To Answer Your Questions…

 Pitrelli asks some good questions in his most recent post MMO of Choice or Circumstance?

 There’s no doubt that time is a huge factor. If I had my way – and unlimited free time – I’d still be playing the game I played right out of college: Final Fantasy XI. And I’d still be playing with my college roommate and other friends I made along the way.

It was the best community I have ever encountered in an MMO. The game itself (FFXI) is incredibly dated now, but it was a “home”. I’d no doubt have multiple level 75 jobs unlocked and working toward progression goals just like I do now in WoW.

The huge difference was the amount of time that progression took back then. I can raid a few nights a week for 3 hours at a time and get somewhere. That would’ve been laughable back in the old days of FFXI. I’m sure you’ve all heard the horror stories of the 18-hour boss fight. Not everything was that extreme, but certain fights demanded specific party setups. Unless you had a “static group”, it was difficult to just “PuG” encounters.

 Moreover, once I’d gotten my Beastmaster (BST) close to the level cap, both real life and the realization that I wouldn’t be able to solo or duo-level a different class beyond 10 set in. By this time I had a family, so sitting around for hours looking for a group wasn’t really feasible. If you’ve never played FFXI, understand that you could not solo/duo-level in 2007. It wasn’t  happening unless you were a BST – and I’d already been there/done that. I needed something else to occupy my time. Along came WoW.

I’ve come to realize now that while I enjoy WoW – I think it’s a finely polished and fun game – the reason I log in more often than not is to enjoy the company of my guildmates while taking on new challenges. I realize that feeling Pitrelli has mentioned several times when talking about Fallen Earth – I don’t log in as much because I don’t have a tight-knit group there waiting for me. While yes, it’s fun to “escape” sometimes, when I see the two icons on my screen, I know which one I’m double-clicking the most.

I think the point to all this is that the primary reason I picked up WoW was because it was easily accessible. The reason I stay is because I have fun with my friends and it’s easily accessible. The common denominator is that it’s easily accessible.

It all comes down to time. Because I know I would still be having fun with those old friends in FFXI, too, if I’d never left.  

(Disclaimer: Square has made sweeping changes to FFXI which allow for more casual play, but after being gone so long it’s hard to “go home again” when you’re so behind the curve. (I tried). Not to mention many others have moved on, as well.)

~ by Drew on February 24, 2010.