The Blogtastic Blogfest That Is Getmeoutofthis.net!

Dear person who is asking me to get on voice for Battlefield: Bad Company 2,

First off, let me just say that you’re awesome. I really appreciate you wanting me involved and wanting to talk to me. That’s really cool! You’re being all awesome and friendly, and that is great.

However, I don’t really want to get on voice, and it’s not about you. It’s about how I play the game.

You all are working to win. You’re calling out enemy positions and coordinating attacks. That’s neat, don’t get me wrong. But that’s, again, attempting to win, a goal I don’t really share. I mean, sure, winning is nice, and I’m not going to throw the game. And if our enjoyment depended on victory, you know I’d be there. Left 4 Dead? No way I’m not voice-chatting. You have to coordinate to have fun.

However, the main enjoyment I get from playing these kinds of shooters stems from two things. One is just completely and utterly zoning out. Maybe putting on a podcast or music and just relaxing while I mindlessly shoot dudes. The other is due to the level progression these games now offer. The second, voice chat does not affect. The first, it does.

Coordination takes energy. It takes thought, and work. It is the opposite of the completely stress-less, mindless enjoyment I work for when I boot up a shooter. Again, in a setting made uniquely for that, I’m down, but I don’t really feel like Battlefield is. I feel like I can be effective by actually playing the Medic role, unlike some people, even without coordinating. If spotting and other game systems are actually working right, which, honestly, is not always the case, most of the benefit of talking on voice chat is mitigated as well. It just often doesn’t seem worth it to me.

You guys are awesome. I enjoy playing with you, and it’s not like I’m not going to get on voice chat and enjoy playing with you all. You are cool. But if I seem hesitant, I just want you to know why. It’s just not how I play the game. It’s not that I don’t want to play with you, it’s just counter to how I approach the thing. That’s all.

Hope that clears up any confusion.

Sincerely,
poetfox