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It's that time of the year again :O
selphea
Posts: 1,229 Arc User
Around 11 months ago, we got last year's Ask Cryptic answers, and this is what we were told to expect:
So we got just about everything Cryptic said they'd do. Yay!
But the main reason I have arisen from my slumber is to ask: Are we going to get a new round of Ask Cryptic for 2014?
Based on that Q&A, the list of confirmed stuff we're getting this year looks like:
- Aura slots - check
- Telepathy review... Soon? - check
- More Lemurian Invasion-style story arcs - check (Forum and Cybermind)
- Repeat telecasts of old events like Nighthawk - check
- Trailturtle AF - check?
- More PTS playtest events - check
- More vehicles, and vehicle systems (weapons?), possibly including ground vehicles - check but no ground vehicles
- Villain contest winner alerts - Coming Soon(tm)
So we got just about everything Cryptic said they'd do. Yay!
But the main reason I have arisen from my slumber is to ask: Are we going to get a new round of Ask Cryptic for 2014?
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Hahahaha.
Ha.
Haha.
..Ha.
Oh alright, Maybe I'm being too harsh.
@dr490nbr347hi / Playing since January 25, '11
Display normal Internet behavior. Come and make fun (yes, make fun) of my PRIMUS page.
Afaik Cryptic may slip on a few targets but they've never missed an Ask Cryptic, even if they sometimes give very cryptic answers.
Though I think there will probably be another one.
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My super cool CC build and how to use it.
I think we need a happier color scheme now. The forums are rubbing off on player sentiment
[at]riviania Member since Aug 2009
And playing by myself since Aug 2009
Godtier: Lifetime Subscriber
It's more like every time Cryptic has tried to do something nice for the Champs player base, the player base has thrown it back in their face. It's not that being a defeatist it just would be shocking that Cryptic would try again after having their hand bit more times than a gator handler.
Silverspar on PRIMUS
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And playing by myself since Aug 2009
Godtier: Lifetime Subscriber
Customer bashing? We're gonna pretend Cryptic/CO is somehow not subject to the rules covering it's other two games and every other business in the world? It's small playerbase is mean? That's the main issue?
We were always insanely critical? Never gave anything a chance neverever?
Even if that were the case, ultimately that small amount of negative feedback wouldn't have much impact.
Sorry but the internet keeps records, and while this argument pops up frequently it's simply a red herring. Didn't happen*. Cryptic/CO fans are far more positive than our cousins in NW/STO
*happened w/ koth, but thats the exception
Look at CO's Facebook Page. Even maintenance messages get over 10 Likes!
Imho, Ask Cryptic should be reserved for details not for general plans that should be stated in a State of the Game. SotG, even under the uncertainty of delivery possibilities, would be a good thing to keep players and devs on the same page. Once or twice a year, followed by Ask Cryptic 1 or 2 months later, which deeps into the details from SotG and a few other very general questions about the game direction.
I have to agree with some posters that players have been a little too aggressive in their questions. They are also asking questions which answer is basically known(believe that when CO is getting an expansion, level cap raise or new zone and they want us to know they will say it without ask cryptic). Ask Cryptic is a good place to ask about some known bug fix or forgotten revamps from previous years.
No good deed goes unpunished.
Not telling people your good deeds gets punished too.
Not doing good deeds also gets punished.
And we wonder why devs are skittish.
My super cool CC build and how to use it.
Did we?... did we get answers?...
When unfortunately said 'answers' were not the answers that everybody was after - you have to wonder what is the studio's mindset when fifty players ask the same roundabout desperate question of: "What is happening with development" and we are utterly ignored - It's pretty obvious that Cryptic is not interested in legitimate communications and a relationship with the forum community.
Click on the link - see for yourself.
Believe me when I say I wish we were in a better place Champions, but the writing is on the wall until proven otherwise.
Dropping my knitting to buff you whilst hitting - Proudly protecting Millennium City's little ones since 2009.
@Mothers_Love
Face it, even if they laid out everything they were planning to do and gave us all the information they have, we all know what the response would be... "It's not enough! The sky is falling! We demand more information and this time it better be the information we want to hear!".
The people who would be grateful for the info are not the ones they have to worry about, because those people are sensible individuals who will continue to act sensibly given information or not. The ones they have to worry about are the desperate nutcases who constantly threaten to quit if they don't get what they want... and those people will never be satisfied; the way to deal with those people is to not engage, because engaging only makes them scream louder.
My super cool CC build and how to use it.
They definitely could have put some more effort into answering questions.
Click here to check out my costumes/milleniumguardian (MG) in-game/We need more tights, stances and moods
The onus is on Cryptic to encourage me to invest, and I will not do that without assurances and a solid development strategy that gives me confidence to do so.
The current strategy that Tumerboy/Tacoface let slip over on the STO forums of Champions only getting so much investment because looking at the returns thats all it can be afforded is so mind-blowingly stupid and short-sighted I'm literally lost for words. Since when did the onus switch to us for the scope of investment afforded?.
If Cryptic wanted to make Champions more of a success they could do - it would take investment, hard work and time - and that is exactly what they cannot be bothered to do.
Its a great shame the Champion IP isn't something Cryptic have to constantly work for like it is with STO, because if STO fell into disrepair like CO has, then CBS would pull the rug from under Cryptic's feet so hard it would make their head's spin.
Dropping my knitting to buff you whilst hitting - Proudly protecting Millennium City's little ones since 2009.
@Mothers_Love
Historically, this isn't really true. When the UNTIL Reports first became a thing that is exactly what Cryptic did: laid out everything they were planning to do and gave us all of the information they could feasibly give us on those plans, vague though some of it was. The only reason that ended up biting them was when development on a very sizable portion of what was laid out in in those reports slowed to a crawl, or stopped completely, due to Cryptic moving devs to other games.
When the reports were being updated there certainly wasn't any grumblings about lack of information.
It stands to reason that if something similar were to happen again in the same vein of the UNTIL reports, but in a less rigid and more tentative sense, that you'd find there would be more positive responses than negative.
This is part of the issue... you're not "investing". You're buying stuff you want, and not buying stuff you don't want. Stop calling it investing. When they make something you want, buy it and enjoy it. When they make stuff you don't want, don't buy it.
Why would you not buy something that you don't want simply because you fear they don't have a long term plan? After all, if your concern were that you're not investing your money in something that won't give a proper return...then you should probably avoid spending your money on video games entirely
Correct. It was instead constant grumblings about "why isn't it done yet?"... remember how those grumblings then ironically turned into grumblings about how everything was rushed and everything sucks? That's what happens when you give people a long time to build up their expectations, because in the mind of the player "the longer it takes, the better it will be".
Better to not tell people what's coming down the road so that they don't go through the process of feeling like they're waiting forever, and don't have all that time to build up their expectations. Better approach is to tell people about it very shortly before its released, that way you never allow for that excitement to turn into bitterness the way it does during long waits, and because all information is very current it means that you can keep player expectations under control.
The worst part is when people have to wait a long time, and then the thing never comes. Even though people technically haven't lost anything, since the thing in question was never going to happen to begin with, they still will react as though something has been taken away from them and will cry foul.
My super cool CC build and how to use it.
I agree Shieldtower - the future design stuff energised my imagination as it clearly did others, the suggestions forums was full of really creative and active discussions on lore, features, game-mechanics etc.....
Now its a wasteland in-comparison because everyone knows - there is no game-plan, no development strategy, and no two-way communication with Devs concepting and building the game.
Dropping my knitting to buff you whilst hitting - Proudly protecting Millennium City's little ones since 2009.
@Mothers_Love
You say I'm not investing/buying (but I am and in doing so contributing to the revenue generated for this game - not that it actually IS reinvested back looking at content),- but actually I spent 19 Euros the day before yesterday this month Spinnytop. Is that not enough for you this month?, Is that not enough for Cryptic-Studios to be bothered to come up with a development plan, or even drop into the forums and communicate properly with its players?.
/shrugs in disbelief
Dropping my knitting to buff you whilst hitting - Proudly protecting Millennium City's little ones since 2009.
@Mothers_Love
Incorrect. We don't know if there is a plan or not; that sort of goes hand-in-hand with the lack of communication... you can't claim one and not acknowledge the other. There could be a great plan in the works, and they're just not telling us about it for very good reasons.
My super cool CC build and how to use it.
Did you spend that 19 Euros on Zen? Because that's not investment, that's purchasing a product.
Unless you bought stock in Cryptic or directly sent that money to them without getting anything in return(other than interest in the company), it's not investment.
My super cool CC build and how to use it.
I would ask where did the 1000% jump in revenue go that Cryptic were touting back then?, because it sure as hell certainly was not re-invested back into THIS game..... but I think we all know where the revenue has gone with Cryptics fluid policies on shifting both Dev-resources and pot-revenue between different titles.
Dropping my knitting to buff you whilst hitting - Proudly protecting Millennium City's little ones since 2009.
@Mothers_Love
Click here to check out my costumes/milleniumguardian (MG) in-game/We need more tights, stances and moods
Believe me -there is no plan. Tumerboy before he left for STO said they don't plan beyond year's end with regards to content, and that was back when they were actually still actively trying with the adventure-pack and comic-series initiatives. What kind of development plan do you think they have now that all we seem to be getting is 10-minute alert content?. Secretly thinking and trusting in Cryptic to of been working on genuine worthwhile content whilst looking at what is being delivered and milked now - is a foolish hope.
Dropping my knitting to buff you whilst hitting - Proudly protecting Millennium City's little ones since 2009.
@Mothers_Love
Investing in something is not only about buying stocks.
Spending money or time on this game is indeed investing by definition.
Some people invest their money and time into this game to get what we already have available to us.
However, since you can already play this game for free...it is logical that the only reason some people might feel a need to invest money into the game is in hopes that the said investment would help the games developement for the future.
VARIANT
"Nearly all men can withstand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power."
-Abraham Lincoln-
Zen purchases may be done on the website but Zen spent in Champions is money spent on Champions and therefore an investment of sorts. Same goes with the other two games and their cash shops. Subscribing to CO can be seen as investing in the game as many people hope that the money they're spending on the subscription is being used to develop, improve and maintain the game over time. The term "investment" has more than one meaning and doesn't always mean "buying stock in a company". In Mother's case it clearly means, "...purchase of an asset or item with the hope that it will generate income or appreciate in the future...".
I wish it did Shieldtower, I genuinely wish it did, with every fibre of my being I'd wish... I'd hope.... I'd expect this to be the case.
If I saw a development plan, any plan at all that showed Cryptic were planning to invest in Champions-Online specifically - I would back their effort with money. I'm at a stage now that I would pay top dollar for genuine investment in full-content new zones and/ or new power-sets, but this strategy of only investing back what they can scrape from the bottom of CO's barrel when they are not reinvesting to grow the game has me scratching my head in disbelief.
Dropping my knitting to buff you whilst hitting - Proudly protecting Millennium City's little ones since 2009.
@Mothers_Love
Wait? Whaaaa..?
There most certainly is a plan. It may not have what you are expecting, but there is a plan. It takes time to create new code/artwork/story writing/etc. It takes more time to test all of that. Then more time to fix errors. And retest. Then letting it loose on the PTS, and polishing up what they can. And finally, it's done.
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I'm gonna have to agree with this. While I still have some qualms about the shift away from the UNTIL report format I did enjoy how things were done last year. Mostly.
And unless I see some business move that I really REALLY don't agree with I'm gonna continue throwing my money at Cryptic because REASONS.
Buy the stuff you want, don't buy the stuff you don't want, stop worrying so much, and just play the game whenever it's fun. Is that too demanding? :P
Oh, so you agree with me after all .-. well that's a good thing then.
If you think I post too much, stop reading my posts o3o The power is in your hands! Captain Forum!
My super cool CC build and how to use it.
Don't expect any forewarning or planning beyond a month or two at a time, because there aren't much resources being funneled CO North's way.
They are doing the best they can with what they are given. They're doing a good job.
I think people need to lower their expectations. I don't expect any of the reports (including the one the OP is asking for) to ever really be seriously done again, because there isn't much long term that they can tell us about.
Cryptic North basically needs to focus on the day to day of what they can provide with the meager resources they get.
People need to realize that this game isn't STO or NW, PWE's top priorities. If you see it that way you'll never be disappointed.
If there had never been a COH there would never have been a CO. :cool:
See, I can't get behind that. That's Cryptic's escape hatch if STO, NW, and/or Dan Stahl's Top Secret New Project need all hands on deck for a Crunch. Remember that simultaneous STO/NW Crunches got us into this mess in the first place. I wouldn't worry so much if it was still just CO, STO, and NW. We're supposed to have Cryptic North to ourselves, while STO and NW are getting very protective of their teams. Project Stahl threatens to spread everybody too thin again. If we're still muddling along with "pleasant surprises" while the licensed properties keep churning out major content, who do you think will be first against the wall? (Whether Project Stahl is licensed or original makes no difference. NOBODY wants to have an MMO scuttled on the launch pad.)
STO and NW are willing to commit to medium- and long-term projects and announce them in advance. Nothing about "Hey, new stuffs! Check out PTS!" says "commitment" to me, but that's how CO operates.
Cryptic plainly says that they're developing to revenue, and nobody will talk about what's open on their workstation right this minute because it's not on PTS yet. That's not commitment, that's living hand-to-mouth, and it's miserable. Attrition is going to kill CO if something doesn't change soon. I want to see that change coming, but I can't.
They're not there in the beginning, but when your story ends / Gonna last with you longer than your friends
Worry doesn't come into it. If Champions-Online disappoints on content over a set period in the year and despite my support - I go elsewhere. I'm not going to reward inadequate performance by continuing to spend without seeing results.
As far as Champions-Online disappointing with regards to fulfilling the potential of the IP, or even of the goals it originally set itself, its pretty well known that Champions-Online is not in the rudest of health. Just poking your head into Massively.com (Cryptic's MMO site of choice) one reads from a Senior Contributing Editor:
Perfect Ten: MMO features that were hyped but never delivered
So when we have that type of (unfortunately deserved in my opinion) press, when is Cryptic-Studios going to get serious about this title?.
Dropping my knitting to buff you whilst hitting - Proudly protecting Millennium City's little ones since 2009.
@Mothers_Love
According to whom? Afaik that's not at all true.
Wicks and Things: NW-DI4FMZRR4 : The Fenwick merchant family has lost a caravan! Can you help?
Beggar's Hollow: NW-DR6YG4J2L : Someone, or something, has stolen away many of the Fenwicks' children! Can you find out what happened to them?
Into the Fen Wood: NW-DL89DRG7B : Enter the heart of the forest. Can you discover the secret of the Fen Wood?
Now look at the positive side of that. Remember how garbage it was when we were promised all sorts of things in the long term... and then they needed everyone to bail for NWO?
Wether they have their "escape hatch" or not, they're gonna do it anyway. It'll just sting a lot less if a bunch of stuff wasn't dangled in our face first.
Right now. They're getting serious right now. See, the sign that they're getting serious isn't when they start making a lot of overblown claims about what they want to do or what they're planning to do or what they might do.... the sign that they're getting serious is when they actually start releasing stuff consistently, like they're doing now. They're doing the work, who cares if they talk about it so long as they're doing it? That'd be the bright side ~_^
Also, as far as leaving the game when it no longer entertains you... that's exactly what you're supposed to do
My super cool CC build and how to use it.
Nope, it's not. Last anyone heard, they have worked on all the Cryptic games.
It may be what I'm supposed to do - It's not actually what I want to do.
I want a reason to stay subscribed to Champions-Online and spending on Champions-Online. So much Champions lore destinations still not in it's online incarnation five years on, Cryptic when are you (if ever) going to get around to it and do the IP you bought justice?.
Dropping my knitting to buff you whilst hitting - Proudly protecting Millennium City's little ones since 2009.
@Mothers_Love
Well, Cryptic North is as exclusive as anybody is at Cryptic Studios. But they were still brought in for the purpose of reinforcing CO development, secretly as it was.
They've changed tack from "Sorry, we can't fulfill our commitment to CO because we planned our other projects poorly, and we're still committed to them" to "We won't make any commitment to CO in the first place, because we might plan our other projects poorly, but we'll remain committed to them." Oh, yeah, that's much better.
They're not there in the beginning, but when your story ends / Gonna last with you longer than your friends
It is better, because that's only the side dish to the main course.... which is all the attention the game has been getting
Well you won't find anyone to disagree with you on the notion of wanting more stuff, that's for sure.
But tell me this, if they said "We're gonna add in all the stuff from the IP and we're going to do it all over the course of the next six months"... does that actually make you happy that they communicated that to you? Cause yeah... have fun waiting six months to see if it happens or not
My super cool CC build and how to use it.
Did I say that? Pretty sure I didn't say that. Please stop putting words in people's mouths.
You typed these words all on your own
These ones right here
|
v
Which was you agreeing with:
Which is something I agree with.
Yes yes I know, you desperately hate the idea that you and I might actually agree on something. Deal with it, or change your opinion :P
My super cool CC build and how to use it.
I may have enjoyed how things went down last year but I'd prefer to have much more transparency when it comes to what's coming down the pipe. Hence why I had qualms with the shift away from the reports.
So again, stop putting words into my mouth.
Yes, absolutely, and especially if (as forum-history has shown) imaginative threads flood into the suggestions forums that help them with ideas on content in-development.
I'll give an example here; when hideouts were being developed and Tumerboy had a creative-block with regards to how monitors were going to be given a thematic-skin to fit with the Primal Cave concept - he returned to the hideouts development thread on the suggestions forum and was presented with a fantastic creative solution, I believe (if memory serves) that someone suggested he create a lode of crystals a'la fortress of solitude style as images could be on facets of crystal.
Communication with the community = creative block solved. We're involved which helps us feel a part of the process, The Devs get their problem solved and there is no more creative stumbling block.
This happened a couple of times with various problems over hideouts and communication and involvement along with a multitude of great contributions from the community meant that hideouts were very well received. Sure they were not the Super-group bases some were expecting and they were only ever a stop-gap measure (albeit one that grew and grew and eventually became a system that was more customisable and capable than what was initially conceived) - so no, absolutely and categorically do not subscribe to the school of thought that says the community should have no creative input whatsoever, not know and just put up with whatever dribbles out of an under-invested-in team and project.
Dropping my knitting to buff you whilst hitting - Proudly protecting Millennium City's little ones since 2009.
@Mothers_Love
Again, I don't have to put words in your mouth, they were there when I showed up
My super cool CC build and how to use it.
During those first few Ask Cryptics and state of the games, they often made promises that would never see the light of day, so over time players began calling them on it. This lead to questions receiving maybes, we'd like to, or we can't. Shortly after this Bill Roper began crying to other gaming sites that the fanbase here was mean and blamed the fanbase at the time for some of CO's shortcomings. This was then followed by the VB incident, and it was just downhill from there. Attributing, at least partially, to CO going f2p and Cryptic later being sold to PW.
As to the answers, when they cherry pick the easiest, and sometimes the most absurd, questions only to answer them with maybe, we'd like to, we can't because of tech issues, or no. Continuously using 'tech issues' as an excuse for why something can't be done gets tiring. When people have expectations for good quality but are met with meritocracy (at best) they tend to become vocal and criticize the work. This is called customer feedback, and if a company can't handle negative customer feedback then they need to reconsider what they are doing.
Other companies have no problem giving a road map for how they want their products to progress over time, heck even with in Cryptic STO and NW are receiving frequent state of the games and blogs. Heck STO and NW even have weekly twitch feeds where they answer players questions. The questions aren't always detailed and are often filled with I can't discuss that right now. But at least they give the players of those two games something while spending time in-game with them, which shows players that they do in fact play.
Don't get me wrong TT does some amazing work, while he is still around his presence on the forums his promotion has noticeably reduced what he can do here. Dwight is still new, but he seems to mainly focus on blogs, maintenance, the occasional pr message. There is a post about the promised compensation that they still haven't given us any kind of hint.