To be blunt: I think you guys assumed to much. Or worse, thought that is what needed to be fixed or worked on. Funny, I don't remember seeing ANY posts about us complaing about the old UI, pre-CU .... I do remember however seeing "PLEASE FIX THIS: etc..."... You guys seemed to work on what we liked and neglected what needed to be addressed most of the time.
Are you suggesting that the NGE wasn't designed for you?
But hey.... what do I know... I mean, the battle fields would have never have gone over if working right........ right??? lololol...
To be blunt: I think you guys assumed to much. Or worse, thought that is what needed to be fixed or worked on. Funny, I don't remember seeing ANY posts about us complaing about the old UI, pre-CU .... I do remember however seeing "PLEASE FIX THIS: etc..."... You guys seemed to work on what we liked and neglected what needed to be addressed most of the time.
Are you suggesting that the NGE wasn't designed for you?
But hey.... what do I know... I mean, the battle fields would have never have gone over if working right........ right??? lololol...
Argh, those freaking things.
Hmm, lets see Jeff. Are we suggesting that the NGE wasn't designed for us? Let's see...
there was a mass exodus from the game, no???????????????????????????????
Darth, they did do a personal attack against us when they decided to screw us for some imagined playerbase that would replace us. Even Smed admited they knew they would lose some players, but they went ahead anyways as they hoped to replace them with new ones. Turn the other cheek is a fine concept to live your life by, but when someone like SOE hits 150,000 people, something needs to be done so that nobody ever attempts this again. And don't tell me they learned their lesson as they still post they think the NGE was a good idea, just implemented badly.
Well, for example, we could have not converted to classes. We could have left combat alone. We could have rolled-up the billions of immigrant harvesters and implemented a sane system to reclaim some adventure wilderness. We could have strategically deployed "good loot" items so crafters still made most of the best things, yet provided quests with real rewards. Added the new space station tutorial thing, quests, rolling out on the heels of a badass expansion. Some other method of guiding new players in character advancement. Mid-level content, high-level content, alternate advancement opportunities. Lots of things to accomplish most of the NGE goals without hammering current players. Broadening what you liked; rather than abandoning it.
The NGE was a good idea, implemented badly. And delivered as a surprise.
Darth, they did do a personal attack against us when they decided to screw us for some imagined playerbase that would replace us. Even Smed admited they knew they would lose some players, but they went ahead anyways as they hoped to replace them with new ones. Turn the other cheek is a fine concept to live your life by, but when someone like SOE hits 150,000 people, something needs to be done so that nobody ever attempts this again. And don't tell me they learned their lesson as they still post they think the NGE was a good idea, just implemented badly.
Well, for example, we could have not converted to classes. We could have left combat alone. We could have rolled-up the billions of immigrant harvesters and implemented a sane system to reclaim some adventure wilderness. We could have strategically deployed "good loot" items so crafters still made most of the best things, yet provided quests with real rewards. Added the new space station tutorial thing, quests, rolling out on the heels of a badass expansion. Some other method of guiding new players in character advancement. Mid-level content, high-level content, alternate advancement opportunities. Lots of things to accomplish most of the NGE goals without hammering current players. Broadening what you liked; rather than abandoning it.
The NGE was a good idea, implemented badly. And delivered as a surprise.
Not one of those good kinds of surprises, either.
It wasn't good idea, it was far from being good.
People, like you caused, it. Sorry, but you can't give excuses. As an MMO developer, you do know these are more than game for your customers. You were part of "How to make customers more mad" team. You did well.
Same again, people like you "still" can say NGE was good idea bla bla. We, as customers, paid your money. It wasn't for you to make what you like to play, it was for ourselves.
You, any devs, ALL SOE know NGE was a big mistake. We can't expect them to come here and say "Yes, we sucked". Instead of saying that, they only say "Delivering was wrong". Can you tell me that; Would SWG be still online if you told people that NGE was coming in 3 months? I don't think so...
I don't know who decided, who said the last word about NGE. But, I'm sure of that, if SOE could, they would return PreCU or CU already.
But, they can't. Maybe lack of developers, maybe licence thing, maybe another thing....
Darth, they did do a personal attack against us when they decided to screw us for some imagined playerbase that would replace us. Even Smed admited they knew they would lose some players, but they went ahead anyways as they hoped to replace them with new ones. Turn the other cheek is a fine concept to live your life by, but when someone like SOE hits 150,000 people, something needs to be done so that nobody ever attempts this again. And don't tell me they learned their lesson as they still post they think the NGE was a good idea, just implemented badly.
Well, for example, we could have not converted to classes. We could have left combat alone. We could have rolled-up the billions of immigrant harvesters and implemented a sane system to reclaim some adventure wilderness. We could have strategically deployed "good loot" items so crafters still made most of the best things, yet provided quests with real rewards. Added the new space station tutorial thing, quests, rolling out on the heels of a badass expansion. Some other method of guiding new players in character advancement. Mid-level content, high-level content, alternate advancement opportunities. Lots of things to accomplish most of the NGE goals without hammering current players. Broadening what you liked; rather than abandoning it.
The NGE was a good idea, implemented badly. And delivered as a surprise.
Not one of those good kinds of surprises, either.
The NGE is what is on the servers now, not what it could have been in hindsight. It was never a good idea because from the beginning it didn't enchance the game, it remade it in someone elses vision. Even simple things like camps and the UI were destroyed to become cheap copies of other games.
I think I understand your comment on a logical level, i.e. the NGE = the concept to make changes/additions to make the game more fun, but when I see those letters, it just equals the junk that was released on Nov. 15.
People, like you caused, it. Sorry, but you can't give excuses. As an MMO developer, you do know these are more than game for your customers. You were part of "How to make customers more mad" team. You did well.
Same again, people like you "still" can say NGE was good idea bla bla. We, as customers, paid your money. It wasn't for you to make what you like to play, it was for ourselves.
I had a veteran character, believe me. A revamped newbie tutorial, quests for newbies, and a subset of the game to fit on a single magazine's CD, is not "for me".
You, any devs, ALL SOE know NGE was a big mistake. We can't expect them to come here and say "Yes, we sucked". Instead of saying that, they only say "Delivering was wrong". Can you tell me that; Would SWG be still online if you told people that NGE was coming in 3 months? I don't think so...
I think you misunderstand. A push to acquire and retain new players was needed. Call it "The plan".
It's a good thing to do, this plan.
Plan A is to give all existing players herpes.
Plan B does not.
If the implementation is A, then even though the plan is a good thing to do, the implementation is bad. Should have been plan B.
You, any devs, ALL SOE know NGE was a big mistake. We can't expect them to come here and say "Yes, we sucked". Instead of saying that, they only say "Delivering was wrong". Can you tell me that; Would SWG be still online if you told people that NGE was coming in 3 months? I don't think so...
I think you misunderstand. A push to acquire and retain new players was needed. Call it "The plan".
It's a good thing to do, this plan.
Plan A is to give all existing players herpes.
Plan B does not.
If the implementation is A, then even though the plan is a good thing to do, the implementation is bad. Should have been plan B.
And NGE could retain new players?
You surely did know that people would leave. SOE either tried to change target audience or used SWG as test table; "Let's see if people like FPS based sanbox type MMO"
That comment about making combat what you liked rather than what the paying customers liked is really the thing I dislike about you most Jeff. It just reeks of hubris and a total lack of concern for the players. Just my 2 cents.
I know. You're right. The first post that I made here was to apologize for that post. Not to apologize for liking clicky combat more than CU, but for posting about any part of the NGE so gleefully, without thinking how that was just salting your wounds. People who didn't even care about the combat changes, creature handlers rather more upset their game was gone for example, were pissed to read that post, rightfully so. That was terribly insensitive.
As for the design itself: Lord Pall was the lead designer then, doing what game designers are supposed to do: design a game system within given parameters. That is, we're tasked with things, like "redesign combat". And given some direction, like "make it so these people will like it". Or sometimes, "those people."
I don't care that you posted that Jeff, I care that you had that opinion as a game developer. Anyone in business knows you got to give the customer what they want. Ford doesn't offer only 4 shades of blue as the color for the mustang because it is Bill Ford's favorite color. The whole concept of the NGE should have been a second game, and you as a developer should know that on a base level. I don't play counter strike because I don't like FPS, yet if the developers of that game released a patch that made it into The Sims, they should expect to lose all their current customers. The fact that they don't is what I mean by "you should have known better".
Darth, they did do a personal attack against us when they decided to screw us for some imagined playerbase that would replace us. Even Smed admited they knew they would lose some players, but they went ahead anyways as they hoped to replace them with new ones. Turn the other cheek is a fine concept to live your life by, but when someone like SOE hits 150,000 people, something needs to be done so that nobody ever attempts this again. And don't tell me they learned their lesson as they still post they think the NGE was a good idea, just implemented badly.
Well, for example, we could have not converted to classes. We could have left combat alone. We could have rolled-up the billions of immigrant harvesters and implemented a sane system to reclaim some adventure wilderness. We could have strategically deployed "good loot" items so crafters still made most of the best things, yet provided quests with real rewards. Added the new space station tutorial thing, quests, rolling out on the heels of a badass expansion. Some other method of guiding new players in character advancement. Mid-level content, high-level content, alternate advancement opportunities. Lots of things to accomplish most of the NGE goals without hammering current players. Broadening what you liked; rather than abandoning it.
The NGE was a good idea, implemented badly. And delivered as a surprise.
Not one of those good kinds of surprises, either.
Had you done those things mentioned, along with addressing the bugs that were promised to be addressed during the Combat Revamp (which never occured), added in a rudimentary physics system etc SWG could still be a viable platform today. Instead, I believe it was Smedley that said it, you all decided that the people that had been there from the start and made SWG a successful mmo (for its time) were no longer who you all wanted in the game.
Saying the NGE was a good idea is an opinion and you are entitled to it, along with the very small number of players that spam the suck boards with how bad the original game was. However it does not make it a true statement. If it had been a good idea then the implementation would not have made one bit of difference. Had it been a good idea then the devs and smedley would not show up on different forums lying to the customer base about things like how ToOW was designed for the NGE. Had it been a good idea thousands and thousands of players would not have cancelled their accounts immediately and SOE would not have offered refunds for the ToOW expansion. Had it been a good idea all of this would be moot because rather than waiting for the emu a good number of us would have remained playing the game we enjoyed and wanted.
The NGE was akin to Playboy changing the format of thier magazine to gay porn. Or McDonalds becoming a tofu house.
I know. You're right. The first post that I made here was to apologize for that post. Not to apologize for liking clicky combat more than CU, but for posting about any part of the NGE so gleefully, without thinking how that was just salting your wounds. People who didn't even care about the combat changes, creature handlers rather more upset their game was gone for example, were pissed to read that post, rightfully so. That was terribly insensitive.
As for the design itself: Lord Pall was the lead designer then, doing what game designers are supposed to do: design a game system within given parameters. That is, we're tasked with things, like "redesign combat". And given some direction, like "make it so these people will like it". Or sometimes, "those people."
I don't care that you posted that Jeff, I care that you had that opinion as a game developer. Anyone in business knows you got to give the customer what they want. Ford doesn't offer only 4 shades of blue as the color for the mustang because it is Bill Ford's favorite color.
As I said somewhere, another thread I think, the NGE was a subset of the game to fit on a single CD, distributed in a magazine.
That's not for me, I had the whole game.
It was a new space station tutorial and free-trial area, with quests and loot and lots of "how to play" direction.
Again not for me, I already had a character and I knew how to play.
It was an easier to learn character progression system, the classes rather than skills.
I didn't need that. My character was just fine.
The combat system was more "fast action" and intuitive (you click on what you want to shoot!"
Even though I do like it more, that's just a coincidence.
I get you're upset because Baskin Robins 31 flavors went down to just chocolate, but don't hate me for liking chocolate. These changes didn't happen because I just up and decided one day to change everything. Changes weren't made because a designer suddenly wants to play a new game.
This is really as much as I can say: You're tasked with things, like "redesign combat". You don't just come in one morning, look at all the forum-talk about every system other than combat, and decide, "Screw em! I'm redesigning combat.".
So if you're working on combat it is because you were assigned that task.
And youre given parameters within which you have to work. Some are technical limitations, others are seeds of a design needing... design.
Given the parameter, "Make it the way A would like it, even if that means B will hate it.", then you do that.
And you also try to make it as fun as you can. That means you will probably find it fun - it's hard to make a thing you hate, "fun" for other people.
Just don't tell B you find it fun. He'll say you changed it just because you like it.
The whole concept of the NGE should have been a second game, and you as a developer should know that on a base level. I don't play counter strike because I don't like FPS, yet if the developers of that game released a patch that made it into The Sims, they should expect to lose all their current customers. The fact that they don't is what I mean by "you should have known better".
How do you know we didn't?
Er... now I'm doing it. Many developers, many different opinions. How do you know even a majority of them didn't know better?
Had you done those things mentioned, along with addressing the bugs that were promised to be addressed during the Combat Revamp (which never occured), added in a rudimentary physics system etc SWG could still be a viable platform today.
To clarify: all those things mentioned could have been the implementation of "the NGE".
Instead, I believe it was Smedley that said it, you all decided that the people that had been there from the start and made SWG a successful mmo (for its time) were no longer who you all wanted in the game.
I know. You're right. The first post that I made here was to apologize for that post. Not to apologize for liking clicky combat more than CU, but for posting about any part of the NGE so gleefully, without thinking how that was just salting your wounds. People who didn't even care about the combat changes, creature handlers rather more upset their game was gone for example, were pissed to read that post, rightfully so. That was terribly insensitive.
As for the design itself: Lord Pall was the lead designer then, doing what game designers are supposed to do: design a game system within given parameters. That is, we're tasked with things, like "redesign combat". And given some direction, like "make it so these people will like it". Or sometimes, "those people."
I don't care that you posted that Jeff, I care that you had that opinion as a game developer. Anyone in business knows you got to give the customer what they want. Ford doesn't offer only 4 shades of blue as the color for the mustang because it is Bill Ford's favorite color.
As I said somewhere, another thread I think, the NGE was a subset of the game to fit on a single CD, distributed in a magazine.
That's not for me, I had the whole game.
It was a new space station tutorial and free-trial area, with quests and loot and lots of "how to play" direction.
Again not for me, I already had a character and I knew how to play.
It was an easier to learn character progression system, the classes rather than skills.
I didn't need that. My character was just fine.
The combat system was more "fast action" and intuitive (you click on what you want to shoot!"
Even though I do like it more, that's just a coincidence.
I get you're upset because Baskin Robins 31 flavors went down to just chocolate, but don't hate me for liking chocolate. These changes didn't happen because I just up and decided one day to change everything. Changes weren't made because a designer suddenly wants to play a new game.
This is really as much as I can say: You're tasked with things, like "redesign combat". You don't just come in one morning, look at all the forum-talk about every system other than combat, and decide, "Screw em! I'm redesigning combat.".
So if you're working on combat it is because you were assigned that task.
And youre given parameters within which you have to work. Some are technical limitations, others are seeds of a design needing... design.
Given the parameter, "Make it the way A would like it, even if that means B will hate it.", then you do that.
And you also try to make it as fun as you can. That means you will probably find it fun - it's hard to make a thing you hate, "fun" for other people.
Just don't tell B you find it fun. He'll say you changed it just because you like it.
The whole concept of the NGE should have been a second game, and you as a developer should know that on a base level. I don't play counter strike because I don't like FPS, yet if the developers of that game released a patch that made it into The Sims, they should expect to lose all their current customers. The fact that they don't is what I mean by "you should have known better".
How do you know we didn't?
Er... now I'm doing it. Many developers, many different opinions. How do you know even a majority of them didn't know better?
Sounds like a case of the ol Pointy Haired Boss was running wild in SOE Austin. To be honest with you, down deep I really think it was a case of Jim Ward trying to make a big splash in his new position at LA along with some reinforcement by Smedley that was the spark for the whole CU/NGE. I'm just used to being in a position at my job that if something comes along that I know is stupid or wrong, I have a boss who listens to me as long as I'm not blowing smoke out of my rear.
I think you misunderstand. A push to acquire and retain new players was needed. Call it "The plan".
It's a good thing to do, this plan.
Plan A is to give all existing players herpes.
Plan B does not.
If the implementation is A, then even though the plan is a good thing to do, the implementation is bad. Should have been plan B.
And NGE could retain new players?
Not the herpes version.
Anyone who equates the NGE to a STD is alright in my book (The NGE in reality, not the hypothetical NGE)
So Jeff maybe we are getting to a point where the NDA blocks the answer, but who or what creates the parameters? You know, the parameters that decide the direction of development.
--By the way, thank you for the communication.
--When you resubscribe to SWG, an 18 yearold Stripper finds Jesus, gives up stripping, and moves with a rolex reverend to Hawaii. --In MMORPG's l007 is the opiate of the masses. --The absence of evidence is not the evidence of absence! --CCP could cut off an Eve player's fun bits, and that player would say that it was good CCP did that.
I think you misunderstand. A push to acquire and retain new players was needed. Call it "The plan".
It's a good thing to do, this plan.
Plan A is to give all existing players herpes.
Plan B does not.
If the implementation is A, then even though the plan is a good thing to do, the implementation is bad. Should have been plan B.
And NGE could retain new players?
Not the herpes version.
Anyone who equates the NGE to a STD is alright in my book (The NGE in reality, not the hypothetical NGE)
So Jeff maybe we are getting to a point where the NDA blocks the answer, but who or what creates the parameters? You know, the parameters that decide the direction of development.
--By the way, thank you for the communication.
Rofl... thousands of NGErs suddenly cried out in terror then it was silent....lol
Obriak has got to hate seeing this... almost comical.
I find it hard to believe that any version of the NGE would have been successful. That version on top of what we already had did not work.
At all. In fact it just did not fit at all....
You said it.... 31 flavors down to 1 perse... I keep using logic on that and see no way for that to be a good thing.
I am glad your more candid about this mess now but still...... I swear some of you guys should have just been beat with a freaking saber for thinking up some of this.
I just love getting stuck in aggro or the clunk sound to mount up on a bike....... yeah that all worked out well.
Herpes is a good choice of words for the NGE though.... I actually like it alot.
______________________________ I usually picture the Career builder commercial with the room full of monkeys and upside down sales chart when thinking about the SOE/SWG decision making process..... SOE's John Blakely and Todd Fiala issued a warning: "Don't make our mistakes." Ref NGE Winner of the worst MMOS goes to.... the NGE and SWG..!!! http://www.mmorpg.com/showFeature.cfm?loadFeature=1034&bhcp=1
To be blunt: I think you guys assumed to much. Or worse, thought that is what needed to be fixed or worked on. Funny, I don't remember seeing ANY posts about us complaing about the old UI, pre-CU .... I do remember however seeing "PLEASE FIX THIS: etc..."... You guys seemed to work on what we liked and neglected what needed to be addressed most of the time.
Are you suggesting that the NGE wasn't designed for you?
But hey.... what do I know... I mean, the battle fields would have never have gone over if working right........ right??? lololol...
Argh, those freaking things.
Yes those things.... another pie in the sky promise more or less... but lets not forget that we just wanted it to work or be told it can't.
Not -- "Working on it" or "it's coming soon"... I think when you guys let us get set up for the dissapointment that alot of issues stemmed from that.
I just hate the fact that at the Fan Fest and Summits -- being told things directly from the Dev team that things would be coming or are in the works... ONLY to see it get thrown out or just be made into utter bullshit.
I know that shit happens but still, Im the type that rather not hear anything then a series of let downs.
______________________________ I usually picture the Career builder commercial with the room full of monkeys and upside down sales chart when thinking about the SOE/SWG decision making process..... SOE's John Blakely and Todd Fiala issued a warning: "Don't make our mistakes." Ref NGE Winner of the worst MMOS goes to.... the NGE and SWG..!!! http://www.mmorpg.com/showFeature.cfm?loadFeature=1034&bhcp=1
The NGE was a good idea, implemented badly. And delivered as a surprise.
Not one of those good kinds of surprises, either.
Sweet God, I agree with Jeff Freeman about something?
I'll admit, after the initial shock of hearing about the NGE, I thought it could be really cool because, lo and behold, I don't like how the combat had progresed after the CU. It was better than pre-cu for me (and I will get flamed for saying such), but the healing had got out of control. I didn't like losing interdependance. Still, making a MMO where it already had everything SWG had and making it so you could have Battlefront style combat? That would have been awesome.
What we got instead was [i]the same game[/i], only at 4 times the speed and you had to click to fire. Other than that, it really was the same combat style. You didn't have to aim, you just had to keep your mouse cursor over the target and you couldn't fire unless it wasn't there. Saying that is "aiming" is akin to saying you have to aim in Diablo.
I'm glad to see that they're finally admitting it was a mistake, and I do understand what was going on even if others refused to admit it. The CU was a success in some ways. They relaunched for Episode III and got an amazing amount of people... who all left after two months because there wasn't anything to do. The old vets who were still around all wanted to hunt and do boll groups and new players found this to be annoying and stupid, and they left. The vets, bored of playing the same game and doing the jedi grind began to leave as well. [b]Everyone was leaving.[/b] So, they did plan B and plan B failed.
I still find some interest in SWG, but i'm confused on why everyone gives it so much time and is still so mad. SWG died. Remember the good times and move on.
Originally posted by iskareot Yes those things.... another pie in the sky promise more or less... but lets not forget that we just wanted it to work or be told it can't. Not -- "Working on it" or "it's coming soon"... I think when you guys let us get set up for the dissapointment that alot of issues stemmed from that. I just hate the fact that at the Fan Fest and Summits -- being told things directly from the Dev team that things would be coming or are in the works... ONLY to see it get thrown out or just be made into utter bullshit. I know that shit happens but still, Im the type that rather not hear anything then a series of let downs.
Don't forget the video they showed at fanfest of the "upcoming" features like landing on a Star Destroyer, getting a mission from Darth Vader, taking over a corvette and then flying it. That was a real hoot
Gah thank you for bringing up a carrot then as well.
Here is one that alot of us liked...
"We are working on the FRS and it's almost ready.." also quoted on the boards...
Ok enough... this just makes it worse.. BUT still, this is just part of the reason for the mess.
None the less the concept of the NGE was still bad Jeff.... you can't simplify somthing so much I don't think without knowing it was not going to work or at least "MIGHT" not work.
I guess in the end --- there is ONE person that says "Make it so" ---- that person is the one that should feel the worst.
If it's Mr. Smedley, then he should say so on the SOE boards.... I know what he has said to me in emails... but I mean say it for the NGErs so they know and understand we were not wrong... we really wanted this to be somthing good not bad.
Do not think for one second that any of us did not want SWG to be the king.... we did, just not the NGE version.. we saw it for what it was.
I just wished we had much much more dialog about it before it happend.... I think MAYBE that would have helped make that decsion instead of the knee jerk one they made.
They based that whole launch on getting the people from the 3rd movie and expansion.... we all know it... it just was a poor choice of marketing and business.
(As we all know now in hindsight)...
Still --- I love this.. NGE = STD... man lol...
______________________________ I usually picture the Career builder commercial with the room full of monkeys and upside down sales chart when thinking about the SOE/SWG decision making process..... SOE's John Blakely and Todd Fiala issued a warning: "Don't make our mistakes." Ref NGE Winner of the worst MMOS goes to.... the NGE and SWG..!!! http://www.mmorpg.com/showFeature.cfm?loadFeature=1034&bhcp=1
I know. You're right. The first post that I made here was to apologize for that post. Not to apologize for liking clicky combat more than CU, but for posting about any part of the NGE so gleefully, without thinking how that was just salting your wounds. People who didn't even care about the combat changes, creature handlers rather more upset their game was gone for example, were pissed to read that post, rightfully so. That was terribly insensitive.
As for the design itself: Lord Pall was the lead designer then, doing what game designers are supposed to do: design a game system within given parameters. That is, we're tasked with things, like "redesign combat". And given some direction, like "make it so these people will like it". Or sometimes, "those people."
I don't care that you posted that Jeff, I care that you had that opinion as a game developer. Anyone in business knows you got to give the customer what they want. Ford doesn't offer only 4 shades of blue as the color for the mustang because it is Bill Ford's favorite color.
As I said somewhere, another thread I think, the NGE was a subset of the game to fit on a single CD, distributed in a magazine.
That's not for me, I had the whole game.
It was a new space station tutorial and free-trial area, with quests and loot and lots of "how to play" direction.
Again not for me, I already had a character and I knew how to play.
It was an easier to learn character progression system, the classes rather than skills.
I didn't need that. My character was just fine.
The combat system was more "fast action" and intuitive (you click on what you want to shoot!"
Even though I do like it more, that's just a coincidence.
I get you're upset because Baskin Robins 31 flavors went down to just chocolate, but don't hate me for liking chocolate. These changes didn't happen because I just up and decided one day to change everything. Changes weren't made because a designer suddenly wants to play a new game.
This is really as much as I can say: You're tasked with things, like "redesign combat". You don't just come in one morning, look at all the forum-talk about every system other than combat, and decide, "Screw em! I'm redesigning combat.".
So if you're working on combat it is because you were assigned that task.
And youre given parameters within which you have to work. Some are technical limitations, others are seeds of a design needing... design.
Given the parameter, "Make it the way A would like it, even if that means B will hate it.", then you do that.
And you also try to make it as fun as you can. That means you will probably find it fun - it's hard to make a thing you hate, "fun" for other people.
Just don't tell B you find it fun. He'll say you changed it just because you like it.
The whole concept of the NGE should have been a second game, and you as a developer should know that on a base level. I don't play counter strike because I don't like FPS, yet if the developers of that game released a patch that made it into The Sims, they should expect to lose all their current customers. The fact that they don't is what I mean by "you should have known better".
How do you know we didn't?
Er... now I'm doing it. Many developers, many different opinions. How do you know even a majority of them didn't know better?
So, Jeff.... who was it that pulled Torres and Smedley into the office and said "wow this is cool, wow this is fun". Who was it that said "I was the one that had to sit there and convince everyone else that we could do it, we should do it, this is too cool we have to do it."
You say here "These changes didn't happen because I just up and decided one day to change everything. Changes weren't made because a designer suddenly wants to play a new game." However, last year someone was saying that that is exactly what happened. Along with the other lies that were being thrown around by people at SOE and LA we were led to believe that there was a small group of you on your own that started running with this bs idea and then went around fighting tooth and nail to make it happen. And then through your abilities at persuasion you got them to buy into the bs that the NGE was a fun replacement for what had been there and been going for years beforehand, and before wow, was considered, albeit buggy and incomplete, one of the better mmo's on the market.
And as to your previous response to my post, believe it or not, I am 90% sure it was smedley who said that he did not care what his current subscriber base thought of the NGE, that they were going after a new group of people. If the old people wanted to stick around that was fine, but it was designed in essence to get new people in regardless of what happened with the old people. Only a vocal minority would leave. hahaha vocal minority my tuckus.
You say " I get you're upset because Baskin Robins 31 flavors went down to just chocolate, but don't hate me for liking chocolate." If you were offering "chocolate" that would be one thing, but its no longer ice cream at all, its.... frozen yogurt served in the same cups with the same logos and the same pink plastic spoons, coming from the same shop with the same cute little high school girl spooning it out, but it isnt ice cream icecream anymore. What's that old saying... dont piss on my head and tell me it's raining?
So, Jeff.... who was it that pulled Torres and Smedley into the office and said "wow this is cool, wow this is fun". Who was it that said "I was the one that had to sit there and convince everyone else that we could do it, we should do it, this is too cool we have to do it."
As I've explained in a couple or three different threads already, I think you have misunderstood what I was trying to say in the blog post you are referring to here, or else one of my many fans misrepresented it to you.
I never spoke to either of them about any bit of the NGE. Nor emailed, either.
You say here "These changes didn't happen because I just up and decided one day to change everything. Changes weren't made because a designer suddenly wants to play a new game." However, last year someone was saying that that is exactly what happened. Along with the other lies that were being thrown around by people at SOE and LA we were led to believe that there was a small group of you on your own that started running with this bs idea and then went around fighting tooth and nail to make it happen. And then through your abilities at persuasion you got them to buy into the bs that the NGE was a fun replacement for what had been there and been going for years beforehand, and before wow, was considered, albeit buggy and incomplete, one of the better mmo's on the market.
I do wish I had the personality to pull of that sort of "Follow me, men!" type of deal. If you knew me, you'd realize the above is pretty laughable.
Also, "some changes" (which would be called "the NGE" no matter what they turned out to be), were going to happen, no matter what. If the New tutorial, had been the only new thing, then it'd have been called "the NGE".
So no one ran around trying to sell "the NGE". You're talking about a whole bunch of changes in those two words.
Thanks for answering these questions. i have just one for ya. we have all heard who didnt have anything to do with the NGE. but want i would like to know is who was the orginal person who pitched the idea? who was the guy that said we are going to do this. that is the persons name i want to know. if you cant tell me that then maybe you can say was it someone at SOE or LA. thanks for your time. Jack Burton. Nashville, TN.
You have proven that you know nothing of MMO's what you did was destroy everyones Avatar. Your former customers Avatars that some people put two years of thier life into. When you did that you lost us as customers I can not trust SOE any more after this your companies name and your dev's are forever tarnished and your trapped there at SOE.
Basically you and your team Destroyed the Best MMO I ever played the best, I can't not understand why you did this your company has lost millions of doallars over this and worst your rep's are ruined.
Don't look for forgiveness here EMU will be out and that game will wither away, Clasic servers is what we want until then we will not pay for a crappy buggy game.
Hi Jeff Thanks for answering these questions. i have just one for ya. we have all heard who didnt have anything to do with the NGE. but want i would like to know is who was the orginal person who pitched the idea? who was the guy that said we are going to do this. that is the persons name i want to know. if you cant tell me that then maybe you can say was it someone at SOE or LA. thanks for your time. Jack Burton. Nashville, TN.
I can't say anything that isn't already public info.
The thing you have to understand though, is that "the NGE" is a whole bunch of changes.
Originally we called it the NPE, for New Player Experience. It was going to be the experience which new players had. Whomever pitched the idea originally didn't have anything in mind but a new player running the game for the first time, and being thrilled and amazed by a much better initial experience than any SWG player had ever had during character creation before.
Hi Jeff Thanks for answering these questions. i have just one for ya. we have all heard who didnt have anything to do with the NGE. but want i would like to know is who was the orginal person who pitched the idea? who was the guy that said we are going to do this. that is the persons name i want to know. if you cant tell me that then maybe you can say was it someone at SOE or LA. thanks for your time. Jack Burton. Nashville, TN.
I can't say anything that isn't already public info.
The thing you have to understand though, is that "the NGE" is a whole bunch of changes.
Originally we called it the NPE, for New Player Experience. It was going to be the experience which new players had. Whomever pitched the idea originally didn't have anything in mind but a new player running the game for the first time, and being thrilled and amazed by a much better initial experience than any SWG player had ever had during character creation before.
it kinda sounds like it was thought of as good idea on paper but in the real world it did not fly. like it snowballed and went out of control.
Comments
Are you suggesting that the NGE wasn't designed for you?
Argh, those freaking things.
Jeff Freeman
Are you suggesting that the NGE wasn't designed for you?
Argh, those freaking things.
Hmm, lets see Jeff. Are we suggesting that the NGE wasn't designed for us? Let's see...
there was a mass exodus from the game, no???????????????????????????????
Well, for example, we could have not converted to classes. We could have left combat alone. We could have rolled-up the billions of immigrant harvesters and implemented a sane system to reclaim some adventure wilderness. We could have strategically deployed "good loot" items so crafters still made most of the best things, yet provided quests with real rewards. Added the new space station tutorial thing, quests, rolling out on the heels of a badass expansion. Some other method of guiding new players in character advancement. Mid-level content, high-level content, alternate advancement opportunities. Lots of things to accomplish most of the NGE goals without hammering current players. Broadening what you liked; rather than abandoning it.
The NGE was a good idea, implemented badly. And delivered as a surprise.
Not one of those good kinds of surprises, either.
Jeff Freeman
Well, for example, we could have not converted to classes. We could have left combat alone. We could have rolled-up the billions of immigrant harvesters and implemented a sane system to reclaim some adventure wilderness. We could have strategically deployed "good loot" items so crafters still made most of the best things, yet provided quests with real rewards. Added the new space station tutorial thing, quests, rolling out on the heels of a badass expansion. Some other method of guiding new players in character advancement. Mid-level content, high-level content, alternate advancement opportunities. Lots of things to accomplish most of the NGE goals without hammering current players. Broadening what you liked; rather than abandoning it.
The NGE was a good idea, implemented badly. And delivered as a surprise.
Not one of those good kinds of surprises, either.
It wasn't good idea, it was far from being good.
People, like you caused, it. Sorry, but you can't give excuses. As an MMO developer, you do know these are more than game for your customers. You were part of "How to make customers more mad" team. You did well.
Same again, people like you "still" can say NGE was good idea bla bla. We, as customers, paid your money. It wasn't for you to make what you like to play, it was for ourselves.
You, any devs, ALL SOE know NGE was a big mistake. We can't expect them to come here and say "Yes, we sucked". Instead of saying that, they only say "Delivering was wrong". Can you tell me that; Would SWG be still online if you told people that NGE was coming in 3 months? I don't think so...
I don't know who decided, who said the last word about NGE. But, I'm sure of that, if SOE could, they would return PreCU or CU already.
But, they can't. Maybe lack of developers, maybe licence thing, maybe another thing....
Well, for example, we could have not converted to classes. We could have left combat alone. We could have rolled-up the billions of immigrant harvesters and implemented a sane system to reclaim some adventure wilderness. We could have strategically deployed "good loot" items so crafters still made most of the best things, yet provided quests with real rewards. Added the new space station tutorial thing, quests, rolling out on the heels of a badass expansion. Some other method of guiding new players in character advancement. Mid-level content, high-level content, alternate advancement opportunities. Lots of things to accomplish most of the NGE goals without hammering current players. Broadening what you liked; rather than abandoning it.
The NGE was a good idea, implemented badly. And delivered as a surprise.
Not one of those good kinds of surprises, either.
The NGE is what is on the servers now, not what it could have been in hindsight. It was never a good idea because from the beginning it didn't enchance the game, it remade it in someone elses vision. Even simple things like camps and the UI were destroyed to become cheap copies of other games.
I think I understand your comment on a logical level, i.e. the NGE = the concept to make changes/additions to make the game more fun, but when I see those letters, it just equals the junk that was released on Nov. 15.
I think you misunderstand. A push to acquire and retain new players was needed. Call it "The plan".
It's a good thing to do, this plan.
Plan A is to give all existing players herpes.
Plan B does not.
If the implementation is A, then even though the plan is a good thing to do, the implementation is bad. Should have been plan B.
Jeff Freeman
It's a good thing to do, this plan.
Plan A is to give all existing players herpes.
Plan B does not.
If the implementation is A, then even though the plan is a good thing to do, the implementation is bad. Should have been plan B.
And NGE could retain new players?
You surely did know that people would leave. SOE either tried to change target audience or used SWG as test table; "Let's see if people like FPS based sanbox type MMO"
As for the design itself: Lord Pall was the lead designer then, doing what game designers are supposed to do: design a game system within given parameters. That is, we're tasked with things, like "redesign combat". And given some direction, like "make it so these people will like it". Or sometimes, "those people."
I don't care that you posted that Jeff, I care that you had that opinion as a game developer. Anyone in business knows you got to give the customer what they want. Ford doesn't offer only 4 shades of blue as the color for the mustang because it is Bill Ford's favorite color. The whole concept of the NGE should have been a second game, and you as a developer should know that on a base level. I don't play counter strike because I don't like FPS, yet if the developers of that game released a patch that made it into The Sims, they should expect to lose all their current customers. The fact that they don't is what I mean by "you should have known better".
Well, for example, we could have not converted to classes. We could have left combat alone. We could have rolled-up the billions of immigrant harvesters and implemented a sane system to reclaim some adventure wilderness. We could have strategically deployed "good loot" items so crafters still made most of the best things, yet provided quests with real rewards. Added the new space station tutorial thing, quests, rolling out on the heels of a badass expansion. Some other method of guiding new players in character advancement. Mid-level content, high-level content, alternate advancement opportunities. Lots of things to accomplish most of the NGE goals without hammering current players. Broadening what you liked; rather than abandoning it.
The NGE was a good idea, implemented badly. And delivered as a surprise.
Not one of those good kinds of surprises, either.
Had you done those things mentioned, along with addressing the bugs that were promised to be addressed during the Combat Revamp (which never occured), added in a rudimentary physics system etc SWG could still be a viable platform today. Instead, I believe it was Smedley that said it, you all decided that the people that had been there from the start and made SWG a successful mmo (for its time) were no longer who you all wanted in the game.
Saying the NGE was a good idea is an opinion and you are entitled to it, along with the very small number of players that spam the suck boards with how bad the original game was. However it does not make it a true statement. If it had been a good idea then the implementation would not have made one bit of difference. Had it been a good idea then the devs and smedley would not show up on different forums lying to the customer base about things like how ToOW was designed for the NGE. Had it been a good idea thousands and thousands of players would not have cancelled their accounts immediately and SOE would not have offered refunds for the ToOW expansion. Had it been a good idea all of this would be moot because rather than waiting for the emu a good number of us would have remained playing the game we enjoyed and wanted.
The NGE was akin to Playboy changing the format of thier magazine to gay porn. Or McDonalds becoming a tofu house.
http://www.speedtest.net/result/7300033012
As I said somewhere, another thread I think, the NGE was a subset of the game to fit on a single CD, distributed in a magazine.
That's not for me, I had the whole game.
It was a new space station tutorial and free-trial area, with quests and loot and lots of "how to play" direction.
Again not for me, I already had a character and I knew how to play.
It was an easier to learn character progression system, the classes rather than skills.
I didn't need that. My character was just fine.
The combat system was more "fast action" and intuitive (you click on what you want to shoot!"
Even though I do like it more, that's just a coincidence.
I get you're upset because Baskin Robins 31 flavors went down to just chocolate, but don't hate me for liking chocolate. These changes didn't happen because I just up and decided one day to change everything. Changes weren't made because a designer suddenly wants to play a new game.
This is really as much as I can say: You're tasked with things, like "redesign combat". You don't just come in one morning, look at all the forum-talk about every system other than combat, and decide, "Screw em! I'm redesigning combat.".
So if you're working on combat it is because you were assigned that task.
And youre given parameters within which you have to work. Some are technical limitations, others are seeds of a design needing... design.
Given the parameter, "Make it the way A would like it, even if that means B will hate it.", then you do that.
And you also try to make it as fun as you can. That means you will probably find it fun - it's hard to make a thing you hate, "fun" for other people.
Just don't tell B you find it fun. He'll say you changed it just because you like it.
How do you know we didn't?
Er... now I'm doing it. Many developers, many different opinions. How do you know even a majority of them didn't know better?
Jeff Freeman
Oh, I can't believe he'd ever say that.
Jeff Freeman
As I said somewhere, another thread I think, the NGE was a subset of the game to fit on a single CD, distributed in a magazine.
That's not for me, I had the whole game.
It was a new space station tutorial and free-trial area, with quests and loot and lots of "how to play" direction.
Again not for me, I already had a character and I knew how to play.
It was an easier to learn character progression system, the classes rather than skills.
I didn't need that. My character was just fine.
The combat system was more "fast action" and intuitive (you click on what you want to shoot!"
Even though I do like it more, that's just a coincidence.
I get you're upset because Baskin Robins 31 flavors went down to just chocolate, but don't hate me for liking chocolate. These changes didn't happen because I just up and decided one day to change everything. Changes weren't made because a designer suddenly wants to play a new game.
This is really as much as I can say: You're tasked with things, like "redesign combat". You don't just come in one morning, look at all the forum-talk about every system other than combat, and decide, "Screw em! I'm redesigning combat.".
So if you're working on combat it is because you were assigned that task.
And youre given parameters within which you have to work. Some are technical limitations, others are seeds of a design needing... design.
Given the parameter, "Make it the way A would like it, even if that means B will hate it.", then you do that.
And you also try to make it as fun as you can. That means you will probably find it fun - it's hard to make a thing you hate, "fun" for other people.
Just don't tell B you find it fun. He'll say you changed it just because you like it.
How do you know we didn't?
Er... now I'm doing it. Many developers, many different opinions. How do you know even a majority of them didn't know better?
Sounds like a case of the ol Pointy Haired Boss was running wild in SOE Austin.
Not the herpes version.
Jeff Freeman
Not the herpes version.
Anyone who equates the NGE to a STD is alright in my book (The NGE in reality, not the hypothetical NGE)
So Jeff maybe we are getting to a point where the NDA blocks the answer, but who or what creates the parameters? You know, the parameters that decide the direction of development.
--By the way, thank you for the communication.
--When you resubscribe to SWG, an 18 yearold Stripper finds Jesus, gives up stripping, and moves with a rolex reverend to Hawaii.
--In MMORPG's l007 is the opiate of the masses.
--The absence of evidence is not the evidence of absence!
--CCP could cut off an Eve player's fun bits, and that player would say that it was good CCP did that.
Not the herpes version.
Anyone who equates the NGE to a STD is alright in my book (The NGE in reality, not the hypothetical NGE)
So Jeff maybe we are getting to a point where the NDA blocks the answer, but who or what creates the parameters? You know, the parameters that decide the direction of development.
--By the way, thank you for the communication.
Rofl... thousands of NGErs suddenly cried out in terror then it was silent....lol
Obriak has got to hate seeing this... almost comical.
I find it hard to believe that any version of the NGE would have been successful. That version on top of what we already had did not work.
At all. In fact it just did not fit at all....
You said it.... 31 flavors down to 1 perse... I keep using logic on that and see no way for that to be a good thing.
I am glad your more candid about this mess now but still...... I swear some of you guys should have just been beat with a freaking saber for thinking up some of this.
I just love getting stuck in aggro or the clunk sound to mount up on a bike....... yeah that all worked out well.
Herpes is a good choice of words for the NGE though.... I actually like it alot.
______________________________
I usually picture the Career builder commercial with the room full of monkeys and upside down sales chart when thinking about the SOE/SWG decision making process.....
SOE's John Blakely and Todd Fiala issued a warning: "Don't make our mistakes." Ref NGE
Winner of the worst MMOS goes to.... the NGE and SWG..!!! http://www.mmorpg.com/showFeature.cfm?loadFeature=1034&bhcp=1
Are you suggesting that the NGE wasn't designed for you?
Argh, those freaking things.
Yes those things.... another pie in the sky promise more or less... but lets not forget that we just wanted it to work or be told it can't.
Not -- "Working on it" or "it's coming soon"... I think when you guys let us get set up for the dissapointment that alot of issues stemmed from that.
I just hate the fact that at the Fan Fest and Summits -- being told things directly from the Dev team that things would be coming or are in the works... ONLY to see it get thrown out or just be made into utter bullshit.
I know that shit happens but still, Im the type that rather not hear anything then a series of let downs.
______________________________
I usually picture the Career builder commercial with the room full of monkeys and upside down sales chart when thinking about the SOE/SWG decision making process.....
SOE's John Blakely and Todd Fiala issued a warning: "Don't make our mistakes." Ref NGE
Winner of the worst MMOS goes to.... the NGE and SWG..!!! http://www.mmorpg.com/showFeature.cfm?loadFeature=1034&bhcp=1
Sweet God, I agree with Jeff Freeman about something?
I'll admit, after the initial shock of hearing about the NGE, I thought it could be really cool because, lo and behold, I don't like how the combat had progresed after the CU. It was better than pre-cu for me (and I will get flamed for saying such), but the healing had got out of control. I didn't like losing interdependance. Still, making a MMO where it already had everything SWG had and making it so you could have Battlefront style combat? That would have been awesome.
What we got instead was [i]the same game[/i], only at 4 times the speed and you had to click to fire. Other than that, it really was the same combat style. You didn't have to aim, you just had to keep your mouse cursor over the target and you couldn't fire unless it wasn't there. Saying that is "aiming" is akin to saying you have to aim in Diablo.
I'm glad to see that they're finally admitting it was a mistake, and I do understand what was going on even if others refused to admit it. The CU was a success in some ways. They relaunched for Episode III and got an amazing amount of people... who all left after two months because there wasn't anything to do. The old vets who were still around all wanted to hunt and do boll groups and new players found this to be annoying and stupid, and they left. The vets, bored of playing the same game and doing the jedi grind began to leave as well. [b]Everyone was leaving.[/b] So, they did plan B and plan B failed.
I still find some interest in SWG, but i'm confused on why everyone gives it so much time and is still so mad. SWG died. Remember the good times and move on.
Gah thank you for bringing up a carrot then as well.
Here is one that alot of us liked...
"We are working on the FRS and it's almost ready.." also quoted on the boards...
Ok enough... this just makes it worse.. BUT still, this is just part of the reason for the mess.
None the less the concept of the NGE was still bad Jeff.... you can't simplify somthing so much I don't think without knowing it was not going to work or at least "MIGHT" not work.
I guess in the end --- there is ONE person that says "Make it so" ---- that person is the one that should feel the worst.
If it's Mr. Smedley, then he should say so on the SOE boards.... I know what he has said to me in emails... but I mean say it for the NGErs so they know and understand we were not wrong... we really wanted this to be somthing good not bad.
Do not think for one second that any of us did not want SWG to be the king.... we did, just not the NGE version.. we saw it for what it was.
I just wished we had much much more dialog about it before it happend.... I think MAYBE that would have helped make that decsion instead of the knee jerk one they made.
They based that whole launch on getting the people from the 3rd movie and expansion.... we all know it... it just was a poor choice of marketing and business.
(As we all know now in hindsight)...
Still --- I love this.. NGE = STD... man lol...
______________________________
I usually picture the Career builder commercial with the room full of monkeys and upside down sales chart when thinking about the SOE/SWG decision making process.....
SOE's John Blakely and Todd Fiala issued a warning: "Don't make our mistakes." Ref NGE
Winner of the worst MMOS goes to.... the NGE and SWG..!!! http://www.mmorpg.com/showFeature.cfm?loadFeature=1034&bhcp=1
As I said somewhere, another thread I think, the NGE was a subset of the game to fit on a single CD, distributed in a magazine.
That's not for me, I had the whole game.
It was a new space station tutorial and free-trial area, with quests and loot and lots of "how to play" direction.
Again not for me, I already had a character and I knew how to play.
It was an easier to learn character progression system, the classes rather than skills.
I didn't need that. My character was just fine.
The combat system was more "fast action" and intuitive (you click on what you want to shoot!"
Even though I do like it more, that's just a coincidence.
I get you're upset because Baskin Robins 31 flavors went down to just chocolate, but don't hate me for liking chocolate. These changes didn't happen because I just up and decided one day to change everything. Changes weren't made because a designer suddenly wants to play a new game.
This is really as much as I can say: You're tasked with things, like "redesign combat". You don't just come in one morning, look at all the forum-talk about every system other than combat, and decide, "Screw em! I'm redesigning combat.".
So if you're working on combat it is because you were assigned that task.
And youre given parameters within which you have to work. Some are technical limitations, others are seeds of a design needing... design.
Given the parameter, "Make it the way A would like it, even if that means B will hate it.", then you do that.
And you also try to make it as fun as you can. That means you will probably find it fun - it's hard to make a thing you hate, "fun" for other people.
Just don't tell B you find it fun. He'll say you changed it just because you like it.
How do you know we didn't?
Er... now I'm doing it. Many developers, many different opinions. How do you know even a majority of them didn't know better?
So, Jeff.... who was it that pulled Torres and Smedley into the office and said "wow this is cool, wow this is fun". Who was it that said "I was the one that had to sit there and convince everyone else that we could do it, we should do it, this is too cool we have to do it."
You say here "These changes didn't happen because I just up and decided one day to change everything. Changes weren't made because a designer suddenly wants to play a new game." However, last year someone was saying that that is exactly what happened. Along with the other lies that were being thrown around by people at SOE and LA we were led to believe that there was a small group of you on your own that started running with this bs idea and then went around fighting tooth and nail to make it happen. And then through your abilities at persuasion you got them to buy into the bs that the NGE was a fun replacement for what had been there and been going for years beforehand, and before wow, was considered, albeit buggy and incomplete, one of the better mmo's on the market.
And as to your previous response to my post, believe it or not, I am 90% sure it was smedley who said that he did not care what his current subscriber base thought of the NGE, that they were going after a new group of people. If the old people wanted to stick around that was fine, but it was designed in essence to get new people in regardless of what happened with the old people. Only a vocal minority would leave. hahaha vocal minority my tuckus.
You say " I get you're upset because Baskin Robins 31 flavors went down to just chocolate, but don't hate me for liking chocolate." If you were offering "chocolate" that would be one thing, but its no longer ice cream at all, its.... frozen yogurt served in the same cups with the same logos and the same pink plastic spoons, coming from the same shop with the same cute little high school girl spooning it out, but it isnt ice cream icecream anymore. What's that old saying... dont piss on my head and tell me it's raining?
http://www.speedtest.net/result/7300033012
As I've explained in a couple or three different threads already, I think you have misunderstood what I was trying to say in the blog post you are referring to here, or else one of my many fans misrepresented it to you.
I never spoke to either of them about any bit of the NGE. Nor emailed, either.
I do wish I had the personality to pull of that sort of "Follow me, men!" type of deal. If you knew me, you'd realize the above is pretty laughable.
Also, "some changes" (which would be called "the NGE" no matter what they turned out to be), were going to happen, no matter what. If the New tutorial, had been the only new thing, then it'd have been called "the NGE".
So no one ran around trying to sell "the NGE". You're talking about a whole bunch of changes in those two words.
Seriously. It just doesn't happen like that.
Jeff Freeman
Hi Jeff
Thanks for answering these questions. i have just one for ya. we have all heard who didnt have anything to do with the NGE. but want i would like to know is who was the orginal person who pitched the idea? who was the guy that said we are going to do this. that is the persons name i want to know. if you cant tell me that then maybe you can say was it someone at SOE or LA. thanks for your time. Jack Burton. Nashville, TN.
Mr. Freeman
You have proven that you know nothing of MMO's what you did was destroy everyones Avatar. Your former customers Avatars that some people put two years of thier life into. When you did that you lost us as customers I can not trust SOE any more after this your companies name and your dev's are forever tarnished and your trapped there at SOE.
Basically you and your team Destroyed the Best MMO I ever played the best, I can't not understand why you did this your company has lost millions of doallars over this and worst your rep's are ruined.
Don't look for forgiveness here EMU will be out and that game will wither away, Clasic servers is what we want until then we will not pay for a crappy buggy game.
Good Luck in the future Sir.
DarkAchillies Lord of Dantoonie died 11-15-2005
Ajax
I can't say anything that isn't already public info.
The thing you have to understand though, is that "the NGE" is a whole bunch of changes.
Originally we called it the NPE, for New Player Experience. It was going to be the experience which new players had. Whomever pitched the idea originally didn't have anything in mind but a new player running the game for the first time, and being thrilled and amazed by a much better initial experience than any SWG player had ever had during character creation before.
Jeff Freeman
I can't say anything that isn't already public info.
The thing you have to understand though, is that "the NGE" is a whole bunch of changes.
Originally we called it the NPE, for New Player Experience. It was going to be the experience which new players had. Whomever pitched the idea originally didn't have anything in mind but a new player running the game for the first time, and being thrilled and amazed by a much better initial experience than any SWG player had ever had during character creation before.
it kinda sounds like it was thought of as good idea on paper but in the real world it did not fly. like it snowballed and went out of control.
Jack B.