al·tru·ism
–noun
1.the principle or practice of unselfish concern for or devotion to the welfare of others (opposed to egoism).
MMORPG
-abbreviation of
massive(ly) multiplayer online role-playing game: an internet-based computer game set in a virtual world, which can be played by many people at the same time, each of whom can interact with the others .
As so, so many of us are experiencing, Wrath of the Lich King is ending. Some of us have the willpower to let the Sundering come upon them organically, others, like myself and Beru, have been chipping away at bucket lists/to-do lists, whatever ya wanna call them.
For me, achievement junkie that I am, I’ve been trying to finish and clear up a variety of bits and pieces. I have managed to miss out on two full Ulduar drake clears by having other social commitments (yes, me, doing things with REAL people. Granted one was my mum, but hey, it totally counts.). However I have spent the last 4 – 6 weeks trying to finish off other aims.
I started to do fun-run nights of old content on a Friday – I try and mix things up, do places in a different order, try and be as inclusive as possible.
I also do the same on a Saturday afternoon, except on a Saturday we are working our way through Tier 7 content – Naxxramas, Malygos and also Onyxia.
A fortnight ago, we fought our way through the Malygos bug of him resetting to full health on entering phase 3 and defeated him getting the speed kill. So – in our heroic ICC gear (the drakes do scale, right?), we can down him in phase 3 from full health to nothing, with 9 people (one DCed), and get the speed kill. Go and try it, we all felt very overpowered and exceptionally smug, especially as he was such a bastard to us in level-appropriate gear.
That speed kill earned me my Glory of the Raider achievement. I’d like to point out – I realise we totally outgear the content – but it’s not about that. It’s about completing things, because I’m OCD.
However, the week after that, I built up my list on the forum of interested parties and ran the instances again. During that run we managed to get four people their Glory achievements – my favourite paladin (now Zal’s deserted me!), one of our guild’s main tanks, our rogue Class Leader and then another one of our rogues. This final one was the most comical – all he was missing was Gonna Go When The Volcano Blows, so to ensure he got it he got naked (except for a tabard to cover modesty of course) and threw himself in the lava.
I’m having a Saturday off this week, but next week we’re going to go back again and I’m going to try and clear it up for a couple of other people that have consistently helped out.
One of them needs The Undying so that’s going to be interesting, but I think it’s certainly possible.
You know, I get a real buzz when those achievements pop (or don’t pop due to the current bug). I like it that I’ve been able to be part of something that’s helped make somebody else happy. Or that’s helped make somebody else smile. Helped make somebody else achieve something (see what I did thar?) they wanted to achieve.
Now please note: I’m not making myself out to be some super selfless wonderwoman. I can be totally selfish. I tend to avoid groups when there’s someone present I don’t get on with. If I know someone stands in fire a lot, I will often body swerve them in 5 mans. If someone has the survivability of a Asda brand rich tea in a mug of hot chocolate, then I won’t res them. The fuckers can run back.
But I like helping nice people out.
There’s also a commitment issue. I’ve started to put a disclaimer on my Friday night old-content runs. If you want something, you come for the whole night. I understand some people have time constraints, but what is it with this, “well I’ll come for one thing but I don’t want anything from the other instances so I don’t want to bother”. I’ve not needed anything from Mount Hyjal, Black Temple, AQ40, BWL or Sunwell (except the smelting book but thats not really a “need”) in like…well, since my first run where I dinged exalted with The Scale of the Sands.
Why do people presume that they are the centre of the universe? I mean, do they think I’m running this instance purely for them? I mean…I understand things like time constraints, I understand someone really wanting something badly and that being it, but what happened to comradeship? It’s an MMORPG. We play with others. Some of us choose to be guilded with other people as well. Everytime I’ve moved guilds, I’ve made an informed choice, a LOT of which has had to do with how the guild is known, socially. And once someone is my guildie, it is my mission to help them in ANY way I can. I want to help. So not only is someone playing a multiplayer game, they are choosing to associate themselves further with a community – their guild.
Yet self-centred-ness (I don’t care if it’s not a word) does sometimes override, and it confuses me.
I debated for a long time over publishing this which is why it’s partially out-of-date but the principle stands – how many people do we interact with in this game, that we give so much to, that give nothing back?
Surely bloggers – most of which seem to be the altruistic type, by our nature to want to share information and opinions with others, I expect – can’t be the only ones in game?
It sounds like you derive a great level of personal satisfaction from helping others. Others that you, according to your reason and judge of character, consider “of value” to you personally. Is that fair to say?
If that’s the case, then I’m sorry, you are an egoist – as is every rational being on this planet.
To act “altruistically” – you must act contrary to your values. To act “unselfishly” commands that you sacrifice your values – and pursue a lesser value – or someone else’s values.
The fact that you enjoy helping others who you judge worthy of your assistance is a clear indication that you both value and act according to your values – as they suit your interests.
Sorry to rant – it just grinds my gears when the concept of altruism is, however innocently, misrepresented as egoism–the only rational ethic for a human being seeking to live among other human beings – and not simply an animal among beasts.
/rant off
I think you misunderstand me.
I would never use somebody in such a way – ie if they are “of value” to me.
I think it’s actually quite harsh to make the presumption that I’m using people for my own satisfaction.
If I was acting contrary to my values, wouldn’t I be…doing nothing? Sitting in Dalaran, trolling trade, making a nuisance of myself (ie, things I “dislike” or “disapprove” of).
I also said that I quite frequently am selfish with my game time (what with it being my game time). The point of my post is mainly a query – do other people think it is so unjust to expect people to help each other?
I think you judge me quite nastily here.
Oh and as a second – I pulled my definition of altruism from a dictionary – apologies if they and therefore I was wrong.
Actually Veni did, to be fair, assert that they felt your how they’d represented your mindset (as an egoist) was
“the only rational ethic for a human being seeking to live among other human beings”
so I wouldn’t read too much into it being a nasty assessment.
Personally, I learnt through organising stuff in game that the only sensible option was for me to only organise shit I wanted to do. Helping everyone do their achievements is all well and good but I got sick of never getting any help with my own so I saw no point in doing further runs to help people who wouldn’t reciprocate. It actually led to an argument in one of my “Ulduar wrap up run” threads on our forums where I’d explicitally stated “We’re not here to do mount achievements”. Someone wanted to do said achievements and thought I was being selfish for refusing to do any of them.
I was being selfish but I had cause to be. 1) I was organising a run specifically to do the achievements you never do because people always want drakes and 2) Doing them negatively impacted my goals by making it either impossible to do the achievements myself and the rest of the group wanted, or impacting the time we had to do them in. The person in question whined for a while, tried to find their own group then begged to be taken along and whined for the entire instance that they only needed x or y and “why couldn’t we just do that achievment next week?”. I never invited them again.
Much of the time I found the people who would call me selfish were the people who were actually guilty of it themselves. I’d agree with you though – Leaving the run after you’ve got what you wanted isn’t exactly cool. I’d either stay for the whole run, or if I was pressed for time find my replacement.
On a second reading of my post – I believe I was unclear.
Let me first say that I find your conduct, as you’ve outlined it in your blog post, to be exemplary – something to be cherished – indicative of a human being acting in the most rational, noblest way possible.
My comment was harsh – but not as an attack on your conduct, or you in particular; rather, it was an attack on the stolen concept – the idea that altruism is somehow a worthy pursuit while egoism is something to condemn.
Allow me to explain.
To act altruistically requires that you put the needs and desires of others before your own. To act altruistically would require that you help others obtain their achievements before you even consider doing yours. Moreover, whether some individuals are nasty, unscrupulous scoundrels, is irrelevent – if you are truly seeking to act altruistically. The fact that they “need” your help is all that is required. An altruist can not use their own reason and personal values to direct their efforts – else, you would be acting according to your own values.
For instance: I value my friendships, both in game and in real life – and I act on those values by assisting them in game and in real life. Why do I value those friendships and act in that way? That’s entirely up to me. I am an individual – with unique experiences – and there is no “one right answer” here.
Consider further: I value the struggle in WoW. The struggle to better yourself through the betterment of your skill in the game and advancement of your character. I cherish individual human life – and the joy that minor accomplishments (achievements) in game bring to people. So long as those people are people that “share” my values – such as honesty, integrity, perseverence, etc etc etc – I value their struggle and seek to support them – whether strangers or otherwise.
I – and I assert that you – are acting as egoists. Which, I further asserted, is the only rational way for a human being to live – as we are individuals within a society – not bees in a hive or cogs in a machine.
I don’t think you would ever sit in Dalaran and troll trade chat – because such behaviour is contrary to your values – whatever those might happen to be.
The crux of my argument is that there is a larger consideration: your self-interest. Sometimes, as you aptly pointed out – “your” game time is your game time and you, on occasion, just want to be left alone and do your own thing. Great. This is you acting in your self-interest. However, when you see a few people struggling for an achievement – and kindly request your assistance – you do so not because you are acting altruistically – but because you value their struggle – you value other individuals, like yourself – and are acting in your self-interest by paying it forward – by contributing to a larger WoW community that shares your values.
As I said – I consider your actions to be a model of virtue and as such, are beyond reproach.