Reading through a particular video game’s forums is like rubbernecking at a car accident: it’s ugly, but you cannot help looking. There are posts praising the game, posts that nitpick on certain aspects of the game; posts in which someone is asking for help, and posts that offer help. Bickering is the norm in video game forums, with people screaming at each other insisting that his or her opinion is the correct one.

One common post found in video game forums, particularly for an MMORPG, revolves around a player having difficulty with a quest. Often, you read incomprehensible rants from frustrated players who claim that the quest or instance is too hard, and demand to nerf it so it can be easier. This is in spite of the countless other people who have successfully completed it. Usually, no amount of suggestions or advice will satisfy posters of such rants. And woe to the person who suggests that perhaps the complainer isn’t experienced enough to play his character, as it will be met with an icy, “I know how to play my class.”

Oh, really?

It doesn’t matter that you’ve been playing since Open Beta. It doesn’t matter if you have five high level toons. It doesn’t matter if you only have one toon that you play often. The quest isn’t too hard, it’s not bugged, and it’s not unfair. Sometimes you’ll have to suck it up and admit that the problem lies with you, not the game.

Admitting that the problem is with the self is often a tough pill to swallow. Social psychologists call this phenomena a self-serving bias, in which people tend to attribute negative experiences or failures to the situation. On the flip side, people tend to attribute positive circumstances to personal factors. In other words, if something good happens it’s because of that person but if something bad happens, it’s because of the situation.

Self-serving bias is a common occurrence. Several years ago I played miniature golf with my now husband, who got a better score than me. He praised himself on his skills. A few weeks later we returned to the same mini golf course, but this time I won. He blamed his loss on the poorly maintained astroturf and shoddy equipment. When I tried to suggest that perhaps he just didn’t play a good game that day, he wouldn’t hear of it.

In terms of games, it’s understandable that failing a particular quest or dying repeatedly in an instance is frustrating, but instead of ranting in the forums demanding that content be nerfed, take a deep breath. Maybe it really was your fault. So what? Just deal with it and take a second look at the situation. Is your toon geared properly? Does it have decent stats? What was the group makeup (if you were in a group)? Was the boss throwing out debuffs that needed removal? Should you have been using certain skill combos?

Accepting that yes, sometimes the problem does lie with you will help your blood pressure in the long run — not just in video games but in real life.

One Response to “It’s Not the Game, it’s You”

1. Shaquil says:

   August 12, 2009 at 7:30 pm

   Interesting read. It’s definitely something that spans across all forms of competative gaming, not just MMO’s. I’m, sadly, a culprit of this crime. Guess I better do some soul searching lol