Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2018/05/25/collaborating-in-fortnite.html
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5 Likes
When (shockingly) I do not blast them and (even more shockingly) do not pull a bait and switch, a real human connection is established, on a channel deeper than any afforded by the interface.
And yet it is still impossible to trade phone numbers. You will never know if that person was Donald Trump or your own brother, and if you meet again in-game, they will be a stranger again.
3 Likes
I wonder what percentage of attempts this actually works. Obviously a minority, so it really supports the Dark Forest theory since you risk everything if there’s no cooperation.
4 Likes
I saw a video where a group covered up the entire new crater on one map, an other squads joined in to help build or pick off people trying to ruin it.
6 Likes
Hearted for the fun, risky collaborative play style, and for the unexpected but insightful reference to Liu Cixin’s The Dark Forest.
3 Likes
When it works, it is usually because I have a weapon and my potential ally doesn’t.
Sadly, this is likely the driving force rather than any humanistic altruism. It’s an interesting (and I’m sure thrilling) way to play, but we should be careful about projecting this outside of the limited framework of a battle royale style game.
For example, it didn’t work out so well for the Native Americans.
1 Like
Darn, have I been taking, “If you meet the Buddha, kill him.”, too literally for all these years?
3 Likes
Fortnite smartly eliminated two things that are the bane of any large-group PVP game: group chat and advantage-granting upgrades. Any group chat is just a riot of teenagers screaming gay slurs at each other and upgrades (and loot crates, etc) make a game intimidating for newbies who have to deal with l337 gamers who have been playing longer than them and have way better equipment. In Fortnite, everyone starts at zero, every game, with the same basic pickaxe.
10 Likes
My 13 year old plays a lot (as, apparently, do all 13 year olds in the US – this the single recurring theme when I run into my kids’ friends’ parents around town), but he chats with his friends on some service as he plays. Fun to hear them strategize as they go.
2 Likes
They have bio-weapons and systematic bigotry in FortNite now?
1 Like
We’d better be on guard against aliens running up and hitting our planet for loot.
1 Like
I am now officially interested in trying it out.
2 Likes
What’s stopping people from building a sign with their number/email on it?
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It was a big relief when I realized that all of the upgrades you can buy (with real world money) are 100% cosmetic. You can look like a spaceman, buy a bright-red pickaxe, or some sweet dance move emoticons, but no amount of XP or money will grant you any in-game advantages beyond looking cool.
5 Likes
This is a variation of the Prisoner’s Dilemma.
A rational actor would just kill their opponent, and yet humans are sometimes capable of non-rational action. Examples exist even in times of actual war.
2 Likes
The problem here is that cooperation in single player mode is not allowed (… in solo matches do not work with other players, respectfully kill them instead). What’s amazing is that people actually cooperated even though they could get banned,
2 Likes
I don’t play, but I’m pretty sure it’s impossible
I don’t either, but if you can build large flat structures, you can leave gaps for the character pixels.
It’s probably impractical because someone would shoot you before it was done.
1 Like
