10-14-2020, 07:59 PM
I'm going to have to take a breath for this one. I personally have to go back way through my time in SL2 which has had it's major ups and downs. I don't want to exactly give an opinion on the current state of things proper, but rather share my experience as a separate player until I do.
Back when SL2 and it's release states started, I was extremely excited. A new world, new systems, new ways to play. There were so many complicated things that happened both in the game and in the roleplay, though I always felt like I had a leg down from everyone. My "ideal" character is a male human adventurer, with a story of potential strength to be able to rise up to the level of the people he looked up to. This is the character I want to play, and I even keep to this theme sometimes way back. However, Pre GR this was kinda impossible without LEing a bajillion times, and I wasn't willing to play the game as much as others. I also saw so much roleplay with these other stronger characters whom seem so surrounded by everyone, while I was mostly left more in the dust then they were in terms of how much roleplay I got. However, I didn't have an excuse, as back then I wasn't as social nor adept at this.
Admittedly, I'm horrible being in communities. Not many people enjoy what I do because I tend to rant and complain a lot about perceived issues. In the end, I try to make friends with everyone even if I fail to do it, but in SL2 it just felt like there's so much... vitriol when it comes to it. Too many times have I've seen the bickering between parties, putting others down due to their roleplays or the characters they play. Still. I don't think I've ever been a good person, nor am I now. I try my best in general at being the best I can be, but even now I'm never sure if I'm even liked in SL2 or not because all the close friends I made here either only play SL2 and nothing else (which means I don't talk with them and we distanced ever since) or don't play SL2 at all.
At one point, I tried involving my character in an event. I won't mention who or what, but I specifically told who I was in contact with that involved me in said event to "let me know if things start to happen" so I can be on when possible. In the end, 3 things happened and I wasn't told about it, eventually figuring out that said people simply don't feel comfortable "roleplaying with people they don't have experience roleplaying with."
At this point in my life, I was dealing with a lot of things. SL2 has affected me mentally, because at one point I was so addicted to playing the game yet not roleplaying as much as I wanted to. I never truly involved myself in the community because I was so afraid of it. I had huge paranoia issues with the community and sometimes for good measure. At one point, a specific event happened between me and another player, and I let my anger get so out of control, the whiplash of it all sent my mind into a frenzy, and I almost had to go to the hospital. Eventually I quit, and came back, and this sort of looped back and forth so much that I even considered asking the GMs to ban me for the sake of my health.
Finally however, I prioritized my life, and I got things a lot more squared away. I think I'm still the dumb guy who keeps complaining sometimes, but I genuinely enjoy the friends I made here in SL2. I genuinely am always happy to roleplay with anyone and even say "Thank you for the RP!" even if I get to roleplay a little bit, because I don't get to roleplay often in SL2. My health and real life situations are a lot better then they have been better, and while I'm still very down, I'm getting treatment for the many issues I have now.
Still, all the above is what I've experienced and expresses most of what I felt back then.
As for the "what" and "why" on the current state of roleplay, it's not something I can truly chime in on as I'm not part of the community as much as others, but sometime I realized is that the community doesn't really act like a community of sort, but a community of communities. While cliques are a natural cause and effect of such, it feels like we're not out of that sort of space where we prioritize our clique over the SL2 community at large.
However, over time I've also seen good come out of the community more recently. Guilds have been more open to recruiting others and involve them. Public events are organized in a way that makes it enjoyable for as many people as possible, and housing is used to generate public bars and spaces for all manner of characters to involve themselves in more often then not.
I think my issue right now, why I don't get enough roleplay, is because I sometimes end up in a roleplay where it might not be as desirable, maybe my character doesn't get enough attention, or I simply don't try hard enough. I don't involve myself in the community as healthily as I can, but I mostly have IRL to blame for my lack of time to be on. But I also don't take advantage of things like public forums and the discord's event section, very important things to take note of if you want to be involved in public affairs.
I don't think the issue of a lack of community is an issue the "game" can solve, but more from the community itself. Roleplaying is a collaborative effort that can only grow with the efforts between all players apart of the community. Not only should we naturally be encouraging roleplay between all players, but we should be accepting of all players both old and new to be able to roleplay with us, even if you are unsure of the quality of roleplay they can provide. If they need help with their roleplay, then that is when you should speak up to them. While being fully accepting isn't possible, we need to at least have a low bar of acceptance that allows people to cleanly enter any sort of public roleplay and join whatever open group they desire and have fun with whomever they want while not feeling alienated in the process. ( Exceptions do apply for some guilds of course, such as Villanous Lowe Gang who only accepts epic PvPers and dastardly characters and other such niches. )
Back when SL2 and it's release states started, I was extremely excited. A new world, new systems, new ways to play. There were so many complicated things that happened both in the game and in the roleplay, though I always felt like I had a leg down from everyone. My "ideal" character is a male human adventurer, with a story of potential strength to be able to rise up to the level of the people he looked up to. This is the character I want to play, and I even keep to this theme sometimes way back. However, Pre GR this was kinda impossible without LEing a bajillion times, and I wasn't willing to play the game as much as others. I also saw so much roleplay with these other stronger characters whom seem so surrounded by everyone, while I was mostly left more in the dust then they were in terms of how much roleplay I got. However, I didn't have an excuse, as back then I wasn't as social nor adept at this.
Admittedly, I'm horrible being in communities. Not many people enjoy what I do because I tend to rant and complain a lot about perceived issues. In the end, I try to make friends with everyone even if I fail to do it, but in SL2 it just felt like there's so much... vitriol when it comes to it. Too many times have I've seen the bickering between parties, putting others down due to their roleplays or the characters they play. Still. I don't think I've ever been a good person, nor am I now. I try my best in general at being the best I can be, but even now I'm never sure if I'm even liked in SL2 or not because all the close friends I made here either only play SL2 and nothing else (which means I don't talk with them and we distanced ever since) or don't play SL2 at all.
At one point, I tried involving my character in an event. I won't mention who or what, but I specifically told who I was in contact with that involved me in said event to "let me know if things start to happen" so I can be on when possible. In the end, 3 things happened and I wasn't told about it, eventually figuring out that said people simply don't feel comfortable "roleplaying with people they don't have experience roleplaying with."
At this point in my life, I was dealing with a lot of things. SL2 has affected me mentally, because at one point I was so addicted to playing the game yet not roleplaying as much as I wanted to. I never truly involved myself in the community because I was so afraid of it. I had huge paranoia issues with the community and sometimes for good measure. At one point, a specific event happened between me and another player, and I let my anger get so out of control, the whiplash of it all sent my mind into a frenzy, and I almost had to go to the hospital. Eventually I quit, and came back, and this sort of looped back and forth so much that I even considered asking the GMs to ban me for the sake of my health.
Finally however, I prioritized my life, and I got things a lot more squared away. I think I'm still the dumb guy who keeps complaining sometimes, but I genuinely enjoy the friends I made here in SL2. I genuinely am always happy to roleplay with anyone and even say "Thank you for the RP!" even if I get to roleplay a little bit, because I don't get to roleplay often in SL2. My health and real life situations are a lot better then they have been better, and while I'm still very down, I'm getting treatment for the many issues I have now.
Still, all the above is what I've experienced and expresses most of what I felt back then.
As for the "what" and "why" on the current state of roleplay, it's not something I can truly chime in on as I'm not part of the community as much as others, but sometime I realized is that the community doesn't really act like a community of sort, but a community of communities. While cliques are a natural cause and effect of such, it feels like we're not out of that sort of space where we prioritize our clique over the SL2 community at large.
However, over time I've also seen good come out of the community more recently. Guilds have been more open to recruiting others and involve them. Public events are organized in a way that makes it enjoyable for as many people as possible, and housing is used to generate public bars and spaces for all manner of characters to involve themselves in more often then not.
I think my issue right now, why I don't get enough roleplay, is because I sometimes end up in a roleplay where it might not be as desirable, maybe my character doesn't get enough attention, or I simply don't try hard enough. I don't involve myself in the community as healthily as I can, but I mostly have IRL to blame for my lack of time to be on. But I also don't take advantage of things like public forums and the discord's event section, very important things to take note of if you want to be involved in public affairs.
I don't think the issue of a lack of community is an issue the "game" can solve, but more from the community itself. Roleplaying is a collaborative effort that can only grow with the efforts between all players apart of the community. Not only should we naturally be encouraging roleplay between all players, but we should be accepting of all players both old and new to be able to roleplay with us, even if you are unsure of the quality of roleplay they can provide. If they need help with their roleplay, then that is when you should speak up to them. While being fully accepting isn't possible, we need to at least have a low bar of acceptance that allows people to cleanly enter any sort of public roleplay and join whatever open group they desire and have fun with whomever they want while not feeling alienated in the process. ( Exceptions do apply for some guilds of course, such as Villanous Lowe Gang who only accepts epic PvPers and dastardly characters and other such niches. )
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