Rant: Server Queue

The release of Warhammer Online has brought us something we haven’t seen in a very long time besides good PvP, and that is the horror of server queues. I was lucky enough to pick probably the highest pop server for my guild to play on, but also unlucky enough to be faced with some of most serious queues of all of the servers. Now given at this point, we are only about 1 week into the games servers being brought live, but this seems to have become a hot button issue for many people finding themselves on crowded servers.

The downsides of queues are obvious and can be very annoying. All you have to do is read your forums of choice to hear the whining of people who are stale about this issue. People coming home from work and having to wait upwards of 30 minutes or longer to be able to log in. We have even had some guild members report that the queue was so long that they weren’t even allowed to join it! They then have to spam the join button in hopes of getting a spot in the back of the line. Now imagine going through all of this to get in the game, and then have a crash to desktop sending your ass right to the back of the line again.

Now that being said, the existence of queues obviously mean the game has sold very well. There are rumors swirling of over 1 million boxes sold right out of the gate, something that not even World of Warcraft to lay claim to. Also the queues may be a foreshadowing of the success this game may come to reap. We haven’t seen this sort of demand for an MMO since World of Warcraft was released years ago, which we all know has had subscription numbers soar over the 10 million mark over the course of its lifetime. I am sure the people over at Funcom are envious of this, the one problem their game does not have. At least if Mythic loses 50% of their subscribers like its competition it will still be on good shape.

As a guild leader, I intentionally wanted to pick a server with a high population because I have experienced what it is like to play an MMO on underpopulated servers in a variety of games. There is nothing worse then playing an MMO, especially one that revolves around PvP, and finding yourself having to go out of your way to find a fight.

Warhammer Online seems to have a lot of emphasis on the scenarios for the time being, hopefully this will change once people level up. The good thing about the high population is that there is almost always a scenario going on. There are reports that on some of the lower pop servers that the scenarios are taking longer to start up, even worse if you are playing Destruction. I can tell you as an Order player I often times find the scenarios popping up too frequently, not giving me enough time to finish my quest.

Mythic also seems to be aware of the problem and understands that nobody wants to have to wait to play. They have come up with what I think is one of the most interesting ideas to try to persuade people to try another server. Shortly after the population problem on certain servers became evident, they copied all of the characters from those populated servers to specific underpopulated servers. In past MMOs, we often would have to wait ages for devs to open up a character transfer option. When the time finally did come, players would have to go through a transfer process that quite honestly is a pain in the ass. Mythic’s solution seems enticing because they are telling you that if you want to switch your character is already on this other server ready to go.

One problem still remains in the fight against queues. On my server which still have queues, they have already done the cloning option for transfers, and they have also announced that my server is set to the maximum the hardware will allow. So where does Mythic go from here? The hardware is maxed and the transfer option has already been used.  Now don’t get me wrong, I am more than willing to tough it out. I expected this, and to me it is a price worth paying to get to play on the server I am on. My entire guild is in it for the long haul, there is nowhere else we would rather be. I know for a fact a lot of the other guilds on my server have adopted the same policy as well.

It makes me wonder if we are all playing a giant game of chicken against each other as players to see who has the stomach to ride this thing out. Players who are not attached to large guilds may have to really start evaluating their server decisions on whether or not it is worth the wait to play. Perhaps in the end everyone is hoping Mythic will come up with some way to upgrade the hardware to allow more players. It’s been a hell of a week Mythic, hopefully something will happen to help alleviate the situation, or maybe we will keep playing the waiting game. Only time will tell.

Paragus

Co-Leader of Inquisition

www.inqguild.com

With Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning seeing its release on September 17th, there hasn’t been a lack of people wanting to share their views on how good or bad EA Mythic’s latest MMORPG is. Unfortunately, for me, it has taken a while to be able to get a chance to sit down and write my thoughts on the game, because I have spent nearly every waking hour playing it. Finally, I decided to take the time to be able to write my first impressions, and throw out yet another review to the hungering behemoth that is the internet.

I. Decisions, decisions.

Let’s face it, we all love having choices. We love choosing how to look, where to go, what to do, and what reviews to bookmark to read and enjoy over and over. Warhammer Online is a game that will flood you with choices right from the beginning. You will have to choose what server to pick, what type of server to pick(Open RvR, Core, Role-play, or the only Open RVR/RP server), and what faction you’re going to play for. Now, the sad truth is that Destruction is over-populated. This seems to cause long waits in the match-making system for scenarios, meaning as Destruction you will normally be waiting a hell of a lot longer than Order to get into a fight. Originally, I thought I would go Order only because Destruction had so many people, but the first witch hunter named “Vanhelsing” I saw sort of turned me off and convinced me to make the switch to Destruction. Now, even though I play Destruction, I’m going to say that Order has some really cool and unique classes, which completely break the warrior, rogue, healer archetypes into a more complex type of role, and even though Order seems to be yet another Middle Earth-esque faction, it has a very distinctive spin to it.

 Once you’ve picked Order for the sole purpose of making wait times for my Marauder shorter, you will have to decide what class you want to play. Mythic presents you with another tough choice, but gives you the benefit of reading a small description which indicates what your main role in the game will be. The way the classes have been laid out overall is incredibly refreshing. In fact, I can think of no other word except refreshing when describing any of the many classes included in Warhammer Online.

On to the actual classes:

•  Healers – Healers are actually very, very fun to play. They either combine offensive spell-casting with their healing, or melee DPS with their healing. Yes, you read right. You’re not restricted to being a robe-wearing scholar who desperately swings his staff if anyone gets within three feet of him. No, you’ll be running into the fray, swinging your weapons purposefully while assisting your fellow comrades in battle with the heals you build up through your attacks.
• Tanks – It’s finally possible for tanks to have a role in PvP. Tank game-play varies, with some tanks having focus on melee damage, and others having focus on supporting their allies. Still, the way tanks have been implemented into the game is astounding. For one, taunts work on players. Taunts give debuffs to your target, or give the tank a buff against their target. This buff wears off if the targeted player attacks the tank x number of times, which gives incentives for people to attack the tank. This is just one of the many ways in which Mythic has created a more than satisfactory role for tanks in PvP.
• Melee DPS – They’re there to do what they already do in every other game. Hit things at close range until they drop dead. There’s nothing really different in the way the melee DPS plays their class as compared to other games, but the abilities they receive make them unlike any other type of melee DPS you may have played in the past.

• Ranged DPS – These are not very different in what their ultimate purpose is, either. They’re there to throw fireballs or shoot arrows at people until they are face down on the ground. However, Warhammer once again surprises all of us by delivering these classes in a very unique manner. For example, Bright Wizards build up combustion with their damaging spells. As combustion goes up, the wizard’s critical chance with spells go up, but if they build up too much they will risk having their spells explode and damage them instead.

Since there’s no pressure for performance if you’re just starting out, you can explore all the classes and archetypes until you feel comfortable enough to master one.

II. Player vs Player/Realm vs Realm

 Finally, a game that delivers on what they promise. This is all-out war; there are no rules, no fouls. You simply pick a side and you work towards exterminating the members of the opposite faction, taking their keeps, and taking their land. Scenarios, although reminiscent to instanced PvP in other games, are perhaps one of the most popular forms of RvR in the game right now.  The good thing is, however, that the objectives don’t treat you like a child. Unlike other games with similar instanced PvP content, you’re not there to play a friendly game of capture the flag with your enemy; you’re there to kill them.

  Rare in MMORPGs is the fact that you can gain levels in PvP, or doing something other than killing monsters(i.e.: crafting). While you can not obtain higher levels in Warhammer by crafting, you can obtain higher levels by engaging in PvP or RvR combat. Every player you kill will give you XP, renown, and some money. Renown increases your renown rank, which lifts restrictions on gear available from renown merchants around the world; that is, the higher your renown rank is, the more gear you will have available to purchase. Luckily, although there are two separate types of ranks, you can increase them both by doing just one thing: PvPing.

 The world objectives are also highly enticing. While dependant on server population, there’s usually battles going on to decide the fate of a particular piece of contested land. I’ve been having a lot of fun just randomly showing up to the northern part of Nordland to engage in random RvR with other players there, outside of scenarios. The downside is that there are normally a few higher level players that will be able to turn the tide of battle.

 That brings me to my last point in their PvP system: levels, and how they affect PvP. In this game, you have the ability to jump into a scenario as soon as your character is created and you’ve gone through the introduction cinematic. In Scenarios, your level will be increased to a certain point, so that you can stand a better chance against enemies in the higher ranks of the scenario. For example, for Tier 1 scenarios, your rank will be bumped up to rank 8 if you’re lower than that. This will give you more health, and allow you to survive better in a battle. I randomly made a sorceress this morning, and went into Khaine’s Embrace(a Tier 1 scenario) at rank 3, and ended up second to a rank 11 witch elf in damage dealt. This encourages people to jump into the PvP system as early as possible so that they make all their mistakes early on and learn how to properly play their class by the time they’re out of tier 1.

III.  PvE / Grouping

Well, we come to one of the parts that a lot of people don’t like about the game. To be fair, the game is not intended to have you gather 20 people and go kill a boss in an instance. At the same time, however, many feel like the PvE aspect of the game could have been given more attention. Right now, PvE seems to be mainly in place to create a sort of linear progression that guides you from tier to tier, or from chapter to chapter of public quest. Next, if you enjoy grouping with other players to do quests, or enjoy social aspects of MMORPGs, you will not find it easy to get accustomed to Warhammer Online. Meeting new players is difficult, because rarely anyone talks in the public channels, and there’s rarely a need for groups.

 The only thing that requires a group of people are public quests, but those people don’t even have to talk to each other to get them done. Public quests display objectives globally, so when any player kills a certain mob, or does a certain thing, it will count for all the players in the area. Even if you’re nowhere near the public quest when it starts, you can join in when it’s halfway-through simply by entering the public quest area. What this means is that there can be six of us in a public quest area, ungrouped, completing the objectives, finishing the stages of each chapter, taking our loot and going home without having to even know their names.

It’s obvious, but if you are a fan of PvE games, raiding instances, and the like, you will not enjoy Warhammer Online in the least.  There just isn’t enough PvE content to keep fans of item hunting and repeating bosses happy.

In the end, if you’re searching for a game that will satisfy your PvP needs, then this game might just be it. Keep in mind that although the PvE is not bad there’s just not enough of it to keep someone playing it if they enjoyed a type of game-play more like Lord of the Rings: Online. If you rarely PvP, and want to try something different, by all means give the game a shot.

 As for my opinion, I haven’t had this much fun with a game in a long, long time. Not since the days of vanilla World of Warcraft, where I would stay up to 3 AM in the morning trying to get rank 11 in battlegrounds. This game has the “what the hell, it’s 3 AM already?!” factor to it, and all the games I have played lately have not been able to keep me hooked in such a way.

Just when I thought I had escaped writing about Age of Conan, something as superb as THIS knocks on my electronic front door. The infamous Gaute Godager, Game Director for Age of Conan and of Steak and Wine fame, has ‘resigned’ from Funcom. For those that don’t know what ‘resigned’ means, it means that they told him to resign or they’d fire him.

I can’t help but feel a little responsible for all this. Sure, my scathing review of sorts of Conan probably didn’t help his cause – but I think I’ve been too hard on the guy. I’ve called him out multiple times, not only for his Steak and Wine quote (man I love that) – but also possibly one of the weirdest ‘welcome to the game’ messages ever created. He managed to include slave whipping, confuse it’s players on whether they are riding a ship or driving it, use the phrase “nature launches” and even use the word “bumpiness”. I’m almost tearing up re-reading that announcement. It seemed so long ago we were so naive of the ways of Funcom and had such high hopes for the game.

While I wish Gaute the best of luck in his new career – and speculation on where that will be will only cause fear in the collective MMO community – I think it’s safe to say that MMO’s probably aren’t your forte. That might be a bit harsh, but for those keeping count, that’s 0/2 for Mr. Godager – Anarchy Online and Age of Conan. At least Richard Garriott has Ultima Online to reminisce about as he shoots off to the Moon or whatever.

Adieu, Mr. Go Danger, your savvy wit and cheeky quips will forever be remembered.

Sanya Weathers has tossed down a bit of a rant on her Eating Bees blog, regarding the relationship between media and public relations (albeit from her role as a Community Manager for MMORPGs which is much the same thing). As someone who has worked as a journalist and a PR manager (but mostly journalist) for over a decade, including covering the video game market, I found her comments interesting because I can relate to them firsthand from either side of the fence. But do I agree with her? On the whole, no, not really.

Let’s start with one of her comments:

There are only two ways for a reporter to get on my shit list when I’m wearing my CM hat – one, lie. Two, drink my booze and wear my t-shirt without giving me so much as a paragraph on your blog.

Ouch. While I can see where Sanya is heading with that second thought, I could never apply it like a blanket to all journalists. Yes, there are some inverate liggers out there in journalism who go to events just to drink booze and catch up with their mates. They usually have no interest in the product being marketed. Indeed, one wonders how such people ended up journalists in the first place. And I’m not just talking guys and gals with blogs – I mean serious journalists. As such, it’s VERY easy to get a bit cranky with their attitude and consider them for your “shit list”, or however else one describes that area of their Excel spreadsheet of contacts where names are relegated for minimal – or no – contact. But, I must add, it really goes on a case by case basis, too.

You see, as a journalist, I would happily attend an event, drink the booze and/or eat a meal… and then evaluate what was on offer. Sometimes what was on offer was so pathetic, I couldn’t conceive writing about it. But how do you know before you get there? We used to joke in the editor’s pit, actually, that the more secretive an invitation was, leading up to an event, the less newsworthy an event was probably going to turn out when we arrived. And we were usually right! It is a journalist’s right to evaluate what’s on offer and, whether they’ve had a few beers, a three course meal, or even been flown business-class to the far side of the world, have every right not to write a story. That’s just the way it is. What does this mean for PR people?

I believe it’s basically a challenge to make events (especially those that include hospitality or travel and are basically taking someone’s writing time and, in some cases, their personal after-hours time), to be as newsworthy as possible. Because, unless you’re just inviting those inveterate liggers, chances are that a newsworthy event will be covered. Magazines and websites like news. Give them news and, chances are, they will write it up – whether you fed them, whether you flew them around the world… or whether you just sent them a press release by email. It’s all about the news!

Next, Sanya offers:

For better or for worse, few studios recognize the power of the small website, the fansite, the struggling comic, or the ranter. If I had to cash in chips to get you invited to the press event, you need to do more than a half-assed paragraph underneath your machima porn expose. I’m in the trenches arguing that you have more value than PC Gamer, so don’t make me look like a schmuck by “forgetting” to post anything substantial.

Wow. My only response to that is to turn this back on Sanya. If a writer/blogger is so niche, why bother with them in the first place if it’s going to be a hard sell to your bosses to allow them to attend an event? Sure, there’s that warm fuzzy feeling you can sometimes get as a PR person when you can put a small-fry writer into a room with “the big boys” and see the joy on their face as they get to “play journalist” for the day and live the dream. That’s nice and, you know, I understand how it can also foster some nice relations among people who might read that person’s blog or listen to their podcast, or whatever, but I would seriously draw the line at going overboard trying to fight for someone’s right to party if they’re niche and not likely to return much copy.

Of course there are sometimes big events where it doesn’t really matter if you sneak a dozen people – and their mates – in through the back door… but Sanya is clearly indicating more formal times, perhaps with limited seats, where she might have to argue for their presence. In such situations, with my PR hat on, I’d simply ask myself, “Is this a hill worth dying for?” If not… if it’s some blog that has 8 readers via Feedburner, or something… I just wouldn’t go to the trouble in the first place. The easiest way to not let someone make you look like a monkey is to not give them the ability to do so in the first place. Simple, eh? Sanya’s next point, meanwhile, I actually agree with:

DON’T REPRINT THE HANDOUT. Some professionals may disagree with me here, and their logic is sound enough. If twenty fansites just reprint the handout, well, that’s a pretty sweet job of saturating everyone with our talking points, right? If everyone says it, the intended playerbase will believe it.

All you bloggers and writers, listen to me. A successful blog, or site, will always add value to its copy. People need a REASON to be coming back to your site. Reprinting a press release isn’t adding value. None, nada, zippo. People can access the same copy in 101 other places, so why not consider tossing up a couple of pars of original thought instead? It doesn’t hurt and, you know, if the answer is, “Because I don’t have time…” or some variation of that, consider whether you should be trying to inform and entertain people via a blog, anyway. If you don’t have 15 minutes to throw down a few words, you’re not taking your site too seriously in the first place. No excuses!

Sanya retreads an earlier theme towards the end:

Marketing’s budget paid for everything from your pleather dice bag to the steak you had for dinner. The purpose of the event was therefore to market a product. If your precious ethics prevent you from giving the studio publicity as a result of the event, you had no business eating the steak.

I can go two ways here. One one hand, if a writer genuinely believes they cannot write on a product if they’ve been “wined and dined”, then I agree they shouldn’t be going to events. The only problem with that is, I’ve never met such a writer. Sure, the old “ethics” chestnut will get trotted out when they attend an event and simply don’t want to write anything at all (truth be told, I might have even done it myself, just to get a PR off my back at times), but I’ve never seen a journalist, in over a decade of being in the game, who was able to apply that at all times, and to all situations. Thus, on the other hand, I think Sanya’s talking about a very rare beast indeed: if not impossible to find in the wild. I think the more likely scenario, in most cases, is that a journalist will attend and event and, if you’re newsworthy enough – and not just marketing fluff – will write something up, whether s/he had booze and gifts shower down, or whether they drank a quick glass of water during the Q&A. I keep repeating the following theme because it’s true: if the story’s good, it will get covered one way or another. Guaranteed!

To come back to another theme I mentioned earlier, before I sign off on this piece, it’s hard to throw a blanket over an industry when there are so many variables. Especially in this day and age where some blogs and podcasts are gaining significant followings, yet the people producing them don’t feel in any way indebted to companies or their PR people, or indeed even feel like they are a capital-j Journalist in the first place, the industry really needs to be taken on a careful, case by case basis by PR people.