There's a lot of discussion going on and I wanted to jump-in at a more basic level to address the themes I see repeated again and again on this thread:
'Star Warsy' Game: I think this is the principle issue driving all of the furor surrounding SWG. I'll be honest, SWG wasn't launched as a Star Wars game first and foremost. Instead, other priorities such as crafting, vast world space, non-SW activities (e.g. Entertaining) and player-created activities were pushed ahead of the essential SW adventure. The people who wanted an online SW adventure tried it out and left. The people who liked the sandbox nature and deep crafting game stayed. But the general direction of JtL, CU, and the NGE were aimed at adventure. Why? Because we wanted to shift the game to first and foremost be about SW adventure.
Yes. The Entertainer in the movie got eaten.
Note that we're also revamping those features that players find fun but that may not clearly be iconic SW activities. In Publish 28, we start to adapt Entertainers.
KO
Message Edited by ChrisCao on 03-24-200602:33 PM
Yes of course that wasn't a cantina in Episode IV where they meet up with Han.
That also wasn't Entertainers playing songs and dancing for Jabba in VI.
And they didn't chase a bounty hunter into a cantina(club) with music and dancing in Episode II.(as well as gambling)
And Nooo those weren't entertainers performing for Palpatine while he tells Anakin the story of how he killed his master.
Noooo Entertainers aren't Star Warsy. Cause there was only the one that got eaten. Pfft
At least now we know why we get screwed so often.
By your logic, everything that was included as a setting element in the movies should be a profession. Every character who was in the background, every potential action taking place in view, everything that was in the movie should be a role in the game.
I disagree. I think the focus of the movie was on a set of heroic characters who had likewise heroic professions. Sure, there were interesting support characters and we've expanded on that fiction to include Traders, Medics and Entertainers in our game. Like I've said, if players have fun playing them, we're going to support them. But we can't support every possible actvitity so we've narrowed the scope to cover a few select areas.
I'm not going to get into the argument of what is and what isn't a SW game. I will, however, state for the record that there are some elements that more clearly fit into the SW universe than others. In fact, I'll go so far as to say that there are some elements that are objectively more SW than others.
We're going to put the stuff that's clearly SW in first. We're going to modify or retrofit the best of what was fun but not completely SW in second. We're going to remove or eliminate those things that clearly aren't SW.
And, we're going to do it all at a pace that ensures quality and fun.
KO
You guys have missed the boat on one of the most Star Warsish things: Droids
Ask GL how important R2 and 3PO are to his saga.
Now, ask yourself, "what have we done to droid engineers?"
I'll agree with you here. Droids are a key part of the SW fantasy. But droid engineers are not. What we should've done was implement droids as a player race and really give players the opportunity to experience them as part of the game. I know this may be misunderstood so let me be clear: we're not adding droids as a playable race. In the grand scope of things, however, it's as you said. We missed the boat on them.
We're going to keep looking for ways we can build on what we do have in SWG that meets the SW adventure criteria.
KO
Who do you think makes the droids? You think they built themselves in the movies? Just because Anakin made one as a little kid doesn't mean that's how they were made. Droid Engineers were IMPLIED. Try looking that word up..not everything in this damn game has to have been shown prominently on the stupid big screen!
___________________________________________________ Re' Tak Oldschool Jeedai Kuyler Prawner Of Faces Derivation 12pt WS/12pt AS/R.I.S. Certified
No, I'm saying that they aren't one of the heroic roles from the movie. There were a lot of other entainters in the movies, but, again, they were not the focus of the films. We want to, first and foremost, deliver on the SW fantasy.
KO
I'll be honest - It is this line of thought that has lead me to believe I no longer have a place in this game. You people still don't understand why so many of us are upset. We don't want to be Luke. We don't want to have a heoric adventure when we log in (well, maybe some days).
I was Yivvits, living in the same universe that those iconic people lived in.
Somebody had to make Boba's armor - We could be that person.
Someobdy had to make R2D2 - We could be that person.
Somebody had to dance at Jabba's palace - We could be that person.
Somebody had to make Han's blaster - I was that person.
Somebody had to track down rancors for Jabba's palace - I was that person.
Now, I can no longer have many of those adventures, only ones that you've preprogrammed for me.
I'm sorry, John. I just can't justify forking over another $90USD ($15/mo for 6 months) to see if you keep your promises again.
You asked last November that we all give you "six months" to make it all right.
You haven't.
Now you're asking for "another six months" to make it all right.
I'm not gonna fall for it again.
Ok seriously, can you guys take this font functionality out of the boards.
QFE!
QFE also Please take away giant bold yellow fonts. It hurts! It hurts!
QFE!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- You're out of time, SOE The whole 2.5 months shouldn't have been. The game was fine up until Nov 15th. If the CU was worked on, instead of devoting time to the NGE (including the many months prior to November), the game could possibly be totally bug free by now.
My account cancels on 2nd Feb, which was a waste as only played game for 1 day to get the life day gifts, will be resubbing when creature handler, Bio-engineer, scout, and ranger return, oh and the FS village.
There's a lot of discussion going on and I wanted to jump-in at a more basic level to address the themes I see repeated again and again on this thread:
'Star Warsy' Game: I think this is the principle issue driving all of the furor surrounding SWG. I'll be honest, SWG wasn't launched as a Star Wars game first and foremost. Instead, other priorities such as crafting, vast world space, non-SW activities (e.g. Entertaining) and player-created activities were pushed ahead of the essential SW adventure. The people who wanted an online SW adventure tried it out and left. The people who liked the sandbox nature and deep crafting game stayed. But the general direction of JtL, CU, and the NGE were aimed at adventure. Why? Because we wanted to shift the game to first and foremost be about SW adventure.
The question then becomes why, if you the community wanted a different game, did we go in this direction? To put it simply, we wanted to appeal to a broader SW audience. We wanted to play up the elements most people identify with from Star Wars. In some cases, this meant modifying or eliminating parts of the game that the existing community wanted. But, at the end of the day, we believe we can reach a balance between crafters and adventurers, between combat and non-combat professions, between those who want to live in a simulated world and those who want to live an online SW adventure. And that's why we're continuing to pursue the 'Star Warsy' direction we've established.
Rollback: People are asking for it. But, we aren't seriously considering it. Why? Well, nostalgia tends to color your view of the past. SWG has advanced in a lot of ways a rollback is an all-or-nothing return to what was before. The strides we've made forward would be eliminated (e.g. the quest system). The expansions and additions we've built would be affected. To put it simply, going forward, fixing the game, building on what we've established and refining the direction at hand is the best way to improve your day-to-day experience in the game.
The Future: With a diverse audience come diverse demands. As developers with limited time and resources, we need to choose what we want to focus on. And, to be blunt, SWG's has done a lot of things poorly in the past. There has been a lot of diversity, but very few of the options met the gameplay and quality expectations players expect. In fact, the posting history so regularly brought up by members of this forum (hello, Smugglers) shows just how diverse the ideas have been surrounding this game. And, to be honest, we can't meet all of those expectations.
We are, however, staying true to the focus on the game we established. We've carved out a scope and direction that we can support and build. We've identified a core set of professions that we can grow and differentiate. We're building the groundwork to deliver a more compelling GCW experience. We're looking at solid solutions for crafting as a part of the future of the game. And, yes, we're putting a Smuggling system into the game.
To put it simply, we're going to keep pushing to refine and expand SWG first and foremost as a SW adventure. We're going to differentiate professions, add adventure content, revamp crafting to be a core part of the fundamental adventure economy, tie-in alternate activities like Entertaining, and work each day to improve the moment-to-moment experience of every player through continued bug fixes and quality improvements. We're not there yet, but as Publish 27 showed (and Publish 28 will continue to prove), we're on our way.
KO
Well I guess this is telling us that the game we bought is and will always be gone, that we that enjoyed the game we bought are not what you wanted. Well why was it developed like this in the first place? Why didn't you just start another game instead of doing this kind of change? I guess that the masses that are not happy now even are the ones that you want to keep, well it has been said many times before those people you are wanting are not the type to stay with a game. They are like smed has said , they buy more than one game a year and when they get bored all they do is whine and complain. Look at my post count and my age. Before the cu I had less than 50 posts. Since the nge I have had more interaction on the boards than in game.
And why any of us are believing a word you guys say, cause all the other rumors have come true. I was staying for the people and prob you will keep getting my dollars only cause I am attached to my chars, such a shame cause the people you want don't give a crap about their chars. Just buy another game, maybe check this one out again in six months or a year then leave again. I am just the idiot you guys are counting on while you do more stuff that just wrecks the game more
I'm not going to get into the argument of what is and what isn't a SW game. I will, however, state for the record that there are some elements that more clearly fit into the SW universe than others. In fact, I'll go so far as to say that there are some elements that are objectively more SW than others.
We're going to put the stuff that's clearly SW in first. We're going to modify or retrofit the best of what was fun but not completely SW in second. We're going to remove or eliminate those things that clearly aren't SW.
And, we're going to do it all at a pace that ensures quality and fun.
KO
You guys have missed the boat on one of the most Star Warsish things: Droids
Ask GL how important R2 and 3PO are to his saga.
Now, ask yourself, "what have we done to droid engineers?"
I'll agree with you here. Droids are a key part of the SW fantasy. But droid engineers are not. What we should've done was implement droids as a player race and really give players the opportunity to experience them as part of the game. I know this may be misunderstood so let me be clear: we're not adding droids as a playable race. In the grand scope of things, however, it's as you said. We missed the boat on them.
We're going to keep looking for ways we can build on what we do have in SWG that meets the SW adventure criteria.
KO
oh rly? Seriously, how is allowing players to create customizable hand built droids not star wars oriented? Correct me if I'm wrong, but who built c3PO? What was one of the things watto's shop specialized in? (droid parts maybe?) I dunno, this whole thing where you guys don't find it star warsy to allow players to build customized items like food and droids just doesn't make sense. Remember, this isn't just a mirror of the movies; it's also an mmo and has to adhere to some mmo conventions (like customization).
vJoodah Macabeev Spy/Elder Carbineer
Leader - Safe Haven, Corellia and all around nice Bothan
I'm doing my best to stay with the game. But, I guess a question or two I'd ask are...
1) Are there any plans to add more diversity back to the game? Not Pre-NGE. But, a return of more of the old professions? Branching existing professions out with old ones to create diversity? Something like that.
2) Any chance we'll see insentives for old Vets to come back and try out the game again once it's been polished up a bit more?
3) I think the biggest problem with the existing Quest system is there just doesn't feel like a steady xp road from CL 1-90. Furthermore, are things like character transfers, surrendering professions but not being able to do quests over to go from CL 1-90, further respecs for people who want to try out major changes to professions being looked at or considered right now?
I've got so much more I'd like to get responses to; I think we all do. But these are some pretty big issues from a player perspective.
Message Edited by TheHomicidalVerpine on 03-24-200603:04 PM
By your logic, everything that was included as a setting element in the movies should be a profession. Every character who was in the background, every potential action taking place in view, everything that was in the movie should be a role in the game.
I disagree. I think the focus of the movie was on a set of heroic characters who had likewise heroic professions. Sure, there were interesting support characters and we've expanded on that fiction to include Traders, Medics and Entertainers in our game. Like I've said, if players have fun playing them, we're going to support them. But we can't support every possible actvitity so we've narrowed the scope to cover a few select areas.
KO
TO be honest, and to try and tell you in the nicest way. Its about what we want, our feelings, yes you make the game, but we pay for it. We would like to see our ideas put in and not crapped on by comments like that.
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i find this funny because the village was the content i enjoyed most, the capture the commander mission for phase 3 was insane
Phase 4 was way cooler. And why do you have that Moderators Signature? LOL
phase 4 rocked with the ambushes too, he stole it from me
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Please take away giant bold yellow fonts. It hurts! It hurts!
