Smuggler Archive
Thread: Why I'm quitting the game, and some serious questions for smugglers to ask themselves.
Page 1 of 6
Solo4114
Mon Apr 19, 2004 3:33 pm
#1
With Caylin's announcement that player smuggling will not be implemented at all in this revamp, I have made the decision to cancel my subscription. I'm going to explain why I'm doing this, rather than simply lighting up my flamethrower and hosing down SOE indiscriminately. I hope that other smugglers will seriously consider what I have to say here and possibly decide to make the same choice I've made. I'll explain why that is as well.
To begin with, I am, of course, disappointed in the surface issue -- that we will not be smuggling. As I feared, we will end up running mini-game missions which will likely grow tiresome within a week of playing with the new content. To pacify us, the devs may throw us a few bones in the forms of extra special moves (unarmed moves) and/or new spice content. Regardless, this only serves to highlight the fact that we are not smuggling and may never smuggle. The notion that, if we just hang on until the Space Expansion, we will be smuggling for players is, frankly, a pipe dream at the moment. There is no evidence to me that "the system" will be able to handle contraband any easier in the future than it can now. Maybe instanced dungeons are the silver bullet to solve this issue, but I highly doubt I will return to the SE to find out. Some of you may be wondering why, even if they did bring player smuggling into the game, I would be reluctant to return. It's quite simple, really. I don't like being led on by anyone, especially someone to whom I pay money on a regular basis.
Make no mistake. SOE has led us on. Did they lie to us? No. No one ever said "Smugglers will smuggle for other players in the revamp" while knowing that this was impossible. But in some ways, what they did do was almost as bad. For almost a year now, smugglers have had the same complaint. And through that entire time period, SOE has been made aware of this complaint. Put simply, we wanted one thing: to smuggle for other players. The instant that SOE determined this was technically infeasible or impossible, we should have been informed. This was our banner issue. This was the Alamo for many smugglers. After all, if we're not actually smuggling, what purpose does a Smuggler have in the game world? Again, this has been our key problem since launch.
What I have realized through this experience is that SOE cannot be trusted to be honest and forthcoming with paying customers. Whether this is the fault of the devs themselves, whether it is the fault of the marketing department, or whether the fault lies with the corporate officers in charge of all of this, SOMEONE gave the order NOT to divulge this information until recently. And yet, consider the following.
This issue has been at the forefront for our profession since launch. I expect that, even prior to launch, the developers may have wanted to introduce a truly interactive version of smuggling into the game. Somewhere along the line, they realized that such a system, to be done properly, was just going to put too much technological strain on the network infrastructure to be done well. Maybe they realized this before launch. Maybe they realized it three months into the game, after the servers had been "load tested." Maybe they realized it after the abyssmal failure of the Imperial Crackdown. Regardless, somewhere along the line, prior to today, they knew. SOMEONE knew that this system just wasn't going to happen, certainly before the Space Expansion.
At that point, the first people to know should've been the players. Especially given the fact that this was THE issue around which many of us had rallied. What SOE did, rather than be up front and inform us of the truth, was to simply say nothing and keep us waiting for information. We kept getting vague promises that "you'll be fixed next" or "we've assigned a special developer to you." Nothing ever materialized. What certainly did not materialize was any up-front explanation of why this system could not work, what WAS possible instead, and that players could make their own choices accordingly. Now, maybe you're not bothered by this, but I feel as if I was stolen from. SOE must have known for some time now that player to player smuggling was THE issue that we cared about, and that it was NOT going to be possible. And yet, they refused to divulge that information. They KNEW that it would affect the decision to remain in the game for many players, and yet, they said nothing. Instead, they continued to take our money, knowing all the while that when the information was finally released, a number of us would quit. As I said, maybe that doesn't bother you, but consider the following.
What if it had been the Jedi profession? What if, after all the marketing bonanza subsided, after all the hype, the developers realized that there was just no way to ever actually put Jedi into the game. Oh, sure, you could put laser swords in, and yes, you could also put brown desert robes and give players certain enhanced swordsmanship skills. But what if, as a result of technological limitations, there was no way to implement force powers? What if you couldn't "force push" someone or "force lightning" someone else? And yet, what if, for almost a year, SOE received constant questions of "When can Jedi use the force" and still said nothing? What if, during all that time, they KNEW they'd never be able to put the Force into the game, and still kept taking players' money nonetheless? And what if they KNEW that players would quit the instant that they said "Well, the force is technologically impossible to implement currently, but we're going to make lightsabres shine brighter for your revamp"? How do you think players would react then?
Put simply, SOE has misled us since, basically, day one. Smugglers were advertised in much of the pre-release materials, as well as on the box, etc. Why were smugglers ever put into the game when a meaningful smuggling system was never going to be possible? It's simple. Marketing. Money. OUR money. They knew we'd want to play as smugglers. They knew, at least somewhere along the line, that it wasn't going to happen. And yet, they kept on taking our money, knowing the whole time that that was what we wanted the most, and that a smuggler who doesn't smuggle really has no purpose in the game world. They strung us along for almost a year now, and only NOW does this information surface.
And what makes it all the more disheartening is the fact that no developers could even take the time to come tell us. Did Holo or Q show up to break the bad news? Did GreenMarine? Did the dev with whom Caylin has been corresponding? No. Rather than do the stand-up thing, SOE sent one of our own to tell us the bad news. Maybe in the hopes that it'd soften the blow. Maybe because none of them could spare the time. Maybe because they didn't want to deal with the obvious flames that people would post. Regardless, sending Caylin to tell us the bad news is like a doctor who botches an operation sending another patientto tell you your loved one died on the table.
So, for those of you who are on the fence about staying in this game, or for those of you who are even firmly convinced that you will stay, ask yourself the following questions:
1.) How long do you think SOE KNEW that player to player smuggling wasn't technologically workable?
2.) For how long after THAT do you think they accepted money from players whom they knew would likely quit if told the truth?
3.) For how long did they NOT tell those players the truth?
4.) Can you really trust a company that engages in this kind of behavior?
Those of you who think that the space expansion may prove to be the solution here, ask yourself the following:
1.) Will the technology really change that much between here and there?
2.) Will SOE devote the necessary resources to developing that technology and applying it to smuggling?
3.) In the event that it later proves unworkable again, how long do you think it will take SOE to tell you the news?
4.) If smuggling doesn't show up in the space expansion, for whatever reason, will you THEN feel that you've been misled?
5.) And again, can you really trust a company that, based on your own and others' prior experience, behaves in this manner to tell you the truth and be honest, up-front, and forthcoming with you?
Maybe the space expansion will solve all of our smuggler problems. Maybe it'll be a blast. I, however, do not trust SOE after this. I do not believe that, if technology ends up not permitting them to do certain things that players want, that they will tell the players in a timely fashion. I expect that they will delay the release of such information, that they will continue to squeeze every penny out of you that they can until they realize it doesn't matter and that you'll quit whether you get the information or not, and only THEN will they say "Yep, you were right. It's not happening." I, for one, do not intend to contribute to such business practices any longer. I am cancelling my account, effective tonight, and won't be looking back. Maybe I'll play another MMORPG. Maybe I'll get a netflix account. Maybe I'll put my money in a Roth IRA. Maybe I'll give it to charity. But that charity will DEFINITELY not be SOE. I don't expect I'll ever buy another SOE game again, either, and that's as a direct result of their atrocious customer service throughout this entire experience.
SOE, you guys dropped the ball with this. Someone should've told us sooner. And that someone should NOT have been Caylin. You OWED us better. We DESERVED better. And that you'd take this long to tell us the bad news, that you'd keep taking our money all along, and that you'd then not even send one of your own to break the information to us just proves to me that whoever's running the show couldn't give a good god damn about the paying customers. I for one pay for both the product AND service, REGARDLESS of whatI buy, and you guys have let me down on both.
/cancel.
I encourage all of you to do the same.
Shrendyc
Mon Apr 19, 2004 3:41 pm
#2
Via con Dios, Solo. You will be missed. Sorely.
*sigh*
I knew this would happen.
Smuggler_Caylin
Mon Apr 19, 2004 3:45 pm
#3
/Salute
There is no way to replace you Solo, but I respect your decision and understand it wholeheartedly. Best of luck out there.
One of the Four Horsemen of the Smuggler Apocalypse!
JohnHackworth
Mon Apr 19, 2004 3:45 pm
#4
/Applaud Solo
I've been looking for an excuse to try out something else. I think I just found it. The wife got tired of this game last year, and I kept her account around just in case. I guess that's a moot point now.
Cheers,
-Hack
electricnomad
Mon Apr 19, 2004 3:50 pm
#7
There's not a word in thereI disagree with nor I sentiment that Solo expressed which I don't share.
I feel as if a year has been wasted hoping that the Dev team actually cared to make this a working profession, and at the very least, cared that actual human beings with expectations and hopes were on the other end of the keyboard. They treated us like dupes with full wallets, not asliving customerswith realfeelings. We've been betrayed. That can never be changed, and it certainly won't be forgotten.
I'd write much more, but after a year of dealing with this Dev team, I know it wouldn't make any difference.
Ternque01
Mon Apr 19, 2004 3:56 pm
#8
Take care Solo 
I understand your dissapointment, but I'll stay
I realize that this game is at current the closest i'll get (besides my imagination ) to being in the starwars universe and
) to being in the starwars universe and ripping people off smuggler style Game technology at this point seems to be a real limiting factor, and given the
Game technology at this point seems to be a real limiting factor, and given the mecahanics of our current gaming systems if all this is as good as i can get from a game system that resembles a MMORPG,
then i'll stay playing.... I have lots of great friends here.
All i wish for is the ability to "mess" with the player population with my smuggler finese!
I do believe it is the devs wish to really implement a REAL smuggling system, but currently they haven't figured out to do
this or somehow think that "spaceships" will make this possible. I do know this for a fact... there will be less ships flying
around in space than there are individuals walking around on the planets... It is possible to code a contraband system for the
few interplanetary ships up in the heavens than the thousands of people on the ground. Perhaps that is the devs' hope.
I bet it is, and when Caylin says that he has good hopes for the future of player expansion... I read this into it.
Till then bro, best of fun to you I really enjoyed you being around and sticking to your f'ing guns! Bye man. Or should i say,
I really enjoyed you being around and sticking to your f'ing guns! Bye man. Or should i say,"Till later"
Bohdi-Tzu
Mon Apr 19, 2004 4:03 pm
#9
After re-reading my original post, I can see that it was more mean-spirited than I had thought, so I'm going to remove that.
Solo, you're obviously bummed about this, I don't really get that, but that's no reason for me to pile on. Hope you find a new hobby that doesn't let you down.
Solo, you're obviously bummed about this, I don't really get that, but that's no reason for me to pile on. Hope you find a new hobby that doesn't let you down.
Message Edited by Bohdi-Tzu on 04-19-2004 06:12 PM
Solo4114
Mon Apr 19, 2004 4:03 pm
#10
Thanks guys. I'll probably still lurk on the forums and, for as long as they'll let me, throw in my $0.02 now and then, but really, it doesn't much matter at this point. Though I'll be curious to see how a dev will respond to this and any other fallout. For my money, though, this game just isn't much fun anymore and hasn't been for a long time. The smuggler revamp was the last hope I had of finding real fun in the game, and the way that SOE handled it and us is just unforgivable, as electronicnomad said. I'd need to see a real turnaround in the approach to developer/player interaction before I'd go back to this or any other SOE game after how all this has played out.
Like I said, it may not be the developers themselves who are at fault. It may not even be the marketing department. But someone, somewhere in the SOE corporate structure gave the order not to release this info until recently, and SOMEONE knew this stuff well before we did. I suspect even as far back as before the Crackdown. Taking players' money, even for one month, when you knew that they'd leave if you told them the news you had....that's just slimy business practice. But hey, I don't have to pay for it anymore.
Zandergeef
Mon Apr 19, 2004 4:17 pm
#12
Well nobody has said it yet, at least on this thread, but.. can I have all your stuff. -joke-
I know what you mean.. when I bought this game back in june, sure I didntreally play till january but.. ,and read about it way before it came out I made my decision to be a smuggler. Why.. because I wanted to be like han solo from star wars and in the expanded universe that is star wars. Sure I am not a master smuggler yet but I will always be a smuggler. It was the profession that I always aimed for. I wont quit the game anytime soon but I do hope they change some things that will allow smugglers to smuggle. I hate having to tell noobs that smugglers dont actually smuggle things.. we just make weapons better, make drugs, have special fighiting abilities with a piatol, and sell faction points. We dont actually smuggle things.. At least put in a theme park for smugglers or something.. I mean the bounty hunters have there own terminal and we have... thats enough
Have fun doing whatever you are going to do.
LM
Mon Apr 19, 2004 4:20 pm
#13
So sorry to see you go, Solo. I had a hunch this would happen, but I understand your feelings completely. I do hope you will continue to check in here occasionally.
Ugh. What a day.
Lylak Moon
Page 1 of 6