PC vs. console (Destiny)

by kapowaz, Thursday, July 24, 2014, 06:53 (3572 days ago) @ Malagate

Sure, and the Halo games had insignia and nameplates that could only be activated by going outside the game (or by even playing entirely different titles!), as well. This is a non-issue. Expecting players to go outside the game to use additional functionality isn't enough of a barrier to entry that it's going to keep people from joining clans.

You say that with a kind of certainty, but my experience is that this kind of usability hurdle actually shuts a lot of people out. What is likely to happen is that the most hardcore (anyone who regularly visits DBO automatically fits into this category) will jump through all the hoops to ensure they can be in a clan. The remainder might be less inclined to do so if they find it confusing or aren't clear on the benefits. Putting these features outside of the game means they have to switch contexts (who knows, maybe they don't even own a smartphone or computer?) and that immediately sets up obstacles.

It's important to remember that a game like Destiny is going to be played by literally millions of people. Will all or even the majority of these players fall into the kind of internet-savvy, visits-bungie.net-regularly demographic? I'm not certain they will.

By the way, people saying things like this is a non-issue is a bugbear of mine; just because something isn't important to you doesn't mean it's not important.

But wouldn't that limit the clans you could join by who is in the same instance with you? Some clans would get more exposure simply by having more members or simply members in the right places (geographically).

That's a possibility. You're not guaranteed visibility outside of your particular instance with this idea, but like I say: I'm spitballing ;)