Thursday, July 03, 2008

Invisible


(current wallpaper)

You ever get that urge to get on your wow account and accomplish a few things. You know, like finally sell that stack of herbs on the AH or finally clear out your bank toon or knock out those 25 daily quests to make up for the money you spent on repair bills?

But as soon as you log in, someone wants something or people want you to do things or there is yet another something or other that needs to be taken care of? And while you always have the option of always turning people down or turning them away, it just feels rude. I just really wish there was some kind of anonymous mode you can log into wow on.

Maybe it wouldn't even have to make your character anonymous but rather block all indicators that you're online. If they happen to see you in the WoW environment fine, but at least they can't know you're currently available the second you log in.

I know that it seems retarded to want to be anti-social in a social environment, but sometimes it would be nice just to enjoy the game on a personal level... even if it's just for a little while.

6 comments:

TeePee said...

YES! Totally agree, and I've said the same thing more than once. There are many times I'd love to sit and do my own thing and be invisible just like you say - just for the times when you're not feeling sociable, but don't want to be unsociable to your friends and guildies. I do have an unguilded alt for this, but that's of limited use, being able to play my mains would be ideal.

Lonewolf said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Lonewolf said...

I agree.

Unless you want to play an unguilded alt as Teepee says, you could also put up your DND flag. But that may be seen as rude also.

Perhaps active your aspect of the beast ;)

Nice wallpaper, btw.

/bow
Wolf

casetel said...

I must say I strongly disagree with this as an inbuilt game mechanism, implementing an 'anonymous' mode is a cop-out, that could potentially only add to already typical shaky social bonds built in Warcraft. Perhaps a filter that blocks whispers and automates a message back to the poster that you do not want to be disturbed for the next hour or so is good enough to let others know of your intentions without having to micromanage every single whisper for help etc. As long as it clearly states your intentions to others.

I know that if I have requested help and someone says there busy, I am fine with that and like wise if someone asks help of me and I let them know that today does not work but maybe some other time, i am sure that most people understand. Really, if they are going to take it as a personal insult because now and again you do not jump immediately to there beck and call, honestly they might best be removed from your friends list and you from there's. There is really no need to feel guilty over such matters. Honest communication of you intentions is key to building stronger ties in a MMORPG like WoW, which seems to suffer from loose alliances, guild jumping, disrespectful social interaction and so on...

Now I know some people will bemoan that 'It's only a game' and I do not want to deal with the hassle of others annoying me, I just want to play etc. Fine, you can do that but then do not expect much from others if your not willing to build honest communications with them and that includes such things as letting them know that right now is not good for you in helping them. Personally I would rather someone not help me then begrudging drag there ass along because they would rather being doing something else, this can only lead to disappointment and resentment for both parties in the long run. If only that person had let me know that they would rather be somewhere else or doing something different upfront, nine times out of ten for most reasonable people it is all good.

Maybe you should ask why you feel the need to personally address every single whisper request sent to you to the point of not wanting to log in in fear of feeling guilty?

Unknown said...

Actually I think there is a real need for an anonymous mode in WoW. Currently I use alts for this and few people know who my alts are. But sometimes you just want to go farm on your farm toon without being hassled. That way you can do something solo while gaining something for yourself.

Then when you log in on your main that is like saying 'hey I'm here and happy to be asked stupid questions' :P Some people give a lot to the game especially guild masters and so they do need an escape mechanism. Even I as a lowly casual hunter need time out form time to time but I still want to bash pixels. Hence my horde alts. I have a couple of alliance alts as well for just chilling out and hitting stuff ala Diblo.

I think Diablo III will be a nice rest from WoW when it finally gets here (probably in 2 years).

Alachia said...

while I agree that you can simply say no to people or put DND on, it doesn't necessarily filter your ability to just play in peace.

first, DND does not stop whisper from incoming to you. All it does is act as an autoresponder.

And if you're trying to help run a guild, you can't constantly ignore your guild or else they'll stop coming to you...which is when the problems start...cuz you bet BOIL over.

while I can turn down requests to run stuff etc. That doesn't stop people from constantly whispering about issues or questions or concerns about things... all of which I usually should address.

"What time is the raid starting?"
"Can you get my dkp adjusted?"
"I need flasks crafted please"
"Can you pull stuff out of the guild bank for me"
"I have an issue with how this was handled, can we talk about it?"
"Can I buy a few void crystals please?"
"Can you please craft 10 of these gems for me?"
"I just need help with this one fel reaver quest so I can get this item. Is there any way you can please help me out really really quick?"

Those are all reasonable requests that I usually end up attending to them as soon as I get them.

It'd just be nice to be able to log and play without having to purposely put someone on hold in order to do so.

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