Gaming: Key Mashing

Sister Crabarina - Lvl 50 Crab

I haven't been blogging much and it's really due to a hodge-podge of reasons ranging from work, the general lack of need to elucidate anything in particular and recently, City of Villains. Gaming has always been a particularly attractive past time of mine or vice, if you prefer. The ability to immerse oneself in another world and the visual gratificiation one obtains from being an actual participant in the said world sufficient to hold one in enthrall. Add the sense of accomplishment one obtains from achieving various objectives to mix and you have a basic understanding of the allure gaming holds for so many, including yours truly. Which is why when I game, I game. And when I don't, I don't even log on. All or nothing.

I've returned to City of Villains, the sinister counterpart to City of Heroes, again. There is always something alluring about good old games (or ongoing ones, to put it more aptly in today's gaming scene of MMORPGS). And in terms of the ability to customise your very own villain from scratch right down to the markings on his or her bum, CoV / CoH remains the undisputed champion. I needn't say more.

Things have certainly changed since I left. For one, powerlevelling a toon to 50 these days is almost disgustingly fast thanks to the farms. Not that I'm complaining. In the short span of under a month, I got three new villains and an old character to 50 with time to grind for more phat loot. It's almost like a little family of mutants.



Icky Irene - Lvl 50 Dominator

I never cease to be amazed by the myriad characters that form the diaspora of gamers. From the truly imbecilic to warm humorous people who are a real blast to game with. By and large especially for MMORPGs (which require one to interact with other players), interaction with your fellow gamers forms a significant portion of your gaming experience and determines how enjoyable the game is.

Naturally, a shitty game cannot be rescued by any form of enjoyable interaction between players, assuming that such a thing would even be possible in the first place as people won't even stay long enough to be able to interact in a shitty game. Player Interaction is essential but not sufficient.



Black Momma - lvl 50 Mastermind

That said and done, gaming can be a refreshingly brainless activity. Oh, I know what they always say about strategizing, the need to plan how to achieve ones objectives but seriously how difficult or mentally taxing is it to game? Even working towards objectives remains enjoyable and the actual process of fighting is really a matter of a few well placed mouse clicks and fearsome key mashing.

So much so that you actually remember certain sequences of keys to mash in certain situations for certain characters. Which for Sister Crabarina, my 50 Crab, would be something like 5, 6, Delete, L, Click, 7, 3, 4, 1, rinse and repeat. Sequences which might appear like some hermetic cabalistic code straight out of the Da Vinci Code. But gaming's not rocket science, never is, never was. And for that reason, it remains highly attractive in all its psychedelic glory, for now.



Lady Sadis - Lvl 50 Fortunata