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Eternal Throne Chapter IX: No way to keep new subscribers


Autumnsbane

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I am a returning Founder who dropped out after SWTOR went FTP. My wife and I have both returned AND subscribed and have barely touched another game since, we have loved it THAT much.

 

Despite the fact that none of my mini-army of toons had reached level 65, I decided to do the 65 boost. I thoroughly enjoyed the excellent story and fast paced game play from 65 to 70, and have not gone to bed at a reasonable hour since starting.

 

Then it happened. I hit level 70 and began the final chapter. I will not give details because I won't spoil it for those who have not played through. I am on the verge of quitting again and here is why.

 

There are different types of players. Some (those who claim this encounter was easy) are highly skilled, with deep understanding of every game mechanic and have youthful, gamer reflexes, likely from years of time on game consoles. They play hard at end game raiding and kick butt n PVP.

 

Then there are players like me, who don't get every nuance, have poor reflexes (let's just say I am old enough to have seen the original Star Wars IN the theater) and play the game for its beautiful design and rich story telling. I assume this is why there are three modes of play, story, veteran and master.

 

If the Hell I just went through over the past 48 hours is any indication of what STORY mode play difficulty will be, I don't see myself, my wife, or others like us, sticking around. I just don't want to pay 15 bucks a month to be brutalized.

 

Why is this encounter so highly tuned at story level? I am not the only one who has had trouble, as I have seen on the forums. And here are the reasons this is just terrible in every way:

 

1. Story mode should be simple enough, not a cake walk, but easy enough for players of ALL skills to accomplish at the appropriate level with gear found in the normal course of questing.

 

2. When I had difficulty with story bosses in the past, I would simply return when I was higher level. I can't outlevel this encounter because I am at the cap.

 

3. One can usually return when he or she outgears the encounter. I spent almost every credit I have on upgrades (and repairs), and most of my gear is now 220, with a couple of pieces being 208 and 210, and one being 228, My weapon is 230. I got some good stims and healing kits and I still can't get the encounter below a third of health after hours of trying.

 

4. I have no desire to raid in this game, and this is essentially raid boss difficulty, but without a team or even a companion, to help me. The mechanics are complex, with movement, interrupts (when they work), and the ability to break stuns or heal leaving no room for error. One must execute flawlessly, and the cool downs do not even reset when the encounter does, so new attempts leave you at a disadvantage.

 

5. Some gamers have limited time to play your game. Between work, commutes, chores, school, and other obligations (like sleep), we just don't have the time to log on for two hours and spend the whole time failing. It's all stick and no carrot.

 

I have played almost every MMO on the market and, even when not playing this game, considered SWTOR to be one of the best BECAUSE of its easy going nature and story line. I know that if this was my first MMO, or my first time playing this game, I would have hit this point, lost all of my money and hair, and after returning from the ER after my stroke or heart attack, said screw this and unsubbed.

 

I am not unsubbing. This is not one of those posts where the author complains and then quits. But I have no desire to further humiliate myself attempting this climactic fight. It's not worth an ulcer. I can figure out the ending without actually completing it. I will merely continue to play in other ways, and if there is another level increase, try it again at level 75 or 80. But this is simply not good game design and not a very nice way to treat paying customers.

 

If you want to make it really hard for Veteran mode and near impossible for good players in master mode, okay. But to make this very long, tricky fight THIS hard in a vital quest chain on the simplest mode is simply poor game design, unfair to new and casual players and an easy reason for people to quit. PLEASE adjust the difficulty of this fight.

 

Thank you for your time.

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