Friends List (MMO)

I love to find a good camp with my peeps and hang out... Get some xp, talk and just have some fun! I like to keep in touch with my peeps, how about you? That's me on the left.. ;)

If you have played MMOs as long as I, then you probably have met a lot of people, made a lot of friends over the years. Do you stay in touch with many of those people as the years go by? Or do you consider those separate from your personal life? I recently saw a post on the Everquest forums of someone passing on, a lot of people knew and mourned this person, lots of comments of how they remembered this person. It was truly sad. It made me think- What if it was one of my friends?

To me a friend is a friend. In game or out. Often I like to stay in touch with my friends from my games. Over the years I do try to stay in touch, some friends have been better about it than others! One of my best friends I met in Guild Wars in a random PvP match. Later we found out he lived in the same city as us! He has since moved but we stay in touch still. There are other people I like to stay in contact with, people I meet are people not just NPC's in a game to assist me.

I'm just one of those people who likes to stay in touch I suppose. I even talk to my High School friends on Facebook because I love staying in touch with people. While I don't love Facebook, I do love my friends and family who use it! My best friend loves it, she is sometimes easier to catch on there. So it's something I do use, if not as often as some would like. I even have a WoW friend on there.

Getting back on topic, some people don't like to keep in touch outside of the games we play. That is a personal preference. I respect that. Some people just don't have room for game friends, or want them, outside of a game.

Do you play a game with friends or family who don't live near you? That is something else I see people doing, they get to spend time together in a game even if they don't live near each other. I always thought that was a nice way to keep in touch.

There are those friends I have lost touch with and wonder how they are. Do you have many people like that? Good friends you have always wondered about? I remember some great friends from Everquest, years ago, and I wonder how they are. Emails get lost or names get forgotten, but the friend always sticks in your mind over the years.

I'm not talking about meeting people, just staying in touch in general. Though if you end up meeting someone, that is cool too. I have met a few people from my games, not very many though. If I really wanted to get personal and in depth I could say- I actually met my husband in Everquest, seven years ago. I am truly racking up geek status points sharing that info!

Now, don't think I am some internet stalker! These have been people I knew for long periods of time. Some of my really good friends in games I have never kept in touch with outside. Say for example, a great tank I was good friends with played WoW and Aion with me- They were only 17. I didn't think it would be proper to talk with them outside the game, being a minor. I wouldn't want my son talking to 'an old woman like myself' outside of a game! For me- most of these people I keep in touch with are long time friends I consider to be just more than a 'colleague' in a game.

I like to think that the social aspect of an MMO is one of the things that make them so great. You meet people, make friends and have adventures! But when the adventure ends, you still have some friends and memories.You get to know these people, play with them often through out the game and enjoy their company.

So how about you, does the friendship end when you /camp or does your 'friends list' extend to the real world?  Have you lost touch, any regrets?

-kaozz