Queue's, AFK Tricks, Server x-fers in one post

We are thrilled that so many people showed up for our Grand Opening! Every business wishes to be so successful! Imagine a cafe owner who opens his doors the first day and sees people lined up around the block! He would celebrate and immediately start making plans to expand so that he can accommodate everyone, all the way to the back of the line! But at the same time, he doesn’t want to rush or skimp on anything for those who are at the front of the line. He wants them to enjoy their experience so they will have the best possible experience once they’re inside.



It’s been no different here! We are all doing everything we can to accommodate you all as quickly as we can. Please remember that it’s no different for us than our café owner. There are a lot of things to consider and schedule. I am amazed at all the moving parts.



I am a gamer. I also ask things like “Why don’t they just open a bunch more servers?” and “Why don’t they just raise the server capacity?” I even asked those things the past couple of days. Well, having a front row seat, I have heard conversations, been in chats and seen emails and to be honest, I don’t always understand the technical side of some of what they are saying. But there are reasons for all of these decisions. They might be technical or logistical, but these things are being executed in the way that makes the most sense. Everyone is trying to make the best decisions to make Rift the best it can be, and balance between the short and long term health of the game and its server communities.



That being said, we are reading your feedback and we do hear your concerns. We have always tried to be as up front with you as we can and that isn’t going to change now. So without further ado, I’d like to address some of the hot topics here in the community now.



Queues:



Unfortunately, queues are part of launching an MMO. No one can predict how that is going to go. You make an educated guess and then you adjust as fast as you can. Our pre-order numbers continued to rise so quickly that we were adding servers right up until launch and are still continuing to add them. As for the queues for some of the servers, we understand that this is an issue for those who already have friends tied to that server. If you’re new, we do suggest choosing a server with a lower population. There are servers that have little or no queue at all. Our web team went as far as to get the first draft of a server status page with a queue watcher out this evening:



http://www.riftgame.com/en/status/index.php

http://www.riftgame.com/de/status/index.php

http://www.riftgame.com/fr/status/index.php



Rest assured, we are aware that some of you are in long queues and we are doing all we can to accommodate everyone and still maintain our quality of service.



AFK Tricks



We have been reading your complaints about this issue. An update to address the majority of them was just sent out to the EU servers, and is scheduled to hit the US servers tomorrow morning at 8am Pacific.



Transfers



We have seen all of the posts requesting character transfers and while it is not something we will be able to offer this instant, it is something we are absolutely working out the logistics on for when and if it is needed once the initial overpopulation subsides.



We are reading your feedback and we will always try to get you answers when we can. Thank you all for joining us in Head Start!