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Tell me - Why was Tiggs fired?
Platonic
Member Posts: 6
I remember at the birth of the NGE, Tiggs was mysteriously let go.
The lady never really bothered me one way or another. She called me a troll once on the open forums (I complained that night the NGE was in beta and half of Galaxies stuck it out to try it but only 200 could get in. I did eventually get in, though.)
I'd love to know why she was fired.
Some say she was a hero of the PreCU. She saw the NGE and wouldn't stand for it and was let go. As proof, some people point to old posts written under various handles about the state of the game. I do remember seeing a screenshot of a private message she wrote just before being fired that had a line in it something like "This place is a madhouse right now." ("Now" referring to just before the NGE beta.)
Others, like myself, think maybe she was let go for some other reason and it happened to coincide with the NGE. She always seemed like a "Yes Woman" to me. In fact, I remember her post about the NGE Starter Kit on Amazon.com. She said, "That listing is erroreous and will be removed." The Amazon listing was an error, it turns out. The error was that Amazon posted it before the NGE was announced. So instead of being a damn liar, she just bends the truth as SOE saw fit.
What do you think? Why was she fired?
And do myself, and all of us, a favor - Give a reason or two for your answer. I think there's some compelling evidence both ways.
Comments
It's impossible to really say but most likely I'd say she handed in her notice and worked off her time before leaving. My reasons? The timing off her disapearance off the boards would superficaly seem to match up with an average amount of notice work weeks from when she might have been told about the NGE and that despite her flaws as a CSR she was still heads and shoulders above Thunderheart and it seems odd timing for SoE to be firing their better dedicated SWG CSR.
Lots of people have different opinions on this, but the way I see it, she was let go for not agreeing to the NGE culture. The reason being is that she DID deny all of those types of things like the Starter Kit. It was business as usual for her, interacting with customers for better or worse, until the NGE hit. Her answers got very short at that point. You know how you can sometimes tell the mood someone is in just by what they type? Short sentences, nothing but periods at the end, nothing but facts. Almost like she knew her credibility was destroyed with the populace. Due to the way things went down, though, I think she was set up. They told her nothing, and then made her swallow it like they did with us. I think they sprung it on TH as well, though I believe TH took it in stride and wasn't as into the community at that point anymore. It was just a job to him then, and if they had said they were changing the game to Care Bears Online, he would have pointed out all the cool, iconic Care Bearsy-ness we were going to get.
There's a sucker born every minute. - P.T. Barnum
NEW IDEAS that can refresh the STALE state of MMORPGs
Most people who witnessed what went on at the official forums believed at the time, that Tiggs was kept in the dark about the NGE, and it was sprung on her a day or two before it was sprung on us. She never said that (she wouldn't have been allowed to say it) but the speculation fit with other rumors about things, as well as with (as someone above said) a definite change in the tone of her posts on the forums.
That is why most people I interacted with at the time, did not blame Tiggs for "hiding" the NGE. We believed she was kept in the dark also, and her defenses of the CU were honest (if misguided). Again as someone said above, contrast this with TH, who was MIA from the forum for months and months, then suddenly returned to vigorously defend (and promote/hype) the NGE. The contrast between how he acted and how Tiggs acted spoke volumes at the time.
C
Tiggs worked in the same office, on the same floor as everyone else at SOE Austin. There's no way in hell they could even try to keep her out of the loop every day for six months they spent working on the NGE.
"Oh look, here comes Tiggs! Quick, act like were bug fixing on the CU!"
Ah! So you were there at the time?
First off, Tiggs was fired.
This is a link to her blog -
http://ladytiggs.livejournal.com/
Read the first entry (the one at the bottom). She was "licking her wounds." She was fired. She even comments that she wished she knew that the night before would be her last night to interact with the community.
Secondly, I find it a bit hard to believe that she was kept in the dark about the NGE. Her and dev interacted on a daily basis.
So, we have a lady that knew about the NGE and was fired as it went live. What's the correlation here?
I personally think that is what happened.
So if it wasnt developed by SOE of coarse they wouldn't know about it.
In all fairness I thikn Smedly and the rest of SOE and LA all messed up and are all at fault, and it pisses me off to no end that there to prideful and stubborn to not say a simple " look were sorry we messed up. Now lets fix things"
I makes me mad that such a childish , stubborn idiotic attitude is tolerated, Smedly better hope he never gets fired, cause No game company would ever hire the Godfather of online gaming fk ups.
LA might have made it, but SOE won't fix it.
too bad.. I really miss and Loved my SWG....
- 4 accounts.... - $60 / mo from just this one gammer.... its only power I have to never return.... and never play a SOE game again.
Miataka (+many sub variation of that)
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~Second Life
I personally think that is what happened.
So if it wasnt developed by SOE of coarse they wouldn't know about it.
In all fairness I thikn Smedly and the rest of SOE and LA all messed up and are all at fault, and it pisses me off to no end that there to prideful and stubborn to not say a simple " look were sorry we messed up. Now lets fix things"
I makes me mad that such a childish , stubborn idiotic attitude is tolerated, Smedly better hope he never gets fired, cause No game company would ever hire the Godfather of online gaming fk ups.
LA might have made it, but SOE won't fix it.
too bad.. I really miss and Loved my SWG....
- 4 accounts.... - $60 / mo from just this one gammer.... its only power I have to never return.... and never play a SOE game again.
well if it was developed by LA then why did their execs or w/e go down to SOE and start questioning SOE employees?? Atleast thats apparently what tiggs said in her last posts. ATM i give up all hope on any SWG game. Wether the NGE or the ducks. Its just ruined for me.
http://www.mmorpg.com/discussion2.cfm/thread/137478
Playing: EVE Online
Favorite MMOs: WoW, SWG Pre-cu, Lineage 2, UO, EQ, EVE online
Looking forward to: Archeage, Kingdom Under Fire 2
KUF2's Official Website - http://www.kufii.com/ENG/ -
She was fired because she actually stuck up for the players. She had more balls than anyone on that Dev team.
I am sure she was a good person and she had a job to do, plain and simple. I am sure she cared about the players and all that kind of stuff but getting down to the bottom line..... we did not sign her pay checks boys and girls.
Did she know the NGE?.. She might not of known everything but I can tell you that she had a good clue. We all work,.. most of us anyways,.. and you know how things "get out" in the work place and with something this big,.... she knew darn well it was going to happen... so as I said,... she could of kept her mouth shut and keep getting her pay checks and pay the rent, food, bills, etc... or came right out and stood up to SOE and made a post about the NGE to warn us all,... did she??.. no and I can not blame her for that... she left at the very end because I am sure all the yelling, crying, etc.. was getting to her and she was working for a company who could give a rats butt about the customer.. thats why she left.
But then again,... I think about that post a LONG time ago when someone warned us about all the changes that were going to happen and we ALL slamed this person for posting crap! but now look at us all,... seems this person who wrote this little write up was right all along.. Anyone have a link to that post by the way??.. I am sure most of the Vets know what I am talking about,... if you have the link can you post it again.
Been there done that:
Asherons Call,SWG,AOC,D&D,COH,Anarchy Online,DAOC,EVE,Guild Wars,LOTRO,POTBS,WAR,WW2, and Rift
Personally, I don't think LA built the NGE, but they did demand big changes, latched onto a concept with resonances of successful games like KOTOR and Battlefront, and rammed it into operation over the misgivings that many devs no doubt had. I expect that LA had since given up on ever reviving SWG, and is waiting for it to run down while insisting that SOE maintain "StarWarzyness" until sunset. SOE's concern is not "StarWarzyness", it's money. If SOE thought they could make any more profit with classic servers, they would have had them up a year ago... if they were allowed to.
With all the people wanting classic servers, I don't understand why they don't open some up. It has to be something other than, they just wont do it, like something technical (which I've heard is B.S.) or legal. We may never know because of the gag clause.
Rebel Col. Moshi Manawitz-Master Commando/Master Smuggler/Master Pilot-Pre NGE Vet.-Server:Chilistra-
RIP April 04-Jan 06
Well, one thing I will say for Tiggs is, she actually responded to us and checked stuff with the devs... at least she did for Entertainers. TH was like that at first, but after a couple of months became a complete no-account who did nothing but lock threads.
C
When you're a corporate monkey in general (I am), it's because you signed a contract that (more or less) dictates your entire career function with the company. You have responsibilities ABC awarded by salary and (hopefully) bonuses, and liabilities XYZ punishable by lawsuit. While contracts are generally negotiable on several or all points, the bigger the corporation, the (usually) more restrictive the liabilities are.
While I'm not sure of the nature of SOE contracts, they are a subsidiary (or subdivision) of SCE, and that's a big chunk of the Sony Corporation. I'd imagine there's little room on there for error: they can afford the best and they would naturally expect the best.
That all said, ANY contract that involves PR requires skill in keeping the face value of the company and products at all costs, even above personal distaste of said product. Failure to do this results in lost revenue on several fronts, alienating not just the customer but also potential investors.
In context here, Tiggs had ultimately no choice at all but to support SOE and appear to be a "yes woman" despite whatever she may have felt about the game. Even if she hated it (a worst case scenario for a long term career), she still had to be positive and supportive at all times and in all aspects. If you think about it, it's a really hideous job.
The same actually goes for Smedley. He still has a job because he's an outstanding salesman. You'd have to be to push crap like the NGE, with all the negative reception it received from the press and users alike, and still manage new contracts. I'd amazed by this if he didn't have the support of years of experience and the footnote of being a pioneer in MMORPG development in North America as well. Anyone else would be out of a job, if not out of the industry.
At any rate, I don't think anyone is really sure if Tiggs quit or was fired, and for that matter, why. Bottom line there is that she did her job satisfactorily, which clearly attracted a new employer. In truth, had she "blown up" at SOE like some folks claim, I think she would've been blackballed from the industry. She might have had her frustrations -- everyone does -- but it's unlikely she blew up with the fervor that some folks attribute to her.
The most likely scenario is that it was a mutual fallout, and I can totally understand and respect that. I wouldn't have been able to support something like the NGE, but that's why I never got into public relations. I'm quite happy being a database monkey, tyvm! They're easier to talk with than both users and executives.
-- xpaladin
[MMOz]
AC1/2, AO, DAoC, EQ1/2, SoR, SWG, UO, WAR, WoW
I believe she made an abusive post about SOE on the forums, so they fired her. It's to be expected, love to see that on a resume.
I don't really know much about Tiggs in SWG. I was in the LoTRO beta and some of my old guildmates from AC invited me to join the Krisy Cream guild. Tiggs was the leader of that and I would see alot of guild chat asking questions about SWG.
did somebody ask her why she left $0E too? I don't think she is still bound by the nondisclosue agreement. at any rate she could hint at what really happened and why she moved on....
Nope.
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http://www.spraticnet.com/~swg/forums/viewtopic.php?t=6784&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0
NEW IDEAS that can refresh the STALE state of MMORPGs
Wizyy,
That post that you think was made by Tiggs was actually made by the old Doctor "senator", he in fact came to this board in another thread and confirmed it. Also remember that Tiggs was not around in Pre-CU and had zero knowlege of it.