Test server, Shae Vizla, will be opening on April 3rd!

[TrixxieTriss]

8 hours ago, casirabit said:

In addition, other forum posters have also shown that I stated PVP, as they know I am not a fan of PVP.

I do know you hate pvp. I would never ask you to do it. But I would ask you to test out the server and do stuff you’d usually do in the game to help test it for APAC players. I know that means you wouldn’t qualify for the reward 😞

BioWare are probably going to move forward with an AWS setup for the whole game. Wouldn’t you like them to get it right the first time they do it live 🤷🏻‍♀️.

Plus you’ll be able to see how it affects your ping. Because a complete AWS game setup will liking put you in different AWS regional areas each time you login which might possibly give you a different ping, especially if they do cross server queuing for any group content or instance.

Surely youre curious to see how it affects performance?

Edited April 2, 2023 by TrixxieTriss

[casirabit]

14 minutes ago, TrixxieTriss said:

I do know you hate pvp. I would never ask you to do it. But I would ask you to test out the server and do stuff you’d usually do in the game to help test it for APAC players. I know that means you wouldn’t qualify for the reward 😞

BioWare are probably going to move forward with an AWS setup for the whole game. Wouldn’t you like them to get it right the first time they do it live 🤷🏻‍♀️.

Plus you’ll be able to see how it affects your ping. Because a complete AWS game setup will liking put you in different AWS regional areas each time you login which might possibly give you a different ping, especially if they do cross server queuing for any group content or instance.

Surely youre curious to see how it affects performance?

I will consider it, but not sure yet, considering there is 24-hour maintenance on FFX this Monday and Tuesday, so I have to find something to do.  

[Balameb]

On 3/31/2023 at 7:13 AM, _Miriya_ said:

Does someone here understands or can guess what this path of server in the cloud means for the future of the game?

Besides the good news for apac region of course.

Do these new options open the door for the old servers? Improvements... merging? 

These are only a guesses of potential things to happen, as moving to cloud could mean a lot a different things depeding how it is done, the posibilities/limitations of the code and the goals of BW.

First some that have higher chances as represent some of the basic core of usual cloud computing benefits:

1- Non intrusive (from game perspective) hardware manteinance.

2- More stability

3- Higher scalation with little to no downtime, both verticaly and horizontablly

4- Cost savings

More game oriented :

5- Better performance

6a- New regions/servers

7a- Cross server queues

6b- Mega servers + Sub region servers/dynamic instances

 

 

 

 

Edited April 2, 2023 by Balameb

[fire-breath]

On 4/1/2023 at 7:16 PM, casirabit said:

My post did not say PVE, it said pvp.  Not sure why it stated that because if you would reread my post:

 

So nowhere in the post does it say PVE, it states PVP.    In addition, other forum posters have also shown that I stated PVP, as they know I am not a fan of PVP.

I am aware. I have rewritten the quoted part to make a point.

Firstly, I completely agree with you that it's rather stinky that BioWare is forcing us to do PvE AND PvP-content in order to get a reward. It would have been nicer if there were 2 types of rewards, or that you needed to complete a certain amount of missions (Similar to how you unlock implants with neuro keys).

 

Having said this. Your post was the very first post in this topic and is blatantly incorrect in my opinion. It doesn't do justice to the truth and might deter people from testing.
Especially for a 1st post, it's important to not write disinformation. That's why I asked you to edit your post. (A bit too forcefully, though)

You say this test is only for PvP'ers. With the same ease I can say this is only for PvE'ers.
I know there are people as well who would complain getting forced into doing a flashpoint. I have showed this by simply changing the words PvP for PvE.

 

Your gripe is not that this testing is for PvP'ers. Your gripe is that BioWare forces you to play PvP (if you want to get the rewards).
Anyways. Personally, I don't mind nor really care too much. But I hope for they change the rewards a bit

[EvilOverLady]

Umm, I have a stupid question since I have never done accessing to test server before:

 

I went to the game launcher and granted access to the test server. Why did it start downloading and installing the whole 36G update to my computer again? 36G game + 36G test server = 72G   (+ update scraps) takes a lot of memory from any comp

Once I've done the tests for the reward and maybe some other shaking around, how do i tell a difference between the proper live game and  test server game in order to uninstall the test sever version from my computer? 

Maybe i should do a clean slate installation (again) once i'm done with the testing, but I'm really disliking of the idea of 2-3h operation it'll be.

Edited April 3, 2023 by EvilOverLady

[Amodin]

On 3/31/2023 at 5:13 AM, _Miriya_ said:

Does someone here understands or can guess what this path of server in the cloud means for the future of the game?

Besides the good news for apac region of course.

Do these new options open the door for the old servers? Improvements... merging? 

If you would read the article linked in the original post of this message by Jackie, it literally tells you why the migration is taking place.  Literally.

[Balameb]

2 hours ago, EvilOverLady said:

Umm, I have a stupid question since I have never done accessing to test server before:

 

I went to the game launcher and granted access to the test server. Why did it start downloading and installing the whole 36G update to my computer again? 36G game + 36G test server = 72G   (+ update scraps) takes a lot of memory from any comp

Once I've done the tests for the reward and maybe some other shaking around, how do i tell a difference between the proper live game and  test server game in order to uninstall the test sever version from my computer? 

Maybe i should do a clean slate installation (again) once i'm done with the testing, but I'm really disliking of the idea of 2-3h operation it'll be.

You activated PTS, that is why is downloading like a second game. This particular new test is not done in the PTS. Is a regular (but temprary) server.

[StrikePrice]

How do you copy chars to the new server?

[SteveTheCynic]

On 4/2/2023 at 4:07 PM, Balameb said:

First some that have higher chances as represent some of the basic core of usual cloud computing benefits:

GW2 had ...

On 4/2/2023 at 4:07 PM, Balameb said:

1- Non intrusive (from game perspective) hardware manteinance.

... this ...

On 4/2/2023 at 4:07 PM, Balameb said:

2- More stability

((not quantifiable))

On 4/2/2023 at 4:07 PM, Balameb said:

3- Higher scalation with little to no downtime, both verticaly and horizontablly

... and this ...

On 4/2/2023 at 4:07 PM, Balameb said:

4- Cost savings

((not directly relevant for us, the players))

On 4/2/2023 at 4:07 PM, Balameb said:

More game oriented :

5- Better performance

((debatable))

On 4/2/2023 at 4:07 PM, Balameb said:

6a- New regions/servers

((maybe))

On 4/2/2023 at 4:07 PM, Balameb said:

7a- Cross server queues

((may I remind you of the stuff about "better than cross-server"?))

On 4/2/2023 at 4:07 PM, Balameb said:

6b- Mega servers + Sub region servers/dynamic instances

... and this ...

and GW2 had the "... this ..." things **before** they went AWS.

[StrikePrice]

On 4/2/2023 at 7:07 AM, Balameb said:

4- Cost savings

Nobody saves money with AWS. The cloud cannot compete with on prem depreciated servers. Everyone who wants to save money migrates back from the cloud to on prem. 

[Balameb]

1 minute ago, StrikePrice said:

Nobody saves money with AWS. The cloud cannot compete with on prem depreciated servers. Everyone who wants to save money migrates back from the cloud to on prem. 

depends on your use case. If your consumption is constant and not expected to grow much, then on premises could likely be a better option in terms of cost.

But if you have expected usage spikes, then is not so simple. Because if you need to cover resources for you peak expected demand (+ some extra just in case) you may need to purchase in advance a huge amount of hardware you are not using all the sime.

Someone in similar situation and specially if also in need to renew their core hardware infrastructure (not saying SWTOR is, but maybe), then cloud is certainly a option to save costs.

[AutumnNymph]

Question 

Me and my boyfriend just now did a Galactic Starfighter match and an Arena match, so 2 out of the 3 things to do.
For the Flashpoint, does it count if we did it in group ( us two with our companions ) and in Story Mode?

Thanks 

[Cirran]

Definitely not the target audience with this play test (I abhor PvP) so I will not be doing anything with this. 

I am concerned with the fact that AWS will now be providing support for this game. 

I have a couple of other games they provide this kind of support to and they have intense issues with keeping people logged in, long queue times, issues with characters not always being available and at times down right missing etc.

To quote some one far more intelligent than I. "I have a bad feeling about this."

 

Cirran

[ThanderSnB]

3 hours ago, StrikePrice said:

How do you copy chars to the new server?

It's not PTS, so I don't think there is a character copy. Think of it as a fresh server. Having said that, I could see them putting an NPC somewhere to boost to 80 and give gear. I don't know if there is one or where it is though. You don't need to get high level to test out warzones and flashpoints at least. Arenas maybe require 80, but you can get level 80 within a week just running heroics on each planet.

Edit: Ok I'm wrong on this sorry. There is supposed to be a way to do this.

Edit2: The instructions are here: https://forums.swtor.com/topic/928568-test-server-shae-vizla-server-feedback-thread/

Edited April 3, 2023 by ThanderSnB

[JackieKo]

32 minutes ago, AutumnNymph said:

Question 

Me and my boyfriend just now did a Galactic Starfighter match and an Arena match, so 2 out of the 3 things to do.
For the Flashpoint, does it count if we did it in group ( us two with our companions ) and in Story Mode?

Thanks 

Yup, it'll count for you both! If you could also leave feedback of your experiences in the feedback thread, that would be awesome. Thanks! 

[AutumnNymph]

9 minutes ago, JackieKo said:

Yup, it'll count for you both! If you could also leave feedback of your experiences in the feedback thread, that would be awesome. Thanks! 

Yes absolutely 👍🏻 

[ufion]

Hi Jackie,

I am hoping you can shed some light on what a LOT of us in Australia are confused by in relation to this new test server, pretty please! If you could provide some clarity about the longterm goal of testing on APAC that would be great, we beg you! The questions are:

1. Will there be a live/production APAC server once the Shae Vizla test server is wiped on April 18th ? 

2. If no permanent APAC server, does that mean APAC players will (like the current situation), pick one of the respective 5 servers that are staying in their current regions, once the AWS cloud migration is finished?

 

The reason I am hoping you can provide clarity to these questions is there's a big chunk of APAC people currently celebrating having a 20-40ms ping, but unless I am mistaken this is just a temporary situation and APAC players will revert back to pings that have to communicate with datacenters around the world - is that correct?

 

If you could please clarify I feel that will help us massively and prevent a very huge rude shock down the track as a large community misunderstanding is brewing, I think!!!!

 

 

 

[TrixxieTriss]

OMG the ping is amazing for APAC players 😍🥰. It’s 4-9 ms ping playing in Sydney Australia.

I really hope Bioware decide to make a permanent APAC server from this test. Playing with 230ms the last several years has really taken the shine off the game for me. 

I would resubscribe tomorrow if 4-9 ms was my normal ping from now on. 

[TrixxieTriss]

18 minutes ago, ufion said:

Hi Jackie,

I am hoping you can shed some light on what a LOT of us in Australia are confused by in relation to this new test server, pretty please! If you could provide some clarity about the longterm goal of testing on APAC that would be great, we beg you! The questions are:

1. Will there be a live/production APAC server once the Shae Vizla test server is wiped on April 18th ? 

2. If no permanent APAC server, does that mean APAC players will (like the current situation), pick one of the respective 5 servers that are staying in their current regions, once the AWS cloud migration is finished?

 

The reason I am hoping you can provide clarity to these questions is there's a big chunk of APAC people currently celebrating having a 20-40ms ping, but unless I am mistaken this is just a temporary situation and APAC players will revert back to pings that have to communicate with datacenters around the world - is that correct?

 

If you could please clarify I feel that will help us massively and prevent a very huge rude shock down the track as a large community misunderstanding is brewing, I think!!!!

 

 

 

I came across at least 40 APAC people playing today in the last 2 hours on Korriban. Many hadn’t played the game since we lost our APAC & then west coast servers. 
I don’t know if enough people would come back permanently if there was a dedicated APAC server. But we’ll never know unless Bioware tries it and sees. 

[eabevella]

I'm having 150-190ms on Shae Vizla compared to the usual 200-250ms on Star Forge.

Considering my internet will have to go across the ocean no matter what, I consider it a big win.

Also curious about how does this APAC server work if it will be a thing in the future.

If it's a new server where I have to start from scratch, I'm not sure if I'll move my main there since I already have too much investment on SF. I know I can character transfer, but the main issue will be all the stronghold decorations I have on SF. No way I'm gonna abandon those.

I'll have a secondary setup on an APAC server if my APAC guild on SS wants to move there. But I guess that also depends on whether they want to move house.

[aidtry]

Australian player here - The last time I witnessed 5ms whilst playing this game was back in 2012.... 

Happy days, cheers!

[DiamondDove]

Compared to an existing server, how is the performance?

Overall performance is substantially enhanced due to much lower latency (generally 38-42 ms cf 240-360 on North American servers). Occasionally ping was 38-59 ⏩  ⏩ which is still amazing speed for Straya, meaning no lag in abilities, much more enjoyable content - especially PVP and GSF. Both very enjoyable at such low latency, but not at usual lag on NA servers.

What region/country do you reside in?

APAC - Australia (outback Queensland)

Provide a comparison of ping from existing servers to Shae Vizla.

Generally 38-42 ms cf 240-360 on NA servers (see details below).

Is grouped content working properly?

Yes, smooth as silk, no glitches.

• FP popped within 5 minutes (Tuesday, 9pm AEST). Essels FP completed on Veteran with full group. No glitches for me. One team mate saw me upside in an elevator, one other had weird graphics when loading. Ping was 38-59 during the FP. Usually 260-320 (plus DCs) on Satele Shan. Team mate from UK ping was about 400 (much worse for them), from Bangladesh 150 (usually 200+). 
• GSF did not pop at L80 over 4 days (at various times, usually evening) until Saturday evening (about 10.30pm). Full compliment of players. Game as smooth as silk, no glitches. Ping was 37-42ms.
• PVP did not pop at L80 over 4 days (at various times, usually evening), did pop for lowbies (L10) Saturday evening (Arena at about 11.30 pm). 3 vs 3 round 1, then 4 vs 3 round 2 and 3. Game as smooth as silk, no glitches. Ping was 37-42ms. South African team mate had ping slower than 400ms.

How quickly can you get into a match or Flashpoint you’ve accepted?

No delays accessing GSF or PVP once the que had popped.

Is travel to any location (planet, Stronghold, Fleet, etc…) hindered?

No. Levelled a Trooper to L10 on Ord Mantel (sniper discipline) through story, planetary and heroic missions - no glitches or bugs at all. Chose a second discipline - no glitches. 

Completed Space Mission Fondor Escort with no bugs.

Improved ping made all missions and content smoother than usual.

No problems travelling to worlds via map, or to strongholds.

Are there any issues with the UI such as missing assets or loss of functionality?

No noticeable loss of assets etc in UI.

Are there any issues with visuals or sounds with the cinematics?

No issues with visuals, sounds or cinematics.

Edited April 9, 2023 by DiamondDove
Updated information

[Przemo_No]

My brief experience on the new test server has been very limited. Since I am EU player, I experience heavy lag. I did not ping it, however te time between my click and actual movement is about 3-4 seconds. Not feasible for any competitive play, particularly PVP.

I went to a planet or 2 and could cope with class missions, but I cannot imagine all that lag being helpful in testing anything.

So I  am happy that APAC players have their chance, but for EU players it's not practical.

 

 

 

[ThanderSnB]

17 hours ago, ufion said:

Hi Jackie,

I am hoping you can shed some light on what a LOT of us in Australia are confused by in relation to this new test server, pretty please! If you could provide some clarity about the longterm goal of testing on APAC that would be great, we beg you! The questions are:

1. Will there be a live/production APAC server once the Shae Vizla test server is wiped on April 18th ? 

2. If no permanent APAC server, does that mean APAC players will (like the current situation), pick one of the respective 5 servers that are staying in their current regions, once the AWS cloud migration is finished?

 

The reason I am hoping you can provide clarity to these questions is there's a big chunk of APAC people currently celebrating having a 20-40ms ping, but unless I am mistaken this is just a temporary situation and APAC players will revert back to pings that have to communicate with datacenters around the world - is that correct?

 

If you could please clarify I feel that will help us massively and prevent a very huge rude shock down the track as a large community misunderstanding is brewing, I think!!!!

 

 

 

I don't have any answers, but it does seem that AWS would allow them to add a server pretty cheaply because the cost is based on how much the server is used. If there are a lower amount of players, the cost is lower, so it can be affordable. This is different than when they had dedicated servers where the cost was high regardless of how little players used it.

[Setokai]

On 4/3/2023 at 5:15 PM, JackieKo said:

Yup, it'll count for you both! If you could also leave feedback of your experiences in the feedback thread, that would be awesome. Thanks! 

Last night i did a GSF and flashpoint, do i still need to do a warzone or arena?