MOP reader Orca7 tipped us a funny piece from The Onion from last week that reminds me MMORPGs are still not regarded in the best light by the mainstream public. IRS Under Fire For Blowing $350 Million Developing MMORPG Tax Video Game Called ‘Tales Of Revenue’, reads the headline on the infamous satire site, which… OK, honestly, that’s pretty funny.
“‘When I first downloaded it from IRS.gov, I thought it’d just be a short thing, but I’m almost 170 hours into this and I still haven’t submitted my taxes—also something called an Auditor Goblin keeps killing me,’ said Cleveland resident Anthony Lopez […] ‘Clearly, the IRS people got really into the mythos. There are 50 Realms of Revenues you can travel to, and they each have distinct tax structures that affect your buffs. That’s all fine, as far as it goes. But all I want to do is indicate that I’m head of household, and apparently I need to grind out another few levels collecting 1040-EZs in the Fiduciary Forests to do that. Also, it keeps asking me if I want to download an expansion pack called The Capital Gains Chronicles.”
But then after I stopped snickering, I felt a bit bummed out. This actually is how a lot of the general public views our genre: that MMOs are absurdly expensive and grindy and byzantine. And that’s being kind!
What would you say is the most frustrating misperception the general public has about MMORPGs?
Every morning, the Massively Overpowered writers team up with mascot Mo to ask MMORPG players pointed questions about the massively multiplayer online roleplaying genre. Grab a mug of your preferred beverage and take a stab at answering the question posed in today’s Daily Grind!
