Joe Grubb is the Content Designer at NetDevil for Jumpgate Evolution. He started at NetDevil back in November of 2009 and has since crafted hundreds of multi-step missions to inject the Jumpgate universe with a living, breathing world. A few months back he was integral in the design of JGE’s Sector Warfare System – a mission system that will help JGE deliver PvP space combat to the MMO market on an unprecedented scale. We’ve asked him to take a brief moment and discuss a new feature in Jumpgate Evolution that takes full advantage of this new system – Event Sectors.

Greetings all! I’ve been asked to take a moment and discuss an exciting new feature we’ve been building in Jumpgate Evolution – Event Sectors. In a nutshell, an event sector is a non-instanced sector that is available to players for short durations (this could be once a day, once a week, etc. – depending on how rare we want a particular sector to be). Event Sectors emphasize immersive, repeatable content; content structured to blend player vs. player and player vs. environment while supporting each faction’s unique goals and ideologies and remaining fictionally relevant.

Read more Jumpgate Evolution: Event Sectors.

I loved the original Jumpgate, but im a bit worried Netdevil have bitten off more than they can chew with this one.

So basically these are going to be like Warhammer Online Public Quests on Steroids? Sounds good to me ;)

I'm definitely keeping an eye on this one, and I'm glad to hear that they have identified what they could be improving, and working to make that happen.  

These guys may actually make a space based mmorpg that doesn't suck for new users.  

Well the info is certainly dribbling out slowly, but man, when it does come out it's defiitely not uninteresting.

Sounds good but I think that the overall war effort will be forgotten in all of these repeateable stuff. Just like in WAR where it does not matter who wins or not but it is just repeteable scenarios over and over ad nauseum.

The thing to remember is that these event sectors are just one part of the overall PvP / FvFvF system, as is mentioned in the blog. I see your concerns, but if other elements focus more on the overall war then I wouldn't be concerned about it.

Hmm... I thought Jumpgate was dead, glad to see this is not the case.

Another nail in STO's coffin?

The new vid and now this! Looking and sounding very promising.

That sounds pretty damned cool - especially that final example. PQs on steroids indeed!

-waves @Ara- 'sup bud?

Certainly could be interesting... depending on how it pans out when it comes to game play experience, as personally I can't see myself logging in every 1st Monday of the month or whatever just to get in on the event sector action.

It would certainly only be something I'd get involved in if I happened to already be logged in playing and something was going down nearby, rather than something I set a gameplay schedule around.

I do think it's a shame they are currently slating off communal goals however, having a faction v faction v faction engagement suddenly get gate crashed by a choatic zerg swarm of Conflux that don't care what colour you used for paint they just want you dead would of added a interesting if somewhat brief paradigm shift to the regular game experience.

Story and setting can be made to avoid this... but gamers are people, and very narrow perspectives are formed over time in a unchanging environment.

Hey Mulligan good to see you.

I like the sound of this in theory, but there has to be some goal or some prize at the end for the winning player, note I said player or players, and not faction.

Id like to see epic loot for the players taking part, or some sort of token that can be collected and handed in for big items, this would drive the item driven players to actually take part.

Still waiting, and hoping for some more info on what's in the game for guilds.

Sounds good to me. Public quests are really fun imo.

I really want a space shooter mmo and this game has been looking more fun than most other mmo's.

Originally posted by Xondar123

Another nail in STO's coffin?

 

Cryptic doesn't need any kind of help for that, they do it SOLO :p

Giant space battles with 3 different factions sounds great to me. I 'm definitely interested. Though one thing kind of bothered me in the developers letter:

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3.Communal goals for factions that are supposed to be at war with each other feel odd. We tested a few event sectors where factions worked together in the initial stages to either clear out the AI or rebuild something that was destroyed and it felt weird – so we cut it.

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I hope they aren't intending to cut communal goals for factions that are supposed to be at war with each other. That would be the main aspect of the game for me. Hopefully they were just talking about cutting the AI from such communal battles. I want to feel loyalty and camaraderie among my faction. The communal goals sound like a great way to do that, in my opinion. It sounds like the developers may be afraid to let thier players fail. Maybe I am one of the few who actually feel that way?

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Originally posted by Dvalon
I like the sound of this in theory, but there has to be some goal or some prize at the end for the winning player, note I said player or players, and not faction.
Id like to see epic loot for the players taking part, or some sort of token that can be collected and handed in for big items, this would drive the item driven players to actually take part.
Still waiting, and hoping for some more info on what's in the game for guilds.

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In my opinion, nothing rips a community apart faster than individual prizes. How can there be loyalty and camaraderie among a faction when everyone is just out for themselves (to get the prize)?

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Originally posted by Hagonbok
The thing to remember is that these event sectors are just one part of the overall PvP / FvFvF system, as is mentioned in the blog. I see your concerns, but if other elements focus more on the overall war then I wouldn't be concerned about it.

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That makes sense. And is reassuring.

Sorry for triple post.  

i am glad they are taking time to get this right. it has great potential

Originally posted by Palebane

Giant space battles with 3 different factions sounds great to me. I 'm definitely interested. Though one thing kind of bothered me in the developers letter:

 

---

3.Communal goals for factions that are supposed to be at war with each other feel odd. We tested a few event sectors where factions worked together in the initial stages to either clear out the AI or rebuild something that was destroyed and it felt weird – so we cut it.

---

 

I hope they aren't intending to cut communal goals for factions that are supposed to be at war with each other. That would be the main aspect of the game for me. Hopefully they were just talking about cutting the AI from such communal battles. I want to feel loyalty and camaraderie among my faction. The communal goals sound like a great way to do that, in my opinion. It sounds like the developers may be afraid to let thier players fail. Maybe I am one of the few who actually feel that way?

 I believe they mean working with your enemy feels strange.  Not working with your own faction.