Liquid_Bacon
06-02-2004, 01:58 PM
I have been saying for months that PSOX was going to die an early death because of cheating, but even I didn't predict that the death would come so soon. It seems almost ironic how Sonic Team lets the console versions of their games die even before the much-hyped PC version hits store shelves.
Here is a prime example of how bad things have become. Almost every day, I see new, level 1 players log on. They go to Apatite (the first ship, like Vega and Oberon. Basically the shit-hole of PSO) of course. The first thing they usually say is "Hey everyone, I just got this game, can anyone tell me how to play it?", or something along those lines. My response is usually something like "Honestly, I would suggest playing offline by yourself until about level 5 or 10, so you can get the basics down. The last thing you want is some idiot giving you a hacked Mag and a J-Sword and thereby ruining PSO for you." This response is of course subject to numerous sneers and jeers in which different idiots tell the new player things like "Hacking is part of PSO; it's what makes the game fun." or "There's nothing wrong with hacking, it's not like Sega enforces the Terms of Service anyway."
Ten or fifteen minutes later, I almost always see these new players spamming the lobby with "NE1 GOT HACKED MAG AND JSWORD FREE?" At this point, there is nothing else I can do; they have been sucked into the 'dark side', robbed of the chance to ever really understand and enjoy the great game that we all love. My parting remark is usually something like "Well, I tried. Enjoy that J-Sword and enjoy PSO while it lasts, because for you it won't last long."
What I mean by this is that because of the cheating, new players come and go extremely quickly. A new player logs on, some idiot gives them all kinds of hacks, they max all or most of their stats by level 80, and they soon stop playing because they realize that there is no longer a point. Leveling is pointless because it's not like they're getting any stronger. Looking for items? Yeah right! They already have all of the best items in the game. Why would they? So they quit PSO. Nice 2 month run, wasn't it? Sucks that you never got to see what PSO was all about, buddy!
A poster here on PSOW once said that they thought PSO's ESRB "Teen" rating was not because of the blood and killing, but because of the level of maturity and intelligence needed to really understand PSO. They commented that a good understanding was critical to really experiencing PSO. And they're right. However, every day I see more and more examples of cheating contributing the the general stupidity of the PSO population. We've gotten into how most cheaters don't know how to raise their own mags, do photon blast combos, do Challenge mode, do Battle mode, etc before, so I won't right now. I'm having a hard time putting my thoughts into words right now, but I think everyone who understands PSO and plays PSOX knows what I'm getting at here. I guess what hurts me the most is the fact that if all of these new players had gone to a different ship, and talked to a real player, they would have had a chance to play PSO the way it was meant to be played. Every one of them had that chance. A chance to enjoy, to understand, maybe even to love the great experience that is PSO. But no. They were, and continually are, robbed of this chance. They didn't chose to help ruin the trading economy. They didn't choose to contribute to the general stupidity of the PSO population. They didn't chose to never become skilled at the game, or not to experience its many facets. They were robbed. Fuck the cheaters. Fuck 'em!
PSO today is the saying "A few bad apples can ruin anything for everyone else" exemplified.
Aaaargh!
Here is a prime example of how bad things have become. Almost every day, I see new, level 1 players log on. They go to Apatite (the first ship, like Vega and Oberon. Basically the shit-hole of PSO) of course. The first thing they usually say is "Hey everyone, I just got this game, can anyone tell me how to play it?", or something along those lines. My response is usually something like "Honestly, I would suggest playing offline by yourself until about level 5 or 10, so you can get the basics down. The last thing you want is some idiot giving you a hacked Mag and a J-Sword and thereby ruining PSO for you." This response is of course subject to numerous sneers and jeers in which different idiots tell the new player things like "Hacking is part of PSO; it's what makes the game fun." or "There's nothing wrong with hacking, it's not like Sega enforces the Terms of Service anyway."
Ten or fifteen minutes later, I almost always see these new players spamming the lobby with "NE1 GOT HACKED MAG AND JSWORD FREE?" At this point, there is nothing else I can do; they have been sucked into the 'dark side', robbed of the chance to ever really understand and enjoy the great game that we all love. My parting remark is usually something like "Well, I tried. Enjoy that J-Sword and enjoy PSO while it lasts, because for you it won't last long."
What I mean by this is that because of the cheating, new players come and go extremely quickly. A new player logs on, some idiot gives them all kinds of hacks, they max all or most of their stats by level 80, and they soon stop playing because they realize that there is no longer a point. Leveling is pointless because it's not like they're getting any stronger. Looking for items? Yeah right! They already have all of the best items in the game. Why would they? So they quit PSO. Nice 2 month run, wasn't it? Sucks that you never got to see what PSO was all about, buddy!
A poster here on PSOW once said that they thought PSO's ESRB "Teen" rating was not because of the blood and killing, but because of the level of maturity and intelligence needed to really understand PSO. They commented that a good understanding was critical to really experiencing PSO. And they're right. However, every day I see more and more examples of cheating contributing the the general stupidity of the PSO population. We've gotten into how most cheaters don't know how to raise their own mags, do photon blast combos, do Challenge mode, do Battle mode, etc before, so I won't right now. I'm having a hard time putting my thoughts into words right now, but I think everyone who understands PSO and plays PSOX knows what I'm getting at here. I guess what hurts me the most is the fact that if all of these new players had gone to a different ship, and talked to a real player, they would have had a chance to play PSO the way it was meant to be played. Every one of them had that chance. A chance to enjoy, to understand, maybe even to love the great experience that is PSO. But no. They were, and continually are, robbed of this chance. They didn't chose to help ruin the trading economy. They didn't choose to contribute to the general stupidity of the PSO population. They didn't chose to never become skilled at the game, or not to experience its many facets. They were robbed. Fuck the cheaters. Fuck 'em!
PSO today is the saying "A few bad apples can ruin anything for everyone else" exemplified.
Aaaargh!