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Sonic

The Art of Nerfing and Buffing

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A short blog update from me. Could someone please explain just what the hell "Nerf" and "Buff" actually mean. I've read these words countless times on the Official C&C 3 Forums, the EALA Devs use it all the time in APOC's C&C podcasts. Where did these words come from? How long have they been around?

 

OK, so Wikipedia have entries for Nerf and Buff, but up till the most recent C&C podcasts I'd never even heard of these terms. When I think of "Nerf" the soft foam darts, toys and balls come to mind.

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From what I've heard of Nerf and Buff I think nerf means to get rid of or lower the strength of a skill or unit and buff means the opposite but don't quote me on it

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A nerf is a change to the rules of a computer game that weakens a certain object or ability.

 

The term comes from the childsafe Nerf toys of soft foam and plastic, which are often made in the shape of guns, bats, or other weapons. The term originated in the MMORPG Ultima Online, where for a long period of time the sword skill was incredibly powerful. The designers eventually lowered its effectiveness, causing massive player outcry; they claimed that it seemed as though they were hitting with "Nerf Bats"

 

"Buff" is indeed the opposite, to improve the strength, derived from the term "looking buff" as a muscular property. But "Buff" is a term generically used in many MMORPGs to describe an effect (usually cast as a spell) which beneficially enhances the target Player.

 

 

The two words appearance has been around for a very long time by MMORPG gamers, but they've been heavily used by the"Hardcore community" you'll find gamereplays members use it all the time, and such is, the developers who work closely with hardcore communities use the terminology to appeal to to the hardcore, so as to not sound out of touch.

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yup, its almost exclusive to MMORPGs. Guild Wars players are always whining how the developers keep nerfing skills and spells.

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Nerf = Bad

Buff = Good

 

:nod:

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Nerf = Bad

Buff = Good

 

:nod:

 

Nerf Enemy = Good

Buff Enemy = Bad

 

8)

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Nerf - A nerf is a change to the rules of a computer game that weakens a certain object or ability.

 

The term probably comes from the childsafe Nerf toys of soft foam and plastic, which are often made in the shape of guns, bats, or other weapons.

 

The term nerf likely originated as a reference to the NERF brand of child toys, which are made to minimize possible damage. In the same way, "to nerf" describes the action of making something less harmful, especially in the context of MMORPGs.

 

Nerfing is an important concept in game balance. Nerfs can have a dramatic impact on the intricate balance between different classes, items, and skills, making them often highly controversial.

 

Buff - Buff is a term generically used in many MMORPGs to describe an effect (usually cast as a spell) which beneficially enhances the target Player.

 

In MMORPG terms, the opposite of buff is a debuff (also nerf), which is an effect that may negatively impact a player character (PC) or a non-player character (NPC) in some way other than directly dealing damage.

 

Source: Wikipedia

 

Nerf (disambiguation, so as to provide possible term origins in other topics) - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nerf_%28disambiguation%29

 

Buff (disambiguation, so as to provide possible term origins in other topics) - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buff

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