Server merge means the end

[TUXs]

In one of their last streams (or was it one of those podcasts?) Eric or Keith said, they were planning something for 2018, but didn't have anything to announce yet. That's the normal stuff when being in an early stage of planning a new expansion.

I think you're thinking about when they were talking about the 4th Ops boss for the Iokath World Bosses...the snippet about the 4th boss being ready early in 2018 was that "sneak peak" they mentioned...I don't believe they've hinted at anything beyond that.

 

Don't get me wrong, I hope you're right - but I am certainly not holding my breath for an expansion that I don't believe is coming until October at the earliest.

[TheRandomWolf]

So many complaints... If you despise the game so much, why still pay for it and play?

[TUXs]

So many complaints... If you despise the game so much, why still pay for it and play?

I love the Packers, but this season I complained about Dom Capers and Ted Thompson non-freaking-stop. It's called passion...as a fan, I can complain about the things I dislike without disliking it as a whole. Wanting it to be better doesn't mean I dislike it. My complaints are against the things I view as standing in the way of making it better.

[ZeroTypeR]

Highly doubtful. Of course I thought that need for speed world was going strong, then bah!!, sudden 'shutting down in 2 months announcement' 'take care now, bye bye then'.

 

Still tho, highly doubtful that that will happen to this game.

[Krazhez]

I think you're thinking about when they were talking about the 4th Ops boss for the Iokath World Bosses...the snippet about the 4th boss being ready early in 2018 was that "sneak peak" they mentioned...I don't believe they've hinted at anything beyond that.

 

Don't get me wrong, I hope you're right - but I am certainly not holding my breath for an expansion that I don't believe is coming until October at the earliest.

 

Someone asked Keith in text chat on Twitch, because he was off camera, about an expac. He said, something like "Can’t comment on expansion plans right now" And people took that comment as meaning an expansion was near. Some of the youtuber influences have run with it to, even though they say they know nothing about what it will entail and just say, 'well Keith said an expansion is coming'.

I used to think we'd get one in spring, But with us still needing 2 ops bosses, and them wanting us to milk command, I'm with you, I don't see an expac until late summer at the earliest. Fall is probably more realistic.

Edited January 3, 2018 by Krazhez

[TrixxieTriss]

Someone asked Keith in text chat on Twitch, because he was off camera, about an expac. He said, something like "Can’t comment on expansion plans right now" And people took that comment as meaning an expansion was near. Some of the youtuber influences have run with it to, even though they say they know nothing about what it will entail and just say, 'well Keith said an expansion is coming'.

I used to think we'd get one in spring, But with us still needing 2 ops bosses, and them wanting us to milk command, I'm with you, I don't see an expac until late summer at the earliest. Fall is probably more realistic.

 

Can’t comment could also mean they haven’t decided if they are going to do another one

[Krazhez]

Can’t comment could also mean they haven’t decided if they are going to do another one

 

That's how I read it. I didn't read into it like the youtubers did, saying that makes it confirmed an xpac is soon. Sounds more to me like they don't have plans yet.

Edited January 4, 2018 by Krazhez

[HisShadowX]

I found this on Reddit yesterday about why swtor is “dying” but isn’t quite dead yet.

While I like some of his points and I don’t agree with others, it does show how swtor has flip flopped and how it’s gotten to this point. I vehemently disagree with him suggesting swtor should just be RPG now.

 

Unfortunately he didn’t add anything about the last 12 months and how it has probably been the most destructive year for the game, which was once again caused from Bioware making a massive mistake and not listening to players.

 

I think every mistake for the last 5 years can be attributed to Bioware not listening to players and forcing things on us we did not want or need. All the while not listening to what we did want and need.

 

The man is of the Hardcore Minority and praises SWG as a better game thus the 46 minute video is moot. The launch went from appeasing the casuals till at launch to appease the hardcore minority from SWG. Two million people left after the Guld Summit meant for SWG Players and promising a harder game and no dungeon finder, ever. Needless to say a bunch of people got fired at Bioware Austin and the game has been forever tainted

 

This video literally skips from launch days till the expansions and fails to mention the Guild Summit and the massive firings that happened afterwards.

 

It's pretty much a video through the eyes of an SWG Player ignoring why all the casuals left which made this game go free2play and talk about things the Hardcore Minority never liked about the game.

Edited January 4, 2018 by HisShadowX

[Lunafox]

I found this on Reddit yesterday about why swtor is “dying” but isn’t quite dead yet.

While I like some of his points and I don’t agree with others, it does show how swtor has flip flopped and how it’s gotten to this point. I vehemently disagree with him suggesting swtor should just be RPG now.

 

Unfortunately he didn’t add anything about the last 12 months and how it has probably been the most destructive year for the game, which was once again caused from Bioware making a massive mistake and not listening to players.

 

I think every mistake for the last 5 years can be attributed to Bioware not listening to players and forcing things on us we did not want or need. All the while not listening to what we did want and need.

 

Urgh, that stupid vid. There's 43 minutes of my life I'll never get back. I happened on that thing earlier tonight before I saw this post. Waste of time.

[LordArtemis]

I dont think the video lacks merit, but I cant agree with all of the points.

 

I was here through those losses, and certainly left a few times myself. And I remember why folks left when they did, or more specifically what was going on at the time.

 

This is my perspective, does not mean it is conclusive in any way.

 

1) First big loss - Bioware does not understand MMO players

 

I can't really fault them hard for this specific one....they were pretty inexperienced at the time, though I do find their arrogance at the time pretty appalling. I think they ended up paying for that arrogance though, but then again so did the game.

 

So setting the arrogance aside, they really had no idea how MMO players play an online game, and were completely surprised when folks burned through content like butter....as all hardcore MMO players do. This caused a HUGE loss in players IMO.

 

2) F2P done wrong

 

The launch of F2P and the Cartel Market helped save the game from oblivion IMO, but though it saved it from death it really didn't help grow the playerbase the way it should have. The system, especially in its infancy was simply draconian, and remains so in many ways today compared to other games in the market.

 

Bioware simply can not compete, and therefore can not pull in the kind of revenue from free players that other games see on a regular basis, that is if you believe their financial reports.

 

3) GSF/Strongholds/Level sync/CSM/Exploit we let run for a month debacles

 

All five of these things, all badly implemented or handled, caused the third exodus IMO. GSF was almost dead on arrival IMO. Strongholds were a disappointment, level sync was badly implemented when first launched (companion strength issues didn't help), the CSM was a nightmare from start to finish and the exploits that Bioware just let run for almost a month....all of this added up to a pretty disappointing point in the games history, and I think many players just got sick of it.

 

4) KotFE/ET lack of group play/removal of companions

This was one that really hurt the expansions ability to grab and hold players IMO. They REALLY wanted us to play single player here, and the game ended up suffering as a result. Add to that the forced removal of companions and you create a situation where the expense couldn't possibly be justified since it just didnt generate the kind of retention it should have.

 

5) Galactic Command system

 

This was likely the biggest debacle since launch IMO. Bioware just COMPLETELY misread how players would react to this, and I think what little of the playerbase that remained at that point was severely diminished as a result.

 

This system should have been a way to horizontally progress your character past cap for casuals, and adding gear was fine...but using it as a gear replacement mechanic for the entire game was a HUGE mistake IMO.

 

This puts us where we are today.

Edited January 4, 2018 by LordArtemis

[clocknane]

It was posted at 10:09 am, 2018 it's not 2012 anymore

 

LOL... wow

 

------- The Joke way up here -------

 

 

(Your Head)

[kodrac]

Someone asked Keith in text chat on Twitch, because he was off camera, about an expac. He said, something like "Can’t comment on expansion plans right now" And people took that comment as meaning an expansion was near.

 

People are idiots. It could just as well mean there's no expansion in the works. People hear what they want to hear. No evidence necessary. This is how we get "They lied" posts. If he said he liked tacos they'd assume a new Taco Bell was opening soon.

Edited January 4, 2018 by kodrac

[TUXs]

People are idiots. It could just as well mean there's no expansion in the works. People hear what they want to hear. No evidence necessary. This is how we get "They lied" posts. If he said he liked tacos they'd assume a new Taco Bell was opening soon.

Yup! There's no disappointment like that of false assumptions.

[BJWyler]

I dont think the video lacks merit, but I cant agree with all of the points.

 

I was here through those losses, and certainly left a few times myself. And I remember why folks left when they did, or more specifically what was going on at the time.

 

This is my perspective, does not mean it is conclusive in any way.

<snip>

This puts us where we are today.

 

As usual, LA you are not too far off the mark with this.

 

The decline of SWTOR is a complex one and there isn't any one individual thing that can be pointed to as the "the" thing that caused people to leave the game. It was a combination of many, many different things (which brings to mind that classic "Death by a Thousand Cuts" thread from years ago).

 

One of the overriding themes we have seen these last six years are Bioware's habit of taking far too long to act on something that was detrimental to the game and, in some instances, when they did act, it was with a sledgehammer when only a small screwdriver would have sufficed.

 

4.0 and 5.0 were some of the biggest sledgehammers, and unfortunately, BW became trapped in the Sunk Cost Fallacy of development with those "expansions." The problem occurred when the team was given marching orders by the suits at EA to meet certain subscriber and financial goals during that time. When you take everything together, the what and how certain things were implemented, it was clear the path was leading down to ensuring they could meet those short term goals laid out by EA. That was indirectly mentioned by Ben Irving in a Bad Feeling Podcast interview a while back (about KotFE meeting certain goals after launch).

 

The problem, as we saw and continue to see, is that those were short term solutions for short term goals that have a long term detrimental affect on the game. I had a PM conversation with Keith a while ago about some of the pain points that came from 4.0 in particular that finally caused me to unsubscribe from the game for the first time ever since just after initial launch. What he said gave me hope that he is trying to reverse at least some of those implementations, but unfortunately there are others that (by design of coding) are cementing in the game and cannot be changed. That's unfortunate, not only because 4.0 and 5.0 have hamstrung the growth of SWTOR, but also because Keith's first year has been wasted trying to fix what they can of the mess that those two expansions have wrought.

 

I have said it before, and I will say it again. When I have to unsubscribe from a game (that I want to be subscribed to on both my of my accounts) just to be able to approach something of a normal leveling pace, then there is a serious issue with how the mechanics of the game have been changed.

 

The number of servers are irrelevant to me. Both major server merges happened far too long after they really should have been done. The game is six years old, and there is only one MMO that will ever be able to maintain a larger server farm than the one we have now, regardless of the IP.

 

What the team needs to be focused on now, more so than some phantom 2018 expansion, is to get back to basics with the storytelling and MMO-parts of the game, and finally dump every single bit of 4.0 and 5.0 that they can down the garbage chute, so that people of all playstyles can get back to enjoying the experience of actually playing the game.

[kodrac]

The end is nigh! Repent all ye sinners!

[RagnarAugustus]

It was posted at 10:09 am, 2018 it's not 2012 anymore

He's comparing the OP's post to the same type of post that was posted in 2012 after the first round of server mergers....and we're still playing SWTOR years later.

[Iliac]

I love the Packers

 

Well, there's your problem.

[Qouivandes]

im still coming to grasp the idea that a little over six years ago i was standing outside of Best Buy to pick up the CE copy i pre-ordered. then the world wind that has been just the last five years outside of this game and accepting that ... yes...its been five years since my first stay in the hospital; and for all my time playing i am actually no better at playing it as i was six years ago. I still struggle in PvP and with balancing 8 toons and all of their intricacies; I still struggle with basic GSF concepts and trudge through like a bear with only food on my mind.; i still struggle with the time needed to keep up with 40+ bays of crap to sell on the GTN that i never seem to have the time to list; and i still just plain suck at lvl50 space missions even though up to that point i was fairly skilled. I still havent done any meaningful RP though i specifically build my toons just to RP with complex back stories and relationships within the cadre of toons i employ.

 

one plus, though, is i dont give a rats behind about the CM anymore. and i have bought CCs only once in a 12 month period and i dont see myself buying in the future. I have also accepted that i simply missed out on the better stronghold decorations and my lack of funds keeps me from getting them, but i have loads of crafting materials so i can get the vendor stuff...sigh.

 

another plus is that i have more fun here than actually in the game.

[TUXs]

Well, there's your problem.

Hush you...not all of us are Saint's fans...

[Qouivandes]

hush you...not all of us are saint's fans...

 

Who Dat!

 

wont let me capitalize every letter.

Edited January 4, 2018 by Qouivandes

[kodrac]

another plus is that i have more fun here than actually in the game.

 

I think I do too.

[WayOfTheWarriorx]

Wow, I cant believe what little servers we have left.

 

Its pretty bad. I just resubbed. Bioware sure did screw up during its first six months to appease the hardcore minority from the failed MMORPG Star Wars Galaxies. They wanted everything hard mode (Which is still easy for them) Bioware had the Guild Summit for these people to make sure there will never be a group finder or casual features even though before this game was going to be released there was going to be a choose your own easy, normal or hard mode.

 

Sadly the hardcore minority gets upset if anyone is playing anything with ease. Its like someone who likes BDSM they just need to keep feeling the pain.

 

I remember when that two million first left the game and the people who came up with hosting the guild summit got fired. I mean seriously why make a game that no one except a few people like it?

 

Its so sad because this game has come a long way. Sadly it was tainted

 

Really?

 

Newsflash, people have been saying this game is dead and won't last much longer for the last 5 years.

 

It's Star Wars. Give people a lightsaber and some Jedi or Sith to kill and people will come. Will the game die, sure it will, especially if they keep on making disastrous meta's like 5.x that really caused a lot of lost players, but after a while they'll come out with a new Star Wars MMO from some other company. Star Wars is forever.

 

Think of it this way. Despite the fact that Disney couldn't tell a decent Star Wars story if their life depended on it, and the fact that the three movies they put out sucked azz, they'll still make more Star Wars movies, because people love Star Wars. Hopefully after the next movie they will never tell another story about Kylo Ren and Rey ever again and they'll start over with a new cast of characters that might actually be cool.

 

Star Wars isn't going anywhere. As long as there are people, there will be Star Wars.

[Pirana]

"This is the end, beautiful friend

This is the end, my only friend, the end

Of our elaborate plans, the end

Of everything that stands, the end

No safety or surprise, the end

I'll never look into your eyes again

Can you picture what will be

So limitless and free

Desperately in need of some stranger's hand

In a desperate land

Lost in a Roman wilderness of pain

And all the children are insane

All the children are insane

Waiting for the summer rain, yeah

Kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill"

 

Somewhat obscure song by a great band. Nice choice. See how many people google it now.

 

On topic: Having another server merge is not a good sign. A good sign would have been them expanding servers. They did this out of necessity.