Is The Fatman Saving SWTOR?

[discosoc]

A server boasting "Light" status can boast a sustainable and thriving community as well. Not all of them do, with approximately a third supporting very little activity at all. As such 2/3 are doing alright. Additionally, your "feel of a MMO" statement is entirely subjective and holds no bearing as fact.

 

Yeah, because your "2/3" is somehow based on hard facts...

[SikrouDeco]

Fatman's not the only server like that, but they do really need to merge servers and make more just like it

 

BW will close down before they merge servers. They said in an interview Server merges were given a low priority. They are afraid of the negative conotations attached with merging servers.

 

It would be so easy to justify too. "In an attempt to counter server over population at launch we may have opened a few too many servers. Now that traffic has stabilized we will offer our playerbase the chance to transfer their characters to a designated server to allow for easier grouping, etc.."

 

Come on Bioware, I even saved you the time of thinking of how to word your press release!

Edited May 9, 2012 by SikrouDeco

[ISTrick]

Our servers down under here in ol' Asia/Pacific (I'm in New Zealand) are rocking along GANGS.

 

aka

 

FULL-BURSTING IN PEAK

 

STANDARD-HEAVY MID-DAY IN THE WEEK

 

 

 

Re-roll downunder and ye' will have much fun & plunder.

[DarthSublimitas]

Overpopulation is preferable to the graveyard of perpetually 'light' population servers (basically all European servers) that often struggle to boast more than 100 people online in all instances even at good times... Feels more likely Minimally Multiplayer as opposed to Massively Multiplayer!

 

Or single player...

[Scerge]

Is it just me, or is The Fatman server the only server saving this game from dying?

 

In the server, it's actually not that hard to group for any mission and players even ask to do any kinds of Operations on the Fleet. Socialization is pretty easy and can be quite fun—especially if you have a nice, tight-knit guild to socialize with. You find the Fleet, Capital and Starting Planets as the most populated within the server, with the other planets having a decent-to-high population.

 

Being in a highly populated server doesn't mean it comes without its cons, because the general chat is usually full of trolls and spam of guild recruitment posts (ones that are posted every 20 secs or so), and there will be players who really just make the experience of the game not-so-enjoyable.

 

Despite all the bugs, the lack of content you reach during endgame and its other cons (mentioned above), is The Fatman keeping most of the game alive? It's population, activity and communities within the server might be what's keeping players to stay (and making more players re-roll each day).

 

Apparently SWTOR has had a decline of nearly 25% of players, but that—and the end of the Rakghoul Plague Event—just seemed to affect The Fatman server population just minimally.

 

I've created this thread for a mature discussion intended for a Podcast that I'll be appearing on Monday the 14th.

 

So could The Fatman's factors in not just population, but the experience of the game and activity of the communities, be saving SWTOR? /Discuss!

 

Edit #1: You are free to extend this discussion off The Fatman, but please don't go overboard.

 

Fat man and Tomb of Freedon Nadd are both saving it.

[Gungan]

Fat man and Tomb of Freedon Nadd are both saving it.

 

For the people on those servers maybe.

[Sanxxx]

Fat man and Tomb of Freedon Nadd are both saving it.

 

.....and they both have declining populations.

[Jederix]

I am mainly a PvPer, but I do my best to keep my cool and not complain/QQ. I do look at the positive aspects, point out the negative aspects, and try to point out things that need to be changed, kept or removed completely.

 

I understand, though, that these forums are filled with lots of QQ'ers. Someone pointed me out for complaining—told them I play on The Fatman and that I'm taking action on here maturely.

 

You would be one of the few. These are just my opinions, however. I love PvP myself. But I would never consider myself part of what constitutes the "PvP Community" in any MMO because, frankly, most of its players are adolescent children, regardless of age.

[zerosaint]

I remember players QQ'd here on the forums about the extreme queues so BioWare gave everyone tons of servers. ?

 

I am so sick and tired of people saying this like it's true.

At pre-launch there were pre-launch servers.

At launch they added the rest of the servers in.

The servers had hard caps which were then removed.

 

That's it. Period.

[Jederix]

BW will close down before they merge servers. They said in an interview Server merges were given a low priority. They are afraid of the negative conotations attached with merging servers.

 

It would be so easy to justify too. "In an attempt to counter server over population at launch we may have opened a few too many servers. Now that traffic has stabilized we will offer our playerbase the chance to transfer their characters to a designated server to allow for easier grouping, etc.."

 

Come on Bioware, I even saved you the time of thinking of how to word your press release!

 

Don't bother. People are going to continue to cry for mergers, even though mergers are a last resort for dying games. The people calling for them are self-entitled players who want Bioware to fix everything for them instead of being proactive on their own and transferring.

 

They will follow the Rift model, if they are smart. Offer free transfers from low pop servers to others (no, the Fatman will NOT be one of the servers you can transfer for free to; if you believe it will, I've got some ocean front property in Arizona to sell you), then close the empty ones. It will be a consolidation of sorts.

 

Mergers are messy, complicated, and cause more bad publicity than they are worth. This game is no where close to having to resort to such drastic measures to fix its issues.

[zerosaint]

Don't bother. People are going to continue to cry for mergers, even though mergers are a last resort for dying games. The people calling for them are self-entitled players who want Bioware to fix everything for them instead of being proactive on their own and transferring.

 

Is it entitlement to not want to spend an entire night trying to fill a group for Mandalorian? Because that's how my night was the last time I played. (It doesn't really matter to me honestly- I've cancelled, but just food for thought).

Edited May 9, 2012 by zerosaint

[VulcanLogic]

Our servers down under here in ol' Asia/Pacific (I'm in New Zealand) are rocking along GANGS.

 

aka

 

FULL-BURSTING IN PEAK

 

STANDARD-HEAVY MID-DAY IN THE WEEK

 

 

 

Re-roll downunder and ye' will have much fun & plunder.

 

You have to remember, Bioware had already been through the Queue and Low Pop debacle *before* they decided how many Oceanic servers to create. They took the data from all of you playing West Coast US, came up with reasonable expectations, and came through for the Australians and New Zealanders with the exact number of servers you needed for a healthy population. They didn't have that option with the US. What they had were queue times all over, and people complaining about that, and probably expectations for population growth that were unrealistic. That they got Oceanic servers right is a sign they have learned from their earlier mistakes. But they still need to fix those mistakes state side.

[CygnusMX]

You have to remember, Bioware had already been through the Queue and Low Pop debacle *before* they decided how many Oceanic servers to create. They took the data from all of you playing West Coast US, came up with reasonable expectations, and came through for the Australians and New Zealanders with the exact number of servers you needed for a healthy population. They didn't have that option with the US. What they had were queue times all over, and people complaining about that, and probably expectations for population growth that were unrealistic. That they got Oceanic servers right is a sign they have learned from their earlier mistakes. But they still need to fix those mistakes state side.

 

So thats where the term "watch what you ask for you might get it" comes from...

Edited May 9, 2012 by CygnusMX

[Lakhesis]

You have to remember, Bioware had already been through the Queue and Low Pop debacle *before* they decided how many Oceanic servers to create. They took the data from all of you playing West Coast US, came up with reasonable expectations, and came through for the Australians and New Zealanders with the exact number of servers you needed for a healthy population. They didn't have that option with the US.

 

If only they'd opened in smaller markets to get a stress test, rather than opening in their biggest markets & locking the smaller markets out. I can understand entirely why they did it from a marketing PoV, but from a business management PoV it was move that looked highly likely to bite them in the rear from the start. It does seem a bit like too many people at the studio believed their own hype rather than planning to create a solid fundamental base.

 

So really, that one is their own fault and they should have been expecting the current issue.

[JeramieCrowe]

If only they'd opened in smaller markets to get a stress test, rather than opening in their biggest markets & locking the smaller markets out. I can understand entirely why they did it from a marketing PoV, but from a business management PoV it was move that looked highly likely to bite them in the rear from the start. It does seem a bit like too many people at the studio believed their own hype rather than planning to create a solid fundamental base.

 

So really, that one is their own fault and they should have been expecting the current issue.

 

Nah, it's not that at all. They opened up as many as they did for the launch rush. And it's still being hailed as one of the best launches in MMO history. BioWare even had server transfer software ready before launch, so they WERE expecting it.

 

However, listen to this, and you'll see what happened. Many Legacy things were added last minute, and were unplanned before. That screwed up the server transfer software they had ready, so they are currently having to rewrite it. QA really dropped the ball on that one.

 

The bright side is that TOR has the population once server transfer/cullings are in place. I posted this earlier, but I'll say it again:

 

My server has about 150 on Fleet every day. On weekends, it actually usually instances. Two days ago, there were 71 on Coruscant. Alt-rollers galore! Don't see as many 50s as you think there should be? It's because 1.2 worked like a charm! A week and a half ago, I personally got a full 24-man together in 20 minutes....not once...not twice...but THREE times in two days on Tatooine using only Tatooine chat (there were 90 there) and the global LFG channel.

 

My server is listed on TORstatus.net as 20th. That means that 19 servers are as good as or better than mine, and that at least 10 to 20 more past mine are decent.

 

So, the upcoming transfer/shut-down culling of low-pops should work as beautifully as it did for RIFT last year. Check it out. The proof is in the RIFT pudding. But they really need to do it THIS MONTH.

Edited May 9, 2012 by JeramieCrowe

[Sanxxx]

Nah, it's not that at all. They opened up as many as they did for the launch rush. And it's still being hailed as one of the best launches in MMO history. BioWare even had server transfer software ready before launch, so they WERE expecting it.

 

However, listen to this, and you'll see what happened. Many Legacy things were added last minute, and were unplanned before. That screwed up the server transfer software they had ready, so they are currently having to rewrite it. QA really dropped the ball on that one.

 

The bright side is that TOR has the population once server transfer/cullings are in place. I posted this earlier, but I'll say it again:

 

My server has about 150 on Fleet every day. On weekends, it actually usually instances. Two days ago, there were 71 on Coruscant. Alt-rollers galore! Don't see as many 50s as you think there should be? It's because 1.2 worked like a charm! A week and a half ago, I personally got a full 24-man together in 20 minutes....not once...not twice...but THREE times in two days on Tatooine using only Tatooine chat (there were 90 there) and the global LFG channel.

 

My server is listed on TORstatus.net as 20th. That means that 19 servers are as good as or better than mine, and that at least 10 to 20 more past mine are decent.

 

So, the upcoming transfer/shut-down culling of low-pops should work as beautifully as it did for RIFT last year. Check it out. The proof is in the RIFT pudding. But they really need to do it THIS MONTH.

 

They opened up for 2.4m , and lost far more than they expected initially (700k) and have lost far more than expected in the last months. If they had expected this decline at this time then xfers would have been ready, this is why it has been moveD up to number one priority.

 

QA certainly didn't drop the ball, it lies with bad design and rushed dev..

 

That TOR has the population is obvious , the issue is , what number of servers is needed. All severs are continuing to show population decline that shows no sign of stopping.

 

RIFT did do a good job at the right time , and of course 'current' MMOs , Tera, GW2, will have it as standard day 1

[JeramieCrowe]

They opened up for 2.4m , and lost far more than they expected initially (700k) and have lost far more than expected in the last months. If they had expected this decline at this time then xfers would have been ready, this is why it has been moveD up to number one priority.

 

QA certainly didn't drop the ball, it lies with bad design and rushed dev..

 

That TOR has the population is obvious , the issue is , what number of servers is needed. All severs are continuing to show population decline that shows no sign of stopping.

 

RIFT did do a good job at the right time , and of course 'current' MMOs , Tera, GW2, will have it as standard day 1

 

They HAD transfer software ready before launch. That means it doesn't matter how many subs they lost, it would have worked, even if they transferred/shut-down to 12 servers, if it wasn't for the fact that some Legacy features rendered it unusable. THAT'S what got them scrambling.

[Talon_strikes]

I am so sick and tired of people saying this like it's true.

At pre-launch there were pre-launch servers.

At launch they added the rest of the servers in.

The servers had hard caps which were then removed.

 

That's it. Period.

Well if that's how it really worked out players still QQ'd, and those caps were removed by placing in too many servers.

[Talon_strikes]

Nah, it's not that at all. They opened up as many as they did for the launch rush. And it's still being hailed as one of the best launches in MMO history. BioWare even had server transfer software ready before launch, so they WERE expecting it.

 

However, listen to this, and you'll see what happened. Many Legacy things were added last minute, and were unplanned before. That screwed up the server transfer software they had ready, so they are currently having to rewrite it. QA really dropped the ball on that one.

 

The bright side is that TOR has the population once server transfer/cullings are in place. I posted this earlier, but I'll say it again:

 

My server has about 150 on Fleet every day. On weekends, it actually usually instances. Two days ago, there were 71 on Coruscant. Alt-rollers galore! Don't see as many 50s as you think there should be? It's because 1.2 worked like a charm! A week and a half ago, I personally got a full 24-man together in 20 minutes....not once...not twice...but THREE times in two days on Tatooine using only Tatooine chat (there were 90 there) and the global LFG channel.

 

My server is listed on TORstatus.net as 20th. That means that 19 servers are as good as or better than mine, and that at least 10 to 20 more past mine are decent.

 

So, the upcoming transfer/shut-down culling of low-pops should work as beautifully as it did for RIFT last year. Check it out. The proof is in the RIFT pudding. But they really need to do it THIS MONTH.

Wasn't the Legacy System just messed up entirely? I got a few friends who say it sucks trying to go make tons of credits to purchase Legacy items because he's already unlocked the system. Or will the prices on those "unlocked" items stay?

[SikrouDeco]

Don't bother. People are going to continue to cry for mergers, even though mergers are a last resort for dying games. The people calling for them are self-entitled players who want Bioware to fix everything for them instead of being proactive on their own and transferring.

 

They will follow the Rift model, if they are smart. Offer free transfers from low pop servers to others (no, the Fatman will NOT be one of the servers you can transfer for free to; if you believe it will, I've got some ocean front property in Arizona to sell you), then close the empty ones. It will be a consolidation of sorts.

 

Mergers are messy, complicated, and cause more bad publicity than they are worth. This game is no where close to having to resort to such drastic measures to fix its issues.

 

I'm willing to wager they will offer Free Transfers after Guild wars 2 comes out. We'll see if I'm right. As for "No where near..." they are on the precipice. They had 1.7 million subs, after sales of 2 million units. So from there they lost (for whatever reason) 300k in potential subscribers. Since they released that figure, they have lost yet another 300k in subs. They have stated they need 500k minimum for the game to be profitable. That 900k breathing room. Hopefully the new areas they are launching in will bring the subs up to over 2 million. Fingers crossed. And it should be said, the economy is bad. And 15.00 per month for a game that will get better over time is too much for some.

Edited May 10, 2012 by SikrouDeco

[JeramieCrowe]

Wasn't the Legacy System just messed up entirely? I got a few friends who say it sucks trying to go make tons of credits to purchase Legacy items because he's already unlocked the system. Or will the prices on those "unlocked" items stay?

 

Most item unlocks in Legacy are by Legacy level OR credits. Not both. The only exceptions are ship mailbox, Repair Droid, etc.

[Talon_strikes]

I'm willing to wager they will offer Free Transfers after Guild wars 2 comes out. We'll see if I'm right. As for "No where near..." they are on the precipice. They had 1.7 million subs, after sales of 2 million units. So from there they lost (for whatever reason) 300k in potential subscribers. Since they released that figure, they have lost yet another 300k in subs. They have stated they need 500k minimum for the game to be profitable. That 900k breathing room. Hopefully the new areas they are launching in will bring the subs up to over 2 million. Fingers crossed. And it should be said, the economy is bad. And 15.00 per month for a game that will get better over time is too much for some.

BioWare will have to be smart with their choices during the upcoming weeks and months to keep from losing more subs, and to possibly gain back some. I would really like to see them get over 2 mil in subs and players. (:

[gabrielcab]

I would say that Fatman killed my server, most ,for not say all of the active players from my previous guild moved to the Fatman, now my server is a ghost town. Sadly i'm allergic to grinding so I stay in the ghost town.

[Thannate]

Not sure about SWTOR, but he did wonders for Jake.

[ross_deutsch]

The Harbinger is a good one too! I play a Sith Marauder, people are pretty decent.