Community Relations Archive

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Tiggs wrote:

The following letter from our president, John Smedley, has been posted:

Hello Everyone,

First off, I'd like to say thanks for all of the wonderful ideas we received from you after my last posting. Having this ongoing dialogue is something SOE is committed to in a major way, and it's one of the biggest things you all asked for. So you'll see an increase in our public presence, not just on our boards, but on a lot of the fansites, as well. And we've created a new position within our ranks, the Director of Community Relations, specifically to prioritize you, the community, within our service offerings. Alan Crosby, previously EQ Community Relations Manager, will be stepping into this role, and all of SOE's community managers and representatives will report to him, while still maintaining close ties to the game teams, of course. Under this new structure, we will become even more responsive, even more dedicated to customer focus!

I'd like to give you a general update on our games this posting:

Since my last post, we launched our first Adventure Pack for EverQuest II "The Bloodline Chronicles"and over half our player base is already playing it! We are committed to releasing new content between Expansion Packs that goes beyond our live updates, and so we'll continue to release these Adventure Packs on a regular basis -- a first for our industry.

Why do you talk so much about EQ in the SWG forums, are you saying its a supior game, com'on.

The EQII team is still hard at work on the existing game, and I think that all of the new content the team has added since launch is pretty amazing. In the past few weeks alone, we've added several new high level raids, an in-game mail system, Mentoring (something we're really excited about), two additional character slots for all subscribers, and we just added the new merchant system, which will allow players to sell items in game without having to leave their computer running. That's on top of the usual game additions -- dozens of new quests, spells, items, tradeskill recipes, etc. You can expect us to keep up this pace for a long time to come. Another part of the EQII team is hard at work on our first Expansion Pack, coming out later this year. We've taken a lot of your recent ideas and feedback into account, and we're working on some innovative ways characters can move and interact with the environment. Also, we're taking the first step towards introducing PvP competition with the introduction of a new type of combat!

More EQ talk, hello.

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!

I didnt ask for this, content thats in our current timeline.

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!

And again with EQ, what gives?

One other subject I wanted to touch on is our Customer Service department. We've made some significant changes, and I'm proud to say our average telephone hold times are now 5 minutes or under. And our in-game response times are among the best in the business! We know how important this is to our players, and we will continue to focus on decreasing these response times even further.

I give props to the CSR's, even when they cant/wont grant requests or help with certain situations, they are the grunts of the workforce and give it their all.

We're going to have a lot of new things to talk about in the upcoming months. Our games continue to thrive, and we have a bunch of exciting developments coming out of our San Diego, Austin and Seattle studios. We're enjoying the present and looking toward a very bright future for SOE and the online games industry, and I wanted you to know that we truly appreciate your support and feedback, and we're listening! We're here to entertain you.

Just watch the original movies once a week guys and you'll know how to make this game last.

Thanks,

John Smedley

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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

Message Edited by Tiggs on 04-08-2005 06:31 PM

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At least, hes , in some srewed up way, "entertaining" us... listening not...

Hi, I realize your about to delete my post along with so many above it but dont you think you should just delete the whole thing? It would be easier... btw, Rangers need the health bonus.

EQ2 is the new golden boy of SOE. All games will now model it. They are totally destroying the unique feeling that was SWG. We didnt need to become eq2. We just needed the fresh ideas and thinkers of EQ2 to bring SWG into a new level of gameplay.

The statement about were all very happy about it is a blatant lie. Nice play on words for stockholders and potential new players.

/shakeshead

Message Edited by KaiRaene on 04-08-2005 06:29 PM

Does Mr. Smedley even have a clue what the playerbase wants and how most players feel? Has he ever truly played SWG? Based on that letter, it looks like the answer to all of these questions is simply: no.

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GLZMO - visionaire extraordinaire, self-proclaimed guardian and enforcer of roleplay and Star Wars continuity in Star Wars Galaxies
Click here to read and support these Visions to improve and possibly save SWG!

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Vagrantprodigy wrote:

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NemsisJedi wrote:

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Sehera wrote:

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LordScotticus wrote:

Discouraging doesn't begin to describe it. I feel insulted as a player that the company running my game thinks I'm so stupid as to not see right through this an obvious attempt to smooth things over. I feel a firm pressing sensation from behind...

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hey, its not your game... everything remains property of SOE

theyll be happy with all that mastered everything toons and Master Jedi Knights they can hand over to their employees after they quitted

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Indeed even this forum is Property of SOE - one of my posts just got poofed _-_ Garva

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Mine did too, cause I asked whether the President was a liar, or his underlings were.

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Ermm - be more polite - Have respect to peoples too. I worked in GameDev and many, many peoples is under someone who telling thme what to do, they cannot decide by themselfs. I think Marketing office have more weight then Lead desinger here. So actualy many peoples have nothing to do with it, it's just their work and they have to do it.

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Insidius wrote:

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silversaber wrote:

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pneumonic81 wrote:

wy, u can state how much u dislike it, i feel the need to state how much i do like it. the problem is im one of the few vocal peopel who will defend it. most people who like it dont bother posting, usually just the complainers post. i just want to make sure that when people read this thread they dont see only complaints.

yea some of the things in that letter were quite amusing, but even tho the live forums seem to dislike cu, i again state that opinion should be taken with a grain of salt. the cu forums will be much more on target for real opinions, ill bet thats what mr. smedly was looking at.

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Take a look at the poll in the In testing-Dev forum.

Over 50%+ would NOT recomend this game to thier friends.

Yea, alot of peeps really do like the CU..NOT!

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For what it's worth, the forum polls have never reflected the views of the gaming community as a whole; only the views of the forum-goers. Only a small percent of the game-playing community even uses the forums.

Frankly, the poll arguement doesn't hold much water, I'm sorry to say.

*hears the sound of hundreds of little bubbles *pop* bursting in unison*

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Its so funny... man, the decision to cancel is getting easier and easier.. rofl Why wasnt this post deleted as well?

Message Edited by KaiRaene on 04-08-2005 06:55 PM

To do the unthinkable, I'm going to offer some excuse for the claims of widespread support of the CU. (Doesn't mean I agree, but its something to consider)

We're only privy to the forums, not the game-closing survey TC makes you take. Those stats are based on people who've just actually played. Assuming they datamine how many of the responses come from the same account, those responses might actually be positive.

In addition, the forums are almost universally negative and very, very opinionated. I think it was lunacy on their part to even put up a poll that essentially says:

"Hey, cynical and overly critical population of our most over-devoted customers who've sunk endless hours into our already very broken game, how do you like our new extremely buggy half finished Combat Upgrade that you've been told will ruin everything you've worked for and which you may or may not have even gotten to play yet, and which changes by the minute so you can't be certain what the CU will even be?"

Seriously, how good a response could we expect? Every change for the past year has been met with frantic and apocylptic screams of horror.

Now then, that said... "EP III content players have asked for?" Players don't even know what Episode III content *is* yet, the movies not out! That's funny

-Dalnara

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Tiggs wrote:

Under this new structure, we will become even more responsive, even more dedicated to customer focus!

The "Combat Upgrade" is now live on the SWG test server, and it's getting very positive feedback from the SWG playerbase.

The latest expansion pack adds Episode III content into the universe -- something our SWG players were asking for!

We're here to entertain you.

Thanks,

John Smedley

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Who are you kidding Mister?

I have a very bad feeling you are just been fooled by people who reported those to you. WE are the ones who are playing the game, WE are the ones who wants game to get improved, WE are the ones who can report to you and YOU, sir, is the one who can stop SWG to be just a clone of EQ2 so you can make new market era. Otherwise, your investors will just say "SWG, same as EQ, why to invest on both?"

SWG community is strong THAT IS TRUE, strong and mature to understand how game it was, how it should be.. You did not take your focus from EQ to SWG so changing SWG to EQ, very nice.

We are not children like your EQ community. Wewant matureand realistic game, not a fairy tale fantasy. George Lucas himself said "Star Wars is not "shiny" future." and Star Wars Galaxies is loved just because of this, it was different from all games, marketing plot was "There is no level system" which we all wondered and see something unique. We never wanted your flashy effects and level system "in the name of Combat Upgrade" and here hear this, we are not happy and we are NOT positive about turning our game to kiddy garden.

And really sad to see, messages that is true getting deleting, just in case boss may read the truths.

Message Edited by gera on 04-08-2005 06:58 PM

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Tiggs wrote:

The following letter from our president, John Smedley, has been posted:

Hello Everyone,

First off, I'd like to say thanks for all of the wonderful ideas we received from you after my last posting. Having this ongoing dialogue is something SOE is committed to in a major way, and it's one of the biggest things you all asked for. So you'll see an increase in our public presence, not just on our boards, but on a lot of the fansites, as well. And we've created a new position within our ranks, the Director of Community Relations, specifically to prioritize you, the community, within our service offerings. Alan Crosby, previously EQ Community Relations Manager, will be stepping into this role, and all of SOE's community managers and representatives will report to him, while still maintaining close ties to the game teams, of course. Under this new structure, we will become even more responsive, even more dedicated to customer focus!

I'd like to give you a general update on our games this posting:

Since my last post, we launched our first Adventure Pack for EverQuest II "The Bloodline Chronicles" and over half our player base is already playing it! We are committed to releasing new content between Expansion Packs that goes beyond our live updates, and so we'll continue to release these Adventure Packs on a regular basis -- a first for our industry.

The EQII team is still hard at work on the existing game, and I think that all of the new content the team has added since launch is pretty amazing. In the past few weeks alone, we've added several new high level raids, an in-game mail system, Mentoring (something we're really excited about), two additional character slots for all subscribers, and we just added the new merchant system, which will allow players to sell items in game without having to leave their computer running. That's on top of the usual game additions -- dozens of new quests, spells, items, tradeskill recipes, etc. You can expect us to keep up this pace for a long time to come. Another part of the EQII team is hard at work on our first Expansion Pack, coming out later this year. We've taken a lot of your recent ideas and feedback into account, and we're working on some innovative ways characters can move and interact with the environment. Also, we're taking the first step towards introducing PvP competition with the introduction of a new type of combat!

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!

One other subject I wanted to touch on is our Customer Service department. We've made some significant changes, and I'm proud to say our average telephone hold times are now 5 minutes or under. And our in-game response times are among the best in the business! We know how important this is to our players, and we will continue to focus on decreasing these response times even further.

We're going to have a lot of new things to talk about in the upcoming months. Our games continue to thrive, and we have a bunch of exciting developments coming out of our San Diego, Austin and Seattle studios. We're enjoying the present and looking toward a very bright future for SOE and the online games industry, 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

Message Edited by Tiggs on 04-08-2005 06:31 PM

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Wow blah blah blah, lie lie lie....5 minute wait time on csrs thats bs the last 3 tickets i made took 4 hours for all of em, ep3 content that swg playerbase wanted, I haven't met one person yet that was wanting an expansion pack for ep3, especially since were in ep what 4-5?, most of the people i know are still waiting for our hoth expansion....Cu getting lots of positive feedback, didn't that feedback from me..but then again I can't view all the feedback from everyone....

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WarHokie wrote:
To do the unthinkable, I'm going to offer some excuse for the claims of widespread support of the CU. (Doesn't mean I agree, but its something to consider)

We're only privy to the forums, not the game-closing survey TC makes you take. Those stats are based on people who've just actually played. Assuming they datamine how many of the responses come from the same account, those responses might actually be positive.

In addition, the forums are almost universally negative and very, very opinionated. I think it was lunacy on their part to even put up a poll that essentially says:

"Hey, cynical and overly critical population of our most over-devoted customers who've sunk endless hours into our already very broken game, how do you like our new extremely buggy half finished Combat Upgrade that you've been told will ruin everything you've worked for and which you may or may not have even gotten to play yet, and which changes by the minute so you can't be certain what the CU will even be?"

Seriously, how good a response could we expect? Every change for the past year has been met with frantic and apocylptic screams of horror.

Now then, that said... "EP III content players have asked for?" Players don't even know what Episode III content *is* yet, the movies not out! That's funny

-Dalnara

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The CU isnt the problem. Its the ripple effect that comes with it that so many people are unhappy with. They are changing many professions that werent broken. They are also ignoring other professions that need attention in the CU. They are ignoring Rangers and Scout totally. The Scout and Ranger correspondents are doing their best in the Corr forums to get our needs met and they are replied to with utter silence from the devs. They refuse to acknowledge our needs/wants and are totally screwing us over. They wont even say No, its not happening.. just silence. Pretty sad imo.

GG