Some people complain that Runescape has gotten too addictive. Has it? It's not just a game anymore? I think it's not very addictive. I'm living proof of it. I got banned from Runescape in July 2005 for no reason. In fact, I had quit temporarily 6 months before I got banned, so I don't even know why I was banned. Whatever the case, I had other characters. But I chose not to play. I just got tired of it, that's all. I realized that it's just a game. In fact, I knew it all along, I just kept playing because I actually wanted to. Not because anybody was forcing me or because I was an 'addict'.
Skills were never my reason to keep playing Runescape. Sure, it was nice to look at them and say, "I accomplished this" but, if you own several party hats and loads of gp that's sitting in the bank, what more can you really want? All quests done and all items acquired... what is left? Skills? Pfft, I don't care about getting 99/99. I'd be able to smith rune kites, whoopti doo. I can buy a 100 of them and not even think about it. I hear this all the time: games are addictive because they force you to set goals and keep going at them (the carrot and the donkey analogy). I didn't have the carrot, I played it just to kill time! For mere entertainment. I also hear this: MMORPGs are addictive because of the community and friends you meet ingame. Well, all my friends are already on MSN and RSC and most of them I'm not close with anyways (they are old shadows of friends, in a way).
In conclusion, I don't think Runescape is addictive. People make it addictive for themselves. It's easy to just put it down, unlike a cigarette. There's tons of other games out there like WoW or Guild Wars; (are those addictive? meh, another day, another blog entry)
Sunday, September 30, 2007
Runescape Too Addictive?
