The best explanation of this phenomenon comes from (believe it or not) the comic book Cerebus, issue 209. In it, the title character is furious because his friend does not like a comic book (very meta) that Cerebus liked very much. I had to reevaluate my own beliefs and reactions after reading that issue. Funny the things that force you to grow as a person.

A lot of people are back to re-evaluate Age of Conan. And they almost inevitably have to mention the range of MMOs they played and compare them, which usually causes strong reactions.

There are some reasons why many MMOs have “global” deactivated by default or do not have it at all, following the notion that zone chat is enough. Does WoW have a global chat at all, because I never switched it on, and it is not active by default.

Global in AoC contains Guild recruitment, LFG, trade. This is almost like Guild Wars, using the looking for group interface for trade in cities.

MMO design already begins with the chat functions, it seems!

Log into WoW. Mention in global there how you like playing Age of Conan. Or pick any game…LOTRO, WAR, Vanguard…you name it.

See how civil they are.

Oh wait, I have one. Log into Vanguard and just mention any of the above games…and NOT WoW…watch what happens.

This phenomenon is not just attributed to WoW now. MMO malaise has destroyed the genre. The samey-ness of these games makes one more apt to support one above the other. And when you mention the other game in that game you are currently in…watch what happens.

Here is another way to look at it…

If I walk into a factory that makes Pepsi, and shout out that I am drinking a Coke…do you think they will say “Cool”…or what do YOU think will happen.

Just saying.

“You came from WoW? Welcome, we hope you enjoy Conan as long as you’re here!”
“I used to play WoW. Maybe you’ll decide to switch over with us. If not, glad to have you around.”

Incidentally, this is a better way to welcome people to your churches, too.

I wrote about this a bit ago. http://www.professorbeej.com/2009/07/choosing-sides-in-geek-wars.html But I really don’t understand it.

Being a geek was almost like a religion for years before it became mainstream, and a lot of the zealotry from that time persists. I also think in the case of AoC vs. WoW, it’s a niche game vs. a mainstream title that does a little bit of everything.

One of the things people don’t realize is that their negative attitudes and “protecting” their games from outsiders makes people like me and you not want to return. That’s not the type of community I want to be involved in, and that’s a major part of an MMO to me. If the community stinks, I’ll find a better place to spend my time, even if the game is fantastic.

But @Longasc, you like APPLES??? WTF. Snow White liked apples. Do you hang out with dwarves too? Lol.

But in all seriousness, I agree with Sharon there is somewhat of a backlash to it. I think people are afraid that if enough WoW tourists show up, “their” MMO will turn more like WoW. While the amount of vitriole they employ is certainly disgusting, I am not sure their fears are entirely unfounded. I mean, look at EverQuest II.

@Longasc — Nail on the head. Although I suppose the XBox 360 vs PS3 “rivalry” was almost as bitter and ridiculous.

I think what we’re seeing with WoW is kind of a pop culture backlash. There is a segment of the gaming population that’s disdainful of it simply because of its popularity. It’s all very silly.

Nobody would get worked up if I say I like the color red and apples, and someone else likes blue and bananas.

If we see MMOs as virtual worlds, well, anyone that says that another world is better or that this virtual world sucks attacks the very foundations of their virtual world. Add a high level of immaturity that nowadays is almost expected from global MMO talk channels, and there we have it.