The Glass Is Half Full.

[Tarquinus]

I was talking to another MDer in the hated YIM just now, and it really struck me: there's an air of mournfulness, of negativity, that needs a balancing opinion. Since I am an active vet, I'd like to add my two bits. Some may want to accuse me of being two-faced, or cowardly, or obsequious, but whatever. This is my honest opinion.

It seems to me that MagicDuel is in many ways a much better game than the one I joined two years ago. There are more creatures, a slicker combat engine, a wish shop that lets you buy spells and get into cool areas, and more things to interact with. Some people say, the wrong people get rewarded and there's no way to get ahead. I'm sorry, but I just disagree. I think MagicDuel is going through some growing pains, but I really do believe it will come out stronger and better than ever if we can all just [i]hang in there.[/i] Mur has shown every sign that he listens to the players, and I can't think of any other developer I've met on-line that can say the same to the extent Mur can. Is it fair? Not really. So what? It's fairer than it once was by an order of magnitude. Is there backbiting and gossip and bullying? Yes. But show me the community of human beings that lacks those things. The fact is that MagicDuel offers more opportunities to [u]players[/u] to impact the game than any other MMOG I've ever seen.

So what I want to say is this: thank you.

Mur, thank you for a great game. You're crazy and funny and imaginative. We don't have to agree on every little thing, but my life is better for having met you.

Loyal veterans, thank you for still playing. Yes, even you, dst. You are a huge part of the experience of this fantasy "world," and it would be the less without you. Stories gravitate around you, as does the sense of the game's "reality". Any loss from your ranks diminishes us, and while others will come, no human being can really "replace" another.

Regular players, thank you. Your interest and intelligence constantly hone the experience of MagicDuel. You are the life's blood of the game.

Newbies, thank you for your interest and enthusiasm. Stick around... things keep happening, and just when you think you've got it all figured out... something new comes along. Hang on. You're in for a ride.

This is not to say I think people have no valid complaints. I think a lot of people have valid complaints. But you know, you can dwell in the problem, or you can be a part of the solution. I encourage you all to be part of the solution. When a fellow player releases a quest, take notice. It was made for you. Be glad, and always keep in mind that the next quest might be written by [u]you[/u], because you have that freedom.

Freedom is only free as long as people fight to keep it. See you on the dueling mat.

[Fyrd Argentus]

Half full, half empty, or as the engineers would say -- the glass is the wrong size. This is about expectations. If your expectations don't fit what is in the game, change them! MD is a unique game in that the players create the game as they go along. If you're not happy with what is going on, remember that you have the power to shape it -- just like in real life.

I don't know any other computer game where players can create games within games (quests) for other players.

[Curiose]

I have to agree with what Tarquinis said in this post.

Although I may have been here for very little time, I have to say that yes, this game is very much unlike others that I have played. Many often have set things that you have to accomplish, that everyone accomplishes, and when new things come around, they're still there for other players to accomplish. I find it fixed, boring, and lacking style and a sense of something to really be surprised with. It gives the players monotony, which becomes a rut. And that rut only becomes deeper and deeper.

MD also has things that everyone follows through with in time, however, the quests, the contests, the ideas, are all created by the players, and once they end, they end. There are many things in this world that go on, that start, that die, and are remembered and are maybe even revived. What I'm trying to say here, is this game -Is- unique. It -Is- something to look forward to every day instead of "the old grind." I look to this game whenever I play with a sense of: What's going on today? And I believe that [i]every[/i] plsyer should house that sense of wonder and be proud of what they have done both in the game, and for the game. Whether it be paying for something in the shop, or helping a beginner Mp3. Everyone has its contribution, despite it breaking or making it for another player [i.e. spoilers.] But that's the risk that everyone takes.

Nothing happens without strife. Nothing happens without resolution. It's a never ending cycle, and therefor, we must accept that. My only qualm about some of the newbies, really, is that they don't understand the wonders of the game, and that all there is to it, is simply fighting. All they care about is fighting, fighting, and more fighting, just so that they can advance to that next Mp level. It frustrates me that they don't take in anything else from the game but that. So far, what I have seen, is that the Mp3s think that they need to advance in order to be worth something in the game. Which, IS NOT TRUE. I am still an mp3, and I am making my two bits in the game. It's saddening, and irksome at the same time. :c

But anywho, this game is something that I love, and will continue to love until the day it dies.

[Kyphis the Bard]

I play a lot of online games, but none of them compare to MD.

I was surprised when in my first few days in the realm, I was already able to help younger players out. I was enthralled by the idea of player run quests (I even have a biggie in the works that is getting nearer completion).
The idea that, if I applied myself, I could do almost anything within the game, is amazing. In any other game the only way to do that is be the creator.

Mur, Thankyou. You do an amazing job. For a[n essentially] one man team (now two) to create something like this is insane, but not only that, you have kept it going for 5 years.
That is an accomplishment to be proud of.

I only hope we can continue to be good lab-rats for you

[Mourn the Leper]

i was glad to see Tarquinus start this topic. i'm not particularly well-known in the realm, Mourn's a bit of a jerk/loner, but i also noticed that some people are a little more down on the game than they were last summer, when i played under a different character.

i can understand vets getting a tad down because things aren't new and shiny anymore. the first book/movie in a series is always the best because it introduces you to the world and makes you love it. many people have stated that our ability to shape the world is what sets this game apart. we decide which way the story turns, we determine whether or not MD grows. if you don't like the way things are going, find a way to change it.

the other thing that sets this game apart is the community. there is a collection of really intelligent people in MD. a great deal of creative people. very different personalities brought together, each very good at something. whether it be finding and exploiting bugs or creating beautiful and engaging stories. together, there is definitely a way to overcome a lot of the problems, but it requires people to work to find a solution.

as an aspiring writer and amateur artist, MD has helped me a great deal, it's why i stay. my word of advice to anyone getting down is to step away from the game for a bit and figure out why you loved it so much to begin with. come back when your batteries are recharged and you have some fresh ideas that can help the game grow in a direction you want it to. truthfully, it's the best way to show your appreciation to MD.

go team.

[Muratus del Mur]

YES its half full not half empty!
thank you, for all said

[Pipstickz]

I believe that it's presently at the level of "Half"...though either halfway to full or halfway to empty would largely depend on whether you were filling the glass or emptying it, I think.

PS: You can interpret this post however you'd like, literal or as some big metaphor for life, whatever...I'm not picky.

[apophys]

MD will always stay a glass half full, because as its content fills, the glass of its foreseeable potential increases in capacity.

[Amoran Kalamanira Kol]

I have to say that I agree with what Tarquinus has put in this post, I don't always agree with everything that goes on in game, but I have noticed a lot of improvement. It's part of the reason I am still in the game, however.. in another of my posts I mentioned that the game wasn't what it once was:

What I meant by this is that the attitude of players isn't how it used to be. It seems the 'welcoming attitude' toward newbies that once existed dissipated with the change of the system and the departure of many of the old veterans. That may perhaps just be my opinion though, a lot of the older players have left and have taken their festivals and inventive ways of playing the game with them.

But you know, everyone enjoys the game differently and that is the beauty of Magic Duel and why it's held my (and others) interest for so long.

I appreciate the efforts shown by Muratus (and Rendril) to improve the game play greatly, and I hope that these kinds of changes will continue.

(Edit: Fixed a typo.)

Edited July 31, 2010 by Amoran Kalamanira Kol