I've been playing online for about two years now, and while there are some very kind players out there, it seems to me that the vast majority are cruel and insensitive, both ingame and in forums for the particular game. Currently, i am playing "Perfect World International", and have been since shortly after it went open beta. back then, it was fantastic- the graphics are beautiful, the characters are so cool (my main is a fox who morphs into a human with fox ears and tail, who partners with pets she catches to accomplish quests). when we started, people were helpful and eager to explore and play together. but in the last 6 months or so, its become a far different game, with players only playing for greedy reasons, and making life miserable for those who cant afford the highest levels of gear and pets. one pet has become the gold standard, a cash shop pet that costs over $200+ in real life money. if you dont have it, as a veno (what my character is)you will have a *very* hard time getting into squads, or getting help for quests you need.

i never would have dreamed that my disabilties (mental/emotional/physical) would ever have any effect on my playing a game where no one would ever see *me*, that they would see 'the real me'. well, i guess i learned that what the world sees, even through typed chat ingame, is an autistic (Aspergers) mom with severe depression that would show when people would throw me out of squads when they found out i didnt have the $200 baby hercules, and taunt and harass me for ' not trying hard enough,' 'lazy', 'looking for handouts' and worse. and all this from people in various guild i would be in, where we are supposed to be working together, helping each other accomplish game goals.

It is much worse in the game's forum. both game and forum are poorly moderated nowadays, with the staff stretched out to cover 3 online games and forums of the PWD company. so the games' TOSs are never enforced, and people say and do whatever they like. Perfect World has both PVP and PVE servers- i play **ONLY** on PvE....cant take the stresss of living, looking over my shoulder for someone to kill me. but they manage it on the forums....turning even the most simple post of mine into something they can attack me with, and going so far as to urge me to suicide. the forums used to be fun and friendly, and we all knew each other and our backgrounds, so people know mine there.

My point in all this retoric is: is it just me, or are MMORPGs full of people who are aggressive and hate filled because of the aggressive nature of what they play? PWI is *not* an aggressive game, full of shooting, violent areas and such....its so beautiful. so i cant figure out why i cant play there quietly with the few friends i have, post politely in the forums on subjects im interested in, without having people jump on me to shred me to bits.

for me, this is my only way to interact with the world...my disabilties keep me at home. to lose the games would be a disaster. but i cant understand why games, with so many people, can single out one to attack and make a target because of her disabilties...

I think it really depends on the game and the players. My son has Asperger's and I have depression, and we both have been able to play World of Warcraft without too many problems. Did I read right that the game you are playing has a useful item that costs $200 in real money? That is ridiculous, in my opinion. I'm sorry that the people have become so cruel and that the staff is not able to help. You may want to consider finding a game that is moderated better.

The unfortunate truth here is that ANY game will have its share of this sort of harsh, egomaniacal power-player that has little to no respect for anyone else that gets their jollies on trolling & taunting other people ("asshats" in MMO parlance). It has absolutely nothing to do with the nature of the game (be it medieval, sci-fi, lighthearted fantasy etc.). That's getting into the whole "if you play Grand Theft Auto you'll become a criminal" argument which doesn't really hold water. Whether you're playing a hugely popular title like World of Warcraft or a much smaller free-to-play game like Perfect World, these people will always be present. It's just...the nature of massively multiplayer games. When you get that many people together, there invariably will be a good percentage of jerks in the mix. The important thing to keep in mind is that it has absolutely nothing to do with you and your disability. While it may feel like you're being singled out, that's just the way these people operate, and I guarantee that they are finding someone else to pick on when you're not around for not being as "1337" as them.

The trick to avoiding this sort of idiot player is to develop a social circle within the game. While the presence of these trolls may make the entire community seem hostile, I guarantee you there are plenty of other cool people playing that just want to have casual fun like you. Once you connect with enough of them, you really won't need to depend on randomly grouping up with this sort of hostile folks you run across from time to time. Back when I played WoW, I had very little interest in being one of those people who plays 18 hours a day to blitz through high-end content and be "the best," so I found a guild that was into the same play style that I was. After I joined up with them, I had very little interaction with the "internet bullies" that you tend to run across in WoW.

So I guess my point is this: try not to get too discouraged. In real life, there are cool & friendly people and then there are jackasses. The Internet is no different. All you can do it either is try to surround yourself with a solid bubble of the former and avoid ever needing to interact with the latter whenever possible. You won't be able to COMPLETELY avoid them, and you certainly won't find a game where they don't exist. But if you can find a few good friends in-game that you can regularly play with, I guarantee you that you'll enjoy yourself a lot more.

Hiya Pikachu,

First, any MMO is going to have jerks, as 3 said, it's just a matter of working around them. Personally I managed to form a click of four core people who know about my disability and don't care. But I will say this, even given that I am the associate editor at the biggest gaming disability website... I still don't share my disability. Of course, I don't exactly hide it either. Anyone can look up Bearstion or my real name and trace it back here, but I'm not going to advertise that I'm different.

Why?

Because there has always been and will probably always be some level of stigma attached to being different. There are many parallels I can draw and we all know them, most people are not accepting of those who are different.

However, and that's a big however, there are certain people who are worthy of your trust. People who you could tell about all of your problems and who would accept you for who you are.

you need to go to a game that is more strictly enforced. There are a number of them that you can look up here, World of Warcraft, Warhammer online, Aion, Star Trek, Star Wars, etc. find a bigger game that you enjoy,where they actually pay people to enforce better behavior.

I will tell you that for as much as some of the people around here are not World of Warcraft fans, wow is one of the most friendly forums I have seen. Aion is also surprisingly supportive. Both of them would be a more hospitable home for you.

games can never be taken from you. There are good people out there.I would like to think that our forum is one of those places where people can come and not feel judged. My recommendation would be to try out World of Warcraft or Second Life. Second Life is a little more casual and chatty. I even know of a very friendly group of disabled patrons that would welcome you aboard.

Anyway around it, don't give up

i really appreciate the good feelings and support here! something really new to me in a game forum, unfortunatatly.
@Bearstion-i know there are tons of game out there...my problems are that i like ones where i have animal partners/pets,, and, biggest problem-finding games that arent PvP. when i started in PWI, i didnt know what that was, and created my characters in a PVP server that has the notorious RageQuit guild in it. they had out a KOS on all clerics and venomancers, and as soon as i got to the level where the protection against PVP came off (lv30) they started killing me over and over, every time i got online. they camp out sites where lv30s have to quest, and kill. PVP is *not* good for someone who already has PTSD, and mine has only settled somewhat in recent years. i fled that server, leaving behind newly bought -in real money-clothes, mounts, and everything, to move to a PVE server, where i have been since. almost my whole family of 6 plays this game, and we have a lot invested in it-time, emotion, money(you cant get necessary things like mounts,exp/sp charms, and such wihout RL money, unfortunately). my moving would uproot everyone, and we would have to be ***very sure*** it was to a better, safer game before we did so.

there is this, too...i did try to try Aion, but could never get signed in, and could never reach the support people. it looks like it might be pretty....but i never could find out,

with all the games ive seen out there all PVP, how can i ever find one where i can have what i have in Perfect World? thats why i feel so trapped....

we appreciate you being here as well Pikachu. Aion is a lot of PVP, don't bother with that title if you want to avoid combat.

you will never find an exact replacement for a game you're leaving behind. I played one game, Ultima online, for over five years, and I still reminisce sometimes when I'm feeling nostalgic. Nevertheless, if you are having less fun than you used to, it may be time to move on.

A lot of MMOs are centered around PVP, so definitely lowers the amount of options that you have. However, there are a few titles that I would recommend you look into.

World of Warcraft - PVP is limited to battlegrounds that you must consent to join. PVE servers offer gameplay without the worry of being attacked. It is family friendly and you would be able to play altogether.

Second Life - nontraditional MMO, less about gameplay and more about creating areas of enjoyment. You can create entire social groups. there is no combat, it's all about social interaction.

City of heroes - PVP limited to consensual interaction. Relatively accessible and extremely fun if you enjoy superheroes. Easy to catch up with people who don't play often because you can instantly bring younger or less frequent players up to your level while you are in group.

I had that problem too, w/ Jade Dynasty where everybody was so mean, they ignored me, then flamed me. They had NO tolerance for someone like me who cannot play the game very well & asked questions. I was in 4 different guilds in a row, none of them worked out. & the game sucked, there was NO rewards for the quests, other than xp, or maybe a piece of useless junk. I was playing other mmo's & while the people may be friendlier, the games are not so much fun. I prefer single players like The Elder Scrolls where I have more control over my own game, and also not have to pay every month, nor pay ridiculously high amounts of real $ for item shop crap.

i used to be the biggest fan of PWI, but now i would never suggest anyone to go play there. i am one of the longest playing members there, not a CBP, but close. the problem with the PWE games now is that they-the owners- have been pushing the cash shop more and more, and making nearly impossible for players to get on in the game without items like HP and MP charms, scrolls to protect you from loss of EXP, and so on. also they are pushing BIG time the 'packs'- for various amounts of real money, you might get anything from a couple of cheap gemstones to a powerful weapon, armour, rare mount or aerogear....and the chances of getting something good are very,very low.

the game is not friendly to those with visual problems in many areas...some places the colours are so similar that you miss small mobs, and the lil stinkers sneak up and nail you. someone suggested that a system like WoWs, that is supposed to make everything sharper might work, but, never having played WoW, i dont know anything about it.

as you mentioned, PWI is *not* a good game for those with emotional problems...other players, 'normal' people, dont care how you feel, and accuse you of being a 'drama queen'. if you have the bad luck to have started your character on a PVP server, i can guarrentee you will be badly hurt by people's attitudes toward you. there are guilds who have KOS's ("Kill On Sight") on certain classes, and who camp out areas to kill them as they reach lv31, and go white name and open to KSing. Boss pulling is also a favourite of these guilds...my son and i make a point of watching out for idiots doing this, and doing whatever it takes to stop it-both of us are high enough level to kill the boss before it gets to the town or other safe zones where it can kill other players en masse.

the best solution my family and i have found so far is a private server of Perfect World....it is very much like PWI used to be, in the early days. it has a great cash free 'cash shop', that has mats for crafting gear, fashion, rare pets. there is an NPC that sells great pets and mounts, and another that sells pets that players who are not venos can use. you can play PVP or PVE, your choice, by the click of a little button when you sign in. in PWI, the level cap is 105. in this server it is lv700, i think....stupidly high, to my thinking, because there is nothing for a player that high to do. so i am just taking my time, and enjoying myself, being able to catch pets i never could before, and, most fun, being able to go into very high level instances with the help of a really overpowered pet called "Super Fly", which im told was once in the PWI, but taken out because it can take out even the highest bosses in a minute or two. so i can run an instance that would take hours and hours for a squad in a couple of hours by myself! but more fun to have friends....! anyone who would like to come play in the same server, PM me....i'm afraid of getting banned from PWI, and losing my characters there...they are like a part of me, i've spent so much time with them, and have a big emotional investment in them, as well as money invested, over the years.

While my experience with MMOs is fairly limited, I have to concur with what most of the other posters have said.

When I started playing Star Wars Galaxies several years ago, the game recommended that I play on the Radiant server. Considering it was my first MMO experience and I had nothing to base a decision on (no research, knowledge of which server focused on what aspect of gameplay, etc.), I accepted the game's recommendation.

As many SWG players know, Radiant was sort of like the Mos Eisley Cantina of all the servers - flaming, PvP, tea bagging, the works. It was an over-the-top population of passionate, skilled players who loved the game and loved the environment and usually, with more or less degrees of good-naturedness, seemed to hate each other. The forum flame wars were legendary, often getting the entire server banned from posting for a day or two. The PvP wars were ridiculous and featured some of the most exceptionally skilled people on any server (and I'm being quite literal - on any given day, 1/2 of the top 10 players in PvP kills across every single server in SWG were from Radiant).

I didn't know ANY of that when I started playing on Radiant. I asked questions. I said please and thank you, and apologized for taking people's time but explained that I was new and needed suggestions or tips, etc. Some people were exceptionally rude. More people were brusque, but answered the question. Some people ignored me outright. And then there were the rest of the people - all the crazy, flame warring, PvP kill spreeing people mentioned above? Those were the same people, for the most part, that took the time to help and answer questions, etc.

The pilots who went nuts in space every week? Those were the people most likely to give people ships and parts to fly. The PvP players? Once they'd seen people out there a bit, they usually would at least give direction to help players contribute, if not survive, and would eventually provide tips to excel.

My experience with City Of Heroes was much more limited, but the player base seemed very friendly and eager to help newer players.

In short, mileage varies - I've had fantastic experiences on servers known for being rowdy and I've had terrible experiences on servers known for being civil. The best I can suggest is to find a game that actively policies gold farmers and punishes them, and avoid games that rely on micro-payments to subsist.

this may be a backwards kind of solution, but you may want to try out a "private" (aka Pirate) server.

one would think that semi-illegal servers would be overflowing with the scum of video gaming but that's more often not the case. the people who generally seek out these servers are the ones who truly love the games to the point that they can not let go of them even after the official server degrades to the point where they can not play on it anymore.

it's also true that they will sometimes have rampant hacker/cheater problems as a private server simply dosen't have the means to effective combat them (it's usually just an enthusiast running the thing off a spare PC in the garage), and there is the risk of the server simply going *poof* one day because the host lost interest or got hit with a C&D. in a way though that kind of helps with a situation like yours: due to the instability other players tend to be less connected with their characters and by extension are less connected with the perceived dominance relating to harassing other players.

on many levels the benefit of dodging the subscription/item store cost simply doesn't out weigh the insecurity of a private server, however the potential for a better community and experience modifiers to skip the excessive grinding of most korean games will sometimes tip the scales. it's all up to the users judgment as to what is more appealing.

If I read you right in that you have 6 family members at home playing, that's not really a small number on the scale of what is actually required engage a mmo's content, you may want to by pass all the drama completely and research how to set up a truly private server for just your house hold.