gamer's den

There are 2 models used in paying for playing online games. I have discussed this in my previous article F2P or P2p. F2P is the free to play model which do not require the players/users to pay in playing the games instead it uses an item mall or item shop to enhance characters ability and attributes. Next is the P2P or pay to play games which are common in the western countries wherein players need to buy subscription to be able to play or to continue playing their games.

Because of the term "free to play" players and potential gamers thinks that plaing f2p games will save you money rather than paying a monthly subscription for games you won't play the whole day. Well, THINK AGAIN. These games will lure you to spend more on rare items which can only be acquired thru the item mall.

How?
You might be wondering how one can say that you can spend more in a f2p game than p2p games. As explained earlier, f2p games do have these item malls which features items are cannot be acquired in-game. These are luxury items which are not necessary for leveling but players and publishers of the game encourages the use if it since this makes leveling fun and easy (e.g x2 and x3 exp gain when used by the players)

Tips:
How can we avoid over spending for the games we play? Basically, we choose to play the f2p mmos to spend less in playing. Self control is needed, do not be an impulsive buyer. I've listed a couple of things to consider to make the best out of you f2p mmo experience without destroying your pocket:

1. Avoid being envious. - There are playerswho likes to dress up their characters, buy lots of power up items, pets and hover boards and mounts. These items aren't really needed for leveling, it just added the good look to your character. Be contented with what you have and what you're character can afford.

2. Be a wise shopper. - Again do not be an impulsive buyer. Sort out your priorities and buy only what is needed. You never played online games to shop in the first place. You play to relax and unwind.

3. Do not think back and regret. - Often when we feel that the items we bought aren't that useful or not as what you have expected. Result is an unhappy player and almost unuseable item.

Are you a hardcore gamer who prefers free to play MMORPG? Or the one who thinks subscription fees for MMORPGs are long term investments? There is no doubt that the F2P (Free to Play) MMORPG’s market is growing rapidly compared to P2P (Pay to Play) MMORPGs today. Given that scenario, gamers are enjoying the option whether to go P2P or F2P given the wide range of choices from free, to pay to play mmos.


F2P games nowadays are not the typical “good for a free game” but rather highly competitive like any other P2P games in the market. They offer games with no subscription fees and can be played anytime which is a good marketing strategy to compete with P2P MMORPGs.


Being a free game, getting the desired number of players is not a problem for F2P publishers. All they need to do is to make the game interesting and fix any bugs and exploits as soon as possible to maintain the quantity of their subscribers. F2P developers/publishers earn profit by selling virtual items through an item mall or offering premium subscriptions (X2 experience/drop rate etc.) for a specific time, but still, it is not required to pay to be able to play the game.


The main issue in F2P is the balance of the game, it is common that some financially well-off players will dish out several hundred bucks just to get strong and pawn other players in the game, which really suck for a normal gamer or for some “wise-spender” in the F2P world. Also, Free MMORPGs are prone to spammers and scammers; anyone can join and create a new account making an annoying and negative impact to the F2P world. But none the less, it is still free; anyone can still experience a decent MMORPG without the subscription fee.


On the other hand, P2P MMORPGs that requires a weekly/monthly subscription before one can play are having a hard time going up against the less expensive F2P games. The pressure is so intense that they need to come up with something new and give their respective games an edge over F2P games. If a developer is too slow to fix an exploit or inconsistent with content updates, odds are players will shift to a new game.


One strong edge of P2P MMORPGs is the integrity of the game. Being a P2P game, players that have malicious intent like hackers, scammers, spammers cannot penetrate the game easily because of the money they will spend just to fool around.


Either way, discipline and spending money wisely is the key. Whether you are playing a F2P or P2P game, you still have the most powerful item in your hand… and that is your freedom to decide.

Mmorpg Gaming Versus Console Gaming
By: William Murtog

MMORPG gaming and console gaming have traditionally been thought of as completely separate and different playstyles. As the video game industry progresses however one can see that there are reasons to play both, rather than one sub-genre exclusively. This essay will go over the vast differences, as well as the universal traits that make both these forms of gaming complementary rather than contradictory.

One powerful trait both mmorpg gaming and console gaming share is that of escapism. Research has shown a strong connection between pain and anxiety. In fact, Nationwide Children's Hospital has put this into practice by helping burn victims. The children play in this virtual reality to distract them from the painful process of healing from burn wounds. Although most would assume a virtual world such as World of Warcraft would be more immersive there are also console games such as Fable which would beg to differ. Here we see a powerful tool of video games, escapism, which unchecked can lead to an unhealthy obsession with the virtual worlds.

A driving force of the mmorpg gaming industry is progression. Progression via game is slightly diffferent but most deal with ones virtual character leveling up skills, stats, and equipment referred to as gear. This progression leads to a deeper immersion associated with most console games that can usually be played for a day, turned off, and turned on a month later. With mmorpg games however, the world around you continues whether or not you are progressing. If you aren't progressing you are natually falling behind. This is a similar trait to a game we all play, life. An mmorpg is the highest form of capitalism and hard work pays off, whereas console games can be seen as a quicker escape with less progression goals. Console games have had single player forms of progression without the online aspect, also known as roleplaying games. Games such as Final Fantasy, Zelda, and even Super Mario. We see the ability for console games to have progression in the form of both virtual characters as seen in final fantasy and zelda, but only map progression in games like Mario wherein the character doesn't progress, just the maps do. The inability for console gamers to personify there virtual characters has led to the explosive growth of the online pc mmorpg industry. With the advent of online play however, console worlds are now becoming closer to their cousin PC or Mac. One can look at the success of Halo and John Madden football on the console systems. It is the ability for quick fun but also combined with an everchanging leaderboard system to progress, to become the best player. It is this hybridization that gives console games the appeal of casual gamers which the mmorpg industry scares away. If one wants to load up a game of Madden for an hour they can do so and turn it off without fear of Brian Urlacher losing 5 tackling. If one does the same in Warhammer they may find themselves logged in with inferior gear and guildless.

Guild Pressure! Guild pressure is just like peer pressure only it's intensified by players you mostly play with in your virtual world. In the past console gamers did not have to worry about letting someone down if they turned off final fantasy. Perhaps Cloud was secretly angry but he could never let you know. Today, not being able to attend a raid in World of Warcraft, or a PK run in Ultima Online can have social consequences within these heavily socially based virtual worlds. Turning down your guildmates can be difficult and even against your interest in the guild. In real life, if your boss asks you to do something because they rely on you, you would most likely help him/her out. The virtual worlds are no different. One's guild leader may ask you to help camp a spawn or partake in a hunt; if the answer is no all the time you will inevitably lose standing with the guild leader, if not the entire guild. Before the onset of online console play, you made all the decisions and had no one, except maybe your brother/sister nagging you to turn on the game and play. Now even Console gamers have this social dynamic seen with Clans. Clans are synonymous with guilds but the term is used for most console guilds. If you are a member of a Clan that is hardcore you better be sure to make the big clan matches. Let your clan down, you let everyone down. It is this mentality that is changing casual games to a more serious, hardcore feel that PC games had exclusively for the past decade. You are now a part of something larger than yourself. It can be incredbily satisfying to be in a guild or clan and help those you care about, but it can be equally as hard to say no to those very same friends.

Both mmorpg gamers and console gamers have considered themselves separate. The reality is both gamers enjoy aspects of progression, escapism, friendships, and of course FUN! We forget at times the games are for fun. As a human species we are naturally hedonisitic so why not enjoy all forms of the video game industry? I'll see you in World of Warcraft and a game of Tetris later.

source: http://www.articlesbase.com/computer-games-articles/mmorpg-gaming-versus-console-gaming-656448.html

For those who are new or who wants to try purchasing In-game Currencies such as WoW Gold, Eve Isk, Dofus Kamas, Maple Story Mesos or even any other products from online stores, this article will provide you the information to help you evaluate the security and integrity of the store from a better perspective.

There are many online shops that are frauds and scams that cannot be removed from the internet. What do you need to check?

1. Method of Payment accepted by the site:

Most RMT sites (real money trading), in-game currency or wow gold shops uses Paypal as their only or primary merchant processor. Paypal today has been by far been the most reliable online merchant processing solution. Next is Moneybookers which also provides almost similar service to Paypal but are not limited to credit card payments only. And then there's Western Union .

I myself do not recommend payment using Western Union money transfer for security purpose since most online scammers uses Western Union money transfer.

2. Security of the website:

Another method of trusting a site is knowing how long the site/domain and store has been opened for or where is it registered. You can do this by using Whois.net , it will tell when the domain was registered and who it is register to. Another tool is the WayBack Machine from Internet Archive , this site will show you when the site first appeard online and the cached pages on the related updates.

Next would be checking the SSL security of the website or the digital signature. If you are providing important information (personal data) in a website specifially online stores, you need to make sure you are accessing a secured site. You can check if you are accessing a secure site by the following:

• look for the padlock icon sample 1, sample 2
• look check for the SSL security provider such as GoDaddy , Verisign , or McAfee Secure . There are online store which post the SSL seal of their provider but are already expired, below is the list of what it should contain:
  

An SSL certificate is a digital certificate that authenticates the identity of a Web site and encrypts information sent to the server using Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) technology. Encryption is the process of scrambling data into an undecipherable format that can only be returned to a readable format with the proper decryption key.

A certificate serves as an electronic "passport" that establishes an online entity’s credentials when doing business on the Web. When an Internet user attempts to send confidential information to a Web server, the user’s browser accesses the server’s digital certificate and establishes a secure connection.

An SSL certificate contains the following information:

• The certificate holder’s name
• The certificate’s serial number and expiration date
• A copy of the certificate holder’s public key
• The digital signature of the certificate-issuing authority

Third party reviews of the store, ratings and hearing out what other customers have to say can be very helpful as well. Be sure to know the stores policy, whether they offer any type of refunds, guarantees and where their gold is obtained and etc. If the gold is duped, you may be at risk of losing it or even getting your account banned.

2. Customer support:

A good customer service and support can make or break a business. Check the deal support or the methods on how you can file dispute or change or returns of items. What support are provided:phone, email or chat. Is it available online 24/7 or for a specific time. There are online shops which provides chat support (live chat) but are unable to satisfy the customer's concerns.

I have tried a couple of websites that provide live chat support but are crappy and uses their live chat support just like a regular messenger. I prefer formal talk/chat since I am a customer.

There are many factors that will give you ideas on how well the store operates. I hope this help and have a secured shopping!

Which one are you?

• Achievers - Players who seek to maximize their score or items or status in the game.
• Explorers - Players who want to experience and understand the game world and its design.
• Socializers - Players who use the game as a mechanism to form and expand their social circle.
• Competitors - Players who want to compete with and excel over other players. Dr. Bartle seems to take a more negative view of this category than I do in that he includes abuse of other players as an implicit part of this category. To his four categories, I would add a set of mirror categories. The dark side of gaming:
• Earners - Players who seek to earn the most wealth in the game for real-world reasons. These are the gold farmers and power-levelers.
• Exploiters - Players who carefully study, explore, and analyze the game world and its mechanics to identify weaknesses that give them a substantial advantage, usually due to flaws in the game design and implementation.
• Harassers - Players who use the social mechanisms of the game to make the experience as miserable for others as possible.
• Dominators - Players who use the game's mechanics to make other players miserable. These players are not really interested in doing better than other players, but in making other players know that they have been beaten.
• Exploiters and Earners are often closely tied to game commerce. Exploiters help optimize the earning potential of the game. Harassers and Dominators cover two of the main categories of griefing.

This is not a class specific guide or how to kill an enemy in 2moons PK but what you need to know when you want to engage in the 2moons PK server.

a) Set your return point to Parka Temple if you are level 60 or less (I am level 59 so I can't talk about what happens next) so if you PK and you are red, at least you'll be able to kill some monster and lower your IP without being attacked by a swarm of PK killers.

b) Use first your strongest attack, use the surprise effect.

c) If the guy is busy fighting other monster (specially a mob) it's even better, he'll get confused and may not realize you are attacking him and not the mob.

d) If he is in a mob makes sure you manage to select him otherwise he may use the mob to protect him from your skills.

e) If you get IP higher than 500 and you die you go to prison. You must wait there (logging off will not help!) until your IP lowers to 500. A possibility is to pay bail but it expensive (1kdil per IP).

f) If someone kills you while you are red you lose 15 IP points.

g) If someone kills your pet while you are red you lose 9 IP points

If you want to PK, you'll be needing more dil (2moons currency). Since I love PK, I do buy dils from in-game currency stores. I would recommend www.GAMERCE.com for your gold needs. I find it cheaper purchasing there since it's a player to player trade.