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The History of: Starports
Blaze323232
Member Posts: 196
When the game first launched, if I remember correctly the wait for a shuttle at a starport was 20 minutes. After, they made an edit to change it to 10 minutes. Later they changed it to 5 minutes. After, they changed it to 1 minute I think. In my opinion, starports were great. They were a good way to talk to random people you had never seen before and catch up with the ones you had seen before. Then, at 10 minutes, they changed but it was still okay because you still had time to talk. Then later, at 5 minutes you had no time at all and now at 1 minute, the shuttle leaves when u get there. Anyone else think like this?
Comments
I don't ever remember it being 20 minutes, and I started playing about two weeks after release. Maybe it was in beta.
I do agree with you though. Travel times give the world an illusion of size. Now, you can go to a starport and just use your JTL yacht to go wherever instantly. Then you can use the ITV. It's just gotten too easy. Dumbing down of what was a good system.
I liked the 10 min shuttle times. The galaxy felt bigger. When pvp'ing people just couldnt run off on a shuttle. It also sucked being overt, knowing you had to stand at the sp for 10 mins, hoping you didnt run into 3 or 4 enemies. Plus, the social aspect, it was just nice to have people in every starport.
Typical shuttle wait.
For the Horde!
I agree, Starports were great. Removing the shuttle waits was just one of a hundred things they did to remove any depth they could find.
Ah, well in that case THEY shouldn't be playing, Go sign up to MSN or Habo Hotel if you want to psoe about and chat. There's a war on, its full on blood and guts and if it's red it's dead. Kill kill kill....
Not *my* opinion btw, just the other side of the argument. Personally, I really liked it when there was a wait for the shuttle and a longer wait for the starport shuttle. People did stop and talk, ask about weapons, guilds, kid around. Newbs met vets, vets met each other, romances blossomed, toons got married, babies were born (we had to wait a LONG time for the interplanetery shuttle, lol) but, sometime round about CU?NGE it was decided that all that 'forced downtime' was a bad thing and the only thing players want is to get in game, kill, loot and level.
/shrug. Like some said at the time "You don't know what you've got till it's gone"
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So, you all sat in camps and that was fun?
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Longest shuttle wait time was 10 mins. I was a buff doc in C-Net. I remember 6 of us docs having lines that streched as far as the eye could see. You met a bunch of interesting folks while doing those buff lines. Those were the days.
/yell 3.2K buffs - 10K. No overts. Heal your BF.
Ya know, I remember being upset when safeguards were put in place for PKing (even thought I didn't participate in that activity) and for pickpocketing (not in SWG, of course). Some of the things folks can't get past today in the name of game depth is ultra pathetic.
Longest shuttle wait time was 10 mins. I was a buff doc in C-Net. I remember 6 of us docs having lines that streched as far as the eye could see. You met a bunch of interesting folks while doing those buff lines. Those were the days.
/yell 3.2K buffs - 10K. No overts. Heal your BF.
omg....those were the days...stealing buffs from lame buffbots...getting caught by the ones that pretended to be buff bots...I LOVED IT!!! SWG had found a way to make getting buffs a rush..everytime i ran from the scene of the crime, i had an adrenaline rush! : /
Your friendly neighborhood Byll Dit
Buff Stealer : P
/agree
I always thought the shortening of starport and shuttleport times (plus JTL hyperspace-capable ships) were the start of undermining community because it reduced/removed what limited forced socializing time there was. So was the removal of (forgive me, can't recall proper term) mentoring xp - it usually forced vets to interact with newer players (teaching them skills), which in my own case resulted in me spending half an hour or so w/ the noob to show them the basics. Met several people who later became guildies that way. As much as the wait did annoy me then, in hindsight it was a positive experience.
I'd love to see an ol' screeny of that too, it'd bring back memories.........
SWG Veteran and Refugee, Intrepid server
NGE free as of Nov. 22, 2005
Now Playing: World of Warcrack
Forum Terrorist
I'll start my own SWG... with Black Jack... and Hookers!!!
In fact, forget the SWG!!!!
I'll start my own SWG... with Black Jack... and Hookers!!!
In fact, forget the SWG!!!!
All shuttle ports and starports were 10 mins from Beta 2 until Launch -- they did mess with it some before that but I think it was just testing.
The wait had purpose --- it did make it more real, from WAIT -- "I need to run to a vendor real quick and get a crate of spice".. to "Man I may not have time to make it due to the buff line", to my favorite as a pub 6 Jedi unlocker -- "Guys please go look around to see if anyone looks like a BH waiting for me"... lol
Let me tell you... there was nothing like being a Jedi in those days and having to travel -- you avoided it as much as possible. You looked funny with maybe 4 travel badges -- yet in FULL Comp Armor all buffed and spiced up. About 50% of the people who knew you might figure it out... But it was wild having to wait 10 mins to board anything -- It was a rush to get ganked right before you boarded.
But see, this is when people played the game... the hard one, not this thing. I like how there is nobody in the Star Ports now becuase it was not iconic or Star Warsy enough.
GOOD JOB SOE! --- Im sure some NGEr has some good reason why this is better too... if you do, then you have no clue what a great SIM game we had vs this thing.
______________________________
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
Now I realize how much it built into the community. Funny how your thoughts change after you're gone.
There are only 10 types of people in this world, those that understand binary and those that don't
too be honest, i hated them too but i used them to wave at some no-doubt fat guy sitting behind his computer controlling Trixie Starr...it was fun though, mostly cuz i ignored the fact that it was most likely a dude playing.
For every minute you are angry , you lose 60 seconds of happiness."-Emerson
ya thats true too hahhahah 1337!1337!N00B!N00B!EVERYONE TIP ME 100 cred!!!PLEASE!!FREEBUFFS PLEASE!!!ANYONE WANNA DUEL!!?
in retrospect it was worth it..
Though I do remember this happening. It wasn't all of the time and everywhere. Hell, at least then there were people to challenge you to a duel. Just before my account ran out I was lucky to see more than fifteen or so people on my server. The rest were out doing whatever they were doing on their own.
But I think the point is moot as much of the socializing that was associated with starports died when JTL hit. Not that I'm saying JTL was a bad thing, but people on my server would just congregate at the mining outpost on dantooine after that as opposed to the socializing going on in coronet starport.
Though I do remember this happening. It wasn't all of the time and everywhere. Hell, at least then there were people to challenge you to a duel. Just before my account ran out I was lucky to see more than fifteen or so people on my server. The rest were out doing whatever they were doing on their own.
But I think the point is moot as much of the socializing that was associated with starports died when JTL hit. Not that I'm saying JTL was a bad thing, but people on my server would just congregate at the mining outpost on dantooine after that as opposed to the socializing going on in coronet starport.
I think this sums up SWG in any state under any system pretty well. That is what everyone did , Because there wasn't much else to do . Grind , PVP , Craft or socialize .
The sad part was this was the most engaging aspect.
Pvp was fun to an extent , and crafting had its reward . But socializing was what most enjoyed a great deal . This is what SWG lacks today I agree , But the fact that the rest of the game lacked so much . Kinda sealed its fate .
Noone likes to pay for nothing but a chat room. SOE pissing everyone off also did not help in anyway , They killed what everyone played for , Their friends .
For every minute you are angry , you lose 60 seconds of happiness."-Emerson
Some Starport/Shuttle pictures. Those were the days.
http://www.jard.co.uk/swg/gallery/96149.jpg
http://blogs.parc.com/playon/screenshots/screenShot0425.jpg
http://blogs.parc.com/playon/screenshots/screenShot0642.jpg
http://blogs.parc.com/playon/screenshots/screenShot0388.jpg
http://russellchallenger.com/gallery/swg/screenShot0052?full=1
http://russellchallenger.com/gallery/swg/screenShot0338?full=1
http://russellchallenger.com/gallery/swg/screenShot0809?full=1
http://russellchallenger.com/gallery/swg/screenShot0189_001?full=1
(No of these pictures are taken by me, Im just linking. But I sure remember the great time.)
I found a lot of reallly nice screenshots in this gallery:
http://russellchallenger.com/gallery/swg?page=1
The Second Day Vet