No new raid?

[maddoctor.2738]

> @"Kheldorn.5123" said:

> Completion is the only goal for raids. Meanwhile for LW and open world stuff people do different things and very rarely chase achievements.

 

Yet those achievements exist and take important development time to make. Same with bounties and all the other little parts of a LW release that open world stuff people don't chase after.

[GrubySzymek.1362]

> @"maddoctor.2738" said:

> > @"Kheldorn.5123" said:

> > Completion is the only goal for raids. Meanwhile for LW and open world stuff people do different things and very rarely chase achievements.

>

> Yet those achievements exist and take important development time to make. Same with bounties and all the other little parts of a LW release that open world stuff people don't chase after.

 

Why do you compare raid to mere part of an update, like bounties? You should compare raid to whole LW episode.

 

Also, achievements do not take time to be made, content does.

[maddoctor.2738]

> @"CptAurellian.9537" said:

> And why would raiders be particularly attracted to gw2efficiency?

 

Judging by the numbers, it's easy to say that they are not

[maddoctor.2738]

> @"Kheldorn.5123" said:

> Why do you compare raid to mere part of an update, like bounties? You should compare raid to whole LW episode.

 

Because a whole LW episode is a collection of many different components and shouldn't be seen as a whole. And those components vary too much in their completion rates, some of them are even more rare than Raids, others equally rare.

 

Let's take a look at Daybreak:

48.6% started the episode and finished the first instance

38.7% finished the episode

13.8% finished Twilight Oasis on master

11.5% finished That Belongs in a Museum collection

8.7% got the diving goggles

8.6% finished the meta achievement

8.5% finished the Race

8.4% finished the Bookworm collection

8.2% finished the Corsair Keepsakes collection

7.9% jumped over Amala's shockwave

**7.4% killed the Soulless Horror**

6.9% got silver in the adventure

5.8% finished the Library Detective collection

5.7% finished all bounties in Istan

5.2% got silver in the griffon master race

**4.7% killed Dhuum**

4.4% did the From Downtown! achievement, the hardest one in Daybreak

3.2% got silver in the griffon expert race

3% finished the Astral Purification collection

 

I think I got every component of Daybreak here.

[Astralporing.1957]

> @"CptAurellian.9537" said:

> And why would raiders be particularly attracted to gw2efficiency?

In general, gw2eff will have a serious overrepresentation of hardcore players over casuals. That's for the simple reason that many casuals may not even know that site exists. It's the same with all third-party content for the game. After all, it's the very willingness to search out and use such sources that is one of the points that separate hardcores and casuals.

 

> @"maddoctor.2738" said:

> > @"Kheldorn.5123" said:

> > Completion is the only goal for raids. Meanwhile for LW and open world stuff people do different things and very rarely chase achievements.

>

> Yet those achievements exist and take important development time to make. Same with bounties and all the other little parts of a LW release that open world stuff people don't chase after.

Bounties _were_ meant to be chased after by a general populace. It's just that they ended up a design failure (they are just a bad combination of too annoying and not rewarding enough).

And Joko ambushes added in post-PoF LS chapters definitely didn't help.

 

It's a general problem with PoF - Anet did right in trying to get away from HoT-style mapwide metas on 2-hour schedule, but they misjudged actual reasons people disliked those, and as a result they went way too far in the other direction.

 

Perhaps, if we're lucky, they will get it right in the next expac.

 

[maddoctor.2738]

> @"Astralporing.1957" said:

> In general, gw2eff will have a serious overrepresentation of hardcore players over casuals.

That's true, but the "Extra/niche" parts of Daybreak, like adventures, griffon races, collections and extra achievements, are more likely to be finished by hardcore players than casual players. It's the same audience that will make a gw2eff account (not necessarily Raid too).

[faceplant.5123]

> @"yann.1946" said:

> Well i feel 1 Raid per 3 LS patches would be fair. I just think everyone wants some faster releases. ;)

 

Yeah that would be great if they stuck to their "2-3 months" schedule. If Anet keeps releasing raids like how you mentioned then that would be miserable and shows incompetence. If they release an episode every 3 months then that would be 1 wing (not raid) every 9 months. If it was every 4 months then that's once a year. I bought PoF for story and raids. So far, I've gotten an OK story and 2 bosses. 100s of statics killed dhuum in the 1st month and now everyone's caught up and are just waiting for Anet to show some transperancy with one of the best teams they have.

 

(Sorry 4 bad English:))

[DutchRiders.2871]

Niche markets can be very profitable, some companies make better net results when they start focussing a bit more on those. Not only cause the segment itself can generate alot of earnings but also because the main business can benefit heavily.

 

To what extent does Anet benefit from raids? We dont know. But saying raids are niche so they should get no updates is at heart a bad argument if you look at how segments and companies actually interact.

 

 

[Tyson.5160]

> @"maddoctor.2738" said:

> > @"Kheldorn.5123" said:

> > Why do you compare raid to mere part of an update, like bounties? You should compare raid to whole LW episode.

>

> Because a whole LW episode is a collection of many different components and shouldn't be seen as a whole. And those components vary too much in their completion rates, some of them are even more rare than Raids, others equally rare.

>

> Let's take a look at Daybreak:

> 48.6% started the episode and finished the first instance

> 38.7% finished the episode

> 13.8% finished Twilight Oasis on master

> 11.5% finished That Belongs in a Museum collection

> 8.7% got the diving goggles

> 8.6% finished the meta achievement

> 8.5% finished the Race

> 8.4% finished the Bookworm collection

> 8.2% finished the Corsair Keepsakes collection

> 7.9% jumped over Amala's shockwave

> **7.4% killed the Soulless Horror**

> 6.9% got silver in the adventure

> 5.8% finished the Library Detective collection

> 5.7% finished all bounties in Istan

> 5.2% got silver in the griffon master race

> **4.7% killed Dhuum**

> 4.4% did the From Downtown! achievement, the hardest one in Daybreak

> 3.2% got silver in the griffon expert race

> 3% finished the Astral Purification collection

>

> I think I got every component of Daybreak here.

 

Anet has the actual numbers of people who play the LW content. If Raids were not meant to be niche then the devs would put more resources into it, we would be seeing more raids released etc, but what is the reality?

 

See unfortunately we have the same people who don’t want an easy mode and want Raids to stay the same, are also the same people complaining about not having more raids, you can't have your cake and eat it too. If you want Raids to be made more frequently then more people must play them, if that’s the case then Raids will need to be redesigned for a larger audience. Essentially what you have here is a lose win no matter which way you cut it.

[Tyson.5160]

> @"DutchRiders.2871" said:

> Niche markets can be very profitable, some companies make better net results when they start focussing a bit more on those. Not only cause the segment itself can generate alot of earnings but also because the main business can benefit heavily.

>

> To what extent does Anet benefit from raids? We dont know. But saying raids are niche so they should get no updates is at heart a bad argument if you look at how segments and companies actually interact.

>

They thing is Anet said they are niche, if Anet is saying it then it’s niche.

 

 

[maddoctor.2738]

> @"Tyson.5160" said:

> See unfortunately we have the same people who don’t want an easy mode and want Raids to stay the same, are also the same people complaining about not having more raids, you can't have your cake and eat it too. If you want Raids to be made more frequently then more people must play them, if that’s the case then Raids will need to be redesigned for a larger audience. Essentially what you have here is a lose win no matter which way you cut it.

 

You are mistaken, I'm not one that wants Raids to become much more frequent and we'll all be here when the next Raid is released and talk about it. More people playing them is irrelevant to getting more Raids, remember that there is an actual Raid team working in the game and as far as we know that team still exists and still works on the next Raid, it's not a matter of getting them or not. I gave you the individual statistics of parts of Daybreak (when Hall of Chains was released) to show you, I hope clearly, that there is way more "niche content" that they are still releasing to the game as part of the Living World. As long as the Living World contains those, Raids will be fine, if we see a radical change in attitude and they remove (or reduce) the other niche parts of the LW releases, then, and only then, will be a reason that Raids are also in trouble. We aren't there yet, and I don't see any reason of that happening anyway.

 

Until then we can all enjoy the griffon race, adventure, bounties, meta achievements, collections that will most certainly come with Long Live the Lich.

[Blaeys.3102]

> @"DutchRiders.2871" said:

> Niche markets can be very profitable, some companies make better net results when they start focussing a bit more on those. Not only cause the segment itself can generate alot of earnings but also because the main business can benefit heavily.

>

> To what extent does Anet benefit from raids? We dont know. But saying raids are niche so they should get no updates is at heart a bad argument if you look at how segments and companies actually interact.

>

>

 

It isn't about no updates. I think we all know they are working on raids.

 

It is about what they prioritize and dedicate additional resources toward when needed. Given that the current living story update is running late (by their own admission) and that both they and what seems like the majority of hardcore raiders have indicated that raids should be niche content, then it stands to reason that some (not all) resources should be shifted to better deliver on the living story content side. That means things like raids, designed for a smaller subset of players, have to take a backseat when it comes to development needs - and the result is likely a lengthened delivery cycle. It isn't about not wanting to see raids delivered faster - it is about where they need to use the limited resources they currently have.

 

Raiding focused MMOs succeed because raids are integrated into the entire experience. The raid boss is the final showdown - the big bad villain that everyone is working toward defeating. GW2 was built on a different model - one where the community bands together as a whole to take on that ultimate evil. And that model, while it has issues (like any), works. GW2 is a fun community focused game that is engaging and fun to play. The addition of raids - in the form they chose to implement them - are secondary to that model. Yes, they provide a nice challenge, but they will (and should) always be secondary to the larger GW2 PVE experience. And, as secondary content, they will never warrant priority resources or scheduling.

[Tyson.5160]

> @"maddoctor.2738" said:

> > @"Tyson.5160" said:

> > See unfortunately we have the same people who don’t want an easy mode and want Raids to stay the same, are also the same people complaining about not having more raids, you can't have your cake and eat it too. If you want Raids to be made more frequently then more people must play them, if that’s the case then Raids will need to be redesigned for a larger audience. Essentially what you have here is a lose win no matter which way you cut it.

>

> You are mistaken, I'm not one that wants Raids to become much more frequent and we'll all be here when the next Raid is released and talk about it. More people playing them is irrelevant to getting more Raids, remember that there is an actual Raid team working in the game and as far as we know that team still exists and still works on the next Raid, it's not a matter of getting them or not. I gave you the individual statistics of parts of Daybreak (when Hall of Chains was released) to show you, I hope clearly, that there is way more "niche content" that they are still releasing to the game as part of the Living World. As long as the Living World contains those, Raids will be fine, if we see a radical change in attitude and they remove (or reduce) the other niche parts of the LW releases, then, and only then, will be a reason that Raids are also in trouble. We aren't there yet, and I don't see any reason of that happening anyway.

>

> Until then we can all enjoy the griffon race, adventure, bounties, meta achievements, collections that will most certainly come with Long Live the Lich.

 

See, I complete all those things madd, I like playing all the offered content.

 

I’m not calling you out specifically madd, I know where you stand. I’ve come to the realization that Raids should stay the same, which includes the raid release cadence. They only have a small team, which can only produce so much content as well design new stuff bug fixes etc. Meanwhile we have three teams working way in advance to produce content for a 2-3 month release cadences, LW has way more resources then Raids.

 

LW is for the larger audience, Raids are not. Anet states this, yet people still seem to argue about it. GW2 is not a Raid focused game. You will see that LW gets way more releases and content then Raids. This should be normal because LW takes higher priority then raids do.

[FrizzFreston.5290]

> @"maddoctor.2738" said:

> > @"FrizzFreston.5290" said:

> > I dont doubt there a connection between achievement hunters and raiders. But with below 10% numbers, even though similar, theres nothing saying how much of each of those are actually the same players.

> >

> > Also age of the content is a huge factor. Even in "older" content like LW3 a downward trend is still apparent. I would speculate that this downward trend is much more pronounced the newer the content is. Ignoring the other factors ofcourse.

>

> It doesn't matter if they are the same players or not, only that the percentages are very similar. So the argument of "Raids being niche content" is half the truth, because all meaningful content in the game is niche content, including Fractals, LW meta achievements, collections, Griffon races and Adventures. Everything is niche on its own, but combined they give us this game.

>

 

I was mostly correcting what (I believed) you stated, so you saying that it doesnt matter (what you originally said) is a bit confusing to me.

 

Also I think the term "all meaningful content" is really just content in itself because its just that subjective to what is meaningful to a player.

 

Ofcourse, it also means that such a conclusion basically would mean that statements such as "95% of the game is already for casuals" really should be read as "95% of the game is already other content!"

 

What raids are in the end, simply is not the main body of content. Also completion of metas being similar just states that those metas arent that important to most players.

 

I rather speculate that as the game ages, the ones that remain are the ones that do your stated meaningful content. As such simply the players the most invested in the game. They wouldnt stop playing and completing even if the raids stay as they are. They are the ones last to leave. Which also means, the casuals, as their name suggests, play alot less regularly, and dont care for just jumping on the next newest raid and finishing it in the next few weeks. Also making the latest or last completions alot more volatile.

 

Maybe with this influx of new and returning players, it might be those numbers have changed dramatically.

 

We would really need to do quarterly updates on those numbers to state something meaningful.

 

 

[maddoctor.2738]

> @"FrizzFreston.5290" said:

> Ofcourse, it also means that such a conclusion basically would mean that statements such as "95% of the game is already for casuals" really should be read as "95% of the game is already other content!"

The 95% of the game is already for casuals" is a terrible argument anyway.

 

> What raids are in the end, simply is not the main body of content. Also completion of metas being similar just states that those metas arent that important to most players.

> I rather speculate that as the game ages, the ones that remain are the ones that do your stated meaningful content.

Which means this "niche" content is the most important content in the game because that's the content the most loyal and invested players play.

 

> We would really need to do quarterly updates on those numbers to state something meaningful.

The achievement completion rates were only added very recently. But from now on I'll keep an eye on those numbers. It will be interesting to see how they change over time.

[ButterPeanut.9746]

> @"Tyson.5160" said:

> > @"maddoctor.2738" said:

> > > @"Kheldorn.5123" said:

> > > Why do you compare raid to mere part of an update, like bounties? You should compare raid to whole LW episode.

> >

> > Because a whole LW episode is a collection of many different components and shouldn't be seen as a whole. And those components vary too much in their completion rates, some of them are even more rare than Raids, others equally rare.

> >

> > Let's take a look at Daybreak:

> > 48.6% started the episode and finished the first instance

> > 38.7% finished the episode

> > 13.8% finished Twilight Oasis on master

> > 11.5% finished That Belongs in a Museum collection

> > 8.7% got the diving goggles

> > 8.6% finished the meta achievement

> > 8.5% finished the Race

> > 8.4% finished the Bookworm collection

> > 8.2% finished the Corsair Keepsakes collection

> > 7.9% jumped over Amala's shockwave

> > **7.4% killed the Soulless Horror**

> > 6.9% got silver in the adventure

> > 5.8% finished the Library Detective collection

> > 5.7% finished all bounties in Istan

> > 5.2% got silver in the griffon master race

> > **4.7% killed Dhuum**

> > 4.4% did the From Downtown! achievement, the hardest one in Daybreak

> > 3.2% got silver in the griffon expert race

> > 3% finished the Astral Purification collection

> >

> > I think I got every component of Daybreak here.

>

> Anet has the actual numbers of people who play the LW content. If Raids were not meant to be niche then the devs would put more resources into it, we would be seeing more raids released etc, but what is the reality?

>

> See unfortunately we have the same people who don’t want an easy mode and want Raids to stay the same, are also the same people complaining about not having more raids, you can't have your cake and eat it too. If you want Raids to be made more frequently then more people must play them, if that’s the case then Raids will need to be redesigned for a larger audience. Essentially what you have here is a lose win no matter which way you cut it.

 

The reverse is also true though. The same people who want easier raids and access to their rewards are also the same people who are claiming there should never be any more resources put into raids. No more resources = no easier modes.

 

I don't realistically believe that anyone who was mildly upset about not getting a new raid wing with this patch is suggesting that a large amount of resources be moved from somewhere else in the game to raids.

 

For me at least, the feeling of mild disappointment comes from:

 

1. There have been multiple comments around trying to release them at a more consistent and frequency basis (note, this doesn't necessarily mean any more developers/QAers/writers/etc...that could just be process improvements.)

 

2. Around the same time as those comments, we got a triple release with LS, new fractal, and new raid. This set the standard that these could be paired together in the future, and it seemed even more likely due to those comments.

 

3. There was no mention from ANET that this wasn't going to be in the patch. For all we know, they could technically still surprise us on Tuesday. With #1 and #2 above, I would have expected them to put out a statement saying that a new raid would not come with this patch. In my opinion, it would have been better to hear about it directly, versus just inferring by lack of raid mention in a trailer.

 

That's about it. Any opinion about drastically moving resources from one team to another is IMO completely unjustified and unlikely. (LS -> raids, raids -> LS, fractals -> dungeons, etc.) This is really my only argument against implementing easy mode raids TBH. I don't see them moving resources from LS to implement it, and that is really the only option.

[FrizzFreston.5290]

> @"maddoctor.2738" said:

> > @"FrizzFreston.5290" said:

> > What raids are in the end, simply is not the main body of content. Also completion of metas being similar just states that those metas arent that important to most players.

> > I rather speculate that as the game ages, the ones that remain are the ones that do your stated meaningful content.

> Which means this "niche" content is the most important content in the game because that's the content the most loyal and invested players play.

>

And since everything is niche, everything is important? :p

 

I would say though that living world content is probably more of the foundation on which the other content builds. ALso with raids being released at the same time as LW you'd get so much content that players would be conflicted as where to go first. I can imagine they wouldn't want to release raids at the same time as the main content addition, so that everyone can fully focus themselves on jumping on the new raid, in order to claim world first.

[Linken.6345]

> @"FrizzFreston.5290" said:

> > @"maddoctor.2738" said:

> > > @"FrizzFreston.5290" said:

> > > What raids are in the end, simply is not the main body of content. Also completion of metas being similar just states that those metas arent that important to most players.

> > > I rather speculate that as the game ages, the ones that remain are the ones that do your stated meaningful content.

> > Which means this "niche" content is the most important content in the game because that's the content the most loyal and invested players play.

> >

> And since everything is niche, everything is important? :p

>

> I would say though that living world content is probably more of the foundation on which the other content builds. ALso with raids being released at the same time as LW you'd get so much content that players would be conflicted as where to go first. I can imagine they wouldn't want to release raids at the same time as the main content addition, so that everyone can fully focus themselves on jumping on the new raid, in order to claim world first.

 

Havent they already said that raids and maybe fractals are on diffrent release scheduals then living story but oddly enough they seem to release at the same time as living story anyway.

[Astralporing.1957]

> @"Linken.6345" said:

> Havent they already said that raids and maybe fractals are on diffrent release scheduals then living story but oddly enough they seem to release at the same time as living story anyway.

Raids are on a different schedule (but they still like to bundle all their major updates together when they can). Fractals on the other hand _were_ mentioned in the context of LS release schedule (specifically, that Anet hoped to release a new fractal with every other LS chapter).

 

[Tyson.5160]

> @"Astralporing.1957" said:

> > @"Linken.6345" said:

> > Havent they already said that raids and maybe fractals are on diffrent release scheduals then living story but oddly enough they seem to release at the same time as living story anyway.

> Raids are on a different schedule (but they still like to bundle all their major updates together when they can). Fractals on the other hand _were_ mentioned in the context of LS release schedule (specifically, that Anet hoped to release a new fractal with every other LS chapter).

>

Yeah, only LS and Fractals seem to have release schedule, while Raids don’t.

[DutchRiders.2871]

> @"Blaeys.3102" said:

> > @"DutchRiders.2871" said:

> > Niche markets can be very profitable, some companies make better net results when they start focussing a bit more on those. Not only cause the segment itself can generate alot of earnings but also because the main business can benefit heavily.

> >

> > To what extent does Anet benefit from raids? We dont know. But saying raids are niche so they should get no updates is at heart a bad argument if you look at how segments and companies actually interact.

> >

> >

>

> It isn't about no updates. I think we all know they are working on raids.

>

> It is about what they prioritize and dedicate additional resources toward when needed. Given that the current living story update is running late (by their own admission) and that both they and what seems like the majority of hardcore raiders have indicated that raids should be niche content, then it stands to reason that some (not all) resources should be shifted to better deliver on the living story content side. That means things like raids, designed for a smaller subset of players, have to take a backseat when it comes to development needs - and the result is likely a lengthened delivery cycle. It isn't about not wanting to see raids delivered faster - it is about where they need to use the limited resources they currently have.

>

> Raiding focused MMOs succeed because raids are integrated into the entire experience. The raid boss is the final showdown - the big bad villain that everyone is working toward defeating. GW2 was built on a different model - one where the community bands together as a whole to take on that ultimate evil. And that model, while it has issues (like any), works. GW2 is a fun community focused game that is engaging and fun to play. The addition of raids - in the form they chose to implement them - are secondary to that model. Yes, they provide a nice challenge, but they will (and should) always be secondary to the larger GW2 PVE experience. And, as secondary content, they will never warrant priority resources or scheduling.

 

No the reasoning that all resources of a company should go to the highest amount of customers in many business cases is not optimal. Niches can be important for a company.

 

250 + days for 2 boss fights, is imo not justified by saying raids are niche. Sure your gonna say I told you so are this is why we need easy mode . Imma point out that the development cycles of all gw2 content is weak compared to the competition. Introducing the segment of dedicated players that want to experience easy raids (your beloved segment) or even real casuals will hardly change anything.

 

I predict Anet will have faster releases with more replayability going forward. Including raids.

 

[Astralporing.1957]

> @"DutchRiders.2871" said:

> No the reasoning that all resources of a company should go to the highest amount of customers in many business cases is not optimal. Niches can be important for a company.

That's not what happens though. Raids still have their own dedicated team. It's just that doing raids requires resources from outside that team for peak performance - resources that are required also for other projects. So, Anet prioritizes, and assigns these resources in order of importance. This time, the next, already delayed LS chapter was more important.

 

> 250 + days for 2 boss fights, is imo not justified by saying raids are niche.

It's what the current raid team can do. If you want more/faster releases, you are basically asking Anet to assign more resources to raids. Resources that would have to come from somewhere else.

So, what exactly do you want to sacrifice for this? And why non-raiders should be okay with it?

 

 

 

[GrubySzymek.1362]

They should release just one raid per expansion and announce it so people will finally stop whining. Raiders are the mostunhappy, never satisfied group of players in this game. It was absolutely to be expected that Anet will never keep up with raiders' expectations but they made huge mistake - they released first 3 wings too fast and people hyped themselves up that it's going to be standard occurence. Reality 1 : 0 Raiders

[Blaeys.3102]

To speed up the release cycle for raids, they have two options. The first would be to compromise on quality - which isn't really an option. The second is to add additional resources. Given that, by their own admission, the newest Living Story is running later than they want and that raids are purposefully designed for a more exclusionary group of players - this is also not an option. New resources would need to go to the core game first - to get it back onto the desired release schedule.

 

That means a longer wait time between raids. Given their current take on raids and how they fit in with the rest of the game, there really is no realistic way around that without negatively impacting the game as a whole.

 

[maxwelgm.4315]

> @"maddoctor.2738" said:

> > @"Kheldorn.5123" said:

> > Why do you compare raid to mere part of an update, like bounties? You should compare raid to whole LW episode.

>

> Because a whole LW episode is a collection of many different components and shouldn't be seen as a whole. And those components vary too much in their completion rates, some of them are even more rare than Raids, others equally rare.

>

> Let's take a look at Daybreak:

> 48.6% started the episode and finished the first instance

> 38.7% finished the episode

> 13.8% finished Twilight Oasis on master

> 11.5% finished That Belongs in a Museum collection

> 8.7% got the diving goggles

> 8.6% finished the meta achievement

> 8.5% finished the Race

> 8.4% finished the Bookworm collection

> 8.2% finished the Corsair Keepsakes collection

> 7.9% jumped over Amala's shockwave

> **7.4% killed the Soulless Horror**

> 6.9% got silver in the adventure

> 5.8% finished the Library Detective collection

> 5.7% finished all bounties in Istan

> 5.2% got silver in the griffon master race

> **4.7% killed Dhuum**

> 4.4% did the From Downtown! achievement, the hardest one in Daybreak

> 3.2% got silver in the griffon expert race

> 3% finished the Astral Purification collection

>

> I think I got every component of Daybreak here.

 

Breaking the LW episode into its parts clearly didn't matter to Anet so far (and if they allocate the same resources to raids that they in average allocate individually to each of these components, I think the team would be even smaller, no? How many people do they need to put diving goggles on a map?), and I think some of the reason is that **more people went into the LW map regardless**. People no longer (for good reason) simply "go into a new raid" to see what the content is about. The story instance on the other hand? Your own numbers say almost half of the player base (even accounting for all the alt accounts that people might have who never play the instance) are doing it. Development them is spread around this area of popularity, there is no reason to get too far from it. Some of our collections related to the LW map did not attract many players? No problem, we do something else next time (e.g introducing a mount will likely increase some numbers for this episode's components). Whatever they develop is not wasted if it is developed to the map where most people will go to anyway, because even if they do not do any of the collections they will still _feel_ like there is much to be done, if they eventually wanted to do so. This also has to do with Anet diminishing the number of Achievement points they reward over time, which would probably also see some increase in numbers if they fixed it.

 

Raids are peripheral in a level that goes beyond these statistics, as in, literally peripheral, the people not on that % of raiders will not even get close to the content (and this is OK because there are entry barriers raiders would not want taken away). As for the other collections, many will stumble upon then or have it being done by others while they farm the LW map, which makes plenty of sense to live up to the name "living world". There are things to be done there, even if you don't want to do them, and this is an important design decision from Anet which is kinda working so far. However we try to twist this, and I do enjoy raids a lot, they are not that important to Anet's development cycle. They are niche because of the entry barriers (much more so because of the players themselves, and now Anet has to take this into account too), not because any low % of people are doing them. I can start and finish the Astral collection all by myself if I wanted to, and the _if I wanted to_ is what matters here to put priority in development (or at least, this is how I interpret the focus Anet has on LW so far).