I prefer me the multiplayer environment of Fromsoft games where it’s just absolute degeneracy and your own damn pride on the line. Where the sweat and the stupid blurs.

I used to play and I know it’s a time sink, but Eve Online is so open ended, that you do you and know one gives a fuck about any ranking system.

playing a game for fun vs playing a game to feel better than others

Ranked is fun until you start caring about your rank.

flashback to my dota days.

I climbed to gold once in StarCraft 2 by worker rushing every single game. I still have no idea how to play an RTS competitively. I was inspired by reading this hilarious blog post back in the day of a guy hardstuck in plat that decided to just worker rush until he was bronze

https://tl.net/blogs/271453-worker-rush-descent-to-bronze

Besides cheesing in SC2, I’m gold 2 in Overwatch mostly because I’m comfortable with fps games and I try to plug in whatever gaps our team has. I only voice comm constructive things. The second I get a team where it’s just complaining I mute and try to win without voice comms. If I lose 3 games in a row that’s it, I take a break.

Honestly, it’s the right image for both. At least for team based games. The first thing that comes to mind are unpleasent people when I hear ladder.