Consolidated Post: APAC/Oceanic Server Concerns

[Claprica]

1. Merge all the apac servers into a single PVE server - the reasoning around this has been described many times. Keep the awesome latency, correct prime/op times, guilds, legacies and local community whilst boosting the population

 

2. Offer FREE transfers FROM US servers TO the apac server - in a bid to get those APAC players that left or rolled on US servers due to the population issues, to come back

 

3. Offer PAID transfers FROM the apac server TO US servers after a month or so - gives those who still hate Pve or have some other problem with the apac server after some time trying it, an opportunity to get out. Could possibly make this process free for PVP and RP players if that's not too complicated

 

4. Some form of advertising in Australia/NZ to get more people in before the release of the expansion

 

 

Asking for point 4 may be pushing it but thought I'd throw it up there anyway because I think it would be effective

 

 

+1 for this option.

[Darklightter]

Defiantly add server transfers to US. I have pretty much abandoned my characters on Australian servers and play exclusively on the Harbinger now and I experience few if any issues with it. Lag is sometimes annoying but it's a good trade off for playing with other people

[Blitz-wing]

Defiantly add server transfers to US. I have pretty much abandoned my characters on Australian servers and play exclusively on the Harbinger now and I experience few if any issues with it. Lag is sometimes annoying but it's a good trade off for playing with other people

 

Again another post that has on point being here.

 

1. This is Thread, Issue, Topic & Discussion is about HELPING THE APAC SERVERS. Not giving those that left special attention.

2. Character Transfer service is coming soon. This year at some point after PTS Character Copy is up and running.

 

Wait like the rest of the world for the Character Transfer System.

[Morrolan]

To put some context to the situation:

 

 

Add PvPers to the optional transfer to a mid population US/EU PvP server.

While this may seem a very extensive solution I do feel it is a solve for the problem almost as an entirety.

 

Feel free to give me some constructive feedback as to whether or not you guys want this as your solution, rather than bicker amongst ourselves BW/EA is relying on us to all agree upon a solution as adults and move forward together!

 

I agree with your solution. Whilst I appreciate Joveth posting tom this thread I do not see why a solution such as yours is difficult to implement. They have character transfers systems in place they've effectively merged servers before. They can do it.

[grallmate]

My preference is to merge all 3 servers and offer GD and MDN players the option to move to a US based server of the appropriate type.

 

Give me more friends to play with!!

[Digimanbyte_ID]

Hi everyone,

 

I know it’s been a while since we’ve updated this thread, and I wanted to let you know that we haven’t forgotten about our Oceanic players. Now that we’re at a more stable point in time (post Free-to-Play transition and post holidays), we wanted to re-examine this issue. We’re going to be completely honest with you: there doesn’t seem to be an easy solution for anyone. We’ve seen many ideas from you folks such as merging all three servers into one, allowing for transfers to North America servers, and even not doing anything at all, but none of them seem to be an ideal solution for all. This is why we are now opening up this dialogue with you.

 

In this thread, please let us know what you think the best solution will be for your servers. I know there have been many suggestions already, but I would like to collect the most current ideas for us to consider. After that, our team will review and discuss what is feasible and what makes the most sense to do. Please remember to follow all forum rules and be respectful of each other’s ideas, even if you disagree with it.

 

Thank you all, and we look forward to your ideas.

 

How about a decent advertisment campaign expressing the whole concept that the game is f2play and available to download in the oceanic areas?

 

The only other solution I see here is cross server us with the US. That will keep most of the oceanic population intact with something to do while we wait for a fix to this mess you left since the beginning.

[Digimanbyte_ID]

Also ignore those ideas of server transfers. This is only going to dig a bigger hole as people start jumping from server to server looking for greener pastures and instead causing massive server population imbalances.

 

I don't think you want to be the ones to clean that mess up or even be the ones to police it. Its expensive and if not given proper attention will coalesce into massive server related issues through holidays a business ones.

[Xitzay]

Please stop trying to group us as being Oceanic. The only people those servers benefit are the OZ/NZ players as the rest of Asia has half the latency connecting to the west coast of the US as trying to connect to OZ. Those of us playing from Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, and anywhere else aren`t going to roll characters or play there. Realize as long as you have physically located the servers there your are losing about 80 percent of your `oceanic` player base to the harbinger or other `unofficial oceanic server.` As long as your engine doesn`t support separate downtimes for server regions your gonna keep losing people who want to raid during prime time. If OZ/NZ don`t have the players...they just don`t have the players.

[Rincewend]

Please stop trying to group us as being Oceanic. The only people those servers benefit are the OZ/NZ players as the rest of Asia has half the latency connecting to the west coast of the US as trying to connect to OZ. Those of us playing from Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, and anywhere else aren`t going to roll characters or play there. Realize as long as you have physically located the servers there your are losing about 80 percent of your `oceanic` player base to the harbinger or other `unofficial oceanic server.` As long as your engine doesn`t support separate downtimes for server regions your gonna keep losing people who want to raid during prime time. If OZ/NZ don`t have the players...they just don`t have the players.

 

Completely agree with the first half, being I am in Taiwan. My Ping to east coast is even better than APAC servers, west coast being the best. But I don't suggest closeing the OZ/NZ servers, do what is best for them, and don't expect those of us to move back (as long as the servers are pining in that slow for us). I would love to run, in my old timezone with people in my time zone, but I give that up to have a respectable ping so that I can play.

[PurpleCliff]

Everyone cross all your fingers and toes and arms and other parts that this is the week something finally happens!

[Rincewend]

Everyone cross all your fingers and toes and arms and other parts that this is the week something finally happens!

 

Is it this week or when 1.7 drops? well I even forgot when will 1.7 drop I have not see the PTS open yet. I hope they plan on testing it this time and not just drop and trying fixing all the bugs....

[PurpleCliff]

Is it this week or when 1.7 drops? well I even forgot when will 1.7 drop I have not see the PTS open yet. I hope they plan on testing it this time and not just drop and trying fixing all the bugs....

 

Yeah I don't expect 1.7 for probably another couple of weeks.

 

This server merge, however, I expect in the continually progressing present. The future is always too late.

[Speculator]

I'm for a server merge.

[vaxathan]

i mean vote for a APAC server merger ! Edited January 21, 2013 by vaxathan

[Syanis]

I play on Dalborra. Personally I'd rather NOT be merged at all with US servers in any way or have any US servers merged with us. Being around MMO's for 15 years there is a large difference between many oceanic players and many US players for one which play style attitude is very different. Part of the reason I play on a NON US server.

 

Merging servers also won't fix the problem. The problem is a declining number of players and just merging servers won't really fix the decline. The problem is what causes the decline in server population.

 

1. Lack of content. There are 4 class's and 8 advanced class's. Rep and Imp is pretty much the same just different names and a different story. There aren't alternate places or ways to level really. You go through the exact same stuff over and over again with each new toon. Advanced class's share the same story with with the other choice in that class also offering less.

 

2. Endgame content and gear. Endgame content has been majorly trivialized with the fact you can just grind daily HM FP\s and easy weeklies to get next to top end gear in the game. No skill or hard work required. No real progression as well as most are going into content now that is dropping lessor then what they are wearing which is almost handed to them. Just look at all those running asation weekly and EC weekly only vs the entire run. Easier to do dailies and weeklies for BH gear then doing a full raid until the end for a chance of what you need it seems.

 

3. Lack of perks for having multiple toons or high legacy. No real reward system. Just waste more time doing exact same thing over and over again no change biding our time until something "better" comes along.

 

4. To easy leveling to max level and to easy getting high end gear. Yes many say they hate the grind but in truth they hate not having the grind even more. Its boring when you can get a toon to max level in a week and in 1-2 weeks after max level be next to best gear the game has to offer. You take out the achievement feeling this way.

 

To fix said issues though WILL require again differentiating between skilled players and unskilled players along with casual and hardcore players. The best stuff shouldn't be so easy casuals and unskilled players can get in it without much trouble. It should feel difficult and a real achievement getting raid geared. Columi was considered the standard for unskilled and casuals took a lot more time also as they put in a lot less.

 

1A. More class's that are different. But more importantly more leveling options of where to level and how. Think of EQ1, EQ2, DAoC, WoW, and on and on with the major names in MMOROGs. You made a new toon your leveling in a totally new and different area that actually felt different. Your class\s didn't feel very similiar with just different graphics and names. You could be a number of "similiar" class sorts and it feels different and not just copy-past with some renaming.

 

2A.. Make endgame larger and more difficult to achieve the gear. Stop with all the dailies and weeklies to get next to top end gear (BH). Make progression mean something. Require for FP's to get finish reward ALL boss's besides bonus boss be killed. For OPs for any quest or weekly it requires killing final boss, not just 2nd. The idea is to make people feel awed when they see someone in raid gear if your a new person or non raider. Being in near to top end or top end should have that achievement feeling and also make you stand out among others.

 

3A. How about having more legacy perks which should have been in 6+ months ago. Things like maybe make all BOP craftable rakata "craft speciality" items Bind to Legacy. Also more useful combat things for say legacy 40 and legacy 50 also usable in ops. Less feeling restricted that playing X class you *should* be Y craft.

 

4A. More content for leveling along with a form of AA system that has a very large point buff system to buff abilities and such. Then slow down the leveling drastically. Add a lot more FP's that are considerably longer among large bonus's for doing things people don't do now such as space missions when they are your level range, doing world boss's. and some new ideas. When someone can go from 47-50 in 1 day thats just way to easy. Then stop with the BH comm give aways. Go back to getting them doing said ops that should drop such as asation and EC. Back to getting columi and working way into Rakata to then work way into BH and then Dreadguard.

 

I understand a lot of people would whine and gripe but those people already whine and gripe that they are bored and nothing to do. Yes it makes endgame content less available to some but hard stuff shouldn't be made easy just because some lack the skill or won't put in a time and work their way there. People say they hate the grind but they hate worse how they can get a toon up and geared so fast and then nothing more to do with them.

 

Just look at how many stand around fleet all day long doing nothing and tell me I'm wrong....

[Antiskeptic]

I understand a lot of people would whine and gripe but those people already whine and gripe that they are bored and nothing to do. Yes it makes endgame content less available to some but hard stuff shouldn't be made easy just because some lack the skill or won't put in a time and work their way there. People say they hate the grind but they hate worse how they can get a toon up and geared so fast and then nothing more to do with them.

 

Just look at how many stand around fleet all day long doing nothing and tell me I'm wrong....

 

You are wrong.

 

I actually love the fact that I can burn out a 50 in a week or two if I find myself with the time and patience to do so and that I can have it fully geared and competitive not long after.

 

Though I do appreciate where you are coming from, those who have been around for a longer period of time and purely pveing would find what you've mentioned as major issues.

 

Bit alas server merges will slow down the amount of pvers leaving as there are newer pvers that haven't been able to yet clear content due to lack of population, old pvpers will return boosting the numbers.

 

Also with a larger population there are chances that more community based events will happen perhaps releaving some of your boredom. ;]

 

Also might I suggest you dabble in the art of pvp, might give you something to do rather than jumping around the fleet doing nothing.

[D_anger]

I play on Dalborra. Personally I'd rather NOT be merged at all with US servers in any way or have any US servers merged with us. Being around MMO's for 15 years there is a large difference between many oceanic players and many US players for one which play style attitude is very different. Part of the reason I play on a NON US server.

 

Merging servers also won't fix the problem. The problem is a declining number of players and just merging servers won't really fix the decline. The problem is what causes the decline in server population.

 

While i agree that endgame content (as you said in the rest of your post) is needed, thats a fix for the entire game, not just for APAC.

 

Not many people here are suggesting merge with US servers (some want transfers there), what we are suggesting is MERGE APAC. this infact will fix the problem by creating a larger single community / player base and also encourage more people to start / return to the game. Most people on Master D are quite happy with the content (i believe), as alot of it is still challenging. We really only have 1 guild capable of doing EC NiM (good job EWOK), and the pvp is what our server is mostly about. So what we want is not so much more content, but a larger player base to complete endgame content with. This should also spawn more community activities as well, RPs, PVE, World PVP etc.

[laz_AU]

I understand a lot of people would whine and gripe but those people already whine and gripe that they are bored and nothing to do. Yes it makes endgame content less available to some but hard stuff shouldn't be made easy just because some lack the skill or won't put in a time and work their way there. People say they hate the grind but they hate worse how they can get a toon up and geared so fast and then nothing more to do with them.

 

Just look at how many stand around fleet all day long doing nothing and tell me I'm wrong....

 

While I agree that more content is needed both at endgame and while leveling, I don't believe in making endgame content less available to more casual players. Being a med student I have placement at a hospital from 8am-5pm on weekdays with study and assignments on top of that. So I usually get an hour on weekdays (max) and maybe a few hours on weekends if i'm lucky. Finishing an entire op is rarely an option for me and i'm guessing most of the working population as well.

 

Why should we not be given the opportunity to get high level gear? Sure it should take us a lot longer than the enthusiast that plays 5+ hours daily but we should not be excluded altogether from content just because we can't slam out consistent, long gaming sessions - thats actually why i quit wow in the end becasuse if you were unable to do the longer raids you had no chance of getting high-end gear. In the end, saving up all those comms can take a lot of accumulative game time and real life time and our patience should be rewarded with high-end gear. Let the elite of the elite hardcore gamer's get the highest-end stuff but i think casual gamer's should still be able to get close to that standard

 

Back on topic... I don't think many people are asking for mergers with the US servers; the vast majority are asking for the APAC servers to be merged. With a larger population on the server there will be a better atmosphere and community which will substantially stem the rate at which the population is declining. Eventually more content and better advertising campaigns is going to be the only way to get populations on the rise again but for now, merging the APAC servers will at least prevent as many people from leaving.

[Claprica]

Logged in last night and MDN had 74 players on republic fleet .

That's the most I've seen in a while.

Also Gav was listed as being Heavy population in log on screen!

 

We still need APAC mergers and a super server though.

[banehammer]

I agree that an APAC server merge is the best course of action.

 

However I hope we're given the choice to move to another server if we wish. Reason being, I've rerolled on a US server which has become my new home and I really want to keep all my characters together...

 

So I vote for an APAC merge + the choice to move there or elsewhere

[HauksbokT]

Logged in last night and MDN had 74 players on republic fleet .

That's the most I've seen in a while.

Also Gav was listed as being Heavy population in log on screen!

 

We still need APAC mergers and a super server though.

 

It's kinda funny how you have a ***** over 74 players, the harbinger nearly has as many total instances as entire total amount of players.

[Evgen]

Logged in last night and MDN had 74 players on republic fleet .

That's the most I've seen in a while.

Also Gav was listed as being Heavy population in log on screen!

 

We still need APAC mergers and a super server though.

If you don' t have a screenie it didn't happen

Even then I'd be suspect. I'm also curious what the point of your post was . . . .

[Claprica]

If you don' t have a screenie it didn't happen

Even then I'd be suspect. I'm also curious what the point of your post was . . . .

 

To bump the thread back to the top clearly.

 

Was just an observation and a request for a server merger ... seems pretty evident really?

[Leweegibo]

I worry that this isn't going to happen anytime soon.

 

Pretty much everyone agrees that a server merge is the first step, so i reckon we ought to band together to get that done ASAP. Then the option for those to return and US transfers. Be especially helpful if they even called it stage one haha.

 

Spose we will have to wait a few weeks even when announced so they can email customers regarding getting stuff out of the mail etc...Just so want in now!

[Marshal_Ney]

I worry that this isn't going to happen anytime soon.

 

Pretty much everyone agrees that a server merge is the first step, so i reckon we ought to band together to get that done ASAP. Then the option for those to return and US transfers. Be especially helpful if they even called it stage one haha.

 

Spose we will have to wait a few weeks even when announced so they can email customers regarding getting stuff out of the mail etc...Just so want in now!

 

Do not presume that everyone want to be transfered in a US server,if i can move my character i want to to go to a EUROPEAN server,the merge in my humble opinion will not completely solve the lack of players in our region.