Pick Up Game is what most Quake/UT/others games get referred to on IRC. Before playing NS2 I honestly don't think I came across a group game being referred to as a gather.
Calling it a Gather would work well for those who actively participate in the community or play at a higher level. New people may very well be a bit confused by it at first, but maybe that's a good thing?
Lobby, Hangouts, Queue, Party Mode, Matchmaking, Quick match - These are too vague at describing what it actually is and make it sound like they're much more casual ways of getting a game.
Team Play, Organised Play, Group Play - These are good options, they let you know there is a designated set of people that will play. Although this could very well again confuse newer people and result in a lot of groups of new friends using this to play together.
If you're aiming at this being a way to find more "competitive" games, I would expect it to tell people that it's not for rookies, but making it use a vague or team word could as I said confuse newer people. In the case of it being a more "competitive" mode Gather feels like the best option, because the people that would use it will know it.
If you just want it to be an option for everyone, rookies and all. One of the following options would be the better fit; Team Play, Organised Play, Group Play.
From what I thought the term Gather is used in Europe only (?). I've heard people talk about gathers but had no idea what they were. Every 6v6 game with mixed teams I've played in has just been called PUG's.
From what I thought the term Gather is used in Europe only (?). I've heard people talk about gathers but had no idea what they were. Every 6v6 game with mixed teams I've played in has just been called PUG's.
in my experience, in NA it's "pug" while euros say "mix".
No it's not. It's probably familiar for those who frequent the forum and who follow some form of competitive play, but I don't think it would be instantly identifiable by the casual player base. People might confuse it with some form of obect gathering. Even if people did understand it's where players come together, how do they know a semi-competitive match occurs after the people actually gather?
I've never seen a pick-up game refereed to as a gather until I saw the thread on this forum. I think something like "Organized Play", "Organized Match, "Competitive Play", or "Competitive Match" would be best. Why sugarcoat what it really is with terms that might confuse part of the player base?
From what I thought the term Gather is used in Europe only (?). I've heard people talk about gathers but had no idea what they were. Every 6v6 game with mixed teams I've played in has just been called PUG's.
In my experience a gather is a system in which a pug is formed.
Gather is the one and only word to describe this system.
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edited February 2014
'Gather' is the word the community usually uses to describe pick up games, so there's no reason to try to invite a new word. Everyone's going to call it a gather, anyway, since that's what they are to the people doing them.
I suppose it is worth noting that for people new to the community that it could seem a little vague, so 'Pick Up Game' could be more clear (since that term is used a fair amount as well).
When I first heard the term "get into a gather" in terms of breaking into the comp scene, I thought that there was some chat room or VOIP system i was not privy too where players got to know each other and were then allowed into private scrims.
I'm sure that I was not the first and will not be the last person to think that a "gather" is nothing more than a community chat room, unless it is clearly specified that it is a "Gather Match Queue"
I for one don't want it to be 'Gather'. We already have the term Gathers.
To me Gathers / PUGs are matches that are organised outside the game, with captains picking their team mates.
Also 'gather' sounds like it's dedicated to the competitive players (like it is at the moment), and that should definitely be avoided.
It should be the common interface for having a match for every player, and as such it should be named to something neutral like 'Play'.
No microphone's / top level game sense as a requirement. No player should be left out. This will hopefully encourage more players to become better without forcing it on them.
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I think Gather is good, I know some others don't like it, and that other games don't use it, but I think if gather was used its unique to Unknown worlds and NS2.
At the moment as bicsum says when someone says gather they think comp ns2, there for that view would need to change as a gather would mean "organised Play" for everyone.
A term used extensively within Evolutionary biology to explain the phenomenon where two species rapidly evolve to match each others adaptations against themselves.
To me gather means you have to regroup 12 people then pick teams in order to play, and you wouldn't necessary be with the friends you joined with. I assume here you would only need 1-6 players then you could start queuing, and be assured to play with them against some other group.
Gather and Matchmaking are two different thing imo. So if you don't want to use Matchmaking, Organised Play sounds the best to me so far.
But in general Gather sounds fine, and Organized Play. +1 for those.
On a side note, the word "mix" in euro refers to one team being of mixed people ranging from teams to casuals, so a mix can play vs a real team for example. Gather refers to what i guess muricans call pick ups? Also in Day Of Defeat the term gather was used afaik.
Maybe Gather would not be pressed as much as Organized Play though.. I spontaneously feel Organized Play explains better what to expect when you press it.
Many people insist on "Gather" but I also think this term alone is not clear enough.
So as a compromise I'd suggest it should be prolonged with a second term e.g. "Gathered Match", "Gathered Join" or "Gathered Play".
Organized play was already up there current1y but I do agree that the name would work.
Gather/PUG (pick up game) really comes down to EU vs NA.
In past games people in the NA region have called it a PUG while EU calls it a Gather. It is the same as Scrim (NA) or pcw (EU).
in my experience, in NA it's "pug" while euros say "mix".
Mix or mixteam is a term I have only heard in this community. It describes a group of people that have gotten together to scrim or pcw with an actual team. PUGS/Gathers you have to have 12 since you are going to form 2 groups of 6 to play each other. In a Mix, you get 6 people together since you only need to form 1 side. (ie Mixteam vs. actual team)
I'd call it "Organized Match (6vs6)" because it explains what it does most accurately. Shows what team size format is played, shows that it is organized as opposed to randomly hopping into an game, and it shows it's a single match.
Ofc it does depend on how you actually setup the system, but I suppose you just find some more people to play with in a organized manner.
I'm against gather because it doesn't describe it very unless you know that term in the first place, for which then you'd know about ns2 gathers or so one way or another.
I mean seriously, if I don't know what a gather is and I see that option, I'd ask my self "wtf is this?".
Also the some of the others in @Hugh 's OP are really bad as well. D
Team Play would suggest having a pre-build/pre-made team already, more along of the lines of a clan match.
PUG - I suspsect many people outside of the competetive scene have never heard about this abbrevetion, even if the full term is used I dont think it's very descriptive of what this is
Hangouts - suggests to me that I hangout with friends and fuck around. As opposed to an organized match which is serious?
Lobby - I think this is still okay because you can associate it with other games, but still not very clear about it's purpose; more of a broad term
Party Mode - I don't think it puts any emphasis on it being an more organized match as opposed, for example, just playing with your friends; this might as well be a "join a game with your friends" option
Matchmaking - also okay, also something that is commonly used.
Quick Play - bad, usually I'd associate this with hopping in a random game, just like the play function
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The trouble is it is not competitive, the term will make people think it is only for 'pro' players. NS2 already suffers from average joes complaining NS2 is a competitive focused game, and they don't care about normal joes, well labelling this as competitive is just going to further enhance this reputation. Which is not the way UWE should be going.
Asking ppl to name something they have no real idea about what it is exactly is kinda strange.
This.
We have no idea how this system will look like.
Is it exclusively 6v6?
Why would the team play be any different than normal pub?
Will there be captains picking teams or is it random?
Will community servers still influence the rating / skill / elo?
Asking ppl to name something they have no real idea about what it is exactly is kinda strange.
This.
We have no idea how this system will look like.
Is it exclusively 6v6?
Why would the team play be any different than normal pub?
Will there be captains picking teams or is it random?
Will community servers still influence the rating / skill / elo?
I ( and i think all other PTs here) would love to answer those questions and show you what exactly gather is and why the word "gather" fits best to this new system but sadly the nda i signed doesn't allow me to do that
So @hugh how should we explain to you why gather fits best without leaking some informations we are not allowed to share in the public forum ???? :-??
Asking ppl to name something they have no real idea about what it is exactly is kinda strange.
This.
We have no idea how this system will look like.
Is it exclusively 6v6?
Why would the team play be any different than normal pub?
Will there be captains picking teams or is it random?
Will community servers still influence the rating / skill / elo?
I ( and i think all other PTs here) would love to answer those questions and show you what exactly gather is and why the word "gather" fits best to this new system but sadly the nda i signed doesn't allow me to do that
So @hugh how should we explain to you why gather fits best without leaking some informations we are not allowed to share in the public forum ???? :-??
I bet all that the upcoming Gather-button will do, is opening http://www.ensl.org/gathers/7849 in the web browser. You heard it here first.
If this is going to be a top level option in the main menu then using the phrase "Gather" is a terrible option.
Anything the user has to click should clearly display what its going to do. Especially if its right next to a link that says Play, or Play Game.
So what does this actually do? What is the purpose of this system? Is it an alternative to the server browser?
Answering the questions above makes it a bit easier to decide.
"Play with friends" is the best option, if this is intended to let you play with friends.
If its meant to help you organise a match instead, then you should probably have a top level menu option that says "Play", then when you go into that, you get the option of starting a lobby, or browsing the server list.
Gather does not really tell you anything if you don't know beforehand what you are getting into. So I don't recommend using that word.
Organized play or something in that direction would be a better approach. The word need to explain what it does no matter how experienced the player reading it is.
Comments
Calling it a Gather would work well for those who actively participate in the community or play at a higher level. New people may very well be a bit confused by it at first, but maybe that's a good thing?
Lobby, Hangouts, Queue, Party Mode, Matchmaking, Quick match - These are too vague at describing what it actually is and make it sound like they're much more casual ways of getting a game.
Team Play, Organised Play, Group Play - These are good options, they let you know there is a designated set of people that will play. Although this could very well again confuse newer people and result in a lot of groups of new friends using this to play together.
If you're aiming at this being a way to find more "competitive" games, I would expect it to tell people that it's not for rookies, but making it use a vague or team word could as I said confuse newer people. In the case of it being a more "competitive" mode Gather feels like the best option, because the people that would use it will know it.
If you just want it to be an option for everyone, rookies and all. One of the following options would be the better fit; Team Play, Organised Play, Group Play.
Hypothetically, of course.
For reasons above & it's most familiar to mostly everyone.
in my experience, in NA it's "pug" while euros say "mix".
No it's not. It's probably familiar for those who frequent the forum and who follow some form of competitive play, but I don't think it would be instantly identifiable by the casual player base. People might confuse it with some form of obect gathering. Even if people did understand it's where players come together, how do they know a semi-competitive match occurs after the people actually gather?
I've never seen a pick-up game refereed to as a gather until I saw the thread on this forum. I think something like "Organized Play", "Organized Match, "Competitive Play", or "Competitive Match" would be best. Why sugarcoat what it really is with terms that might confuse part of the player base?
Gather is the one and only word to describe this system.
I suppose it is worth noting that for people new to the community that it could seem a little vague, so 'Pick Up Game' could be more clear (since that term is used a fair amount as well).
When I first heard the term "get into a gather" in terms of breaking into the comp scene, I thought that there was some chat room or VOIP system i was not privy too where players got to know each other and were then allowed into private scrims.
I'm sure that I was not the first and will not be the last person to think that a "gather" is nothing more than a community chat room, unless it is clearly specified that it is a "Gather Match Queue"
To me Gathers / PUGs are matches that are organised outside the game, with captains picking their team mates.
Also 'gather' sounds like it's dedicated to the competitive players (like it is at the moment), and that should definitely be avoided.
It should be the common interface for having a match for every player, and as such it should be named to something neutral like 'Play'.
No microphone's / top level game sense as a requirement. No player should be left out. This will hopefully encourage more players to become better without forcing it on them.
___
Play (rated)
Server Browser
Options
Mods
Exit
___
At the moment as bicsum says when someone says gather they think comp ns2, there for that view would need to change as a gather would mean "organised Play" for everyone.
It's universal.
A term used extensively within Evolutionary biology to explain the phenomenon where two species rapidly evolve to match each others adaptations against themselves.
Gather and Matchmaking are two different thing imo. So if you don't want to use Matchmaking, Organised Play sounds the best to me so far.
But in general Gather sounds fine, and Organized Play. +1 for those.
On a side note, the word "mix" in euro refers to one team being of mixed people ranging from teams to casuals, so a mix can play vs a real team for example. Gather refers to what i guess muricans call pick ups? Also in Day Of Defeat the term gather was used afaik.
Maybe Gather would not be pressed as much as Organized Play though.. I spontaneously feel Organized Play explains better what to expect when you press it.
So as a compromise I'd suggest it should be prolonged with a second term e.g. "Gathered Match", "Gathered Join" or "Gathered Play".
Gather/PUG (pick up game) really comes down to EU vs NA.
In past games people in the NA region have called it a PUG while EU calls it a Gather. It is the same as Scrim (NA) or pcw (EU).
Mix or mixteam is a term I have only heard in this community. It describes a group of people that have gotten together to scrim or pcw with an actual team. PUGS/Gathers you have to have 12 since you are going to form 2 groups of 6 to play each other. In a Mix, you get 6 people together since you only need to form 1 side. (ie Mixteam vs. actual team)
while many understand the term gather - more understand the term 'competitive'
It also doesn't clash the EU/NA differences
Ofc it does depend on how you actually setup the system, but I suppose you just find some more people to play with in a organized manner.
I'm against gather because it doesn't describe it very unless you know that term in the first place, for which then you'd know about ns2 gathers or so one way or another.
I mean seriously, if I don't know what a gather is and I see that option, I'd ask my self "wtf is this?".
Also the some of the others in @Hugh 's OP are really bad as well. D
Team Play would suggest having a pre-build/pre-made team already, more along of the lines of a clan match.
PUG - I suspsect many people outside of the competetive scene have never heard about this abbrevetion, even if the full term is used I dont think it's very descriptive of what this is
Hangouts - suggests to me that I hangout with friends and fuck around. As opposed to an organized match which is serious?
Lobby - I think this is still okay because you can associate it with other games, but still not very clear about it's purpose; more of a broad term
Party Mode - I don't think it puts any emphasis on it being an more organized match as opposed, for example, just playing with your friends; this might as well be a "join a game with your friends" option
Matchmaking - also okay, also something that is commonly used.
Quick Play - bad, usually I'd associate this with hopping in a random game, just like the play function
Asking ppl to name something they have no real idea about what it is exactly is kinda strange.
But i have solution for the issue with the word "Gather":
Why don't use the new tooltips by samusdroid to explain what it is if ppl hover over Gather with the mouse?
This.
We have no idea how this system will look like.
Is it exclusively 6v6?
Why would the team play be any different than normal pub?
Will there be captains picking teams or is it random?
Will community servers still influence the rating / skill / elo?
I ( and i think all other PTs here) would love to answer those questions and show you what exactly gather is and why the word "gather" fits best to this new system but sadly the nda i signed doesn't allow me to do that
So @hugh how should we explain to you why gather fits best without leaking some informations we are not allowed to share in the public forum ???? :-??
I bet all that the upcoming Gather-button will do, is opening http://www.ensl.org/gathers/7849 in the web browser. You heard it here first.
If this is going to be a top level option in the main menu then using the phrase "Gather" is a terrible option.
Anything the user has to click should clearly display what its going to do. Especially if its right next to a link that says Play, or Play Game.
So what does this actually do? What is the purpose of this system? Is it an alternative to the server browser?
Answering the questions above makes it a bit easier to decide.
"Play with friends" is the best option, if this is intended to let you play with friends.
If its meant to help you organise a match instead, then you should probably have a top level menu option that says "Play", then when you go into that, you get the option of starting a lobby, or browsing the server list.
The name should be whatever it does!
Organized play or something in that direction would be a better approach. The word need to explain what it does no matter how experienced the player reading it is.