‘Timesinks’ and ‘Timegating’ in MMORPGs are annoying. Cortyn from MeinMMO explains why they are important and valid mechanics.
When a new update or patch for an MMORPG – such as World of Warcraft – is released, there is always criticism from players. If certain things cannot be achieved immediately or if there are time hurdles, the terms ‘Timegating’ or ‘Timesink’ are often used. Certain content only becomes available after a while or requires a lot of work to experience it.
Some players seem to be bothered by this realization in MMORPGs continuously. However, both Timesinks and Timegating serve important functions. I want to explain to you in this article why I see it this way. So hold back your pitchforks and torches – and listen first, because otherwise, you won’t make friends in MMORPGs.
Timegating – a necessary standard in MMORPGs
What is Timegating? Timegating refers to the situation when certain content cannot be played directly. This content either comes later, such as weeks or months after the release of a new patch or addon. Or this content can only be played when certain requirements are met, which again cannot be endlessly farmed – such as when the player has completed a certain quest each week for 4 weeks.
In short: Timegating is a mechanic that holds back game content and requires that certain requirements are met first or a certain amount of time has passed.
Hand on heart. MMORPG players are not always the brightest sparks when it comes to enjoying a game. I know this from myself. Before a new expansion of WoW, I always plan to enjoy the addon this time and not stress myself out. Still, I always find myself on the first night with a mountain of energy drinks and junk food in front of the PC to “binge-play” for the 24 hours after the launch. I want to be among the first who reach the max level and are “done”.
Many do it just like I do. I see at every launch the number of players who reach level 60 before me or roughly at the same time and then immediately dive into dungeons and other endgame content.
This is then – in my experience – exactly the faction that complains after a few days that there is “nothing to do” in an expansion. Not surprising if you spend 80–100 hours in the game in the first 7 days.
This is exactly where Timegating helps in several ways: By ensuring that certain content cannot be fully completed immediately, several positive effects are achieved simultaneously:
- Players with less time do not feel completely left behind if they cannot play 80-100 hours in the first week.
- There are always new innovations and fresh content even in the weeks after the launch.
- The game protects players from “playing themselves into a burnout.”
Perhaps it is also simply because MMORPG players have forgotten how to feel anticipation in recent years. The mentality of “getting everything right now” can significantly dampen the enjoyment of the game.
Of course, there is also Timegating that simply annoys me – especially when I have been looking forward to something. An example is the Twisting Corridors in Torghast. I would have preferred to play these directly at launch and it really annoyed me that I couldn’t.
But after a bit of reflection, I also realize that this allowed me to focus on entirely different activities that I would otherwise have completely neglected in the game – and outside of the game. I could collect cool mounts and work on my first Legendary.
And the Twisting Corridors are still coming. They will be there for me when the other content might be a bit boring.
Every WoW player finds themselves in one of these 10 phases sooner or later:
Timegating keeps games fresh even after weeks
Additionally, Timegating keeps the game fresh for a longer time. A good example of this is the covenant sanctum: new content unlocks over the course of 8-10 weeks. This includes new features, such as upgrading certain buildings, but also the main story of the covenant campaign.
What is considered horrible Timegating by one player, blocking progress, is for another a reason to look forward to logging in each week. After all, this ensures that there is something new to experience every week and that even after two months, you still feel like you can see something fresh in the game.
Timesinks are also part of MMORPGs – deal with it!
Clearly distinguishable is the Timesink. This describes mechanics in a game that require a lot of time to achieve something. In the simplest case, these are quests or tasks that require killing many enemies or collecting many items. They are tasks for which you must necessarily sacrifice a large amount of time to complete them.
However, I believe that these Timesinks are not fundamentally bad. A good example here are the world quests in WoW: Shadowlands. These can take 10-20 minutes, often consist of multiple steps, or require a large number of defeated enemies. In the last expansion, Battle for Azeroth, a world quest often consisted of “Kill exactly one enemy” – that sometimes took 15 seconds, and in some cases even less. The travel time to the quest was longer than the quest itself.
Now in Shadowlands you have to spend more time on it and therefore also spend more time with your character. I have to fight longer and use more abilities. I have to play my character more than plan the journeys between quests. This is a fundamentally good thing.
And so we come to the shocking yet obvious truth: MMORPGs are by definition already a Timesink. They are a leisure activity that wants to engage and entertain you. For this, they have various forms of rewards. These can be very diverse:
- Special gear, toys, mounts, or titles
- The great feeling of having defeated a tough boss
- The feeling of superiority by defeating others in PvP
- Social interaction through community feeling in a guild or friend circle in the game
All these rewards can be earned in various ways. Some through skill and social contacts (such as PvP or raids), others simply through ambition and endurance to push through a long-term task. Where many see just the annoying Timesink, others recognize an interesting challenge to overcome. And the fact that there are different challenges for all player types is a good thing – because it makes the diversity of an MMORPG of the size of World of Warcraft. It ensures that many player types feel at home.
Unless you are playing a dubious mobile game that wants to give you a dopamine rush through pseudo-rewards every 20 seconds with “Instant Gratification” to rip you off, then “Timesink” is just part of the game.
Just an occupation therapy?
A frequently mentioned argument here is that the Timesink is just “an occupation therapy.” I often have to facepalm and suppress the urge to write: “No shit, Sherlock. You are onto something big.”
Games are occupations. They are distractions. They are a way to kill time. Therefore, they are fundamentally a kind of “occupation therapy”.
Since an MMORPG operates differently than a single-player game, it needs repetitive content, like dungeons or just the killing of certain enemies, to earn something. Because no developer in the world can produce content as quickly as the player can play through it in real-time.
Now we come to the last, very important truth for me: Not every player has to like all content.
This is simply not possible.
- I have friends who cannot stand pet battles and still see them as “poor man’s Pokémon” – without having played a single round.
- Other players cannot manage to attend even a single fixed date for dungeons and raids because they are afraid of being compared to other players and possibly being seen as “bad”.
- Others absolutely cannot stand grinding reputation, no matter how great the reward is.
All of this is fine. No one has to do something they don’t want to.
The simple advice here is: Then don’t play these content. WoW (and pretty much every other major MMORPG) offers an abundance of content. If you don’t like some of it and it doesn’t bring you joy, don’t play it.
Don’t play if you don’t like it
If a certain mechanic is essential to your game progress and brings you no enjoyment, then maybe put the game aside for a while. Because life is too short to spend your free time playing games that you do not enjoy. Not only does that ruin your day, but also that of other players who you annoy.
If something brings you no joy, but you play it every day and complain about it, then the game is not to blame for your lack of enjoyment. That is entirely on you. You are just making yourself an unhappy MMO player.
Yes, I know. The “If you don’t like it, don’t play it” argument is a bit clichéd. But I believe it is still true. Of course, you can criticize and find mechanics stupid or wish for changes. But if after almost 20 years you haven’t realized that Timesinks and Timegating serve a purpose in MMORPGs, then it is getting “difficult.”
But what is your opinion on Timegating and Timesinks? Do you think it’s good when a game is divided into digestible bites and you get to enjoy something longer? Or is this all just a devious tactic to keep subscription numbers up and goes against the players’ interests?
