Really need more staff/more active staff/gods/development

I mean no disrespect when I say any of this, and I am trying not throw anyone under the bus.

I understand staff here are volunteers and are "busy"... but players are volunteers too and are busy.

But the shortcomings of the staff of this game are inexcusable and seem to be getting worse.

Without pointing any fingers, a lot of deadlines have come and gone, broken promises by staff are constant, staffers simply not logging in, etc. Don't make promises if you can't keep them. If you can't dedicate a few hours a week to this game you should not be a staff/imp/god/whatever.

I also know there are plenty of people that are willing to help develop/etc.

It's risky to give people the keys to the car, but the game's population seems to be dwindling, people are quitting, etc.

This should be top priority of the staff of this game, recruiting people to help.

I agree with you... When i left almost a year ago i would see at least twice as many people playing but now we are lucky to break like 5-6 online at a time. We need that advertisement campaign as soon as possible and we need some development work on the promised areas. Even if it means adding new members to the team.

We are looking at ways to improve our current situation and although its difficult to address for a multitude of reasons, we will try our best.

Our team tries to spend time ingame and in the forum, and whilst ingame time should be more regarded, forum time cannot be discounted when tallying up someone's participation as for a staff member there is alot to read and a lot of admin votes and discussions to participate in.

We have staff vacancies and would be interested to hear from those with additional skills, we'd much prefer any future coder/builder/imp or god first spend some level of time as a normal staff member.

Odysseus wrote:

We are looking at ways to improve our current situation and although its difficult to address for a multitude of reasons, we will try our best.

Our team tries to spend time ingame and in the forum, and whilst ingame time should be more regarded, forum time cannot be discounted when tallying up someone's participation as for a staff member there is alot to read and a lot of admin votes and discussions to participate in.

We have staff vacancies and would be interested to hear from those with additional skills, we'd much prefer any future coder/builder/imp or god first spend some level of time as a normal staff member.

Perhaps it shouldn't be that much of a process to recruit someone then in regards to the voting and discussions/etc.

Desperate times require desperate measures, and i'd say were in desperate times.

I have seen people offer their services, nothing approached about it. The only time ive really seen anyone used well is snakebite so far, he is really good at designing the sprites that are used for certain things yet I don't think any of his sprites have been used yet and supposedly that is the hardest thing involved.

To add sprites to the game requires every player to make a download. So if we add say 10 sprites right now everyone would download the new gfx file. Then if we come out with 10 more we want to add it is another download. The goal is to get ample amounts of gfx to add at one given moment so that players are not having to consistently download another file.

Iktomi wrote:

To add sprites to the game requires every player to make a download. So if we add say 10 sprites right now everyone would download the new gfx file. Then if we come out with 10 more we want to add it is another download. The goal is to get ample amounts of gfx to add at one given moment so that players are not having to consistently download another file.

If this approach entails that development is stinted because of the desire of limiting download amounts then it is a very dumb one. I don't downloading 30mbs of data every day if i have too simply because it means literally nothing on today's bandwith or speed.

Motoko wrote:

I also know there are plenty of people that are willing to help develop/etc.

These are the same people who complain about every update. They badmouth current staff at every turn. They spew terrible ideas all over the forum. So what if they can code? They are idiots. Worse than that, they are ungrateful idiots. What is this horrible emergency that requires a bigger staff? What shortcomings are you talking about? Last update was fun & it sounds like another is just around the corner. I bet you my Divine Armor it will also be free of charge.

Urdadi wrote:

Motoko wrote:

I also know there are plenty of people that are willing to help develop/etc.

These are the same people who complain about every update. They badmouth current staff at every turn. They spew terrible ideas all over the forum. So what if they can code? They are idiots. Worse than that, they are ungrateful idiots. What is this horrible emergency that requires a bigger staff? What shortcomings are you talking about? Last update was fun & it sounds like another is just around the corner. I bet you my Divine Armor it will also be free of charge.

Last update is not complete. It is broken there is no reason for another update with broken fore court all over. Fix the last updates before we throwmore updates out.

Urdadi wrote:

Motoko wrote:

I also know there are plenty of people that are willing to help develop/etc.

These are the same people who complain about every update. They badmouth current staff at every turn. They spew terrible ideas all over the forum. So what if they can code? They are idiots. Worse than that, they are ungrateful idiots. What is this horrible emergency that requires a bigger staff? What shortcomings are you talking about? Last update was fun & it sounds like another is just around the corner. I bet you my Divine Armor it will also be free of charge.

The only one that is an idiot right now is you. Disagreeing and have opinions is all fine and dandy. It is part of the process, I don't see how that is a problem. The horrible emergency as you call it is the fact that we don't have players. Some leaving in frustration due to certain bugs/issues that could be easily resolved with a larger or more active dev staff. Some of us have been playing this since it came out and we say the downfall of many servers. This isn't free, someone is paying for us to be able to play and at one point when no one logs on anymore, we wont have the game anymore. I'm afraid that lack of response from devs/staff (don't get me wrong they are there but not as active as before) might lead people to leave.

snakebite!

I fail to see how bigger staff equals bigger player base. If a bigger staff is TRULY needed, I urge admin to reach out to Danny, Mel, Rhavin, Lockrim or Oldfriend. Proven fans who have contributed to this server and others for years. This new crop of forum monkeys is chock full of bad ideas and whats really scary is they have the coding skills to implement them. Imo they are a much bigger threat to the player base than a few bugs.

Urdadi wrote:

I fail to see how bigger staff equals bigger player base. If a bigger staff is TRULY needed, I urge admin to reach out to Danny, Mel, Rhavin, Lockrim or Oldfriend. Proven fans who have contributed to this server and others for years. This new crop of forum monkeys is chock full of bad ideas and whats really scary is they have the coding skills to implement them. Imo they are a much bigger threat to the player base than a few bugs.

Wouldn't mind seeing ravh or danny back, or hte rest you mentioned.

Keep in mind just because someone can code doesn't mean they will only code their idea. Obviously the gods would oversee things similar to a manager.

Manager say? Coder do.

Urdadi wrote:

I fail to see how bigger staff equals bigger player base. If a bigger staff is TRULY needed, I urge admin to reach out to Danny, Mel, Rhavin, Lockrim or Oldfriend. Proven fans who have contributed to this server and others for years. This new crop of forum monkeys is chock full of bad ideas and whats really scary is they have the coding skills to implement them. Imo they are a much bigger threat to the player base than a few bugs.

It is amazing how full of it you are. But hey you are so afraid of the words hard cap removal that you blast any and all ideas. Oh wait... Someone has a legitimate concern? Then he must be an idiot because of doesn't want the game to remain the same. A bigger staff means that there is a large amount of presence, a steady implementation of updates and a capacity to resolve conflict and bugs. The current population is very small with only the hardcore left. It has dwindled so much that even the hardcore have quit. Right now we are one of two active servers and aranock's population is at an all time low. We need something to be done. They asked for ad videos and pictures but you know what? It took 10 days to judge less than a thread page of submissions. Imagine how long the advertisement process will take!

I came back after months of inactivity because I miss the game but I came at a moment where i can spend quite some time as the only person online. And sometimes we have cloun who temple sits for the entire day on auto walk.

I think that is a situation. Oh and btw, all of the people you mentioned have expressed SEVERE disinterest for this game. Especially Mel who got pretty much driven away. Ravhin wasn't even a part of this server at the time of the wipe. But hey lets get people who don't give a Tea and biscuits about the server to become admins instead of getting new staff and providing them with a chance. If you are such a lover of status quo you should download Ishtar's original server and run it for yourself.

Lets keep the flaming to a minimum guys

Constant updates are good, Everyone can agree. The problems stem from using a game engine that is easily 15 years+ old at this point.

Add 1 new thing, your almost guaranteed to make something break.

The problems I have noticed with this server is the staffs inability to accept change.  We are having chat monitored like everyone playing this game is 5 years old, yet I can turn on the television and hear worse things in 2 minutes then I see in a whole day on this game.  People are quitting this server because the rules are insane, overbearing rules will eventually make people not want to log in.

I deal with people like this all the time where I live, the area I live in is turning into a backwards empty hell hole because no one wants to embrace change they want to keep it the same way it always has been.  Walmart wanted to come into the area and be put out of the way of most homes etc, yet the area complained and pushed them away because of the traffic even though it was gonna be a separate road to get to Walmart from the highway.  

If this server seriously wants people to play on it, some change needs to be embraced.  Rules need to have some clauses put in to open certain things up, like the leading rule that I have posted about countless times yet EVERY SINGLE TIME it is ignored by most staff.  If it is not ignored, you guys have clearly a great way of showing your interest in it.  Fore Court quests are still broken, I have stated this for 6 months and still ignored I so love being ignored.  If you don't want anyone to play on the server keep on same path it is working great so far, if you want people to continue to play then do something.  I am near my whits end and probably gonna join most people and just continue to log in once/6 months or so and keep my characters active, I keep trying to come back and hope that you guys are doing something to change yet every time it seems worse.  More rules, more strict rules, more hard lines, no changes to improve players views of game/gods/staff.  

Stick with Urdadi and change nothing so no one plays anymore and we can shut this server down then cause thats the road we are on with his ideas working.  He reminds me a lot of Whitestar, against everyones ideas but the ones he puts forth and anything that changes the game is bad.  Considering the fact that I have only seen him online a handful of times in the 3 years I have been semi active, I question his dedication to the game.

Dakr wrote:

The problems I have noticed with this server is the staffs inability to accept change.  We are having chat monitored like everyone playing this game is 5 years old, yet I can turn on the television and hear worse things in 2 minutes then I see in a whole day on this game.  People are quitting this server because the rules are insane, overbearing rules will eventually make people not want to log in.

I deal with people like this all the time where I live, the area I live in is turning into a backwards empty hell hole because no one wants to embrace change they want to keep it the same way it always has been.  Walmart wanted to come into the area and be put out of the way of most homes etc, yet the area complained and pushed them away because of the traffic even though it was gonna be a separate road to get to Walmart from the highway.  

If this server seriously wants people to play on it, some change needs to be embraced.  Rules need to have some clauses put in to open certain things up, like the leading rule that I have posted about countless times yet EVERY SINGLE TIME it is ignored by most staff.  If it is not ignored, you guys have clearly a great way of showing your interest in it.  Fore Court quests are still broken, I have stated this for 6 months and still ignored I so love being ignored.  If you don't want anyone to play on the server keep on same path it is working great so far, if you want people to continue to play then do something.  I am near my whits end and probably gonna join most people and just continue to log in once/6 months or so and keep my characters active, I keep trying to come back and hope that you guys are doing something to change yet every time it seems worse.  More rules, more strict rules, more hard lines, no changes to improve players views of game/gods/staff.  

Stick with Urdadi and change nothing so no one plays anymore and we can shut this server down then cause thats the road we are on with his ideas working.  He reminds me a lot of Whitestar, against everyones ideas but the ones he puts forth and anything that changes the game is bad.  Considering the fact that I have only seen him online a handful of times in the 4 years I have been semi active, I question his dedication to the game.

Eh, I wouldn't want Walmart either, but I agree with everything else more or less.

While I dont speak for the rest of the staff, I would like to clarify a few things.

The majority of people who still play this game are alot older and I would hope wiser than someone who the rules for swearing or "illegal" content in the chat box.

I can understand where everyone comes from when they want to use words they would otherwise use on a day to day basis. Personally if Im on, you are free to talk about whatever you want so long as its not explicit to the point where profanity is prolific and rampant.

I would love to inject some "fresh blood" into the staff team haha. Its the dream of all new staff members. I am only a staffer afterall. I have no real pull with updates, changes or anything else. I can only voice your opinions towards the devs with greater emphasis.

I would love to see a slue of bug fix updates just come rushing in. Bang, bang, BANG! Big bugs, small bugs, bugs that the public doesnt know about. All fixed.

To my knowledge there is maybe 2-3 people that actually have access to the code on a level that allows for bug fixes. It also becomes a logistical nightmare;

Person A is working on bugfixes and he lives in X timezone. Person B gets person A's code after hes finished with it for the night and person B changes something or adds something and the cycle repeats.

Stagnation is the WORST thing that can happen to a game especially when the community is so loyal like ours.

Lets step back for a moment; I want you all to imagine you spent the last 6 months (prior to its release) of the last series of quests. Thats 6 months of your spare time, used up on building something that becomes a piece of you. Its released, theres bugs. Quest breaking bugs. How horrible that must feel.

Something you worked so hard on and wanted the community you built it for, didnt pan out and now theres a large community backlash. You wouldnt feel like fixing it after awhile especially not if your attempts keep backfiring.

TL;DR

Im all for change so long as its the right change.

Fazza wrote:

The majority of people who still play this game are alot older and I would hope wiser than someone who the rules for swearing or "illegal" content in the chat box.

I can understand where everyone comes from when they want to use words they would otherwise use on a day to day basis.  Personally if Im on, you are free to talk about whatever you want so long as its not explicit to the point where profanity is prolific and rampant.

Totally agree. The strict 'laws' of Mercenaries of Astonia has carried over to most reboots I've seen, but without reason. Rules should be in place, sure, but with a clear, measurable, goal. In the old days, V2 had queues, over 50 people online, and all using one channel to chat in. Then you need regulation a lot more than when there's 5-10 people online.

Fazza wrote:

To my knowledge there is maybe 2-3 people that actually have access to the code on a level that allows for bug fixes.  It also becomes a logistical nightmare;

Person A is working on bugfixes and he lives in X timezone.  Person B gets person A's code after hes finished with it for the night and person B changes something or adds something and the cycle repeats.

Very exaggerated. At work we have 40 people working on the same codebase. It's all a matter of using the right tools to manage that. Nowadays you can use bitbucket or github for free, or very cheaply, to have an online code repository which is very manageable.

Fazza wrote:

Stagnation is the WORST thing that can happen to a game especially when the community is so loyal like ours.

Fazza wrote:

Lets step back for a moment;  I want you all to imagine you spent the last 6 months (prior to its release) of the last series of quests.  Thats 6 months of your spare time, used up on building something that becomes a piece of you.  Its released, theres bugs.  Quest breaking bugs.  How horrible that must feel.

This is a big problem with the way the game has been implemented in code. It's written with a 'write-once-read-never' approach. However, if you want to keep iterating on a codebase, it has to be written with the intent that it's very readable, because every line of code will be read by others very often, and has be really clear (intention revealing). Another part is that because the code is basically written for performance, there's a lot of tight coupling between several parts of the system. There's no clear separation between for instance the networking bit and the game loop, which makes it really, really tricky to make changes without causing a ripple effect throughout the code. THAT is why bugs appear, and why it takes a long time to actually implement something new.

Fazza wrote:

TL;DR

Im all for change so long as its the right change.

Now to figure out how not to make the wrong changes ;-)

Asmodeus wrote:

If you are such a lover of status quo you should download Ishtar's original server and run it for yourself.

Sigh... Memory loss? We just had this convo 3 weeks ago & I thought I was pretty clear that I am NOT against change. I am a big fan of this game, this staff, and this server; that includes many, many changes & I'm sure it will include many in the future. True, I have disagreed with most of YOUR ideas. I also disagreed with pretty much everything that last week's rage quitter proposed. That does not make me against change, more against YOU and that specific quitter. Please stop putting words in my mouth, I support many proposed changes, and they are not just my own.

Fazza wrote:

Im all for change so long as its the right change.

+2

Urdadi wrote:

Asmodeus wrote:

If you are such a lover of status quo you should download Ishtar's original server and run it for yourself.

Sigh... Memory loss? We just had this convo 3 weeks ago & I thought I was pretty clear that I am NOT against change. I am a big fan of this game, this staff, and this server; that includes many, many changes & I'm sure it will include many in the future. True, I have disagreed with most of YOUR ideas. I also disagreed with pretty much everything that last week's rage quitter proposed. That does not make me against change, more against YOU and that specific quitter. Please stop putting words in my mouth, I support many proposed changes, and they are not just my own.

Fazza wrote:

Im all for change so long as its the right change.

+2

All i hear is boohoo i'm an angry child who votes against any type of change proposed that isn't in line with management... You are a negative element which is actually against any type of possible discussion. Probably a reason this forum is a deserted section of the internet. Your negative opinion on most things and your inability to offer better propositions irritates me. But then again you are an angry child. It's ok. Especially when your only sign of activity is forum trolling. wee wee off