It's Been Over a Year Now and It Feels Like This Game Still Lacks Direction

[Skirata_Kal]

Each instance whether PvP or PvE was difficult the first time around, of moderate difficulty the second time around, but just a complete joke the third time around. This game's difficulty became a complete joke one month after release.

 

My old guild full of casuals (not sure if they're still around), cleared Terror on our second night shortly after it released (and I NEVER complain about something being too easy). Many of us faded away after that. The only reason I'm still subbed is to help my wife if she runs into something she can't solo. She still likes the game.

 

I too really had high hopes for this game and defended it from haters as much as any fanbois (star wars fan since 1977...Han shot first). There was a lot I liked when it launched, but over time its deficiencies wore me down. I could never run another toon through Taris or Belsavis ever again. Just ain't happening. The only way it will happen is if I use enough Cartel Coins (CE and monthly stipend adds up lol) to buy the xp boosts and only do class quests and an fp here and there. There's still a couple of class quests I haven't completed yet, but the bug is gone. There were so many good suggestions that would have helped this game, but they were shot down by the fanbois who couldn't handle the thought of anyone having the audacity to criticize any part of this game. They were far more damaging to the game in the long run than any of the haters.

 

Anyway Urael, we didn't always agree, but you've been a great contributor to this forum. I for one will miss seeing your posts.

[Ashlockheart]

There will be new stuff added over time, and the class missions will keep going. If they don't and just add stuff that makes the game go down the wrong road then they will lose players. Its that simple. How do I know they will add new stuff, and keep the game going? I never heard of company wanting to lose players. The part people don't like is no one knows what they will add. So its the roll of the dice. That's really all there is too it. Forms for mmo's give ideas of what people are thinking. If most players are wanting some thing with story then there is a high chance they will add stuff to the story, but if only a small amount of players are into the story stuff then there is a high chance some thing else will be added. They never go by what players really want. Forms are just really more of a stepping stone for getting a idea of wear they should be heading. Does not really mean they will go down that road. How ever. One thing is true no matter what people say. They will add stuff, but you won't know until they do.

[Shefu]

They made so many promises that anything they say now people don't take serious. They promised a new race "Cathar" by the end of 2012, it is now March 2013, they said the same gender relationships will be available shortly after release, it is not what, a year and a half and still no sign of it. PvP is lackluster and grindy, PVE has no appeal.

 

This had so much potential, and I want it so bad to be good, but it just died in the first 3 months. The minute EA stepped in and started making decisions the game went ..... it's frustrating really.

[Andryah]

we can /thread this one with one clarification to the title of the thread IMO

 

It's Been Over a Year Now and It Feels Like This Game Still Lacks Direction THAT I PERSONALLY WANT

 

The game has matured, evolved, and moved forward pretty well (by any reasonable MMO standards of measure) since launch. And there is a lot of headroom to continue to improve as it moves forward.

 

By the way.... it will NEVER be perfect... becasue no MMO is. It will always disappoint some players (name one MMO that hasn't) and it will never be the right MMO for everyone. Playing an MMO is always a compromise in tastes and desires for most players.

Edited March 10, 2013 by Andryah

[Levity]

One of the few reasons why I play this game is because it's Star Wars, despite it feeling like "WoW in space". It's also the closest thing I can get to Battlefront III.

 

But back on-topic—just look at what TUXs said. The BioWare devs went on zealously about the Story and how that was going to be their biggest focus. That "fourth pillar" really has been ignored, and won't see the light of day for a long, long time.

 

And oh god, don't get me started with the Operations! I did raid a while back with an old guild I used to GM, and I really didn't feel any sense of "heroicness" fighting many of the boss encounters. (LOL about the comment of Soa's legs )

 

You sir never downed NM Rancor in KP during 1.1 then lol. Add some Moving Mountains by Two Steps from Hell when you are about to hit enrage timer and you got a heart racing moment.

[Levity]

With EA practically owning BioWare, it seems to me what they do with the revenue they earn from the CM won't be very good for the game.

 

 

The only problem I have here is that the Operations and PvE in general is too easy. It's nothing but a complete joke. They either need to shell out content at a much quicker pace for PvE so players aren't stuck farming the same Ops in the same difficulties for months, or they need to make the Operations a lot bigger and a lot more difficult. Oh, and probably focus on the players' feelings on feeling "heroic".

 

I've read this entire thread and you keep saying this. So are you a player who has been in a group that has 4/4ed NiM EC and 5/5ed HM TFB? If not then your whole "easy" arguement is invalid.

Edited March 10, 2013 by Levity
Whoops messed up boss count in EC.

[Costello]

I can't agree with anyone that wants the game to be more difficult.

 

The risk/work has to be worth the reward and as it stands the end game is horribly lacking in this department and this is unlikely to change when they want to sell things in the cash shop. The really nice gear will be available in the cash shop while the high tier armouring and other mods are only really of use to make end game easier. So it becomes cyclical where we play the end game content to get better gear to make the end game content easier. Lots of wipes in the process of getting that top tier stuff just means people wont be bothered to do it.

 

They have to come up with far better end game to make longer harder ops worthwhile or they just waste time building content only hard core players participate in. As casual players can't invest the time or get the groups to do extra hard extra long ops.

[chuixupu]

I've read this entire thread and you keep saying this. So are you a player who has been in a group that has 4/4ed NiM EC and 5/5ed HM TFB? If not then your whole "easy" arguement is invalid.

 

I certainly do not agree that all the operations are too easy. NiM EC is a b*tch. EV and KP NiM are actually easier than HM EC, though. They ramped up the difficulty of their operations a LOT since creating those first two. I do agree that most of them feel a little too short, though.

 

I think the biggest issue is just that, because of the newness of the game, options are limited. When we started out, we had just EV and KP. We had to defeat 3 different versions of that same place. When EC came out it was nice for a while, but with the F2P switch slowing everything down, we had to wait, what, 5 months for the next operation? That is what nearly killed off my guild for a while. People got so sick of doing the same thing over and over. So when EC NiM came out, nobody even wanted to touch that place. Now it's been another 6 whole months since we've seen a whole NEW operartion. I'm looking forward to S&V....NiM TFB not so much.

 

So, I hope they will pick up the pace on this.. We just need stuff to break up the monotony. The Gree event boss was great, something we can look forward to periodically. I wouldn't mind seeing more limited duration "special" bosses tied to events.

 

Lastly, they need to be careful about bumping up the difficulty of the entry level modes. WoW did that for MoP regular modes (assuming that the casuals were happy with mindless LFR mode raids) and it didn't go over too well.

Edited March 10, 2013 by chuixupu

[Levity]

I can't agree with anyone that wants the game to be more difficult.

 

The risk/work has to be worth the reward and as it stands the end game is horribly lacking in this department and this is unlikely to change when they want to sell things in the cash shop. The really nice gear will be available in the cash shop while the high tier armouring and other mods are only really of use to make end game easier. So it becomes cyclical where we play the end game content to get better gear to make the end game content easier. Lots of wipes in the process of getting that top tier stuff just means people wont be bothered to do it.

 

They have to come up with far better end game to make longer harder ops worthwhile or they just waste time building content only hard core players participate in. As casual players can't invest the time or get the groups to do extra hard extra long ops.

 

Just going to point out that the OPs at that difficulty are not made for casuals. You can't do NiM EC without a few things I'll list:

Mumble

Studying your class to a tee so it's not wasting time bringing you into the raid since you will lower the raids overall dps/hps/threat gen. (This takes awhile and some determination for some classes so just sitting at a casual pace won't make you learn the character like it is designed.)

Work towards quick reflexes and higher sense of focus so you know for a fact that in any circumstance you can adapt.

Know the fights inside and out, which will require a little bit of study time as well.

And just the overall practice you have to put in as a group. One mistake is not forgiving in those OPs.

 

All those combined doesn't exactly scream casual gamer!!!

 

When I came back after my little break from the game after 1.2 launched and I saw that you could basically buy your way into end game gear made me pretty sad. There have been moments where we pug a dps for just standard HM TFB or EC, hell even SM and the person is geared, etc. But he doesn't know his class, doesn't know the fights, and just plain out crippled the raid group leading to unwarranted whipes.

 

Should there be a butt ton of end game content for the casual players? Yes. Should it give them the end game gear easier then the people who pushed progression inch after painful inch. No.

 

I really don't think you should even get end game gear other then from the raid/fp. <--- just my opinion.

[Talon_strikes]

I've read this entire thread and you keep saying this. So are you a player who has been in a group that has 4/4ed NiM EC and 5/5ed HM TFB? If not then your whole "easy" arguement is invalid.

I PvP. I do not PvE. But I've heard many, many guilds have cleared this hard content and ends up grinding it for months and months before anything new comes along.

[Darth-Malice]

What do you mean OP? This game has direction. It's directed at milking as much money as possible from the consumer base with the smallest amount of effort involved.

[translucentwolf]

Meh ...

 

Will not be missed.

[Urael]

I too really had high hopes for this game and defended it from haters as much as any fanbois (star wars fan since 1977...Han shot first). There was a lot I liked when it launched, but over time its deficiencies wore me down. I could never run another toon through Taris or Belsavis ever again. Just ain't happening.

 

I too feel the same.

 

Anyway Urael, we didn't always agree, but you've been a great contributor to this forum. I for one will miss seeing your posts.

 

Thanks for saying this.

[Urael]

Will not be missed.

 

As we can see from this thread, you are a voice of one ( and a weak one at that ).

[Talon_strikes]

What do you mean OP? This game has direction. It's directed at milking as much money as possible from the consumer base with the smallest amount of effort involved.

As we can see from this thread, you are a voice of one ( and a weak one at that ).

I LOL'd at both!

 

And I believe tomorrow's your last day, Urael. You will be missed by all of us! Even by the haters...

[CosmicKat]

 

And I believe tomorrow's your last day, Urael. You will be missed by all of us! Even by the haters...

 

And he will have subscribed for longer than most of them too.

 

Live long and prosper... err, that's not it...

So say we all.... nope still not it...

The sleeper has awakened.... oh screw it...

 

Have fun out there Urael!

[BlazingShadow]

this game does suck. I just resubbed for the PVP and expansion 'till PSWG is a bit more fleshed out. They're making good headway.

[Talon_strikes]

this game does suck. I just resubbed for the PVP and expansion 'till PSWG is a bit more fleshed out. They're making good headway.

Yeah, I heard a lot more players who've unsubbed are going to try out that new SWG thingy.

[Rabenschwinge]

Yeah, I heard a lot more players who've unsubbed are going to try out that new SWG thingy.

 

What new SWG thingy. The only upcoming MMO I am currently looking out for is Elder Scrolls Online...

[SentinelDranoel]

What new SWG thingy. The only upcoming MMO I am currently looking out for is Elder Scrolls Online...

 

I am going to wait for a verdict on that one. A single player RPG maker trying to make a MMO does not sound appealing anymore. If the game does not have a lot of the features that make Elder Scrolls great, it will be a letdown for me. I see no point in copying what other MMOs are doing and slapping the Elder Scrools name on it thinking people will not notice.

Edited March 14, 2013 by SentinelDranoel

[Talon_strikes]

What new SWG thingy. The only upcoming MMO I am currently looking out for is Elder Scrolls Online...

It's something called SWGEmu, but there's also another one called Project SWG. I found both of them on Facebook.

[CelCawdro]

I'm betting that a lot of people are going to be blaming the project leads for those SW:G emulators for the faults of that game that have been lost to selective memory. I feel really bad for them, since they're doing a lot of work that is probably going to be completely thankless due to rose-coloured glasses.

 

SW:G was a bad game. It had a great concept, and a great community, and I still count myself as a fan, but as an actual game, it was horrible. Yes, even pre-CU. Bringing back that game is not going to bring back the sense of community that existed there. Unless you, personally, maintained those relationships when the game shut down, they're gone forever. A lot of people can't seem to face that.

Edited March 14, 2013 by CelCawdro

[anstalt]

The reason this game feels like it lacks direction is because it lacks direction! It has never *had* direction!

 

 

Essentially, the designers were full of delusions of granduer: they genuinely thought they could beat WoW and they had the budget to do so. So, they tried to build an MMO for everyone, catering to every playstyle, in an effort to get maximum subscription numbers.

 

Unfortunately, Bioware lacked the expertise to pull it off, so all we ended up with is watered down features throughout the game. There is something for every playstyle, granted, but each feature in and of itself is worse than competitors out there. This was initially compounded by completely mixed marketing messages. The doctors pushed the story aspect of this game, appealing to the casuals / single players out there. James Ohlen pushed the endgame raiding angle, telling us it would be far more heroic than any other mmo out there. Gabe pushed the pvp angle, telling us this would be the first MMO where PvP and PvE shared equal space during leveling and endgame.

 

 

So, you ended up with a community who wanted everything, a game that didn't deliver on anything, and a management team who didn't know what to do.

 

 

It is my firm belief that the management team still dont know what to do! This game no longer has the money to try to be everything to everyone. It simply costs too much to develop pvp, pve, story, crafting, space and do expansions! If they continue to try, they will continue to lose subs until the game gets shut down. In my personal opinion, the game would be better off long-term if they went niche. Decide on a direction (story, raiding, pvp etc) and push that angle hard. Make this the best damn solo-story mmo on the market and appeal long term to that crowd. Gun for the raiding crowd and bulk up and flesh out the endgame pve. Go hardcore with the pvp crowd if that is your desire.

 

Whichever direction they choose, they have to resign themselves to being a "niche" game, however niche games foster long-term loyal playerbases which would continue to fund development of that niche for many many years to come.

[CelCawdro]

Oh, and on topic: the game's direction was story, but that couldn't be supported post-release (even if it was as successful as EA misguidedly hoped) so it lost direction.

[Majspuffen]

Oh, and on topic: the game's direction was story, but that couldn't be supported post-release (even if it was as successful as EA misguidedly hoped) so it lost direction.

 

The class stories were great. They failed with story at end game. There was no overall story arc to get involved with (aside from Ilum... but that ended at The False Emperor). They did so many screw ups with how they managed story at level 50 that the whole game feels like a disconnected mess. We barely even know who our faction leaders are, and we can't say how our faction is doing in the war at hte current time. Because we're frozen in time, replaying the same stuff over and over, until new content is released... and even then, we don't really get involved with the story unless we play operations, and those stories have an ending, too.

 

This game needs an active planet of constant conquest. A planet where it makes sense for us to spend our time. I doubt Makeb will be that, since, by the sounds of it, we'll spend 90% of our time rolling our thumbs on the fleet in 2.0.