Commando Archive
Thread: Expansion/CU announcement to come...
What do you want to bet some jackass in corporate said "thats alot of man hours devoted to something we are giveing away for free. Turn all that content into an expansion pack and recoup the costs".
This actually explains alot and I feel sorry for the developers working on SWG. I am sure they are all frustrated that they can't actually get completed and out to the paying players.
Well, on the other hand, since they are planning on making money off of this, maybe it will get a little more polish. I still find this whole thing very disenchanting and feel a bit let down by the entire SOE team. I can understand why they are changing things up like this (decrease the publish cycle, pull some extra dough, try to get more use out of the work they have already done) but that doesn't mean I have to like it or agree with it. I think its bogus. No other MMORPG I have ever played has toyed with the customer base like this one has. On the other hand, in the other MMORPGs when they tried to please everyone that didn't include fanatical fanboys AND 12 year old exploiters.
Unfortunately I am a fan boy and will continue to play and pay for this game for a good while longer. Even though I only play about 3 hours a week now (down from about 20). In fact, if you think about it, I am a pretty good customer to target. I keep paying, but without playing as much keeping the bandwidth use down and reduceing SOE's overhead. HHHMMMM... I may be on to something here.
garvin wrote:
DragonSnack wrote:
Whatcha wanna bet this IS the CU?
It's not...
The text mentions new weapons and armor.
Look at the pictuires. The first one shows a Wookie in armor I've not seen before.
It does explain though why a lot of new weapons are wookiee related in origin, but the CU is still, as far as we've been told, considered a seperate entity that is just timed along with the expansion release it seems.
The CU testers are going to be testing both the new release and the CU.
Which means both Alpha and Beta testers...
Remember the FAN FEST is where JTL was first looked at and the attendees got first dibs on JTL.
Doesn't appear to be the case this time...they already stated basically that if you are signed up to beta the CU, then you are signed up to beta the expansion...I hope they don't change that...
The Jedi star fighter is probably going to be Obi-Wons from ATC or poossibly the Count's solar wind ship.
Although May seems like a long ways away, there is one positive note to this that I haven't heard brought up...May is the planned release to LIVE. That's only 3 months away. How long do you suppose it would take to test both the CU and the Expansion for a May Release? My guess is that it would take around 3 months to test (2 at least), thus, testing (hopefully) has to start very soon...If testing doesn't start in the next couple of weeks that I wouldn't hold my breath about the Expansion being released in May...
Just because the article says a May release doesn't mean we'll have to wait to May to try it out...I believe the plan is still to get as many folks into Beta as possible...And hopefully Beta is still planned to start a few weeks after Alpha (depends on how fast the Alpha teams get's their job done and how many issues we find for them to fix/tweak).
PS...it's been asked before...The CU is still free and as far as I've known has always been considered (at least since it was the Combat Revamp) an expansion unto itself as much as an entire game re-write.
Message Edited by garvin on 03-09-2005 08:42 AM
See, no one ever listens to me :*(
I have been saying that for long time in both the expansion threads 
"We know the CU is coming out in May which means the alpha testing and beta testing will start soon. " Thats from this thread
"Also means alpha and beta testing should be starting rather soon! If the relese is may than the beta and alpha HAVE to start pritty soon." thats from the other one.
Me go cry in corner now
I started my reply from the first page...I hadn't read your post yet...yes...you did say that (but I also said it in another couple of threads last night...lol)...
RagNoRock5x wrote:
garvin wrote:
DragonSnack wrote:
Whatcha wanna bet this IS the CU?
It's not...
The text mentions new weapons and armor.
Look at the pictuires. The first one shows a Wookie in armor I've not seen before.
It does explain though why a lot of new weapons are wookiee related in origin, but the CU is still, as far as we've been told, considered a seperate entity that is just timed along with the expansion release it seems.
The CU testers are going to be testing both the new release and the CU.
Which means both Alpha and Beta testers...
Remember the FAN FEST is where JTL was first looked at and the attendees got first dibs on JTL.
Doesn't appear to be the case this time...they already stated basically that if you are signed up to beta the CU, then you are signed up to beta the expansion...I hope they don't change that...
The Jedi star fighter is probably going to be Obi-Wons from ATC or poossibly the Count's solar wind ship.
Although May seems like a long ways away, there is one positive note to this that I haven't heard brought up...May is the planned release to LIVE. That's only 3 months away. How long do you suppose it would take to test both the CU and the Expansion for a May Release? My guess is that it would take around 3 months to test (2 at least), thus, testing (hopefully) has to start very soon...If testing doesn't start in the next couple of weeks that I wouldn't hold my breath about the Expansion being released in May...
Just because the article says a May release doesn't mean we'll have to wait to May to try it out...I believe the plan is still to get as many folks into Beta as possible...And hopefully Beta is still planned to start a few weeks after Alpha (depends on how fast the Alpha teams get's their job done and how many issues we find for them to fix/tweak).
PS...it's been asked before...The CU is still free and as far as I've known has always been considered (at least since it was the Combat Revamp) an expansion unto itself as much as an entire game re-write.
Message Edited by garvin on 03-09-2005 08:42 AM
See, no one ever listens to me :*(
I have been saying that for long time in both the expansion threads
"We know the CU is coming out in May which means the alpha testing and beta testing will start soon. " Thats from this thread
"Also means alpha and beta testing should be starting rather soon! If the relese is may than the beta and alpha HAVE to start pritty soon." thats from the other one.
Me go cry in corner now
Iron-Monkey wrote:
Isn't anyone else scared out their minds at the concept of testing TWO major changes in at the SAME TIME?!?!
Really, testing for the CU is going to be a long, ardous process with lots of bugs sneaking through (this is not a knock on SOE, it is just a statement of software law). It will probably be 3-4 months after CU is released to catch all the bugs, and that's with testing it by itself.
Now, I am a very proud wookiee, and would love to see this new expansion, but the concept of doubling the testing effort and risking major issues creeping into live (when I say major, I mean game-breaking, not missing the Imperial hat) all so that we can have one extra planet and some creepy looking robotic arms to tool around with is a giant mistake.
I would be scared...if I didn't think that both "changes" are already made...I don't have any proof or confirmation, but I'm speculating that both the CU and the Expansion are done and ready for testing already...and both "fit" together even though they are seperate entities...For all we know, the majority of the weapon/armor/etc testing that we do will be on the new planet (kill 2 birds with one stone).
For all we know, CU testing over at the SOE studies could have been going on since end of January, which would mean that many of the bigger bugs are already worked out.
I agree that Beta testing 2 products is risky and I'm afraid it will lead to somethings being overlooked or a "rushed" feeling where important issues get put on the back burner in order to rush out both products, but it's unfortunately still a "wait and see" type of thing...
As for protesting this...why? When things got delayed in January, most of us figured April or May (at the earliest) would be the release date for the CU going live...May has now been officially slated for the Live release date...so what's changed? What's the big bone to pick with May? Yes, we've waited way longer then we feel we should, but there are good reasons (I just wish they'd reveal the most recent reason...it's not expansion related)...Everyone has begged for a timeline...now we have May...that gives us a better idea of when player testing NEEDS to start by. What good will protesting do? What message would you be sending (rush it out faster)? We demanded a date...they've responded...Maybe soon they'll respond with more information...
Message Edited by DragonSnack on 03-09-2005 01:38 PM
Gosh garvin, you sure are optimistic.
garvin wrote:
I would be scared...if I didn't think that both "changes" are already made...I don't have any proof or confirmation, but I'm speculating that both the CU and the Expansion are done and ready for testing already...and both "fit" together even though they are seperate entities...For all we know, the majority of the weapon/armor/etc testing that we do will be on the new planet (kill 2 birds with one stone).
For all we know, CU testing over at the SOE studies could have been going on since end of January, which would mean that many of the bigger bugs are already worked out.
I agree that Beta testing 2 products is risky and I'm afraid it will lead to somethings being overlooked or a "rushed" feeling where important issues get put on the back burner in order to rush out both products, but it's unfortunately still a "wait and see" type of thing...
Tlk wrote:
The outrage Garvin, is that many of us are familiar with large corporations and how they work. It is very unlikely that they just on the fly decided this. This goes to thefeeling that everything they said up till now was smoke. Waiting till May does not concern me for the CURB, what does is the decision to suddenly not test the CURB independantly. Slating both to be tested was probably decided las summer. They knew the launch date of the expansion would be in Mayas soon as they decided to make it (it is directly from the movie). So while it is possible that the two groups didn't report to the same management and had their own schedules, I am betting this was always the plan and they simply mislead us to the reasons for the delays. That is why I am upset, they could of simply told us definatively the release would be in May and not toy with us about the promise of seeing the docs or that testing would be "soon".
This is what gets SOE in trouble with thier customers, it is the horrible communication and double talk they do.
Are you familiar with how Large Corporation work with licensed products? In most licensing agreements, the products MUST be used in a certain way on a certain time schedule otherwise the license can become legally void. I'm not saything this is going on here, but it's my opinion (if I had to read the situation as an outside spectator) that SOE MUST release "expansions" on a certain time schedule to maintain their LucasArts license of the Star Wars entity. If this was the case, my guess is the combination of releasing the CU WITH the Expansion is a "side-effect" of all the delays and not something they originally planned. I think the devs know that if they delay the CU so much that the Expansion comes out first, the Public will erupt just like they did many months back around the release of JTL...and since the Expansion likely HAS TO come out by May (unless they get an extension from LA), they decided to time them together with no other acceptable (in their eyes) options to go with.
Think about it...taking into account that Expansions have to happen on certain time tables to maintain a license, how would you handle it? Would you beg LA to push back the Expansion so you can work on the CU solo (which might make your company look bad to LucasArts) or would you rush out the CU before you felt it was ready? Or would you just, unfortunately due to time constraints, work on them both at the same time?
There is a VERY good chance (how much more obvious do I need to be)...VERY VERY VERY VERY good chance that the expansion and the CU is already done and ready for testing...In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if someone out there is already playing it (not me)...I'm not saying that it is definitely ready, but I have a VERY STRONG belief that it is. It'sPOSSIBLY been ready since early February and tested internally to get some of the bigger bugs out as well as conduct re-writes of aspects that are considered too complicated or "not fun".
I understand the outrage...I understand the frustration...I never ever said I was happy about any of it...I'm not the enemy here...I don't support their decissions, but I understand them. That's the difference...People seem to think I defend SOE...I don't...I just present other ways of looking at a situation. For example, you have a theory that they've planned this all along...I disgree that they've planned it all along, and present a theory that it's more of a forced decission due to "running out of time"...is that defending SOE? no...Testing should have began a long time ago, but from what I have heard, even if it had, we'd STILL be waiting for the CU anyway (think about it...connect the dots regarding what I've TOLD YOU!!!!some of you are so busy being pissed off that you don't read between the lines in my posts and miss what I'm TRYING to tell you...many catch it, but those who come back at me obviously missed what I've said).
The frustration and outrage is simple to figure out...it's not because the CU isn't live or that it's been delayed time and time again...It's because of the lack of communications straight from the Devs...but you've all heard plenty of "Commando" details...in fact, you all know (or should know) just about as much as any Commando Sandbox tester...it's all in these forums for you to read...I thought it was obvious...Many folks have been trying to give you all the answers, but some of you have been so caught up with the lack of communication from the Devs that you've missed the communications you've been wanting to see coming from other sources.
Instead of coming up with conspiracy theories, take a step back...re-read what has been revealed already...not just by the Devs, but by me, Starnick, and tons of others. Revisit our "discussion" threads and compare them to some of the posts made by TH regarding especially the over all CU plans/goals. Look at the weapons coming out and research their origins and effects.
Even when all the flames have settled, I'll still be a Master Commando, but I'll be a Commando with tons of more templates then I've ever considered trying...Personally I can't wait to try a MBH combo...
If the game stresses you out this much that you feel the need to keep biting the hands that feeds you (Starnick and me especially), then take a step back...breath...relax...and send a message to SOE the best way you can (if it comes down to that)...cancel your account (your character should still be around in May if you decide to come back).