[POLL] SWTOR Content Drought Crisis - Needs Immediate Attention!

[Talon_strikes]

Poll results blow up in OP's face.

 

" I still think it justifies my argument! " lol

And as of this post the "Both PvE and PvP" option is only a mere 2% points behind "Story/Solo".

 

It's reversible if and only if EA supports a rebuilding year. Frankly I think the only way that'll happen is if they clean house. The last thing they need to do is "focus" on one type or other. What they need to "focus" on is correcting their pipeline (and finances) so that they are producing content to cover all player niches on a reasonable and consistent timeline.

 

But for that to even sink in they need to give up the pipe-dream that there's this huge untapped demographic that hasn't already heard of SW:TOR. There's a demographic out there they're waiting for TOR to grow up and become the MMO it promised to be.

And I happen to think it's a pipe dream that the studio can develop content to cover ALL playerbases. As you said, there's a demographic out there that's waiting for SWTOR to become the MMO it's promised to be. In that case the devs need to go back to this game's roots and focus on MMO content. This game was supposed to be the WoW-killer after all, right? Even the OG devs themselves highly implied that vision in the SWTOR development videos.

 

SWTOR is currently going through an identity crisis, and the devs keep making one wild pendulum swing after another. It's not helping. If they honestly are so intent on making this a singleplayer game with co-op aspects they might as well remove any and all payment options and release new solo/story content as actual expansions. They'd be able to ignore any MMO aspect and make their solo/story expansions the size of RotHC. Going by the morale on these forums though, I don't think that's what most players want.

 

SWTOR was released as being a SPIRITUAL successor of the KotOR series. Nothing more, nothing less. Us MMO players who are still here don't want to play a singleplayer RPG... we want to play the Star Wars MMO that was finally given to us in 2011.

Edited January 23, 2017 by Talon_strikes

[Costello]

The thing this game offers that others don't is story and to a degree solo play with a companion.

 

If you want to start moving into things other games offer and do well, they have improve the game engine, make combat more dynamic and improve the graphics/worlds to be a living breathing environment. All for this game offering everything , but with a limited budget they have to work on what they can offer that others don't which is story.

[Talon_strikes]

The thing this game offers that others don't is story and to a degree solo play with a companion.

 

If you want to start moving into things other games offer and do well, they have improve the game engine, make combat more dynamic and improve the graphics/worlds to be a living breathing environment. All for this game offering everything , but with a limited budget they have to work on what they can offer that others don't which is story.

But the difference is is that this model is NOT working. Story/solo content is not a long-term solution. There's a reason you see virtually all MMOs not focusing on story/solo content: they aren't singleplayer games.

 

When we move into other things:

• The game engine can still be optimized as it has been. Besides, the engine is really only a huge concern in regards to WPvP.
  
• I happen to think SWTOR's combat is VERY dynamic, and has been ever since its inception. I don't find the gameplay static at all.
  
• I don't think dynamic environments are a huge problem. This game has never been exploration-friendly since launch (though it doesn't mean the devs can't try to make it so). Graphics improvements kinda go back to the first bullet.
  
• As I said earlier I don't think budget is much of an issue. With their animated trailers, story cutscenes and dialogue, they could do SO much with endgame PvE AND PvP if the majority of their resources were dedicated to it.

Edited January 23, 2017 by Talon_strikes

[Darth_Mallek]

61% wants endgame content and 39% want solo/story, plz learn the math people. Another thing is these 39% that wants solo most of them play the game and leave after complete the story and they dont support the game in the long term in the majority. So there is no irony here, just learn your numbers and put on your minds that this is a universal law in all mmo: endgame content is what sustains a game period, that is a fact and not story single player content. Edited January 23, 2017 by Darth_Mallek

[FerkWork]

Yeah having both PvP and PvE splits the poll. In any case in successful MMOs you update everything acrosss the board as variety is what drives success. With a limited budget your left floundering as only making content for one area and leaving the rest of the game to rot. But then again I said this last year so all is left is to ride this Chocobo

[Darth_Mallek]

And consider the fact that bioware killed most of the pve and pvp community over the years, with no endgame content, that being said even with the players left on this game these numbers said it all.

[DanNV]

I am actually surprised to see story down to 38%. Less people want just story than I expected after the last couple of years.

[PlasmaJohn]

When we move into other things:

• The game engine can still be optimized as it has been. Besides, the engine is really only a huge concern in regards to WPvP.
  
• I happen to think SWTOR's combat is VERY dynamic, and has been ever since its inception. I don't find the gameplay static at all.
  
• I don't think dynamic environments are a huge problem. This game has never been exploration-friendly since launch (though it doesn't mean the devs can't try to make it so). Graphics improvements kinda go back to the first bullet.
  
• As I said earlier I don't think budget is much of an issue. With their animated trailers, story cutscenes and dialogue, they could do SO much with endgame PvE AND PvP if the majority of their resources were dedicated to it.

"But the engine!" arguments drive me bananas. We already have functional flashpoints and operations. Outside of some texture/shader lag issues there is absolutely nothing there that makes new fp and ops instances "impossible". Maybe once they figure out the texture/shader lag then maybe that would make some OW content possible.

 

I personally find the GCD a little too slow but I'm more used to Wildstar's action combat. Speaking of... TOR's physics are atrocious and its NPC pathfinding is pretty sad.

[TheRomanRuler]

I am actually surprised to see story down to 38%. Less people want just story than I expected after the last couple of years.

Don`t forget that only small minority of people are active on forums. So from those who are active on the forums, which often means more hardcore portion of the audience, 38% want story. From casuals, i would guess figure is double that. They can go play PvE into any MMO, but SWTOR has perhaps best story in any MMO.

[FerkWork]

Don`t forget that only small minority of people are active on forums. So from those who are active on the forums, which often means more hardcore portion of the audience, 38% want story. From casuals, i would guess figure is double that. They can go play PvE into any MMO, but SWTOR has perhaps best story in any MMO.

 

I lol'd that people actual believe this still. I got more story and in my opinion better quality in last FF patch than KoTET. And it had lot more group content as well and updates across the board so the excuse has been called out. And all Swtor has is Story and one trick ponies don't work. Worked so well in 4.0 when the game was a giant interactive Netflix show you could watch on YouTube for free Kappa. Or sub for a month. And now that they are halting the brakes in an desperate attempt to be an MMO again the memes shall be seen Thursday XD.

Edited January 23, 2017 by FerkWork

[Ecaja]

If this game is to sustain itself and thrive as an MMO, you guys need to do the following:

• Start working on PvE AND PvP content again.
  
• Make Story content on the lower list of priorities for development.
  
• Create new game-wide events and make the ones that have been repeated ad nauseam seasonal.
  
• Actively communicate with your players on the forums.
  
• Create expansions and not DLC-esque content.

 

Disagree with everything but the last 2 points.

 

If i want PvP i'll play a PvP dedicated game, nothing in this game makes me go "yeah, i absolutely have to play this game as PvP".

 

I really don't care for time limited events, and worst of all Weekly reputation caps.

 

I agree they need to start communicating more with the people. And i rather not have them drip feed us stuff.. but at the same time, i understand that its unlikely we'll ever actually see anything like the core material again.. where i actually mattered what class i played, every class had a special story line... voice acting and whatnot... that will probably never happen again. Which is also why i doubt this game will ever recover.

 

Optional: Feel free to select what type of content you think SWTOR should be focusing on in this poll.

 

Since you lumped Story and Solo into one, i cannot vote on any of the menu items.

 

I want the ability back to play, with my friends and family, through story content. The ability to solo is important, but what i actually want is Group Story content that is not a 4 man flash point. I want to play a multiplayer roleplaying game with my wife, and we do not want to have to find other people to play with either.

[Ralei]

There is no option there that accurately represents what I want. I want them all and I don't want to chose just one. I am a "solo" player, but I'd say most of us solo'ers engage with others much of the time - we just don't commit to raiding or ranked pvp. I still participate in the economy, I do uprisings and fp's sometimes, I jump into a wz when I feel like it. I would benefit from more pve and pvp, but I'm not going to pick those at the expense of "story".

 

What I would like going forward is a new, quality operation to entice raiding guilds for the health of the game. I would like that Operation to have a "solo" mode that would allow me to bring 3 of my companions into it to see the story play out. I don't need rewards, the raiders can have those.

 

I would like the new "planets" to be expanded into something actually explorable and heroics, world bosses, poi's, holocrons, easter eggs, achievements, etc. added into them. A real place where other people are, not just a series of hallways.

 

I want a surprise alert for each of the companions we are still missing, you can add them as they're finished. I want them all accessible to every class (like the ones during Kotfe) and the LI's open to both sexes. I want their absences explained in a satisfying way - and by satisfying - I mean created as though the writer knew the companion's history, personality, and importance to the character and the world around them. By that, I mean, don't gloss over something as important as Kira's being a Child of the Emperor. Or how the Warrior might bond with Scourge over both being Wraths. Or the unresolved bitterness that still exists over Quinn's betrayal. Those kinds of important things. Otherwise, don't bother.

[Exly]

Ironic don't you think considering the answer given by the majority of people who answered your poll.

 

Actually at the moment solo only has 39% of the vote, that is not a majority. On top of that the poll split group content into three voting options, two that included PvE, and two for PvP. That means that in order to determine how many people want PvE, you need to add the two responses together, and the same for PvP. When doing that PvE has 59% of those that voted wanting more of it, solo store content comes in second with 39%, and PvP comes in third with 35%.

 

To me it seems obvious that we should get new content for all three choices. We should not have to have to choose between them, and when the devs do choose between them a good portion of us will be disappointed by their decision.

[Vaerah]

And I find the results of his poll vastly amusing as they totally undercut his argument with over 50% at present voting for more solo content and story, more than all the other choices he had combined.

 

Understandable, considering BW totally gutted and kicked off the game whoever loved to play anything but solo and story. Next to go are PvPers who got tired getting no gear to compete but just RNG box after RNG box.

[Vaerah]

I personally find the GCD a little too slow but I'm more used to Wildstar's action combat.

 

I loved Warhammer Online PvP, GW2 PvP and ESO PvP (not for class balance though), I find SWTOR combat somewhat "old". TAB auto-target that does not break, no way to dodge incoming shots, dino-slow GCD.

[Ralei]

There is no option there that accurately represents what I want. I want them all and I don't want to chose just one. I am a "solo" player, but I'd say most of us solo'ers engage with others much of the time - we just don't commit to raiding or ranked pvp. I still participate in the economy, I do uprisings and fp's sometimes, I jump into a wz when I feel like it. I would benefit from more pve and pvp, but I'm not going to pick those at the expense of "story".

 

What I would like going forward is a new, quality operation to entice raiding guilds for the health of the game. I would like that Operation to have a "solo" mode that would allow me to bring 3 of my companions into it to see the story play out. I don't need rewards, the raiders can have those.

 

I would like the new "planets" to be expanded into something actually explorable and heroics, world bosses, poi's, holocrons, easter eggs, achievements, etc. added into them. A real place where other people are, not just a series of hallways.

 

I want a surprise alert for each of the companions we are still missing, you can add them as they're finished. I want them all accessible to every class (like the ones during Kotfe) and the LI's open to both sexes. I want their absences explained in a satisfying way - and by satisfying - I mean created as though the writer knew the companion's history, personality, and importance to the character and the world around them. By that, I mean, don't gloss over something as important as Kira's being a Child of the Emperor. Or how the Warrior might bond with Scourge over both being Wraths. Or the unresolved bitterness that still exists over Quinn's betrayal. Those kinds of important things. Otherwise, don't bother.

 

Well, I almost got everything I wanted and we'll see about the rest!!! Thanks devs!

[Talon_strikes]

So it seems we're going to get Operations, or rather, an Operation, in an episodic manner like KotFE. I hope this is only temporary because no other MMO does those nor is this style of cadence update ideal.

 

As far as Uprisings go, they need to go. We need quality, difficult Flashpoints.

[Darvus]

When this game was still in beta, I and many others continuously warned that this cut-scene/story-reliant style would make it almost impossible to do large content updates in a relatively short or efficient time frame. Many members of the community screamed to high hell that we were wrong, and we should just wait and see, because "this is just beta." This game's entire setup is a design that does not allow them to just attach a quest to an NPC. You have to do cutscenes for each class/race/sex. That said, it's not likely that this will change anytime soon. This is also why it is somewhat different to add new classes/races for us to play through. Contrary to what we were told, this game was never designed to be an MMORPG.

[SavantDreadtech]

Clearly the results are rigged! I think the Electorial College has struck again...

 

LOL, So if it had been the other way round and solo players said it was rigged?

 

Right got your number pal. Believes what you want to believe irrelevant of any evidence whatsoever. Not that this poll counts as evidence. As the questions were ill thought out, and by design were put in a way to benefit the OP. Unlucky for him/her it did not work out that way.

 

I avoid polls like this so do many because its unofficial & open to manipulation. I would have voted solo if I had voted but like all other polls It pointless as players like yourself only believe what they want to. So as said pointless.

Edited January 27, 2017 by SavantDreadtech

[Talon_strikes]

LOL, So if it had been the other way round and solo players said it was rigged?

 

Right got your number pal. Believes what you want to believe irrelevant of any evidence whatsoever. Not that this poll counts as evidence. As the questions were ill thought out, and by design were put in a way to benefit the OP. Unlucky for him/her it did not work out that way.

 

I avoid polls like this so do many because its unofficial & open to manipulation. I would have voted solo if I had voted but like all other polls It pointless as players like yourself only believe what they want to. So as said pointless.

Pretty sure his post was tongue-in-cheek bro.

 

If you thought my question in the poll was ill-thought out and by design to benefit me, how would you have done it differently? The question seems pretty neutral to me, the choice to vote story/solo is at the top, and yet, people overwhelmingly want group content over story/solo.

 

I think someone mentioned earlier that the vote is split, but I put "Both PvE and PvP" in their own category because some people like to do around the same amount of both if not a little more of one than the other. The people who voted for "exclusively" PvE might exclusively PvE but others might simply PvE a majority of the time as well.

 

Maybe I should have made a poll with just 2 options. Had I done that, you wouldn't see the story/solo option winning like it... still isn't now. Like I said, there's a bit of splitting in the options, but overall most want MMO content over story/solo.

Edited January 30, 2017 by Talon_strikes

[Ratajack]

Pretty sure his post was tongue-in-cheek bro.

 

If you thought my question in the poll was ill-thought out and by design to benefit me, how would you have done it differently? The question seems pretty neutral to me, the choice to vote story/solo is at the top, and yet, people overwhelmingly want group content over story/solo.

 

I think someone mentioned earlier that the vote is split, but I put "Both PvE and PvP" in their own category because some people like to do around the same amount of both if not a little more of one than the other. The people who voted for "exclusively" PvE might exclusively PvE but others might simply PvE a majority of the time as well.

 

Maybe I should have made a poll with just 2 options. Had I done that, you wouldn't see the story/solo option winning like it... still isn't now. Like I said, there's a bit of splitting in the options, but overall most want MMO content over story/solo.

 

I was not aware that PVE content was exclusively "group content" or that not being grouped didn't qualify as PVE.

 

There is plenty of PVE content that can be done solo. So, those that voted for the "PVE" or "PVE and PVP" could very well be primarily solo players who prefer to do things in addition to the story, but do them solo or do any "group content" with friends or guild mates.

 

As has been pointed out, the "results" of the "poll" are far from definitive.