Should gaming online be a mic only zone?

[BangSmashBoom]

As an owner of a Turtle Beach Headset PX21, every time I play online, I play with my $100 mic and gaming with other people has never been the same, but ever time I play online with no one but me using a mic, I feel lonely, and unable to strategise.

So... Should gaming online be a mic only zone?

 

[AmrasCalmacil]

No no no. I don't own one, but I'll buy one when I'm good and ready.
Don't shut people out because they don't want to spend extra money for some reason to play a game they've already paid for.

 

[omega_peaches]

Co-Op games should, but I don't want 12 year old EVERYWHERE.

 

[robert01]

There are a lot of reasons why people don't use voice chat. Maybe they are deaf/mute. Maybe they are like myself and have a speech impediment and they don't feel like being mocked by various people for it, so they stick to typing and not giving a shit about their typos. Maybe they can't afford a microphone. They have sleeping children, they hate they way they sound... The list goes on and on.
With my ISP I can't use certain voice chat programs because they ports they use are flagged as ports used for torrents so my connection gets throttled. I used to get pings on Ventrilo in the tens of thousands and would be literally 5 minutes behind in the conversation I wouldn't notice because we were fighting raid bosses.

But yes voice chat does make planning a lot easier.

 

[Fanta Grape]

Left 4 Dead. Definitely. Absolutely. Well, maybe just on expert. But still!

I'd argue that for a game like TF2 but it's alienating, it's forceful, it's frustrating for someone with a faulty mic, it's a bad business decision, etc.

 

[SomeLameStuff]

Maybe for games that rely UTTERLY on teamwork. For the standard run-and-gun CoD/MoH games, no. There's enough shit talking as it is thank you very much.

 

[viranimus]

I quite honestly think its the other way around. Audio chat is the single worst thing to happen to gaming in my personal estimation.

Ill reuse someone elses wisdom.

Well I get it, but I hate it. Theres nothing more disruptive than[sic]to get behind your gigantic tank who yells out the warcry to charge into battle with the voice of a fucking gnome.

I stand behind what Ive said in the past. There are very few instances where you actually need a mic to organize and utilize tactics. You could just about take any game, add a control option of 6 to 8 audio macros and get the same if not a better effect than pointless immersion breaking audio chat.

 

[zehydra]

Co-op gaming should. Games like L4D, Portal 2 (you're a nuisance to the other player if you're not using a mic here), and Gears of War 2's Horde mode.

If you can type really fast, should you really need a mic?

 

[FireScythe1992]

Possibly on strictly co-op games, but certainly not on games like Call of Duty or Halo. Those games are infinitely better when I don't have some 12 year old screaming ****** in my ear.

 

[cameron196789]

co-op games, but not MMO, everyone just gets annoyed at the one guy shouting orders on tf2.

 

[Aris Khandr]

Ask the girls who get a thousand "Are you really a girl?", "Tits or GTFO", or "You're a girl, so you obviously suck" messages every time they speak if they should be required to use a mic online.

No. I don't own one and I never will, for precisely the reasons mentioned above.

 

[chadachada123]

I would support having two separate zones, or three perhaps, one for strict mic-users, one for strict non-mic users, and one for people that don't really care either way.

Sometimes, I'm too lazy to bust out the wireless mic, or want to be more of a lone-wolf, depending on the game. Other times, I'm interested in teamwork and want some people to talk to, too.

 

[zehydra]

Co-op gaming should. Games like L4D, Portal 2 (you're a nuisance to the other player if you're not using a mic here), and Gears of War 2's Horde mode.

If you can type really fast, should you really need a mic?

Sure, if you're playing on the PC and can type faster than you can speak, then yes. However, I was referring to console gaming.

oh yeah, then Mic would definitely be preferable.

 

[Hamish Durie]

As an owner of a Turtle Beach Headset PX21, every time I play online, I play with my $100 mic and gaming with other people has never been the same, but ever time I play online with no one but me using a mic, I feel lonely, and unable to strategise.

So... Should gaming online be a mic only zone?

no
buuuuuuuut i think it would be nice if there where two seperate game queues where all thos without a mic stand on that side of the room and all those with mics etc
the only downsides to this is not many people buy mics and those with mics might consider themselves higher or better for owning a mic

 

[Gearran]

Most definitely not. Playing online is already a little on the expensive side (gotta buy the game, the internet connection, the system you play it on; that all adds up, not to mention stuff like monthly subscriptions), and requiring online play to be done exclusively with mics is just tacking on another expense. Even if it's just five bucks for a crappy, bargain bin boom mic, a lot of people will see it as an ultimately optional thing and just not bother - and, if it becomes a requirement to play online, they may not bother with the game at all.

Of course, that's something of an extreme view. There's also the fact that some people just don't want to talk to other people when they play online (after all, a lot of online gaming is done with a keyboard). Unless you simply can't type fast enough to keep yourself alive AND express yourself, the vocal communication is entirely optional. And, in my opinion, it should stay that way. If you're feeling lonely, find a server that has a lot of people talking on their mics.

 

[BangSmashBoom]

As an owner of a Turtle Beach Headset PX21, every time I play online, I play with my $100 mic and gaming with other people has never been the same, but ever time I play online with no one but me using a mic, I feel lonely, and unable to strategise.

So... Should gaming online be a mic only zone?

no
buuuuuuuut i think it would be nice if there where two seperate game queues where all thos without a mic stand on that side of the room and all those with mics etc
the only downsides to this is not many people buy mics and those with mics might consider themselves higher or better for owning a mic

I don't think I'm better then anyone, I just find it more rewarding to play with other mic users.

 

[Hamish Durie]

As an owner of a Turtle Beach Headset PX21, every time I play online, I play with my $100 mic and gaming with other people has never been the same, but ever time I play online with no one but me using a mic, I feel lonely, and unable to strategise.

So... Should gaming online be a mic only zone?

no
buuuuuuuut i think it would be nice if there where two seperate game queues where all thos without a mic stand on that side of the room and all those with mics etc
the only downsides to this is not many people buy mics and those with mics might consider themselves higher or better for owning a mic

I don't think I'm better then anyone, I just find it more rewarding to play with other mic users.

not saying you are just saying that there is the possibility

 

[viking97]

co-op games, but not MMO, everyone just gets annoyed at the one guy shouting orders on tf2.

really? in my experiences with tf2 ppl only really get annoyed with you if you talk about something irrelevant, obvious (they're capping our point giez!), you have a really annoying voice or your orders suck ass. thankfully most of the time people giving commands have some idea what they're doing. (in tf2 anyway, which is the only multiplayer game i play)