Imagine that you were invited to play football for your country in an important international game that was being televised to a worldwide audience and when the referee blew his whistle to start the game, you confessed to your captain, that you did not understand the rules of football, in fact that you had never played football before, but that you had played pool a few times.
How do you imagine that you, your captain, your team mates and the whole viewing audience would feel? Mortified, annoyed, upset, let down? This is how a lot of beginners (newbies) think about going into a colossal, online, interactive multi-player game like 'Dungeons and Dragons' for the first time. They are concerned that they will ruin the game for everybody else.
And it is a fair point, but everyone in that game was a newbie once and there are steps you could take to learn a few pointers before you begin playing. The very first thing to do, is find the game that you want to play and read the manual.
And then read it again and again. The game you decide on may also have a practice zone, where you won't displease the skilled players.
If you see the letters RTFM after you have asked a question of someone, you will know that you did not read the (effing) manual thoroughly enough and that it is time to read it again.
You could also join forums about the game in question. Frequently there is a forum attached to the game itself. People are far more friendly and will be much more tolerant in the forum than in the game.
Trust me, the Wizard of Daz would rather get asked where the bathroom is whilst he is in the forum than whilst he is battling his archfoe!
You also have to acquaint yourself with the controls of the game. There will be shortcut keys for things like inventory, spells, weaponry, jump, cast a spell, turn left etc etc., so learn them until they become second nature. Again, it is very tedious if every time someone meets you in a game, you ask: "Excuse me, but how do I ....".
Don't be amazed if people begin shooting you on sight, if that is how you propose playing the game. Which brings us to another important point: it is just a game. You win some and you lose some and like chess or checkers, if you lose, you merely reset the game and start again. Don't let your death become boring when it is unavoidable. Resign yourself to your fate, fall on your sword and start again.
The last essential for a immense online multi-player interactive gaming experience is a fast Internet connection and a moderately new computer although the connection speed is the more vital.
Fellow players are not going to wait for your arrow to kill them as it flies from your bow and speeds across the screen towards them at a snail's pace - they will simply side step it, walk over to you and put you out of their misery with a dagger before your arrow gets to where they once were.
How do you imagine that you, your captain, your team mates and the whole viewing audience would feel? Mortified, annoyed, upset, let down? This is how a lot of beginners (newbies) think about going into a colossal, online, interactive multi-player game like 'Dungeons and Dragons' for the first time. They are concerned that they will ruin the game for everybody else.
And it is a fair point, but everyone in that game was a newbie once and there are steps you could take to learn a few pointers before you begin playing. The very first thing to do, is find the game that you want to play and read the manual.
And then read it again and again. The game you decide on may also have a practice zone, where you won't displease the skilled players.
If you see the letters RTFM after you have asked a question of someone, you will know that you did not read the (effing) manual thoroughly enough and that it is time to read it again.
You could also join forums about the game in question. Frequently there is a forum attached to the game itself. People are far more friendly and will be much more tolerant in the forum than in the game.
Trust me, the Wizard of Daz would rather get asked where the bathroom is whilst he is in the forum than whilst he is battling his archfoe!
You also have to acquaint yourself with the controls of the game. There will be shortcut keys for things like inventory, spells, weaponry, jump, cast a spell, turn left etc etc., so learn them until they become second nature. Again, it is very tedious if every time someone meets you in a game, you ask: "Excuse me, but how do I ....".
Don't be amazed if people begin shooting you on sight, if that is how you propose playing the game. Which brings us to another important point: it is just a game. You win some and you lose some and like chess or checkers, if you lose, you merely reset the game and start again. Don't let your death become boring when it is unavoidable. Resign yourself to your fate, fall on your sword and start again.
The last essential for a immense online multi-player interactive gaming experience is a fast Internet connection and a moderately new computer although the connection speed is the more vital.
Fellow players are not going to wait for your arrow to kill them as it flies from your bow and speeds across the screen towards them at a snail's pace - they will simply side step it, walk over to you and put you out of their misery with a dagger before your arrow gets to where they once were.
About the Author:
Owen Jones, the writer of this article, writes on numerous subjects, but is at present concerned with Mortal Kombat Quotes. If you have an interest in gaming, please go over to our website now at Mortal Kombat 4.
