Community Q&A Thread Blog Discussion: Free-to-Play Edition

[Emeda]

Kinda all of the above:

 

I agree nothing important/specific was answered, but do not blame it on the people answering the questions. They cant answer questions about specifics until specifics are released. They haven't been, so right now they can only answer the basics.

 

Isnt it the devs that are answering the questions? Are they not also the ones that would release the specifics? So the devs cant comment on the specifics because they havent release the specifics :confused:

 

So dont blame them, instead blame them instead

Edited August 10, 2012 by Emeda

[DarthTHC]

This wasn't in the Q&A, but it HAS been answered in interviews regarding F2P where it was stated outright that this will never happen.

 

Was it in the Q&A. No.

Should it have been? Maybe.

Was the question answered? Yes.

 

Please do share a link to any video or internet post that quotes an EA VP or higher (who is not one of the BioWare doctors because EA beats them like Vince McMahon beats Jim Ross) saying that.

[BenjaminminU]

So it said at the bottom you're discontinuing the Q&A, what happens with the already asked questions that were meant to be answered on August the 3rd?

[ChazDoit]

Samohnat: Will Cartel Coins be available via in-game mechanics?

 

Damion Schubert: Not initially. We may expand this in the future, but it’s not a goal for launch of the system.

 

In my opinion this is a mistake, while Cartel Coins will be one of their sources of revenue, there should be some machanic that allow people to earn a minimum ammount.

 

If we take League of Legends for example, they make money by selling two things, Champions and Skins, but you have the chance of getting all the champions for free if you just play a lot, and that's somethig that kept me hooked with LoL since I started playing it like 2 years ago. I talk more about this in one of my threads, the link is in my signature.

[Emeda]

In my opinion this is a mistake, while Cartel Coins will be one of their sources of revenue, there should be some machanic that allow people to earn a minimum ammount.

 

If we take League of Legends for example, they make money by selling two things, Champions and Skins, but you have the chance of getting all the champions for free if you just play a lot, and that's somethig that kept me hooked with LoL since I started playing it like 2 years ago. I talk more about this in one of my threads, the link is in my signature.

 

They dont care if you are playing the game, all they care about is if you are spending cash in the shops.

[DarkSaberMaster]

So it said at the bottom you're discontinuing the Q&A, what happens with the already asked questions that were meant to be answered on August the 3rd?

 

It means they won't get answered. They said that they were going to answer them along with the Q&A that they put out today. You can see for yourself how that went. But I am really not surprised that they didn't answer them. They haven't been answering any of the pertinent questions that we had anyways. So like a previous poster had said, why should we expect any different now?

[ChazDoit]

They dont care if you are playing the game, all they care about is if you are spending cash in the shops.

 

Well, yeah, can't spend cash in their game if you are not playing it, if you are not addicted by it. When I started playing LoL I didnt spend any money at first, got my free Tristana and then saved enough IP to get my Miss Fortune, but a few weeks later I started buying IP boosters, 50% off skins, etc.

[Pargon]

It's a delicate balance you guys are forced to keep with these Q&A's isn't it? You want to have these be long enough to hold some value, but to do it, you're forced into answering questions you're not ready to talk about yet. That invariably leads to the "more info in the coming weeks" answers that are so common.

 

I'm just one voice in the crowd, but personally I'd prefer solid answers even if there were fewer of them. There's gotta be some sort of information you can give out now rather than putting it off. As an alternative, you ought to bring back the screen shot of the week thing you used to do, but have it focus on the new areas or content. Show us what you're working on! We're dying to support you, but we have to see something.

 

lol of course there's the flip side that will always just poo poo on whatever you show. Welp. You win again, Internet.

[Jiminison]

Tatile: It's said that content will continue to come, but will it be like the content we've already seen (Operations and Flashpoints in patches with class balancing and new gear) or will the content only be fluffy happy stuff, like speeders and mini-pets?

 

Damion Schubert: We definitely have plans in the works for more Flashpoints, Operations, Space Missions, and Warzones. Generally, we will have more frequent updates for the game.

 

Really. I must say I would have expected this answer. I dont mean to say the question was bad, I just mean that an answer say we plan to have more updates was kinda lame. They said this before launch that an MMO only lives if the release high quality updates. However as they said we would get them monthly and we have had 2! 2 updates and one was group finder clearly what we are promised and what we get may not be the same.

 

I have read inbetween the lines on this Q&A and they are all vague answers that could mean anything. And as I suspecy he recent chnage to subscription may mean everythig we have been told before this might be wrong.

 

I would like to add I do like this game. I played a few flashpoints recently and thought wow. However the info we are given on the boards seems to be naff a t best and instulting at worst.

 

New space missions? /sigh how about free roaming open space instead I can't bring my self to do space missions I hate it!

[randalthorr]

IS THERE GOING TO BE ANYTHING DISCUSSED ABOUT WORLD PVP AT ALL??

 

 

Ok, I think its fair to say that the question deserved caps. Please answer this question for us so that I may decide whether to unsub and move on to f2p or not. PLEASE, its about time.

[TheCoffeeFiend]

Again, the interesting part is what was not said and what was dodged.

Yet, it is better to cancel this shtick right now rather than having to rename it as Questions & Subterfuge.

 

PS: Remember to hand a lemon to the genius behind the "we have a game with a definite emphasis on Alts and twinking so let's reduce the characterslots"-scheme.

Edited August 10, 2012 by TheCoffeeFiend

[Azoetia]

Mostly useless Q&A again.

 

This whole discontinuing-the-Q&A-based-on-player-feedback thing is a really nasty, passive-aggressive move, particularly since you're blaming us for it and acting like this is what we wanted. The appropriate response would to make the weekly Q&A have real info, not to stop doing it. This is a fine example of why I don't trust you at all.

 

Don't like the vague answers and evasions we kindly bestow upon the peons? Cool, we won't give you anything. That was easy.

[BraxKedren]

Mostly useless Q&A again.

 

This whole discontinuing-the-Q&A-based-on-player-feedback thing is a really nasty, passive-aggressive move, particularly since you're blaming us for it and acting like this is what we wanted. The appropriate response would to make the weekly Q&A have real info, not to stop doing it. This is a fine example of why I don't trust you at all.

 

Don't like the vague answers and evasions we kindly bestow upon the peons? Cool, we won't give you anything. That was easy.

 

I guessed you missed both parts that mentioned more F2P answer and details in the coming weeks (give them time to let legal get their grubby hands on the wording) and that the discontinuation of the Q&A is so that the Devs and Team have more opportunities to mingle on the forums with us.

 

I'd much rather have more interaction on the forums with the Swtor team than just the 5 questions they answer every week.

[Blaac]

Please do share a link to any video or internet post that quotes an EA VP or higher (who is not one of the BioWare doctors because EA beats them like Vince McMahon beats Jim Ross) saying that.

 

The information comes from http://www.mmorpg.com/gamelist.cfm/game/367/feature/6609/Free-to-Play-This-Fall.html where Jeff Hickman (developer) and Matt Bromberg (GM of the Austin studios) had a phone interview with them. They were assured "There will be nothing you can buy with CC that will give you an advantage over other players in a competitive arena."

 

If you are only willing to listen to a VP or higher you are wasting your time... they generally aren't the ones who step out to the press to talk about specifics. They are the people who talk about the broader pictures like the state of the game, or talking about the business in general. Details and specifics related to how the game is being developed are discussed with developers.

 

To think otherwise is simply ignorant of common business practices. To accept nothing less is just foolish. Your entitled to have your own expectations, but what you are asking for is unreasonable. You don't ask the owner of a major electronics company specifics on how they are building the electronics, you ask the people in charge of building them.

[Jnight]

I get a kick out of the people demanding to know the details right now because they "care about the future of the game". Oh yeah? Well if you did you'd still be subbing until Nov or whenever it goes live anyway, and then still subbing after.

 

Continue to sub now and enjoy the game, or unsub and wait. This is not a way of life people, it's a game to enjoy.

 

 

Would any EA VP please stand up and say they would never, ever allow "pay to win" features into the game?

common, sure it's not official until they say it, but everything they told us was cosmetic or convenience related. I think that's a pretty good indication of where they are trying to go with it.

 

Why are people so jaded?

Edited August 10, 2012 by Jnight

[Azoetia]

I guessed you missed both parts that mentioned more F2P answer and details in the coming weeks (give them time to let legal get their grubby hands on the wording) and that the discontinuation of the Q&A is so that the Devs and Team have more opportunities to mingle on the forums with us.

 

I'd much rather have more interaction on the forums with the Swtor team than just the 5 questions they answer every week.

No, I didn't miss it. I just don't believe it. Because it's easier to BS away a nebulous offer to do something at some point maybe than it is to BS away a scheduled thing people look forward to and expect.

 

The community team's follow-through rate has been maddeningly low lately, so I expect them to not do this either. Or to do it in a really, really token way. As for the devs, they don't have time to mingle because they're writing two lines of "we'll see" in response to these questions once a week? Do you really believe that?

 

They're not going to mingle. They don't want to hear from us. I can't deduce anything else from what I've seen.

 

The real answer would be to actually improve the Q&A. This is a cop-out.

[Catsmeat]

The real answer would be to actually improve the Q&A. This is a cop-out.

 

Indeed it is. I'm quite disapointed.

Edited August 10, 2012 by Catsmeat

[InnerPieces]

Mostly useless Q&A again.

 

This whole discontinuing-the-Q&A-based-on-player-feedback thing is a really nasty, passive-aggressive move, particularly since you're blaming us for it and acting like this is what we wanted.

 

That's exactly what I thought when I read that. Kind of like going F2P. I'm willing to bet all my Cartel Coins the reason a majority of those said they would consider F2P was because they simply don't think the game is worth paying for. So, rather than actually listening to us and making the game worth paying for, they "listened to us" and made it F2P instead.

[InnerPieces]

Why are people so jaded?

 

Experience.

[sDSSm]

The real answer would be to actually improve the Q&A. This is a cop-out.

An incredibly accurate statement. One of the prime complaints after each of the Q&A articles was how we weren't told anything of actual value. If they had any real desire to make a weekly event for us to look forward to, they would try to improve their quality of information being delivered. Instead, they gave up and walked away.

 

I'm sure they'll be just as responsive on the forums in the future as they were in every other thread that has generated lots of player feedback in the past. And from what I can tell, they avoid those like the plague.

[Jnight]

Experience.

I've been gaming for 23 years now, and my experience tells me that if I go in with a closed mind and preconceived expectations that I will be disappointed. Best to keep an open mind and have fun with what you are able as you can.

 

Unless of course your not playing to have fun, but then why play?

 

 

An incredibly accurate statement. One of the prime complaints after each of the Q&A articles was how we weren't told anything of actual value. If they had any real desire to make a weekly event for us to look forward to, they would try to improve their quality of information being delivered. Instead, they gave up and walked away.

It's the sad state of the world maybe if they weren't held accountable for every little utterance as if it was one of the ten commandments they'd be more likely to open up and chat a bit more, but the gaming community forces them to remain silent until they have a solid fact. Not to mention they can't leak every little thing they have planned. They need to keep surprises so their competition can't jump the gun on them. It is a business after all.

Edited August 10, 2012 by Jnight

[Woetoo]

I don't know if it's their fault or ours. But what BW are doing is perfectly understandable. I disagree with it, but then I don't have their responsibilities.

 

Prior to launch (a long time before), they fed us information about the game - some of which came to pass, some of which fell by the wayside and some of which was either deliberately or accidentally misleading.

 

Follow that up with a launch and subsequent fallout of the launch, and everyone is picking apart everything they've ever said publicly and privately about the game - and they're getting nailed for all for it. Nobody is yelling on the forums about "You said THIS... and it was absolutely right !1!!11!"

 

So you're Bioware... do you decide that's just the price of running an MMO? Or do you decide that you need to be more controlled about what you say, when you say it and how much detail you provide? They take the cover-my-ar*e approach and say little or nothing. But little or nothing isn't good either, so show willing and find ways to be seen to be communicating - whilst at the same time still saying little or nothing.

 

Personally, I'd want Bioware to treat me like an adult - let me know unfiltered feedback, plans, hopes, tentative schedules and as an adult, accept that those things are subject to change and compromise. But if we as a community behave like spoilt children, then any hope of being treated as an adult goes out of the window. In my view, if there was a flood of information coming out of Austin with constant updates, revisions and corrections - maybe the community would accept the reality of "things change" more readily. Or maybe it would just become more ammunition for a hostile crowd.

 

A little feedback to Bioware... I spent 4 out of 7 years playing World of Warcraft hearing a message from Blizzard which could be summarised as "Yes, we know it's cr*p now, but it'll get better soon™". That and a increasingly intolerant community are the reasons I decided to jump ship and try SW:TOR. Please dare to be better than that, because "soon™" isn't communicating with your customers... it's a delaying tactic.

 

A little feedback to the community... put yourself in the position of someone who reads the same questions, same insults, same rhetoric, same threats, same complaints and same demand for answers day in and day out. Eventually the 82nd "Ilum is still broke you know" post is eventually going to sap your strength.

 

Sadly, right now, it's safer for the BW team to tell us nothing or as near to nothing as makes no difference. And to paraphrase my original remark, we're all responsible for that being the case.

 

This line intentionally left blank

Edited August 11, 2012 by Woetoo

[Blaac]

I don't know if it's their fault or ours. But what BW are doing is perfectly understandable. I disagree with it, but then I don't have their responsibilities.

 

Prior to launch (a long time before), they fed us information about the game - some of which came to pass, some of which fell by the wayside and some of which was either deliberately or accidentally misleading.

 

Follow that up with a launch and subsequent fallout of the launch, and everyone is picking apart everything they've ever said publicly and privately about the game - and they're getting nailed for all for it. Nobody is yelling on the forums about "You said THIS... and it was absolutely right !1!!11!"

 

So you're Bioware... do you decide that's just the price of running an MMO? Or do you decide that you need to be more controlled about what you say, when you say it and how much detail you provide? They take the cover-my-ar*e approach and say little or nothing. But little or nothing isn't good either, so show willing and find ways to be seen to be communicating - whilst at the same time still saying little or nothing.

 

Personally, I'd want Bioware to treat me like an adult - let me know unfiltered feedback, plans, hopes, tentative schedules and as an adult, accept that those things are subject to change and compromise. But if we as a community behave like spoilt children, then any hope of being treated as an adult goes out of the window. In my view, if there was a flood of information coming out of Austin with constant updates, revisions and corrections - maybe the community would accept the reality of "things change" more readily. Or maybe it would just become more ammunition for a hostile crowd.

 

A little feedback to Bioware... I spent 4 out of 7 years playing World of Warcraft hearing a message from Blizzard which could be summarised as "Yes, we know it's cr*p now, but it'll get better soon™". That and a increasingly intolerant community are the reasons I decided to jump ship and try SW:TOR. Please dare to be better than that, because "soon™" isn't communicating with your customers... it's a delaying tactic.

 

A little feedback to the community... put yourself in the position of someone who reads the same questions, same insults, same rhetoric, same threats, same complaints and same demand for answers day in and day out. Eventually the 82nd "Ilum is still broke you know" post is eventually going to sap your strength.

 

Sadly, right now, it's safer for the BW team to tell us nothing or as near to nothing as makes no difference. And to paraphrase my original remark, we're all responsible for that being the case.

 

This line intentionally left blank

 

Too true. Unfortunately a large portion of SWTORs community came FROM WoW. So they had to deal with the blow back from Blizzards ex players who had already been jaded from their customer service. I don't like BWs current stance of "say nothing, and thats all they can attack you for" but I completely understand it when I look at how crazy forum posters here seem to get over the smallest issues.

Edited August 11, 2012 by Blaac

[Last_Hearth]

Prediction. F2P players will have access to all the class quests and all the world arcs, but none of the sidequests which includes all the heroics.

 

They will have to either just grind kills to make up for the exp points, or pony up for planetary quest packs and unlock those sidequests. They will probably give the players everything on the starter planet and the capital planet including side quests and heroics, to give them a taste, but once you go to Taris/Balmorra it's all quest packs.

[Vespassian]

Aw man, no lore questions? Wa wa waaaa

/sarcasm