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Hartsman addresses ArcheAge APEX exploit: 'There isn't a dupe bug'
ArcheAge has been having a bit of trouble with bugs and exploits since its launch, if you haven't noticed. Trion Worlds head Scott Hartsman has weighed in on the APEX bug that has been affecting the game; specifically, he's said that the bug is not a dupe bug. Players were rather upset as soon as this announcement was made, pointing out that the bug is a known issue that has been affecting the game and the playerbase since it was first discovered. Community manager Evan "Scapes" Berman clarified that the bug in question is not, strictly speaking, a dupe bug; rather than duplicating an item multiple times, the bug was allowing players to continue to reap the benefits of an item without consuming it as intended. APEX are still unavailable as more hotfixes are put into place to prevent further abuse of exploits, with action already being taken to both patch out the issue and remove funds accumulated by abuses of the exploit.
ArcheAge's Hartsman: 'We're banning about 5K a day'
Trion CEO Scott Hartsman took to Twitter today to address concerns over botting and economy-destroying exploits in ArcheAge. He says that some of the shenanigans making the rounds on Reddit are legit and are "on XL's plate for fixing," though "much of it is false forum bragging." He also says that Trion is banning five thousand bots per day and has "dozens of people here working on this very thing."
ArcheAge boasts two million registered players
ArcheAge's local launch has gone pretty well, according to producer Scott Hartsman. A recent letter to the players confirms last week's whispers that over two million players have registered for the game, which certainly goes a long way to explaining those launch queues. Between North America and Europe, the game currently has 21 active servers in total, and Hartsman stated that character creation restrictions are being rolled back as the populations begin to stabilize. The letter goes on to address the issue of bots, many of which have already been unceremoniously ejected from the game. The game's most recent patch restricts chatting in several channels (Faction, Trade, Nation, Shout, and Need Party) to characters who are level 15 or higher, and a learning anti-spam feature is on track to be integrated into the base game. There's also discussion about catching up with holiday content and the like, so those two million registered players should have plenty of stuff to do.
Trion's Hartsman on more ArcheAge servers, communication
Trion CEO Scott Hartsman has posted an ArcheAge launch update letter on the game's official forum. The long and short of it is more servers, expanded customer service, and more aggressive AFK sweeps. Hartsman also mentions that he's "personally tweeted more during this launch than [he thinks he has] since Twitter existed," and he says that Trion's communication will be "redoubled," most notably on the game's forums.
Trion Worlds grows to over 12 million players
In an interview with Forbes, Trion Worlds CEO Scott Hartsman revealed that his studio's game portfolio and distribution has resulted in populations that number in the millions. "A year ago we were a company with two games," he said. "This year we are a company with three of our own MMOs, plus our first published MMO, plus 10 other distributed games [through the Glyph digital storefront]. So, we're seeing user numbers in the 12 to 13 million range." For most of the interview, however, Hartsman discussed the positioning of business models in a changing market. If you've ever wondered why MMOs keep launching with a subscription model in this F2P era, Hartsman has a notion: "There are two reasons why companies can't do it from the outset. Number one is that the larger the company, the more public, the more they have to aim for predictable revenue, and there's not a lot of information sharing on free-to-play on the PC and console markets. The other big challenge is the technology it takes to do sales effectively in a free-to-play game -– there's a lot more that goes on behind the scenes than a lot of people would think, where an initial purchase plus subscription model doesn't take nearly so complex a model to drive sales."
ArcheAge's closed beta begins on July 17th
The time has finally come: ArcheAge fans who've been been anxiously awaiting a beta date now can mark their calendars and start canceling other plans. Next weekend the closed beta doors will swing open at 1:00 p.m. on Thursday the 17th and remain so until they close at the same hour on Monday the 21st. Founders and invited testers will have a chance to dive in and experience ArcheAge's sandbox world, including -- but not limited to -- pirating, farming, questing, crafting, fishing, PvPing, or even just in gliding from the mountaintops. With so many possible adventures by land and by sea, it may be impossible to get to them all during the first beta weekend. But don't despair -- there will be more! We sat down with Trion Worlds CEO Scott Hartsman to chat about the upcoming beta tests. We've also got the beta trailer for you.
Trion Worlds' Scott Hartsman: F2P reduces barriers
Trion Worlds CEO Scott Hartsman is preaching the gospel of free-to-play far and wide these days, saying that it makes sense to have games as accessible as possible to players. "If there's one thing we're learned through all of our own prior development, it's that the barrier of having to purchase a thing before getting into a game is proving to be a bigger and bigger barrier as time goes on," Hartsman told MCV. But will F2P backfire by giving away the store for nothing to penny-pinching players? Hartsman doesn't think so: "What we're discovering is that if you take great content and great gameplay and reduce the barriers and take that leap of faith, customers will be there for you and will be there to support you." All of Trion Worlds' game library is free-to-play at this point.
ArcheAge alpha popularity forces Trion to upgrade hardware
One of our awesome Massively readers forwarded to us an email from Trion Worlds CEO Scott Hartsman to ArcheAge's alpha testers. In it, Hartsman thanked the players and noted how their numbers had helped to stress test the studio's hardware. "The massive number of Archeum Founders has really helped us stress test the way we do things: We've already had to expand the capacity of the server to three times the number of characters that one world is expected to have," Hartsman wrote. "That you've propelled ArcheAge as high up as the #2 game on all of Twitch.tv has really been humbling for all of us. It makes us want to work even harder to deliver the best release that we possibly can." Hartman reported that the studio had doubled the amount of server hardware twice since the alpha started. He also indicated that the team is preparing for a new alpha build, beta testing, and launch day. [Thanks to Paragonlostinspace for the tip!]
Perfect Ten: Biggest MMO news stories of 2013
As the light slowly fades from 2013, we spend our final moments quaffing eggnog, putting up President's Day decorations, and reminiscing about the year that was. We stare at the past and realize that it's a mirror reflecting our own journeys through the past 12 months. We contemplate the impact of one small decision that ripples out and touches souls everywhere. And then we stop getting so maudlin and start getting excited for what 2014 has to offer. For me, I live for end-of-the-year lists. Man, I love 'em. I will devour them, drinking up everyone's opinions about what what the best what, what movies or songs I should check out, and what idiocy drives some people to write top 10 lists. Seriously, am I right? Learn to use a paragraph format, people! Well, here's my top 10 list covering the year's top stories in the MMO industry. Some are pretty obvious, some will be up for debate, and all will be in the past soon enough. So what will historians say about 2013 and online games?
Trove will rejuvenate MMO worlds by blowing them up
I'll confess that even after having chatted with Trion Worlds CEO Scott Hartsman about this new Trove project and reading Shawn's very early impressions piece, I was still having difficulty understanding what, exactly, this game was about. Was it just some sort of kiddy LEGO hack-and-slasher with a nod to housing thrown in? How was Trion going to make good on its promise to continually provide a sense of new adventures? And was Trove just a blatant ripoff of Cube World, as some have claimed? Because Trove isn't quite a typical MMO, I needed another phone session with Trion to get a clearer picture of this game. Creative Lead Andrew Krausnick spent an hour with me patiently answering any and all of my questions. The big one had to be asked from the get go. Were you really going to be blowing up the world all the time? Krausnick confirmed that yes, Trion will be doing exactly that. More than that, he said that it would be the factor that would set Trove apart from all of the other games out there right now.
Hartsman: ArcheAge getting substantial progression and economic tweaks
Well, there's good news and bad news with regard to ArcheAge's western release. And I know you, you want the bad news first, right? Well, here it is: the game's still quite a ways off. Trion hasn't said as much, but if you read between the lines of CEO Scott Hartsman's latest interview, it's hard to come away with any other impression. Hartsman spoke with fansite ArcheAge Source, and he said that "XL can only work on so many things at a time while they strive to constantly improve their live Korean service." This means that ArcheAge's partnered launches outside of Korea are worked on "serially," and the western release is a couple of spots down in the pecking order. The one piece of good news there is that the western release will benefit from all of the stuff XL has learned from launching the game in other markets. Hartsman also mentions substantial progression and economy improvements that will find their way into the sandpark game before it reaches western shores. "The economic game of ArcheAge is a big part of what attracted a lot of us to this game," he said. "XL will be implementing improved balance between crafting, farming, and trade, [with] the goal being to promote a more vibrant economic game that produces more valuable and more frequently used items than what the original version launched with." [Thanks to all our tipsters!]
Trion officially reveals Trove: Endless adventures through endless worlds
Even with its recent "regroup and reorganize" strategy, there's no doubt that Trion Worlds is an ambitious company that enjoys having its fingers in many pies. But what about that yummy voxel Minecraft pie? So tempting... so trendy... so full of antioxidants. Well, Trion's baking one of those up too, and it's called Trove. So what is Trove, exactly? It's something radically different for Trion, though it's plainly drawing upon lessons learned from the studio's other titles. Trove is a multiplayer universe of worlds where creation, destruction, and adventure go hand-in-hand. It's a sandbox, an RPG, a toolset, a public space, a private space, a free-to-play experience, and according to CEO Scott Hartsman, a passion. We spoke with Hartsman to get a handle on what Trove will bring to MMOs and how it's looking to differentiate itself from the rest of the pack. So take one last look at the cute bug above and prepare yourself for an endless adventure through endless worlds.
Trion starts the Trove teasing
Trion Worlds made news earlier this week by registering several domains with the word "Trove" in them. While the studio made no announcement regarding new games in development, most speculation centered firmly on Trove being Trion's next big project. Today we've received another little tidbit on the topic via Trion's official and brand-new Trove Twitter account. Posting under the name TroveGame, Trion asked simply, "Where will you go?" It's not much in terms of information, but the Twitter username at least confirms that Trove is a game. The profile information says only, "Something new from Trion Worlds." Stay tuned.
Trion Worlds registers Trove domains
Trion Worlds looks to be up to something new, as the studio has snapped up several domain registrations with the word "Trove" in them. TroveGame.com and PlayTrove.com are but two of the many domains secured by CEO Scott Hartsman as of late. There are also several regional domains in the list, including those for Germany, Canada, and the UK. As of the writing of this post, none of the domains link to a working website. Could this be a new title from Trion or an expansion to one of its other games? Whatever the case may be, we'll be keeping a close eye on this situation. [Thanks to WNxArcticwolf for the tip!]
Scott Hartsman on leading Trion Worlds out of the woods
It's been a rocky return for Scott Hartsman, who has rejoined the Trion Worlds fold as CEO. With End of Nations going through development hell in its final stretch, studios being shuttered left and right, employees being laid off, and a mess of unknown questions, Trion's been put through the ringer this past year and come out looking bruised. But that's the moment in the movie when the crafty manager inspires his boxer to get back in there and fight for the win -- and there are few devs more inspirational and passionate than Hartsman. The way he sees it, Trion is due for a rally. We spoke to Hartsman as he was in the second week of a two-month period of evaluation, meetings, and decision-making. Instead of sounding tired or stressed, Hartsman came across as upbeat, enthusiastic, and brimming with good things to say about his team and the studio's future. So why did Hartsman return to the Trion fold now, and what does it portend for the studio and its many titles? The full story is more interesting than you might think.
Highlights assembled from Friday's RIFT livestream
Fans of RIFT are probably feeling a little jumpy right now. The community was surprised when community manager James "Elrar" Nichols abruptly left the game, especially in wake of the other shakeups moving through Trion Worlds. The game's community team did run a livestream event on Friday, and fansite RIFT Junkies took the time to comb through the whole thing and separate out the highlights. Trion in general is focusing right now on ArcheAge, RIFT, and Defiance, with End of Nations on hold for the moment. The company is still committed to the game's European playerbase and has not changed the RIFT development team; improvements are still in the works for the game's next two patches, including engine optimization. New CEO Scott Hartsman also stressed his love of RIFT and the fact that he has no intention of allowing the game to creep into "pay-to-win" territory. You can watch the whole stream on the company's official Twitch channel.
CM James Nichols leaves Trion as part of studio shakeup [Updated]
RIFT CM James "Elrar" Nichols is no longer with Trion Worlds, according to Director of Community Elizabeth Tobey. "As we mentioned last week, we are undergoing some changes here at Trion and that also includes changes among your community team," she wrote. "In addition to all the names you already know on the dev tracker, you'll want to keep an eye out for me, OverloadUT, and Morgana –- we'll be around a lot more from here on out. I'll also be your main point of contact for all things community as Elrar is no longer with the company." The former community manager's departure is part of the recent shake-up of Trion's organization. Tobey said that this is according to the new plan that CEO Scott Hartsman has put into place: "I'm not going to be able to give you the exact details, but I want to let you guys know that this is part of a plan helmed by Scott, and one I believe in. That doesn't mean it's always easy, or fun, but it will result in something better and greater than ever before." "We all love RIFT," Tobey assured players, "everyone on this team, Scott -- everyone. It's not going anywhere or getting worse if we have anything to say about it." She concluded by promising the community more communication and details of the future of the game in the coming weeks. [Update: Elrar has posted his goodbye on the forums. Thanks to Dengar for that tip!]
Trion Worlds to close EU branch
Only a week after acknowledging the closure of its San Diego office, Trion Worlds has announced in a statement that it will be closing down another office. Trion Europe in Guildford, UK, will be cutting 10 jobs in the process, including branch boss John Burns and communications boss Jon Goddard. "European localized versions of Trion's live and upcoming games will not be affected as all regional game development and support continues from Redwood City, CA," said the statement.
Trion Worlds closes San Diego studio, appoints ex-COO as new CEO
Trion Worlds is closing its San Diego studio, the publisher confirmed to Joystiq. The studio developed Defiance, Trion's cross-media MMO. In a statement, the publisher said the "day to day operations of Defiance will be moved to our Redwood City studio where it can be managed alongside Rift and our other in development titles including ArcheAge and End of Nations." The news came after an announcement that former COO Scott Hartsman, who left Trion Worlds in January, will be appointed CEO of the company. "As part of this transition, we are working hard to ensure that a number of great people will be making the move from San Diego to the Bay Area and continue their work at Trion," the publisher said.
Scott Hartsman returns to Trion as CEO; Trion shutters San Diego branch
Scott Hartsman has returned to Trion, this time as CEO. "We're going to rapidly be laying the groundwork for a new strategy for Trion -- one that's closer to the foundation of how we've had our wins so far, and then extending that base into the enduring success this company can, and will, be," he said, according to a company press release. Hartsman previously served as chief creative officer on RIFT. He succeeds Lars Buttler, who remains a Trion board member. [Updated: Trion has also confirmed the closure of its San Diego studio. "We can confirm that the San Diego studio will be closing. The day to day operations of Defiance will be moved to our Redwood City studio where it can be managed alongside Rift and our other in development titles including ArcheAge and End of Nations. As part of this transition, we are working hard to ensure that a number of great people will be making the move from San Diego to the Bay Area and continue their work at Trion," the studio told PC Gamer. Thanks to Ryan for the tip!]
