The RP Switch is added
Let's talk switch shall we. No, not the once widely discussed PK switch, devised to protect players from the marauding Ultima Online huns. I'm referring to the newly implemented RP (Role-play) switch.
The greatest criticism of the switch seems to be that now that it exists those who do not wish to role-play in this game (which is by definition a "role-playing game") do not have to. Now they just don't turn on the switch and they can talk about any idiotic thing they want. Score of the Pacers-Nicks game; What level you should be to take on a griffin; ANY SPOILER THEY FEEL LIKE SHOUTING OUT TO THE PUBLIC.
First off, it's ridiculous to blame the RP switch for the bad behavior and lack of common sense of some people. We were doomed to be inundated with inconsiderate jack-asses. People who don't realize that if somebody shouts something like "HOW DO I DO THE BANDIT QUEST" that you can reply to the guy with a /TELL, not by shouting it out. Personally, I don't think you should be giving such information out at all, but that's another article entirely.
So the criticism is that with the RP switch around, you can just say whatever you want as long as you don't have it on. Well, it does create a scapegoat, but it doesn't inspire more stupidity than there already was.
I'm no saint. I've been known to comment out of character, carry conversations that have nothing to do with the game, but I typically do those in /tell form. Only me and the guy I'm talking with know.
So if there's a problem with having the switch, let's see if we can find any benefit to it, because if there is none, then perhaps it should go.
Let's start with a VERY common situation. I come up to a crowd of individuals waiting for a boat on the dock. Five individuals. One is "red" (A PK player), three are "blue" (non-pk players) and the last is "purple" (an RP character).
How does one talk to such a mixed group? I suggest role-playing it, but then I always suggest that. Remember, this is a role-playing game, so I suggest that the "purple" RP switch be used as an indicator as to your demeanor. Since this is an RP game, if you see a purple (RP) player in the area, /TELL your "out-of-character" question to one of the others. The only real benefit I see to the switch is to indicate to YOU that you should be sympathetic to somebody who doesn't want to hear your OOC nonsense.
Is this the only benefit? Again, only if people actually follow through on the benefit of having such a switch will this really be of any use. It may not seem like it in my articles, but I have the utmost respect for the people I've met in EverQuest and find them to be a cut above those of other games. That having been said, no community is perfect. Just as you have the bully up the street or the house around the corner that turned out to be a crack-dealer's place, you have people in EverQuest who seem to feel nothing for other players.
So my hopes are not high for the RP Switch. It's a tool that will go unrecognized. What's more, it lends credence to the notion that Verant had no intent of policing the environment to make it "moron free". They're a corporation, and as such will always lean toward the way that gives them the widest audience and the most cash. It's not in their interest to eliminate players, and thus is born the RP switch. The game is made by players and for players, as Verant is fond of pointing out, but they are funded by the corporation for it's own good.
Face it, it's their ball, and if they want to they can pick it up and go home. And all we can do is call them names.
It's an unenviable task that folks like Brad McQuaid and his crew are faced with. They must try and make all of us happy; even those malcontents at EverQuest Express. And they know already that if you don't like what they're doing you'll most likely still stay in the game, because they have the only ball in town. (Well, there's UO, but who wants to play touch football when they can play tackle!)
So it comes down again to the environment being what we make of it. The kind of folks who read Fan sites are generally those who want to have fun with the game. The kind of folks who read "spoiler" sites are just in it for the false "prestige" they associate with dozens and dozens of levels. So it is with a heavy heart that I relinquish my hope that the RP switch will make any difference. Because my plea as to how the switch should be approached will go unheard by the teeming masses yearning to camp, yammer, and "train".
My only hope is that this comes up on the search engines when they search for Spoilers. So let's add a few words they'll understand and maybe they'll hit this page. My Search engine inserts follow…
[ Spoiler. dOOd. Free Spoilers. EverQuest Spoilers. Most Excellent Spoilers. Get to 30th level with no effort. Cheat. Cheat your ass off. Spoil others good time. EverQuest sword of total annihilation. Slay dragons with ease.]
Article by Archanalia.
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