This week for Video Game Tuesday I’m covering something that may be of help to those of you who got a game over the holidays where you have to play with other players online, and they may not be real life friends and complete strangers.

The Golden Rule: First off, always be polite with other’s, especially if you are complete strangers you meet through either Matchmaking, or through an online site like Open Raid.

Have a Headset: If you are doing group content that isn’t PvP like team deathmatch or something like that you need to be able to communicate with your team. If you can’t talk to each other it’s going to be impossible to coordinate anything. If you can’t afford one and the rest of your group knows what to do and is taking you through at least plug in a pair of headphones or ear buds. It’s not ideal, but at least be able to hear them. You can easily answer yes or no questions through either jumping once or twice, or if there is a chat system in the game through text.

Be Prepared to Fail: You are doing content that is meant for more than one person, there will be coordination issues no matter how prepared you and your team are. It’s the nature of the beast with online gaming.

Come Prepared: If this is your first time doing the content, make sure to read up on it to understand the bare basics. It’s always best to have first hand experience, but having a bit of knowledge prior to starting will help a ton.

Bring Consumables: If the game has consumables that improve stats, like potions that last through death (Flasks in World of Warcraft for example) bring enough to last you through the content. If you need to bring stuff that replenishes inventory items like ammo, (Ammo Synthesis in Destiny is a good example) make sure to bring at least 5 of the item.

Have Fun: Just because you should be polite doesn’t mean you can’t crack jokes, as long as they are appropriate it’s completely fine to make jokes. Just make sure you won’t offend someone by making one.  Most importantly have fun while you are playing. You are playing for entertainment, and group content can provide some of the best entertainment and satisfaction in Gaming!