Tyranny of Heaven [ToH]

It's so hard to find like-minded people, it seems. In MMO games of past, I would make friends (or bring in existing friends) but that gaming camaraderie rarely persisted beyond that particular game. Even with existing friends. Very often, for the next game, I would start all alone again.

I think it's that people just get too attached to the game. I consider myself a gamer — I enjoy a wide variety of genres and playstyles. I can move on and enjoy new things. Unfortunately, finding others with the same passion has been very difficult.

I guess an ideal for me would be join a large gaming community, one that plays multiple games. Or perhaps, I could found one on my own. But as my experience in the past has shown me, leading a group is not really my strength... nor is it something I particularly enjoy.

I've been part of a few large gaming communities, through certain games. But one drawback, I suppose, is the difficulty of forming a rapport with the "core" group. It's daunting as I always feel like a stranger or at best, a guest. And really, that sort of bond/friendship is not something that can be forced.

No one from FFXI really followed me to WoW. Not even my core group of friends within the Linkshell (my static party). Some quit, most stayed behind. A few other members of the linkshell did go to WoW right away, but since we didn't coordinate our migration, we ended up on different servers... and were subsequently reluctant to reroll to play together.

In WoW, I made friends with a small group of gamers. But again, I seemed to be the black sheep. When WoW finally bored me past the point of no return, no one else followed. There were half-hearted attempts, but time and time again, there would always be the littlest complaints... which would eventually lead back to comparisons with WoW. And ultimately, their return to that game.

So at the moment, I play EVE Online, Champions Online, and Warhammer Online. Such a disparate selection of games. EVE Online, often ridiculed as "spreadsheets in space." CO, with its lack of content, both mid-game and end-game. And WAR with its dwindling population and lackluster engine/performance.

Yet despite these flaws (and yes, I do see and acknowledge them), I find great enjoyment in these three games. I see EVE as something beyond a game, it's a whole virtual world. CCP is taking it in bold and interesting directions. (cf. DUST 514!) For the majority of my EVE life now, I've played solo, but I've recently reconnected with a group of players I played with when I barely started out. It should be interesting.

In Champions Online, I haven't reached level cap yet. I have a lifetime sub (and therefore I have a bit more personal investment into its success) and I'm enjoying it. I can honestly say Cryptic appears to be good to their word. They deliver. I'm really looking forward to the new nemesis content next month (damn you, Mandible!) and the winter holiday content. I'm currently wrapping up the Halloween content now. My only complaint is that it's tedious completing it on just one character... I'm unfortunately probably not going to bother with my others.

And WAR, poor WAR. I'm not sure what's wrong with it. Perhaps I'm not hardcore enough to see the issues that just about everyone complains about. But whenever I sit down to actually play, I end up in some random warband and an hour or two later, I'm wondering why I don't play more often. The PvP is fun, and easy to get into. The mechanics are solid, and everything about the game has been seeing constant improvement. As far as structured PvP goes, WAR is still king, IMO.

Anyhow, the search continues. It's so lonely being a gamer sometimes. Especially one so mercenary, so ronin. My one criteria is: am I having fun? And if so, I keep playing...