The end is near

hmsilven · 12-21-2009, 01:28 PM

Rejoice!

http://forums.station.sony.com/vg/po...topic_id=51939

AsheMan · 12-21-2009, 02:12 PM

They're shelving AA points. Ouch, that's the one thing I was interested in. Usually the notes are posted here with the link.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Silius

Hello once again everyone. As mentioned in my previous post here is a high level of what we are looking at releasing over the next year. We are trying to pull back on some of the more ambitious features due to resource limitations. All projects in the company have very busy schedules and are all doing the best we can with resources as we continue to support our games.

The Vanguard team has always tried to do more with what we have and it has not always panned out. This unfortunately has resulted in a long gap between releases of content and when finally released that content has had its problems. After reviewing this we have come up with a more focused plan of attack.

One obvious area of focus is bug fixing. We have once again scheduled focused bug fixing time to go along with our standard background bug bashing. We have also taken areas of interest and broken them down into smaller implementation pieces that are much easier to manage from the development and QA side.

Doing this will hopefully accomplish the following goals:

• More frequent content releases

• More time spent on focused testing rather than testing many things at once allowing some bugs slip through

• Focused content that starts and ends a chunk of storytelling

• Reinvigorating the community as new stuff is released more frequently showing that this old game still has some tricks.

Because of this reevaluation of how we utilize our resources there is the dreaded shelving of some of our more ambitious features. In an effort to be as transparent as possible I want to let it be known that the following features/content have been shelved indefinitely for now.

• Alternate Advancement

• Halls of Shattered Souls

• Stiirhaad Mountains

• Pankor Zhi

• Nexus

We are not happy that we have to put these things aside for now but as a team we must focus and as 2010 unfolds see if we can once again discuss how we would like to see the above mentioned items implemented.

With that out of the way let me discuss what we will be working on. Firstly some of you may have noticed that some of the items on the player wish list have been worked on. A few months back we took that list, identified things that would be possible with our current resources and then prioritized it. The logistics of some of them are a bit complicated but know that we are looking at getting many things ranging from housing related additions to UI tweaks implemented.

One big thing we are looking into currently and trying to execute early next year is a server merge. We recognize that the community is spread out and Telon is gigantic so bring many of you closer together makes sense from both sides of the coin. This is not a definite option as we have some technical issues that did not exist when we merged servers last time and as such we need to work out the details there.

As mentioned above bug bashing is still a priority for the year. While we want to continue to release new content we understand that new breeds more issues and these issues just compound the fact that some old issues still exist. This is part of the reason why we are toning down our releases. This gives us more time to tackle bugs while giving some content for everyone and breathing life into some areas of Telon that could really use it.

Lastly we are looking at releasing a chunk of content each month. These content drops will be chapters of a larger story told in various parts. Pantheon was supposed to play out this way, unfortunately Pantheon was not split up enough and we have since learned from the mistakes made there.

The upcoming content is small group - group focused with potential for some raid targets linked to it. The locations for this content will be areas that are under utilized or deserving of some form of revamp. As many of you have said Vanguard has some areas that have little to no content in them and need to be evaluated. The following list is a high level plan for the content next year. Please note there are no solid dates yet as we are still evaluating some things.

1. Server Merge

2. Anniversary

3. Shadow Hilsbury

4. Magi Hold – Chapters 1 - 3

5. Focused Bug Fixing pass part 1

6. Diplomacy Saga next 2 releases

7. Focused Bug Fixing pass part 2

8. Old Targonor – Chapters 1 - 5

The continued class evaluations are still being looked at as we have run into some problems and are trying to look into the best course of action. Once we have figured this out we will finish the rest.

I want to once again thank all of you for the support you have given this team. As Vanguard gets closer to another birthday I am happy that all of you have been here to see the game grow. Here’s to Vanguard, and to all of you may your holiday be merry and your new year bright.

dabble · 12-21-2009, 02:53 PM

Server Merge. I wonder if they are going down to just one server or it's just a merge of Seradon and Xeth.

ikaoma420 · 12-21-2009, 03:03 PM

Bring Out Your Dead! Bring Out Your Dead!

Amsra · 12-21-2009, 03:13 PM

VG is circling ever closer to the Zapper..... Even Joodah sounds like he's giving up.....

AsheMan · 12-21-2009, 03:48 PM

It looks like the current players are throwing quite a fit on the VG boards after this announcement.

kcxiv · 12-21-2009, 03:50 PM

its been over for a while. Dont know what people were thinking honestly. Its been 2 years in a row if promised raid zones for nothing. I learned after the first one. I should have learned sooner, but i was a blind fool for a while.

I dont now why them people on the OVF are shocked. I really dont.

MagicNumbers · 12-21-2009, 04:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kcxiv

its been over for a while. Dont know what people were thinking honestly. Its been 2 years in a row if promised raid zones for nothing. I learned after the first one. I should have learned sooner, but i was a blind fool for a while.

I dont now why them people on the OVF are shocked. I really dont.

This.

It was obvious a year ago that the game was done. Why there is any surprise, I will never understand. Never listen to the ravings of fan boys.

Lonestryder · 12-21-2009, 04:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kcxiv

its been over for a while. Dont know what people were thinking honestly. Its been 2 years in a row if promised raid zones for nothing. I learned after the first one. I should have learned sooner, but i was a blind fool for a while.

I dont now why them people on the OVF are shocked. I really dont.

I think it's more the shock of stark reality than one of incredulity.

kcxiv · 12-21-2009, 04:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lonestryder

I think it's more the shock of stark reality than one of incredulity.

well, whatever it is, the eyes are open now.

perfect · 12-21-2009, 05:14 PM

Do you think that if they kept up the ruse, that people would still buy the lie for another year?

AsheMan · 12-21-2009, 05:18 PM

Do you even have to ask that perfect? Even with Joodah's disappointment there were hints of him looking for a silver lining with quotes like this:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Joodah

I suppose if the team is now looking at the SWG model of "Chapter" releases monthly, there may be some hope for enough interest and consistency. We'll see.

perfect · 12-21-2009, 05:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AsheMan

Do you even have to ask that perfect? Even with Joodah's disappointment there were hints of him looking for a silver lining with quotes like this:

So the question then becomes, "Why come clean now?". I mean, if it was going to fly for another year (or twenty), why tell the truth now?

AsheMan · 12-21-2009, 06:14 PM

They probably had to say something because it sounds like the server merges are going to happen pretty soon. I expect another announcement to shortly follow the merges about a reduction in staff.

kcxiv · 12-21-2009, 06:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by perfect

So the question then becomes, "Why come clean now?". I mean, if it was going to fly for another year (or twenty), why tell the truth now?

i am thinking of his conscience he had a blind followers for a long time. I am sure Sillius is not an evil man and said, this is enough. we have to tell them that itspretty much over. I am sure they are all working on the next chapter of Everquest anyways. They are just doing minor bug fixes and thats it. ITs been this way for a while i am sure.

I am sure he thought, its time for them to know its pretty much over. With that, i amthinking we hear about the next everquest very soon.

AsheMan · 12-21-2009, 06:33 PM

Here is an argument as to why the merges aren't a big deal.

Quote:

Originally Posted by VanguardFollower

Also if only 1 server left you may be sure there wont be any merges in future.

Vanguard2112 · 12-21-2009, 07:06 PM

So there are maybe 20 people online a night on Sartok. I think these merges will be the end of the vangaurd pvp experiment.

They should just merge all four servers into one, and official cut ongoing support to the game, kind of like how EQ for mac has been these past 7 years.

Its a shame it had to end like this, but the game I "wanted" to like was killed years ago.

The ONLY way i'd resubscribe is if (after server merges) they open up a new fresh server free of any transfers or that station exchange crap, with those "hard core" server rule code enabled.

Lonestryder · 12-21-2009, 07:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vanguard2112

So there are maybe 20 people online a night on Sartok. I think these merges will be the end of the vangaurd pvp experiment.

They should just merge all four servers into one, and official cut ongoing support to the game, kind of like how EQ for mac has been these past 7 years.

Its a shame it had to end like this, but the game I "wanted" to like was killed years ago.

The ONLY way i'd resubscribe is if (after server merges) they open up a new fresh server free of any transfers or that station exchange crap, with those "hard core" server rule code enabled.

Oddly enough, I actually kept that post...

Something like this has been coded for some time (by yours truly), but not test verified.

It is a "hard core" server rules set.

Firstly, that would require an additional server shard, which is quite a few machines. Not a trivial expense by any means.

Secondly, it is unclear whether this would be a viable financial model. So any such server would at best be temporary unless population on that server proved the viability of this style of play in number of active players on the server.

We had a survey at one point to judge interest levels, but players went online and spammed other players to go post, and so we had to shut down the survey.

The hard core rules server as coded currently does the following:

* Eliminate world-assisted fast travel, such as riftways and flying mount vendors.

* Eliminate most bind requirements on most gear in the game (they would not even be bind on equip let alone bind on pickup)

* Decreases by half the amount of experience earned from mobiles and quests (for adventuring only)

* Increases all game mobile difficulty of mobiles below raid level mobs by 1/2 dot in power (3 dot becomes effectively a 3.5, 4 dot a 4.5, etc). This starts scaling at level 1 and is fully scaled in at level 10.

* Death causes experience loss, there is no debt. And you can de-level (lose a level)

* The code support an additional loot table that is a world loot table that can rarely drop loot on this server that drops on no other server. It was thought that for the additonal challenge of such as server, there had to be rewards available that were available to no other server.

Loampounder · 12-21-2009, 11:37 PM

Just another collapse, following a pattern SOE has had for the past two years. Even their attempt at a reset is covered in half-truths and lies. It looks like a lot of the fan-base is having the wool pulled from their eyes. I'm a little sorry for them, because I have been through those same feelings, but it comes to this when you live in denial for so long.

Quote:

Originally Posted by perfect

So the question then becomes, "Why come clean now?". I mean, if it was going to fly for another year (or twenty), why tell the truth now?

Come clean? No, SOE is just telling enough lies to buy them more time while loosing as few customers as possible. They realize that making high-end raid content is too difficult for them so they rearrange their plans to sacrifice 1) people they cannot serve and 2) people who have been through all of the content all ready to get equipped. They cannot help loose some portion of the audience, so they just accept that raiders cannot be kept and focus on feeding hobbyists piecemeal in hopes of keeping them.

Remember the mmorpgfocus interview last month?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Silius

I would ultimately say in six months that I would look at the Hilsbury Manor stuff coming out, Pankor Zhi, Pantheon B, hopefully AAs – if not within that six months then hopefully shortly after cause that’s a lot of testing in general and we want to make sure that goes out as bug free as humanly possible.

HoSS was "almost finished". AA was "relatively finished"? Heck, he said that AA was almost ready for QA and to be thrown to the test server! I have seen things like this before - a project team fabricates progress and when it comes times to deliver admits that it cannot do it while throwing up a "new direction" as a smoke screen. The fact is that the VG team has been working on AA for a year and PankB, HoSS, Hilsbury, etc for six months and then realized they could not create more excuses why they are not delivering.

Even their new excuses are half-truths. He lists a server merger as their top priority, but cannot commit to a time because they think they will have technical issues to resolve, despite resolving technical issues before the last merger. But the merger is only "being considered", despite being listed as #1. How many times have they said they will focus on bug and quicker updates? Notice he did not mention they will be dropping PvP? Don't want to tell the whole truth now. And, to complete the smoke screen, a new lie - Oh, new patch each month with chapter content ... which they have never done before and every update brings bugs. No, no dates yet but just wanted to tell everyone that they dumped all of the old promises.

Well, at least they got that holiday content into the game. Now we know why they made Rudolf permanent.

Dragon-RD · 12-21-2009, 11:49 PM

They would be best off merging Halgar with the states servers if I'm honest. If it was just one server with people playing it wouldn't feel like a ghost town.

Nobody in the forum topic seems to see any good out of this either. Though I'd support em on the server merge it just makes an awful lot of sense to me.

But yeah, it is certainly looking grim for Vanguard.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Puntaz

I'm going to play wow. First time ever. At least I have something to look forward to, unlike vanguard.

This chap has the right idea.