Development Cycle Archive

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Thunderheart wrote:

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Wili wrote:
Please fix the pistoleer specials and remove the dogde animation (fencers dodge animation was removed, too..)

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Fixed in publish 8.

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/CHEER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I will add my name to the list of people that are concerned that their combat profession will not be fix/revamped/whatever in the next 4 months.

I understand that you can't do everything at once, and I don't think that is what is worrying people. What people are worried is thatthings that they see as important fixes will not be addressed in the combat balance. We are not so concerned with the time it takes to get the balances, but more with what the changes will be.

It will be much easier for a commando to hear "Yes, the HAR will be revamped to make it a useful weapon with changes A,B and C but it will take 4 months to implement" than to hear "Things will be addressed in the combat balance that will not be in the next 4 months".

I can wait 4 months with the knowledge that "in 4 months I will be able to do X, Y, and Z". I can't wait 4 months knowing that "something" will change.

just my 2 cents worth of ranting

Entertainers should be sure to note the brief description of the "Social Adventure" that will arrive in a mini-publish after Publish 9:

"Social Adventure" Opens

This will mostly be a non-combat adventure, targeting Entertainers, Dancers, Musicians, Image Designers and fast-talking Smugglers... perhaps set in the Hutt Casino. Loot will be new songs, dances, etc. ______________________________

You guys know why they came out with this state of the game and gave us a "preview" of what they were planning on doing before the space expansion? They did it because they are losing subscribers in great numbers to the CoH and Lineage II betas. People are cancelling their SWG accounts left and right. This address is all hot air to try to get people to stick around longer. They mess up and change publish and patches all the time when they only tell us about it a month in advance so do you guys really think these things are going to work out the way they put them in writing?? It's all about a 9 months too late if you ask me. A total Jedi revamp?? A total combat revamp?? A total GCW revamp?? A total crafting revamp??(oh yeah that one got shot down already)... What happens when this Revamps take the same track as the other systems?? They going to just Revamp again?? I'm sorry but this far along in a game there should not be total system revamps. They are planning on revamping every single system in this game so they should just slap a new title on it and sell it as "STAR WARS: THE REVAMP".

I would like to add my thanks for the tons info included in that letter. I would say if we could get a letter like that every 6 months, itwould be a great thing for the whole community.

Are the folks that are now jedi going to lose their jedi when these quest-based revamps begin?

My feeling is "why should they?"

For those that already made Jedi, let's look at the profession mastering as a quest to become experience and profficient in a wide arrange of skills.

Nice for all those that get something from this ...

Sad for Rangers, besides some nebulous mentioning of GCW aspects for every profession, nothing in for us.

The GCW aspects ... well as if we'd care (some will I guess, many not). A profession that is supposed to be 'the ultimate creature hunter' (which we aren't, any pure combat player with just novice scout is/can be better at this) quite obviously doesn't attract PvP-centric persons, most of us are here because of PvE.

When do we get what we got promised month ago?

TH, please forward to JustG our thanks for the roadmap he lays out in his "State of the Game" letter. It's very satisfying to be trusted as participants in the design process for SWG.

Naturally, whatthis really means is more questions and objections.

Combat-oriented players aren't exactlyshy about speaking up for what they want, so I'lllet them speak for themselves.But as someone primarily interested in crafting and itsplace withinthe whole game, I have to admit thatI don't see in JustG'splansmuch improvment in theamountofdirect attentionthat non-combat players will be getting. Yes, there is some... but as has been the case for months now, it appears thatmost of the major development (i.e.,"fun")will continue to beaimed squarely at combat-oriented players. That's pretty discouraging.

Bearing in mind that neither theplanned features mentioned nor the schedule for implementing themare set in stone, I have some comments and questions.

1. PROBLEM: Back-loading of non-combat content in development schedule.

The good news is that, starting with the "social adventure" just before publish 10 and progressing through publish 11, it appears that at leasta fewnew features for non-combat players are planned. These look interesting, and I'meager to see them implemented.

The bad news is that these are obviously back-loaded in the schedule. As an experienced developer and development manager I know that these will be the first things to get put off to a later date in favor of attending to "squeaky wheel" issues that come up between now and then. That would be unfortunate -- crafters and other non-combat players have been waiting patiently for developer attention to be paid to their desire to participate in the GCW and to be considered first-class citizens of the Star Wars universe along with the players who just want SWG to be another fighting game.

SOLUTION a: Design and implement more non-combat-specific features. For example, I see in JustG's schedule no mention whatsoever of "player missions," which wouldallow much more interactionamong all SWG players, crafters and combatants alike.Has this idea been scrapped permanently? Or does it remain a possibility? (In which case I'd like to know whether anyone has reviewed my "Player Contracts" design proposal in the Core Systems forum. Do the ideas in theCore Systems forum -- which should be a key place for cooperativedesign activity -- even get any programmer attention?)

Another possibility would be to greatly expand the ability of crafters to use factional schematics to make faction equipment. This would allow crafters to play a much more active role in the GCW, and again would help to integrate their uniqueabilities into SWGto thebenefit of thewhole game.

SOLUTION b:Advance plannednew crafter-specific featureswithin the schedule.The DroidInvasion and allowing Artisans to build vehicles were excellent features to implement; it's great to see them.But Droid Engineers and Artisans aren't the only kinds of crafters, and crafters aren't the only kinds of non-combat-focused players. Some planned features are obviously tied to other development (Jedi revision, GCW revision), but why not advance the timing of the "social adventure" currently slated for just before Publish 10? This would be an excellent new bit of content to help keep non-combat-oriented players interested in playing SWG. (Which leads me to the next issue....)

2. PROBLEM: Developer use of term "content" to mean "dungeon."

In Gary's letter and in several developer messages in various fora, there seems to be a trend to equate the word "content" with "dungeon" or with combat-specific features like battlefields and instanced adventures.For example,JustG uses the phrase, "Large Content Adventure"to describea typeof feature.Later he says, "we'll continue to provide content, including newadventures like the Corellian Corvette."I'musing statements fromJustG's letter asmy examples here, but I'm not just picking on him; thissame kind of assumption -- that "content" only means high-end combat action -- has shown up repeatedly in other developer messages lately.

So the obvious first question is, am I wrong? Is this just a turn of phrase that developers have taken to using latelythat doesn't really reflect their true position that "content" is for every kind of SWGcustomer? If so, then it wouldhelp tokeep non-combat players interested in SWG if developers would occasionally describe planned "content" enhancements for non-combat players.

If I'm not wrong, and this language does in fact reflecta developerattitude that only highly skilled combat-oriented players need "content," it wouldbe appropriate toclearly say so.

SOLUTION: Not complicated: Please design more funnewfeatures for players who are interested in supporting SWG in ways that don't involve random destruction, and publicize those new features as "content."

3. QUESTION: KStarfire (the Star Wars Correspondent in the Core Systems forum) sentthe developersa "top ten" list of questions nearly two months ago, but he still has not received any responses. Rather than being concerned with some very specific detail of interest to only one community, these questions in several cases go right to the heart ofthe directionSWG's development leads thinkthe game should take.Along with JustG's detailed letter, it would be immensely helpful to read thedevelopment team'sanswers to these questions.What is the status ofthis request?

Again, thanks toyou, JustG and all the developersfor being willing to trust the player community to participate in the improvement of this great game.

--Flatfingers

Keirsey: Rational | Myers-Briggs: INTP | Bartle: Explorer (100%)

Thanks for this letter. This is what we've been looking for. Pretty specific and shows about when to expect what. Yes, some of it is disappointing - the combat and gcw being so far off. But, some if it is great to see too - like the Smuggler revamp. Smuggs have been promised things for way too long and hopefully it will make the profession worthwhile now.

Combat balance being pushed back to who knows when?!?! That was the only thing keeping me here.

Well have fun playing this broken, half finished game. I'll be saving my 30$ a month for for something else.

-2 more accounts.