I’m astonished. Two years to design a goddamn LFG system and the result is this shit.

One of the basic features of a LFG system is, you know, set yourself “LFG”. Well, in WoW this isn’t possible. You cannot set yourself LFG for a general purpose.

Yeah, you can flag LFG without specifying an objective but… you aren’t flagged for anything. Heh. Basically you cannot just go LFG for whatever, which is truly retarded. And when you cannot use a general purpose LFG flag then the three choices you have left become quite a restrictive limit.

This is a huge flaw as it happens often that people are available for everything, and it happens even more often that people flag themselves for MORE than three narrow choices. Just look at the typical message on the lfg channel at the endgame.

You can flag for a quest, but only ONE at the time (or three if you use up all your slots), and only in the case it’s an elite quest. At the same time someone else can see that you are flagged LFG for that quest only if he also has the same quest active and is looking specifically for it.

You cannot for example do a simple search to see if one of your elite quest matches someone LFG. And you cannot go help someone LFG for some random quest. Not even if the quest is shareable. Because you cannot SEE he is LFG if you also don’t have that quest and looking specifically for the same thing.

You also cannot flag LFG for a dungeon quest.

I can say one good thing about this LFG system, though. It lets you see if someone is grouped and all the members in his groups. Of course it would be too good if this worked properly, and in fact it works only in the case you are the group leader.

And in the case you aren’t a group leader, was LFG and join a group, the LFG tab greys out and you cannot deflag yourself anymore:

I was still LFG when I joined a group, but the LFG tab greys out as you join a group and you aren’t a leader, so I was stuck LFG without any way to remove the flag as I couldn’t access anymore the LFG tab. So, beside the bugs, why only the group leader can flag the group LFM? The group leader can be lazy, or go AFK. Why other group members cannot continue to look for other players in these cases? Why to remove completely the possibility to flag LFG? What is the risk? At the end only the party leader can invite players to join, so why removing the access to LFG tools if you are in a group without being its leader?

Considering all these problems I won’t be surprised if this LFG system will be only a moderate success, or even a hole in the water. Despite the players have felt the need of a decent one for so long. Its hugest problem is that the three options you have aren’t enough for a game like WoW and the matchmaking won’t be easy. As I wrote on my analysis of LFG systems, one of the most important points for a LFG system is the “reach”. Meaning the breadth and scope of the searches. After all the purpose of a LFG system is to “manifest” a need, to let it know to as many people as possible.

WoW’s LFG system has this major flaw: it’s claustrophobic. The players are closed into too tight compartmentalized spaces and, often, two players that could group together are sitting in two different “boxes” without the possibility to see each other.

A better LFG system could be the one I described here (for DAoC, but my ideas are portable). Instead of giving three choices and allow only very narrow and compartmentalized searches, you turn the LFG panel into one with checkboxes. Where you can select and specify as much as you want. Where you can either flag yourself LFG for whatever or check the checkboxes for very specific purposes, and checking as many as you like instead of being stupidly restricted to three choices in a game so big as WoW.

The same for the search function. You use checkboxes to search for whatever you want. Specific classes, specific dungeons, specific quests, level ranges. and mix all those as you see fit. Giving more power and flexibility to a tool that is ALL based on power and flexibility. Giving for example to possibility to search all LFG Paladins between level 20 and 25. Or search all LFG and ungrouped priests and druids. Or those who are flagged for a specific instance. Adjusting the scope and detail of your search as you like.

TWO FUCKING YEARS OF DEVELOPMENT! LEARN2DESIGN!