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Star Trek Online Advisory Council formed, wailing and gnashing of teeth ensues
Fan input can be a touchy thing. You get it whether you ask for it or not, especially if you have official forums, and it's usually fairly divided. The fanbase frequently can't agree on what they want as an aggregate, so it's understandable that companies might want to filter some of the input through other sources. It's understandable that Cryptic would want to create the Star Trek Online Advisory Council, consisting of vocal fans that they can use as a barometer of current opinion and compressing the most urgent issues. Especially given the philosophy of player-driven development, it all makes sense. The problems come when they announce this to other players. First response in the official thread is an incredulous statement that one group of fans is getting more input in the game's direction than anyone else for what they consider no logical reason. At 51 pages as of this writing and still going, the thread's response is overwhelmingly negative, ranging from anger to baffled confusion at the program. How Star Trek Online's producers will react is unsure, but it's certain that the announcement hasn't gone over well... a true shame after riding high from the first large content patch.
Blizzard believes fans make their games successful
With E3 2009 officially underway, it's a great time for devs and CEOs to chat about their games and Blizzard's very own Mike Morhaime has been talking about the company's position in the MMO market with Develop. He believes that Blizzard is uniquely positioned within the industry and that it's all about the players:"The story behind us is the passionate community that has grown up around our games," he explains during the interview. "Our commitment to quality has helped us grow a global audience that has grown with every release. While our competitors will be trying to overcome these challenges to grow their brands, we're already a major player there. None have achieved the same level of online growth as World of Warcraft. We're able to leverage huge investments in new content across the world's largest MMO subscriber base."
Burning Crusade delay reaction roundup
Well, the big news of the day is the expansion release's delay until January of next year. I've just spent a good hour sifting through forums, blog posts, and general player reaction to the news, so let me see if I can't boil down the salient points for you.Yay, a delay! Well, that's not quite true. No one's really thrilled there is a delay-- we all want to play the expansion as soon as possible. But there's a certain segment of players who weren't quite ready for the release-- they wanted to finish raiding through AQ, or get their alts up to 60, or get a PVP rank while they're still here (whoops, never mind, the patch makes that a no-no), and now they have more time to do so. Lots of players are standing by Blizzard and willing to wait for new content. Blizzard has always put credo behind not releasing something "until it's ready" and there's every indication they're doing that here. Let's not forget Blizzard has also announced a new content patch before the expansion's release, including a new honor system, the new talent trees, and all kinds of other little extras. Releasing it before the expansion might give focus to something that would have been lost in the mix of Blood Elf and Draenei crowds. And finally, some players are glad Blizzard is avoiding the holiday season anyway. Not only are family and friends calling you away from Azeroth, but so are the PS3 and the Wii. If the expansion hits in January, at least that gives us a month to play our new $600 PS3 (before we abandon it for Outland, that is). Then there's the fun stuff..A delay? Blizzard, you suck! Sure, it's only a month-- it's no Duke Nukem, but a delay is a delay. Blizzard said Q4 2006, and now we find out they've messed up. And if they delay it a month now, who's to say that in January, they won't be saying Q4 2007? After all, we haven't heard a solid date yet, just "January"... A longer wait for the expansion means it's even less pointless to work for current endgame gear and raids now. Lots of players are already grinding a PVP system that won't matter in a month, and now they're grinding a PVP system that won't matter in three months. A few stalwarts planned their holidays around the release-- that's lost vacation time, and now my holiday plans are screwed! A delay just means the devs don't know what they're doing, say a few players. The talents sucked before the delay was announced, and there's no way they can fix those crappy talents in a month. A lot of players are sick of waiting already, and with all the great games coming out this season, Blizzard just lost their attention, maybe even for good. Personally, I'm fine with the delay-- I was already working on leveling up an alt before the expansion, and this just gives me more time. Can't say I understand the argument that the delay would make you quit the game for good-- the game hasn't gotten any less fun without the expansion installed just because Blizzard announced we have to wait one more month. This is still the same, fun game it's always been. If you consider playing it wasting your time just because better stuff is coming along, maybe you shouldn't be playing it anyway.But there's all the important arguments I could find for either side. Did I miss any? Are you thrilled or angry that it'll be 2007 before you see Outland? (of course I mean in non-beta form, you tester people you)
