Howdy, Stranger!
It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!
Quick Links
Dark Age Of Camelot: Mark Jacobs Blasts SOE
Dana
Member Posts: 2,415
Mythic boss Mark Jacobs spoke out about the new SOE auction system in an article on GameDaily Biz. The article also features a rebutal from SOE.
| "By creating this service, SOE may be painting themselves into a creative corner. What will happen when SOE finds it has to change or delete items, servers, etc?
- Mark Jacobs |
Dana Massey
Formerly of MMORPG.com
Currently Lead Designer for Bit Trap Studios
Comments
Hmm, that's a new and refreshing take on the SOE auction system. Could Sony be held liable when they change things around in their game. Would they ever have to buy back obsoleted gear from players. Could people sue them because they nerfed an item that people had paid in real bucks for?
I'm still kinda neutral about if this is a really good or bad thing for SOE. But wow that's an interesting article. I defininately have more respect for Mythic software after reading that. It's good to hear a clear explaination of why a MMORPG company won't sell virtual items for real $$$.
Then again look at all the money and marketing that takes place around real life games. Take sports for example. Do you really think we'd have nice football stadiums and baseball fields if the only money supporting them came from ticket sales? On the other hand we now have all these whiney, immature atheletes who complain because they aren't making enough millions more per year to play sports.
Anyway I'm starting to ramble to I'll end it right there. It should be interesting to see what effects SOE auction system has on MMORPGS. At the very least it will show who really cares about their games and who is just plain greedy.
It's been my experience with Sony (EQ, EQII and SWG) that they really don't much care about the end user effect they have when they change things. They tend to listen to a small group of people who are typically the power gamers and people who can devote large amounts of time to a game. The casual player is generally left to deal with the results. As I was told specifically by one CS employee when I called Sony back in my EQ days "if you don't like the system you can always cancel your account". I cancelled my EQ account the next day and may do the same with SWG.
I will give them a chance on this one item but I already play DAoC and I like it enough to pay for it after my free trial ends. It seems Mythic takes more into consideration when it comes to the people who keep the developers and marketing people employed...namely, the players who pay for it every month.
Just my thoughts.
I have had a chance to read both companies point of view (including Sony's initial letter to the community about Station Exchange). Here's my take. Not only is Mythic's response not "scathing," (a term better reserved for personal attacks), but I felt their belief about deleted items is totally without merit. In any game that has had server changes, thus necessitating the need for character migration, has the character ever been deleted? I think not. So why should an item be any different? I felt that in the case of Sony's initial letter to the community and their response to Mythic's response, that they were clearly more persuasive. They have every right to institute such a system, especially in light of the fact that some, and not all, of the servers will be enabled for such a feature. Lastly, any players who feel so strongly can just simply cancel their accounts. In the end, any who do cancel will probably not be a greater loss than the gain Sony sees from helping players exchange virtual property. I am impartial in any case to this whole state of affairs. I have never purchased virtual property and do not think I probably will at any point in the foreseeable future.
BundyTheRipper
it's not going to put on any of the regular servers... and sony isn't selling anything... the players are... so if sony nerfs something ... tough luck... you take that chance when you buy stuff and at least you know you're going to get it.
Another excellent point.
Vanguard Saga of Heroes is also taking a stand again the secondary market.
Response after hearing about SOE station exchange from CEO.
http://www.vanguardsaga.com/forums/showthread.php?postid=229038#post229038
Community manager interview on secondary market.
http://www.silkyvenom.com/forums/showthread.php?t=330
I hope to see more companies come out against this type of policy. In the end the gamer is going to lose with developers supporting the secondary market.
With all due respect to these companies taking a stand, you have to ask what their incentive is in doing so. The CEO of Mythic already said Sony is the leader in the field. And with Vanguard due out later, perhaps each is trying to garner support for their own respective games. With regards to Mythic, maybe they feel those unhappy with Sony will flee to DaoC. Vanguard could also use the publicity. They may each have motices that are not as "pore" as they'd like you to believe. Why would either company care if Sony damages their properties by engaging in this trading?
Did Mark Jacobs run into the street screaming when Project Entropia launched ??
No.....
Um that would be.... STFU Mark ROFL!
+-+-+-+-+-+
"MMOs, for people that like think chatting is like a skill or something, rotflol"
http://purepwnage.com
-+-+-+-+-+-+
"Far away across the field, the tolling of the iron bell, calls the faithful to their knees. To hear the softly spoken magic spell" Pink Floyd-Dark Side of the Moon
BundyTheRipper
/agreed
The real test will come when we see if they finally do something about the farmers for real. So far all we have had is enough hot air to power a gnomish airship.
+-+-+-+-+-+
"MMOs, for people that like think chatting is like a skill or something, rotflol"
http://purepwnage.com
-+-+-+-+-+-+
"Far away across the field, the tolling of the iron bell, calls the faithful to their knees. To hear the softly spoken magic spell" Pink Floyd-Dark Side of the Moon
It's only going to be one or two server... and not even current servers... new servers. Also they can control farmers since then know who selling the most and if you're selling 20 droped items then they can ban you or whatever or talk to you. They are only trying to control the flood gate and hopefully remove the buyers from the regular servers. It's not damaging the game at all for people on normal servers... in fact it's really helping them out allot! Less buyers to compete with so they have to drop the insane prices on items... anyway it's a pain to buy stuff in EQ2... the way the armor works just doesn't sit well with this kind of market... in EQ1 you could get some non req stuff and use it for 30 lvls or so... in here you can't use it for more than 10... and that's stretching it... more likely it's 5-6 lvls of use. Of course many who buy don't have the time to earn the gold to buy new armor so their crap goes green and they are f'ed out of luck
You had that kinda experience too, huh? I tried EQ2 as a 'casual' player like yourself (I don't live there like crazies do) and, after 3 or 4 calls to (ahem) 'customer service', I was treated like a piece of crap each and every time. I cancelled as well.
I mean, I thought OK -- EQ2. I bought the Zboard, the eqtoo keyboard, the whole show. What a racket, what a waste of money. Another day, another Yen lost.
Sony, you guys are screwing up. Jacobs? Playing anti Sony politics.
/yawn
Will the 'next great game' really be coming out? I'll withhold comment. We shall see..
-- The Maxx
You had that kinda experience too, huh? I tried EQ2 as a 'casual' player like yourself (I don't live there like crazies do) and, after 3 or 4 calls to (ahem) 'customer service', I was treated like a piece of crap each and every time. I cancelled as well.
I mean, I thought OK -- EQ2. I bought the Zboard, the eqtoo keyboard, the whole show. What a racket, what a waste of money. Another day, another Yen lost.
Sony, you guys are screwing up. Jacobs? Playing anti Sony politics.
/yawn
Will the 'next great game' really be coming out? I'll withhold comment. We shall see..
-- The Maxx
I just hope out of all this that people see the "secondary market" for what it trully is.Pure fuc@ing stupidity at its finest.I dont think theres enough demonising of people who purchase virtual game items and property going on out there.If you dont have enough time to invest in a mmo that you feel you need to spend your hard earned money on virtual game items do this.go to www.gamefly.com get a acount for the same price as your average mmo and play console games to you have a life.
Its like a kick in the head to me to see people support soes gimmick ass attempt to get out of the empending red with this BS.yeah the market will always be there but if you start banning players who clearly purchase these items and fuel it youll get a market to scared to lose there high lvl characters and put a real dent in the trade.I only wish i could get a job for some decent mmo were i had admin status and could ban people like http://www.penny-arcade.com/view.php3?date=2005-02-16&res=l
Why not a service like : "Order a lvl capped char of your choice for 29,95$" and "Buy it before friday and get another for 10$".
Nad just to make sure you grated every user's wishes : "Craft you own weap for 10$ or more with our super 1337 items crafting tools" and "This month's promo is : customize 3 items and you get the cheaper free."
And now you can ask your friend :
HappyBuyer : Hey bro, what you did last nite ?
.
NormalUser : Hmmm, spent all nite into pretty well designed elite mobs dungeon. Barely slept 3 hours.
HappyBuyer : Any drops ?
NormalUser : Aye , 2 ring of +12 dex/agil/stam. We did a loto with over 100 ppl and I won nothing
HappyUser : Haha, I hope the design wasn't too shabby cuz I got the same rings + a neck for about 59,95$ on XXX website.
HappyUser : And me and my gf went out for few drinks last nite.
NormalUser : Sigh!
As long they take this idea seriously.
Thanks Mr. Jacobs. I hope other mmorpgs devs will soon follow your example. What SOE is doing is unnacceptable.
my thoughts on this are fairly simple.SOE is looking for a way to make more money,thats the buisness that they are in,and you can bet on the fact that if this works on only one or two "new Servers" that they will implement it on the rest,whether it be EQ2/EQ/SWG or any other game they have in their stable.Myself I will not support them in this,as is my right.
I have had the pleasure of meeting and interviewing Mark Jacobs and, based on that limited exposure, I really think he is sincere in his criticism. Jacobs is one who takes the integrity of a game to heart. One of the reasons DAoC has never added levels above fifty is because the game balance is set for a maximum of fifty and adding levels would skew the dynamic. Mythic could make a boatload of cash by releasing a pay expansion that allowed only those with the expansion to advance to 60 or 70, but they have steadfastly refused to do so.
Camelot has expanded five times. Two of those were free to the community (the housing and the RvR expansions). Numerous other aspects of DAoC have been expanded or improved at no cost. Jacobs and his team are profoundly concerned with "throwing off the balance" of DAoC, and that's why they don't release a pay expansion willy-nilly every six months.
I know I sound like a Mythic fanboi, but I'm just sharing my opinion based on my experience with the Mythic team. I may be wrong, but I think Jacobs is far more concerned with the repercussions this will have on the genre and the industry than he is with Sony making a few extra bucks.
-----
Old timer.
This is so funny. Im the sad loser because I buy online goods? HAAHAHAHAHa, you guys are the joke get out of your basement more. Ive been buying goods sense there where games you could buy goods in. Never seen it bring any of them crashing down. Its just I lie told by greedy corporate power players afraid someone is making a buck off them. I just got a promotion, spent my bonus on a 2k$ 52 widescreen HDTV and Im getting ready to put down a payment on my next car, and Im sad for spending 20 a month on a video game? Haha you are the one that is sad
Im going to buy EQII, something I said Id never do, just so I can play the market. So at least they will make that money. If it dies so what, the secondary market is here to stay like it or not there is no MMORPG that is not affected by it, the vocal minority bitchs, the silent majority are indifferent or for it. Time to wake up and smell the coffee lol
Whatever superiority you could have claimed for your position just evaporate because of the approach you just took. Nice job. In my two previous thread posts I have stated that Station Exchange will cause no doom and gloom scenario, and then backed up my reasoning with logic. You on the other hand have used a scorched earth tactic. What does a job promotion have to do with the secondary market anyway?
BundyTheRipper
Okay, In my personal Opinion. SOE is by far the BEST MMORPG game creator of all time. EQ, EQ2, Planetside, SWG... must I continue?
In conclusion... Mark Jacobs is an ass, and it isnt wise messing around with one of the BIGGEST companies around.