MAKE YOUR OWN DIGITAL TRIBE!

If you are asking yourself what the heck a digital tribe is, an easy answer would be: it is a group of online people who connect and bond over shared interests. 

Can this so-called tribe be more impactful on you than your family? Sometimes yes. Because these are people you chose to connect with and care for.

Online human connections are very easily severed and replaced, which means you do not have to deal with people that you do not like or identify with.

MMORPGs are the experts’ digital tribes. By playing and having fun, you slowly but steadily become a part of a community and learn how to build your own tribe.

In this article, we will explore what makes MMOs become a daily part of millions of lives. Maybe even entice you to give this genre a try and build your digital tribe!

I was introduced to MMOs in the 1990s.
On a random day, while watching videos on YouTube, I noticed an ad to my right. The characters were super cute with an anime vibe, and the game seemed filled with adventure. It made me want to download it immediately!

I was never a gamer, and playing any type of video game was a totally new venture.
I followed the directions on how to install it with much attention, and after what felt like a lifetime, the download was finally done, and I launched a video game for
the first time!

With these “strangers,” I discovered so many charming and beautiful cities, we survived dungeons, attended weddings, and, fortunately, a few heartbreaking digital funerals.

I was truly happy just hanging out with my friends. So many funny moments where, even if we are all lying dead, laughter is what comes first.

The realization of having to start over comes second, but that helps you build a strong character! Inside and outside of the game.

20 years have passed since I decided to try an MMORPG, and that decision was one of my best. Playing added so much to my real life. I became more intuitive and honest. Friendlier and smarter.  

It helped my English beyond what any school could have taught me. I met so many amazing people, so many that I had to pick and choose who to keep. 

Helpful, kind, and good people whom I still keep close. Accepting a party invite from a stranger can be scary. For me? Not really. 

Be prepared to feel, evolve, and be your real self because in MMOs, there is no escape. Sooner or later, your true self is going to come out and play.

That’s why I love MMOs. All players are free to be who they are and create their own special digital tribe. Time for a deep dive on MMORPGs!

Playing video games will bring more to your life than just a few wasted hours. In reality, it can be the reason your life changes completely. 

It can make you move to a different city or even another country, turn a digital friend into a real-life one, or even fight for a love that was initially made of pixels, but now you need more. 

An MMO game is a Massive Multiplayer Online game. Playing this kind of game, you already know that you will interact with countless others, and they want to interact with you. This is what this genre is made for. 

If you are a shy person, this might seem like a nightmare, but hear me out for a second. What better way to try different things and open up than in the digital world? A place that you can just shut down with a couple of clicks? 

The sense of adventure, personal growth, human connections, and knowledge are just a few of those reasons. But for now, we will start with just being human. 

In a game, you are the one in charge of it all. You choose where to go, who you want to hang out with, and what to do at any given moment. Your actions will create reactions, and the outcome might be
way better than you expected.

There are still amazing humans out there. They will take the time to help you and to get to know you without asking anything in return besides a few hours of doing quests or chilling by a waterfall.

Once you dare to put yourself out there, discovering the new maps, skills, gear, and making friends, you will be tested with new tribulations. In an MMORPG, you need other humans’ strengths, help, and experience, and humans come in all personalities and humours.

Interacting with one of them can drive you a little bit mad. Now imagine more. But that’s the way the game is meant to be played. All these human understand skill will turn you into a more intuitive, wiser, and more in touch with others type of person. In real life, too.

This scene sounds much more deep that it really is. In-game, this whole scenario lasts a couple of hours or even less than that. You just move on, continuing to do other quests without a second thought. Not everyone that you spend some time with in a game becomes a close friend.

How close they become to you is for you to decide. I usually go with the funny or kind ones, and that’s why my characters have NPC gears… Moving on! 

Picture this: you are inside a cave filled with two-headed snakes, and you need to go through them to reach the mother snake in the back that will drop a rare piece of gear that you so desperately need because buying gear from other players in-game is super expensive.

What if the guy who can help the whole party is one of the most hated in-game because he has a big mouth, and with it
a big ego? Would you agree to let him into your party? Just that one time? And a few more cause now you only need new boots? Choices, choices.

MMOs are designed to give you a fully functional virtual reality. A new world for you to discover who your true self is and what you can be. Without the rules that the real world has. Well, still some.

All of this starts with a simple and fun task. You just have to create your own perfect little avatar. Easy!

People have always cast a disapproving eye on MMOs, categorizing players as just wanting to play these video games to escape reality. The games are seen
as just an expensive way to waste time. 

But beneath the flashy pixels, the gear grinding and fantastical landscapes lie
a complex psychological phenomenon.

A cleric, healing your party members till death? A cool mage, teleporting all over the battlefield and creating destruction? Maybe you prefer to be an epic tanker? Taking on the biggest boss in the game? Having all eyes on you because if you die, everybody else goes next? 

Also… what name are you choosing for your character? A lifetime later, lots of deliberation and a hint of distraction, and your avatar is perfect and ready
for the adventure!

Designing your perfect avatar is no easy task. Sorry. Developers love to spoil us with as many options in customization as they can, making this process both delicious and sooooo time-consuming. Your avatar is your biggest possession in an MMO. Your representation.

How others in the game recognize you. You can change as much as you want. Anytime you log into the game and see that tiny avatar, you know it is time to have some fun! So, it makes sense why our avatar must be the most perfect of them all. Next come types of classes!
Who will you choose to be?

You are transported into the game with a spectacular cinematic opening filled with colors and sounds. It really feels like you are entering a new world.  You are told about the history of the game and where you are, who you are supposed to be,

and more importantly, who you should be fighting for. You spawn in a forest? Town? Or maybe a military outpost? There are so many options. But what matters is that you made it into the game!

Once in the game, you are surrounded by players, lots of chatting around you, and also a user interface to get to know. These are just a few of the things you will see. 

It might feel a bit overwhelming at first, but you can stand there and go through
all your settings, interface, and observe your surroundings, till the moment you are ready to move your character somewhere.

The starting map of the game is called “The noobie zone.” You are safe on this map, so take your time. The game will give you a few easy quests and probably a cheap weapon. Now you just have to venture into these early maps on your own and learn all you can about how
to improve your little character.

These quests will direct you to the NPCs and important locations in the game so you can learn them. You will enter a loop of rapid progression. Get quests, deliver them, and get rewarded with experience.

You will learn all you need to be able to play the game. How to navigate the map, equip items, enhance your skill points, etc. There is much to learn, but you will not be rushed. You can take your time
and truly enjoy playing the game.

Soon, you will start running out of quests, and the final one of the noobies map will usually assign you to travel to a different town, usually through some kind of cool portal. Everything feels easy, fun, and doable. Nothing too overcomplicated
so far, so what could go wrong?

The carefree fast leveling time does not last forever, and you will start noticing that your leveling is getting a bit slower. The quests are harder to finish, give less experience, and take way longer to finish alone. 

The game will introduce a few different progression systems that will keep you entertained while leveling. Side quests, gathering, and crafting are the most popular options. 

The game usually offers a matchmaking system that will pair you automatically with other players to clear dungeons or participate in the game’s special events. This way, you gain massive amounts of experience and other rewards. 

While you are busy doing all this “side work,” your social skills will improve because you will be teaming up with all types of people, with different beliefs, nationalities, ages, and backgrounds.

And because you do not see their faces, with time, you will learn how to read this “digital” room. A laugh, a joke, or silence is harder to interpret when you can’t see a facial expression or body language.

Just by playing, you will start to develop a higher emotional intelligence that will help you deal with other humans in real life. As you level up, you will need better equipment, etc. 

This means you will be comparing gear, stats, enhancements, what funds you can use, and what prices to buy or sell. This also means that your data analysis, economics, and optimization skills will increase. If English is not your native language, and you want to improve it,

playing an MMO will allow you to learn how to type, speak, and understand it faster because you will want to break the language barrier between you and your friends. All of these skills can and will become a part of you and your real life, making you evolve as a human.

If you made it all the way down, then it is time for a reward! Next, I will present two amazing options of MMORPGs that are guaranteed to knock your socks off if you
decide to give them a try! 

Final Fantasy is a must-have for the top MMORPGs. It is played by millions of people. It has an amazing storyline that will draw you in and make you forget the world outside, top-of-the-line graphics, and breathtaking music,

and, till level 70, you are able to play it for free. Getting to know the game and all its features till you decide if you like it. The community is friendly and nice, with millions of players ready to offer a helping hand. 

World of Warcraft has been around for 21 years, but if you think it would be difficult to start as a newbie in such a well-known game, you are wrong. Games always need new players to keep them thriving, alive, and fresh. They make sure that anyone can start WOW fresh and fit in with everybody else playing.

Gamers love it for its massive community, the constant progress, and the responsive combat. The amount of content you will find in the game can keep you playing for decades. How fun is that?

I learned while playing MMORPGs that you will always find kind-hearted folks around. You have the trolls, the whales, and the leechers, but also so many good people who are willing to protect you from the bullies in the game.

Defend you against the meanest boss in the server, and even lend you anything that might be useful to your journey while leveling. They are the ones who make the game worth playing.

Take the chance. Find new friends and have some laughs. You might turn into an in-game hoarder… It happened to all of us, so it is fine. Hope you enjoyed
the read! See ya next time! 

After a stressful day, being able to log in and find your usual companions is such a warm feeling. You can vent to them, laugh about silly jokes, and kill and die together for a few hours. I’m not saying that you will not stress while playing.

Playing any game will drive you a tiny bit mad, and you will reach the end of your patience a lot of times. That’s ok. There is always the option of logging out and returning whenever.