Commando Archive
Thread: Is sandbox going on now?
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JohboBocal
Fri Dec 03, 2004 3:23 pm
#1
Ok, I've been living under a rock for quite some time, and have no idea what is going on. So is the sandbox now open for business and is our correspondent and the GOF (group of five) doing the do?
garvin
Fri Dec 03, 2004 5:50 pm
#2
Not live yet...around thanksgiving we got ahold of some profession specifics docs and have been intensely reviewing them...I have a feeling the Programmers are just waiting for us to make our final suggestions/critiques to those docs before they put the final touches on the initial sandbox testing...
We could go live anytime...or they could be waiting until after the Holidays (TH hinted that awhile ago...we may not see the sandbox go online until beginning of January)...I'm still holding out hope for it to go live before then...Once it does go live, the devs said that we should expect it to move into Beta about 2 weeks later...
JohboBocal
Fri Dec 03, 2004 11:30 pm
#3
garvin wrote:
Once it does go live, the devs said that we should expect it to move into Beta about 2 weeks later...
That soon, that's great.
StarNick
Sat Dec 04, 2004 10:18 am
#4
Not live yet...around thanksgiving we got ahold of some profession specifics docs and have been intensely reviewing them...
So intensely btw, that we're freaking out the devs!
Novock
Sat Dec 04, 2004 12:03 pm
#5
Sandbox won't start till after the first of the year plan and simple. Don't expect BETA to start until spring.
StarNick
Sat Dec 04, 2004 12:16 pm
#6
Devs have not given a confirmed time frame of testing, a general and vague one at best.
Only thing that's definite is Beta occuring after the holidays. Devs have said this in previous posts If i remember correctly. However, the Sandbox can be before or after the holidays...who knows, it may start a week before most people have a christmas break or a few days off from work...
Plain and simple, we dont know exactly when it will begin other than soon.
But we can be assured, that in whatever above time frame the testing will happen...it WONT take till Spring to get Beta going. Most likely late winter/early spring we may be seeing the GCW Revamp and other individual profession revamps such as the Smuggler profession...but the CURB will be out by then.
Novock
Sat Dec 04, 2004 12:31 pm
#7
won't happen before the end of the year, they won't start a test such as the sandbox with the holidays in the middle just won't happen. Won't start till after the first of the year.
Latenighter
Sat Dec 04, 2004 2:14 pm
#8
StarNick wrote:Not to mention, the holidays in the middle is actually a good time to do the testing...yes I do agree, we're doing this for free...and nearly all of us most likely will have time off...and what will we be playing? SWG no doubt - but for 2 weeks, a SWG ground combat game that works better! (Hence perhaps more fun! *looks at garvin* well...ok...we'll still have to make reports and stuff...but they'll be -Fun- Reports!)Remember the Sandbox is ONLY going to happen for roughly 2 weeks...and we still have 2 weeks and 2 days from Dec. 20th...a lot can happen in that span of time.For all we know, 1 week from now...the testing may begin. It'll run for 2 weeks, coming close to Christmas. Then the devs give Live christmas presents, maybe release some info about the CU (vague info of course)...then start sending out the beta acceptances. Take another 1-2 weeks reviewing over the Alpha tester feedback (few dedicated devs may do this over the christmas break). Then bam, after new year's we got Beta.
Hi Stern
You are talking now about the alternate timeline that REALLY would have me impressed. If the Alpha testing started by the end of next week, they take the 2 weeks suggested for Alpha, and rolled out BETA during week from Christmas to New Years, I would believe that they are working on this as hard as they can. And SOE would be getting the maximum testing reactions from the BETA testing if it were alive between Christmas and New Years, since so many would have time to spend in Beta trying things out.
But I tried to suppress wishful thinking. If the Dev's are targeting Beta invites for beginning of January, I personally think that would shatter a lot of the pessimism that flows in the forums.
There is a lot of "float" in the schedule that I was looking at, as you point out. And the sooner the Alpha starts, the less impact on Dev holiday plans the Alpha testing would have. There are so many good reasons to get Alpha running in the next week. But it's SOE's call on how they are going to measure up.
Latenighter
Sun Dec 05, 2004 1:07 am
#9
If the Dev's were seriously thinking about getting the fastest and most feedback from the Alpha Sandbox testing, they would have the Sandbox up and running by December 20, 2004.
You have to assume that the Alpha testers have some time off around Christmas and New Years. This would allow those select few that are Alpha testers to spend a little more time than they could when they are back to school/work in January.
SOE has a big problem with the flight of players from SWG to other games. They have a broken ground game. They have committed to doing something about it with the CURB. If they don't get the sandbox up before Christmas, to get the fastest and deepest level of FEEDBACK possible from the Alpha testers, I personally think that is shortsighted beyond all belief.
It's an SOE management decision (an unpleasant one) and a sign of commitment. Yes, it would screw up Dev Holiday plans, and cause some overtime and extra cost for the Dev team to be taking the feedback during the Christmas season from the Alpha testers. HOwever, SOE is collecting fees from players every month.
But the Alpha testers are doing this for FREE. Show them some respect for their time investment. They are helping to fix the game. They'd rather be PLAYING it. They aren't the ones that broke the game after all.
You have to assume that the Alpha testers have some time off around Christmas and New Years. This would allow those select few that are Alpha testers to spend a little more time than they could when they are back to school/work in January.
SOE has a big problem with the flight of players from SWG to other games. They have a broken ground game. They have committed to doing something about it with the CURB. If they don't get the sandbox up before Christmas, to get the fastest and deepest level of FEEDBACK possible from the Alpha testers, I personally think that is shortsighted beyond all belief.
It's an SOE management decision (an unpleasant one) and a sign of commitment. Yes, it would screw up Dev Holiday plans, and cause some overtime and extra cost for the Dev team to be taking the feedback during the Christmas season from the Alpha testers. HOwever, SOE is collecting fees from players every month.
But the Alpha testers are doing this for FREE. Show them some respect for their time investment. They are helping to fix the game. They'd rather be PLAYING it. They aren't the ones that broke the game after all.
Ryubushi
Sun Dec 05, 2004 1:14 am
#10
Latenighter wrote:
If the Dev's were seriously thinking about getting the fastest and most feedback from the Alpha Sandbox testing, they would have the Sandbox up and running by December 20, 2004.
You have to assume that the Alpha testers have some time off around Christmas and New Years. This would allow those select few that are Alpha testers to spend a little more time than they could when they are back to school/work in January.
SOE has a big problem with the flight of players from SWG to other games. They have a broken ground game. They have committed to doing something about it with the CURB. If they don't get the sandbox up before Christmas, to get the fastest and deepest level of FEEDBACK possible from the Alpha testers, I personally think that is shortsighted beyond all belief.
It's an SOE management decision (an unpleasant one) and a sign of commitment. Yes, it would screw up Dev Holiday plans, and cause some overtime and extra cost for the Dev team to be taking the feedback during the Christmas season from the Alpha testers. HOwever, SOE is collecting fees from players every month.
But the Alpha testers are doing this for FREE. Show them some respect for their time investment. They are helping to fix the game. They'd rather be PLAYING it. They aren't the ones that broke the game after all.
Trouble is, I don't think they have anything more than documents at the moment.
I don't think they have any of the coding done at all, and there's no telling how long that will take. Even if they wanted to have the sandbox up and running by the 20th, they would be hard-pressed to make that deadline, I think.
Not that I'm taking up for them; I think everyone knows how much distaste I have for the devs. I'm just stating the facts as I see 'em.
StarNick
Sun Dec 05, 2004 1:21 am
#11
won't happen before the end of the year, they won't start a test such as the sandbox with the holidays in the middle just won't happen. Won't start till after the first of the year.
Do you really know what the devs are planning? No, not even us Sandbox folk know yet. Heck, theres a few more documents that even haven't been released to us yet. The next 3 weeks we're going to be seeing quite a bit of activity, thats for sure...
Not to mention, the holidays in the middle is actually a good time to do the testing...yes I do agree, we're doing this for free...and nearly all of us most likely will have time off...and what will we be playing? SWG no doubt - but for 2 weeks, a SWG ground combat game that works better! (Hence perhaps more fun! *looks at garvin* well...ok...we'll still have to make reports and stuff...but they'll be -Fun- Reports!)
Remember the Sandbox is ONLY going to happen for roughly 2 weeks...and we still have 2 weeks and 2 days from Dec. 20th...a lot can happen in that span of time.
For all we know, 1 week from now...the testing may begin. It'll run for 2 weeks, coming close to Christmas. Then the devs give Live christmas presents, maybe release some info about the CU (vague info of course)...then start sending out the beta acceptances. Take another 1-2 weeks reviewing over the Alpha tester feedback (few dedicated devs may do this over the christmas break). Then bam, after new year's we got Beta.
OR the devs will wait till post christmas to get us on, thats another month of time for them. And currently they're fairly close to completeing the sandbox hardware wise (totally independent server, and all that other electronic mumbo i dont know about!) suppousedly...
Making generalized statements that have no truth backing them, is not a good thing to spread on these boards btw...
StarNick
Sun Dec 05, 2004 1:24 am
#12
Trouble is, I don't think they have anything more than documents at the moment.
I don't think they have any of the coding done at all, and there's no telling how long that will take. Even if they wanted to have the sandbox up and running by the 20th, they would be hard-pressed to make that deadline, I think.
Not that I'm taking up for them; I think everyone knows how much distaste I have for the devs. I'm just stating the facts as I see 'em.
I have a distaste for some of the devs...others are excellent people and hardworking, and well loved. My opinion on coding tho...yes, for us it is documents only atm...as we need the Sandbox up to actually test. The devs have been working on the sandbox for some time now as well...
Anyways, my opinion so far...it looks worked on (hardware wise)...and you may be surprised.
Novock
Sun Dec 05, 2004 1:57 am
#13
To me the reason doesn't matter, reality matters and the reality of seeing the sandbox open will not occurr until after January 1st. Back in October when TH made his infamously vague statement he said sandbox would open in a "few weeks." As with the term "soon" used by TH for the year previousthe words "few weeks" have been redifined by SOE and nowa few weeks=few months rather than what it means to the common person of actually a few weeks. Its the same same ole say something to get by for a few months then say something else.... frankly I am outright shocked that they are continuing to risk the loss of the player base as they are with their silence. But anyway thats the way it goes. I stand by my original statement sandbox won't begin until after Jan 1st BETA won't begin until spring. And for an extra tidbit.... the CU won't go live until its appropriate time with the release of Episode 3 to the theaters. This is not about programming or documents they know exactly what they are doing. They are counting on marketing the CU in conjunction to with the release of Episode 3 and banking that the movie will draw more people to the game then they will loose in stretching and delaying. Thats why they won't say anything public until after the first of the year. that's when they'll annouce the opening of the sandbox.... just sit back and watch........ its all about the Benjamin's...
Message Edited by Novock on 12-04-2004 03:01 PM
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