The datacron system is awful and needs to be redesigned from the ground up.

[Nedreep]

Our guild did the +10 datacron together the other night. It was really fun, and a test on communication and cooperation.

 

Datacrons are fine as they are, if anything, they should add more at even harder locations.

 

Agreed!

[EonTopaz]

I agree with solution #1. The only reason I knew about Datacrons was from purchasing the Explorer's Guide. Something in game that steers you two one and discusses others wouldn't be bad.

 

That being said, there's so much info out there now (YouTube especially) that it's a moot point. If you want the Datacron then you will make the effort to get it by finding info about the ones on your planet. I see no reason for any kind of revamp of the Datacron system as a whole. Adding a starter quest that leads you to your first one, sure, but not a revamp.

[DarkCarnage]

The problem, as I see it, is that most of the datacrons don't actually reward exploration, they reward obsessive compulsiveness. The wide majority of datacrons aren't hidden somewhere that's fun to explore, or as part of an easter egg, or even surrounded by beautiful hidden pockets of scenery. They're often shoved up into a corner of an area that has no redeeming value except for being cramped and out of the way.

 

it forces you to explore those odd end conners fo teh wrold you might not nroamly go. i remember when i was in quesh i had to get one other person to get the datacron that was in a swear that i might normal just skip since it was unrelated to quest,missions or even along thew ay to someplace. i just happen to see it throught a large grate and like "ok now how do i get that datacron.." figure it out got a reward, fun fun

[Archerorion]

Nothing wrong with the way it is.

[Tservo]

Lol there are a lot of issues with this game, datacrons seem to be done just fine.

[NavyKhelbin]

I personally really like how the Datacron system is currently, but my only gripe is that, in order for me to get the third blue matrix shard for my BH's relic, I need to ride the Jawa Balloon on Tatooine, which I have tried to do 3 times. Each time, it gets within sight of the Sandcrawler I'm supposed to jump onto and then the balloon disappears and I fall to my death. Seeing as the balloon ride takes close to 45 minutes and it still hasn't been fixed to my knowledge, I'm very hesitant to try it again since I really hate taking that much time only to fail due to a glitch I have no control over.

[Perringaiden]

There is only one change that needs to be made to Datacrons (and the Codex in general).

 

Provide placeholders for every entry in the Codex, without the text, so that people can know what they're missing.

 

That and fix the Planet entries to be right for the checklist.

[Nyla]

Everything is wrong the way it is.

 

The stats total value rewarded by the datacrons is not negligible which means it's mandatory for players that want the best for their characters. It's not like space, an optional mini-game as there's no alternative to get thoses benefits.

 

Fixed locations don't reward exploration. Players use the most easy mean to get what they want. In this case, most of the players searched on Internet to get the locations instead of exploring the worlds.

 

The design and difficulty to get to the datacrons is completely random, with no learning curve. Some are really easy, others really hard.

One missed jump some times forces you to go back at the start for 2min of speeder/running/jumping you can't fail. For hitting the space key 0.1s too late, you have to go back through 2min to try again.

 

The fun factor of some of them really eludes me, especially when it goes in hand with bugs (jawa balloon + its random despawn 1min before the sandcrawler, reported as a bug for months).

 

Mixing platform skills with unique stats rewards is a design flaw. I don't mind content with platform skills with their own rewards that don't interfere with normal combat gameplay but the way it is now is wrong, like it would be if space content would give access to battlemaster gear.

 

 

Back to the drawing board imo !

Edited March 15, 2012 by Nyla

[Dawgtide]

Datacrons serve three purposes.

 

1. Certain datacrons provide the player with a color-coded Matrix Shard. At certain locations throughout the galaxy, these shards can be combined with other shards to create a Relic item that confers sizable stat bonuses.

 

2. Datacrons that don't provide a Matrix Shard give the player a stat bonus instead. They are usually rather small, but there are many, so they may add up to be significant over time. We will have to wait and see.

 

3. Finally, each datacron provides the player with Star Wars lore.

 

 

Judging from their purposes, Datacrons should be...

 

1. Explained adequately - perhaps introduced via a quest.

 

2. Placed in locations where it would make sense to find a milennia-old piece of technology. For instance, in old ruins or caves, or perhaps in some criminal's vault of stolen treasures.

 

3. Reachable and obtainable using the skills players have been developing through doing quests and flashpoints. Namely, fighting enemies or navigating dialogue.

 

...but what Datacrons actually are

 

1. Never introduced ingame - you won't know what or where any of them are unless you stumble across them ingame or a mention of them on the internet.

 

2. Rarely placed in locations that make sense. They are often impossible to spot from a 'normal' area ('normal' meaning on the ground where people usually walk, and not atop precarious piping or dangerous piles of debris), forcing players to search areas for conspicuous rock formations, sloping pipes, or piles of boxes that may eventually lead to the hidden datacron.

 

3. In addition to being extremely difficult to find without consulting a guide online, most do not require the use of any normal gameplay skills. Instead, they require skill at precision platforming. Further compounding the difficulty - the keyboard and mouse are imprecise platforming tools, the game's engine does not lend itself to Super Mario 64 style platforming, and many of the 'platforms' used in these sequences (such as pipes and piles of debris) have glitchy collision. You will often find yourself jumping onto a pipe and sliding off the side or hitting an invisible wall mid-jump thanks to a nearby obstruction having a 'collision box' that is larger than the object itself.

 

Solutions?

 

1. Introduce the datacrons through at least one quest on the starter world.

 

2. Place datacrons in locations that make sense. When a player sees a ruin or vault stuffed with old relics, they should think "Oh! This looks like the sort of place a datacron would be hidden in!" and perform a thorough search of the area.

 

3. Players spend 99.9% of their time in TOR engaging NPCs in combat and dialogue. Datacrons should follow suit. Instead of being hidden at the end of frustrating and buggy gauntlets of precision platforming, they should be guarded by tough enemies or a tricky but fair puzzle.

 

Didn't read the whole thread. But if you go a little farther than the first quest you get as an imperial on Drummond Kas, then you find a presence datacron. That seems like a pretty good introduction to me. Now it means a person has to explore, but just barely. Heck, I found it on my first character ever in the game. Republic is not much harder with the one in at the waterfall on Tython. Heck, that is in the starter area. I just don't agree with this gripe.

[NorrinRaddd]

Datacrons serve the purpose as a side mission exploration type of achievement, no one asked you to look or even care about the datacrons, those that do search for them are rewarded and should be those that arent to bad. The Datacrons are fine and are fun Easter Eggs stop complaining, no one held a blaster to ur head and said to search for them.

[Blloodbane]

There is only one change that needs to be made to Datacrons (and the Codex in general).

 

Provide placeholders for every entry in the Codex, without the text, so that people can know what they're missing.

 

That and fix the Planet entries to be right for the checklist.

 

Ummmmm its not that hard really if you look it, they datacrons are numbered by Lore entries, I didnt take me much to figure out the datacrons I was missing. There are some missing "entries" for Galactic Lore, I have surmised those missing entries are Republic entries. But if you have Galactic Entries 29 through 34 with entry 33 missing, guess what, you need datacron number 33... and 67 achievement points to check against (Mission Log and click the Codex tab) and the +10 Datacron is not apart of those achievments...

 

Speaking of which, was a little suprising there was not some sort of title gained for getting all of the Datacrons, was a little disappointed in that.

[Blloodbane]

Didn't read the whole thread. But if you go a little farther than the first quest you get as an imperial on Drummond Kas, then you find a presence datacron. That seems like a pretty good introduction to me. Now it means a person has to explore, but just barely. Heck, I found it on my first character ever in the game. Republic is not much harder with the one in at the waterfall on Tython. Heck, that is in the starter area. I just don't agree with this gripe.

 

Actually on Korriban there is a Datacron a spit shot distance from the Shuttle you can grab EXTREMELY easy before you leave the planet... think its +2 Endurance.

[alderdale]

They give permanet boost as such they are MANDATORY for any serious player.

 

Then your not a serious player if you dont do whats required to get what you want. ITs a different game mechanic than the faceroll questing systems or the mindless grinding of other MMO's.

 

Sorry you find anything that requires independent thought a challenge and therefore needs a redesign in order for you to easily connect the dots to achieve it. You obviously agree with the OP.

Edited March 15, 2012 by alderdale

[Celorilm]

I feel the datacrons globally are quite OK.

 

I somewhat disagree with the OP when he says the system should be "rebuilt from the ground up"...

 

Though, I would say there are two actual problems:

- finding them too much often depends on sheer luck, which tends to discourage many of us and results in more Internet research than in-game research,

- getting them too much often purely depends on your platforming skills, which can be fun in the beginning, but can soon become annoying (everybody does not love platforming, at least not to that degree).

 

As solutions, I would propose the following improvements:

- more hints to where to search for/how to access to these lost treasures should be added somewhere in-game (for instance, through interaction with currently idle NPCs or as mysterious rakata inscriptions to be deciphered),

- better balancing between the means to access the datacrons: platforming, mini logic games, search for hidden paths, ..., should be considered, at least for the future, if thet intend to expand the system.

 

Additionally, some suffer from painful bugs (disappearing Jawa ballon on Tatooine, impossible to get through some narrow passages for the biggest characters, unreliable magnetic grip, ...), as too many things in SWTOR, alas. These should be fixed!!

Edited March 15, 2012 by Celorilm

[Danakar]

"You have found a Datacron, perhaps there are more to be found"

 

You practically stumble upon them in the starter zone. And if not, Republic players trip over one on Coruscant. What more do you want?

 

They give you 3 shards in 4 different colors as well as +40 on each stat total (including the +10 Secret Datacron) for finding them all (which isn't all that hard because 'serious players' use guides, get creative and tend to think outside the box)

 

I'm running around with 2 Republic characters (one of them even being a Male Bodytype 3) that have all 67/67 entries and the Secret Datacron. If I managed to get them all, then so can everybody else. Where there's the will, there's the way; something the instant-gratification generation seems to have forgotten.

 

The datacrons are a reward for the effort people are willing to put in to get them. They reward exploration, thinking things through on how to proceed and for actually keeping an eye out on your surroundings instead of being a mindless drone with tunnelvision moving from one quest to the next and doesn't know how to use the spacebar properly (no, the use of the spacebar is not just for jumping around like a monkey on the Fleet).

Edited March 15, 2012 by Danakar

[ZDProletariat]

What is the OP talking about? The first datacron available is out in the open that EVERYBODY sees on Coruscant. They are introduced to people.

sigh..

[Daluu]

I believe the OP meant to say 'This game needs an overhaul.

[Maxxian]

Let me pose a question.

 

If BW replaced the stat increase with any (or all) of the following:

 

1. Components to a speeder. Where you gather 10 and you can have one crafted in fleet by the speeder merchant.

 

2. Crystals that have a rare hue to them. Like silver, grey or neon purple.

 

3. Rare ship decorations…assuming we ever get to decorate our ship.

 

4. A mute for your ships droid

 

5. Insert something cosmetic that makes this game more immersive

 

…would you still have issues with datacrons?

 

This is of course hypothetical given such a change would probably never get implemented due to all kinds of bugs and horrible levels of rage over the stat loss. But assuming said items above were implemented instead of stat boosts (additional lore would still be included), would you still have a distaste for datacrons?

 

*EDIT* Forgot to add that I think said idea above would be a better reward system since it gives you a "show off" reward compared to a...yeah I do 50 more damage/healing reward.

Edited March 15, 2012 by Maxxian

[Nexdine]

To me the OP reads more like "give me the datacrons, I'm too inept at simple jumping and running to get them", but maybe that's just my read on it. I have no issues with the datacrons as they are. They're an optional extra for players who want to go through the effort and enjoy the puzzle and jumping aspects. Nobody's going to show up at your house and beat you up if you don't get all the crons.

[zeekaran]

Are we even told the difference between a Holocron and a Datacron?

[Dorge]

My biggest problem with Datacrons is all the jumping. The jumping mechanics in the game are already clunky enough.

 

Personally I'd like to see puzzles linked to different datacrons. Things you have to solve to obtain them.

 

Everytime I'm going to get a datacron that requires a lot of jumping I remove the chat, mission log, turn all graphics to lowest setting and close down all other programs on my computer.

Because jumping in this game is so poorly designed I'm making sure I can concentrate 100% in order to obtain those cubes. Like I said.. puzzles would be way more fun

Edited March 15, 2012 by Dorge

[navycrow]

i thought data cronhunting was used for game exploration and rewards from it i mean it stat boost and you get a free relic form it other that tat waiting for ballon they arnt that hard to get

[DariuszPol]

One word

 

EXPLORATION

[Mistermook]

One word:

 

JUMPING

 

I don't know if it needs to be revamped entirely, and I appreciate exploration, but platforming on an MMO, with the weird quirks of an internet connection, isn't fun. If the goal is platforming then it needs to be a minigame we enter into and play entirely on our system without worrying about internet connectivity. If the goal is promoting exploration? Then the platforming needs to go away and be replaced with something more exploration-y.

 

Personally my preference, since these things give permanent stat boosts and they're in weird places on the map, would be to ditch the platforming and make more of them "requires a group." That way you'd push players to seek them out in numbers, and more people would be invested in the system in general.

 

And yeah, there needs to be some titling/achievements attached to them. Anyone who invests the amount of time required to get these things needs to be recognized for doing so.

[Canopia]

it forces you to explore those odd end conners fo teh wrold you might not nroamly go. i remember when i was in quesh i had to get one other person to get the datacron that was in a swear that i might normal just skip since it was unrelated to quest,missions or even along thew ay to someplace. i just happen to see it throught a large grate and like "ok now how do i get that datacron.." figure it out got a reward, fun fun

 

I agree, whenever I see one, its always a reward in and of itself when you figure out the pathway in order to get to it. Though some people just rather have them sitting on the side of the road so they can pick it up on the way to their next quest/mission.