Massively http://massively.joystiq.com Massively http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/http://massively.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif Massively http://massively.joystiq.com en-us Copyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[The Daily Grind: How do you handle random party invites?]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/05/04/the-daily-grind-how-do-you-handle-random-party-invites/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/05/04/the-daily-grind-how-do-you-handle-random-party-invites/http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/05/04/the-daily-grind-how-do-you-handle-random-party-invites/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Independent woman -- TERA
I don't know why, but sometimes I get discouraged when a random person sends me a party invite while I'm in the middle of questing. I know it sounds odd, but when I'm not playing with my regular group of friends or guildies, I like to just play alone. When someone whispers me to ask if he can join me, I usually turn him down (politely!), but if I get a random party invite without so much as a hello, I simply ignore it.

My own antisocial issues aside, I want to know how you feel about this topic. Do you think a random invite is a healthy way to find companions and possibly friends, or do you see it as an invasion of privacy while you're trying to quest?

Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!

MassivelyThe Daily Grind: How do you handle random party invites? originally appeared on Massively on Fri, 04 May 2012 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>antisocialdaily-grindgroupingopinionparty-inviterandomsolotdgthe-daily-grindFri, 04 May 2012 08:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Frogster gives us piles of Runes of Magic stats]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/03/28/frogster-gives-us-piles-of-runes-of-magic-stats/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/03/28/frogster-gives-us-piles-of-runes-of-magic-stats/http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/03/28/frogster-gives-us-piles-of-runes-of-magic-stats/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , ,

While not everyone is a math or statistics geek, there's a certain intriguing quality to MMO stats. Whenever we post statistics for games, there are inevitably discussions on concurrent users, paid subscribers, and overall registered accounts. Unfortunately, free-to-play games like Frogster's Runes of Magic don't really lend themselves to discussions of subscriptions vs. registered accounts since it has no monthly fee. Nevertheless, the game still provides some interesting statistics.

According to a release sent earlier today, Frogster has posted a handful of curious stats that are sure to pique the interest of those who love to dissect MMO minutiae. Over the last two years, 6,657,370 characters have stepped into Runes of Magic. Mages are an incredibly popular class, with 2.2 million characters, and there's a tie at 650,000 characters created for both Rogues and Warriors. Apparently, the Priest/Mage dual class is a highly popular combo for players; and Priest takes secondary class of choice at 350,000, followed by Warriors with 150,000. Over three million characters serve as Herbalists, with 1.1 million players dabbling in Alchemy.

English-speaking servers have seen 3,505,269 quests turned in and 4,622 guilds created. Groups in the game have taken the Demon Lord down 4,521 times and have wiped the floor with Erekat III almost three times more. Raksha is still the one to beat, according to Frogster's metrics, which suggest that boss has only been downed 182 times on the highest difficulty. Finally, no raid would be complete without silly pets along for a screenshot -- we're told that there are over 100,000 rune pets tagging along with players. In all, it's certainly an interesting set of statistics, if a bit random. After all, Frogster was very careful not to say which class was the overall most popular one!

MassivelyFrogster gives us piles of Runes of Magic stats originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 28 Mar 2011 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>alchemyclassesf2pfree-to-playfrogsterfrogster-interactiveherbalisminterestingmageplayersrandomrogueromrune-petrunes-of-magicrunewakerrunewaker-entertainmentstatisticswarriorMon, 28 Mar 2011 21:00:00 EST<![CDATA[The Daily Grind: Do you try and influence the random?]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/10/18/the-daily-grind-do-you-try-and-influence-the-random/http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/10/18/the-daily-grind-do-you-try-and-influence-the-random/http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/10/18/the-daily-grind-do-you-try-and-influence-the-random/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

Objectively, we know that the drop is random, that the attack randomly hits between one and eight times, that the boss randomly targets a party member, and so on. But human beings are notoriously bad about certain concepts, and one of them happens to be randomness. Somewhere in the world, someone genuinely believes that all you have to do to stop a typhoon is to find the right butterfly before it flaps its wings. And if you know enough about computers to know that they're incapable of generating truly random numbers, it's a short step from there to trying to influence whatever act of random chance is coming due in your favorite game.

When you're playing, do you try and influence what should be random events? Do you have little theories about what causes certain things to happen and how to alter them? Have you learned and lived by simple mantras like "two steps left, one step right" -- even when you know objectively that they're not going to have the desired result (in the linked case, causing the monster to not blow up half the party)? Or, on the opposite end, do you rigorously dissuade yourself from any such theories and remind yourself that random is exactly what it says it is on the tin?

MassivelyThe Daily Grind: Do you try and influence the random? originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 18 Oct 2009 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>chaoschaos-theoryopinionrandomtdgthe-daily-grindSun, 18 Oct 2009 08:00:00 EST<![CDATA[The Daily Grind: Which MMO has the best PUGs?]]>http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/08/11/the-daily-grind-which-mmo-has-the-best-pugs/http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/08/11/the-daily-grind-which-mmo-has-the-best-pugs/http://massively.joystiq.com/2009/08/11/the-daily-grind-which-mmo-has-the-best-pugs/#commentsFiled under: , , ,


Whether you are lucky enough to play with a steady group of good friends or you're more of a soloist, you've still probably encountered the stray pick-up group or random team member here and there. Many gamers even spend all of their time with strangers. But if you've played several MMOs, you may have also noticed that there seems to be a difference in the playerbases. Some games are notorious for having more immature players while others can safely say their players are the best. But which ones? Which MMO do you feel has the best PUGs?

I decided to take this question an extra step by adding a poll in which readers could vote. The top games are included in this poll, but certainly feel free to add your own to the comments below, along with examples.

View Poll

MassivelyThe Daily Grind: Which MMO has the best PUGs? originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 11 Aug 2009 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>groupingpickup-groupspugpugsrandomthe-daily-grindTue, 11 Aug 2009 08:00:00 EST