we’re out in public and people have no idea what we’re talking about.

Have you ever felt that you game too much? If so, how did you cope with that?

Absolutely. And to fix it, I simply take time off. There’s no use in playing a game or multiple games if it detracts from your lifestyle or the health of it.

Since you started playing MMOs, have you ever taken a break from the genre? If so, please explain.

From the genre? No. From certain games? Yes. The MMO genre has always fascinated me so even with I have no AAA titles to play, I’ll go find some smaller scale game from an indie developer or a korean F2P that looks interesting. I’m always playing some form of MMO though as I have plenty of research to do

Sente

MMO community connection:

a

A Ding World

Chapter 1: Introduction

What is your name (your online persona/alter-ego, what have you)?

For gaming/blog it is Sente, in most other cases it is Erik.

What is your connection to the gaming/blogging/podcasting community (your chance to plug yourself here)?

I play MMO games and I write a blog at A Ding World. I am also a member of The Older Gamers.

Please take a minute and describe what your blog/podcast is about.

In my blog I write about various things related to MMO games that I get an urge to write about. That may be experiences in games I play, thoughts on game news, game design etc. It has become an essential part of my gaming time – I simply have to make a post from time to time. And if people like to read it as well, that is even better! Expression through writing rather than talking has generally been my preference.

Where were you born? Where did you grow up?

I was born in the city of Södertälje in Sweden and grew up in a few places in Stockholm in Sweden. Since Södertälje is fairly close to Stockholm I was not a long move.

Where do you live now?

In Stockholm.

Your level (age) is somewhere in the range of (pick one): 10-20, 21-30, 31-40, 41-50, 51-60, 61-70, 71-80, 81-90

I am a 41-50.

What do you do for a living?

I work as an IT architect for an American software company in a consultant role. Which means that I help customers create good IT solutions using the tools that my employer sells. And help them troubleshooting and sorting out issues when things go wrong, or just do some development work for them from time to time (using those tools). My normal work area is the 5 Nordic countries, but from time to time I have to go to different countries and places as well.

If you could reroll your career, what would you be?

I am pretty happy with my archetype and talent build and the xp gained, so I do not think I would reroll. I would not mind rolling some alts though to try different talent builds and some different archetypes also though, still keeping my main character. I am an altoholic.

Many options involving software design and engineering would be just fine and going outside the IT sphere it would probably be some behind-the-scenes role in entertainment business (writer, director etc).

List five random things most people don’t know about you.

• got a M.Sc. in Computer Science&Engineering from Royal Institute of Technology
• am an amateur magician
• studied Russian in high school
• I cannot stand Coca-cola and almost never drink soft drinks
• Sente is a Japanese term used in the board game Go, meaning a move which keeps the initiative by forcing the opponent to answer.

Feel free to discuss any family you have here.

I am single now.

Chapter 2: Origins

What kind of games (if any) did you play as a child before you got into video gaming? Did you play with family, friends or was it more of a solo activity?

Both board games, card games and other were on the menu. Monopoly, Mastermind, Othello, Chess, Bondespelet (The Farmer game), Cluedo, Risk were a few of the board games. Card games included Canasta, Tölp, Bluffstopp, Svälta Räv (do not know the English names, sorry) for example. It was always with family and friends, never alone.

What other hobbies and/or activities did you have as a child (sports, music, etc)?

I did dabble a bit in a few sports, including karate, sabre fencing, table tennis – but did not really stick with any for any longer times. Same thing with music; tried a few instruments like trumpet,, trombone, horn and balalaika, but never stuck with any for long. In the winter time we usually did some cross-country skiing, since we generally had some good tracks through the woods not far from where we lived.

Around when I was 12 years old I started to perform magic tricks, entertaining (or annoying) family and friends That was something that got me hook, line and sinker – at least until those devious computers started to creep in too much

Were you ever exposed to pen and paper role playing games? What was that experience like?

I did play a few of those from time to time during a period of maybe 7-8 years. I was introduced to the concept though a D&D session by an older friend, but never really continued to play D&D or AD&D. Instead a number of other games like RuneQuest, Traveller, Bushido, Call of Cthulhu and Paranoia were the ones a group of friends and I played to various degrees.

Did you read much as a child? If so, what did you like to read (books, comic books, etc?) Please list some favorite authors, titles, etc.

Yes, I read quite a bit – both books and comic books. For the comic books I read Bamse and Rasmus Nalle in the very early years, but also Tintin and Asterix – both of which I had a few books of before I could even read. My comic book experiences in the childhood years and into teens included mainly a number of Franco-Belgian comics; Tintin, Asterix, Lucky Luke, Spirou, Johan & Peewit, Steven Strong, The Smurfs, Blueberry and Valérian & Laureline. In particular Valérian & Laureline was my absolute favourite comic for a long time and I still have everything that was published in Sweden.

Outside that sphere I did read The Phantom and Modesty Blaise also.

In terms of books I read many detective/mystery books aimed at youths not long after I learned to read. A few years later I started to read some of the books my father had, who is interested in SciFi and Fantasy. That introduced me to JRR Tolkien and Isaac Asimov and and I got hooked on those genres. The local libraries had somewhat small sections of SciFi and Fantasy books and I read most of what I could find there. In fantasy I think besides Tolkien that Ursula le Guin, Bertil Mårtensson and C S Lewis might be the ones I remember most. For SciFi there were many authors, but early on I think Isaac Asimov, Brian Aldiss, Robert Silverberg, Robert Heinlein and Harry Harrison were among those most read.

In the late teens I started to read novels from British and American authors in English instead of the Swedish translation and has continued ever since – if possible I prefer to read it in the author’s native language.

Would you say that any of these games or books had an effect on your later appreciation of computer gaming and ultimately MMOs? Please explain.

I do not think it affected appreciation of computer games in general, but perhaps to some extent the choices of games I would play – I knew which genres I liked.

How were you fist introduced to video games? How old were you? What was the platform?

The very first experience was probably some arcade game like Asteroids or Space Invaders, or possibly Pong (an uncle had bought some game console I think). I do not remember which was first or when that was. I never caught the gaming bug at that point.

Did you ever play coin-op games at the arcade? What was that experience like?

That did happen and I think it was probably fairly fun. But it was never something that I spent a lot of time (or money) on.

What was the first video game you can remember playing that really made an impression on you? Please explain.

I got my first home computer when I was 16, a VIC-20. This was 6-7 months after I had started to learn programming (Basic). Initially I learned Basic just reading books, but did not have any computer to actually type in the programs I created. After I got access to a computer at school I started to actually write programs for real. The VIC-20 I bought because it was affordable and had a real keyboard and my main intent was to have something of my own to write programs on. Games were not on my mind initially.

I did pick up some games for it after a while though; Attack of the Mutant Camels was the very first one. The one though that caused me to want to start write games though were Scott Adams’ Adventureland. That game had me hooked on adventure games and I started to write some adventure games of my own (not particularly good though).

What gaming consoles have you owned in the past?

Playstation, PS2, XBox, PSP, PS3. Still own the last two.

Feel free to share a story related to your gaming experience as a child.

Perhaps not so much a child experiences, since this started when I was 17: There was one game that was one of the first ones I got for the Commodore64 that stuck with me and a numberof my friends for many years – M.U.L.E. I think we probably played that at least semi-regularly for 12-13 years. It is such a brilliant game and works very well for a few friends getting together, since you can play 4 persons.

Chapter 3: Online

Were you ever exposed to MUDs?

I had some brief exposure during my university time, but I never got caught up in it. I was using various bulletin-board systems that was my main “multi player” venue at that time, although that was just discussions – no gaming.

What was your first MMO experience?

My first MMO was Anarcy Online, in 2001. I had read an article in a local newspaper about MMOs which caught my interest. Looking at a store what MMOs were available I found Anarchy Online and Everquest. I choose Anarchy Online because it was newer and had just been released, plus that it had a SciFi theme. SciFi was more interesting to me than Fantasy, so it was an easy choice.

I found the whole experience quite fascinating. Anarchy Online had its issue when it was released, but I think I missed the worst part since I did not play directly from release, but a few weeks after. Since I had no previous notion of what an MMO might contain and I did not know what Funcom had promised, I was just eagerly absorbing everything I encountered. I created many different characters, trying out probably most combinations of profession and race possible.

If possible, list all the MMOs you’ve played extensively.

Not sure what extensively would be, but this list should cover MMOs I played at least 3 months.

• Anarchy Online – Bureaucrat, level 53-54 I think
• Earth & Beyond – Jenquai Explorer, level 150 (max level)
• EVE Online – Minmatar character, I think
• Star Wars Galaxies – human Master Ranger/Master Creature Handler
• Final Fantasy XI – BeastMaster, level 45-46 I think
• Everquest 2 – Ratonga Brigand, level 44-45 I think
• World of Warcraft – Undead mage, level 60 (max at that time)
• City of Heroes/Villains – Dominator, level 50 (max level). Actually 5 dominators at 50 and 1 at 49 at the time of writing.
• Lord of the Rings Online – Rune Keeper, level 28-29 I think
• Tabula Rasa – Engineer, level 47
• Guild Wars – Necromancer, level 20
• Age of Conan – Dark Templar, level 31

What is your current MMO of choice, or perhaps, what are your current MMOs of choice?

City of Heroes/Villains, Guild Wars and Age of Conan.

Which MMO have you spent the most time playing? How long would you say that has been?

City of Heroes/Villains, without a doubt. It will be 3 years calendar time in about 1 month.

Have you reached level cap in any MMO? If so, which ones?

Earth & Beyond, Star Wars Galaxies (no levels, but maxed out skills), World of Warcraft, City of Heroes/Villains and Guild Wars.

Loki taps you on the shoulder one day to inform you that you have fallen victim to one of his elaborate pranks. The world you’ve been inhabiting of countless MMOs to choose from and play has merely been a dream. In reality only one MMO exists. After laughing at you for a bit he decides to take pity on you and allows you to choose which MMO will remain. Which one would you choose and why?

I would not make any choice until I hear the developers of various MMOs answer that question – what would they do if their MMO would be the only one left?

Then I would also discuss that with friends about their choices. The current state of a game is not that interesting, since MMOs are constantly evolving anyway. What becomes interesting is how the developers would deal with such a situation.

Are there any MMOs currently in development that you are particularly interested in? Please explain.

Champions Online is definitely one. It is made by Cryptic who made City of Heroes/Villains and it seems to be their next attempt learning the lessons from the earlier game and probably keeping and expanding on what was good in the old game.

Guild Wars 2 is another one. I am very impressed by what ArenaNet did with Guild Wars, so I will happily try out any new game they are making.

Any SciFi, Apocalypse or Steampunk-themed MMO released will be something I will likely try out also.

Feel free to share an interesting or amusing anecdote related to your MMO gaming experience.

Well, I tend to write such things on my blog from time to time, so feel free to read there

Chapter 4: Preferences

At your peak, how much time per week would you say you spent gaming? How about now?

I have had the occasional peak where I have played perhaps 30 hours per week for a brief period (1-2 weeks). Normally it can vary quite a bit, probably something between 8 and 25 hours per week. Most play sessions tend to be no longer than 2 hours.

When during the week are your regular play times?

On weekdays it would be in the evening, exact times varies a bit.

Generally speaking, are you more of a social creature in MMOs (grouping to quest, joining guilds, etc.) or something of a lone wolf?

That depends really. If I already know some people that are playing or going to play I will probably join a guild more or less right away. If I do not know any people I will usually not join a guild directly, but may join later.

I like teaming with others because teaming with others can be fun. The actual tasks do not matter so much. Thus whether I play in a team or solo depends on the convenience for it provided by the game and team invites (if I am not inviting myself).

Games that may require a lot of time to set up a team for various reasons (long travel to a certain point, certain combination of archetypes/classes/whatever, certain number of players etc) I will probably team less in. Exception will be with people I know and if it is some planned activity.

Team invites also affect whether I will team or not. I generally turn down blind invites. Depending on the game I may also consider how they phrase the invite; if they can form words or even sentences. Games with long set-up, running and get-out times for teams will have more such considerations.

Have you made any lasting friendships through your MMO experience? Please explain.

Yes, this mainly started when I joined The Older Gamers. The major reason I joined there was to be able to have som continuity across games and not just in games; before that I typically lost contact with most people I played with in a game when either I or them moved on. Also many people I had contact with in the early days were in entirely different time zones, which made in-game contact more difficult. Today with more communication options that a lot of people use, it is easier.

Before logging into a game, do you already have a course of action planned out in your head, or do you just sort of do whatever you feel like once in game?

Yes

It really varies; some games lend themselves to be more task oriented than others. But often I just jump in and figure out something to do depending on who is online at that time or start thinking what I may be in the mood for once I have logged in.

When playing MMOs do you tend to just play one at a time or do you take more of the smorgasbord approach?

I pretty much always play multiple MMOs nowadays and I do like smörgåsbord. There may be one MMO that gets more play time than the others at any given time, but I enjoy the variation that multiple MMOs may provide.

Do you tend to supplement your MMO gaming with other PC, console or tabletop games?

The number of PC games I have played this millenia probably can be counted on my fingers, so that would be a no answer.

Console games I play a bit more often, but not often on my own. This may become the choice if there are a few people in the same location who wants to play something. The latter would also fit for tabletop games, depending on the people.

Are you something of an altoholic?

Yes, absolutely. Although when I play more MMOs at the same time I do not create so many alts in each game.

Do you find yourself multitasking while gaming (perhaps watching TV, talking on the phone, out of game instant messaging, playing another game, or even listening to a podcast)?

No, I might be listening to a podcast sometimes on my internet radio at the same time, but in most cases I do not do anything else. If there are long times where I do not need to focus on the game play while playing, I probably just switch to do something else entirely instead.

Do you find yourself having much MMO discussion off-line, perhaps with friends or family?

No, not really.

Have you ever felt that you game too much? If so, how did you cope with that?

Yes, that has happened. I have set up some entirely different task and goal and focused on that. Important real life activities always comes first also.

Since you started playing MMOs, have you ever taken a break from the genre? If so, please explain.

My first break was after almost a year (playing in the weekends) with Anarchy Online. I did not play anything for close to 3 months. After that I have had some other breaks also, but nowadays I do not really get to the point where would need to take any longer break. It tends to get adjusted before that with less play time and perhaps rotate between a few MMOs. It rarely gets to the point where I am sick and tired of the genre as a whole.

Chapter 5: Blogging

When did you first start blogging?

Roughly 15 years ago when travelling abroad on vacation I started to write emails to friends and family back home, sort of a travel diary. A few years ago those emails turned into a blog instead, basically being updated a few times each vacation. I have stopped writing this blog nowadays, but will perhaps reactivate it at some point. My MMO blog, A Ding World, started almost 2 years ago.

Why do you blog?

Because I like writing about various topics, it is quite handy to have it archived in one place also. And if people read it and have comments, it is just great.

Do you have a schedule or some sort of routine you try and follow when blogging?

Not a strict schedule, but it will happen during the same time where I would otherwise play games. So typically it is fairly late in the evenings and instead of playing MMOs.

Sometimes I will start writing directly after a play session, which typically happens when I write a bit about events during that play session.

Is there some grind involved in blogging? If so, what is it and how do you cope with it?

No grind, if I do not have anything to write I simply do not write. I write when I have an urge to write, however the result may not always be the best. Sometimes I may be sensible enough to delete it before it gets posted, sometimes I post it anyway.

By contrast, what do you find pleasurable about blogging?

Getting good/fun/interesting/thoughtful comments from readers.

The act of writing when the topic gets twisted and turned as part of the writing process and end up something quite different from my original thought.

How many people offline know you blog?

Pretty much everyone I know is online in some sense, so I would say no-one offline knows about it. Very few among family, friends and collegues play online games and hence also very few of them know about my MMO blog.

What advice would you give someone who wanted to try their hand at blogging or podcasting?

Read and comment on other blogs that you are interested in. Do not try to force writing posts if you do not feel you have anything to write. It should be fun, so write when you feel you have something to post and pick something that it fun for you to write about.

What is something you know now that you wish you had known when you first started?

I have learned a number of things, but I do not really wish that I knew them when I started, even though some mistakes could have been avoided. The learning process itself is also a good thing.

Can you picture a future where you will hang up your keyboard and no longer blog?

Of course. But if I stop blogging it just will mean that I will channel my desire to write about stuff to something else.

At your funeral, what song(s) would you have played as your corpse is set alight and cast out to sea on a funeral barge?

Oh boy, difficult one. A few that I might consider would be:

• Oxygène, part 4 – Jean-Michelle Jarre
• Om – Niklas Strömstedt
• Look on the bright side of life – Monty Python
• Wish I had an angel – Nightwish
• Also Sprach Zarathustra, opus 30 – Strauss
• Final Countdown – Europe

David

MMO community connection:

Timesink

Chapter 1: Introduction

What is your name (your online persona/alter-ego, what have you)?

David “No Nickname” Bailey

What is your connection to the gaming/blogging/podcasting community (your chance to plug yourself here)?

I maintain a blog at http://www.timesink.ca which I really didn’t think too many people knew about.

Please take a minute and describe what your blog/podcast is about.

My blog mostly reflects the games I’m playing at the moment and my experiences in them.

Where were you born? Where did you grow up?

I was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. My dad was in the military so I was fortunate enough to grow up in many different cities across the country, however most of my time has been spent in Ottawa, Edmonton, and Winnipeg.

Where do you live now?

Winnipeg, Manitoba

Your level (age) is somewhere in the range of (pick one): 10-20, 21-30, 31-40, 41-50, 51-60, 61-70, 71-80, 81-90

33 years old according to my birth certificate. 8 years old according to my wife.

What do you do for a living?

I’m a Network Administrator and second level support for a large organization. My duties include many things that would probably sound very boring.

If you could reroll your career, what would you be?

Growing up I always wanted to follow in my father’s footsteps and become a pilot for the military. I think that’s something I’d really enjoy. Of course, If I’m allowed to dream here, I’d be playing for the Edmonton Oilers in the NHL.

List five random things most people don?t know about you.

• I love to sing, and do so constantly when home alone.
• When I was a kid I drew a comic book featuring a character named Scabman. He was a regular guy who had been decapitated and the ensuing fountain of blood dried up and formed a new head made entirely out of scab. I still have it buried in my closet somewhere.
• I like to tell my friends that I write fiction.
• In my younger days I once gave myself a horrible looking black eye when I went to dive on to my bed, over shot it, and face-planted into the wall.
• After watching the movie “Heat” I wanted to become a professional criminal

Feel free to discuss any family you have here.

I’ve been married to my wonderful, beautiful wife for seven years and we have an adorably cute two year old daughter.

Chapter 2: Origins

What kind of games (if any) did you play as a child before you got into video gaming? Did you play with family, friends or was it more of a solo activity?

Growing up I used to play board games quite often with my two sisters. We played the typical games, Monopoly, LIFE, Sorry, etc. Aside from board games, most of my time was spent outside with the neighbourhood kids playing ball tag, hide and go seek, and just about any other game we could think of.

What other hobbies and/or activities did you have as a child (sports, music, etc)?

I’ve played hockey my whole life, and soccer until I was fifteen or so. I was forced to take piano lessons for one year which I didn’t enjoy.

Were you ever exposed to pen and paper role playing games? What was that experience like?

I wasn’t heavily exposed to pen and paper RPGs, but I always wanted to play them. I had the basic set (Red Box) released in 1983 but only played it a little bit with a few friends off and on, certainly not enough to leave a lasting impression. Only recently, with the release of fourth edition have I started to play more, although due to various commitments and other excuses, we don’t get together as much as I’d like. I love the idea of playing, making it happen is where the difficulty lies.

Did you read much as a child? If so, what did you like to read (books, comic books, etc?) Please list some favorite authors, titles, etc.

I wasn’t a heavy reader. Any reading I did was either comic books (X-Factor, Batman), or Choose Your Own Adventure-style books. My favourites were the Fighting Fantasy books done by Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone, of which I had quite a few.

Would you say that any of these games or books had an effect on your later appreciation of computer gaming and ultimately MMOs? Please explain.

There’s no doubt the books I read had an influence on my video gaming habits, especially the Fighting Fantasy books which are essentially basic computer role-playing games, minus the computer. I once converted one of the books, I think it was “Island of the Lizard King”, into a simple game using BASIC on my Commodore 64. I literally re-typed the book into the program and connected all the pages using a series of GOTO statements based on whatever page the player wanted to go to next. I had a lot of free time back then.

As far as I can remember I’ve enjoyed exploring alternate worlds and the books I read, and later, the games I played complemented that.

How were you fist introduced to video games? How old were you? What was the platform?

I don’t remember having a huge interest in video games as a kid. Back then the only time I saw them were in the malls on display (I have no idea what systems, probably Colecovision) or arcade machines in restaurants. A friend of mine eventually got an Atari system and even then I don’t really remember playing with it much; we were always outside.

Things started to change when my dad brought home a Commodore 64 one day (if I were to hazard a guess, I’d say it was 1983-84ish). That thing rocked my world, it was so cool. Miner 2049er was the first game I played on it and I was hooked. As such, I consider the C64 my introduction to video games.

Did you ever play coin-op games at the arcade? What was that experience like?

When I was little, the arcades were strictly off-limits. It was where all the “bad kids” went. As a result, aside from the odd machine in a restaurant here and there I didn’t play the coin-ops until later.

When I was about 13 or 14 there was a local arcade that would let you book your birthday party there. This became the big thing for my circle of friends to do. The birthday boy would get an unlimited supply of quarters while everyone else got a set amount, and we’d just go crazy for an hour or two. Those birthday parties were amazing.

The corner store by my place had a Double Dragon machine which was the greatest thing ever for that particular summer. I remember feeling pretty awesome the time I finished that game on one quarter. The crappy thing about it was when playing co-op, I could never seem to beat my friend at the very end after fighting the machine gun dude, and I’d always lose the girl.

Later on, during my last year or two of high-school, there was a place that had eight Daytona USA cabinets connected together. A bunch of us would go and race each other on weekends, which was crazy fun.

What was the first video game you can remember playing that really made an impression on you? Please explain.

There have been a lot of games that I’ve played that have made an impression on me, but there are a few that were just different in some way and really stood out. Perhaps the first one would be Times of Lore on my Commodore 64. Wikipedia tells me it released in 1988 yet I can still remember it quite well. It was the first game that really drew me in to its world, which was absolutely huge for its time. It doesn’t surprise me in the least to see it was developed by Origin Systems, they made awesome games.

What gaming consoles have you owned in the past?

Commodore 64, Turbo Grafx-16, Super Nintendo, Gameboy Advance, Xbox, Game Cube, Xbox 360.

Feel free to share a story related to your gaming experience as a child.

Answering these questions has certainly sparked some fond memories. The next time I’m over at my dad’s place I’m going to have to search through the boxes in the basement to see if my old Fighting Fantasy books are buried away there.

I don’t really have a specific story pertaining to my gaming experience as a child, but what I remember most fondly is getting together with friends and taking turns playing whatever game it was we had rented for the weekend. I wonder if kids still do that, or do they just stay in their respective homes and play over the internet?

Chapter 3: Online

Were you ever exposed to MUDs?

I’ve never been exposed to MUDs, nor have I exposed myself to them.

What was your first MMO experience?

EverQuest II. My first character was created April 10, 2005. I really wasn’t interested in getting into MMOs but my friend kept bugging me to try it out. One day he sent me a link to the Trial of the Isle seven day demo and I figured I’d give it a shot.

Despite the island being relatively small and restricted to level seven, I was hooked. Shortly after I bought the full game and I played for three more years until finally leaving Norrath.

If possible, list all the MMOs you’ve played extensively.

• EverQuest II from April 2005, to March 2008. My main character was a level 74 Berserker. I also had a 74 Mystic which likely would have become my main had I continued playing.

• World of Warcraft from March 2008 to present. My main character is a level 80 Shaman (enhancement spec). I’ve got a few lower leveled alts that are slowly getting more of my attention.

I also had a two month stint in Vanguard in between EQII and WoW.

What is your current MMO of choice, or perhaps, what are your current MMOs of choice?

World of Warcraft.

Which MMO have you spent the most time playing? How long would you say that has been?

EverQuest II for three years.

Have you reached level cap in any MMO? If so, which ones?

Currently at the cap in WoW. I was at the cap twice in EQII but didn’t have the steam to push myself to its current cap of 80.

Loki taps you on the shoulder one day to inform you that you have fallen victim to one of his elaborate pranks. The world you’ve been inhabiting of countless MMOs to choose from and play has merely been a dream. In reality only one MMO exists. After laughing at you for a bit he decides to take pity on you and allows you to choose which MMO will remain. Which one would you choose and why?

This is a tough question for me. Ultimately I’ll choose World of Warcraft but that’s not saying it’s the best MMO, rather it’s the best MMO for me. My family commitments keep me from playing a great deal these days and WoW fits into that very well. It’s easy to pop in for an hour or two here or there and still get something accomplished. I don’t raid, nor do I group much and take on instances, but I still feel like there’s something fun for me to do.

If I had more time to commit to playing, my answer may very well be EverQuest II. In my opinion it doesn’t offer the solo experience that WoW does, but its instances and raids were awesome fun. Unfortunately, I’m not able to devote the time to it that it would need.

Are there any MMOs currently in development that you are particularly interested in? Please explain.

Not really actually. If anything I’d say Star Wars: The Old Republic, but to be honest I haven’t seen or heard anything about it that’s making me tremble in anticipation.

Copernicus, or whatever it is that 38 Studios is working on could have potential based on some of the names attached to the project, but I have a feeling it won?t amount to much. Hopefully I’m wrong on that one.

I’m curious to know what Blizzard’s secret MMO currently in development is, and I would be absolutely thrilled to hear that EverQuest 3 is being planned.

Feel free to share an interesting or amusing anecdote related to your MMO gaming experience.

I swore I’d never play a game that charged a monthly fee. “What a waste of money,” I thought. Since then I’ve played three years of hardcore EverQuest II and another year of World of Warcraft. Not only that, I started a blog to talk about all this stuff. I never would have believed it four and a half years ago.

Chapter 4: Preferences

At your peak, how much time per week would you say you spent gaming?

I’d guess 30-40 hours per week. Thinking about that now just blows my mind.

How about now?

Maybe 10 hours.

When during the week are your regular play times?

Nowadays I wait until my daughter is in bed and asleep which is usually between 8:30 and 9:00. I’ll get an hour or two of gaming done after that if nothing else is going on.

Generally speaking, are you more of a social creature in MMOs (grouping to quest, joining guilds, etc.) or something of a lone wolf?

I’m definitely a lone wolf. I’ll play now and then with friends, but only if we can schedule it ahead of time. My window of free time has narrowed significantly over the past couple of years so it’s much easier to just log in and do my own thing instead of waiting around to find a group.

Have you made any lasting friendships through your MMO experience? Please explain.

No, I’ve gone into each game with the friends I’ve already had.

Before logging into a game, do you already have a course of action planned out in your head, or do you just sort of do whatever you feel like once in game?

I typically have a plan in mind when logging in, but it’s not so rigid that I won’t ditch it if something else comes up.

When playing MMOs do you tend to just play one at a time or do you take more of the smorgasbord approach?

I barely have the time for one. I’ve tried two at once (EQII and WoW, WoW and Vanguard) but I just couldn’t do it. I would find myself more interested in one over the other and play it more to the point where it just wasn’t worth the cost of keeping the other around.

Do you tend to supplement your MMO gaming with other PC, console or tabletop games?

I try. I’ve got an Xbox 360 which I play off and on. I tried tabletop games (Warhammer 40k) but got too burned out painting my darn army to bother playing the game (there’s a billion dollars I’ll never get back; that stuff’s expensive).

I jump into other PC games now and then but like so many others have said before; whenever I play something else it always feels like it’s causing me to “fall behind” in my MMO. It’s absolutely ridiculous, but the stacks of games I’ve bought and never played confirm that it’s real.

Are you something of an altoholic?

No. I had a couple of alts back in my peak MMO days, and one of them eventually caught up to my main in levels, but I’m mostly a one character guy. Typically I’ll start an alt just to get a feel for a different class, or to see some zones I wouldn’t have seen with my main, but they’re usually forgotten about eventually.

Do you find yourself multitasking while gaming (perhaps watching TV, talking on the phone, out of game instant messaging, playing another game, or even listening to a podcast)?

I’ll sometimes have the TV on in the background (typically a hockey game), or I’ll check out a web page or two on the side.

Do you find yourself having much MMO discussion off-line, perhaps with friends or family?

Constantly with friends; it’s all we talk about.

Have you ever felt that you game too much? If so, how did you cope with that?

I definitely have felt that I game too much, usually as a result of a certain look my wife gives me. My heavy duty playing days are in the past however, and my play time is much more reasonable now. My family always comes first and I have quite a few other obligations and hobbies that keep my gaming in check.

Since you started playing MMOs, have you ever taken a break from the genre? If so, please explain.

Yes I have. Towards the end of my EverQuest II days I was completely burned out and took a few months off from MMOs. I played a bunch of other single player games, even finishing a few of them, and loved it. Eventually I started to feel the itch for MMOs again and ultimately ended up in World of Warcraft.

Chapter 5: Blogging

When did you first start blogging?

My first post on Timesink is dated Wednesday, March 21, 2007. Previous to that I had a personal blog, mostly just for family and close friends to read which I still post to today, albeit infrequently.

Why do you blog?

I like to write, and I like discussing games. Mainly it?s just another hobby for me, and I collect hobbies like they?re going out of style.

Do you have a schedule or some sort of routine you try and follow when blogging?

I blog whenever the mood strikes me and when I feel like I’ve got something to say. Sometimes that means several posts in one week (rare), but for the most part I’ve sort of settled on one or two a week these days.

Is there some grind involved in blogging? If so, what is it and how do you cope with it?

I simply don’t let it become a grind for me. If I don’t feel like posting, I don’t.

By contrast, what do you find pleasurable about blogging?

I just enjoy sharing my gaming experiences and opinions. Also, the realization that complete strangers have read something I wrote is pretty darn cool. I was on cloud nine after receiving the first comment that wasn?t from someone I knew.

How many people offline know you blog?

My core group of friends, which is about six or seven people.

What advice would you give someone who wanted to try their hand at blogging?

I’d point them towards one of the free blogging sites and tell them to go give it a shot. They’ll find out fairly quickly if It’s something they enjoy doing or not.

What is something you know now that you wish you had known when you first started?

I can’t think of anything actually. Part of the fun in starting the blog for me was taking the leap without really thinking about it. If anything I wish I knew back then how much fun I was going to have doing it, because I would have started blogging about games even sooner.

Can you picture a future where you will hang up your keyboard and no longer blog?

Absolutely, although that time hasn’t come yet. I imagine I’ll just get bored of it one day.

At your funeral, what song(s) would you have played as your corpse is set alight and cast out to sea on a funeral barge?

Amazing Grace, played by a hundred bagpipers as a thousand F-18s streak overhead through the worlds largest fireworks display. You know, something simple and modest.

Wilhelm2451

MMO community connection:

The Ancient Gaming Noob

Chapter 1: Introduction

What is your name (your online persona/alter-ego, what have you)?

Wilhelm2451

What is your connection to the gaming/blogging/podcasting community (your chance to plug yourself here)?

The Ancient Gaming Noob blog as well as being a regular guest on the Shut Up, We’re Talking and Witty Ranter podcasts.

Please take a minute and describe what your blog/podcast is about.

Pretty much focused on the whole MMORPG thing. My blog has some commentary, but is mostly a journal of my MMO experiences and interactions. “I don’t know what I am doing” is a recurring theme on the site.

Where were you born? Where did you grow up?

Silicon Valley on both counts. Well, it wasn’t called Silicon Valley when I was born. People still referred to it as The Valley of Heart’s Delight back then.

Where do you live now?

Silicon Valley. Everybody else in the world seems to be moving here, why should I leave?

Your level (age) is somewhere in the range of (pick one): 10-20, 21-30, 31-40, 41-50, 51-60, 61-70, 71-80, 81-90

41-50 – it sneaks up on you.

What do you do for a living?

I run a software testing group for a fortune 500 company. It is enterprise software, so you cannot buy it on the shelf at Fry’s (though I started off in commercial shrink-wrapped software), but chances are very high that you have used some piece of software on which I have worked.

If you could reroll your career, what would you be?

Um, if I choose wrong, how much does another respec cost?

I don’t know if I would re-roll, but during the start of the first dotcom bubble I was working at a start up making a hardware device with some really brilliant people. If we had turned that power to evil, we could have really bilked some VCs out of some serious capital. Instead I have a T-shirt and some hardware that doesn’t work with any current OS.

List five random things most people don’t know about you.

• I spent some time in the Soviet Studies program in college… about the time the Soviet Union went tits up. Bad timing in some ways. Things were changing so fast that it became a current events seminar in many ways.
• I met my wife through an online dating service, but it turned out we went to high school together and had friends in common.
• I used to work on Macintosh products, so I get more than a bit uptight about bad or inconsistant UI design.
• My parents were both, essentially, accountants. When I realized that, it explained much.
• I spent a lot of my childhood in a library. My grandmother was a librarian and I spent a lot of time with her and got really used to having access to a lot of books. This explains all the book shelves in my office at home.

Feel free to discuss any family you have here.

My beautiful wife is amazingly tolerant of my gaming hobby… or she has grown resigned to it at least. It was a point of contention early in our relationship. More recently she mentioned that, as hobbies go, it was at least inexpensive and did not take up, say, the whole garage. However, the “at least I am home” card has been over-played and no longer has much value.

My daughter is very interested in games and virtual worlds. She likes to see what I am playing and wants to try out everything.

My mother plays World of Warcraft with my daughter and I.

Chapter 2: Origins

What kind of games (if any) did you play as a child before you got into video gaming? Did you play with family, friends or was it more of a solo activity?

We played games quite a bit at my grandparents place. They had a farm out in the California Central Valley where TV reception was spotty and there was a general “early to bed/early to rise” rhythm of life. In the late afternoon before dinner, there was a point where pre-dinner drinks were served up (I got to have a soda) and we would sit around and play a game. Dominoes was the popular choice for a long time. Gin or other card games were played at times. At home too, we played games. Monopoly was always popular. When I was older and Trivial Pursuit came along that became a favorite. I suspect it was because, as a family, we have a remarkable knack for trivia. My mother and I were an unbeatable team, with me covering science and history and her on entertainment and sports. With friends I ended up playing war games, usual the Avalon Hill bookshelf variety. While we played all varieties, I grew to like the game Tobruk the most. It was a much more tactical game than some others, like PanzerBlitz or Third Reich. The more strategic, and thus the more abstract, a game got, the less I seemed to enjoy it. At least to a certain level. A game like Risk, warfare abstracted to the extreme, I did enjoy quite a bit.

What other hobbies and/or activities did you have as a child (sports, music, etc)?

I played some sports. I was in little league baseball and ran track through junior high. For hobbies I built models, usually tanks or airplanes to go along with my toy soldiers. I had quite a collection of Airfix 1/72 scale figures.

Were you ever exposed to pen and paper role playing games? What was that experience like?

Not until high school. My family moved before my freshman year and I ended up at a different high school from all of the friends I grew up with. Then, alone and susceptible to the influences of strangers, I fell in with a crowd of role playing gamers. They started by introducing me to the light stuff like Tunnels and Trolls, but I quickly moved on to the hard stuff and had a copy of the AD&D Players Handbook before my parents could intervene. Soon I was reading Tolkien and affecting a bad British accent. Still, I was able to keep my head to a certain extent and never, for example became a Ren Faire regular or an SCA member.

Did you read much as a child? If so, what did you like to read (books, comic books, etc?) Please list some favorite authors, titles, etc.

Honestly, I read very little of my own volition until about 8th grade. I used to mostly flip through books and look at the pictures. MAD Magazine’s “Spy vs. Spy” comic was my level of reading commitment. Then at some point in junior high school I decided I wanted to know more about the pictures than the rather scanty captions in a book I was looking at, so I started reading the thing. This is, of course, all heresy, since my grandmother was a librarian and I spent hours and hours at the library. I was just browsing the pictures most of the time. In high school I read a lot of Science Fiction. Larry Niven and Harry Harrison figured prominently. Oddly, I tended to steer clear of the “classics” from authors like Asimov and Heinlein. “Bil the Galactic Hero” was much more amusing when I re-read it years later after having soaked up more of a foundation in the genre. (I only recommend the original book, not any of the follow-ons.)

Would you say that any of these games or books had an effect on your later appreciation of computer gaming and ultimately MMOs? Please explain.

Certainly. Larry Niven was all about space. There is a direct line somewhere from me reading “Ringworld” to me playing EVE Online. And certainly RPGs and Tolkien mixed in unhealthy doses pre-disposed me towards fantasy. The one thing I disliked about table top games like D&D was all the accounting that needed to be done. While computer games and then MMOs restricted much player initiative, the hid ALL of the accounting that I so loathed. That made me a natural for the genre. I just want to attack, not calculate my THAC0.

How were you fist introduced to video games? How old were you? What was the platform?

I played Pong at The Old Spaghetti Factory in downtown San Jose when I was just a kid. It was amazing.

Did you ever play coin-op games at the arcade? What was that experience like?

Of course, from the point I found Pong to the day I got a personal computer, I spent a lot of time in arcades. It could be a lot of fun, but it was also expensive. For 25 cents back in those days you could get a comic book. This probably explains why I did not do much comic book collecting.

What was the first video game you can remember playing that really made an impression on you? Please explain.

I played Star Trek on an HP system. A friend’s dad brought us into the office one weekend and let us play it while he got some work done. My friend and I loved it and went about creating our own board game version of it since we did not have ready access to any sort of computer.

What gaming consoles have you owned in the past?

I have owned three, an Atari 26000 that I got for Christmas in 1977, a Sega Genesis that I got as a bonus of sorts for a project at work in 1992, and we got a Wii in 2007. That is one console every 15 years like clockwork. I’m not due again until 2022.

Feel free to share a story related to your gaming experience as a child.

A story about gaming? That’s what I have a blog for! Okay. At one point a friend and I were very excited about computer/console games. This was in 1978 or so, and I had an Atari 2600 and he had a Fairchild Channel F. We were both enamored with the technology but somewhat let down by the lack of depth there was to most games. Because of this, we tended to build metagames where you might have to play any given shallow two-minute-thirty-second “shoot the blocky thing with smallers blocks” as part of a single turn of the bigger game. There was a lot of role playing and pretend around it. We were nerds once, and young.

Chapter 3: Online

Were you ever exposed to MUDs?

Yes, I have played a number of MUDs over the years. I think the first that would be recognized as a MUD was Gemstone. I was in the beta for it on GEnie back in 1988 or so. It was a lot of fun. Having played enough text games ala Zork, I was ready for the multi-player environment that MUDs brought to the table. From 1993 through to 2003 or so I played Sojourn/Toril MUD quite regularly. It is a Forgotten Realms based MUD, so had the advantage of being in my favorite D&D setting. I still play online games with people I met in that game.

What was your first MMO experience?

Does Island of Kesmai count? If so, 1986.

If, however, we’re going to stick with what we refer to today as MMOs, then EverQuest. I picked up the box on the afternoon of March 16th, 1999. I still have the receipt.

I had considered Ultima Online when it came out, having played some of the Ultima series. Unfortunately I had also gotten a bit tired of that series so never quite got around to the MMO iteration of the game.

EverQuest though… on day one it was buggy and slow and I got dropped a lot and it have high system requirements (a 3D card?!?) and I immediately felt at home. Part of the reason I felt at home was that many of the people who created EverQuest played Sojour/Toril MUD and sought to bring the fun of that MUD environment into a 3D world. There is an oft told tale that the city of Waterdeep in Sojourn/Toril MUD was the basis for the layout of Freeport in EverQuest.

If possible, list all the MMOs you’ve played extensively. Please start from the beginning and work your way up to the present. For extra bonus fun list your main (class & level) in each game as well.

Limiting myself to games I played for at least a year or more of calendar time, I get the following list:

• EverQuest (1999)
• EverQuest II (2004)
• World of Warcraft (2005)
• EVE Online (2006)
• Lord of the Rings Online (2007)

There are other MMOs I have tried, such as:

• City of Heroes
• Guild Wars
• Planetside
• Runes of Magic
• Star Wars Galaxies
• The Matrix Online
• Tabula Rasa
• Vanguard
• Warhammer Online

But I did not spend long enough playing them, for various reasons, to meet my own criteria for having actually really played the game to any great depth. I just played them long enough for me to decide they were not the game for me.

I tried to list my main characters, but that can be difficult. I have a serious pack of alts stored away, so it can be hard to decide who is the real me.

What is your current MMO of choice, or perhaps, what are your current MMOs of choice?

World of Warcraft is probably the one I play the most of late. I have a regular group that plays on Saturday nights. I also play with my daughter and mother on the weekends. And then I have a solo career. EVE Online is the other MMO to which I am currently subscribed, which I think defines it as an “MMO of choice.” It offers a different experience in that I spend at least as much time trying figure out how to do things as I spend actually doing them.

Which MMO have you spent the most time playing? How long would you say that has been?

In terms of total hours played, probably EverQuest II. I couldn’t tell you an exact number, but there were many hours of concentrated daily play for me in post-cataclysm Norrath.

Have you reached level cap in any MMO? If so, which ones?

Because of the alt situation, I have not reached the level cap very often. In fact, I think World of Warcraft may be the only MMO where I have stopped levelling because I hit the then current level cap of 70 during the Burning Crusade expansion.

Loki taps you on the shoulder one day to inform you that you have fallen victim to one of his elaborate pranks. The world you’ve been inhabiting of countless MMOs to choose from and play has merely been a dream. In reality only one MMO exists. After laughing at you for a bit he decides to take pity on you and allows you to choose which MMO will remain. Which one would you choose and why?

Loki is always pulling this sort of crap too. Hrmm, that is tough. I would probably pick World of Warcraft, but then try to convince Loki that EVE is really just a multi-player sandbox and really doesn’t count. But if you had asked me a year ago I might have said EverQuest II. And next year I might say something else. But for the moment I would choose WoW because it is the game where I spend the most time playing with other people.

Are there any MMOs currently in development that you are particularly interested in? Please explain.

I have an odd personality quirk where I try to avoid something I know I will be interested in when released so as to not dilute the experience in advance or get my expectations set to high. So I avoid trailers for movies I know I’ll want to see or reviews for books I know I am going to pick up.

With that in mind, I am diligently ignoring Star Trek Online. Star Trek is deep in my psyche. The first game I ever played on a computer was Star Trek. I spent much of my youth playing Star Fleet Battles. And I have consistently been disappointed by Star Trek games on the computer. The best so far for me has been the Star Fleet Command, which was based off of Star Fleet battles. So I live in hope that maybe Star Trek Online can deliver.

Feel free to share an interesting or amusing anecdote related to your MMO gaming experience.

There is a quest in WoW called “Mudrock Soup and Bugs” that sends you out to collect some “Forked Mudrock Tongues.” I mis-read this as “Forked Murloc Tongues,” an error compounded by the fact that there are Murlocs running around not too far from the turtles that actually drop the tongues. I spent ages slaughtering Murlocs to no avail and eventually just abandoned the quest. Later, I picked it up with an alt, groaned in memory of my futile effort, the decided to read the quest closely as I was obviously killing the wrong Murlocs. And, of course, I figured out what it really said. The odd part is that almost anybody I mention this story to says that they too thought it said “Murlocs.” Not all that amusing or interesting once I wrote it down I suppose. Way to close on a down note Wilhelm!