Runescape: teamplay vs lone adventurer

Runescape is a massive multiplayer game. However, up till a while back, it was surprising to see how much one can achieve and do in the game as a lone adventurer.

Till about two years ago, there wasn't much game content that required you to be part of a team to achieve something with a common goal. Almost every action in the game at the time was geared towards bettering your own character, without directly making your effort benefit someone else (yes, there are skills, but they aren't setup in a way that you require others to raise your own levels).

If memory serves me, there was multizone wilderness of course, KBD-killing, KQ-hunting (yes, both can be done solo, but its best done in a group) and the fish trawler minigame. That was basically all the multiplayer content in the game.

The way I see it, breaking point was the release of shades of Mor'ton quest, where the quest was specifically setup to be part of a team to get the quest done. Later additions, such as pest control, castle wars, trouble brewing minigame, barbarian assault, chaos elemental, DK-killing: these all require a team to get to the goodies. Jagex has promised releases supporting clans.

More content gets added specifically geared towards teamplay. What are your thoughts on this, suggestions, ideas and expectations ? Is Jagex too late with it, with respect to trying to implement this kind of play in a for a large part egocentric game/ player base (judged on the gripes people have being griefed in barbarian assault/pest control/CW) ?

Disclaimer : no, this is not a whinge how a lone adventurer doesn't get enough content or has nothing left to do, through new updates.

I've always thought of the "lone adventurer/teams" debacle in the manner that MMORPG's are oxymorons. First off the first real RPG was of course Dungeons and Dragons the pen and paper game. In D&D you and a group of friends would dive into dungeons solving thousand year old mysteries and fighting the relatively challenging monsters. But the idea behind it was that you and your group of friends are the lone adventurers in the world and you are the heros of that world, no one else is going to solve your puzzles for you, just you and you alone.

Next MMORPG's are a similar concept only you multiply the number of heros times one thousand and have quests that not only are playable by every person who does exist in this world but also quests answers are given out freely to those who cannot solve them.

The only REAL solution to this oxymoronic problem is for the random instanced dungeons/adventures that require you and your team to go into.

But onto your real question. I believe that Jagex will put in more team-like gameplay in the near future. Playing with a group of friends is very fun but sometimes I prefer to play and level alone. To be able to create clans and small teams of people who can join up at anytime with a click of a button is surely the next step that we will see in the near future.

Don't forget, Shield of Arrav and Heroes quest require 2 player teamwork.

The sad part about this multi stuff is that a lot of times people DON'T like it! They enjoy playing solo and hate the fact that5 they must depend on another player to save themsevles. The problem is, low lvls at their full potential are no match for high lvls.

I would enjoy it if Jagex, in addition to team rewards, also give individual rewards. Maybe a bonus ticket in castlewars for every 10 people you kill, or every point you score, or every 5 mins you hold your own teams flag. Maybe in pc you get a bonus point for every 100 damage you do on monsters and every 50 damage you do on portals.

All i can say is, if i feel like playing with a team, i go play some WoW. If i dont feel like dealing with other peoples stupidness, i play RS.

Being one of those "lone adventurers", I'll give you my side of things.

As tefda said, this is somewhat of a logical evolution of D&D type of gaming. But my experience when I was younger with that, was that some of my friends liked to play and others didn't. Trying to get a group together, get a good amount of time to play, get set up, etc. was more of a chore than made the game fun. Now with MMORPG's, you have a game set up. And if none of your friends (online or not) are on then you still have plenty to do. There is no dependency on other people.

Another aspect is different styles of playing. All of my close friends now, we all play MMORPG's. But the thing is none of us play the same one as another. Why? Because we've tried it before, and we don't actually end up playing much because we're trying to do everything together. One person may want to train combat while another wants to train something else. Or we'd have a plan to do something but would have to wait on someone else or something. Also once we're all doing something together, one person acting alone can mess up the whole group. The fact that I'm not in total control of my character and am relying on other people to do what they are supposed too, is enough to keep me solo also. This is probably why most people complain about team content. (low levels at PC, flag holders at CW, someone not doing their job in BA, etc.)

But as far as MMORPG's go, their first goal is to gain players. And since most players don't join as a group of friends, then primarily solo content has to be the main focus. Once you've got a community going, then team based activities can be added to encourage more actual multi-playing.

I like that Jagex is putting a bit of multiplaying in the game, although I don't expect much of it.

It's more like that they got such a mass of people playing, they want to give everyone a bit they like, so the people who like teamplay get their bit. However, it's quite clear to see that all the teamplay things are optional, you can get perfectly around them if you want.

Jagex did a great job with releasing BA recently, looking teamplay wise. So I don't expect them to give us another update soon what is seriously focussed on teamplay.

Especially given that fact that I've heard quite a few people complain that BA was a cool minigame, but that it's freaking hard to get a 'normal' team.

Personally, I don't really like teamplay. I always end up wasting half my time waiting, communicating, or other things to do before we actually play together, whatever we do.

I, too, prefer solo gameplay to team-based, mostly because I'm an anti-social person with strong self-dependant tendencies. I've tried some of the team-based content on RS, mostly CW and PC, and grew bored or frustrated with both quickly because I was relying too much on my team mates to accomplish the task set before us. I doubt I'll be trying BA at anytime because of this.

Personally, I get a little disappointed when I hear a new update requires some kind of team-based aspect, as I don't do well in teams. Heck, it took me forever just to do Shield of Arrav because I couldn't find anyone reliable enough to do it with. In the end, I almost had to drop-trade the shield half to myself. I didn't of course, but I did give it some serious thought.

What I'd like to see regarding team-based features are features that can be effectively done by one person, but can optionally be done as a team. As an example, the part of the Elemental Workshop 2 quest where you have to prime the metal bar can be done by one person, but if it had a team-based aspect, where every person did one job (i.e. one person worked the lever to move the cart to the next station, one person operated the crane, one person operated the stamper, etc.), then we could make the primed bars quicker through less running back and forth, thus increasing the reward to the team (faster bar priming = more primed bars for energizing). I think those kind of solo/team features would keep the teamplayers happy without denying solo players the advantages those features presented.

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What I'd like to see regarding team-based features are features that can be effectively done by one person, but can optionally be done as a team. (...) I think those kind of solo/team features would keep the teamplayers happy without denying solo players the advantages those features presented.

Isn't the blast furnace sort of that? You can solo it, but with a team it's faster/better.

Besides, I pretty much agree with you.

alot of people hate team based quest because its seriously hard to find someone to do it with shield of arrav i kinda bought the shield.

found a friend to do heroes with..

but the minigames has alot of the miniclip community people don't do their jobs..

pkin and stuff people don't show up spend time waiting telling people bout events. but i'm glad they made group teles and stuff for the team people.

i'd rather skill or something while talking to friends.

Isn't the blast furnace sort of that? You can solo it, but with a team it's faster/better.

It is, but hardly anyone uses it, so I didn't really want to bring it up. As I understand it, you can also solo the trawler, though it's not recommended, which actually accentuates the point that there aren't enough optional solo/team things to do in RS (outside of pking, anyway). Barrows would probably be awesome as a team event (never done Barrows myself, so I'm not sure), while quests like Shield of Arrav would be so much easier if we weren't required to find another player to help out; I agree with botan that the hardest part of Shield of Arrav was just finding someone to do it with.

When you start the Lost City quest, down in the Lumbridge swamp, you meet a party of adevnturers - the archetypal Warrior, Thief, Wizard, Cleric AD&D party - yet there's nowhere in RS that caters to that kind of play at all.

I experienced similar problems to those posted above in regard to Shield of Arrav and Heroes (I eventually found a friendly mod on the official forums who came and helped with Heroes). I haven't even tried BA, having suffered enough at CW and PC - and I'm not yet good enough for the Kings & Queens of the game, I fear. Oh, I'm not that fussed by the rewards available from Trouble Brewing, shades, the trawler etc to bother trying to find a team

Part of the problem is the massive amount of scamming in the game - I'm distrustful of anyone I don't actually know IRL (though that might add to the experience of a AD&D style dungeon), the upshot of which is that there's only one person I might form a team with...and that would depend, as has been noted above, on him being online at the same time as for me, for the same length of time, and feeling so inclined at the same time.

I did enjoy Spartan Invasion (or whatever it was called - I suspect similar TET events are worth a visit too), but that was just a bit of fun (and the teamwork was appalling! no, really, it was shambolic! great fun though :) )

Maybe RS3 could incorporate more multi-player experiences, but it might then also need to include something I've hesitantly suggested a couple of times elsewhere - a higher level of membership server, that was capable of weeding out the scammers and time-wasters, the dishonourable and the dishonest.. I have no idea how you'd do that - with combat xp being so easy to obtain (PC products), total levels possibly indicating someone who just spent a year mining iron and cutting wood but with no real knowledge of game play, and even quest points being an unreliable guide (I got pmed by someone I'd met the other day, asking where to find elves - I told him he needed to do Regicide. He said he'd done that, so I said maybe you need Roving Elves too. Hang on, he said, I'll check....yeah, I've done that one too. I checked - you bought that account, right? Yes, he admitted...)

I guess if you want a proper multiplayer experience it's time to downshift, break out the miniatures and the d20 and play AD&D again...

I am going with the crowd here - I hate team events with a passion. If it were up to me, I would eliminate the multi-player quests. As many have said, the hardest part of Shield of Arrav was finding a partner. I have hit an impasse as I have been unable to find a partner for Heroes. This is even more upsetting when you get a lvl 3 clue scroll that requires you go to a place only accessible after doing that quest. You are faced with the option of keeping the clue in the bank and not getting another til you can do it, or throwing the clue away.

I have several people on my friends list. Most are lower lvl players who have asked me for help on quests. There are only two who I would call real friends - in the context of the game at least. We rarely meet as our interests in the game differ. I prefer to train alone and so do they.

As for the team mini games, I couldn't care less. I rarely play them. For me, they are not much fun. I do not think the massive xp on offer in PC is good for the game but that is a matter for a different debate. I do wonder just how popular it would be if there were no xp bonuses however. There are obviously some groups who play it but for most of us, it is a matter of getting in the boat with a pile of strangers and doing whatever the hell you want to. There is no real teamwork or co-ordination. How could there be between a group of players who haven't even said Hi before the game starts?

Bottom line for me? If Jagex wants team oriented play in the game, I have no objection as long as it does not impede a solo players progress. Get rid of the co-operative quests and I have no problem with it.

I always saw Runescape as a game i could either play solo or as part of a group.. However i don't like being forced to have to team up with others, i specifically did not like the old quests such as the shield of arrav quest where you had to have help.. If i remember correctly when i needed to do that quest in order to have the right quest points for the dragon quest there was no1 online that could help me at the time and i had to change my plans.

I don't mind that they make certain aspects team-based but i don't think people should be 'forced' into it, alot of people like to do things for themselves and don't appreciate the hastle of trying to get assistance from others.

Plus.. Look at this from my point of view, if you're ''required'' to have help in doing quests which essentially mean progression in the game, how am i as a permanent mute supposed to get this help? I realise being muted is a punishment but surely stopping me doing things like quests is the same as banning me so why not have merely banned me in the first place? I can't communicate through the forums because the bann stretches there and Jagex don't support use of other forums so were i to be clueless i'd be stranded.

The online community is an aspect that draws a lot of people into online games, but for me, it is a put-off. I never started playing RS with the intention of sticking with it, and I really dislike the team-based aspects of the game. I love Trouble Brewing, but I'd much rather be playing it with computer-steered characters than with other players, because they generally annoy me to no end. I have been there once for a few hours and I never went back.

I don't really mind that there are team-based things in the game, because Jagex caters for the solo players as well. Even if it means that some things are not available to me (DK, KQ, PC, BA, CW...). However, I wouldn't mind if there was the possibility to do certain things against or with NPC's who are computer-based, for example in the games room in Burtorphe.

As for my personal gameplay, I really like the idea of a lone adventurer. I have more social contact throughout the day and at my job than I can chew, so I like to draw back into a "silent" RS whenever I get on at night. I have more contact with other players through this forum than through my friends list.

I see where most are coming from, having the option to do what you want when you want it.

I too had difficulty finding a trustworthy partner for shield and dragon quest. Typically because these quests are done when you are new to the game. I was lucky enough to have done the shades quest when it was introduced, so there were actually enough random people building the temple when I wanted to do the quest.

I came from a teambased online game 3 years ago. I liked the aspect of it, camaraderie, mutual goal and going for it together. The game engine was specifically designed for that purpose and supported it in every way (regiments). This is my main objection against the team-based minigames currently in Runescape: there is strategy involved, but the game itself provides hardly any means to tell the player what goes on in those games.

E.g. in castlewars, there is no way of telling what goes on in the other castle to my teammates. In trouble brewing, I can see what ingredients we have, but there is no effective way of communicating that somebody is actually getting those ingredients already. The few PC games I played, I could see what was going on at my portal, but had no idea what was needed at the other portals or at the knight.

In short: the overall picture of what goes on is lacking or not available to everyone involved.

A strategy aspect involved in those minigames, but there is no support from the software to actually make a strategy successful. I can talk to one person in pm at the time, I can tell people next to me what's needed in public, but I can't tell Johnny 20 squares away. When people don't know what to do in such a game at what time, or aren't told what to do, they will start doing their own thing, resulting in losses, frustration and even grieving (purposely sabotaging the team-effort).

If programming in Java is the main limitation in implementing an interface more suitable for strategy, then in my opinion Jagex should rethink introducing those strategy aspects into Runescape in the first place.

For team-based play to be successful, there has to be a community sense. An awareness that you are part of a bigger picture. This is lacking completely in the Runescape we play today. There are micro-communities in the form of clans.

It is a prominent display of what is labeled 'emergent gameplay': clans. Emergent, since no content inside Runescape actually has anything to do with formation, upkeep, organisation and promotion of a clan. The formation of these communities was and is left to the players. Without the use of third party means, clans are hardly viable even.

There's also a different part of emergent gameplay that even the loneliest of the lone adventurers might recognise: a homeworld. It has however a huge potential for passive or active team-based play on a macro-scale.

Regardless of what made people decide to play on a certain server, alot of people will stick to a certain server in the long run. Over time, the lone adventurer will start recognising other regulars on that server, no matter where his adventures lead him. He will chat to them, trade with them, support them, they become familiar faces (but not necessarily friends list material).

These are the people you will be more likely to cut deals with, give that extra few laws for free, because they're not exactly strangers. You give them stuff you don't need, because you know they're not the random professional beggar. These are the people you help when asked upon, because you will see them again. These are the people even though you're a lone adventurer that make you part of a bigger community. These are the people you would like to have aiming alongside you for a mutual goal, on a small scale (minigame) or on a bigger scale.

Personally, I would love Jagex to play onto this kind of community sense. Content geared towards servers/worlds specifically. Just brainstorming here, but imagine world 12 researching to unlock a certain skill or weapon, while the competing world 99 decided to research and open up a completely different skill. More togetherness on a server-wide scale, through differentiation between the various servers. Wars between servers/worlds. Rivalry between worlds, allies in worlds, opening up a diplomacy aspect in the game. Elections on servers for their inhabitants to choose their representatives. Macro scale, so the lone adventurer can venture off, but still be part of a bigger community.

I'm fully aware the above posted ideas are not feasible in the current Runescape and will never be implemented. In the end its success would depend on what all MMO's depend on: maintaining balance to make sure not one skill/world/person is overpowered or has too much an edge over others.

However, this is the kind of team-play I would like personally. Doing your own thing, but part of a bigger picture. Runescape3 anyone ? ;)

Don't forget, Shield of Arrav and Heroes quest require 2 player teamwork.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The sad part about this multi stuff is that a lot of times people DON'T like it! They enjoy playing solo and hate the fact that5 they must depend on another player to save themsevles. The problem is, low lvls at their full potential are no match for high lvls.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I would enjoy it if Jagex, in addition to team rewards, also give individual rewards. Maybe a bonus ticket in castlewars for every 10 people you kill, or every point you score, or every 5 mins you hold your own teams flag. Maybe in pc you get a bonus point for every 100 damage you do on monsters and every 50 damage you do on portals.

If Jagex did that I'd have 126 in a fortnight...

And I like all the new team stuff, and hope Jagex puts more in. Back in RSC the only cooperative thing was the KBD, and of course the two quests. Everything else was lone adventurer, training and quests, and the only thing I needed others for was to trade to get supplies. Now Training combat fast is all about teamwork (e.g., pest control).

I'm a lone adventurer myself. I do have some friends, I've tried joining clans, but really, nothing satifys me more than playing the game with just barely enough GP to get by. I don't skill to often anymore. I play the game my way, for my own enjoyment. If that means walking around, cooking up some cow for dinner, killing a guard every now and then, a but having tons of fun doing that, then so be it. I enjoy my relaxed lifestyle. I rely on what little skills I have. If I need something for a quest, and its possible to make, then I work on that skill until I can make it. (Example, iron bars, wine, etc.) I really don't PK, or play with a team. I make the most of Runescape for my own personal enjoyment. Thats what its there for, isn't it?

The definition of lone wolf here. I like that I can interact with other real people throughout the game, but I hate having to TEAM to do anything, especially quests. Getting legends was a pain for me, luckily one of my RS friends had a nub account that hadnt done it yet, so we knocked it out together.

I prefer to train alone, quest alone and play alone. Me against the game and my stats against others. I keep public chat on, and private chat off. I only switch it on when I am meeting someone for a trade, or establishing communication for a trade with someone I replied to on the official trade forums. I hate that when I have to do that, I get bombarded with instant multiple messages...."Hey Lord, where ya been"...blah blah blah....meh, leave me alone and let me train. :uhh: How do you think I got to 123 in 12 months playing time? :ohnoes: it wasn't standing around in fally or on the piers of the fishing guild chatting about nonsense. #-o

However, that being said, I understand the attraction of meeting in game and hanging with RL buddies. I have met many really cool people within the game, and have a full friend list. My particular issue is I can not type while looking at the screen, so I must stare at keyboard while 3 finger tapping of the keys.....and have almost died a few times doing it, so I rather just switch chat off, so as not to be disturbed. :oops: I prefer chatting to people around me, usually easier to do that, then talk to 14 ppl at same time via private. :XD:

:mrgreen:

Wasn't there a guy back in RSC that never spoke, never traded anyone, and never got any help b4? (coulda sworn the only thing he did was piced up a rune2h off the floor because he refused to trade anyone :-X ) But I prefer to be alone, I don't like idiots wasting my time :thumbsup: .

Wasn't there a guy back in RSC that never spoke, never traded anyone, and never got any help b4? (coulda sworn the only thing he did was piced up a rune2h off the floor because he refused to trade anyone :-X ) But I prefer to be alone, I don't like idiots wasting my time :thumbsup: .

sounds like my kinda player hehe, stone cold players carving their way thru runescape :)

i think playing buy yourself is the best way i only have a very few select friends who i actually talk to and do quest with on rs the rest i dont even no

i get on so much better just potting along doing my own thing

well i have a few friends i can play with, but for the most part runescape is full of 8yr olds pretending to be 13 who dont really know how to play or care. a good example is the 2 kids i babysit they both have accounts, but areent even 10 yet.

Like a lot of people on this thread, I roo prefer to be a lone adventurer. I do have friends to whom I talk. I also dislike the quests that require help from another person. I have done Sield of Arrav, but to date have not done Heroes as I cannot find someone in the Black Arm gang on-line when I am to help me. I must be one of the highest levelled players (105 combat 1630+ total) not to have done Heroes. :lol:

I have nothing against the team type parts of RS as (except for the quests) I have nothing to do with them, and if that is what people want then Jagex should cater for them. However, I will be one of the first to start shouting if Jagex starts to "force" me from my lone adventurer status.

As far as team games go. The only effective way to beat these games is to use a clan system, ie. all the people in your team are trustworthy and all know what is expected of them in the game. The way jagex has implemented these team games, ie just wait until there are enough popel then go, is not suitable. Because of this you get all the rants like "no-one below lev should be allowed into PC to spoil MY game".

However, there is one main problem with teams/clans which is exaggerated by the internet. This is getting everyone together at the same time. If you think try to get a few freinds together from your local area is problematic, try getting friends from the internet together. Here not only personal things interfere, but you have to contendt with different time zones etc. This is what makes games based on teams/clans much more diffucult and why I tend to avoid them.