I heard there was supposed to be a major content update this week.  Has it happened yet?  If so, did it actually improve the game?

As I understand it, the two major areas that needed help were the poorly written, poorly designed missions and that the overall difficulty level was far too easy.  Have these things changed at all?

Originally posted by Hexxeity

I heard there was supposed to be a major content update this week.  Has it happened yet?  If so, did it actually improve the game?

As I understand it, the two major areas that needed help were the poorly written, poorly designed missions and that the overall difficulty level was far too easy.  Have these things changed at all?

having read through the patch notes I can pretty much assure you that there was no 'miracle patch(tm)' today, they've added some content, but far too many missions are still fatally bugged

it looks as thought they have raised the difficulty slightly with borking the xp multiplier

but on the whole it still sucks as much steaming goat testes as yesterday

I will know better once I've actually loaded the patch and logged in, but I'm leaning towards this being as underwhelming a patch as all of them since 7/3 have been

I just cannot see this game being worth the asking price for at least 6 months, and by then it will probably be F2P

Originally posted by abhaigh

 

Originally posted by Hexxeity

I heard there was supposed to be a major content update this week.  Has it happened yet?  If so, did it actually improve the game?

As I understand it, the two major areas that needed help were the poorly written, poorly designed missions and that the overall difficulty level was far too easy.  Have these things changed at all?

 

having read through the patch notes I can pretty much assure you that there was no 'miracle patch(tm)' today, they've added some content, but far too many missions are still fatally bugged

it looks as thought they have raised the difficulty slightly with borking the xp multiplier

but on the whole it still sucks as much steaming goat testes as yesterday

I will know better once I've actually loaded the patch and logged in, but I'm leaning towards this being as underwhelming a patch as all of them since 7/3 have been

I just cannot see this game being worth the asking price for at least 6 months, and by then it will probably be F2P

They did implement a patch today, Yes I have played it and it did fix quite a bit of issues including the ever present "too easy" issue alot of people have been talking about as well as updating many of the quests. I haven't had a chance to go too deeply but I will update as I find things.

Originally posted by Hexxeity

I heard there was supposed to be a major content update this week.  Has it happened yet?  If so, did it actually improve the game?

As I understand it, the two major areas that needed help were the poorly written, poorly designed missions and that the overall difficulty level was far too easy.  Have these things changed at all?

You should try the game and form your own opinions.  Lots of haters just bash the hell out of the game and make things seem worse then they are.

This patch added a couple new zones and some more quests so there is some more content. 

The missions being poorly designed is a matter of opinion.  I think they are pretty good and a lot of fun.  They aren't really anything amazingly different then other games.  Kill x mobs, kill mobs for drop y, pick up items, escort me to safety.  There are a couple more interesting variations.  Place this bomb on the generator and blow it up so the force shields in the enemy base drop.  Of find mob x and kill him to get his pass card.  Oh what game would be complete without the go talk to npc x.

In any even the quest system is upto par with anything else out there, again in my opinion.

As to the game being too easy thats also going to change at launch some.  Right now xp is boosted up to let beta testers progress more quickly to higher lvl areas.  One side effect is that we outlevel quests in an area before doing them all so consequently you are in areas with lower level mobs doing lower level quests.  So I'd expect things to be more challenging once the xp slows down.

Now this isn't to say the game is perfect.  It has some quests that are broken and some bugs that can cause a quest to get stuck.  What game doesn't...  Higher lvl weapons and logos are not very well balanced or may not all be in the game yet.  The crafting system needs work to make it useful but I think it will be good with some more content and a few tweeks.

What is good is that the game generally plays very well.  There are no crashes or if there are they are very rare.  The game play is fast and you get into the action in minutes or logging in.  Finally the environment is really better then anything out there.  NPC soldiers are running around in groups patrolling, aliens get dropped in in drop ships, aliens attack, soldiers, there is combat going on everywhere.  Randomly there are missiles dropping around you blowing things up.  More then ANY MMORPG this game feels alive. 

And the native critters dont just sit there - they attack each other, they attack the bane, they attack you.

I would like to see some more incentives to group. I havent tried this latest patch yet.

Originally posted by _Shadowmage

And the native critters dont just sit there - they attack each other, they attack the bane, they attack you.

I would like to see some more incentives to group. I havent tried this latest patch yet.

as they do in GuildWars, but then GW is a vastly superior game

Originally posted by _Shadowmage

And the native critters dont just sit there - they attack each other, they attack the bane, they attack you.

I would like to see some more incentives to group. I havent tried this latest patch yet.

The other continents are available and they say all the logos are in... and a slew of stuff.

Originally posted by Experimemt13

 

The incentive to group may have come with the latest patch... "easy mode" is off now.

 

 

The other continents are available and they say all the logos are in... and a slew of stuff.

All of the maps aren't avalable, from the launcher notes...

"Access will be restricted to Concordia, Torden and Valverde ..."

They are going to be debugging and re-balancing most of the game for the first 3-6 months

hope the early suck^H^H^bscribers enjoy getting ther characters gimped

I've got a great idea for a new MMO.  The premise is simple, they throw out a real buggy game, and instead of "testers" sending petitions and reports about problems they can just complain.  The more complaints they leave to people who have nothing to do with the game, the higher they go in levels.  Then for PVP they can get in groups and try and out complain eachother.  The bosses will be optimists and fanboys, along with the associated press that review the game as being "highly anticipated". 

Personally I think it would give alot of these other complainers something to do rather then waste time trying to make up other peoples minds for them.  At least they would have their own game, and all they would need to do to complain would be to log in, and maybe then they could level up while doing so!

Originally posted by maskedweasel

I've got a great idea for a new MMO.  The premise is simple, they throw out a real buggy game, and instead of "testers" sending petitions and reports about problems they can just complain.  The more complaints they leave to people who have nothing to do with the game, the higher they go in levels.  Then for PVP they can get in groups and try and out complain eachother.  The bosses will be optimists and fanboys, along with the associated press that review the game as being "highly anticipated". 

Personally I think it would give alot of these other complainers something to do rather then waste time trying to make up other peoples minds for them.  At least they would have their own game, and all they would need to do to complain would be to log in, and maybe then they could level up while doing so!

"By your powers combined I am Captain Complaint!"

Originally posted by ethion

 

 

You should try the game and form your own opinions.  Lots of haters just bash the hell out of the game and make things seem worse then they are.

This patch added a couple new zones and some more quests so there is some more content. 

The missions being poorly designed is a matter of opinion.  I think they are pretty good and a lot of fun.  They aren't really anything amazingly different then other games.  Kill x mobs, kill mobs for drop y, pick up items, escort me to safety.  There are a couple more interesting variations.  Place this bomb on the generator and blow it up so the force shields in the enemy base drop.  Of find mob x and kill him to get his pass card.  Oh what game would be complete without the go talk to npc x.

In any even the quest system is upto par with anything else out there, again in my opinion.

As to the game being too easy thats also going to change at launch some.  Right now xp is boosted up to let beta testers progress more quickly to higher lvl areas.  One side effect is that we outlevel quests in an area before doing them all so consequently you are in areas with lower level mobs doing lower level quests.  So I'd expect things to be more challenging once the xp slows down.

Now this isn't to say the game is perfect.  It has some quests that are broken and some bugs that can cause a quest to get stuck.  What game doesn't...  Higher lvl weapons and logos are not very well balanced or may not all be in the game yet.  The crafting system needs work to make it useful but I think it will be good with some more content and a few tweeks.

What is good is that the game generally plays very well.  There are no crashes or if there are they are very rare.  The game play is fast and you get into the action in minutes or logging in.  Finally the environment is really better then anything out there.  NPC soldiers are running around in groups patrolling, aliens get dropped in in drop ships, aliens attack, soldiers, there is combat going on everywhere.  Randomly there are missiles dropping around you blowing things up.  More then ANY MMORPG this game feels alive. 

 

I happen to feel this type of quest design is inexcusable.  There are games with better quests, and I simply won't pay for one that takes the lazy route.

I'm glad to hear the crashes are getting better, though!   And the NPC battles do sound like a nice touch.  Of course, CoH has all that, as well as the crappy quests, so I guess I'll stick with the devil I know.

This latest content update also includes: in-game advertising! Believe it or not, the human race was able to save...Dell XPS gaming computers, while they scrambled to take all of the absolute essentials from their invaded planet...

http://img206.imageshack.us/img206/9191/xpstc0.jpg

http://img206.imageshack.us/img206/7526/xps2gf5.jpg

lol   and just when you think it can't get any worse, that is soooooo unbelievably lame

I can think of so many better brands to salvage than Dell

They make cheap and nasty machines that are allright on a desktop, but have no place in any server room I have anything to do with. If I walk into a server room and find nothing but dell, I know right then and there that the person doing the purchasing is an idiot.

HP or IBM FTW

The game is always improving to be honest

Originally posted by Sramota

The game is always improving to be honest

Our mileage obviously varies. I've found it to be going backwards since June

Originally posted by Soldarith

This latest content update also includes: in-game advertising! Believe it or not, the human race was able to save...Dell XPS gaming computers, while they scrambled to take all of the absolute essentials from their invaded planet...

 

http://img206.imageshack.us/img206/9191/xpstc0.jpg

 

http://img206.imageshack.us/img206/7526/xps2gf5.jpg

 

 

Tabula Rasa, you are dead to me.

Originally posted by Hexxeity

 

Thanks.  This honest account tells me exactly what I need to know.

 

I happen to feel this type of quest design is inexcusable.  There are games with better quests, and I simply won't pay for one that takes the lazy route.

I'm glad to hear the crashes are getting better, though!   And the NPC battles do sound like a nice touch.  Of course, CoH has all that, as well as the crappy quests, so I guess I'll stick with the devil I know.

"Talk to NPC y, kill x number of mobs, escort/protect z npc, find object y"

That actually have quests...Tetris and Pong don't count. 

Originally posted by Hexxeity

 

Originally posted by Soldarith

This latest content update also includes: in-game advertising! Believe it or not, the human race was able to save...Dell XPS gaming computers, while they scrambled to take all of the absolute essentials from their invaded planet...

 

http://img206.imageshack.us/img206/9191/xpstc0.jpg

 

http://img206.imageshack.us/img206/7526/xps2gf5.jpg

 

 

Unbelievable.  I will NEVER, EVER, EVER pay to play a game with advertising.  Ever.

 

Tabula Rasa, you are dead to me.

Then u might as well sell off your gaming gear, this is the way the industry is heading.

Originally posted by Kithkarnon

Originally posted by Hexxeity

 

Unbelievable.  I will NEVER, EVER, EVER pay to play a game with advertising.  Ever.

 

Tabula Rasa, you are dead to me.

Then u might as well sell off your gaming gear, this is the way the industry is heading.

The only games that I've seen, myself, that offer this much in-game advertising are free-to-play games like Battlefield 2142. Games that are on a pay-to-play monthly fee, in all honesty, should generate enough revenue from their client-base to support the game without thrusting in-game advertising into their faces. This is just an attempt at a really bad precedence, and it needs to be nipped before game companies think they can have clients pay-to-play AND generate advertising dollars off them.

I've read that there are other MMOs out on the market today that are pay-to-play (I've just not played them, myself) and push heavy in-game advertising to the clients. In my own honest opinion, it is 100% up to the customer to decide if they will play/pay a product that practices this tactic.

/agree Soldarith

This is NOT the way the industry is heading.  This is the way the SCUM of the industry is heading -- those developers who don't have enough talent to create a worthwhile game that will generate the subscriptions needed to keep it going.

No one NEEDS to put advertising in a game to make ends meet.  The development capital is the hard part.  Once a game is released, it should be self-sustaining.

Now, if a struggling new developer wants to put ads on its official site, I would be happy to click away to help get the game developed, assuming I like the concept.  That, to me, would be the only justifiable use of ads in game development.