Many speak with one voice. It was a curious thing, witnessing it. I’ll do my best to catalogue the events here – this was a pretty fantastic, amazing, inspiring, experience of my life and I wish to do it justice. I and three friends woke up at 4:30am to get to Sydney in order to attend the Soundwave Festival 2010. We left Canberra as the sun was rising, and our excitement was building at about the same rate as the temperature. My three favourite bands at this time – Placebo, Alexisonfire, and Paramore – were all playing at the event, so understandably I was rather pumped up. So we got there and waited in line. Waited around. Saw the big stage. Saw the floods of people. Saw more floods of people. Saw still more people. There wasn’t enough room to swing a cat by the time the larger bands were on. I heard somewhere that there was over two hundred thousand people there, and at that point I could believe it. A roiling, broiling tide of people, all there for the music. I feel I should take a moment here to focus on the word ‘broiling’. It was hot. It was not mildly hot. It was not even uncomfortably hot. It was unbearable. It was ‘drink water constantly and dump half the bottle over your head, or you will die of heatstroke’ hot. It was sweltering, cramped, dusty heat. It was heat in which you could break an egg and have it fully cooked before it hit the ground. I’m not sure I’m getting across my feelings about the temperature, but it was HOT. So, to continue – my first hour or two at the festival was pretty uneventful. I sort of just wandered aimlessly, while there was still room to do so. Saw some things, giggled a lot – there was little in the way of drugs there, as sniffer dogs and police were crawling over the joint, but of course that can’t stop you from having something on the way up there – and about the time my high wore off, Alexisonfire were due to take the stage. I’m just going to take a brief moment to extend my rudest sentiment possible towards the duo who call themselves ‘The Eagles of Death Metal’ or whatever it was. You took fifteen minutes of my life in that mosh with your refusal to get off stage, your god-awful music and your deeply disturbing womanizing of members of the audience. You made me sit there, anxiously awaiting the arrival of my all-time favourite band in that broiling heat, surrounded by equally belligerent fans who were forced to endure your irritating antics. By the end of it, we were chanting obscenities at you in an effort to voice our disapproval and discomfit, and my voice was one of the loudest. In conclusion, fuck you and your crap music. So eventually Alexisonfire began to take the stage. I remember this pretty clearly. First on the scene was the drummer, and the two flanking guitarists – and then the lead singer arrived, clad in nothing but a pair of Canadian flag boxer shorts. The crowd promptly rushed the barrier, roaring at the top of their lungs. I was literally crushed against the people around me, the pressure on my ribcage so intense that I actually feared for my safety. I lifted my legs off the ground and I was suspended in the crush. Then they played their opening chords and we get to the phenomenon that leads me to write this blog in the first place. Picture it – you have a veritable swarm of individuals. They are hot. They are annoyed at the previous band. They are unbearably, shockingly, inextinguishably excited. They are packed in about as tight as humanity can pack in. They are waiting for something with bated breath, clenched guts, waiting with every ounce of energy they possess. This is active waiting. The tension is so thick that it’s beating you over the head, hard. And then it comes. Not only that, it comes and it surges down your spinal chord and into your lungs without bothering to pay a call on Mr. Brain on the way there. The opening line to Alexisonfire’s track ‘Drunks, Lovers, Sinners and Saints” is All right! This is from our hearts! This line is screamed, and it is screamed twice. The opening to the song is incredibly characteristic, and any fan would recognize it immediately – and so we all did. We hardly had a choice in the matter. It swept over us like a bolt of lightning, like a roaring fire (apt, considering our body temperature). Energy I had been expending trying to keep myself afloat in the mosh was suddenly diverted to screaming out the lyrics at the top of my lungs, along with everyone else around me. It was a shock to the system for two reasons – the first being that that which I had been waiting for was finally occurring, and the second being that, for me, other people knowing the words to the songs was a rare thing indeed. So they played their set. They played it and I could describe their idiosyncrasies, their verve. I could describe their pure passion and their amazing presence. But I’m not going to bother. A lot of bands did that, that day. Paramore put on a fantastic show – Hayley Williams has tremendous presence. Placebo was awe-inspiring, true professionals at work. But Alexisonfire, for me, was the life-changing band of the day – because every moment they played, every second of the songs, I was in the thick of it. I was there screaming out lyrics with everyone around me, thousands of people speaking, singing, shouting and screaming, but all with one voice. To be a part of that whole, to be experiencing that feeling – it was a turning point in my life. I emerged from that pit a changed person. I am eternally grateful for the experience.
(P.S If you have never heard of a band called the Aquabats, as I had not until that day, do yourself a favour and go investigate them. Trust me. It’s worth it just for the what-the-fuck value.)
First. Pen gripped tight - the symbol of might. Eyes shut - against distraction, concentration. Inspiration, to dictation. Pen scribes, dancing eyes, expressive lies. As if possessed - but blessed! Simplistic rhyme, in order to keep time. First.
Second. Now they've heard, soften the words. Smooth, as the pen moves. Guide the mind along a groove. Gently, gently - do not assume, make room. Allow them to consume. Second.
Third Extend your art. Reach towards the heart. You can speak, but do not appear to be weak - unique! Magnifique. Your intent, it fills with fire, the mind is soaring higher. Resonates, but do not allow debate. Third.
Four. Profanities. Cuss words and sleaze. Hit them rough, give it to them tough. Discontent about what's meant. Rhyme and reason roughly bent. Alow their old perception to be completely rent. Shock and awe. Four.
Five. Act - you've bound them to a pact. Their minds assured, no longer bored, give them their reward. Conclusion, repitition, remember your exhibition. Don't explain - that's a drain - leave it to their brain, the same. Remove the mask, finished your task, they only have to ask. Five.
3)What is your job or career? Are you happy where you work?
Draugrim: I recently quit my job. I've been working the last 2 years in ISP tech support. I loved helping people when their internet failed, but the reason I ended up quitting was because I was sick of the abuse of people calling me for assistance. People are viciously abusive when they're not looking at you in the face.
Baesty: Currently unemployed and financed by the Australian tax payers, thank you Centrelink.
Arahu: Law clerk – due to some unfortunate life choices involving dragging out my studies needlessly, I have outgrown my position but will hopefully shortly be rid of it.
Irshy: Student, un-employed, frustrated and seeking work.
4)How long have you been playing World of Warcraft for? What attracted you to the game?
Draugrim: I started playing WoW towards the end of BC, just before ZA came out. So I think nearly 3 years? I first started playing because a friend of mine was always raving about it and I had watched him play at his house. My girlfriend of the time was going to Melbourne for 3 weeks, so she told me I could install it on her computer (mine was terrible at the time.) So he lent me his account to give it a try and I fell in love (much to my girlfriend's ire).
Like so many people have said, I've always been a big fan of RPG's, specifically Diablo 1 & 2, All the Final Fantasys and Breath of Fire, and I've alawys been a social creature, so naturally WoW captured me pretty effectively.
Baesty: I’ve been playing since just before AQ was released, so I’d estimate at a little under 5 years.I was originally attracted to the game because of the Warcraft lore; I played Warcraft quite a bit but have always preferred RPGs over RTSs so naturally WoW sounded perfect to me.
Arahu: I think since not long after it launched? It’s Blizzard-made, so it can’t be too terrible, right?
Irshy: I played for 3 and half years, I was attracted via Warcraft 3 / Orcs
5)How often do you play World of Warcraft? How do you balance your time?
Draugrim: I play every day now, due to not working. When I was working, I'd limit myself to only raid evenings and Saturday mornings for farming.
I try to balance my time by setting in game goals for the moment. IE: Get an alt up a level or two, or catch so many fish, or do a certain amount of heroics. Doing things like this means time doesn't escape me so I can still do the things that need doing. I've found that if I don't do this, I look at the clock and its 5 hours since I last checked and the day has been wasted. I abhore doing that.
Baesty: I am on most days, for many hours at a time.I will be quite blunt in saying that I struggle to manage my time spent playing this game responsibly.
Arahu: I raid four nights a week for about four hours at a time and try to limit my
non-raiding game time as much as possible.
Irshy: ? I’ve quit but I have gone through periods of WoW taking precedent over other aspects, WoW when I couldn’t do anything else.
6)Do you find World of Warcraft a positive or negative aspect of your life?
Draugrim: This is somewhat of a trick question, I think. If it was a negative aspect of my life, I wouldn't be doing it. People say the game is addictive (which it certainly can be), but its not crack and slowly eating out my insides. I've made so many friends with this game (many of whom I've met face to face) and its a really fun hobby. If I wasn't playing Warcraft, I'd just be playing other games and $15 a month for unlimited gameplay sure beats the hell out of $100 for a new game that I finish in a couple of days.
Baesty: Half-half.The positives include the social environment and the friends that I have made, my ability to work well in teams, and has helped me gain leadership skills.The negatives include the social environment, the amount of time I spend playing it, my declining fitness, and the amount that I think about the game outside of playing it.
Arahu: Both. The more deeply invested one becomes in running or contributing to a guild (a near-compulsory aspect of the so-called “end-game”), the more rewarding one’s experience is capable of being. The experience also becomes progressively more stressful. Guilds, I surmise, are no different from any real-life organisation which sets out to accomplish particular goals: personalities get in the way, as does the usual politicking, &c.
Irshy: ? It was both, positive in aspects of social and interesting/distracting. Negative in that I let it become an escape.
7)What would you say about the social structure of the game?
Draugrim: I love it. In between guilds, my ignore list and trade chat, I can chat with who I want, when I want. I can type /dnd and people don't bug me in whispers, or I can be loud and vocal in guild chat.
The two biggest social aspects of this game that I've observed over the last couple of years are trade chat and the forums. The forums are a cesspit of whining, ego-preening and trolls. Its like 4chan, but with a purpose. I absolutely love it. I'm an avid attender of the WoW general forums and I try to take all sides of it. I troll, I offere advice and I ask questions. You can see people from all walks of life on the fourms, all come together to complain about the same thing. One thing I've learnt is to always take the comments with a grain of salt. As they say, “screenshot or it didn't happen.”
Trade chat is much the same, only its more fast paced due to not having a 1 minute post timer. The trolls on trade chat are usually pretty terrible, but every now and again you find someone who is absolutely fantastic at it (see; Mightymoe and Killakozza.) You can talk to anyone about anything if you can filter out the “stop spamming trade.” You see heated arguments about anything at all, from American Politics to which Naruto character has the sexiest hair. Everyone can bring in their own soap box and say whatever they want, and there will always be someone to argue or agree with them. It really brings out the right to free speech in some people. Yes, you get the asshats, yes you get the people who are far too srsface, but its like that no matter where you go, online or off. People are just more willing to put forward their opinions when hidden behind an all powerful warrior or whatever.
Baesty: I find it a fascinating social structure, and as I mentioned earlier it has both a positive and a negative impact on myself, other subscribers, and the game in general.I value a lot of the people I have met through WoW, but have also fallen victim to chronic verbal abuse and harassment.Hell, I’ve even dished out my fair share of abuse.I’ve seen people quit the game due to abuse that is rife on many servers, but Nagrand in particular seems to have a rather... stale and immature population of players.
Arahu: As noted, guilds are near-compulsory aspects of the end-game. This is a
double-edged sword, as I’ve noted.
Irshy: The social structure of the game for the most part, is reflective of a high school system.
8)Do you believe society has a fair or unfair view on the game?
Draugrim: Fair, I think. If someone came up to me and told me they spent as many hours as I do on WoW playing baseball or something, I'd think they were crazy and they must have something more interesting to do, but if its what they find entertaining, then props to them. Society has the same look at WoW. Gamers are becoming more and more the norm in todays world than they were say 10 years ago, so the view of people who spend a lot of time playing games is getting better.
There have been quite a few times where I've mentioned to random people at pubs that I play games, and when asked which ones and I reply with WoW, often they give me the look of “oh god” and they always have a story of someone who was sucked into the game, but thats about as bad as it gets.
Baesty: Ah, I’m such a fence sitter.I think that society as a whole has a very skewed view of video games, and WoW in particular.WoW seems to have taken up the reins of game addiction that Everquest ‘founded’, and therein lies most of the concern.I can see where society draws its concern from, but I think that a lot of it has been blown out of proportion.
Arahu: The societal view of the game is absolutely prejudiced and unashamedly so. Raiding three nights a week is a hobby and is no different from practising cello or captaining the soccer team three nights a week, but the majority view is that scheduling time to play a video game is a sign of social dysfunction or simple ‘having no life’ (presumably indicating no social life).
Irshy: I believe society has an uninformed view on the game, so in many aspects unfair.
9)What would you say is the best part of World of Warcraft?
Draugrim: Tough question. I'm going to answer with “What I enjoy doing most”, and thats raiding. Raiding combines every part of WoW that I love, from the social aspect of it, to actually killing monsters, to exploring the lore. I've spent time as a casual raider and hardcore raider, both 10 and 25. I've been in the top guild on the server and I've been in some of the lowest. I've loved them all. You get to do what the entire leveling process was building you up for, and thats to be the absolute best at your character that you can be, and to work with 9/24 other people to achieve what you're going for. With raiding you get to try all sorts of different fights, you get to earn some amazing looking gear and you get to explore all of the storyline, from kel'thazad's stupidly long speech to the Aspect of the Blue Dragonflight going slowly crazy.
Baesty: The lore, and the friends.
Arahu: The social aspect,
Irshy: Escapism.
10)What would you say is the worst part of World of Warcraft?
Draugrim: The fact that pvp and pve have the same rules. I do enjoy pvp every now and again and don't get me wrong, I'm not saying pvp is the worst part of it, just that they follow the same ruleset for stats, damage and healing. Because of the way druids healing works in pve, we see them become the monsters they are in arena, and because rogues were dominating in pvp, we saw them nearly fade into oblivion in raids. I don't know how it could be fixed, if I did I might have a job at Blizard, but the way it works now just doesn't. I think the 10% healing nerf in pvp that was added quite recently is a good step in the right direction, but it still won't be enough.
Baesty: The community at large, and Blizzard buttraping the lore to rake in more moolah.
Arahu: The social aspect.
Irshy: Escapism.
11)Do you see yourself playing World of Warcraft long-term or short-term? Do you have any reason to consider giving the game up?
Draugrim: I won't be playing at the rate I'm playing forever. During BC, when I decided I wanted to be a raider, I worked my way up the food chain from farming kara to farming black temple. I was never at the top and I never saw the bosses as they were released. My aim in WotLK has been to do just that; be at the forefront of raiding. The guilds I've been in haven't always been the first to down the boss, but we've always gotten there in the end. I think once cata comes out, I might fall back into a more casual position. The main reason for this is because this game can take up far too much of my time, and I miss actually doing more in real life. The other reason is the lore of deathwing doesn't interest me as much as the lore of Arthas does.
Baesty: I will continue to play for as long as it provides ‘joy’.I couldn’t tell you how long, however I do hold the intention to cease playing once SWTOR is in beta/released.
Arahu: That would depend on whether the game experience evolves sufficiently to keep my interest, which is doubtful in the very-long term. It is also likely that the friendships one forms in the game will eventually come to an end when one’s friends move on from the game. This would provide a significant disincentive to keep playing, given the strength of the social aspect of the game. It’s hard to be long-termist about these things: I would like to keep playing the game beyond the release of the next expansion and have active plans for my character beyond that date, but I may become so bored or frustrated with the current content or guild dramas before then that I quit in rage or despondency.
Irshy: I have, mostly because I don’t wish to use that form of escapism anymore, and to focus on study.
12)For my own personal amusement, what is your fondest memory of World of Warcraft?
Draugrim: Easy one. Watching Illidan die for the first time after his talk with Maiv. Those two have always been my favourite characters in the warcraft series, so actually getting to fight and defeat him will always hold true as my fondest memory in this game. The fight itself was amazingly developed, and if people were terrible, it didn't get done. My screenshot folder is filled with me mashing the print screen button before the fight, during it and afterwards. I was sad to see him die, but I was happy to have been a part of his defeat.
Baesty: I have a general fondness for the time spent with members of , but a couple of things that really stick out for me would be the world events prior to the release of AQ, Naxx, BC, and WotLK.Zombie camping Stormwind AH was fantastic.
Arahu: These will hopefully not require explanation as I’m convinced you experienced them yourself:
a.“Don’t call them Abos just because they carry sticks”; and
b.“I need to log – I’m a goblin.”
Both in the context of a scheduled raid.
Irshy: When Irshuugo the orc warrior and Almanach the human warlock had an in game marriage.
13)Is there anything else you’d like to add?
Draugrim: Not everyone is as big an asshole as they seem online. Sometimes they just like to show off.
Baesty: Not really, but to anyone reading this: JOIN OUR BC CONTENT GUILD K?
