Greetings!

Today we've released part one of Jeff Hickman's Executive Producer's Letter. The first part introduces you to all of the exciting things that await you in the Land of the Dead, part two will cover the remainder of the exciting 1.3 changes and the third part will conclude with a look towards the future of WAR!

Please remember to keep discussion civil and constructive, thank you and we look forward to hearing your thoughts!

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Posted by Jeff Hickman

Hello Everyone,

The first half of 2009 has proved to be an exciting time for WAR! With hundreds of pages of patch notes it's hard to remember everything that's gone live, four careers have joined the front lines, you've experienced our live events which we plan to only make better, and we've made amazing progress in improving performance allowing for larger battles and more stable servers. Additionally we've improved the UI and opened it up even more to our modding community, introduced the RvR Token System, implemented keep upgrades, and we continue to fix bugs and improve the quality of the game every day. To say we've been busy is an understatement and there's no sign of slowing down in sight, we hope you enjoy the ride.

With the release of Patch 1.3 we'll complete the Call to Arms Live Expansion. You will finally have the chance to explore the Lands of the Dead, an exciting new addition with a vast new area to explore, new rewards to earn, and the most challenging content yet!

I'll be discussing this and more over the course of the next several weeks in a three-part Executive Producer's Letter. We want you to have a first hand look at what's new in WAR and what's to come and give you a chance to share your feedback about what you would like to see come to WAR.

James Nichols
Community Forums Manager
Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning
Follow me on twitter: @JamesMythic

This great, but I'm still looking for clarification on what was cut from patch 1.3.  It is clear that there will be no career changes.  But will the combat system remain the same?  Have the percentage based combat calculations been cut?  Have ability radii been changed?  Can we expected improved responsiveness in combat?

Thanks!

Folks,

This is Part 1 - as stated there are 3 parts. We'll be addressing the future of WAR in Part 3, thanks

James Nichols
Community Forums Manager
Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning
Follow me on twitter: @JamesMythic

I didn't see any mention of the hard crashes.  New content is nice and all, but some of us are experiencing hard crashes on a regular basis and there isn't even an acknowledgement of this problem.  I have 3 month subscription which I'm going to let expire if this issue is not addressed.  You guys are adding more content, yet the current content has numerous bugs and exploits which have been reported for months, yet there's time to work on LoD but not the bugs?? what gives.  I don't want to rain on your parade, but I'm a paying customer and your game keeps crashing on me on a regular basis and it's affecting the "fun" factor.  Any plans to address the hard crashes??

You devs want some feedback, here you go:

http://forums.warhammeronline.com/warhammer/board/message?board.id=bugs_tech&thread.id=378

"share your feedback about what you would like to see come to WAR."

What i would like to see in war...

-END GAME city seige improvement( stage 1 with no PvE PQ ) Pure PvP combat controling the flag points to generate VP.

-All the feedback posted in my sig

-VICTORY POINT SYSTEM improvments

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0iMsAzj6Jt4&feature=channel_page

-RELICS zone domination

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bQUwSPTKfo

-Bind on Pickup removed from the game

-Adjustment on lockout timers on lairs/dungeons

-Improvments to Basiton stairs(such as the improvements done to mount gunbad)

-Improvements to all PQ encounters in the game (to make them as engaging as LOTD PQs)

-XP gain rates when grouped.. Improve the XP gain to encourage players to actually group instead of to always run solo.

-Other races capital cities re-introuduced as new PvE dunegons which have been overrun by monsters/dragons/demons etc etc.

-All hero NAMED Mobs of all kind to always drop blue items. and 25% chance to drop purple items

-All Champ NAMED mobs of all kind always drop blue tems.. and a 5% chance to drop a purple item

-All NAMED mobs of all kind to always drop green items.. and a 10% chance to drop blue item

The thing that bothers me most about this "letter" isnt' the fact that it is just rehashing old news.  Or that they will get to the future of War in later letters.  But rather the fact that it isn't Mark Jacobs making this post.  Before/During and After all previous large patches Mark was a pivotal character and source of information.  From my knowledge I haven't even heard Mark comment about LoTD or 1.3 since it was introduced back in January timeframe.

To me and many I know this more than anything else is making us questions wether or not to stay with WAR.  When the Head dude won't even comment on his game (as he has always done in the past) and with the Head PR guy is out Hyping some other game.... it starts to make you wonder what is going on with the company and wether or not it is safe to continue to invest in the game with 3/6 month subs.

He hasn't posted on the Official forums since April 1st 2009, hasn't posted on VN since March 13th, and hasn't even logged in on the VN since May 13th. 

For one of the most critical patches of the game, to have your Head guys (who was ALWAYS visible in the past) to not even comment on the patch is not encouraging to the players.

2 things I would put on the fix list:

Fix end game city. IC/Aldorf sucks, sorry guys, but between the pq boss one shottin everyone and destro turtlin in the temple IC/Aldorf is a cluster waffle. I would make it all pvp if you want a obj, make it hold on to the BOs for vp.

Server Transfer. This is a big one, people r dying on low/low servers. Time for them be allowed to pick another server.

Wonder why class balance is not on my list well cause you guys r goin to work on that forever no ones goin to be happpy. OMG NERF WP/DOK THIER SUPER OP. Next week.....OMG YOU NERFED WP/DOK NOW I GET NO HEALS I QUIT QQ QQ QQ. Keep workin on it but the two top issues need to be handled ASAP.  

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Posted by Jeff Hickman

Hello Everyone,

The first half of 2009 has proved to be an exciting time for WAR! With hundreds of pages of patch notes it's hard to remember everything that's gone live, four careers have joined the front lines, you've experienced our live events which we plan to only make better, and we've made amazing progress in improving performance allowing for larger battles and more stable servers. Additionally we've improved the UI and opened it up even more to our modding community, introduced the RvR Token System, implemented keep upgrades, and we continue to fix bugs and improve the quality of the game every day. To say we've been busy is an understatement and there's no sign of slowing down in sight, we hope you enjoy the ride.

With the release of Patch 1.3 we'll complete the Call to Arms Live Expansion. You will finally have the chance to explore the Lands of the Dead, an exciting new addition with a vast new area to explore, new rewards to earn, and the most challenging content yet!

I'll be discussing this and more over the course of the next several weeks in a three-part Executive Producer's Letter. We want you to have a first hand look at what's new in WAR and what's to come and give you a chance to share your feedback about what you would like to see come to WAR.

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Read the Full Article @ The Herald

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Great now I get to experience new content with a broken class, huge population problem on Vortex and being burned by AE damage.  THANKS!

Communication from Mythic is wonderful and is always appreciated.  New content is a good thing as it keeps the game fresh and can help fight the fatigue of the same old "Rinse and Repeat" encounters.

In my humble opinion all of this good is overshadowed by the feeling of angst and frustration over the basic game mechanics that are currently on the minds of most subscribers.  The free expansion is great news and probably will allow for may enjoyable hours of gameplay for the subscribers if it wasn't for all of the other unaddressed issues.

Hopefully Parts 2 and 3 of the letters will help clear the air for the community on where Mythic stands on these hot topics and I look forward to reading them.

I am personally hoping they will say something about the MAR class and what its role/functionality will be in the near future?  On the other hand they may just say it was a mistake and the MAR and WL's will be removed from the game and will never be spoken of again....

Parts 2 and 3 come quickly, I hope.  LotD is interesting, but not as interesting as the changes that were planned to come along with it.  Having combat changes cut from 1.3 really disappoints me. 

I hope this gets addressed in the letter sooner rather than later.

All I can say is that I hope Mythic seriously reevaulates their priorities and expands some internal teams that clearly need some buffs (like performance and career balance).

Personally, I am not sticking around for this expansion.  For me, content is useless when the core game balance and performance are so far off.  Here's hoping you make some massive internal changes before Aion hits.

And honestly, if you are going to provide a producer's letter, it should be more substantial than previews everyone read months ago.  This feels like it has zero substance.

"come and give you a chance to share your feedback about what you would like to see come to WAR."

What I'd like to see come to WAR, more than anything else, is increased responsiveness to C&C balance issues.  Small targeted adjustments made quickly after a change is shown to be unbalanced would be much easier to swallow than the sweeping overadjustments made several months down the road we're seeing now.  Simply rolling AoE radius back to pre-1.21 levels and rolling back the group heal buffs would have gone a long way to fixing the game.

How about you fix the game you have before you heap more content onto a system that is already needing attention in so many other areas.

Class balance.

End game city campaign

Broken mechanics

The adjustments to aoe and game breaking CC

These are of major concern to your players, far more so then new content. I can't tell you how underwhelming the prospect of more new content being thrown into the mix of all the already existing issues is.

Unfortunately I do not care much for the Land of the Dead since combat and career issues make me feel like sticking a dagger in my face almost every session. Please try again.

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lunasol wrote:

I didn't see any mention of the hard crashes.  New content is nice and all, but some of us are experiencing hard crashes on a regular basis and there isn't even an acknowledgement of this problem.  I have 3 month subscription which I'm going to let expire if this issue is not addressed.  You guys are adding more content, yet the current content has numerous bugs and exploits which have been reported for months, yet there's time to work on LoD but not the bugs?? what gives.  I don't want to rain on your parade, but I'm a paying customer and your game keeps crashing on me on a regular basis and it's affecting the "fun" factor.  Any plans to address the hard crashes??

 

You devs want some feedback, here you go:

 

http://forums.warhammeronline.com/warhammer/board/message?board.id=bugs_tech&thread.id=378

Message Edited by lunasol on 06-05-2009 12:49 PM

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Did it ever occur to you that it MIGHT be something on YOUR end that's causing the crashes? Also, you ARE aware that they have employees divided up into different teams to handle different things, aren't you? Just because they're adding a content expansion while some bugs are still in place doesn't mean they aren't working on the bugs. They didn't just send word around the office... "Alright, listen up! Everyone is now going to work only on LotD! You, reading the forums so we can get feedback from our subscribers, over there! Get to work! You, fixing bugs over there, STOP THAT! Build new lands!!! DOOO ITTTT!!!"

You know what's not helping them make the game better? People posting, in every single available facet (including these announcement discussion threads), "Oh, hey... just thought I'd mention... the game's not perfect yet. Might wanna work on that." "Oh, hi, Mythic... it's me again... yeah, the uhh... the game? Still buggy... yeah, I don't know how many lines of code you need to look through, but you might wanna pick up the pace... yeahhhh..." "Mythic... fellas! I've got work in an hour... Come onnnn, any way we can get this game perfected before I'm dead?"

Yeah, believe it or not, that doesn't help. If you want to point out something, then point it out in the freakin threads designed for pointing things out. You don't have to go "Oh, hey, it's one of the developers' birthday! Happy THERE ARE STILL PROBLEMS WITH THE GAME day!!!"

I have a feeling that Mark may have moved on to another project.  We definatly miss his insight around here, along with his very "blunt" sense of humor. 

It's grear hearing from the other Devs, I think you folks are doing an amazing job, we just miss Mark.

Folks,

We're still working on reverting the 1.3 C&C changes, until thats done we won't be able to share details about what's changing in the patch notes besides to say that most every change is being removed. We'll have more details for you all on that next week, thanks for your patience

Please keep in mind that many have not read up on Lands of the Dead, or seen the interviews. Many people anticipate this update, the new content, and the additional changes we've made to the UI and other areas of the game. The feedback from PTS so far has been great as well and we hope to see a great turnout next week when we hope to open the Tomb of the Vulture lord.

I realize many of you have questions, we intend to address as many of them as we can. This is why we started with a lighter more introductory segment so that we could further encourage you to share your thoughts constructively so that we can include them in future parts.

We truly thank you for the passion you have for WAR, let's keep things civil and colaborate and address your concerns together.

Thanks all

EDIT: One other thing - we have addressed and acknowleged the CTD's players are experiencing on the PTS forums. This letter was drafted before PTS begain testing on there and was not intended to address the current feedback. We have already corrected the CTD issues internally and will continue to be on the lookout for any lingering ones and ensure they're corrected quickly.

Cheers,

James Nichols
Community Forums Manager
Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning
Follow me on twitter: @JamesMythic

Although I was awaiting LotD due to is similarities to Darkness Falls, I doubt I will play it. With the current class balance issues, RvR is simply no longer fun. Since LotD is an RvR area, as well as being gated due to RvR I don't really have any urge to have any thing to do with it. Quite frankly, I haven't even logged in for a week and may just let my sub expire until some of the glaring game issues are fixed.

Nice letter in all but lacking in content. It was also difficult to read because it had many run on sentences and was rehashed information. I will await the other parts of the letter, which I wish were simply released with part one

Anyways off to the PTS to test LOTD.

I say we wait on the release of ANYTHING until you fix the gamebreaking issues with the game we have already. I for one would rather wait and enjoy the free expansion than be miserable for weeks after its release.

Is that seriously too much to ask?

Here is a preview next week of things to come:

http://forums.warhammeronline.com/warhammer/board/message?board.id=empire_bw&thread.id=4754

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Ilandel wrote:

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Did it ever occur to you that it MIGHT be something on YOUR end that's causing the crashes? Also, you ARE aware that they have employees divided up into different teams to handle different things, aren't you? Just because they're adding a content expansion while some bugs are still in place doesn't mean they aren't working on the bugs. They didn't just send word around the office... "Alright, listen up! Everyone is now going to work only on LotD! You, reading the forums so we can get feedback from our subscribers, over there! Get to work! You, fixing bugs over there, STOP THAT! Build new lands!!! DOOO ITTTT!!!"

 

You know what's not helping them make the game better? People posting, in every single available facet (including these announcement discussion threads), "Oh, hey... just thought I'd mention... the game's not perfect yet. Might wanna work on that." "Oh, hi, Mythic... it's me again... yeah, the uhh... the game? Still buggy... yeah, I don't know how many lines of code you need to look through, but you might wanna pick up the pace... yeahhhh..." "Mythic... fellas! I've got work in an hour... Come onnnn, any way we can get this game perfected before I'm dead?"

 

Yeah, believe it or not, that doesn't help. If you want to point out something, then point it out in the freakin threads designed for pointing things out. You don't have to go "Oh, hey, it's one of the developers' birthday! Happy THERE ARE STILL PROBLEMS WITH THE GAME day!!!"

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Why is it that people that don't work for the company, don't know anything about the situation feel like they can come here and pontificate to the rest of us.  When you buy the game for me and paid my subscription then you can come and tell me when/where I can and can't complaint.  They asked for feedback and I'm providing feedback, and a lot of people seem to echo the sentinement.   A lot of people are not really interested with new content because we are having so many problems with the existing content as it is.

Thats a nice letter and all but doesn't satisfy me in the least bit. When will CC and immunity timers be fixed? When will classes like the Black Orc and Black Guard not be ignored and get some dev attention? Do devs read those forums and are they aware there are severe issues with those classes?

When will end game content be remotely obtainable on balanced servers? On my server, Iron Rock, nobody even bothers with forts anymore because they are almost impossible to take even with the most organized pushes, let alone get to a city and attempt to advance to stage 2 and beyond.

I just hope all the broken, existing content can be fixed now that they are releasing Land of the Dead. Fixing all that is the only thing that will keep me subbed, Land of the Dead will not.