Game Outcome Is Decided Within The First Few Turns - NOT FUN

[IAmNo1One1]

New user here! My first post!

On the maps I have been playing, the winner is noticeably decided within the first few turns. Then the loser who knows they are going to lose quits, and the winner is stuck playing by themselves.

I don't know about you guys, but this is extremely NOT fun!

Even if the loser continues to play, it is still no fun as there is no challenge.

Personally, I would rather have the knowing loser leave the game and let me play by myself! Either way, no fun.

With the Hasbro game, the winner isn't decided right away, it makes for a much better game.

Shouldn't the Major Command games be tweaked to make them more enjoyable for the players?

When playing Risk on Pogo against cheaters is 1000% more fun than Major Command, there has to be a problem!

 

[AuraCraft]

welcome to the site
If you mean 2 player games I have a solution that should fix the problem

 

[th-child]

Hey, welcome.

Yes, 1v1 games are sometimes decided in the first few rounds, it is just the way it is.

As for the losers going awol, yeah, that's bad etiquette. I see you are doing it yourself as well though... right?

If you want competition, I suggest you to try casual games (where you have 24 hours to take turns), people are more polite and friendly there, too. Also you can try multi-player games, those you will find challenging for sure.

And if you want turn notifications, click Settings next to your avatar in the upper right corner. Under Email Notification, you can choose the right setting for you. Cheers!

 

[brianstheman]

Agree with Th-Child that muli-player Casual games are the cure to most of those ails.

I played thousands of real time 1v1 games. Over time you will develop strategies and counters to tackle games that appear over after the first turn. Some you will come back and prevail, others you won't. Such is the nature of any game. In games where I have a significant advantage, I may delay deploying a set, so that the other player doesn't lose hope and abandon ship. This can backfire without development of sense for the edge where a game tilts, so only recommend it once a player is experienced.

The Barbarossa map is my favorite for high power back and forth action. No long drawn out games there. And if opponent bails, your deploy grows quickly to eliminate them without having to wait as many rounds.

 

[clarkenfeld]

Agree too. I was fortunate to be in a handful of brian's thousands of real time games and he is one of the (many) players who know how to lose graciously and not quit. Sadly not everyone is like him. But i think most of the players who stick around get way more satisfaction from the casual games, plus as has been said there are lots of polite, friendly and very funny people there! The RT games sadly are often places of rancour and immaturity. I generally only play RT against people I know now, and that keeps it enjoyable.

Final word: NEVER quit a game. Unless your house is on fire or something.
Never.

 

[IAmNo1One1]

As for the losers going awol, yeah, that's bad etiquette. I see you are doing it yourself as well though... right?

Personally, I would rather have the knowing loser leave the game and let me play by myself!

I only play real time games. I am currently in a 24 hour game with 4 players, 2 of which missed their first turn. So that is no fun playing against 2 AWOL players and 1 player who is actually playing. As far as I am concerned, if there is even one single player AWOL or missed a first turn, then the game is ruined and should be scrapped.

I feel like I would be borderline psychopathic if I were to continue in a 24 hour game with 2 AWOL players for the duration which will probably take a month! A month! It is no wonder I see posts on here about people's spouses not liking this website! Of course they don't!

And my last issue, is I NEVER receive any notifications that it is my turn. So I am almost ALWAYS AWOL, or I miss my first 1-3 turns. It would be simple to put in a "beep" it is your turn. Or the tab could become highlighted so you notice it is your turn when you are on a different page.

 

[IAmNo1One1]

If there were a "Surrender" button or option, then the knowing loser could quickly surrender and end the game before they quit. That way it wouldn't waste the winning player's time, and they could quickly get into another game.

And why is it bad etiquette to quit? Because then the winning player has to wait a whopping 3 minutes until their next turn? Yet, most of those people who whine about waiting 3 whole minutes, they play 24 hour games where they have to wait 24 hours until their next turn! That makes NO sense.

 

[clarkenfeld]

If there were a "Surrender" button or option, then the knowing loser could quickly surrender and end the game before they quit. That way it wouldn't waste the winning player's time, and they could quickly get into another game.

And why is it bad etiquette to quit? Because then the winning player has to wait a whopping 3 minutes until their next turn? Yet, most of those people who whine about waiting 3 whole minutes, they play 24 hour games where they have to wait 24 hours until their next turn! That makes NO sense.

These are fair questions but you're coming across as a bit grumpy... want to engage with this or just vent? There are plenty of answers from plenty of regular players if you want them.

For instance - waiting 24 hours in a casual game is different from waiting in a RT game. You play RT because you've decided to join a game where the result comes out quickly. In casual games, the result comes when it comes and we don't care if it takes months. You're not actively waiting for months! I think most players just check in at a regular time - on the train to work, just before bed, while waiting for the kettle to boil, while using the toilet (hypothetically...) or in a lunch break at work. So once every 24 hours, or 3 or 4 times every 24 hours, you check in. No pressure, no one actively waiting, and you take your turn.

It's just a different way of playing.

The 'whining' about people skipping a 3 minute turn is purely because the 'whiners' DO consider it bad etiquette to make people wait. It's not a function of how long one waits, but rather the ill manners that says 'I'm not bothered about this game with you anymore so I'm off'.

In a casual game I'm in at the moment, https://www.majorcommand.com/games/445460/, there are 2 permanently AWOL players, another who looks like he's quit the site, another who is in the process of quitting, and another who's skipped a turn. 24 players! I get a turn about once a week at best, but my team mates also do, so playing that game means taking my turns but also engaging with my three (superb) team mates and if a turn only comes once a week, so be it. That's the pace of that game. No problem. Borderline psychopathic would be sitting at my screen for a week fuming that everyone is taking so long!

If you don't like the idea of long waits between turns, of course don't play casual games. But if you are in RT games, you have to stay near your screen. Don't join a game if you ahve to be away from your screen for more than 3 or 4 minutes. Simple. (Although I do like the idea of the ping).

Plus, it is a fairly regular occurrence that games you thought were lost can be won. I remember a game from years ago when I only played singles where I was down to 1 army on Japan but had a set worth 50. My opponent just failed to take that last one, and I won the game. Most quitters would have quit 2 or 3 rounds before that.

Never quit.

 

[IAmNo1One1]

1) First off, I am not grumpy. I am sorry if that is how you read my words. The problem with forums, is that you cannot read my mood and expression. My posts are not grumpy, rather just informative.

2)

If you don't like the idea of long waits between turns, of course don't play casual games. But if you are in RT games, you have to stay near your screen. Don't join a game if you ahve to be away from your screen for more than 3 or 4 minutes. Simple. (Although I do like the idea of the ping).

Oh man that "ping" you speak of would make this website 1000 times better! And come on, how hard can it be to put in a stupid little ping! If there were a stupid little ping, this website would have probably 100 times more traffic! SIMPLE!

3) As far as the bad etiquette thing, I personally believe it is bad etiquette for the loser to stay. I would rather the loser leave, and let me play by myself. So I guess in this regard, I will always be rated a dishonorable player because I leave, and I will always rate those who stay as dishonorable because it makes the game take longer than if they just AWOL and leave then I can finish the game quickly and get into another game right away.

If I miss a turn because this website does not notify me that it is my turn, then I will simply just forget about that game and start a new one.

I am only here to play a simple game for fun to kill some time after surgery. It seems nobody else here cares about fun. Everyone else here only cares about their rating and their standing and how many points they have. I don't care what my rating is, I just want to play a game.

Is there a way to just play against computer players? That would be awesome!

What happens when I am in a 24 hour game, 4 players, 3 AWOL, and just me left, and I am clear to win, and I then decide to go AWOL too because I don't want to play that game anymore? What happens?

 

[IAmNo1One1]

All this "bad etiquette" this website has stems from the lack of proper turn notifications and the lack of a surrender option.

If there were a surrender option, and players actually knew it was their turn to play, then it would be impossible to have bad etiquette unless someone chooses to use bad words.

 

[brianstheman]

A few things:
1) There is a ping in the Beta games. Hopefully this will be incorporated into the regular site at some point in the not too distant future.

2) There is a way to surrender honorably: burn off all your troops. This is easily done by taking 3v3, 3v2, 2v1 attacks with troops in all territories. A player can also attack neutrals rather than his opponent on those attacks, which should help preserve any bonus and thus speed the game.

If you do decide to leave a game because you've deemed it unwinnable, simply burn off all troops first and there won't be any hard feelings.

3) As mentioned, a player staying to try to win isn't bad etiquette - they are hoping to pull a win out! As Clark mentioned, it can be done in some rather improbable circumstances. This is the nature of a game which factors in chance.

Welcome to the site, and glad you're actively participating in trying to make it better.

 

[IAmNo1One1]

The "chance" on this website is rather sketchy.

No way the "chance" software on this website would be acceptable to an online gambling website for money. There would be lawsuits!

 

[NewSheriffInTown]

If there were a "Surrender" button or option, then the knowing loser could quickly surrender and end the game before they quit. That way it wouldn't waste the winning player's time, and they could quickly get into another game.

There will a SURRENDER button introduced when the next update is made to the game engine.

It's the first new feature on our list....

 

[Cardinalsrule]

There will a SURRENDER button introduced when the next update is made to the game engine.

It's the first new feature on our list....

Only in 1v1 games, I'm assuming?

 

[riskyone]

Only in 1v1 games, I'm assuming?

Could you just imagine someone on your own team. Not going AWOL, but quitting. I want that guy on the other team. I guess in multi, it would still be a lot more honorable right when you know. Rather then miss turns and comeback or just leave everyone wondering. I say it's better then AWOL and look towards a bright future when this feature can be enjoyed by all.

 

[IAmNo1One1]

There will a SURRENDER button introduced when the next update is made to the game engine.

It's the first new feature on our list....

Excellent! That will help retain most new players. I have only been here 2 weeks, but I can plainly see in the realtime games that when new players login, and they cant play a first game, or they have a bad experience, they do not come back!

I almost said F-it after my first day because this website is rather peculiar, and it is not user friendly. However I stuck it out. Now 2 weeks later, I am a Gunnery Sergeant.

Im comin' for that #1 spot!

 

[IAmNo1One1]

Could you just imagine someone on your own team. Not going AWOL, but quitting. I want that guy on the other team. I guess in multi, it would still be a lot more honorable right when you know. Rather then miss turns and comeback or just leave everyone wondering. I say it's better then AWOL and look towards a bright future when this feature can be enjoyed by all.

When someone goes AWOL, or quits, or surrenders, or whatever, then their troops and territories should either go to neutral, they should be evenly distributed among the remaining active players, or in the event of a team game, should be allocated to the teammate(s) along with the "quitters" sequential turns.

All of these outcomes would yield a more fluid game.

Any of these outcomes would be better than how it is currently.

 

[IAmNo1One1]

Yeah F-it. Missed another turn due to lack of a proper turn notification.

This is stupid.

I am out for good. Will not be back.

 

[brianstheman]

It was a heck of a two weeks!