BotB EPISODE TWO: KNOW YOUR ROLE-PLAYING GAMES

[I AM THE PROPHECY.]

There's a pun in there! Bottom of the Barrell is a not at all carefully constructed survey meant to determine through a poll of badly biased individuals which video games have, on the whole, the most utterly intolerable communities. The first episode, posted on FB6.0, concluded that Dance Dance Revolution has the worst playerbase, narrowly edging out In the Groove and with Pump finishing way behind both, making them technically the best community.

Get it?

The second episode revolves around a trio of RPGs that have fairly fanatical followers. Final Fantasy 7, what many regard as the JRPG to suffer through, has had millions of fans since its release all those years ago and is still going strong. Fallout had the same sort of impact when it was released, and there are message boards dedicated to fans' love of the original title. Third, we've got current media darling Oblivion, the fourth Elder Scrolls title. TIME FOR THE DISCUSSION!

Final Fantasy 7
THE CASE FOR: If you're really, really in love with this game, you can find anything from dissection of the "plot" to really horrifying fanfiction via a relatively friendly and tolerant community.
THE CASE AGAINST: It's hard to pin down where to begin because there's just so much wrong in a vague and widespread sense. As is so often the case, the people who form this game's devoted base tend to be dumb, but they elevate it to a level that requires italics (i.e., dumb). There comes a time when you need to let go, and analyzing the story arc and characterization of a goddamned video game written at a seventh-grade level a good, what, eight years ago doesn’t need to continue. The main problem is how earnest they are, in that they appear to be satisfied with their rut. There’s not a lot else to say; if you’ve spent any time speaking with these people, you ought to understand.

Fallout
THE CASE FOR: Damn. Uh…Without some of them we wouldn’t have any fan-made patches for a game that’s every bit as buggy as anything else Interplay has ever been involved with, so I guess they deserve our thanks for that?
THE CASE AGAINST: Wow. To put this in perspective, the primary Fallout resource (Google No Mutants Allowed and do some research if NMA was not the first acronym to jump into your mind) alienated the entirety of the Fallout development team, everyone who worked on Fallout 2, and are in the process of pouring gasoline on the bridge to Bethesda. They’re angry, disruptive, and generally impossible to please, with any interaction concluding in some seriously epic flamewars. Anything that deviates from precedents set in the first title is a rock to the beehive of the Fallout fanbase and produces some pretty impressive dissertations on what’s wrong with the world as a whole and the people working on the games in particular. I hope to god that some of you bother to look into this bunch of people because as much as I love this game I’m ashamed to be associated with this bunch by that shared interest.

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
THE CASE FOR: They make neat content for the game and tend to be at least sort of bright, being of a somewhat older on average demographic and without the misanthropic tendencies of the Fallout community.
THE CASE AGAINST: It’s hard to notice that they’re comparatively intelligent when you’re watching the sort of shitstorm that commenced when the “hardcore” players noticed that there’s a map indicator in the game. Apparently making some concessions to people who want to play an adventure game rather than a “help me I’m lost in the woods and my sword is broken oh my christ what was that noise please help me” simulator is worth bitching about for a few dozen pages of text. The general problem is simply that for every well-adjusted individual making neat jackets for the books in the game, there are a couple lunatics complaining that the books should be written in invisible elvish or some shit.

So there you have it. Remember, you’re considering the relative merits and problems of the people who play the games, not the games themselves. Get to it.

[Professor Dück]

I'd have to put my vote with the Final Fantasy VII community.

My initial argument was going to be based upon longetivity, but seeing as Fallout and FFVII have been around for approx. the same amount of time (1997), that becomes a moot point.

After looking into the communities, I have to agree that the Fallout community is a bit....adamant, but I have to edge them out with FFVII simply because I have had personal interaction with some of the types of people describd in your "case against", and it made me want to hit them with a washing machine.

[Farfegnugen]

gunbound

[I AM THE PROPHECY.]

Originally Posted by Farfegnugen

gunbound

that's no moon

[nVGDlm_zk]

sephiroth is my bishie desu~~~~ ^_^

[Revolver Koala]

SEPHIROTH IS SUCH A BISHIE~~~~~~~~~ ^_________________________^v

I missed out on the one in 6.0, but the Pump community kinda is better than both of the other major dance game communities put together. Most of the Pump players I've met have been insufferably dumb but at least they're relatively pleasant human beings, which is more than can be said about most people who play the other two games.

EDIT: fuck you VGD

[I AM THE PROPHECY.]

I missed out on the one in 6.0, but the Pump community kinda is better than both of the other major dance game communities put together. Most of the Pump players I've met have been insufferably dumb but at least they're relatively pleasant human beings, which is more than can be said about most people who play the other two games.

my rationale was that they are at least quiet and stay in their own damn forum so yeah, i agree

the vast majority of the votes were for ddr or itg

Originally Posted by Revolver Koala

SEPHIROTH IS SUCH A BISHIE~~~~~~~~~ ^_________________________^v

EDIT: fuck you VGD

you guys think i should make a copy of this for other gaming to look at

[nVGDlm_zk]

mint-chan is so kawa-eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee eeeeeeeeeeeeeee
^_^ kekeke

and mdrl, I think you should, they do have some interesting opinions to offer

[Arctures]

rpg's are over-rated, so I selected all of the above.

[I AM THE PROPHECY.]

Here's a neat thing for you to look at, Other Gaming

[Kenshiro]

Originally Posted by VGD

sephiroth is my bishie desu~~~~ ^_^

Note that for this statement to accurately reflect the sentiments of the FF7 community, the above must be shrieked, not merely stated, and the "desu" must be pronounced "deh-soooooooooo" Also note that Sephiroth has been claimed as "my bishie desu" by about 670,000 other people on the face of the planet, and you must prepare yourself for a fight to the death with every last one of them. Go forth, noble warrior.

[nVGDlm_zk]

I'll need my Buster Sword.

[ANGRY ABOUT ENGLISH]

Still sticking with FFVII, primarily for the following reasons, even after seeing Fallout's madhouse (and knowing multiple people in the Oblivion flock):

* Numbers. Dear sweet JESUS the crazy FFVII fans outnumber the others. Possibly both COMBINED.
* Fanaticism. Between the cosplayers (I think I've seen one Fallout cosplayer, and he was screwing around), the fanfiction (let's not even go there), and watching, even to this day, a single, tongue in cheek article SUDDENLY STARTS FLAMEWARS ON SLASHDOT.
* Visibility. At least the other fanbases mostly keep to themselves (mostly since their games take a decent amount of time and were generally not pushed so hard). FFVII, on the other hand, just exploded into another media shitstorm of games and now all the irritating "I made Aeris live" rumors are back again as the rabid fans start going "Remake on PS3 LOLOLOLOLOL" despite, once again, everyone and their mother debunking this at every turn.
* Personal issues. I dated an FFVII fangirl once, enough said. (I didn't know she was crazy until after the first date, I swear.)

[deepbluevibes]

I'd like to say i'm one of the final fantasy VII fans who is rational about the game, loves the storyline, but realizes that there are much better, namely;

-phantasy star 4
-tales of phantasia
-star ocean 2
-earthbound

also no guys chrono trigger is not an amazing game, it's good, but FF7 and all four games listed above beat it out hands-down.

and also FF6 i never completed, only got halfway through the world of ruin, so can't say yay or nay on that but it's not as godly as everyone makes it out to be, although it is definitely a solid RPG.

all other final fantasies are bleh, except 9 which i can't comment on because i've never played it.

8 is by far the 3rd worst, X is the 2nd worst, and X-2 is the worst final fantasy and probably RPG ever made.

[I AM THE PROPHECY.]

Originally Posted by deepbluevibes

I'd...made.

So uh what did you vote for and did you vote on community or game :|