WoW Impact

Did the game of checkers ever change you beyond being just a part of your history?
What about Chutes and Ladders?

Games are supposed to be interactive and add to the history of your 'fun' life. With the introduction of MMORPGs, I have to ask, is it more than just fun?

Is it possible to engage in a 'game' and come out feeling that your entire lifestyle has morphed and that your behavior and patterns of engagement differ over the course of months and years?

Let me just explain my behavior about my innercircle of friends for example and the use of ventrillo.

At first, it was just us four (taint, sadin, felix, me). That's it. We shared a 10 person vent server and I would find myself getting annoyed when other random friends got on and "listened in" or invaded our "space".

I was so closed and guarded. I didn't want anyone intruding in our world and the intimacy that only comes from having played with the same group of people for years and years. A friend of a friend pops in vent and trust me, it's not the same atmosphere anymore.

Plus, we were all so close, we openly fight with each other (yelling and all) which can be very uncomfortable for other people to hear.

I used to be so picky about who I let in...I even kept a passworded channel for when I didn't want to hear "excess chatter".

But as JAE got larger and larger, so did our vent server. I bought a 50 person server eventually and created multiple channels. I started to get to know the people through voice better and while still not comfortable chatting openly with everyone, it became easier to get to know people.

And when you start to raid with people for 3 hours every day on ventrillo, you really start to develop a comfort level with open channel talk. Joking, laughing, bitching, etc...

I definitely still prefer smaller group chats to open ones and I don't feel comfortable just floating into other group channels for the hell of it to say "what's up guys"... but it's a lot better than "vent is only for the four of us".. and now I find I enjoy chatting with new people and am glad to see us all communicating and forming a closer bond.

So....tonight's MetaTalk Topic is "How has WoW changed you, if at all"
Scarlet Crusade US/Stormwind/The Park/8central
/w MetaTalk