Goals

Although games are, well, games, it doesn’t mean that we play them mindlessly.  Just as in real life, it helps to have a purpose, a direction and a goal, which is why we sometimes flounder in sandbox titles and cling to the order of theme park MMOs, I guess.

It struck me that we come to MMOs looking for goals in three ways: the immediate, the short-term and the long-term — and these goals help define our playstyles.

The Immediate

We’re seeing a lot of focus in the immediate these days from players and especially studios.  “Players need to log in and immediately have something fun to do.”  It’s that instant gratification principle, that we don’t and shouldn’t have to wait to be having our fun — we want it now, dagnabit!

Instant PvP scenarios, instant public quests, bite-sized quests — the only immediate goal is to simply enjoy yourself in the moment, nothing past that.

The Short-Term

Short-term goals are those that are attainable within a single play session (or, at most, within a week).  A player wants to hit a new level, or clear out the quests in a hub, or chase down a title, or what have you.  Short-term goals require effort and dedication, but they’re fairly simple and straight-forward to attain.

Short-term goals speak to the daily To Do list in all of us: taking out the garbage, doing our chores, finishing up a project, watching a movie.  We lay out a goal that can be started and completed within a short period, and derive satisfaction from accomplishing it — even though, in the long run, it usually isn’t that much to speak of.

The Long-Term

These are goals that can stretch anywhere from a week to even years in game — huge goals that take a lot of time, effort, skill and/or know-how to accomplish.  You want to bring a character from level 1 all the way up to the cap… you want to raid for the top tier armor sets… you want to grind a faction for a juicy reward… you want to build up a successful guild… you want to become an expert crafter.

You simply cannot do these things overnight, and in some cases, may not be able to do them at all.  Long-term goals are counter-intuitive to our craving for instant gratification, but like with real life, sometimes these goals are far more worth the effort than blowing them off to prance around.

While sometimes the path to that goal may not be fun, it is usually satisfying — that you know you’re working toward something great, and you’re chasing that accomplishment when others fall by the roadside.

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• Posted in: General