I never really struggled to find consistent role-play in the other MMO's that I invested in over the years. Yet in FFXIV I often feel as though what I want is completely different to what the majority of role-players desire.
I've never really cared much for large events that are bloated with participants. Even if there's a valid reason for my character to attend I often just avoid going simply because dealing with the chat scroll alone is troublesome. It also risks becoming very stale to attend ball after ball and drinking contest after drinking contest.
Now, obviously people are free to do what they wish but I've noticed that a lot of role-players will give lip service to the idea of wanting to get out into the game world and commit to some long term travelling role-play with a focus on character development.
Many, however, cease to invest the moment they realise that my character isn't going to bed them within a few minutes of meeting them. Others turn out to not actually want to get away from their usual haunt (taverns and housing wards for the most part) and yet more will simply add someone to their friend list and then...never contact them again. Sometimes there's valid reasons for this - something may not work out or the real world can suddenly become very busy.
If this were an isolated incident then I'd be willing to shrug it off. Yet it is incredibly disheartening for it to happen again and again. Even when I actively seek people out to make connections or when I approach people who actively advertise themselves as being open and eager to escape the usual stagnation.
I've mentioned this in the past (knowing full well how controversial it may be) but quite a lot of role-players within this community can be rather frigid as well...especially if someone isn't 'in' with their circle of friends or wants something a bit more in-depth than attending one of the aforementioned busy events.
At this point people usually counter with 'well make your own events'. The thing is, I do (even though time-zones are a real pain to work around) and so I usually end up worrying that despite my enthusiasm for the game as a whole it just isn't worth investing in when it comes to role-play.
So I guess in many ways FFXIV is something of a culture shock. I often wonder if I'm alone in this regard or if I'm just not approachable. I'm not particularly shy nor do I doubt my ability to create and play a consistent and lore abiding character. Though I do think that the bulk of role-players simply want to interact with characters that are designed to fit in with whatever event happens to be the 'next big thing' rather than those who seek to get people to head out into the wilds on a classic adventure.
I've never really cared much for large events that are bloated with participants. Even if there's a valid reason for my character to attend I often just avoid going simply because dealing with the chat scroll alone is troublesome. It also risks becoming very stale to attend ball after ball and drinking contest after drinking contest.
Now, obviously people are free to do what they wish but I've noticed that a lot of role-players will give lip service to the idea of wanting to get out into the game world and commit to some long term travelling role-play with a focus on character development.
Many, however, cease to invest the moment they realise that my character isn't going to bed them within a few minutes of meeting them. Others turn out to not actually want to get away from their usual haunt (taverns and housing wards for the most part) and yet more will simply add someone to their friend list and then...never contact them again. Sometimes there's valid reasons for this - something may not work out or the real world can suddenly become very busy.
If this were an isolated incident then I'd be willing to shrug it off. Yet it is incredibly disheartening for it to happen again and again. Even when I actively seek people out to make connections or when I approach people who actively advertise themselves as being open and eager to escape the usual stagnation.
I've mentioned this in the past (knowing full well how controversial it may be) but quite a lot of role-players within this community can be rather frigid as well...especially if someone isn't 'in' with their circle of friends or wants something a bit more in-depth than attending one of the aforementioned busy events.
At this point people usually counter with 'well make your own events'. The thing is, I do (even though time-zones are a real pain to work around) and so I usually end up worrying that despite my enthusiasm for the game as a whole it just isn't worth investing in when it comes to role-play.
So I guess in many ways FFXIV is something of a culture shock. I often wonder if I'm alone in this regard or if I'm just not approachable. I'm not particularly shy nor do I doubt my ability to create and play a consistent and lore abiding character. Though I do think that the bulk of role-players simply want to interact with characters that are designed to fit in with whatever event happens to be the 'next big thing' rather than those who seek to get people to head out into the wilds on a classic adventure.
