Do we really need yet another mmo blog?

Well, not really.  But I've been posting responses to other mmo blogs for years and it seemed time to create a place where I could be more proactive about jotting down my thoughts rather than constantly looking for other forums where I might insert my ideas.  

My primary interests from an entertainment point of view seem to be mmos, though my education was entirely in mathematics, and I do spend a lot of time reading fantasy and science fiction when I'm not playing some game or other online.  Other than that, I'd like to play more piano and do more writing, but perhaps someday when I'm retired I'll find the time and motivation.

Regarding my mmo experience and what type of player I am, perhaps a question-and-answer format is most suitable.   So I'll pretend someone has actually asked me the following and provide my response to each.

Q: Top 4 MMOs?
A: (In no particular order) Diablo 2 (yes, not really an mmo), Atlantica Online, LOTRO, and WoW.

Q: Sandbox or Themepark?
A: I lean more towards the themepark camp (which should be obvious from my top 4), but there are way too many things about the current state of themeparks that I dislike for me to feel firmly grounded there.  Storyline rarely does anything for me, nor do cutscenes or phased areas.   And I hate excessive linear gameplay as represented by the Cataclysm questing areas in WoW.   So you'd think I'd be all about the sandbox.  But completely open worlds with no suggestions from the developer as to what I should be doing are no fun for me either.  As a boy, I had more than my fill of standing around in the countryside with my friends all summer trying to make up fun activities to stave off the boredom.   So the Sandbox vs. Themepark question is a difficult one for me and is something I plan to elaborate on in the future.

Q: PvP or PvE
A: PvE period.  Though I've gone through periods where I've learned to PvP and not done too badly -- above average but not much above average.  So I wouldn't say that I'm one of those who hates PvP because they suck at it, but ultimately I enjoy soloing or co-operative play far more than pwning noobs, being pwned, or even engaging in a fair fight between well-balanced classes.  Does this make me a carebear?  Yes, yes it does.

Q: Raiding or Casual
A: Casual, though I'm not fond of the term.  I play a lot, and I take my questing, leveling, crafting, achievements, cosmetics, pets, mounts, titles, etc. quite seriously.   I've been part of a raiding guild exactly once and I enjoyed it for a time, but I was never able to get over the stress at the thought that my screwups could ruin the fun for 20+ other people.

Q: F2P, Subscription, Cash Shop?
A: It doesn't necessarily matter, but there is an underlying thing I dislike which tends to be correlated with a company's choice of revenue generation, and that's the pay-to-win scenario.   I know I said that I'm all about co-operative play, and that I'm not that interested in raiding or PvP, so one might wonder why I care if one player can pay more money to achieve something in shorter time than those who pay less money.   But I do care.  I'm fully aware that all my in-game achievements are rather illusory.  But I enjoy that illusion.  If I spend a year working towards some achievement only to have it later be made trivial by the ability for it to be accomplished in a matter of days, or for it to be purchased outright with real-world currency, then my feeling of accomplishment is lessened.  Perhaps its silly, but its still a fact.

And that's more than enough for now.