okay, i add rant to this comment aswell, doom
* two squads of the same corp can’t go in because “they could abuse the system”. this very old rule still haunts the game.
* it was never tested to have 2 squads without squad opposition, and the rest with mixed squad opposition. all squad mm was pre-queue, again putting lots of pressure on “not the killer squad” players who formed a squad.
* i never saw squads late join, for this fact.
* i never saw attempts of internal squad matchmaking (assume everyone is in a virtual squad), to have similar queues like warthunder
* the raise in population can have different reasons, especially when it comes to our year long fight to reduce early grind. seasons alone also change population, and it didnt feel as crowded as last christmas to be honest, but maybe i am wrong.
* the t3 gauntlet got successfully removed, with some psychology work in the community aswell, but instead, there is no endgame, just new carrots; so the negative effect is, stagnation in large corporations, stagnation in endgame population; T5 holds up for now tho, with vets getting more and more casual.
* instead of making the game more transparent, it got just less transparent, again to prevent abuse, instead of fixing the abuse. this is bad software design.
* most of the population is only interested because of the carrot. this is bad game design, in every game design school you wanna go. I did studied it, I am not just self taught, so at least, I can judge this in a comment, right? carrots have reasons, and can be used, but they are not the only way to please and motivate players.
* pvp is the core of your game meta, and most of the progression happens outside of it. so why are the ragequitters so important again?
* having nobody complain is the best way into your software grave. complaints should be embraced. except nothing else comes. then you got another problem.
* technical limitations to increase item limits and friend limits is either bad gui design or bad database/network design, take a pick. doesn’t change it to be a current limitation, and maybe back then it was a good design, i know. but as software engineer (with exp), i can tell you, you can solve this, if you want to.
* you (probably) listened more to people who have big mouths and try to advance their position or importance in the past, i dont blame you or them for that, since its natural, and even important, but you gotta admit those events if they were mistakes, at least silently to yourself, internally. otherwise you will never lose the defensive and arrogant tone towards the community in general. admitting, some problems is what good dev teams do, just take a look at the others. Well, you did some of that too, it’s more of a general hint I get told myself over my life once or twice.
- I admit, with the arrogance sometimes coming from the community, even myself, I do understand tho if you snap back - but it is something that could really get better!
* really, take a look at others, not because they do all things better than you, but because, its free experience for you to learn from them.
* you assume stupid players, so it’s what you get. Instead, expect smart players who figure you out, and only try to explain it to those who need help to get there.
* a game designer, that assumes he understands his game completely, has designed a bad game, because nobody could beat him in it. never act that way.
* you assume the niche market of space games is a desperate one, and assume that’s why you don’t succeed, albeit it is clear for anyone with a sense of “theme-art” that scifi is on the rise, with more expensive sci fi shows and games produced than ever before, fantasy is on its way out. You have an excellent basement with your world-design, but that’s it, the more you get into the storyline of your game, the more it feels like placeholders. At least, if you do Stargate, be humble about self-humor. It’s why it worked being less serious. You sometimes get this right. You keep doors open for players to fill. It’s an idea. But quality writers will not spend too much time on proprietary licensed work without incentive…
* I find it great that you take players from the community and give them tasks and opportunities, but also dont forget, you basicly cannot expect proper criticism from someone on your payroll, or in a state of idealistic fandom. It’s highly unnatural. But I have to admit, you really try to grow with this in a way, it’s also not entirely your fault, that some things play out like they play out.
* the game is still really addictive and fun, just please don’t destroy it’s most shining qualities, like being a teamgame, completely.
* have some balls as game designers ffs, “playing” is the base brain mechanic of “learning”; this is such a huge change in science, since it is also admitting, that playing is of huge importance for intelligence, including a social stigma on it, because we grew up in the belief, only kids play games, with hundreds of insane managers playing games as adults on a global scene, because they do not realize their own need for it; most people do not believe that even today… game designers have a socially very important job of creating challenging but fun content, where we can express our needs for creativity, smartness and sportsmanship, which should also teach in an easy way, even if its just mouse reflexes and working together. this is a huge responsibility you can be proud of, its not a shame to play games as an adolescent, or adult finally nowadays; nor should it be a shame to love to play your own game as a developer; love to play your own game, if you do not, challenge yourself again to do it, and you will see the problems more clearly. It should not just be fun at the start, it should be fun in general. That’s smart, and that works. Always.
* You can always extend the mmo part of the game in open space in a way that goes away from pvp for achievers or veterans, or entire corps to grind, and therefore keep the pvp development steady and calculable. without the possibility, of players reaching fully fittable ships in at least 1-2 years, without the need for progression at all times, to play the now designed endgame content, your leagues, dreads and tourneys will never reach their full potential. think about endgame, instead of further putting goals somewhere, nobody wants to go anymore. It’s boring!