Mitra's Method: Stephen "weezer" Spiteri's Age of Conan Column

Age of Conan Editorial: Delayed Gratification

I think it's absolutely fantastic that we're all so passionate about 'Age of Conan' in particular, and I'm sure the game's developers and staff are pleased by this, but the line between passion and obsession is becoming a fine one. Yes, I'll be one of the first to admit that I'm very excited about 'Age of Conan' and look forward to the day that I can actually play it like many others, but having learned my lesson with the other games that I've played I know the dangers of becoming too attached. A game is meant to be entertaining, yes, and you're allowed to have fun with it, but what's disturbing is, like some of us have seen in other gaming communities, when some of the fan and player-base turn on the game's development team and staff when certain desires are not being appeased, and like a two-year old that's just been told they can't have a lollipop, this is when crying, flaying of arms, head-butting the floor, the holding of breath, whinges, moans, and throwing of the nearest object(s) ensues.

We all want 'Age of Conan' to be a great game, but I can assure you, throwing public tantrums and making questionable demands is definitely not going to make the game any better. Sure, you might use the excuse that you're just getting your voice heard, but as I've explained in previous editions of Mitra's Method, there are better ways for your voice to be heard and in a way that's civil and constructive. Doom-calling will not work either; you'll just be ignored. No, no one's telling you not to be annoyed or disappointed with things, but are those things the end of the world? Will the minuscule short-fallings of any game leave such a void your life will become barren and unbearable? You can definitely afford to invest less emotion into any type of game, especially when you're beginning to bite the hand that's feeding you.

The bottom line is this: unless you're working on the game yourself, everything is out of your control, and you have to leave those things in the hands of those directly involved. Funcom is confident that they will be delivering a product that will be pleasing to everyone, and they certainly know what they are doing. Are they doing things like Blizzard did them? No. Are they doing things the same way as EA-Mythic? No. Are they doing things the same way as Sigil Games Online and SOE? No. Funcom are doing things the way they know best and concededly, have their own mistakes to learn from. Sure, there's room for scepticism and questioning, but it has to be warranted - it's just speculative garbage otherwise.

If you want 'Age of Conan' to be the game that you hope it's going to be, you're going to have to put your faith in Funcom, and that requires some support on your behalf; they've promised to make what was going to be a good game on October 30, 2007, a great game on March 25, 2008. So in the meantime keep yourself occupied; the wait between now and March 25, 2008 (maybe sooner?) is going to be a long one if you're only focussed on 'Age of Conan' day-in day-out. The less you emotional energy you invest into this game, the more you are going to be able to enjoy the journey.

Until next fortnight, this is Stephen "weezer" Spiteri,

Out.

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© Stephen Spiteri, September 2007