Console players how do you feel about having no txt chat?

PinoZino

Dazza1968 wrote: »

Why haven't you created a solution to any of your wants, improved mail system etc that you stated a few posts ago?

Very disappointed in you aswell.

What's in for me? Nothing. I don't think ZOS would have a look at it for a moment. And they shouldn't.

But you have something to win: functionality to ease your ESO life.

Besides, you can't do it well without the right data. You can just tackle the obvious stuff, no brainers like 'the long loading screens' or ESO Usability issues.

But for working out a more detailed paper prototype, no that's not really possible.

You would have to work with too much assumptions.
Who will pay the test-users anyway? Me again? I don't think so.

And ok, you could build something with the assumptions and without user testing, but then it only can be used for pleasure and amusement. Maybe I do it once when I'm bored.

Pallmor

PinoZino wrote: »

That's rather a lot. It's the difference between kill or get killed. Average Keyboard/mouse players will eat Expert Gamepad players as lunch.

I don't see the Gamepad survive a long time on the PC.

I played for a year on PC with a gamepad, and during that time I ate the lunches of plenty of keyboard/mouse players who thought that their ancient input devices made them the master race. I just wish there had been an special teabag emote for "You just got pwned by a controller player."

PinoZino

Cadbury wrote: »

Ah, Grepolis. My great-aunt used to play that. She thought it was pretty good. Sort of cross between Civ 3/Evony/CoH from what I've seen.

I missed the boat on playing UO. I was too into M59 and Asheron's Call back then.

Grepolis is very addictive. It's doing weird things with people. I recommend not playing it and I’m serious.
Sure if you're offline, you're constantly thinking 'oh no, what about my cities'.

You can use a smartphone alert (for attacks) and then you become entirely crazy. Like waking up 3 o'clock in the morning. Your wife will ask: "Wtf? What are you doing?". Ashamed you'll have to tell her you'll have to rescue one of your cities. lol

Really a sick game. I don't play it a lot anymore. I still have some 40 cities, but located in a very safe zone. I go back from time to time, not for the game, but for the online friends.

UO was wow in its time. I still miss it. Sadly, they couldn't make a proper transition to 3D.

PinoZino

Pallmor wrote: »

I played for a year on PC with a gamepad, and during that time I ate the lunches of plenty of keyboard/mouse players who thought that their ancient input devices made them the master race. I just wish there had been an special teabag emote for "You just got pwned by a controller player."

Maybe you, as a Vet, were fighting newbies?

During the testing, extremely talented console gamers were pitted against "mediocre" PC gamers in what appears to be some type of shooter. The Xbox gamers used their 360 controllers and the PC gamers used the traditional mouse/keyboard combo. The results?

"The console players got destroyed every time. So much so that it would be embarrassing to the XBOX team in general had Microsoft launched this initiative."

http://www.gamesradar.com/pc-gamers-destroyed-console-gamers-in-tests-says-voodoo-pc-founder/

a.skelton92

Text chat would CHANGE everything. I know so many people who have not even experienced a massive portion of the game (dungeons etc) just because its too bloody annoying to form groups on console (let alone good ones).. Not to mention an economy and better reasons to take up professions etc. I do not care if you get the odd "?%# in chat, those that are overly sensitive can switch it off.

PoseidonEvil

I used to want text chat when the game released for consoles. Now I don't mind it so much because having voice chat only forces us console players to communicate to actual real life people and not just NPCs lol

Asherons_Call

NewBlacksmurf wrote: »

Hiero_Glyph wrote: »

NewBlacksmurf wrote: »

Hiero_Glyph wrote: »

@NewBlacksmurf

You do know that Xbox One will support a keyboard and mouse for gaming in an upcoming update, right?

I actually test this stuff before you guys get access...I'm fully aware that between the win10 to Xbox one in the New Xbox One Experience there will be new options where it makes sense when a developer chooses to utilize the newer developing tools. Specific to mouse and keyboard...on Xbox one....don't hold your breath

Edit: to be clear it may not be how you think it will be

Good to know that you have already decided how a feature will be utilized by developers of which you have no knowledge.

Wow...your responding very offensively to something you have no information on...

It's Xbox so what I know is always subject to change as I'm not a developer for them but ppl are jumping to this idea that they're going to just plug a mouse into the console and game is very far off. While possible if a developer chooses it's far off based on what's going on

We're not talking about using a mouse, just a keyboard. I'd rather not use the mouse/keyboard combination like on a PC.. Just a keyboard to needed to communicate, not move around in game.

Asherons_Call

NewBlacksmurf wrote: »

Cadbury wrote: »

NewBlacksmurf wrote: »

Hiero_Glyph wrote: »

@NewBlacksmurf

You do know that Xbox One will support a keyboard and mouse for gaming in an upcoming update, right?

I actually test this stuff before you guys get access...I'm fully aware that between the win10 to Xbox one in the New Xbox One Experience there will be new options where it makes sense when a developer chooses to utilize the newer developing tools. Specific to mouse and keyboard...on Xbox one....don't hold your breath

Edit: to be clear it may not be how you think it will be

So do you work within Microsoft's corporate infrastructure or are you more of a freelance tester for Xbox? I'm curious since this isn't knowledge that the general public is privy to.

I do a lot of stuff here and there....I won't give specifics but I have ties with Xbox, NFL, NCAA, PGA, LPGA which is mostly media and entertainment related

:-) I'm not on Xbox's payroll tho

I will say this tho...options will develop and open up as each dev sees fit at a later date

Makes sense on why you're pandered to and protected by the admins here. Must be nice to actually get answers from them on your threads other than the "we all disagree from time to time" nonsense

Asherons_Call

PinoZino wrote: »

Tommy1979AtWar wrote: »

So explain the difference... explain how a console player switching from controller to keyboard is any different than a pc player switching from controller to keyboard.

So you really think they are the same?

Both have their keyboard on the same solid underground?

No, they don't.

The PC users can use the keyboard in a comfortable setting, the Console user in general can't.

Doesn't mean the Gamepad PC player will not suffer from the shifting.

It's rather predictable that we'll see not much PvP PC guys using a gamepad.

Who are you to decide what is or isn't comfortable? Oh wait. "Studies."

Uberkull

PinoZino wrote: »

uberkull wrote: »

Pino....text chat for console was in console two weeks before beta started in April 2015. It actually existed and functioned on the console version. I'll bet the code is still there, just commented out.

These 'usability engineers' you think ZOS has are nothing more than the UI developers. They never did a user focus group test for text chat outside of their internal development staff. ZOS made the decision amoung a small internal group that it was 'inconvenient' for console players to use a keyboard while sitting on a couch. They didn't let beta testers decide that text chat was 'inconvenient', or provide let them provide negative feedback, ZOS decided for the community instead of listening to the community.

As for console players, of course they have a shorter attention span for sticking with MMOs, but the amount of players that have became inactive in my guilds is in the 100s and these are trade guilds. They don't play ESO anymore because I can tell since I've added a date to their names in the Guild Roster notes. No activity for a month plus for some users, most others over two weeks.

Why they leaving? For one, they are crafters and can't effectively provide for others in game. The only effective way to buy and sell on console is through Guild Stores and we all know how screwed up bidding on guild traders is, there is no guarantee from week to week you will have a trader. Guild members just got tired of not being able to craft complete set items based on text chat user requests and make profits that way. Crafters used the text chat to buy/sell and trade. Voice chat is not optimal for this at all. Period.

No, that's not entirely correct.

Gary Boodhoo is User Interface Design Lead and looking at his background he's in the business since 2001.

Lead, it means there's a team.

In the ESO Live from 28 apr. 2015 they announced they wouldn't use TextChat.

They said they examined it, described a bit the couch, the swapping etc...
That’s not dev talk, they usually don’t think like that.

It's only not clear if they actual carried out a proper user test with real players or did some hallway test.
I'm not a fan of the last, however it's still better than nothing.

Focus groups? Blah. Hehe. Has almost no use for determining the best usability. Focus groups, that's about opinions. And then you will get what we here have in this thread: doesn't work at all.

About your Guild: I feel very sad for you. Really. I see it happen in some other guilds as well. I know several zombie guilds, containing 400 or 500 members. Not one single player online. Weird feeling.

Currently in my guild most are active a lot, but it's a pretty new guild. We are also working in a niche and we provide some nice toys: website, forum, ...

Maybe these niche-searchers are more dedicated? But that's speculation. We'll see what our people will do in 3 months...

And to tell you the truth, I'm a bit afraid the same would happen to us.

Does your guild have a website?

Pino, I think my statements were accurate about ZOS development and their decisions. And when I say 'development team' I lump in designers(world,character,dungeon,UI,etc). It's what we do at work, we are one big development 'train' full of Agile teams. But I digress.

Of the two trade guilds I run on console, one had to be dissolved due to lack of activity, it's a storage guild now. So 1000 players went down to 410...and I still have inactive players to deal with (remove). Once Fallout 4 hits....I can see more people leaving because that's how the console community is, next best game, moving on...then go back and forth between console games. Not great for a MMO community.

Website for my Guild I run is here. Which actually shows a great point of how console players have little interest of leaving their controller and going off to some website to interact with others on console. Why? No matter how much I encourage members to join the forum on console, there are only 45 out of 410 guild members that joined the forum. Granted this is just a trade guild, but still....people on console don't want to exit the game to play ESO on console.

Text chat would help Guilds a ton. Being able to recruit, invite new members, announce something to all members in the guild at once instead of swapping 5 guild channels, and just being able to get your Guild name out there is so much more efficient with text chat.

Asherons_Call

PinoZino wrote: »

Asherons_Call wrote: »

They're using the "we don't know what we want" angle fairly often aren't they? Very condescending. Been gaming 30 years now so I'm pretty sure I know

You are using a computer since 30 years as well. Can you now design a computer?
No, because you're probably not an engineer.
However, you do really believe you can, since you're a user since 30 years.

You are also since a longtime a customer of your local hairdresser. According your mental map, you're now a qualified hairdresser on your own.

It's of the same level.

You have an explanation why UX and usability guys have to study a lot for several years, gain some experience as well before they can carry out their job?

Why should they do, if you as a gamer could deliver the same?

If it is was all that simple, why do most websites, games and software have so many usability mistakes?
That's weird. No? Because even you, without the academically background, knowledge and experience could detect them fast and all.

If it was all that simple, why didn't you design the UI for smartphones 15 years ago? If it was all that simple why were you not the first with the design of the Google website?

You were probably an experienced phone user, you were probably an experienced search engine user too. Doesn't mean you have the capacities to design the UI of a smartphone or a Google.

May I ask, what's your profession? And given your age, you're pretty trained in carrying out that job, no? You do have the experience, no? Now, how would you feel if an outsider, a complete noob to your profession would say: "I can do, what you can because I used your service since 30 years".

What are you even talking about? Deflect much? "Since 30 years"?

Yea we are all just too dumb to realize that we don't need multiple ways to communicate because we don't know how to build a computer. You like to stretch things out to very strange comparisons.

PinoZino

Asherons_Call wrote: »

Who are you to decide what is or isn't comfortable? Oh wait. "Studies."

I don't decide anything, but the users are. Not by what they say, but by what they do.

You really want to argue that using a keyboard/mouse combo on a couch is at least equal comfortable as using it on a desk or table?

You really do? I am not.

Hope499

Honestly, its been months....

I dont even care anymore, i dont expect it anymore, whatever. Lets all go play the MMO without text chat!

Sagatho

anitajoneb17_ESO wrote: »

bedlom wrote: »

I know it has been brought up to death and with good reason

Why start a new thread about it then ?

I mean, I feel for console players and I'll never understand ZOS' decision about it but yet again another discussion about console text chat ? Zzzzz....

some people just want to see the world burn...

Asherons_Call

PinoZino wrote: »

dday3six wrote: »

Ultimately though, how is having to take your hand off the mouse to fully type on a keyboard that different from having to set the controller aside for the moment to type?

Not saying everyone would love swapping back and worth. However, a person doesn't actually need a physical keyboard in the first place. All that one does is speed up the process, and there are attachments that add a cell phone style texting keyboard to both PS4 and XBOX controllers. Making them more or less one device.

Taking your hand of the mouse and moving to the keyboard is less though, but it's still an issue.

If we design a screen, we always try to minimize the device (any device) shifting. Could be by using other gizmo's or grouping and reordering the interface elements. And other techniques exist as well.

We do it for several reasons:

• Enhance speed of use
• Preventing mistakes
• Improve attention
• Lowering fatigue and stress
• ...

And the above is influencing the aurosal as well.



If the level of aurosal is too high or too low, the user will underachieve and might be demotivated or even angry.

The swap between gamepad and keyboard is worse.

Usually you will swap both hands and you have to put down the gamepad or keyboard somewhere.

In the context keyboard/mouse you just have to move your right or left hand. While the swap is here minimal, you still have to avoid it. If possible of course.

Using a tablet or smartphone as replacement for the keyboard will not work, it requires more or less the same effort of shifting.

Oh my god now he's using graphs. (Backs away slowly)

Asherons_Call

PinoZino wrote: »

dday3six wrote: »

What about the keyboards that attach directly to the controller? That's a smaller degree of movement than even mouse to keyboard.

No, I don't think that would help a lot. Most console players who use a keyboard probably have already one with a long wire or they use a wireless solution.

The effort is:

* putting the gamepad down
* taking the keyboard

However, using a keyboard with a too short wire doesn't make it better.

dday3six wrote: »

Then speed of use is actually gained by swapping to a physical keyboard because typing speed is increased. That is that point of switching to one in the first place.

You use a phyiscal keyboard to assist in large volume mailing, correct? All of your examples focus on mitigating the negatives of devices swapping. What happens when device swapping grants a positive?

The nature of instant messages is generally different. It’s pretty short and it's using abbreviations.

While content in mail or a forum is in general longer.

That means in the last it pays more off to switch devices and you also can separate better 'gaming' and 'doing your paperwork'.

"The effort is:

* putting the gamepad down
* taking the keyboard"

Man that is a ton of effort! I would probably have to take a nap after I did that

Riga_Mortis

Off topic slightly but does anyone in this thread have access to the PTS? Is the group finder working any better?

Been following the official thread but there's not a lot of posting going on in there.

Asherons_Call

PinoZino wrote: »

Asherons_Call wrote: »

Who are you to decide what is or isn't comfortable? Oh wait. "Studies."

I don't decide anything, but the users are. Not by what they say, by what they do.

You really want to argue that using a keyboard/mouse combo on a couch is at least equal comfortable as using it on a desk or table?

You really do? I am not.

Again, myself nor anyone else is talking about using a mouse on the couch. Keyboard and game pad. It's been done before and executed flawlessly by square enix

PinoZino

uberkull wrote: »

Pino, I think my statements were accurate about ZOS development and their decisions. And when I say 'development team' I lump in designers(world,character,dungeon,UI,etc). It's what we do at work, we are one big development 'train' full of Agile teams. But I digress.

Of the two trade guilds I run on console, one had to be dissolved due to lack of activity, it's a storage guild now. So 1000 players went down to 410...and I still have inactive players to deal with (remove). Once Fallout 4 hits....I can see more people leaving because that's how the console community is, next best game, moving on...then go back and forth between console games. Not great for a MMO community.

Website for my Guild I run is here. Which actually shows a great point of how console players have little interest of leaving their controller and going off to some website to interact with others on console. Why? No matter how much I encourage members to join the forum on console, there are only 45 out of 410 guild members that joined the forum. Granted this is just a trade guild, but still....people on console don't want to exit the game to play ESO on console.

Text chat would help Guilds a ton. Being able to recruit, invite new members, announce something to all members in the guild at once instead of swapping 5 guild channels, and just being able to get your Guild name out there is so much more efficient with text chat.

Our numbers aren't that better. 31 subscribed users out of about 330. But the guild is still only 1 1/2 month young and I started promoting the forum just a week ago. I used a lottery and promised I would give away Guild Tabards to 3 random forum members. And yes it helped.

I'm also sending, since recently, a mail to all new members. Explain them who we are, what we do and push them a bit to subscribe the forum -> helps a lot, most people just do it.

It's a bit reciprocity at work. You 'helped' them with a warm welcome, some info and they have the unconscious desire to do something back. Like subscribing to the forum.

I don't know if you use Google Analytics are alike, but you'll see you have more unique visitors than you think.

For each active forum member, you have about 9 lurkers in the dark, eventually without an account.

Give it some time too. I don't think Console people are that different as PC players. The last loves the new games as well.
ESO and everything around is pretty new for the Console players, the PC community reached already a more mature state.

KaleidoscopeEyz

I don't want it. If it comes I better have an option to shut it down on my screen.

PinoZino

Asherons_Call wrote: »

What are you even talking about? Deflect much? "Since 30 years"?

Yea we are all just too dumb to realize that we don't need multiple ways to communicate because we don't know how to build a computer. You like to stretch things out to very strange comparisons.

You are not too dumb, you just don't have the background.

Like I know nothing about flying an airplane. I could learn it, it's not that difficult, but I didn't, so I can't fly.

You don't want to see that being a UX or usability guy or girl is a profession. Something you have to learn.

And not by playing games. Wish it was that easy. lol

If you drive a car for 30 years, you'll be not a magnificent car designer. At best, you're just an experienced driver.

Asherons_Call

PinoZino wrote: »

Asherons_Call wrote: »

What are you even talking about? Deflect much? "Since 30 years"?

Yea we are all just too dumb to realize that we don't need multiple ways to communicate because we don't know how to build a computer. You like to stretch things out to very strange comparisons.

You are not too dumb, you just don't have the background.

Like I know nothing about flying an airplane. I could learn it, it's not that difficult, but I didn't, so I can't fly.

You don't want to see that being a UX or usability guy or girl is a profession. Something you have to learn.

And not by playing games. Wish it was that easy. lol

If you drive a car for 30 years, you'll be not a magnificent car designer. At best, you're just an experienced driver.

Condescension at its finest. Again I don't need whatever background or training you are talking about to know that I need more ways to communicate. Voice in group. Text in town. Both are proven to work by millions of gamers. It's not hard to understand.

Uberkull

PinoZino wrote: »

uberkull wrote: »

Pino, I think my statements were accurate about ZOS development and their decisions. And when I say 'development team' I lump in designers(world,character,dungeon,UI,etc). It's what we do at work, we are one big development 'train' full of Agile teams. But I digress.

Of the two trade guilds I run on console, one had to be dissolved due to lack of activity, it's a storage guild now. So 1000 players went down to 410...and I still have inactive players to deal with (remove). Once Fallout 4 hits....I can see more people leaving because that's how the console community is, next best game, moving on...then go back and forth between console games. Not great for a MMO community.

Website for my Guild I run is here. Which actually shows a great point of how console players have little interest of leaving their controller and going off to some website to interact with others on console. Why? No matter how much I encourage members to join the forum on console, there are only 45 out of 410 guild members that joined the forum. Granted this is just a trade guild, but still....people on console don't want to exit the game to play ESO on console.

Text chat would help Guilds a ton. Being able to recruit, invite new members, announce something to all members in the guild at once instead of swapping 5 guild channels, and just being able to get your Guild name out there is so much more efficient with text chat.

Our numbers aren't that better. 31 subscribed users out of about 330. But the guild is still only 1 1/2 month young and I started promoting the forum just a week ago. I used a lottery and promised I would give away Guild Tabards to 3 random forum members. And yes it helped.

I'm also sending, since recently, a mail to all new members. Explain them who we are, what we do and push them a bit to subscribe the forum -> helps a lot, most people just do it.

It's a bit reciprocity at work. You 'helped' them with a warm welcome, some info and they have the unconscious desire to do something back. Like subscribing to the forum.

I don't know if you use Google Analytics are alike, but you'll see you have more unique visitors than you think.

For each active forum member, you have about 9 lurkers in the dark, eventually without an account.

Give it some time too. I don't think Console people are that different as PC players. The last loves the new games as well.
ESO and everything around is pretty new for the Console players, the PC community reached already a more mature state.

My guilds are console day one launch trade guilds, so I've already seen trends. Also played on ESO PC. You just started in September? Trust me, I inow who visits our forums. The bottom of the forum gives stats on visitors vs members and the forum itself provides historical data. I also have a pricing guide that I keep open to the public, no forum mennbership required, which lures in lots of hits.

I've run guilds in many other MMOs, bottomlne, text chat helps keep a guild active, and growing, voice chat does not.

PinoZino

Asherons_Call wrote: »

"The effort is:

* putting the gamepad down
* taking the keyboard"

Man that is a ton of effort! I would probably have to take a nap after I did that

Switching between mouse and keyboard costs even less effort. Still people don't like it if they are forced to do it a lot.

But ok, you love it.

PinoZino

Asherons_Call wrote: »

Condescension at its finest. Again I don't need whatever background or training you are talking about to know that I need more ways to communicate. Voice in group. Text in town. Both are proven to work by millions of gamers. It's not hard to understand.

You can talk too. And that makes you a communication expert?

And maybe you go often to the better restaurants. Which is making you a chef?

And when you're sick for three weeks, you suddenly became a doctor?

I wish I had your gift.

aldyftb

PinoZino wrote: »

Asherons_Call wrote: »

"The effort is:

* putting the gamepad down
* taking the keyboard"

Man that is a ton of effort! I would probably have to take a nap after I did that

Switching between mouse and keyboard costs even less effort. Still people don't like it if they are forced to do it a lot.

But ok, you love it.

I dont think its a question of love or hate...its not that big a deal, and you can switch as little or as much as you want. You wouldn't have to reply to every single thing in the chat box, only what you choose to. If you go with the virtual keyboard option, theres no device switching at all.

Asherons_Call

PinoZino wrote: »

Asherons_Call wrote: »

"The effort is:

* putting the gamepad down
* taking the keyboard"

Man that is a ton of effort! I would probably have to take a nap after I did that

Switching between mouse and keyboard costs even less effort. Still people don't like it if they are forced to do it a lot.

But ok, you love it.

It's not that I love it, it's that I don't care, it's not a big deal it's a freaking keyboard! Talk about first world problems man.. My poor arms are so tired from lifting this keyboard to type.

Asherons_Call

PinoZino wrote: »

Asherons_Call wrote: »

Condescension at its finest. Again I don't need whatever background or training you are talking about to know that I need more ways to communicate. Voice in group. Text in town. Both are proven to work by millions of gamers. It's not hard to understand.

You can talk too. And that makes you a communication expert?

And maybe you go often to the better restaurants. Which is making you a chef?

And when you're sick for three weeks, you suddenly became a doctor?

I wish I had your gift.

I need to be a chef to go to a restaurant? What are you even talking about?

I wish you had my gift too. The ability to see things as they truly are without putting up nonsensical arguments.

anitajoneb17_ESO

PinoZino wrote: »

Asherons_Call wrote: »

Condescension at its finest. Again I don't need whatever background or training you are talking about to know that I need more ways to communicate. Voice in group. Text in town. Both are proven to work by millions of gamers. It's not hard to understand.

You can talk too. And that makes you a communication expert?

And maybe you go often to the better restaurants. Which is making you a chef?

And when you're sick for three weeks, you suddenly became a doctor?

I wish I had your gift.

Good old "experts vs. common sense" debate.

And yes Pino, while I understand some of your points, you're stretching it far too far over the top here.

And there are countless examples of experts' failures all over the place, which more use of common sense could have prevented.
There are countless new products launched after "experts' studies" had predicted success that fail on a large scale. And countless new products designed and launched without any studies or experts, just with common sense and creative vision, and that are extremely successful.

Expertise is widely overrated. Numbers are subject to interpretation, studies have bias.

What we have here is console players who have no text chat and want to trade, find groups, communicate in zone and in town. Their common sense tells them that it would be easy with a keyboard.
You're telling them "no, you think that's what you need but it isn't, I -the expert - know better than you what you need".

I for one I *always* very cautious whenever somebody pretends to know better than others what's good for them.

PinoZino

uberkull wrote: »

My guilds are console day one launch trade guilds, so I've already seen trends. Also played on ESO PC. You just started in September? Trust me, I inow who visits our forums. The bottom of the forum gives stats on visitors vs members and the forum itself provides historical data. I also have a pricing guide that I keep open to the public, no forum mennbership required, which lures in lots of hits.

I've run guilds in many other MMOs, bottomlne, text chat helps keep a guild active, and growing, voice chat does not.

I started one day after launch. When ZOS went live, my PS4 was downloading a couple of hours.
The first weeks I didn't join any guild. Was just searching my way around on my own. Later I joined and left a couple.

Some guilds were nice, most were crap.

I joined the ESO forum way later.

Ok, I see, 42 people visited the forum the last 24 hours. It's not that bad.

I reach a bit more, 180 visitors yesterday. Today will be about the same. But probably it's cause my backlinks.

I'm not generating a lot visitors via Google yet, which is normal: site is too young and I'm still not working on long tail backlinks. And we need more content: guides, maps, etc...

Social Media isn't generating a lot traffic. Still few Twitter followers and I don't want to use a Facebook account.

I don't use VoiceChat. But I communicate a lot: via in-game mail, gmail, forum, website...
It’s all a lot of work, but fun as well.