Why are mmorpgs so addictive?

[Spooky_101]

I'm sure this is already a topic
However
someone asked me why WoW was so addictive the other day
and I couldn't really come up with a reason
so what makes them so addictive?

 

[psico666]

The grind!!!!! Sorry, i lost half my band to mmorpgersss. or a mmorpg (WoW) so i have a vendta against them.

 

[Mister Payne]

To me, it's the sense that you're accomplishing something. Like you're actually doing something worthwhile and fun.

 

[JMeganSnow]

You feel like you're accomplishing something (which is practically the human brain's version of crack cocaine), but it's EASY and FUN unlike the other things you COULD be accomplishing.

The game isn't really set up to have an "end" so you just keep going and going and going.

Plus, unlike a lot of other games which are also addicting, MMORPG's contain lots of *variety* so you don't get bored with a single type of accomplishment.

 

[Spooky_101]

I used to play GW
but I could never figure out why I kept playing
and then I watched ZP for the first time
and discovered that my game had turned into a job
but I still don't know what made it so addictive...
The grind was irritating as fuck though

 

[Stammer]

It's not addictive, it's just that playing an MMORPG makes you feel, like Payne said, more accomplished. Playing any offline game doesn't matter, because once you beat the game, it's over. Playing an MMORPG means you're constantly becoming stronger with your friends to overcome new challenges that await you all the time.

It's the size of the game, really, and the fact that they constantly grow over time, meaning your efforts aren't over once they seem over.

 

[smallharmlesskitten]

considering my MMO has no endgame.....You can always improve yourself and content is constantly added.

 

[Spooky_101]

that does make sense

 

[SomeBritishDude]

Mostly because you feel like your doing something, or you feel like you should be doing something. In most games you play for a bit, then you finish it and your done. MMOs are...well basically jobs, to put it bluntly. From my experience you always feel like you have to play at least once a day for say 2 hours otherwise your going to get left behind, you feel like you've wasted a day. You start planing your day so you can play a bit of WoW in the afternoon.

Another thing is the competition. Its worst when you have real friends playing the game. Because if you take a week off, your friends are going to be several levels ahead of you, and your not going to be able to play together.

I quit WoW about the time my friend who started the same time as me was level 50 something when I was still 30. Being shit saved from that game.

 

[Stammer]

I quit WoW about the time my friend who started the same time as me was level 50 something when I was still 30. Being shit saved from that game.

In FFXI, we have a system that synchronizes your level down to a designee's level and your equipment scales in power to go along with it. That way, crap like that doesn't happen

 

[Veni Vidi Vici]

Here's why (in my opinion)

- Mind-numbingly easy learning curve. Click-kill-click-loot-click-sell-click-repeat.
- Fetch quests are easy to chain together with bits of random unconnected storyline
- COMMUNITY. Once you make a friend (or befriend a guild) you may feel like you have a social obligation to continue playing for the sake of your in-game friends
- Character customization

All I can think of at the moment...

 

[Zer_]

- Mind-numbingly easy learning curve. Click-kill-click-loot-click-sell-click-repeat.

WoW was definitely easy to get into. It was in fact a sharp contrast to the majority of MMORPGs in the days before WoW came out. Go play Ultima Online, and then tell me MMORPGs have an easy learning curve.

- Fetch quests are easy to chain together with bits of random unconnected storyline

WoW's quests are simply the best there is. The Wrath expansion's quests are really enjoyable. Also, throughout the entirety of World of WarCraft's quest lines there is a lot of connected storyline involved. The expansions had a more focused goal-oriented feel to the quest lines as opposed to Vanilla WoW which was basically quests related to the race (Undead, Tauren, Human, etc...) Still even in Vanilla WoW you could have dozens if not more quests that were interconnected.

- COMMUNITY. Once you make a friend (or befriend a guild) you may feel like you have a social obligation to continue playing for the sake of your in-game friends

Depends on the person. I raided with the same guild because I enjoyed doing so. I quit raiding, and eventually WoW just when Wrath came out. I felt no real obligations to level my character ASAP for the sake of my guild mates.

- Character customization

I agree. A lot of MMORPGs have a very solid character customization system.

 

[Kabutos]

- COMMUNITY. Once you make a friend (or befriend a guild) you may feel like you have a social obligation to continue playing for the sake of your in-game friends

This is exactly what happened to me. My Guildmaster in WoW made me his second-in-command so I felt like had a duty to keep playing for the sake of him and the guild.

 

[Spooky_101]

I quit WoW about the time my friend who started the same time as me was level 50 something when I was still 30. Being shit saved from that game.

In FFXI, we have a system that synchronizes your level down to a designee's level and your equipment scales in power to go along with it. That way, crap like that doesn't happen

sorry
turn-based combat sucks
really badly
only game that did it well was pokemon for the gbc

 

[Baneat]

Because, at their core, people would prefer to do something boring for a long time rather than look at a challenge that is mentally challenging but short. People get rewarded in games like WoW for doing basically nothing, and that makes you feel good. To get the same satisfaction, you have to do it for longer. It accelerates and spirals down.

 

[Veni Vidi Vici]

I quit WoW about the time my friend who started the same time as me was level 50 something when I was still 30. Being shit saved from that game.

In FFXI, we have a system that synchronizes your level down to a designee's level and your equipment scales in power to go along with it. That way, crap like that doesn't happen

sorry
turn-based combat sucks
really badly
only game that did it well was pokemon for the gbc

I thought the turn-based (ish) combat in FFT was pretty damned solid... much like the rest of that amazing piece of entertainment... XD

 

[meatloaf231]

I think Shamus here has it all figured out.

All of his ramblings on WoW are worth reading. Plus, the screenshots he uses are my proof against people who say that World of Warcraft has terrible graphics.

 

[Veni Vidi Vici]

WoW was definitely easy to get into. It was in fact a sharp contrast to the majority of MMORPGs in the days before WoW came out. Go play Ultima Online, and then tell me MMORPGs have an easy learning curve.

Oh, I wasn't making any reference to older MMO's -- Ultima Online, Ragnarok Online (which i STILL play...), Dark Age of Camelot (when it first came out)... starting out was a ***** and a half -- young'ns nowadays have it easy.

WoW's quests are simply the best there is. The Wrath expansion's quests are really enjoyable. Also, throughout the entirety of World of WarCraft's quest lines there is a lot of connected storyline involved. The expansions had a more focused goal-oriented feel to the quest lines as opposed to Vanilla WoW which was basically quests related to the race (Undead, Tauren, Human, etc...) Still even in Vanilla WoW you could have dozens if not more quests that were interconnected.

Oh I know... played WoW for a few years. Quit because my guild booted me for refusing to spec resto on my druid -- well... not RIGHT after that -- took me a couple months to finally realize i was wasting my time.

 

[smallharmlesskitten]

Because, at their core, people would prefer to do something boring for a long time rather than look at a challenge that is mentally challenging but short. People get rewarded in games like WoW for doing basically nothing, and that makes you feel good. To get the same satisfaction, you have to do it for longer. It accelerates and spirals down.

E

EVE online.... Very mentally challenging and very rewarding when you do things well.

 

[Zer_]

WoW was definitely easy to get into. It was in fact a sharp contrast to the majority of MMORPGs in the days before WoW came out. Go play Ultima Online, and then tell me MMORPGs have an easy learning curve.

Oh, I wasn't making any reference to older MMO's -- Ultima Online, Ragnarok Online (which i STILL play...), Dark Age of Camelot (when it first came out)... starting out was a ***** and a half -- young'ns nowadays have it easy.

WoW's quests are simply the best there is. The Wrath expansion's quests are really enjoyable. Also, throughout the entirety of World of WarCraft's quest lines there is a lot of connected storyline involved. The expansions had a more focused goal-oriented feel to the quest lines as opposed to Vanilla WoW which was basically quests related to the race (Undead, Tauren, Human, etc...) Still even in Vanilla WoW you could have dozens if not more quests that were interconnected.

Oh I know... played WoW for a few years. Quit because my guild booted me for refusing to spec resto on my druid -- well... not RIGHT after that -- took me a couple months to finally realize i was wasting my time.

Yeah I wouldn't like being forced to respec permanently. I did expect temporary respecs from guild mates though. I was a Warlock though, so that was a non-issue for me.