There are a lot of great MMO games out on the market today -- games that are entertaining, innovative, and can dazzle the senses with great visuals and sounds. But no matter now good an MMO is designed or how fun and inventive it can be, what is the one thing that can still destroy it? The community. Of course, the other side of that argument is that a great community can save an otherwise mediocre or unenjoyable game. Either way, it's good to see that more and more people considering a game's community when rating and reviewing MMO games, because they are very important. Of course, how often will you find an actual "good" community? There are some that are better than others, and very often as time goes on, communities may get better or worse depending on the popularity of the game, trends, etc.

The problem is that there shouldn't be "bad" communities. In a perfect world, everyone playing a video game is chill, mature, and is only out to have fun. Everyone started as a "newbie" at some point, and had to learn to become the top players, the community leaders. But when another new player -- another "newbie" -- enters the fray, it should be the same process: teach them, and they learn to become good players and community members and leaders. But, of course, how often do you ever see such a thing in your games? If you're lucky, you're only ignored when you need help. If you're not lucky, you run into a bunch of punks, or adolescant immature morons who get off on being a high level and think that they're better than everyone else. Well, if you're one of these people or one of the people who I'll soon be mentioning whose bad attitude ruins MMO communities and the playing experiences for everybody else, this is your reality check.

From the man that took you back to your childhood, helped you shop for your new system, and shook the bee's nest with his polarizing view on the state of anime, this is a list of ways to clean up the MMO community, tackling some of the biggest problems and idiots to ever reach a computer game. If you don't think there's a problem with your MMO community, this article may very well be for you -- and for all others, this is your guide to either clean up your mess or help prevent it from ever happening.

Let's first preface this article with a simple statement that will sum up most of the claims and arguments about to be made about how you should act and how MMO losers act: it's just a game. At the end of the day, all you've done is play a game and you're right back into the real world, neither richer for the experience nor socially empowered in any way, shape, or form. The biggest deterrent is that players let their egos get the best of them so much that they forget that when the lights are out, you're no better a person nor closer to the things that mattered because you're good at PvP or you've made some rare high-level equipment. Alternately, you haven't entered the MMO world as a special person, both inside and outside the game, so you're no better than anyone else -- and that's going to carry each and every time you sign in or out. So let's talk about the bad first.

Let's start with the upper echelon. What are the common symptoms of the top-level players, of the "l33t", of the people on the top of all the scoreboards? First of all, everyone has to be an idiot. Second of all, everyone has to below you. Third of all, nobody else can matter and you have to forget all the hardships, help, and everything you endured before you got to the top, because surely nobody else will come into the game knowing nothing like you did. When it comes to fair play as far as for opposite sides, one can see why it would be sacrificed, because when swimming in a sea of sharks you must be on yourself lest you be devoured. That much might be ok, but to these "l33t", the concept of teamwork and cooperation, and group efforts and comraderie and such don't even exist in games where races or sides are divided. They are assholes to everyone, and everyone deserves to be treated like dirt -- and this is a problem when they're treating their own side like they're nothing. Is it really necessary? No, it's not. So what if you've wasted your time and your life becoming the top dog of a game? These are the types of people who want to feel important and part of an elite, but their over-inflated ego amounts to absolutely nothing in the real world, because these displays of arrogance and non-existant social and communicational skill translates to little to no friends and certainly no respect in a real world. Nobody thinks you're cool because you're a bully in a game, and that you're quick to putting people down igorantly and that you love to insult people at the drop of a hat. It's just a game -- and when you leave that game, unless you're a professional gamer you're not going to get any money or notoriety for your "accomplishments". Usually these actions and this display of dilusional, overinflated ego sooner indicates to a mature and relaxed player that the person they're dealing with is a teenager at best (and probably a young teenager, too), and there's nothing cool about being a teenager -- you'll know when you're out of school and old enough to drive and work. Of course, in some cases, these people are actually of adult age but simply haven't learned to function in the real world yet, possessing a psyche similar to a younger teenager. This is still the epitome of igorance, and that ignorance won't be fixed unless it's brought to the light.

I really can't stress enough how much the upper echelon needs to relax, remember that they're human beings no better than anyone else, and remember that they're just playing a game and that it does not help them at all in the real world. As a general demographic, cleaning this mess up will lead to a much better, much healthier community -- wiping out this off-the-chart arrogance. For the people of this category, apart from just waking up to smell the coffee, they can fix their communities by doing their part as town/race/side leaders and teaching the up-and-comers the ropes, and giving them the tools -- be in little game tips or helping them perfect the art of PvP -- to be able to help the next crew and help them have fun in their experience. I recall a time when I played an MMORPG with a level cap around 80 or so, and one of the oldest players in this game was asked about why she wouldn't join up with characters in the mid-high levels. Her response was something to the effect that the game was filled with level 50 "n00bs", and that there was a difference between the good, experienced players and the level 50 "n00bs" -- and that she didn't deem these noobs as worthy of her time, because they'd never change. So, anyone who had ever started this game after her will forever be a noob, no matter what level they reach? Even after she's long gone, if she ever returns, they'll all just be noobs? And if she complains about the abundance of "n00bs" in the game and on her side, doesn't she realize that she'll forever have reason to complain because she, in her arrogance, feels that they're below her and refuses to help them? This girl was a classic example of the "l33t" bully -- constantly calling everyone she saw a noob on the personal level, never helping anyone or explaining why -- but to announce simply that everyone simply wasn't on her level and below her takes the bully to the new level. I tell you this story because if you're that person or if you know anyone in your games even similar, you found the public enemy. Curing these MMO community plagues isn't easy, but hopefully this article will cure them (or you, if you're one of these types) with this simple fact: you're not big, you're not bad, you're not cool. These bullies need to know that they're nothing, and they won't ever be anything with that attitude. They need to know to think a little bit -- they'll have a lot more fun and will make the game fun for everybody else.

I'm going to give you another example I witnessed to serve as a reminder of one of the ways you can improve your community and route out the true hidden stupidity in the players. You can't just assume that everybody knows everything about a game. Most MMOs have websites with active forums, and in these forums you can usually find little FAQs or little walkthroughs for common or semi-common problems, elements, quests, etc. within a game. But if this information isn't displayed anywhere automatically in-game, how are new players supposed to know that these guides are there? In the same game, I remember a time when a player asked about the beginning quests and progressions. A player who created a beginner's guide on the forums chewed this player out for not checking the forums, and expressed exhasperation that she made a beginner's FAQ/walkthrough on the forums and that nobody was checking it, and had an exchange with another top dog about how these new players were dumb. Here's what she failed to realize: this kid was new, so how could he have known that she made an FAQ specifically for his questions? There are no in-game prompts, no messages, no indications to tell anyone that a reference is there for them. One might argue that it could be easy enough to assume that something was on the forums, but at the same time for all a new players knows, maybe nobody bothered to write any guides -- or maybe they were deleted or maybe the creators might have discouraged spoilers, so had potential new guides removed. There's no rule or requirement that beginner information has to be anywhere -- on the forums or otherwise. Who knows where a newbie's guide is, or if there's one at all? So without a dedicated tip or information anywhere that this player made an FAQ for newbies, it's reasonable to say that she really didn't have a reason to be so upset that people were overlooking it. It's just a precedent of impatience for the top players in an MMO game that poisons communities, stifles growth for some players, and can make a game unfun.

The name of the game there is simply "patience". However, it's not just the top players who are guilty of ruining a community and sometimes a game; there is another demographic who, arguably, may be just as bad and also require a bit of patience to fix them and make things better for everyone else. I speak, of course, of the new player who, when they first enter a game, are allowed to develop the bad habit of begging. Now I'm not just talking about begging in the sense "gimmie gold plz/gimmie stuff plz" -- I'm also talking about the type of beggar who will spam the exact same question until it's answered at an obnoxious rate. This doesn't just mean the rapid-fire copy and paste of a question within milliseconds of each other. Even asking the exact same question in five-second spurts is obnoxious begging, and is just another sign of impatience. Because, of course, when the question isn't answered right away, then these people start screaming and cursing and acting generally immature (as if this is going to get them assistance faster). This is a habit that is often nurtured and allowed to develop, so that as the player learns more of the game and grows, they only continue to beg and beg and beg, becoming the perennial noob that the elites constantly bash no matter how far they advance. These people are like leeches: they may never learn to think for themselves and they will constantly be on you, eating your time because in their mind, their time is the only one that's valuable. These are the types of people that need to be reminded that these games have in-game maps and control layouts, and that they need to learn to check these things for themselves and try to learn on their own because they're not the only person in the world. Unlike starter FAQs in forums or on sites, commands for opening help menus of all sorts are constantly, constantly being displayed on screen no matter what MMO game you play -- so there's no excuse there.

But in a way, it's more than that. it's almost as if they want you to play the game for them. They want you to teach them everything, to give them everything, to take everything you earn simply so that they don't have to work for it. Instant gratification. What fun is a game that you don't play yourself? It's not, and it's not the way any game is meant to be played. And, of course, unless you confront these sorts of beggars head-on and tell them to chill, they'll keep yelling and screaming, begging and spamming until you answer. It never occurs to them that maybe you're busy, or looking up the answer to their question or just trying to type it out. This is the low-end spectrum community scum that ruins a community and a game for everyone, and seems to simply feed the never-ending cirlce of a bad MMO community.

And, of course, once you do give up your precious time and swag, almost always they're ingrateful about it. They never remember you for your help and never repay the favor. You're simply a means to an end.

Actually, in some cases, there's a correlation. I've seen a case where a relatively new player began as a rash and a beggar, constantly trying to get my help and my time with no consideration, constantly trying to get my things and to help him with his quests and grinding and such. I take a small haitus, and when I return he's now many levels higher than me and practically treats me like I'm an underling, just another noob. He remembered me, but there was no thanks for everything I've ever done for him, and there was no return charity or consideration now that he was in a position to pay it back (I would have preferred to see him pay it forward more than back, but a little something would have been nice). He began to go silent and became more of a snob, looking on the new generation with a distinct and growing lack of respect much like the people he couldn't stand before. Sure, he came to my aid here and there, but it was very rare -- and not at all the sort of kindness he had been shown by me and many others. He went from the begging noob to the egotistical jerk leet, and it only leaves me to wonder if such had been the case with many other of these jerks. So perhaps the cycle of MMO community scum has to be stemmed when the players start, or else it simply escalates? Even so, I hope this call helps to clean up that end of the spectrum -- or else you can call them out yourselves and get them to cut out being an ass to everyone else.

So where's the middle ground? Simple: it's with those that show patience, show maturity, show intelligence, and don't let their egos go wild. They're the people who realize that they only play a game, and that they're interacting with people the same as them. And cleaning up the MMO community is as simple as just being cool, and being real. There's no reason why you can't check your ego or take a game easy, and yet many simply seem too undeveloped to be able to do so. The world is about them, and nobody else. All it takes is a reality check: it's just a game, and you're not cooler or better for it no matter what you do in the game. And show some patience: be considerate to the veterans and other players, and let the other players play and do what they need to. If you really need a question answered, look for the answer yourself -- and if you can't find it, don't be afraid to wait a little bit and be respectful. Alternately, for the veterans, get off your high horse and realize that these new players are just some dedication and in-game knowledge away from being where you are, and you want to embrace that. Elitists are never cool -- but someone humble and nice enough to look out for the little guys and help them up is always, always cool. These are the people that make an MMO community great, and will make even sub-par games fun for everybody.

The best MMO community remembers that it's only a game, plain and simple.