Don't Fret! Activity Dropped A Little Just Because It Is Summer.

[Ylliarus]

I have seen a rise in the number of threads saying "Is X amount of people on Fleet normal at Y hour?" or along the same line but dipped more deeply in negativity. As someone who has been playing this game for more than five years I want to put the mind's of those worried at ease by saying that it is perfectly normal this time of year!

 

The summer has just started, people finish schools or work and go on holidays. For years the trend around this time of year has been that the amount of people ingame decreased, simply because June, July and August are the holiday/summer months. There are those who don't want to sit in front of their screen in the middle of the heat or otherwise want to enjoy the nice weather during the day or evening. It's truly perfectly normal that the amount of players ingame, specifically the Fleet, is much lower during these months, I have seen it happen year after year during my time playing this game. Even I, a diehard fan of this game, find myself spending less time in front of the computer because it's simply too beautiful weather to sit inside.

 

So, based on my 5+ years experience of playing this game I can tell those who are concerned about the state of the game this: don't fret! All is fine, don't listen to the doomsayers who kick on spreading negativity that this game is nearing its end or "Bioware hit the nail in the coffin". There is nothing indicating that SWTOR is in danger, especially since I have had the amazing privilege of regularly interacting with Charles Boyd over Twitter over the last couple of weeks. From the many fantastic replies he sent me, as on behalf of the RP community I have been asking him lore questions, I can see that the team is very busy with working on new content and is full of enthusiasm for the future!

 

Take it from me that the game is nowhere near the redzone, it's just a little quiet because it's nice and sunny outside

Edited July 2, 2018 by Ylliarus

[Lord_Martheous]

I agree that numbers do drop for summer. population on others planets that I visited recently seem decent too, neither are as high as when I started playing the game, but I think OK.

[DefenderTwo]

At least the forums have been calm, no one is attacking anyone anymore over opinions on whatever.

[TrixxieTriss]

That’s all well and good, but can you say there are more or less people in the game this summer vs last summer?

 

I don’t think you can, anymore than I can. But I think you need to realise that there are less people in this game than there were last year. Which means the yearly summer drop is being felt more than last year. The same as every year it’s felt more because people see less and less people each summer.

 

None of that means you aren’t right about less people being in the game over summer months, but that also doesn’t mean you are right that everything is the same as always.

 

We’ve seen a continued bleeding out of players since 5.0 was released and every bad decisions or lack of action on behalf of Bioware has increased it, this was happening well before summer started.

 

Activity drop is expected during summer, but that can’t be used as an excuse for all the lack of activity. There is more to it than “it’s just summer”. Yes it’s part of it, but you can’t simplify it all and say “Don’t Fret”, it’s only summer.

 

This next road map could make or break the game as we know it. I’m optimistic it will reinvigorate a part of the game that has been neglected since launch. My hope is this will bring some people back to the game that will not only pvp, but get involved with other parts once they are back.

 

I don’t need think we need to ring the alarm bells yet, but this isn’t the simple issue your OP makes out.

[Ylliarus]

That’s all well and good, but can you say there are more or less people in the game this summer vs last summer?

 

I don’t think you can, anymore than I can. But I think you need to realise that there are less people in this game than there were last year. Which means the yearly summer drop is being felt more than last year. The same as every year it’s felt more because people see less and less people each summer.

 

None of that means you aren’t right about less people being in the game over summer months, but that also doesn’t mean you are right that everything is the same as always.

 

We’ve seen a continued bleeding out of players since 5.0 was released and every bad decisions or lack of action on behalf of Bioware has increased it, this was happening well before summer started.

 

Activity drop is expected during summer, but that can’t be used as an excuse for all the lack of activity. There is more to it than “it’s just summer”. Yes it’s part of it, but you can’t simplify it all and say “Don’t Fret”, it’s only summer.

 

This next road map could make or break the game as we know it. I’m optimistic it will reinvigorate a part of the game that has been neglected since launch. My hope is this will bring some people back to the game that will not only pvp, but get involved with other parts once they are back.

 

I don’t need think we need to ring the alarm bells yet, but this isn’t the simple issue your OP makes out.

 

You definitely raise valid points. Perhaps the activity drop is felt a tad more this summer because indeed since 5.0 players have been leaving the game, I don't dispute that. I will agree that KotFE and KotET weren't the best two expansions for the game speaking in long terms. Nonetheless, I do believe we will see a turnaround in that which is what makes me feel rather positive about the game's future ^_^

 

Perhaps I would have shared your view more if I hadn't had the amazing opportunity to interact with Charles Boyd over Twitter. His willingness to answer the lore questions I asked on behalf of the RP community truly brought a smile to my face and still does! From some of the replies he hinted the team is very busy on working on new content and are very enthusiastic about where things will be heading! Absolutely feel free to have a look at his tweets yourself, perhaps you'll feel the surge of excitement I am feeling as well!

[BarbarikDave]

I never worry when population drops around certain times of the year. People have lives to live and stuff and not everyone spends 100% of the free time in-game. Then again I'm one of those people that prefers switching to the less populated instances to avoid people so I don't really pay attention to the population any way and the stuff I queue for hasn't really seen an increase or decrease in queue times, at least so much to make it noticeable. Though my experience certainly doesn't speak for all and I definitely won't make baseless arguments about population since I have no way of getting an accurate representation. All I will say is so far I haven't been effected by population changes in any significant way, so I'm happy.

[Eli_Porter]

Just logged in after several months to see what's going on.

 

Yes, activity numbers are way down. Post-merge, we had 1 to 2 full instances of republic fleet on DM. Nowadays the numbers are about half of that. I won't delve into the reasons I haven't been active, since they're numerous and not quite interesting, but i'll just say these three things:

 

1. Enjoy the game while it lasts.

 

2. Try to get into an active guild to bypass queue times.

 

3. Hopefully 6.0 gets us back on track.

[Ylliarus]

Just logged in after several months to see what's going on.

 

Yes, activity numbers are way down. Post-merge, we had 1 to 2 full instances of republic fleet on DM. Nowadays the numbers are about half of that. I won't delve into the reasons I haven't been active, since they're numerous and not quite interesting, but i'll just say these three things:

 

1. Enjoy the game while it lasts.

 

2. Try to get into an active guild to bypass queue times.

 

3. Hopefully 6.0 gets us back on track.

 

Queue times are actually fine, tbh. I rarely have to wait longer than a minute for a pop, either for a warzone or flashpoints

 

And idk what this is about low numbers on fleet, whenever I am online the instances on Darth Malgus are quite populated!

Edited July 2, 2018 by Ylliarus

[JennyFlynn]

Coffee is awesome. Edited July 2, 2018 by JennyFlynn

[omaan]

Just logged in after several months to see what's going on.

 

Yes, activity numbers are way down. Post-merge, we had 1 to 2 full instances of republic fleet on DM. Nowadays the numbers are about half of that. I won't delve into the reasons I haven't been active, since they're numerous and not quite interesting, but i'll just say these three things:

 

1. Enjoy the game while it lasts.

 

2. Try to get into an active guild to bypass queue times.

 

3. Hopefully 6.0 gets us back on track.

 

Yesterday i had 8 fights of lowbie warzones on my 24 lvl commando during 12:00-1:00 am (gmt +2). While summer time + football championship are causing some negative impact on population on EU servers there is still high activity for every content on DM even for lowbie/midbie warzones. Besides, summer and football championship are temporal problems. When they are over, all servers will return back to normal population. The problem is with constant decline in swtor's population quantity due to lack of content, no new classes, slow bugg fixes and other problems.

Edited July 2, 2018 by omaan

[Ylliarus]

Yesterday i had 8 fights of lowbie warzones on my 24 lvl commando during 12:00-1:00 am (gmt +2). While summer time + football championship are causing some negative impact on population on EU servers there is still high activity for every content on DM even for lowbie/midbie warzones. Besides, summer and football championship are temporal problems. When they are over, all servers will return back to normal population. The problem is with constant decline in swtor's population quantity due to lack of content, no new classes, slow bugg fixes and other problems.

 

One other factor indeed that draws away people from SWTOR, the World Cup. Personally it doesn't interest me too much but surely majority of the players are watching it and following the matches.

[Lhancelot]

Anecdotal musings are taken with a grain of salt. I will worry about the games population when PVP queues are no longer popping instantly, and right now for 70s PVP they do just that on SF, they pop constantly when I am on.

 

I can compare population on SF to past servers, and it really seems to be just as populated as TEH was in the past, maybe a bit more populated tbh. I don't find it worrying at all.

 

Anyway, it's like worrying about leaves that turn orange in the fall. It's inevitable, eventually the game will cease but for now the leaves are still green and hanging on the trees.

 

Basically I notice there are these types of people that constantly focus on the possibilities of the negatives and seem intent on planting their thoughts in other's minds to share in their paranoia which sometimes can end up true.

 

I tend to get irritated with constant negative musings and comments like "game is dying!" etc. I guess I am superstitious and a weirdo too, sometimes I feel like if you keep wishing on something bad it will happen.

[kodrac]

At least the forums have been calm, no one is attacking anyone anymore over opinions on whatever.

 

The day is young...

[Ylliarus]

Anecdotal musings are taken with a grain of salt. I will worry about the games population when PVP queues are no longer popping instantly, and right now for 70s PVP they do just that on SF, they pop constantly when I am on.

 

I can compare population on SF to past servers, and it really seems to be just as populated as TEH was in the past, maybe a bit more populated tbh. I don't find it worrying at all.

 

Anyway, it's like worrying about leaves that turn orange in the fall. It's inevitable, eventually the game will cease but for now the leaves are still green and hanging on the trees.

 

Basically I notice there are these types of people that constantly focus on the possibilities of the negatives and seem intent on planting their thoughts in other's minds to share in their paranoia which sometimes can end up true.

 

I tend to get irritated with constant negative musings and comments like "game is dying!" etc. I guess I am superstitious and a weirdo too, sometimes I feel like if you keep wishing on something bad it will happen.

 

I completely agree with you here, aye! It's actually a quite good metaphor, the trees and leafs. They're very much green at the moment but as you said, one day they'll turn yellow. The same is for the game, one day it will shut down, it's inevitable. So I never understood why the doomsayers fret and complain on the forums when they can just log on and enjoy the game for as long as it lasts. Whether it's a year, two years or even more, why would you repeat the negativity over and over again on the forums. We know there is a small group of people who have been chanting "the end is nigh" since the very first day the game went online, we don't need to be reminded

 

If they do it because "they love the game", then stop spreading the negativity and instead just play the game!

[Lhancelot]

I completely agree with you here, aye! It's actually a quite good metaphor, the trees and leafs. They're very much green at the moment but as you said, one day they'll turn yellow. The same is for the game, one day it will shut down, it's inevitable. So I never understood why the doomsayers fret and complain on the forums when they can just log on and enjoy the game for as long as it lasts. Whether it's a year, two years or even more, why would you repeat the negativity over and over again on the forums. We know there is a small group of people who have been chanting "the end is nigh" since the very first day the game went online, we don't need to be reminded

 

If they do it because "they love the game", then stop spreading the negativity and instead just play the game!

 

Exactly.

 

Either they are just negative in general and feel a need to share their inner worries or they do it to troll up emotional reactions because that's all it does.

 

Naturally others are going to react unhappily to doomsayers, especially if it seems to be a constant pattern which often times it is.

 

The problem is, you cannot convince a doomsayer that they are crossing bridges too early and that they are being negative when it's not necessary.

 

In the mind of the doomsayer the bad is really there and something to worry on. Unless as I mentioned before they do it purely to troll.

[helpmewin]

Hear this every year "Its just -'insert any excuse". So when new merges? Edited July 2, 2018 by helpmewin

[Ylliarus]

Hear this every year "Its just -'insert any excuse". So when new merges?

 

And somehow every year the game is alive and kicking as the population is healthy enough, additional server merges are faaar out of the picture.

[Lhancelot]

Hear this every year "Its just -'insert any excuse". So when new merges?

 

Hopefully soon I would like to play with euros more, so I hope they merge euro servers with the NA ones. The earlier the better! Euros are always friendlier it seems.

[helpmewin]

IMO one of the main reasons why peoples quit - there is nothing unique u can play for. All u can buy from CM shop, if not this, but recolored.

[casirabit]

I completely agree with you here, aye! It's actually a quite good metaphor, the trees and leafs. They're very much green at the moment but as you said, one day they'll turn yellow. The same is for the game, one day it will shut down, it's inevitable. So I never understood why the doomsayers fret and complain on the forums when they can just log on and enjoy the game for as long as it lasts. Whether it's a year, two years or even more, why would you repeat the negativity over and over again on the forums. We know there is a small group of people who have been chanting "the end is nigh" since the very first day the game went online, we don't need to be reminded

 

If they do it because "they love the game", then stop spreading the negativity and instead just play the game!

 

I have heard the game is dying since the beginning and one day they may be correct but until then I will continue playing and doing what I like. Since I am not a fan of pvp I am not subject to those groups. I do sometimes do operations, etc that require a group but I still don't use group pickups as not a fan so when I want to do those, I have a few options, my guild or people I have played with before and know how good my medic is. Some people aren't playing for personal reasons, I know my boyfriend doesn't get to play like he wants, but that is due to his work schedule not because he doesn't want to play. I don't get to play as much as I want either, due to taking care of an invalid mom, who has been in and out of the hospital lately so yea the game takes a backseat in those situations.

[Ylliarus]

IMO one of the main reasons why peoples quit - there is nothing unique u can play for. All u can buy from CM shop, if not this, but recolored.

 

I find something to do every day on SWTOR either it's replaying a class story, do some PVP or have some roleplay. If people say "there's nothing to do in game" they aren't looking closely enough.

 

The fact it's Star Wars and set in the Old Republic era makes it more than unique enough to me!

[Jdast]

Well, the good news is that this debate is academic (in the literal sense of the word) since BW: Austin:

 

a) has the actual numbers; and b) more importantly, told us what they are doing as 6.0 is still on the horizon. How we choose to respond to the slow release of content is, of course, a personal decision.

 

My personal belief is that until new content is released there will be a steady drip in numbers, which frankly shouldn't come as a terrible surprise. Add on to that a new expansion for both ESO and WoW (there is some overlap in playerbase), etc., etc..

 

Of course, I'll truly be worried when I stop getting emails from "asdkljaljwohasdpfiafafja" offering credits for sale. I even got one last week titled, no joke, "I Love You." /snicker

 

Dasty

Edited July 2, 2018 by Jdast

[Savej]

I often see population drops in the Summer. I do not see population surges in Sept. We get surges with new content expacs or movie releases. But my guess Is that the movies are done being great sub magnets.

[DarthWoad]

Yeah, all the kids are off, more time for them to play games! apart from this one

[Quraswren]

Yeah, all the kids are off, more time for them to play games! apart from this one

 

I was thinking the same thing.

 

Number are down because it's summer. I'm sure that plays a part but it's minor.

 

Problem is numbers are also down because there is little new to drive the game. NEW - the lifeblood of an MMO. The little new content we did get has little to no player retention because it was one FP. As if that was ever going to hold gamers at any point in the year for very long.

 

Then you look at that complete joke of a road map when it comes to what this game is getting for the remainder of the year. Gamers read what bioware wrote and instantly knew SWTOR just isn't getting a lot of focus to cause the game to grow and/or retain gamers. Even if you like PVP and we all know PVP updates are needed, thats usually tacked on to a larger update and PVP is in general a smaller part of the game. Total focus on that at a time of the year when player numbers slip was a stupid move as it will do nothing more than to drive more gamers away. It is historically known PVP player numbers are lower than PVE players in games like this.

 

Numbers are down and will continue to drop and it's not at all just because it's summer.