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Thread: Monthly Development Update: January 2012

  1. #41
    Server merge... What will happen to non instanced city plots? Character names? Tower fields? Character slots?

    What about current performance issues when more than 50 characters gather in one place?
    I'm actually Ophiuchus // Cynic092 but Forum accounts are fickle, fleeting things...

    Are we there yet?

    Bombqueen.

  2. #42
    Quote Originally Posted by lindelu View Post
    Finally, as a more long time vision, I'm seing us planning for the next expansion or booster pack once we are done with what we're already working on. It's a little early yet to say when, but it's definitely on our horizon!
    expansion like SL ? or Bosster like LE

  3. #43
    lindelu,
    First of all thank you for the update! I have a question for you in regards to the server merger.
    Some players (such as myself) have full complements of toons (7 toons on rk1 and 7 toons on rk2), if you do merge the servers what will happen to these toons since the max per player on each server is 7?
    I am concerned about this as I lost a lot of end game equipment (not to mention credits) when rk3 was shut down.
    Thank you,

  4. #44
    Quote Originally Posted by Raggy View Post
    Gotta be careful with that too. In todays market, the 'casual player' wants simplicity. By showing prospective new players the horrors of twinking and screaming for buffs in OOC for an hour just to get that damned gun on, might turn them away instead of inviting them in.
    Might be that 'casual players' want simplicity. But with a larger population on the servers, there might be no need to scream for buffs in OOC for hours. More players mean more chars available to buff you. Also, introducing new players to twinking can be nice if it's done properly. You don't have to show them every little trick, that's a thing they should find out by themselfs. But some things like "Damn, I'm three points short in stamina... oh, that tutorial said, I could ask for buffs! Maybe I can get this new implant in if I ask for a stamina buff!" can be very helpful.

    What can be a problem is the amount of credits needed for new players. The guides on making credits in the new arrivals forum is nice, but seliing cushions, for example, won't work when there are 500 newbies at once trying to sell cushions. Therefore a change in pricing for nanos, armor, weapons (also, there are low level weapon choices that aren't viable because of a lack of choice between good and accessible weapons) and the new treatment kits.

  5. #45
    A good read indeed, thanks for that Lindelu!

    About the possibility of a server merge. There are of course many big questions, like character and org name duplicates, city plots and tower fields.

    I think the one that is most important to start with is the name issue for both characters and orgs. Once set it isnt likely to change without causing major trouble for everyone. Whereas city and tower questions can be sorted out while moving forward by adding more plots or revamp the instanced city system.

    The way you previously handled name duplicates when the people from RK3 had to merge with the other two servers wasnt ideal. In fact it was far from it in my opinion. Too many people moving their chars couldnt keep their names and too many who came back to AO a while after the merge have lost names on some of their chars. I dont think that is a satisfying solution.

    I believe the most fair way would be to treat everyone equally by adding a server tag to each name, whether it be RK2 or RK1, duplicate or not. Visually, it could also be color coded names over the char heads or any other way to distinguish duplicate names from one another without prefering one over the other.

    Maybe, when you've decided whether or not you want to do this, there should be a seperate forum section to discuss this with the players and find the best solution for everybody.
    ಠ_ಠ

  6. #46
    If there's even just the slightest possibility of a server merge in the foreseeable future, you need to start considering the two servers as one as far as character names go, like, right now: new character names have to be checked against the existing names on both servers and rejected if they are already in use on any of them.

    This will prevent any more name conflicts (especially intentional ones in hopes of hijacking desirable names in use on the other server) being generated on top of the thousands you'll be already facing if a server merge is ever going to occur. And I'll be curious to hear about how those will be resolved, since one of the two involved parties will end up on the worse end of things and losing their names no matter what... And I'd be less than happy (just as much as probably anybody else) if that happened to any of my chars, which are named the way they are for a reason.

    "All things point to that they didn't play to win, but for the game itself and to play well. ... Later in their evolution, they forgot all about playing and having fun. When their corrupted minds only cared for what new ways they could gain power, there was no room for the simple things in life."
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  7. #47
    Quote Originally Posted by kenshiro2012 View Post
    Some players (such as myself) have full complements of toons (7 toons on rk1 and 7 toons on rk2), if you do merge the servers what will happen to these toons since the max per player on each server is 7?
    It's 8. Obviously they need to make more char slots for all the fanboys who can't stop playing. In the past this was called an unthinkable problem. Maybe they managed to fix the database structure enough to allow for changing it.
    Thor Mastablasta Hammersmith - Level 220, AI 30, LE 70 Clan Atrox Nano Technician - Setup
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  8. #48
    Good news:
    - The Gauntlet NPC addition with the next patch.

    Great news:
    - Michizure is designing more fun content for Valentine's Day. I am seriously looking forward to it as I've become a fan of this particular developer. I'm actually on break from AO at the moment, so guess I'll have to log in before the content disappears from the server so I can see what he's put together.

    Lindelu, thanks for the rest. I confess that I am jaded but I will comment on some positive things I saw in your post:
    1. The change above with Gauntlet.. great listening to the players with that.
    2. You actually put a date for when the Valentine's Day content would be removed. That's something we've asked for during "special updates" for years and could never get anyone to tell us.
    3. The Bug Report/Exploit Report forums are a step in the right direction.
    4. Looks like someone (you) is finally paying attention to how broken the Test Server process is.. which is a relief since there seems to be quite a bit upcoming content that will need to be thoroughly tested.

    The rest, I'll just wait and see what happens... the proof is in results not in plans, for me. I have expressed personal concerns on the forums regarding a server merge and my lack of faith in Funcom "getting it right". The truth of the matter though, now that I think of it again, is that the game experience is so broken for me at this point that it would be damned tough for someone to mess it up more. Again, I'll just wait and see what you guys do and take it from there.
    Last edited by Traderjill; Jan 31st, 2012 at 18:32:20.
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  9. #49
    with the server merge are we going to get extra account slots for those of us who have characters on both dimensions, or are we going to have to choose which character(s) we want to keep?
    Former Assistant Director of Pack of Noobs

    Fake Friday with Means, and it worked!

  10. #50
    Quote Originally Posted by Ilaliya View Post
    I'm not sure what you mean by "game status," but let me assure you that there is nothing to worry about regarding Funcom's commitment to the AO project. Quite the contrary - we have been growing the team, after all. And we are still hiring coders. To be perfectly honest, we wouldn't be increasing our investment in the game if there was some dire scenario looming over the horizon. AO has a long and bright future ahead because quite frankly it has game features and design decisions that weren't just revolutionary 10 years ago, but are still revolutionary today. The trick of course is to modernize the areas where the age is showing, and the engine is a good example of that.

    I'll also add that PvP and the PvP community is a heavy consideration when decisions are made. For example, it's something that comes up a lot during internal discussions about the profession changes. Unfortunately it so happens there's a lot on the team's plate right now, and we're not going to have time for any specific or dedicated PvP improvements until the queue has been flushed a bit. But the things that Lindelu mentioned will benefit everyone, and we have to tackle these big issues before we start addressing specific concerns of any single segment of the AO community. Prioritizing this stuff is never easy believe me, because we'll all gamers and our gamer heart sings when we get to design something new and shiny. But the fact is if we try and do everything, we'll end up with nothing.
    Just out of curiosity, as a way to understand how current-live PVP is, do the development team ever secretely join upto BS in a sort of... invisible mode and run around to see battles?

  11. #51
    I personally do not like the idea of a server merge.

    What happens to city plots? I own my favorite city plot on RK2, I don't want to lose it and have to go to some lag-filled city zone like 3 craters.

    And what happens to those of us - like me - who play actively on both servers and have developed characters on both? My accounts are full on each side - do I have to lose half my characters, or else pay double for what I currently have by being forces into buying another account to put them on?

    Also I think it would have an unhealthy effect on the prices of camped items - you suddenly have double the number of people wanting something, but only 1 spawn of the mob that drops it.

  12. #52
    Quote Originally Posted by Leeson View Post
    I personally do not like the idea of a server merge.

    What happens to city plots? I own my favorite city plot on RK2, I don't want to lose it and have to go to some lag-filled city zone like 3 craters.

    And what happens to those of us - like me - who play actively on both servers and have developed characters on both? My accounts are full on each side - do I have to lose half my characters, or else pay double for what I currently have by being forces into buying another account to put them on?

    Also I think it would have an unhealthy effect on the prices of camped items - you suddenly have double the number of people wanting something, but only 1 spawn of the mob that drops it.
    The cities would most likely have to be instanced, and the GMS turned into an Auction House sort of thing.

    As for characters, they could probably apply a few changes in terms of the account to allow more characters on the server. For item drops, it could be a number change between the mob spawning more often or having a higher drop rate. I guess we'll find out when they have something to announce to us.

    As for the Monthly update, It's nice to see your goals written down, but as with a few others, I wait till results are seen. Not doubting you Lind, but the engine and the rebalance have taken some time and I'll be waiting to see it in action rather than 'it's coming soon'.
    220/30 - Spartanx9. Back for a good while.

    Quote Originally Posted by Haquihana
    Haquihana: And Spartanx9, I dont usually spend much time in the soldier forums.. you all don't make enough rucus (NOTE: this is not a message of approval to go cause unjust trouble)
    Sounds like i need to cause some trouble I kid i kid

  13. #53
    Quote Originally Posted by Leeson View Post
    Also I think it would have an unhealthy effect on the prices of camped items - you suddenly have double the number of people wanting something, but only 1 spawn of the mob that drops it.
    Worst. Argument. Ever. This is the same as saying, "Keep the population low! No new players!"

    OT, a suggestion for the bug-hunters: Maybe pull extended coordinates anytime someone uses the /stuck feature, and also whether they had logged in within the last 30s or so. This data might be reviewed by the bug hunters and any patterns passed on to the coders for landscaping repairs.
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    Quote Originally Posted by Le-Quack View Post
    i might be a troll

  14. #54
    Quote Originally Posted by 3246251196 View Post
    Just out of curiosity, as a way to understand how current-live PVP is, do the development team ever secretely join upto BS in a sort of... invisible mode and run around to see battles?
    Yes, and they've admitted to such.
    Means actually described it to me once as almost a guilty pleasure.
    Towerblock, 220/30/70 Engineer
    President of Steadfast

    And way too many alts...

  15. #55

    Funcom employee

    Quote Originally Posted by kenshiro2012 View Post
    lindelu,
    First of all thank you for the update! I have a question for you in regards to the server merger.
    Some players (such as myself) have full complements of toons (7 toons on rk1 and 7 toons on rk2), if you do merge the servers what will happen to these toons since the max per player on each server is 7?
    I am concerned about this as I lost a lot of end game equipment (not to mention credits) when rk3 was shut down.
    Thank you,
    This is a valid concern and we're taking it into consideration. We're investigating our options at this point so I'll let you know when we have a workable solution.
    Last edited by lindelu; Jan 31st, 2012 at 20:08:12. Reason: wtb grammar checking tool
    Former Game Director of Anarchy Online.

  16. #56
    Quote Originally Posted by Vhab View Post
    I wouldn't really call that being a fanboy.
    you're always a fanboy

    ps: you still have to pay your debt from your candyvan and trox darkroom visits
    Never knock on death's door, always ring the bell and run. Death really hates that.

  17. #57
    Quote Originally Posted by Spartanx9 View Post
    and the GMS turned into an Auction House sort of thing.
    This should happen long time ago.
    Dragocz RK1

  18. #58
    Lindelu- Just a suggestion. But when you guys do work out the preliminary details of a server merge (sounds like this is more than likely to happen), maybe open a temp forum section for that discussion. I know you guys do your best to think through issues, but quite often players are able to contribute some meaningful feedback that may cover concerns you guys have missed. After playing the game for coming on 8 years, I really don't feel like going through a bunch of hassel or having to lose assets (albeit virtual) that I've spent my RL time working to obtain. It is one thing losing virtual assets when a game just shut downs. It happens. It is a completely seperate issue for a game to carry on but to have things stripped from you due to poor planning or failure of the implementation plan to take certain factors (even if rare/exceptional) into consideration.
    You can find me at:
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  19. #59
    Server merge would be great!

  20. #60
    I would thorougly oppose a server merge personally.

    As someone stated, you go through all the trouble to merge two servers then bring out the new graphics engine and get an influx of new players (and old ones coming back especially) and you're back to needing two (or more) servers again.

    So what do the guys and gals that moved do? Do they remain on their forced move server? Or are they automatically replaced onto their old server?

    There are several other more sensible options than a server merge due to low server populations but I'm not going to post them here for the ideas to be confused in the general debate (that's for later lol).

    Lindelu, if you're even vaguely interested in these ideas, shoot me a PM and I'll hand them over to you for discussion with the team.
    Last edited by Snakebite; Jan 31st, 2012 at 20:55:19.
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