Too “Nice” - Is GW2’s Community REALLY That Great?

[PookieDaWombat.6209]

> @"Tabasco.1743" said:

> Hey dude. What makes a community great in your opinion? If we knew a bit about what highlights great community from your perspective I'm sure we could offer a more insightful response.

> > @"Mortifera.6138" said:

> > Yes, everyone is “nice.” But it’s the niceness that comes from being so distant from each other. You don’t act mean to people you don’t know that well. And no one on Guild Wars 2 really knows each other that well, it’s a solo effort done in groups you don’t have any real interaction with.

> I would say that experience has proven to me that people you don't know are the most likely to abuse you. I have seen people conjure straight from the depths, some of the most horrible, insensitive, malevolent, violent, hurtful, wounding, destructive, twisted, caustic, ruinous sentiments and images toward others online. Totally bereft of empathy or patience, with the intent to render another person's self esteem as garbage, or harm them psychologically. The distance between people online is a major factor in nearly every case. After all, I don't know you, and likely never will, you don't know me, and likely never will.

>

> Is the GuildWars community really that great? I think the answer lies in how people treat each other even at these distances. If I can value someone I don't even know, I feel that is a step in the right direction.

 

I was going to respond, but this comment here is about as spot on as I can imagine. Seriously. While every MMO has certain people that will always be toxic, I find the GW community has one of the more supportive groups of strangers.

[PookieDaWombat.6209]

> @"Turkeyspit.3965" said:

> Never forget my first month in this game. I was in Ascalon doing map completion/exploring on the way to my personal story, and there was this vista way up top. I couldn't figure out how to get up there with no springer.

>

> Then I get a whisper from a person who had just completed it, asking me if I was trying to get to the vista. I replied affirmatively, and they ran up to me and whispered that I should follow them. They then took me up and around and behind this convoluted path to get to the vista. I fell several times as I suck at jumping, but they patiently waited, and helped guide me to the vista.

>

> It's easy to rush to a downed player / blue icon on the mini map, or even join a group asking for help to take down a champ. But take time out of your day to help a player for no reason and with no benefit to yourself? And in the year'ish since that happened, I've seen that happen time and time and time again

>

> I had not even reached the point where I was asking for help - this player noticed me fumbling around and send me a whisper to find out if they could help.

>

> That experience will always define the GW2 community for me.

>

 

For me it was during my first week of playing, my wife and I were in Ascalon (when going through areas even 2 levels above yours could hurt) and we happened into the small event with Captain Calhaan's ghost and realized too late we bit off more than we could chew. Then out of nowhere and random engie came in, dropped some turrets and rezzed us after clearing him out then bowed and ran off. :D

[ShiningSquirrel.3751]

It all depends on who you meet. I have met some of the nicest people and also some of the absolute worst people I have ever come across in any game. I was doing a jumping puzzle and having problems (I HATE jumping puzzles). A player saw me having problems and walked me through the entire thing even showing me where to stand when jumping and where to jump too. GW2 is also the only game I have gotten death threats in for simply doing the content the way it was meant to be done. (not letting a mission fail instead of completing it). I will say that staying away from WvW and PvP in general makes the game much less toxic and turning off all chat while doing any event that gives achievements or extra loot for letting it fail hides almost all other toxic players. While fun, one of the most toxic areas of the game where in the champ trains, especially in the starting areas. Now there was some real toxic players but also some of the nicest as well to balance it out. As for the forums, there are far more good then bad here BUT there are enough bad that it would be a great feature to be able to block dome users completely.

[SexyMofo.8923]

Nice guys finish last.

[Hashberry.4510]

The community has become more careless since mounts.

[Danikat.8537]

I think it varies, as will all communities since they're made up of individuals. But it's certainly one of the nicer ones I've been part of, although not the best.

 

Ignoring the anomalous extremes (like fan sites where a sub-set of the community were trying to instigate riots at real life events - and no I don't mean protests, I mean thousands of people fighting each other, trashing the building, setting fire to stuff, people ending up in hospital etc.) what stands out to me is that there's a relative lack of elitism in the GW2 community. I've seen more than my fair share of sites where if you make one misstep, one incorrect comment or even an opinion which does not fit the majority view you will be attacked relentlessly, not just in that topic but across the entire site for as long as they can remember to keep it up. Or anyone daring to ask a "noob" question will be lucky to find one reply with any actual information (probably written extremely sarcastically) in amongst pages of mocking comments, stupid flickering gifs of some character from a TV show pulling a face and people derailing the topic to insult each other as well.

 

That and as far as I know the GW2 community hasn't needed to split off into separate sites because of different cliques forming who cannot stand to be on the same site as each other. I know there's people who prefer reddit to this forum and vice versa but as far as I know that's mainly to do with how the site functions and perceptions about Anet's activity on each rather than trying to avoid specific people.

 

Oh, and a bit more specifically I can say I'm a 33 year old woman without being laughed at, propositioned, accused of lying, told that proves I know nothing about GW2 (or games in general), told I'm too old and/or too young to know anything about anything (games related or otherwise), accused of trying to get free stuff and all manner of other absurd comments.

[HazyDaisy.4107]

Forum and in game chat "rudeness" can and oftentimes is misconstrued, words on paper just don't have the same effect as face to face and often people reading words take everything to heart even if it's not meant that way. Doesn't mean some forum posters can't be flat out rude sometimes, but it doesn't mean that every comment from one person is intended that way or that it was even directed at a specific person who interjected themselves into the conversation OR my favorite came into the conversation late (spawned in map mid convo or failed to read the last 3 pages of a thread).

 

In game chat and interactions are a whole 'nother level, because sometimes you can get pegged as rude or insulting for saying something...rude and insulting and other times you can get blocked and reported for saying nothing at all (why didn't you rez me? Instances as example).

 

Personally I try to keep my mouth shut on both sides, but yes, the forum gets me mad every now and then and sometimes I say stuff (and get warnings an hour later) and other times I just type what I want to say, take a breath, re-read and delete it, but for the most part I try to be nice and unsarcastic publically.

[Hashberry.4510]

It takes effort to post or chat. Rage unfortunately covers that effort nicely.

[Ashen.2907]

> @"Mortifera.6138" said:

> You don’t act mean to people you don’t know that well.

 

 

Are you on the same internet as the rest of us?

 

 

[Ashantara.8731]

> @"Blocki.4931" said:

> It's neither nicer nor worse than other communities.

 

Apparently, you have never been to the Steam forums, the CS:GO one in particular, nor witnessed said communities in-game behavior: racist, sexist, discriminatory all around. _This_ community is _heaven_ compared to that one.

[Shortage.5427]

> @"Mortifera.6138" said:

> Yes, everyone is “nice.” But it’s the niceness that comes from being so distant from each other. You don’t act mean to people you don’t know that well. And no one on Guild Wars 2 really knows each other that well, it’s a solo effort done in groups you don’t have any real interaction with.

 

I would't call the community "nice". I'd rather call it "unbearable" to a point I stopped playing. Every Guild out there, either has a lifespawn smaller than a dragonfly, or it long last's till it becomes a soap-opera of arguments and friendships breaking apart. Like a slice of life story, where everyone suddenly for stupid reasons splits apart.

 

Also on a more solo note, everyone is over sensitive. Tribaling through gw2 requires small and impactfull words, you don't want to disturb anyone on your path.

>! Even if MMOs greatest attribute is to talk-sht

[Shortage.5427]

> @"Shortage.5427" said:

> > @"Mortifera.6138" said:

> > Yes, everyone is “nice.” But it’s the niceness that comes from being so distant from each other. You don’t act mean to people you don’t know that well. And no one on Guild Wars 2 really knows each other that well, it’s a solo effort done in groups you don’t have any real interaction with.

>

> I would't call the community "nice". I'd rather call it "unbearable" to a point I stopped playing. Every Guild out there, either has a lifespawn smaller than a dragonfly, or it long last's till it becomes a soap-opera of arguments and friendships breaking apart. Like a slice of life story, where everyone suddenly for stupid reasons splits apart.

>

> Also on a more solo note, everyone is over sensitive. Tribaling through gw2 requires small and impactfull words, you don't want to disturb anyone on your path.

> >! Even if MMOs greatest attribute is to talk-sh*t

Greatest example is that spoiler here.

 

[ProverbsofHell.2307]

Its because GW2 isn't a competitive game. In PvE there are players who don't want to go epeen swinging so they may be mostly female or older gamers. This tends to breed a pretty friendly community of non competitive types.

 

If you step into WvW or PvP, thats more likely where you'll find the 15-30 male age range. This is generalising, but younger men tend to enjoy game modes with a more competitive edge. My girlfriend for example finds this stressful, so she's much more likely to be drawn to completionist or cooperative activities.

 

Whereas for me, this doesn't satisfy my particular gaming itch because I want to compete.

[Kaliwenda.3428]

> @"Turkeyspit.3965" said:

> Never forget my first month in this game. I was in Ascalon doing map completion/exploring on the way to my personal story, and there was this vista way up top. I couldn't figure out how to get up there with no springer.

>

> Then I get a whisper from a person who had just completed it, asking me if I was trying to get to the vista. I replied affirmatively, and they ran up to me and whispered that I should follow them. They then took me up and around and behind this convoluted path to get to the vista. I fell several times as I suck at jumping, but they patiently waited, and helped guide me to the vista.

>

> It's easy to rush to a downed player / blue icon on the mini map, or even join a group asking for help to take down a champ. But take time out of your day to help a player for no reason and with no benefit to yourself? And in the year'ish since that happened, I've seen that happen time and time and time again

>

> I had not even reached the point where I was asking for help - this player noticed me fumbling around and send me a whisper to find out if they could help.

>

> That experience will always define the GW2 community for me.

>

 

I had someone help me thru one of the jumping puzzles in Ascalon one day not long after I started playing (I bet it was the same one :) ), and they were so helpful and patient, would not accept my "no, you go ahead, I'm old and not good at these". No reason other than being kind to a stranger. It obviously made a big impression on me.

 

To me that kind of experience is more frequent in GW2 than negative ones.

[Kylden Ar.3724]

Maybe I spend too much time in WvW. Maybe I should roam some PvE maps more often...

[Dami.5046]

> @"ProverbsofHell.2307" said:

> Its because GW2 isn't a competitive game. In PvE there are players who don't want to go kitten swinging so they may be mostly female or older gamers. This tends to breed a pretty friendly community of non competitive types.

>

> If you step into WvW or PvP, thats more likely where you'll find the 15-30 male age range. This is generalising, but younger men tend to enjoy game modes with a more competitive edge. My girlfriend for example finds this stressful, so she's much more likely to be drawn to completionist or cooperative activities.

>

> Whereas for me, this doesn't satisfy my particular gaming itch because I want to compete.

 

I kinda have to disagree being a rare breed of female gamer who loves a challenge and would like to be more competitive, however all the trash talk and egos turn me off because after 5 years of games like Aion i'd rather have an easy life without some kitten whispering me and calling me a noob.

In the original Guildwars I did all kinds of PvP. Halls, arenas, hero battles, AB et al and we are talking hours and hours. Loved it. Very few whispers i might add. I guess it wasn't so important to show how fricken wonderful you were in those days.

[ProverbsofHell.2307]

> @"Dami.5046" said:

> > @"ProverbsofHell.2307" said:

> > Its because GW2 isn't a competitive game. In PvE there are players who don't want to go kitten swinging so they may be mostly female or older gamers. This tends to breed a pretty friendly community of non competitive types.

> >

> > If you step into WvW or PvP, thats more likely where you'll find the 15-30 male age range. This is generalising, but younger men tend to enjoy game modes with a more competitive edge. My girlfriend for example finds this stressful, so she's much more likely to be drawn to completionist or cooperative activities.

> >

> > Whereas for me, this doesn't satisfy my particular gaming itch because I want to compete.

>

> I kinda have to disagree being a rare breed of female gamer who loves a challenge and would like to be more competitive, however all the trash talk and egos turn me off because after 5 years of games like Aion i'd rather have an easy life without some kitten whispering me and calling me a noob.

> In the original Guildwars I did all kinds of PvP. Halls, arenas, hero battles, AB et al and we are talking hours and hours. Loved it. Very few whispers i might add. I guess it wasn't so important to show how fricken wonderful you were in those days.

 

There are definitely girls who seek out competitive modes, although I must say, almost all of the girl gamers I meet tend to gravitate towards a support role in these competitive modes. Whereas some of the more "big ego" types you mentioned typically gravitate towards high damage and burst specs. So even when girls come into these modes, it is still likely to be in a way that supports cooperative play.

 

Nothing wrong with that by the way, just an interesting observation.

[Dami.5046]

For me it depends how i am feeling. In GW1 my main became a dervish, so I could dps and support, just as i enjoyed playing a bard in Aion. However I would use an ele in AB to take out bases , or use my monk to smite in JQ. Healing a group is just refreshing as a challenge as doing the damage, and quite frankly i miss a vanilla' monk' healer.

But yes, you are quite right that being the support is far more seen as the girly thing and in Aion I certainly believe it to be true.

 

 

[Henry.5713]

The supposed level of toxicity or "niceness" mostly depends on each player's personal perception. However and as people already mentioned above, the base design of this game does indeed make sure to "keep people apart" from eachother while they actually play next to eachother. There is no need to fight over loot or kills (outside of a few minor exceptions). Most conflict is entirely negated by allowing players to show up and do whatever while taking part in Open World content. There is little need to even party up which, once again, leads to less conflict but there is also very little need to communicate at all.

 

Coming back to the personal perception - one might even claim that our players are so used to being "accepted" and allowed everywhere that they end up perceiving a simple "no" as open and world ending toxicity. The one time denial to take part in any content, even the denial to join a certain squad for rather good reasons, is one of the topics we have been known to fight over again and again. Comparing this "terrible toxicity issue" with stuff you see elsewhere is rather silly. Even if I am certainly not claiming that you won't meet the rare black sheep or two.

[whoeverxwins.1279]

I've played other games, including LotRO, and I still think this community is the nicest. Maybe Crickhollow just had a lot of toxicity, idk. Besides the game avoiding conflict over common issues (kill stealing, loot, etc), many players are genuinely helpful. Just today I asked in map chat if I could pay a mesmer to port me up to a difficult griffin roost, and immediately had 2 offer to help, no gold required. After that, asking for help with the legendary facet bounty got a small squad going. Not only are people willing to go out of their way to help, but you don't need to feel embarrassed to ask. If I can't get help in map chat, I can always ask in guild (and get help quickly there as well), but I do try to find someone already in the area first.

[Biff.5312]

The people are probably about the same as you'd get anywhere, but there are elements of the game design that encourage positive interaction rather than negative - such as not being able to 'steal' one-another's loot/kills etc. So this diffuses a lot of the potential conflict.

On the whole I find people who play GW2 very helpful and friendly. There are obviously trolls and assholes, but the proportion seems more like what you'd expect in real life than what you usually find online, and I think that's because of these non-competitive game elements.

Also I shouldn't underestimate the benefit of the 'block' feature. It's so easy to ignore people you don't like in this game.

[Zexanima.7851]

The PvE community is wonderful, the PvP community is no better than any other game. People have already covered why this is so I wont repeat it. I've met lots of great people just running around in open world and doing casual PvE content. I've probably run into an equal number of toxic people in PvP and the elitest PvE circles. Luckily they are easy to avoid.

[Maikimaik.1974]

> @"Mortifera.6138" said:

> You don’t act mean to people you don’t know that well.

The world would be a much better place if that statement was even close to being true.

 

[Danikat.8537]

I definitely think the design of this game encourages cooperation and I suspect that does carry over into areas where it's not explicitly encouraged - like mesmers offering portals to jumping puzzles and other hard to reach locations. There's nothing in the game to prompt players to do that, but since PvE interactions are mainly helpful it seems like a logical extension of what's already there.

 

Sadly that can lead to new and unusual problems too. Once someone saw me doing a puzzle on my elementalist and demanded a portal to the top (didn't ask, told me I was going to do it), when I explained I couldn't he called me a lazy elitist 'kitten' and then started ranting in map chat about how all mesmers are rude and selfish and someone had better portal him up to prove him wrong. But that kind of thing is very much the exception in my experience.

 

> @"ProverbsofHell.2307" said:

> Its because GW2 isn't a competitive game. In PvE there are players who don't want to go kitten swinging so they may be mostly female or older gamers. This tends to breed a pretty friendly community of non competitive types.

>

> If you step into WvW or PvP, thats more likely where you'll find the 15-30 male age range. This is generalising, but younger men tend to enjoy game modes with a more competitive edge. My girlfriend for example finds this stressful, so she's much more likely to be drawn to completionist or cooperative activities.

>

> Whereas for me, this doesn't satisfy my particular gaming itch because I want to compete.

 

I've been wondering about that recently. I've never been all that interested in competitive computer games, I much prefer story-driven or open-ended PvE. But recently I've been going along to a board game club and discovered I really enjoy competitive board and card games, not the ones where it's almost entirely luck based but ones with some tactics to it and especially where tricking or misleading your opponent is part of it, and especially in big groups. (There's a few of those - one called Werewolf for example where all the players are part of the same group trying to catch werewolves, but some of you are also werewolves so you're actually working against the group in secret.)

 

I'm not sure what the difference is. Partially I think it's because being in the same room it's easier to read the other person and know you're all having fun with it, whereas some people online can give the impression they're taking things way too seriously and genuinely angry at their opponents. But I feel like there's more to it than just that (especially since people being irrationally angry at me online is not a new experience or one which puts me off doing things I otherwise enjoy) but I can't say what the difference is other than that.

 

I will play competitive computer games (and no, I generally don't play a healer, I prefer DPS) but I don't find it as interesting. WvW for example is fine for a while but sooner or later it feels like going round and round in pointless circles, taking, defending and retaking the same things for no reason and I get bored with it (and I get bored even faster if squads are ignoring the objectives and just fighting each other directly). Maybe it's because there's little/no interaction with your opponents other than the mechanics of the game...but then I was never big on playing against people when you're using two controllers on the same machine either.

[kharmin.7683]

> @"Maikimaik.1974" said:

> > @"Mortifera.6138" said:

> > You don’t act mean to people you don’t know that well.

> The world would be a much better place if that statement was even close to being true.

>

 

Even better if it were changed to: "You don't act mean to people."