In a game where PvP is almost an add-on, it always has been and would continue to be a mistake to try to keep the two worlds separate. That's what led to the initial demise of PvP servers in the game (those there trying to do PvE in the open world were constantly ganked by upper level players in gear that made them practically God Mode outside of Warzones). Getting rid of Expertise was LONG overdue. Unfortunately, any strides to be made in encouraging more people to try Warzones was offset by the implementation of RNG gearing and the bolster setback of 5.1.

Maybe check the forums and the Developer Tracker before making new posts like this?

I disagree with you 100%. Tier 3 gear should be available to anyone who has put in the time to afford them in any capacity they are available, including the schematics. If someone gets their game pleasure from crafting and "playing" the GTN, they should be able to do so for the best gear available. They have EARNED the credits they have and if they have EARNED enough credits to afford the GTN price, they should be able to buy schematics and proper crafting materials (which have been obtained by players running the content that drops them) and sell their products for a price the market will bear. They can't craft set bonuses, but they should be able to craft the gear itself. It doesn't matter whether YOU think they "need" the gear or not... this game is about obtaining the best available, and anyone using the legitimate gameplay style of their choice should be able to do so. Set bonuses are the reward for running content that drops gear, as it should be.

The theory has never been successfully debunked because it's true. It's history. If player numbers were "on the rise" that may have been for some short period, but the numbers had been in SIGNIFICANT DECLINE OVERALL for quite awhile by that point, and SOE was so concerned they felt they had to do some major course correction. That's not a "common error," that's the way things were. The CU was created to BRING PEOPLE BACK. Sure it was greed, but that was to reclaim what they had lost. They didn't have a wildly successful game and decide "hey, let's screw around with a winning formula and hope it brings in even MORE people!" They were, on the whole, LOSING subs, losing them big time, and tried to patch the game to stem the bleeding. THAT is the "actual" truth. Except that it's patently TRUE, and you can't rewrite history to change that. The GAME WAS DYING. Believe me, they wouldn't have altered the formula so drastically if things were going well. That literally defies almost every tenet of marketing. Sure, they might have improved the game in its final days, but there was hardly anyone left there at that point to notice. The game was dying long before the NGE, even before the CU (which IS why those two changes came about) but the NGE definitely, completely, and unequivocally was the lethal blow. Sorry, you can't even contest that. It's become video game LEGEND. Of course the game continued for a few years after that - they were desperate to milk every last drop before it became too costly to continue. People love to look back on things that had a good beginning with fondness, but SWG was never the great game we all wanted it to be, and we overlooked a lot of bad because of the few areas of truly great. But they panicked, made it worse, and now - years later - some of you want to remember it better and differently than it actually was.

Except it WASN'T good. (Only in your mind's eye, but never in reality.) It had MOMENTS, but ultimately was cascadingly dull or badly balanced or poorly implemented. To be sure, some of the systems (housing, crafting) held much promise, but the rest fell far short. Once you got over the novelty (because sure, it was amazing being on "Tatooine" and looking out over a cliff to Mos Eisley) they never really captured the FEEL of Star Wars. Just the LOOK. That's why it died. CU and NGE tried desperately to save it (you could tell it was desperation) but the exodus of players continued.

That reason? NOT A GOOD GAME. (That's why it died.) Good IDEAS. Good CONCEPTS. Never realized.

You... you actually thought SWG was GOOD? Oh, it did a precious few things right, but so much more (most, actually) so completely wrong. You remember it better than it was. It was mediocre at best... and the thing people misremember is that it was NOT the CU or NGE that killed SWG... IT WAS ALREADY DYING. Those drastic game changes were last ditch efforts to SAVE the game from the massive hemorrhaging of players who all had the same thing to say: "This doesn't feel like Star Wars." The ship models were the same. The towns and landscapes were familiar. But precious little else about that game felt Star Warsy outside of a visual nod (oh, look, they recreated THAT... but, um... yeah). I suppose crafters liked SWG better since they weren't trying to play a story or go in combat. I have NO IDEA what "performers" found fun, since they would start a macro and leave their toon animating while AFK for hours on end. Sure would be nice if people would FINALLY stop talking about SWG like it was some singular achievement. Once the initial novelty wore off, it started dying, FAST, and nothing they tried could save it. There were many great suggestions, but the "LEET" players refused to consider any idea that would divest them of their status... and ended up being LEET over nothing.

Except it's completely the truth and totally unskewed. That game had dead towns and cities for YEARS, claiming "prime" real estate. Worse yet, it took forever for the Devs there to finally let go and let the few remaining players demolish the ghost towns - but by then, it was too late. Sorry, but you're looking at SWG with rose-colored glasses. It was NEVER as good as it's potential and suffered from countless problems that kept it from actually feeling like Star Wars (for example... run out of a town on Tatooine and shoot a womprat point blank... oh wait, if you're low level YOU CAN MISS! Or fly a TIE fighter and ONE-SHOT a YT-1300 and watch the "leet pilots" try to defend it. How many God Buffs can you get from AFK crafters in their far away houses?) The game was never actually THAT good, but boy you folks sure try to defend your memories. The reason they changed their play systems TWICE is because players were fleeing from that game for the reasons above and more. Too bad for them their solutions only made things worse. SWG was never a good game, but it always held great (though unfulfilled) promise.

Ironic that someone claiming to be a writer can't even spell the word "writer." The story you propose? UGH, it's the exact same as KOTFE, actually, except about 40x worse. Back in carbonite for 200 years we go? Lose all companions, except with no way to ever recover them? Yikes. Already having trouble continuing to play the actual version of this game, but I would unsub in two seconds if your version would ever be put into reality.

If Operations gets this, there should be a similar fix for Flashpoints as well. They also require grouping and some folks do not want the headache (and so much waiting around) that comes with Operations. There are fewer bosses in Flashpoints, so the raider imperative that "no one can get as much stuff as we get in raids!!" will remain fulfilled... but if Ops gets more dedicated gear, FPs should too. Right now, SM FPs drop only 208 gear... and you can BUY better green 210 gear when you hit 65. HM FP's drop 216 gear at best. They should be dropping much better. The one good thing about GC was that there was finally a way for those who enjoy Flashpoints to get better gear. (Yes, we want it, we need it to do that content and harder material and chapter stuff - plus, should we want to start doing Ops, we'll be in better gear to start and WHY SHOULD YOU CARE, you'll still get your drops from OPs, and more of them.) If Warzones get improved gearing with 5.1, Flashpoints SHOULD ALSO get better gearing. They also take longer to do than a WZ.

You're envy is overflowing. Why do YOU care how much money they make? On top of that, this isn't a 9 to 5 job with paid vacations and insurance. They have to pay for ALL of that, plus taxes, from what they bring in. So they are NOT "overpaid." And YOU have NO IDEA if there are "far better VAs out there." Are you a producer? No. That statement has ZERO basis in reality. Plus, why SHOULD they work for less if this is what the industry pays... and VA work in animation for TV and film pays EVEN BETTER!! If they got paid less, they couldn't even afford to stay in the industry. This kind of jealous ignorance is infuriating. Are there people who can do your husband's job better for cheaper? I bet so. SHOULD THEY?

$75,000 a year is NOT wealthy. If your husband is only making $18,500 that's POVERTY. I've read your posts and all I can see is jealousy and envy. It's like the song "Money for Nothing" - you think that just because they "only" use their voices that they should make less money than your husband. Sorry, doesn't (and shouldn't) work that way. Welcome to the Entertainment Industry. These folks who are making $800 for 4 hours might not work for weeks. Any who are reasonable well off also do film and TV animations and movies. They are professionals, and they deserve to make as much doing voices for computer games as they do for TV and movie animations... in fact, computer games earn MORE money than films. So where's the equity? Sorry you're so jealous about the money they make. I've always been in video or marketing production and feel the same way about salesmen who don't do any of the actual work but make the lion's share of dough. Yet, without them, there would be no work to do. So really, enough with this "there are other people who would do that job better, for less" 1) No there aren't. 2) They'll have to pay their dues and agents and managers to work their way up the ladder like everyone else did. But stop begrudging them the salary they deserve in the industry in which they work. It's so petty.

Your trollism is showing. IF you're (not "your") strictly a solo player then it doesn't MATTER whether you play at peak times... because you're playing by yourself. Get it? Only GROUP players would be concerned about peak times. I always get the feeling your forum handle refers to your posting ability. Anyway, I thought you had unsubbed and were gone? YOU TEASE US.

Three instance of Alderaan on EH now - Instance 1 is filled. There are as many "Imperials" in House Organa than Pubs. For once, we're all of a same mind. Pretty moving.

When and where?

I think you're missing the point, though. In TFA, the female protagonist was (clearly) created to be the next featured Jedi/Force-based hero of the saga. In this game, WE create the heroes. You create yours, I create mine, and we put them through their paces based on how WE want them to react. If you WANT your Bounty Hunter to be Force-sensitive, then hooray, three-cheers-and-a-bantha-for-you! But with KOTFE and KOTET, it's no longer MY SMUGGLER'S story... he's not Force-sensitive, that's not how I created him or how I play him. He's a loner, he's a pirate. There are many paths he could have followed in the new expansions (but for him, they would be paths of profit - he would be Gault in this scenario) but none of them are the "new Emperor" who somehow manages to defeat Vitiate who swallowed an entire planet. (Valkorian's story and timeline STILL don't make any sense... at ALL. That cripples this story out of the gate, but that's a different concern.) Non-Force users are indeed shoe-horned into this plot where they don't really fit... and how so many of our characters don't WANT to fit. Imagine the world of PR genius BW would show if they created an Eternal Throne side story as a character who isn't in charge of the Alliance and gets involved through a series of (more or less) class-specific adventures. You can't erase Eternal Throne, but if you could create a secondary path through it (I haven't been able to bring myself to take the overwhelming majority of my characters through the story for many reasons) and give players the option to participate with their beloved characters in a way that made sense to the character... I think you'd win back a LOT of disenfranchised folks right now. Then move on with the story post-ET... That would be a Christmas present for the ages!

It is equally as important in anime and cartoons as it is in video games FOR ALMOST EVERYONE. So don't try to downplay the importance of quality voice overs in games just because an extreme minority (i.e. just you) doesn't care. I guess maybe we should go back to text-based games then because Tsetso thinks voice work is only supplementary at best.

See? HE gets it. No one is saying they should renege on deals they have already taken (and I don't even think that's part of the discussion here). What they ARE saying is they want a more equitable deal going forward, like they get WITH THE REST OF THE ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY. It's really sad that people with no understanding about how performers are compensated are raging because they don't get to make the same salary at their jobs (which include benefits, insurance, withholding, etc.)

Why does this figure bother you so much? It's not a full-time job with benefits. That don't make that much an hour for 40 hours a week, every week. It's piecemeal at best. And while Voice Actors are "replaceable," it's only by OTHER qualified Voice Actors who deserve the same consideration. Are you just jealous that YOU don't make $825 for 4 hours work? Is it unfair? They can make that much or more doing voice work for television or movie animations... why shouldn't they make that here, where the audience expects the same quality voice performances? Also, you have apparently zero understanding of the entertainment industry ("you'll never work in this town AGAIN!"). If you WANT your games to sound sub-standard, while boy howdy! Let's make sure Voice Actors are paid even less!

Yeah, the camera guy works for the movie company. He gets a paycheck. Actors are independent contractors. They are not employees. They get a check and a residual. Every actor who shows up on screen gets that. It is part of their performance compensation. Here is what you have failed to realize throughout your constant bashing of voice actors in nearly every post you have made in this thread: there is no difference for a voice actor between doing a voice for a video game and for a TV or movie animation. It is ALL the entertainment industry, and there needs to be a standardization of pay and conditions for voice workers. You honestly seem to have very little understanding of that industry based on what you've posted... in fact, you're coming across as a bit of a troll. "Let them find other jobs if they don't like it." "Oh, there's plenty of more where that came from" is extremely disrespectful to industry professionals and shows that you really don't know what you're talking about. Voice actors DO deserve residuals in video games the same as in the other entertainment venues they perform. You act as if they are trying to get rich, but that's not the case. They aren't asking for outrageous fees or huge sums of money... and video games CAN afford the residuals because they make MORE than movies and television shows where voice actors already receive such residuals. They are NOT "easily replaceable" - there is a very distinct skill set, and because it is a performance... sorry, my friend, but the good ones ARE special. They have a rare vocal quality that lets them perform multiple characters and convey emotion through inflection and accent alone, without visual expression. Maybe YOU would be fine with grabbing any ol' person off the street and have them start voicing characters, but the audience's tastes in entertainment are much more sophisticated now than ever... why should game players enjoy a reduced quality voice performance because some guy called "TX_Angel" gets angry that people are paid to do voices? It makes one wonder what hidden, underlying cause or event makes you so vehemently derisive of voice actors. Does it matter if a voice actor's name isn't "so big" that they aren't on the box? No, of course not... in the same manner as those voice actors are not marquee names on the movie and television animations they perform on. (And you know, some of them are actors... they actually APPEAR, in person, in television and movies as well, and are paid accordingly. Why should video games be exempt from paying the same for their talents?) This isn't even a matter, as some have suggested, that programmers need a residual before the voice actors do. Voice actors are freelancers... the money they get for performance has to pay for insurance, gas, etc. Programmers work for the game companies. They are on salary, which generally also covers insurance and such (any political discussions aside). Some of them get residuals or bonuses as part of the company they work for (who negotiate for the same based on delivery and performance milestones). But what they get is based on their positions as full-time employees. The world of freelancing is different. These folks aren't striking because they want to get paid the same amount as Brad Pitt when he voices a character. Sure, name actors command a higher ticket price, and no one disputes that. They are wanting better working conditions (which, come on, they make their living from their voices. Why should they destroy that by yelling and screaming without there being some kind of safety regulations in place?) and a realistic residual... which is standard for the entertainment industry. You've already admitted that Jennifer Hale and Steve Blum are recognizable voice actors. Does anyone buy a game just because they know one of those folks performs in it? YES, they do. That may not include the bulk of gamers, but there are a significant number. Does that mean it's OK for just them, maybe they are the exceptions? No, it doesn't. All it means is that those individuals might command a higher rate because of their name value. It doesn't mean they are the only ones who should get residuals or the basic work improvements that the voice actors are asking for. It's how the entertainment industry works and last I checked, video games were entertainment. SWTOR would likely not have succeeded to the point it has without stellar voice acting, and that aspect seems to be something that even the game's various detractors can agree upon. There are a few clunkers in the game, and most everyone who has played for any length of time can point out the voice or two that don't seem to match up to the standard of voice acting that made the vanilla game so compelling. By your reasoning, we should be happy with that being the norm instead of the exception. You seem to think that these actors are irrelevant and replaceable because there are just scads of folks "out there" who can do voices. The ones who can, at a professional level, all deserve to be properly compensated for their work... not just paid the same way video games have paid since WELL before they became one of the biggest profit centers in the entertainment industry.

The crafted gear will come with built in armor/mods/enhancement stats. HOWEVER, crafters will still be able to craft armors and mods and enhancements separate from gear so they can be mixed and matched (with no set bonuses, of course)

No, it's not that you COULD be wrong, it's that you actually ARE wrong. I suggest do an online search for Supply and Demand - it explains everything quite well. If there are less players, there are less people selling a product. Supply < Demand = $Prices ^^

Again, Bioware has nothing to do with GTN prices. There is nothing for them to check into, although I do think they are working on a new Tin Foil Hat helmet that will drop with Command Boxes.

Aaaaaaaaaaand why are you asking Bioware? They don't control prices on the GTN. That's set by the players and the price they THINK the market will bear.

http://www.npr.org/sections/alltechconsidered/2016/10/22/498954253/voice-actors-strike-against-video-game-companies Obviously all voice work for KOTET recorded by now, but EA is one of the main companies being picketed...