A few weeks ago, I was writing up a post about an MMO where the developer was talking about the game’s development, and he said something that really squicked me out. He referred to the relationship between the studio and the players as a partnership. This is fairly mundane language, mind you, and that’s exactly why it bothered me so much. Every freaking studio says this now; it’s been a thing they have to say, whether they mean it or not (usually not), at least since the dawn of of Kickstarter and early access. It’s a collaborative process! It’s a partnership! Your input is vital. We’re all in this together!
Except no it’s not and no we’re not. You, an MMO player, are not a partner. You’re a customer or maybe a donor. The investors are partners. The executives and publishers are partners. The QA department being paid is a partner. The amateur QA testers in Discord doing work for free (or paying the studio for access) are something else entirely.
I think some individual game devs are genuine about this and really do think of players as more than just wallets. But in general, I don’t love it. It’s forced teaming. It’s parasocial. And the thing is, I think some of them know when they’re saying it that they don’t mean it, and we know when they’re saying it that they don’t mean it, and yet they still have to say it because I guess enough gamers still want them to follow the forms and norms. But that’s exactly what makes it ring hollow, and worse, it makes it that much more painful when the studio abandons the game (or the players turn on the devs).
Do you believe you’re in a “partnership” with MMO studios? Does that framing bother you as much as it does me? What do you think is a better phrase for our relationship with the people and companies (not the same thing) that build the games-as-a-service we buy?
(The shark pic has nothing to do with anything and isn’t the game that prompted this line of thinking. I just wanted to use the shark pic.)
Every morning, the Massively Overpowered writers team up with mascot Mo to ask MMORPG players pointed questions about the massively multiplayer online roleplaying genre. Grab a mug of your preferred beverage and take a stab at answering the question posed in today’s Daily Grind!
