Taking Games Too Seriously

[Chakra-X]

This is mostly directed at the online community of video games.

From Street Fighter to even ESF, why is it people online has such a...passion, for becoming better than others?

Perhaps this is why I suck at essentially every online game I play, but it's quite annoying. Do not get me wrong, I hate being on an unfocused team in Warhawk, but when some teenager is giving out orders on his mic or freaking out when no one on his team is helping him when he is getting shot by a Warhawk, it makes the game less enjoyable.

ESF is, or at least was, a good example too. There was some how a "split" between American and European players, and some player even had a "holier than thou" feeling towards another? People would mention "trained by Gohan" or whatever, like a samurai would, or starting up 1 vs 1 servers after an argument of some sort to "settle it out in a fight", again, like it was a cowboy shoot out.

Fighting games are notorious. Super Smash Brothers fans even dubbed them "tourney ***s" for their meticulous studying of less obvious signs of the game, like physics exploitation, "mindgames", taking the time to organize tiers, ect. Having to spend hours to play "with the pros" instead of just having fun seems more like a sport than game. But at the same time, I can respect those who try to get the most out of what the creators have given them. Some of these "pros" also tend to look at the game so coldly. There might be this super move that looks incredibly awesome to pull off, but a "pro" will shrug it off if it can not be used to win.

Go to like any Gamefaqs board with a game with online capability, and you'll have the perfect examples.

Essentially, it's the whiny, robotic, and elitist attitudes that bother me about competitive games. Thoughts?

 

[Dokutayuu]

Stuff like this doesn't really bother me. I enjoy playing against people significantly better than me, usually because of the challenge and the fact that I can pick stuff up by playing against them. I don't hold anything against people who study the game in ultra-depth, they've just looked at the game in a different way to me. Like someone who starts off and chooses Piccolo in ESF would find it weird how most average players pick Goku or Vegeta.

People who act like they're the gaming equivalent of the Pope annoy very slightly at times. However, they're not invincible and even a few frags can be satisfying enough. I do prefer modest great players though (*cough* Sub *cough* Ren *cough*) as their codes of conduct and courtesy are very good.

The SSB tourney scene is cruel. I've never taken part in a tournament, but I know most choose one of about 7 out of a cast of 35+. However, that doesn't stop me from playing as the lower "ranked" characters, they still have a chance against them but I'd rather play as a character I like than one who'll win all the time.

 

[jp]

I feel the same way towards elitists in games, they make it feel as if the game is made for only their glory.

Its just a game, and I understand its fun to win, isn't it better to just have fun together even if it means you'll lose the game.
Meh, I allways feel like those people want to compensate for something they don't have in their life.

I gues its that sole reason that I rarely play online, I want to "play" a game, not "fight" a game.

 

[Sicron]

They just have a different way of having fun with the game. However, I can get annoyed by people who start whining like "DUDEZORZ!! D0n'''t uze eine RPG t00 k!ll y00! L4m3333!!1110" I mean simply because weapon isn't as useful as any other weapon, doesn't mean it is unusable. And you certainly shouldn't start *****ing about it, I don't ***** about you either. Just let me play the game the way I want too, and have fun.

 

[grOOvy]

I feel like this is an apt thread for the following video:

[video=youtube;LCYPGnJdO1U]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LCYPGnJdO1U[/video]

Think of online gaming as an alternate reality, protected behind the anonymity of the internet. People get to be who they really are in some cases, and sometimes who they aren't in real life as an escape mechanism. What's important is to play the game for your own reasons and not let others get to you and spoil your fun.