Shortwire

[ QUOTE ]
Your arguments are of the form: "I made it across the expressway blindfolded...so everyone can...."

bah go play in traffic some more...

[/ QUOTE ]

I just have to say it.... LAUGHING MY "rear end" OFF! Funniest metaphore I've heard in some time.

Still, you'll notice she doesn't respond to anyone's actual points or arguments. She's just continuing with the same generalizations about cowards and how, because we don't hear from the people who enjoy the game as much, then obviously they're the more numerous. I think it's perfectly valid to be frustrated with the players who say, "This is too difficult for me so it must be too difficult for everyone," but its also frustrating for a person not to recognize the reverse, "This is perfect... Anyone who disagrees with me is a fool," is just as moronic. It speaks volumes about a person's virtue when you see them acting in such a way. (Gee, who's sig did I see "virtue" in lately...)

[ QUOTE ]
Learn to play the damn game better instead of whining on the forums that you can't handle it. If you spent half the time you spend whining on these forums about the challenge of the game, you'd have the tough stuff beat and be done with it.

[/ QUOTE ]

I think the problem is they (we) did learn to play the game... and then the game was changed. This is not the same game it was before Issue #2 came out. Some people prefer it the way it was, not the way it is. How is that not a valid point? Some people did find it challenging before and did "die" before, but were also able to occasionally level as a reward for their efforts. Now, leveling takes twice as long because they (we) are perpetually in debt, missions take forever because we have to use hit-and-run tactics on even white and blue mobs. How can you claim there is no validity to a point when a vast number of people subscribe to it? Yes, your point is valid... there should be a challenge. I don't think people disagree with that. But I think what people are saying is that the challenge pre-Issue 2 was, for them, enough... The current level of challenge is too much.

For you to blindly dismiss that point is unfair and thoughtless. Particularly because if enough people share that point of view, they will eventually start leaving the game... and enough of them leave the game, then YOU will have no game to play. If nothing else motivates you to at least recognize the validity of the concern and begin to address the merits of it, then at least look at it from the perspective of your own self-interest in making sure this game sticks around. (And no, I'm not saying I'm going to cancel my subscription, just pointing it out as a fact... If the game isn't fun for people, they stop playing.)

Gravewalker, just wanted to say I think that's one of the most balanced and well thought out posts on this topic I've seen.

The last post really got me thinking. Does "strategy" now mean nothing more than find ways to screw up the AI's path system? Does it mean the only strategy now is hit and run? It may not be the only strategy, but it certainly seems to be the predominant one, and... it is NOT fun and it takes forever.

I'm continuing to play to try to figure out fun strategies that will still let me continue to develop my characters, but the current level of difficulty (for a casual player) is exactly as the thread's title suggests: Not Fun. This has turned the game into more a chore. It is a stress enducer rather than a stress reliever, and that, my friends, is a problem. Obviously I speak only for myself, but that's the only basis upon which I can judge a game. Take it or leave it as you will.