Complete and Utter Bullshit: The Meaninglessness of eCanada
Jacobi
People in eCanada do what is easiest now. There is no community building, there are no significant debates, even the process of engaging the media is mostly inconsequential. The idea that government can do very much more than nudge the herd along with an MPP here, or a war there, or a tax change there, is what the ancient Mayans called Complete and Utter Bullshit.
There is no need for strategy in Erepublik because the changes in the game have rendered finesse and tactics without necessity or meaning. Now its about who can throw as much damage at a battle whenever and however they can. The most that Canada can do is set orders, pass it down the chain and hope for the best. Battles are this vast and uncontrollable sea of damage that the Canadian government is far too broke and far too inactive to direct in any capacity worth mentioning.
And alliances. Talking about our "closest allies" and our "traditional allies" like those terms are supposed to convey an earnest sense of importance. Name one of those "close" allies and I can expound an unceasing array of bullshit that any of their governments have made me endure in the year I've spent doing foreign affairs for Canada. None of those countries spend more than two unselfish seconds thinking about Canada, and why would they? We are a country of roleplaying twats that can't get our shit together for more than a month or two at a time. We are a joke without a punchline, a country without a military, bitter and burnt out from an irreparably broken community. Any country that has any relations with Canada can expect us to do no more than mouth weak and inane platitudes, because that's the only thing we are now good at.
Like most people in Division 4 without a large credit limit, I save up to do damage. And when I've saved up 40 energy bars and 20 super bazookas, I spend them on battles where I can recoup some gold. If you think that some battle order or plea from the Canadian government is going to make me spend what I have earned over weeks on some battle whose relevance, already distantly removed from my life, is specious at best, well I've got some land to sell you in whatever the heck that game they're making in Milton is. You can have my daily fights, but only because I want my free energy bar and its more convenient than looking for another battle.
Why would I give more? Why should any Canadian buy on the Canadian market when they can buy cheaper by spending $20 on a ticket to Alaska and saving a bundle buying American. Why should I waste even an energy bar on any battle when the game has rigged individual battles and wars to be mostly without consequence. Oh no, 40 people aren't going to get their 5 gold for a month? Alas and Alack, because that's really all Congress is anymore. 5 gold for the elite to collect and then do nothing material for 30 days.
And the people who think its patriotic to waste my money for the good of country? I have nothing but contempt for that shallow and simplistic thinking. Should I, in real life, buy a blackberry to support those poor engineers in Waterloo? No, of course not. So why here in consequence free bits and bytes land should I do anything more? There is no logic or rational reason for one simply does not exist.
I play erepublik in Canada because the articles are mostly in English and I generally know the history that's referenced. Other than that, Erepublik the game has made eCanada irrelevant, redundant, and inconsequential.
Play for yourself. Play to make yourself happy. Do not pretend that the eCanada of today is anything more than the shambling rotting zombie shell of what it once was. To pretend otherwise is merely to indulge in a safe but unreal delusion.
Have a Merry Christmas,
Love Jacobi
Comments
Someone pissed in your eggnog
Reminds me of Mel Gibson, drunk and letting his true feelings out
Maybe you should rename this article, "Rolo hit the nail on the head, and now I'm grumpy" because that's all I read here.
"Do not pretend that the eCanada of today is anything more than the shambling rotting zombie shell of what it once was. To pretend otherwise is merely to indulge in a safe but unreal delusion."
Okay, that is likely true and good advice...yet you're looking at eCanada too much from a political and social scene. If you get past the need to play government and pretend political strategy/principles, as well as accept that 'community' won't be found on IRC or the forum or the media, since it needs to be founded on something real that makes sense so we can build on a reliable premise (this was the economy module before it was trashed and the war module before it hyper-inflated to meaninglessness), then you can still focus on skill development.
The best way to improve skill development (rank and strength and self-supply) is to help develop an MU. An MU can provide a limited sense of community that is not political nor fully social, yet it is practical. Building a strong bond in an MU and finding ways to help members in it should help eCanada in the long-run. There's a chance that if we can improve player retention in areas that matter (not political parties or chatrooms/comment threads) then eCanada could bumble it's way into survival and even more production bonuses.
That's all it's about really: staying afloat yourself to keep others going to, in the hopes that the plodding will pay off eventually. A year ago we embarked on the conquest of the UK that gained us some steady bonuses. Those days of alliance coordination may be done, and reaching out for allied support in our conquests is unlikely to happen, not just because we are a mess but because most countries are a mess, too.
Yeah, so find some buddies. Stick with them and help them get better guns and strength. Show the newbies the ropes and hope someday the battles are purposeful once again. Give up poltics/community but at least try to guide the rest on how to click through the game effectively.
Who pissed in your cornflakes?
Sometimes the most positive thing a person can do for their nation is not say anything. Sometimes it's just the opposite.
I'm in no position to know which this is, although when I see articles place blame on things for which no one has control (the Admins), I tend to generally think the article falls in the former category, rather than the latter.
There's a place for role play and a place for mechanics, both, in the game. One ignores either with some peril, in my opinion.
A nation needs a narrative, and certainly a narrative is role play.
Jacobi is one of the greatest English speaking players that has ever eLived. He's a leader, regardless of past accomplishments.
He's leading now. Wish I had kept up better so I understood where.
Media matters, last comment.
Hugs Canada, and Merry Christmas!
"Jacobi is one of the greatest English speaking players that has ever eLived. He's a leader, regardless of past accomplishments" HAHAHHAHAHAHHAHA! Brit humour, never got it
Glad I built strong ties to those I play the game with to keep me involved and keep things intresting. Looks like someone has to find a goal or objective to refresh the game for ya. That someone being you.
"We are a country of roleplaying twats that can't get our shit together for more than a month or two at a time."
Gee thanks.
I guess I am stupidest player in the game then. I waist all my good shit with no hope of gold when it is an important battle for my country. I am probably the only God of War in the game with only 15 BH.
I hated the eCanada where people were against anything anyone had to say or do just because it was the wrong person saying or doing it. Those people can leave and I won't give a shit. I understand some people find it boring but we are in a game together against the world, not against each other. I prefer us working together as best we can and accomplishing our place in the eWorld together.
Since your last presidency we've seen a calming of the political climate in eCanada, with the coalition disbanding. Since you've lost an enemy in the coalition my guess is that you've found a new one, the population of eCanada. I don't claim to be a psychic but I see emigration in your future.
So, Jacobi says that there is no point in playing for the team and you shouldn't even try to play for any reason than yourself? Why was I condemned when it was assumed that that very thing was my point of view...
The Irony is that for all this "Rebuild the Team" rhetoric for the past few YEARS, We're finally getting there, The "TEAM" is getting rebuilt, even I will admit it, and it's at this point that God Emperor Jacobi chooses to crap all over it and say its pointless - I think he enjoyed eCanada's failure as it gave him creedo to say that he was the only one who could rule in an era of success and that anyone else who tried was destined to fail because they weren't him
Get over yourself, Loser
"And alliances. Talking about our "closest allies" and our "traditional allies" like those terms are supposed to convey an earnest sense of importance. Name one of those "close" allies and I can expound an unceasing array of bullshit that any of their governments have made me endure in the year I've spent doing foreign affairs for Canada. None of those countries spend more than two unselfish seconds thinking about Canada, and why would they?"
And nations on the other side are any different? Every single alliance has broken down no matter what combination of nations was in it, because eventually all of small cracks caused by the politic drama over time makes the whole alliance shatter. It doesn't matter if our ally is Portugal or Poland; there will always be "unceasing arrays of bullshit" - and if they don't want to fight for us, for whatever reason, then they won't, and there is no reason to think that Poland, if they were our ally, would be more inclined to fight for us than Portugal is.
Furthermore, you like Poland, and that's great - but if memory serves me correctly, Poland was the country that decided to jump ship on us and join the other side. Not even looking at it from a roleplay perspective, they decided to fight against us instead of for us, which is obviously not a good thing for us. So continue to like Poland all you want, but they're the ones who decided not to be our ally any longer, not the other way around.
The only reason to want Poland over Portugal is because Poland is bigger and hits harder - but loyalty, believe it or not, is not a roleplay factor, and Poland was not loyal to us.
"We are a country of roleplaying twats that can't get our shit together for more than a month or two at a time. We are a joke without a punchline, a country without a military, bitter and burnt out from an irreparably broken community. Any country that has any relations with Canada can expect us to do no more than mouth weak and inane platitudes, because that's the only thing we are now good at."
How can a country be without a military in a game where every citizen is a soldier? Oh, right - when the citizen-soldiers decide to not follow government orders. But, as you pointed out, does it really even matter any longer? The wars are meaningless, so why do we need a highly organized military? The map is always in a constant state of change, for better or for worse.
Honestly though, everything right there reads like someone who has fallen out of love grasping at reasons to hate the object of their old love. We get it, Jacobi: this isn't the eCan that you knew, and you don't like it. Things change over time. Many of the changes that you don't like don't really even have that much to do with eCan as it does with the game itself.
What are we supposed to debate about? Taxes? Alliances? Beyond that, what else is there? How is any of that eCanada's fault? Do you think that it's an isolated thing? Maybe other nations' communities aren't exactly like ours, but when it comes down to it we're all playing the same game and limited by the same parameters. Just like with our value as an ally - every nation's value is dictated by how big they are and how hard they hit. We make up for what we lack in hitting power by being one of the more fairly loyal nations in the game. We aren't currently in an alliance, sure, but we've never ditched an alliance for an enemy alliance - there aren't many other nations that can say that.
"Play for yourself. Play to make yourself happy."
I do - and I don't play at all like you say I should. Maybe it's because I'm dumb enough to pay for gold, but even before I started to do so I still played essentially the same way. It's not the smartest way to play, but I always have put everything in to winning a battle that my country or an ally needed to win if it made sense for me to do so. I've always given things away if I had more than I needed. Maybe that's why you don't feel any sense of community while others like myself do - because you don't go out of your way to involve yourself in the community.
Back in eIreland I never really put myself out there - I never tried to be a part of the community. I know that that's why I didn't enjoy it there - not because it's a place that is any worse than eCan, because eCan has no less faults than eIreland does. When I came over to eCanada and TCO, I finally did put myself out there. I did things that required real time and effort, like making graphics for articles and avatars, and I spent a lot of time on IRC just shooting the shit with everyone. That was way before I ever bought gold for the first time, and I still felt that sense of community. You don't need to "bribe" people to get a connection with them. Just spend time with them - you don't have to give them anything, or do anything for them; you don't have to agree about things that are related to the game, or even real life. Just take some time every now and again to say hello and see how they're doing.
Of course, it isn't as easy as it once was - the activity of the IRC and forum community has died down a lot, but that seems to be because people don't have the same desire to play the game any more, so they don't have the desire to go that extra mile either. But, trust me, the community is still there.
"Do not pretend that the eCanada of today is anything more than the shambling rotting zombie shell of what it once was."
That mentality is one of the things I don't like about you - and is one of the reasons I've never really talked to you, or tried to connect with you. It kind of reminds me of my grandmother with her "things were so much better back in my day" talk - I just kind of get annoyed, because I know that mainly what makes her think her day was so much better is the nostalgia she feels for it, even though she just won't accept that fact. I've always gotten that vibe from you, ever since you came back from your hiatus, and that's why I've pretty much avoided you - because I just don't want to deal with that bullshit mentality.
You can tell me how great the eCanada of old was, but when it comes down to it I just don't believe you. There wasn't any theft? No bickering and bullshit? No trolls? No multiers and cheaters? Take off the rose colored glasses. Better yet, accept that not only is this not the eCan you used to know, this isn't the eRep that you used to know. As I said before, a lot of the things you hate about eCan have more to do with the changes and limitations of the game than it does with eCan itself.
Then again, I don't disagree with you. eCan has seen better days, but that doesn't mean it's the steaming pile of waste some people like to portray it as - especially since so much of what people don't like about eCan stems from the same struggle that every nation is going through: trying to figure out what exactly the point of playing this game is, and how to have fun playing it.
One of the things I really didn't miss during my hibernation was this damned media module comment system - such a shitty way to discuss things.
Oh well.
Merry Christmas o7
this article is rather late
I was getting around to saying all that eric thx for saving me the time lol.
The eCanadian community has changed, but so has every other. What has not is the capacity we seem to have to tear each other apart when confronted about an action or misdeed. I am as guilty as any.
As dysfunctional as we are, our bond to this community will remain and eCanada will come together again.
Hopefully with thicker skins.
"Glad I built strong ties to those I play the game with to keep me involved and keep things intresting."
x2
Jacobi, it's not eCanada, it's eUSA and eIndia, the whole game. Admin broke it. Now, its just playing for the relationships.
Find an MU or a party that makes you feel like you belong and hold onto it.
I miss Captains of Industry and I miss MOO and CPF. Thankfully I still have UAgg.
You're not supposed to say this out loud. Makes people question their time spent on this game.
This started with two players deciding they didn't want Jacobi to be a significant political opponent. They complained bitterly about something irrelevant: Jacobi's choice of battles. They hoped for a response so that they could complain bitterly about whatever he says. No matter what he says. He has spoken. They call him a loser etc. Shades of Ethel Rosenberg and every other player they consider an opponent.
Insightful point, oliver, it reminds me of what you wrote in your recent article using chess as an analogy:
"What should be of interest is "can I tell how they got to here", "how can I avoid similar situations and how can I provoke them".
It is quite apparent that eCanada's political/social scenes depends heavily on the 'how can I provoke them' strategy to get ahead in the game here...which is partly why one may as well as drop out of that game arena and focus on matters somewhat isolated from these effects.
jacobi, always a legend
Some folks drink and get jolly, others drink and get moody. Nuff said.
As dysfunctional as we are, our bond to this community will remain and eCanada will come together again.
Hopefully with thicker skins. x2
"I guess I am stupidest player in the game then. I waist all my good shit with no hope of gold when it is an important battle for my country. I am probably the only God of War in the game with only 15 BH."
@Exalted Drui😛 I'm closing in on GoW, with 1 BH. Donna Rush is already GoW* with two BHs.
"Honestly though, everything right there reads like someone who has fallen out of love grasping at reasons to hate the object of their old love. We get it, Jacobi: this isn't the eCan that you knew, and you don't like it. Things change over time." x2
My thoughts echo a lot of Eric's. I get the nostalgia, but it's past and this is now. What are you gonna do with it? To remember the past and reminisce isn't bad, I do it all the time, but it's when you want to go back in time, compare how much better everything was, you gotta move on, let go and live in the present.
Most players don't buy gold anyway.
Eric is a God of Words.
Look at that counter argument.
This article should be titled, The meaninglessness of Jacobi....
No counter argument is actually presented. The principle argument is that because the game is different it makes little sense to harken back to the old worn-out concepts of "valuable ally", community building and active government. Jacobi is entirely right. He doesn't argue we should return to the "old". He says, quite rightly, that we can't and that eCanada is in no different position than most other teams: the "nation" is meaningless. Find another meaningful enterprise. Acacia Mason had an idea which might help. Or just keep insulting each other. That has always provided a lot of meaningful game play.
As to what Rolo says is the "meaninglessness of Jacobi", I can't help but consider that a new political slogan. The irrelevant personal attack on Jacobi was begun to find a slogan. You have it. You also have, from a player of experience, a pretty straightforward, frank and accurate analysis. Choose what is of greater importance to you. The slogan will lead you down one path; thoughtful reflection points to another.
sugar tits
I do find the old ways of working to level up your skill level to be more fun...what did the admins do 😨
As far as I can see oliver in the comments there isn't much of insulting of each other and more if disgust, and disappointment. unless of course as usual u take it rolo speaks for us all in the nation. You see the country through your own glasses and no matter what that sight or opinion doesn't change.
Fine you think canada is garbage and not worth much time. Go preach to india about it.
I think it's time for you to leave.
dear rylde: I think ecanada shares the same circumstances as most countries. Not garbage at all. The game has been dumbed down so much that congress has little to do, the executive is largely impotent and there is no strategy involved in war. The only war tactic is focussing massive damage. This is the same message contained in Jacobi's article. The disgust and disappointment you noticed does exist, but it doesn't come from me. It is misplaced if directed toward honest players, foremost amongst whom is Jacobi.
Honest players?
Since when did honesty have anything to do with morality? Anyway, this article is simply a rage at Rolo calling him out. It has many words, many implications, and again many words.
But it's just a rage. A rage that lets us see beneath the fedora, a sight that's far less pretty than some of us thought, but still just a rage.
This is just more proof that ideology and party aside, we all have our faults. When it comes to morality we are all at fault. But since when did morality have anything to do with patriotism?
You aren't patriotic "anymore?" Then stop being pompous and stay out of politics. Enjoy your worthless BH. 5g isn't enough gold to wipe a behind.
Oliver, not once does Jacobi say anything regarding any other nation - he only refers to eCanada. Maybe it was implied, but I don't think so - I actually think he was implying, from only using eCanada in name, that these are problems that only eCanada is facing because he thinks our community is so shit (which I know is not true, which is something I conveyed in my last posts.)
To me this is just an angry rant from some who has become disenchanted.
Also, I wasn't saying that those concepts don't exist any longer - I'm just saying that they aren't what they once were. There are still valuable allies (those who are loyal, in my opinion - but most just look at damage), there is still community building (as Plugson pointed out, mainly centered around MUs), and there is still active government (there is less for the government to do, but some months getting even that small amount of things done seems to be challenge; and if there is inactive governments there must also be active governments, right? - not to mention keeping the general populus informed, which a lot of people are split on the importance of, but it is something I consider important personally.) More importantly, I was trying to convey that blaming eCanada for these changes and limitations is misguided, and I truly do believe that is what Jacobi is doing.
Eric, the original article was titled "The Meaninglessness of Government" and was going to be a general shot across the bow for the lack of utility of Congress and Presidents in erep, but then I left myself open to the very likely possibility that people could give me a bunch of arguments for why I was wrong. Considering I'm not knowledgeable enough to say with any measure of confidence that other countries are uniformly experiencing the same problems, I restricted my focus to what I do know: ecanada.
I am not surprised, however, that many of the problems are not confined to eCanada.
You have to understand that eCan has been coming under flack (mostly undeservedly, but not entirely so) by a number of people who have one reason or another to not like eCan. I'm sure you've been informed by now (and I actually think you popped in for a short period at that time), that the US was at one point entertaining the idea of "wiping us for our own good" because a number of people who left eCan for the US were talking a lot of shit about the eCan community. Surprisingly enough, at least one person has now left the US for eCan...
Anyway, maybe I was a bit too quick to jump to conclusions and defend eCan. You can see, though, that I was not the only one, nor the first to think that this was a "personal" attack on our community. I think that maybe you should have stuck with the original title, as changing it clearly didn't avoid any arguments.
@Eric;
eUS isn't what it was a year ago either.
Yeah, you missed the point entirely Eric.
Don't worry, Jacobi. There are some of us who understand and respect the point of your article. Some people (as you know) like to just throw up useless arguments to sound important. I feel the same way about eRep. The cohesion is gone, the gameplay is boring, and the only reason I'm in Canada is because it is the closest thing to my home (USA) without being in that cesspool.
"Some people (as you know) like to just throw up useless arguments to sound important."
I hope that wasn't directed at me. It's obvious that I agree with what Jacobi has said about the state of the game (now that I do understand that that's what he was saying), although I'm more optimistic about it (or maybe I'm just more complacent.)
And another thing Jacobi,
You're not supposed to say this out loud. Makes people question their time spent on this game. x2
"I hope that wasn't directed at me."
In my experience, when someone writes a vent article to get something off their chest, they are not doing it to please the public or make any friends. They are writing to express their feelings and many people take that opportunity to attack that person's character or integrity. Usually when these articles are written, the author really doesn't care about what the generally populace thinks or what they write in the comments. It was meant to be read and reflected on. (I can't speak for Jacobi but that is my best guess)
I did not direct that towards any individual person; it was more for the general commenting populace. 😛
"Erepublik the game has made eCanada irrelevant, redundant, and inconsequential"
tis a wee bit true mostly
the game was more fun a couple years ago
This is fun to watch.
http://upyachka.ru/img/kot/20.gif