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IRC Questions not answered
Renian
Member Posts: 152
I have three questions that Stratics never got to because the chat only lasted an hour. If you have questions from today's IRC chat that did not make it into the chat, post them in this topic.
Anyway, here's mine:
<Renian> A plague has been spreading throughout the MMO world that is known as 'Really Bad Character Name Syndrome.' ...Ok, not really, but there's a slew of really bad character names out there. Will HJ's character creation system filter out most bad names? Will the GM's deal with people who's bad names get by? Or will this enforcement only take place on RP servers?
<Renian> So, other than the name Elanthia, does HJ really have anything else in common with Gemstone IV and Dragonrealms?
<Renian> Everquest had such a large player base that it could have kept going if they were able to easily upgrade the graphics engine. Will HJ be able to easily upgrade it's graphics later on, or will the need for HJ2 arise?
Comments
On Bad Names:
We do monitor bad names and have some plans in mind for keeping up with them in a larger market. Now, my experience is that not everyone agrees with our naming guidelines, but I can promise we will work to ensure our guidelines are followed.
On Elanthia:
Do you want to know about history or gameplay?
On HJ's Graphics and Upgrades:
We revise textures and geometry regularly, so that won't be a problem. However, at some point, no doubt, there will be engine changes that we desire. (GemStone IV recently went through an engine upgrade itself.) So I wouldn't rule out an HJ2 in our future -- tho I couldn't guess how many years away that would be.
History, actually. Gameplay I kind of already know, considering the answer to my 'metals' question.
I dig the other two responses, by the way. Revising textures and geometry at a whim is sweet, as well as keeping out bad names.
On the History:
We haven't decided where HJ will go in the scheme of things. At first we were thinking afterwards, but there are advantages to it being between the GS and DR, or before. Regardless, we'll have to tweak the history we have laid out somewhat to make it work.
Will you see similarities ... yes! We're very fond of homages -- easter eggs and ideas that are reflections from other games. But just as with GS and DR ... HJ is a world apart in terms of time. WIth thousands of years separating them, the cultures are different, the needs are different, how people to things, what is important ... all those things are different.
Hm, good. So does this mean that we'll have lore on how certain playable races and critters went extinct (if it wasn't from The Sundering), or perhaps be able to play the old races in HJ in an expansion and fight the old critters as well? I'd love to play a Giantman Rogue in HJ, and Roa'ters would make a seriously awesome critter if they could use that attack where they burrow underground then burst out from under you.
Questions:
1) Two major problems with MMORPG's today are: a) RMT (real money trade) a.k.a. selling/buying in-game currency for real world currency; b) AFK macro-botters. Has Simu given either of these issues any thought at this stage in the design or will that be something for post-release handling as it becomes a problem?
2) Aside from housing, will there be player-controlled structures in HJ?
3) Will a player's class change as they level up (i.e. start with a basic class and later choose a more specialized advanced class)?
1a) This is always a hotly debated topic and has been so, for some time, over on our boards. One of the things you'll find is that yes, most MMORPG companies acknowledge the issue exists; however, you get into the whole issue of do you try to control it (like SOE) or do you take resources away from game and content development and try to police it? Because, truth be told, though it may be against game policy it's technically not illegal. So, we can sit all day and scour eBay and other auction websites, or focus on development and take care of the RMT that's glaring right in our face.
1b) We've always done well keeping control of the AFK scripters in DragonRealms and GemStone -- I'm personally not sure what policies will be put in place, but this is something we're keeping an eye on.
2) We've heard rumors that it may be *possible* for players to own boats... the mechanics are possible, it's just a matter of devoting time to getting it implemented.
3) As it stands, you select a primary and a secondary class -- I'm not the right person to answer whether that will become more focused as you progress, but perhaps someone from that team will be able to give a more in-depth answer.
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I hope it will be like EQ, where you can report someone for their name. Hey fun is fun, but when my nephew and neice say "Unca, why is that mans name Likme Whereisit?" that's just not kewl. I think those oh so clever double entendre/sexual innuendo names are the first sign of a pseudo-intellectual. That means bored idiot for those of you without a dictionary.
I'm all for humour, but I get kids bothering my while I play sometimes.
Re: Names
No worries there.
Melissa has already posted that we'll keep a bit of a reign on them.
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