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6 months + and the SWG Forums are still filled with:
Things seem to be getting worse, not better. It seems the community that was sticking it out the 6 months that Smed & JT promised it would take to "finish the NGE" are getting fed up and are not seeing any hope. And for those that would deny it, I'll be happy to add some links to prove the reality of the forums.
In-Game isn't looking any better. I haven't seen any of the folks that recently came into the game on for weeks, including all the folks I knew who returned to check things out. I've also recieved a few blanket emails saying "the NGE still blows & I quit". For those that would flame me for saying this, remember I was honest about seeing more people starting to come in, and I'm being honest here.
After all of the money the spent and lost on the NGE & the advertising, it seems they've lost and know it. I haven't seen any Mag or TV ad's in a while... and they had ONE non-playable demo at E3... wow...
SWG CLASSIC FTW!!!
Comments
This month's Star Wars magazine had a MMO ad for.... EQ2. Even LucasFilm knows this game is toast.
As for the forum thing, it's cyclical as always. It's been quite some time since there has been any meaningful communication, there are lots of people upset over the "Combat Downgrade" on TC (which has been there for 2 weeks and TH can't manage to type a page of notes documenting the changes).
Stuff like that always sets the forums on fire.
Yeah I read the swg forums a lot and I find them same as 5-6 moths ago. From what I've been reading the changes are minimal compared to what other games (WoW, EQ2, etc) can do in the same amount of time. Big fixes all the way, some armor certs and a couple quest....no dungeons, no new vehicles, no new planets, no lag improvements, no good way of fight, no etc. SWG it's a negation in itself right now. It's a shadow of it's past, even if you still can make an effort and have some fun playing it.
The vocal forum minority is not such a minority, it's a statistical representation of what is happening in the game. I'm sure more than 50% of players are very disgusted (problably more than 80%, i'm just being optimistic). Those are very very bad numbers, sure. Community is against the game, LA and SOE, and the reverse is also true: The game, LA and SOE are against the players.
BTW, have you seen EQ2 updates in the last months? it's almost a joke to us: 1 expansion, another one about to be released and a bunch of adventure packs. Is SOE/LA trying to get rid of SWG? 70 devs on SWG? LOL at that.
I'm almost as angry as I was 6 months ago.
What SOE/LA expect from players, to just sit down? no, they flame the forum like the first day. It's natural, they are paying for the service and it's not being given as promised many many times.
If SOE includes the SOE All Access Account Pass (or what ever it is called) I'm interested to see if numbers jump back up when Vanguard opens, or if SWG continues to drop, or if SWG subscribers drop and V:SOH flops.
-W.
Star Wars Galaxies
(Accuracy Rating: C)
C –
This indicates that most or all of the data points provided are merely industry
“best guesses” or are otherwise questionable.
Usually, I will not chart MMOGs that rate C or lower. Their numbers should be taken with a large
grain of salt.
To compare take this:
Eve Online
(Accuracy Rating: A)
A –
This indicates that the vast majority of the data points shown come from either
official announcements by the companies involved or reliable inside
sources. The numbers can be considered
reliable, although a few of the data points may be incorrect.
Well as for the lack of dev participation in the forums I am guessing they figure they got alot of mileage with the summits so they can afford to go back to business as usual now. I expected it, it gave many a false hope that something was going to take a turn for the better though.
Quite honestly the rest sounds the exact same as pre-cu too me. Just change calls for rollback to calls for a combat revamp and the rest is old news.
- Scaris
"What happened to you, Star Wars Galaxies? You used to look like Leia. Not quite gold bikini Leia (more like bad-British-accent-and-cinnamon-bun-hair Leia), but still Leia nonetheless. Now you look like Chewbacca." - Computer Gaming World
And yes, there likely are still some of those (foolish) enough to have subscribed for 6 months or a year who have actually left but not expired yet. And if they don't log in for their "free 14 days" even then their accounts may still count as "open".
Expect SWG's subs to fall even more dramatically as those eventually expire.
SOE knows what you like... You don't!
And don't forget... I am forcing you to read this!
It has been said a million times before already. There are no SWG game cards anymore because you use the Station Pass cards now that work for all Station games, including SWG.
- Scaris
"What happened to you, Star Wars Galaxies? You used to look like Leia. Not quite gold bikini Leia (more like bad-British-accent-and-cinnamon-bun-hair Leia), but still Leia nonetheless. Now you look like Chewbacca." - Computer Gaming World
But see Dunc, the thing you are missing is they only backtrack if it's going to be a BAD thing. I can't think of a time they have done an about face and it been good...
- Scaris
"What happened to you, Star Wars Galaxies? You used to look like Leia. Not quite gold bikini Leia (more like bad-British-accent-and-cinnamon-bun-hair Leia), but still Leia nonetheless. Now you look like Chewbacca." - Computer Gaming World
But see Dunc, the thing you are missing is they only backtrack if it's going to be a BAD thing. I can't think of a time they have done an about face and it been good...
The only time they ever directly did so was when they backed down on the group XP ninjanerf of Publish 22.
Only to cynically reintroduce it in an even WORSE form a couple months later in the NGE.
The only other example I can find is they went from "no, you won't be able to fire specials directly from the keyboard, you must select and right click" to "we are allowing you to fire specials directly from they keyboard".
They didn't actually back down on that, they just pulled it out knowing they were putting it back in soon anways. It was like a ninja backtrack.
When did they change the specials back to being able to use the keyboard?
- Scaris
"What happened to you, Star Wars Galaxies? You used to look like Leia. Not quite gold bikini Leia (more like bad-British-accent-and-cinnamon-bun-hair Leia), but still Leia nonetheless. Now you look like Chewbacca." - Computer Gaming World
Since its launch in June 2003, the number of subscribers to
Star Wars Galaxies has always been somewhat uncertain. An official statement released by John
Smedley, President of SOE, in March 2004 suggested there were then currently
between 200,000 and 300,000 subscribers and that SW: G was the “second
largest MMO in the North American market”. I assume he was discounting Ragnarok Online and possibly FFXI in
that statement, so I put the number at that time at 275,000. Since then, the number of subscribers has
fallen sharply, although there is no official word on exactly how much. In a more recent statement in March 2006,
Smedley said that SWG was the fifth largest MMOG in the North American market,
behind WoW, EQ2, EQ, and RuneScape, which would put the number of subscribers
somewhere between 175,000 and 250,000. Inside
sources offer a more precise but incomplete picture; as of March 2006 SWG only
had 120,00 monthly paying subscribers, but this number does not include those
who are subscribed to the game via game time cards or SOE station pass
subscriptions. Based on previously
known data, I’ve put the total number of subscribers for SWG at 190,000 for
March 2006, but the actual number could be anywhere from 175,000 to 225,000.
So, it's completely a guess based on crap Smed said, and we all know how reliable HE is. The numbers are probably way over-inflated since he's going by Smed's crap. Especially when you consider how many people prepaid for a year in October, or didn't cancel before a 6 month renew hit. Also, the 14 day trial for vets has some interesting effects. If you're eligible for it, but don't log in to game to use it, your forum account is active until you use the trial. How many people with expired accounts who are eligible for the trial but won't use it that have forum access are counted? I wouldn't put it past them to count those.
SWG Tempest: Cardo Dycen RIP
Eve: Cardoh Dycen
I support random drug testing for all SOE employees
Yea...you know what gets me is they had thousands apon thousands of people telling them the NGE was the wrong way to go and still do, and yet they insist to this damn day its the right way.
I dont know about you guys but I sat there telling these people via emails, tickets, bug reports, posts on the forums and so on that I dont like this and it seems by continuing on with it they are trying to tell me what I like and what Im going to spend money on playing? FUCK THAT.
Granted at first poeple try to be open minded with game changes and even try to encourage others to do the same, ya know try it first, but damn man when ya try the shit and sux wtf! take it out , dont keep it in there and let people quit. Tf's the point in having a game noone wants to play and then keep feeding people shit telling them its fuggin fruit, Ill be damned. tf wrong with that company lol.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
As ye SOE, so shall ye weep.
But see Dunc, the thing you are missing is they only backtrack if it's going to be a BAD thing. I can't think of a time they have done an about face and it been good...
The only time they ever directly did so was when they backed down on the group XP ninjanerf of Publish 22.
Only to cynically reintroduce it in an even WORSE form a couple months later in the NGE.
The only other example I can find is they went from "no, you won't be able to fire specials directly from the keyboard, you must select and right click" to "we are allowing you to fire specials directly from they keyboard".
There was the huge crafting nerf that they got called out on while it was on TC. Everyone hated it. So they put it live saying they would roll it back in two days. I think in hopes of finding at least one person to support it. Then rolled it back.
There was also the wookie issue. They said for the longest time that wookies would never get armor. Then, thanks to protests, they put in armor. After the protests putting a media spin on saying that was their plan all along. Which it wasnt.
Kai
What I find the most disturbing on the SWG/SOE forums is how the posters tend to be much more intolerant of each other - to the point of being hatefilled. The "I am reporting/have reported your post" tattle-taling has also increased quite a bit. This tells a very sad story of the actual shape of the SWG community as a whole. The moderators have been heavy handed with the deleting/banning stick, but that is business as usual for them. Wanna-be Moderators need not apply.
The limited amount of feedback from the devs seems to fuel the forum fires in the long run. The so called 'Publish Plans' and 'community talks' are temporary pacifiers used to keep the majority of the paying sheeple in line. Either a player will tolerate the game as it is now, or will move on, if they have not done so already.
My only suggestion to anyone rergarding SWG forums is this - refrain from them if you find your delicate sensibilities are too easily offended.
If the rumors are true concerning the development of SWG2 by Bioware, why would SOE/LA take the effort to rollback SWG?
Ico
Oh, cruel fate, to be thusly boned. Ask not for whom the bone bones. It bones for thee.
And I'd say about 75% of the station pass players are focused on EQ1/2, so, yeah.
-- xpaladin
[MMOz]
AC1/2, AO, DAoC, EQ1/2, SoR, SWG, UO, WAR, WoW
I was thinking how good a roollback would be... Then I thought about it some more and I really dont want it to happen. At least not if SOE has anything to do with it. We are at the NGE because of what SOE / LA has done. I would prefer they jsut turn the game off and let another company have a crack at doing it right. Then and only then would we find out if the changes made to SWG were all SOE, a mix of SOE and LA or all LA shoving this shit (Uncle Macyntire)...
As for subscriptions.. I think the numbers on the chart are overly optomistic. Would it not make snese is the numbers there stated that SWG had 120 subs and this number was way low that SOE would jsut say the numbers you listed are to low but we still wont comment.
I'm guessing that the numbers are on the way to high side and SOE is jsut gonna use it as PR spin.
Xcathdra
Having access to a billion $ IP - Billions of dollars..
Having access to a massive fan base of said IP - Even more Billons...
Singly handedly alienating them due to stupidity - Priceless.
It's the same soup bowl... just a different flavor soup folks. They still haven't changed their views on the community. They still have tons of bugs, and plenty of time to screw the subs. What the community wants is of no relevence as long as they are still lining their pockets.
I once again reaffirm my boycott of Sony & Lucas Arts.
L8r
DB
They ($OE) won't rollback the servers. The present state of the game was created to be compliant with all the other games $OE manages. SWG will be part of a bundled package that will be offered to people who purchase the PS3 for $25 per month. They end up getting access to like 8 different MMOs.
Classic Servers will also noy happen with $OE. One it will show they were wrong in the CU and NGE and now with the 3rd combat update that will be coming out soon. Classic servers would also compete with the NGE version of the game. In addition $OE said they can not support 2 different sets of code for the same game.
But if Bioware was to come out with a new SW MMO .... for just PCs .... that could be a more likely possibility.
Sago Mactow
Former SWG 2yr 7 month Vet
6/26/03 - 1/26/06
Jedi, Master Shipwright, Master Architect
DFR Councilman
Tarq Server