This seems to be the trend with newer games and seems like it will continue with upcoming releases like TESO.

I may be in the minority here but I prefer to be a citizen of the world where cool stuff is happening that I can take part in but I certainly don't need to have my ego stroked regularly through personal stories and phased quests that declare me to be some great hero.

Overall, I think the "I am the hero" mentality is forcing developers to implement game mechanics that actually detract from what made MMO's so much more collaborative in the past.  

I don't pay attention to the story at all.  It seems so silly to me that I just started a game, I'm a level 1 nobody and they're calling me a hero.

To each his own though, I can ignore the story and go about my business.  Let the game makers continue doing it if they think it helps player's self esteem.

Not all games start off with you being the hero. Playing as a sith warrior or inquisitor in Swtor both started off without lights abets, learning to fight with me lee weapons, also the Jedi started off in Jedi training complex.
As for making you the saviour of the galaxy, it is a bit lame as everyone around you is also saviour of the galaxy... But if your nothing special then how will people recruit you to do there quests? Unless you wanna go through some training and recruitment audition for each quest with a new NPc.

This is why i like TSW, all the factions go out of their way to say "your not special, Your part of a army" Even in some of the mission turn in's they say things like "others have had similar experiances doing what you have done".

Simply put in TSW you aren't the hero. they even sarcasticly joke about being "the chosen one"

Add me to the list of people who do not need to be made the "All Mighty Savior" of the world to enjoy a game. That crap is bad enough in a single player game. And when used in a MMO where there are thousands of "One True Saviors" running around it just becomes absurd.

Personally I'm sick of this new trend of having story driven content in MMOs at all. When I play a game I want to make my own story though action, you know like by playing the fucking game. Not by reading watching or listening to someone else's canned diatribe.

When I play a game I want to play a game not take a passive role in a script written to some other dickweed's idea of what is heroic or interesting, whether the story revolves directly around my character or not. If I wanted a good story I'd have just headed to my bookshelf, not a computer game.

For my MMOs, the story doesnt matter at all. I'm looking for gameplay and replayability. Some MMO's have some good lore, but it's one of the last things I look for in one.

For single player RPGs the story better be damn good though.

People complain about that in t he GW2.... that they take a backseat at the end. 

I don't care one bit. A story is a story. Did Tasslehoff complain about the other characters in the Dragonlance series taking a front seat... and he being relegated to the back seat? How about the other characters in Drizzt novels? 

People need to get over the whole "world revolves around me" issue. You are but a pebble in a field of pebbles... you are not special... you are not unique.

I think LoTRO did it right also.... your tale entwined with the Fellowship... it did not overshadow it.

Complete non issue for me.If the story is good it doesn't matter if I'm the chosen one or one of many I'll enjoy it.If the story is meh thne I'll probably jsut skip through it.

I don't think story is influencing game mechancis at all.It's palyers that are anti social and lazy not the mechanics in most cases.

On these forums there's a sense of snobbery or hipsterish attitude towards what you like in games.

I'm not going to direct this at anyone in particular...

Lets get this straight: if you want to be a hero and have it shoved in your face it by no means makes you a bad gamer or is it a crutch; it's just what you like.  People need to stop acting like THEIR style of play somehow makes them better or more adult. 

I'm all for either approach, but I don't like when it's forced on a player.  The lore of an MMO when it starts takes a major backseat, but as the game ages the lore is a huge deal in terms of longevity. 

Originally posted by Angier2758

On these forums there's a sense of snobbery or hipsterish attitude towards what you like in games.

I'm not going to direct this at anyone in particular...

Lets get this straight: if you want to be a hero and have it shoved in your face it by no means makes you a bad gamer or is it a crutch; it's just what you like.  People need to stop acting like THEIR style of play somehow makes them better or more adult. 

I'm all for either approach, but I don't like when it's forced on a player.  The lore of an MMO when it starts takes a major backseat, but as the game ages the lore is a huge deal in terms of longevity. 

I think if people like a more childish concept then it does make their views less adult, if that makes me a hipster then I am happy to be one.

"You Are The Hero" is largely descended from that type of fiction (a legitimate precursor of MMOs). Stylistically, I find it marginally repulsive, but ultimately? A tempest in a teapot.

Originally posted by RefMinor

Originally posted by Angier2758

On these forums there's a sense of snobbery or hipsterish attitude towards what you like in games.

I'm not going to direct this at anyone in particular...

Lets get this straight: if you want to be a hero and have it shoved in your face it by no means makes you a bad gamer or is it a crutch; it's just what you like.  People need to stop acting like THEIR style of play somehow makes them better or more adult. 

I'm all for either approach, but I don't like when it's forced on a player.  The lore of an MMO when it starts takes a major backseat, but as the game ages the lore is a huge deal in terms of longevity. 

I think if people like a more childish concept then it does make their views less adult, if that makes me a hipster then I am happy to be one.

 The fact that you think it's a childish concept is actually less adult.  I'm sure if someone said you weren't adult because you liked online games; you'd scoff at them also.. 

If you are actually adding a value judgement to what someone says based on the gameplay style they like... something is misfiring between your ears.

A lot of MMO players I feel don't even really care about the story. At the same time, i think its players that want the 'world' to revolve around them, reacting to them and changing based off what they do (aka sandbox). This is something that hasn't really been done on an MMO level. The best example of this working well would be Minecraft due to the fact primarily that servers can be remade or redone on the fly, giving everyone an equal oppurtunity to develop their own world as they see fit. Games like eve show a good example of why Sandbox games don't work in terms of making the player feel in control as its those 'top dogs' who will be at top and stay ontop unless they decide to quit and slowly recline drop down in the rankings over a long period of time. 

Story itself can work in an MMo and can in some ways form around the player. The thing is most players just don't care about the story as much as they do about the world in which they want to change, something that is very difficult to pull off and even more so difficult to pull off if your 'late to the game'.

I played EVE for almost 4 years, and in that entire time I can tell you there's 4 player races and each has some core creed behind them. That's as much of the storyline as I know.

However, in that time I read about the exploits of various players, heroes and viliians, tyrants and despots in many cases, and I loved the fact the stories were about the players, the player corps and the alliances.  Goonswarm, BOB, Northern Coalition, TEST, I fought with and against many of them, I was in fact an active participant even though I never acheived any real personal glory or recogition. (but the opportunity was there, if only I didn't have this damn day job)

That is the real story/lore that I want in my MMORPGs, not some artificial construct made up by Developers.