Community Relations Archive
Thread: John Smedley's Letter to the Community: April 7th, 2005
Message Edited by Lomier on 04-11-2005 11:22 PM
Tiggs wrote:
The "Combat Upgrade" is now live on the SWG test server, and it's getting very positive feedback from the SWG playerbase.
We're enjoying the present and looking toward a very bright future for SOE and the online games industry, (notthe players, note)and I wanted you to know that we truly appreciate your support and feedback, and we're listening! We're here to entertain you.
Thanks,
John Smedley
Bah, bah, bah, and bah!
We had a VP of Marketing once that promoted a change of product line that took away some options, gave others (linked to fees,) and charged more, and led the promo with "Great News!" The resulting customer outrage were more driven to the "Great News!" message than the changes to the products themselves.
That VP, for that and othersimilaractions lackingbusinesssense,was soon out on the street, as should be this SOE team, for this quoted comment, and for the utter mismanagement of this SWG project from the outset, up to and including destroying our game absent players' desire to do so, and handing us a foreign game with destroyed crafting professions, all new and foreign combat professions, all new and foreign interfaces, and all new and foreign looks, sounds, and actions. Its a different game. We didn't ask for a different game. It's not a CU, its a revamp of the game itself, and its not "Great News!"
Message Edited by DancingRhodian on 04-12-2005 01:26 AM
In his April letter to the community, President of Sony Online Entertainment John Smedley discusses an ongoing dialogue with players, new ideas, and recent additions. Join the discussion.
In Austin, our Star Wars Galaxies™ team is focused on a big change to the game's combat system. The "Combat Upgrade" is now live on the SWG test server, and it's getting very positive feedback from the SWG playerbase. The team is also putting the finishing touches on Star Wars Galaxies™: Episode III Rage of the Wookies™, which launches in less than a month. The SWG playerbase is very strong, and we're continuing to put a lot of effort into making Star Wars Galaxies™ even better and adding new content all the time. The latest expansion pack adds Episode III content into the universe -- something our SWG players were asking for!
Look I will just get mad ans start screaming and I do enough of that on the CH boards (come by and see, I am fmaous now) so I will keep it short and sweet.
First we get one paragraph that says nothing other than they knew they had at least mention us.
Second (yellow text) I don't even have to say anything about this do I? It is a blatant out and out LIE. And we have the posts here to prove it. Darth Smedley is blowing smoke up our........Connection Interrupted
1) To those ppl who say we dont offer tangible examples:
a)YES, the ham system is better now (as long as harder mobs dont depend on big amounts of it)
b)YES, proffessions are better now (apart from some like armorsmith/commando(rename him heavy weapons specialist)
c) NO, 90% of the ppl dont like lvls, especially lvl multipliers, or small furry creatures with 50 lvls and insane damages
d) NO, 90% of the ppl dont like forced certifications, and armors/weapons that will slip of ur body cause they just know u cant use them properly. - yes balance may be better, but NO this game is not some kiddy arcade cartoony game, balance could be good if they just used previous system with some adjustments.
e) I could live with cartoony icons (even if i dont like them) but i think thats not a major issue.
As for ppl in this forum not representing the community.. OF COURSE they do.. I have played in TC (commando/fencer), and i have talked around with tons of ppl on live (infinity) and NO one likes these new changes.. only reason why ppl are sticking around is cause of time/soul investment in this game. \
I hope the overwhelming amount of negative feedback here will wake up someone..
if i quit, it will mainly be as a means to be heared.. even 2 specific devs i have talked to in tc5 (will not mention names) think lvl system sucks!! and they say they are not responsible..! who is?
I really hope much of this is fixed, i remember how awestruck i was with many of the features of this game when i first joined.. and how most of it is going away now..
tnx for hearing an old player out..
In Austin, our Star Wars Galaxies™ team is focused on a big change to the game's combat system. The "Combat Upgrade" is now live on the SWG test server, and it's getting very positive feedback from the SWG playerbase. The team is also putting the finishing touches on Star Wars Galaxies™: Episode III Rage of the Wookies™, which launches in less than a month. The SWG playerbase is very strong, and we're continuing to put a lot of effort into making Star Wars Galaxies™ even better and adding new content all the time. The latest expansion pack adds Episode III content into the universe -- something our SWG players were asking for!
Ok, this paragraph right here is almost enough to cause me to withdraw my subscription from SOE games and never purchase another SOE product. Someone needs to tell the higher ups to pull their heads out of their asses and start LISTENING to their community. Stop lying to us, stoplying about us, START addressing our concerns and STOP ignoring us.
In Austin, our Star Wars Galaxies™ team is focused on a big change to the game's combat system. The "Combat Upgrade" is now live on the SWG test server, and it's getting very positive feedback from the SWG playerbase. The team is also putting the finishing touches on Star Wars Galaxies™: Episode III Rage of the Wookies™, which launches in less than a month. The SWG playerbase is very strong, and we're continuing to put a lot of effort into making Star Wars Galaxies™ even better and adding new content all the time. The latest expansion pack adds Episode III content into the universe -- something our SWG players were asking for!
There's also a lot of action on EverQuest. We're consolidating many of the servers to keep the game an exciting place to be, and we are investing a lot of time and effort in making this game an even better experience for its many fans. EverQuest just had its 6th anniversary on March 16th. It's very gratifying to see such a strong demand for this game, but when you look at how much of an impact EverQuest has had on so many people's lives not to mention the entire industry it's not very surprising. We continue to hear remarkable stories of how people are touched by the game. In fact, we just had a player name her daughter Firiona!
Ok, I just wanted to highlight the part with EQas an example of an interesting contradiction: If EQ is "so strong" why exactly are they consolidating servers? Hmmmm
Kinda makes me wonder about the whole first paragraph, from the "positive feedback" comment all the way to "players asking for Ep III" content.
Why on earth can't they just take the best bits of the existing system and put the best bits of the new system on it, I think that way it would solve most of the issues of the old stuff and gives them a big pat on the back for getting right some of the new bits like HAM system, profession changes, weapons and armour changes, buff changes, and combine those with the old skill base combat with revamped creature stats to match the new HAM system. Then they can put some time intoaddressing all the issues that they have now raised in the crafting professions - what to do about improving AS, BE/Meds crafting, WS, harvesting problems, etc.
Keito wrote:
Well.. after quite a few posts in about every forum on the combat upgrade and many suggestions, I will try to sum up some things here:
1) To those ppl who say we dont offer tangible examples:
a)YES, the ham system is better now (as long as harder mobs dont depend on big amounts of it)
b)YES, proffessions are better now (apart from some like armorsmith/commando(rename him heavy weapons specialist)
c) NO, 90% of the ppl dont like lvls, especially lvl multipliers, or small furry creatures with 50 lvls and insane damages
d) NO, 90% of the ppl dont like forced certifications, and armors/weapons that will slip of ur body cause they just know u cant use them properly. - yes balance may be better, but NO this game is not some kiddy arcade cartoony game, balance could be good if they just used previous system with some adjustments.
e) I could live with cartoony icons (even if i dont like them) but i think thats not a major issue.
As for ppl in this forum not representing the community.. OF COURSE they do.. I have played in TC (commando/fencer), and i have talked around with tons of ppl on live (infinity) and NO one likes these new changes.. only reason why ppl are sticking around is cause of time/soul investment in this game. \
I hope the overwhelming amount of negative feedback here will wake up someone..
if i quit, it will mainly be as a means to be heared.. even 2 specific devs i have talked to in tc5 (will not mention names) think lvl system sucks!! and they say they are not responsible..! who is?
I really hope much of this is fixed, i remember how awestruck i was with many of the features of this game when i first joined.. and how most of it is going away now..
tnx for hearing an old player out..
Khazneh wrote:Why on earth can't they just take the best bits of the existing system and put the best bits of the new system on it, I think that way it would solve most of the issues of the old stuff and gives them a big pat on the back for getting right some of the new bits like HAM system, profession changes, weapons and armour changes, buff changes, and combine those with the old skill base combat with revamped creature stats to match the new HAM system. Then they can put some time into addressing all the issues that they have now raised in the crafting professions - what to do about improving AS, BE/Meds crafting, WS, harvesting problems, etc.
Keito wrote:
Well.. after quite a few posts in about every forum on the combat upgrade and many suggestions, I will try to sum up some things here:
1) To those ppl who say we dont offer tangible examples:
a)YES, the ham system is better now (as long as harder mobs dont depend on big amounts of it)
b)YES, proffessions are better now (apart from some like armorsmith/commando(rename him heavy weapons specialist)
c) NO, 90% of the ppl dont like lvls, especially lvl multipliers, or small furry creatures with 50 lvls and insane damages
d) NO, 90% of the ppl dont like forced certifications, and armors/weapons that will slip of ur body cause they just know u cant use them properly. - yes balance may be better, but NO this game is not some kiddy arcade cartoony game, balance could be good if they just used previous system with some adjustments.
e) I could live with cartoony icons (even if i dont like them) but i think thats not a major issue.
As for ppl in this forum not representing the community.. OF COURSE they do.. I have played in TC (commando/fencer), and i have talked around with tons of ppl on live (infinity) and NO one likes these new changes.. only reason why ppl are sticking around is cause of time/soul investment in this game. \
I hope the overwhelming amount of negative feedback here will wake up someone..
if i quit, it will mainly be as a means to be heared.. even 2 specific devs i have talked to in tc5 (will not mention names) think lvl system sucks!! and they say they are not responsible..! who is?
I really hope much of this is fixed, i remember how awestruck i was with many of the features of this game when i first joined.. and how most of it is going away now..
tnx for hearing an old player out..
I know. This makes so much sense, while forcing on us a cartoon like interface and levelling which we hate doesn't.