Sooner or later all conversations about SL trivia turn to MP. If you don't know it, it's a trivia event held at, I think, 7pm SLT during the week. I've never been to an event there, and, since it's at 3am local time, I'm unlikely ever to do so.
But so I can keep my blogging public informed, I paid my 100L for a 120-minute pass and wandered about the sim for a while. It's a nice waterfront sim if rather laggy, and at 0635 SLT no-one was about, not that anyone in her right senses would pay 100L to wander round a pretty sim with nothing happening.
MP is important to us because of its effect on the trivia economy. It runs very high paying events and injects a lot of lindens into the trivia economy. Winnings from MP finance other events, and I have no doubt that, without MP, there would be fewer lindens flowing about the trivia scene.
The ubiquitous Lette Ponnier at EyeQ
But it really isn't all sweetness and light, and I hear so much grumbling about MP. It's no fun, and social chatter in local chat isn't allowed. There is no warning of questions, which may appear suddenly after 5 minutes' silence. The questions are culled from the Internet, and question quality is low compared with the events some of the players themselves run. Becki categorised trivia events into either trivia (with dancing) or dancing (with trivia). MP is unique, it's dancing (with trivia) without the dancing!
And then there are the bans. Rule infractions are liable to be met with a ban. Questioning questions is liable to be met with a threat. Speaking mildly disparagingly about MP has led to bans.
This attitude is so foreign to me. I've been hosting nearly a year, and I haven't sought to have a single person banned. If I ask a badly researched question I feel ashamed of myself, and seek to put it right and to make sure correct answers are rewarded. What is wrong with these people?
It's clear to me they do it because they can, and because they pay the players to dance to their tune. How many people who go to MP would go if it was a 25L game? Clearly, people only go for the money. What else is there?
I know my post is open to so many objections. How can she comment when she hasn't been? And I think that's fair comment, but most of us know that North Korea isn't a fun place despite never having holidayed in Pyongyang.
And I can be accused of being the fox who lost her brush. Lotus can't go because of time differences, so she's going to make the rest of us look uncool for going. It's possible, but I bore easily and I really don't think I could stand staring at a screen not talking for two hours. It's not me.
Many of you live off your trivia winnings, and I know for some of you MP is a big chunk of your income. Good luck to you, but you can't really expect a huge amount of empathy from those of us on this side of the Atlantic there.
Then there is the effect on the trivia economy. Every MP event must pay out about L18000, which is a lot of money, and much of this will come back into SL trivia. I know that Buccaneer Bowl and Thorny Trivia are mostly funded from MP winnings, and I would hate to see either of the events disappear. These are excellent events! I am thoroughly addicted to Buckybowl, and would be very sad if it were to disappear from the calendar.
Cully Andel hosting at EyeQ. Every Tuesday at 1230 pm
But they aren't the only games in town, and if they were then SL trivia would be a dull place. Double Standards, EyeQ, Sharon's Diner and Shiraz all run regular trivia events throughout the week, and for me they are the bread-and-butter trivia venues that keep SL trivia ticking over. I don't know where the money comes from for Double Standards or Shiraz, but I don't think it's from MP winnings. Sharon's Diner certainly isn't financed by MP, and runs 4-5 events every week, paying out 18000L monthly. Jamie Parfort at EyeQ is now running four weekly events from EyeQ, paying at least 1500L per event, and he displays a frighteningly impressive SL business acumen, as those of us who work there know very well. I just logged on to find an EyeQ notice saying Jamie is paying 9000L this week. He does not get that from MP.
As far as I can see people go to MP for the money, and for no other reason. Nothing in SL lasts forever, and one day MP will disappear. There will be a few shocks round the trivia world, but a new equilibrium will develop, and we'll all get along fine without it.
A warning!
The phrase "trivia elite" seems to have crept in vogue recently. It's snobby everyone, and it should be so not us. The correct term is "trivia community" and anyone saying trivia elite in my presence will get a stern disapproving look from me. I mean it!
Oh, your Dingbats follow in a separate blog. And I always love to get your comments!
Every venue that provides prize money, however small or large is helping to keep Trivia alive and kicking in SL.It also helps so many people maintain a home in SL and perhaps a small amount left over to reward those hard working hosts and Dj's who bring us all enjoyment and entertainment.
ReplyDeleteEach venue owner has decided to operate their Trivia venue in a different manner. It then becomes a matter of personal choice whether or not for a Trvia player to attend.
As a venue owner and operator, I have thought about introducing a Fee paying event. However, I realised that this could possibly deter some people coming to EYEQ. In order to maintain a reasonable level of prize money for every event, I decided to explore an alternative method of funding events. Sales from vendors in 4 months have only yielded L$25 (my fault for having such crappy products in them)!!!!!!
So I decided to seek sponsorship for events. By giving shopping malls what they need to rise in the Listings....TRAFFIC......I secured three more weekly time slots for events away from my own venue and have given the opportunity to two more people to host for EYEQ. This gives them the opportunity to do what they love to do, provide you with more events for what you love to do and to help contribute towards the continuation of Trivia in SL.
So Please, this is not an advert for eyeq but a genuine request for all of you continue supporting ALL trivia events in SL. Every event offers something different.
I went to MP once. The $100L entry fee kept me away but I heard so much about it I had to try it. I found it to be a sterile, joyless place - the SL equivalent of Fritz Lang's Metropolis. No banter, no fun, no movement, no nothing - Just the pressure of waiting for the next question. I answered only one question correctly, but it was a double payout. I tucked the $600L into my bra and never went back again.
ReplyDeleteThanks for bringing up the "trivia elite" thing. It was bothering me, too, but hesitated to say something else controversial after criticizing the aggrevation MP seems to cause. To me it is interesting how SL distorts our sense of value: "Every MP event must pay out about L18000, which is a lot of money," I don't know how many players split that pot, but if it's 10 that's about 2 Starbucks gourmet coffees a week each. I'm not saying that I am in any position to infuse my own SL account with cash or go to Starbucks twice a week, either, at least not with my US small retail business sales plumeting this year. I'm just asking... how much is a lot, and what is the price you will pay? Karmel Kips
ReplyDeleteThanks K, you can join me in stern disapproving looks if you like.
ReplyDeleteI assume the L$100 entry fee is just to keep our alts out? Sounds like a trollfest waiting to happen otherwise...
ReplyDeleteThanks Lotus, some valuable perspective in this post. I also don't find the phrase "trivia elite" productive and I'm glad I'm not alone.
ReplyDeleteMeanwhile, I don't think MP is that controversial a subject -- only a couple people attempt to make an argument that it's not about money... the rest of us readily admit that we are all whores for their cash and put up with some ridiculous behavior to line our virtual pockets. And actually I find your take on it interesting, specifically because you haven't been -- you experience the fallout that ripples through the community. We all must seem daft lol.
Saying that I enjoyed the atmosphere is going too far (way too far, actually, since in recent months I've often chosen not to attend simply because I know the place usually makes me in a grouchy bastard), but, to be honest, I did appreciate the quiet. The game itself is often incoherent and infuriating but for an hour and half you get something that resembles trivia without the gestures, puns, smartassery and yakking that seem to come with so much of the SL trivia territory. It was nice to have a break from that now and then (and yeah, I realize that I'm probably in the minority on that).
Anyway, it's great that you point out the range of games and touched on money -- high profile events that happen on a more sporadic or monthly basis do get more attention for their payouts but the cash that goes into regular games is often under appreciated. I'd never really thought about how MP affects the rest of the trivia scene (probably because my former events weren't funded by my MP winnings) -- as you say, it would be a shame to lose events that "depend" on MP for funding but I suspect the hosts of those games would find another way to make things happen or adapt to a financially leaner game if things dried up. Dependence on MP is a choice and, largely, an illusion, and even thinking about it that way gives them more power than they deserve, in my opinion.
And I'm saying that as someone who makes every effort to fund my SL lifestyle with in-world earnings only -- I can't afford to bring RL money into SL, so I'm one of those who considered MP income. MP money gave me enough to rent my first plot of land a year ago... now I have two shops and have become a landlord with tenants and property in several sims. It opened doors for me, which was awesome. And when they stopped having trivia regularly, I found other ways of making things happen. As you said, nothing in SL lasts forever.
I think you're right, if it was $25L few would be there. But many of the Trivia Elite do go regularily and do pay $100L to get their verified alts in :)
ReplyDeleteFor most places trivia is camping - highly paid, more fun camping - but it's to get traffic to shops or gambling. There are exceptions yes - Monochrome say for example. But Shiraz, Trivy, EyeQ are all about camping and traffic numbers. Losers with nothing better to do getting paid $50-300L to camp for an hour or two.
MP is different, as I don't think they believe any amount of traffic is going to get throngs of park visitors paying $100L to visit the shitty sims. I think a guy with serious social skills issues can afford to pay people to be his friend for a couple hours a week. No one likes the hosts or the place but they stay for the money. At least a hooker gets laid!
The only events I've been to worse than MP are ones where the host forgot to show.
Wow, Anonymous. And I thought *my* most recent faux pas in a public forum was harsh. At least I can say it was an impulsive and fleeting outburst I immediately regretted and not as consciously thought out as this seems to be.
ReplyDeleteFlinging around the "Trivia Elite" epithet *and* referring to your acquaintances, possibly friends, as "losers" in the same comment? The need for anonymity becomes clear now. Blatant hypocrisy FTW!
If you ask me (and I realize no one actually did), there's way too much "judging" going on about trivia venues and (in some cases) trivia players. Live and let live, and if you don't like a particular event, host, style, atmosphere, PLAYER, fine, but your not liking them (and here I'm using the "royal" you, not singling out Lotus) doesn't necessarily give you the right to claim moral or intellectual superiority over them or the people who *do* like them. Shiraz has never been my cup of tea, for instance, but my personal preferences don't give me the right to pass judgment on the people who *do* enjoy it there. This whole "trivia" thing is supposed to be fun, and a lot of this blog-induced navel-gazing seems -- from my perspective at least -- to lose sight of that and to take on a bit of a pompous air that sucks the fun out of it and tries to reduce everything to some kind of empirical analysis or sociological pronouncement. Let's not overanalyze or make value judgments about what should be innocent fun.
ReplyDeleteSinn, I *did* ask for your comments, and i always welcome and respect your views, and it's perfectly fair to single me out because I don't claim to represent anyone else's views in this blog, unless I explicitly say so.
ReplyDeleteI like the blogs Sinn, and I like some analysis and comment and, yes, some gossip and drama, and are you not making a moral judgement on those of us who do?
I don't blog about events I thought were of low quality, and I'd confine myself to IMs. I think MP is different, and you just can't avoid discussing it in SL trivia.
Until you mentioned it last week i can't remember the last time i heard anyone discussing MP.
ReplyDeleteOh well maybe it's just me then.
ReplyDelete