Anet back in Silent Mode

[witcher.3197]

> @"Inculpatus cedo.9234" said:

> I'm sure Rubi will consider your feedback in the manner it deserves.

>

> Good luck.

 

I doubt that'd happen because the weekly Anet streams have pretty much devolved into dev let's play streams since 2013.

 

Do you remember a show called "Ready Up"? They used to talk about upcoming content, balance patches, rewards, everything.

 

I'll link one episode below. Do you know what the most astonishing thing I've found? Around the 10 minute mark the PvP lead designer elaborates that one of their design decisions was quite controversial, and then talks about how they approached it based on feedback. When will you ever hear present day Anet admit that anything they've ever done was controversial? They just put their head in the sand and pretend all is well.

 

[Zeike.7469]

> @"witcher.3197" said:

> > @"Inculpatus cedo.9234" said:

> > I'm sure Rubi will consider your feedback in the manner it deserves.

> >

> > Good luck.

>

> I doubt that'd happen because the weekly Anet streams have pretty much devolved into dev let's play streams since 2013.

>

> Do you remember a show called "Ready Up"? They used to talk about upcoming content, balance patches, rewards, everything.

>

> I'll link one episode below. Do you know what the most astonishing thing I've found? Around the 10 minute mark the PvP lead designer elaborates that one of their design decisions was quite controversial, and then talks about how they approached it based on feedback. When will you ever hear present day Anet admit that anything they've ever done was controversial? They just put their head in the sand and pretend all is well.

>

>

 

That really is a shame, it's what Guild Wars 2 could use right about now.

[Inculpatus cedo.9234]

> @"leunamsil.6742" said:

> > @"Jasonbdj.4021" said:

>

> > But the community will rage if something doesn't go ahead (people moan about player's housing). The road map has already been mention somewhere, next session is due when it is ready.

>

> First, sorry if my english isn't perfect, hope you can understand my message none the less

> I don't think the commuity will rage if they explain why something doesn't go ahead. Lets take for exemple aliances in WvW. Anet said that feature will come. People have been waiting for years. Wouldn't it be much better to be open about the development of the feature and if the times comes and its not a feasable thing they do a long talk with the community and explain why it won't be possible? Of course there will always be people raging, its the internet, but i doupt that if had shown the work they have been doing and they explain they reasoning for pulling the plug instead of hoping the community forgets about it, a lot of people wouldn't rage. I understand wanting to surprise the players but there are times where you could do surprises and times where you could be open and comunicative. Imagine a relationship where things are looking a bit grim, you would hide things in order to do a surprise and pray that the other person doesn't think the worst or would you be open and try to talk to resolve the issues? I know its just a game but try to do the surprises when people aren't worried about the future and be open and try to better the game when there are more doupts

>

> anyway, just my thoughts, you are entitled to a different opinion

>

 

You mean like they did with Gen 2 Legendary Weapons? To this day, players/posters bring it up as a 'broken promise'.

[Astralporing.1957]

> @"zealex.9410" said:

> Another thing is Gw2 is the only mmo mmo-esque title without a conference. Wow has it, eso has it, ff14 has it, bdo has it, warframe has it, destiny has it (kinda), poe will have it later this year as well.

>

> Its a powerful thing to stroke your fanbase's ego and make them feel like big things are happening in their favourite game.

They won;t have a conference, because communicating is a must for it. And proper communication is something we'll probably never get from Anet.

 

[Inculpatus cedo.9234]

> @"witcher.3197" said:

> > @"Inculpatus cedo.9234" said:

> > I'm sure Rubi will consider your feedback in the manner it deserves.

> >

> > Good luck.

>

> I doubt that'd happen because the weekly Anet streams have pretty much devolved into dev let's play streams since 2013.

>

> Do you remember a show called "Ready Up"? They used to talk about upcoming content, balance patches, rewards, everything.

>

> I'll link one episode below. Do you know what the most astonishing thing I've found? Around the 10 minute mark the PvP lead designer elaborates that one of their design decisions was quite controversial, and then talks about how they approached it based on feedback. When will you ever hear present day Anet admit that anything they've ever done was controversial? They just put their head in the sand and pretend all is well.

>

>

 

I think you may be confusing "Let's Play" with Guild Chat. Two different programs.

And yes, I remember 'Ready Up', the PvP programs opposite 'Points of Interest' which evolved into 'Guild Chat'. It seems there wasn't enough interest in the competitive side of things to keep the show.

https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Ready_Up

[zealex.9410]

> @"Astralporing.1957" said:

> > @"zealex.9410" said:

> > Another thing is Gw2 is the only mmo mmo-esque title without a conference. Wow has it, eso has it, ff14 has it, bdo has it, warframe has it, destiny has it (kinda), poe will have it later this year as well.

> >

> > Its a powerful thing to stroke your fanbase's ego and make them feel like big things are happening in their favourite game.

> They won;t have a conference, because communicating is a must for it. And proper communication is something we'll probably never get from Anet.

>

 

They are pretty competent when it comes to communicating about meetups and events so setting up a conference would be the easiest thing. Its the meat and potatoes of said event they prob dont work on rn which brings the whole thing down.

[Astralporing.1957]

> @"zealex.9410" said:

> > @"Astralporing.1957" said:

> > > @"zealex.9410" said:

> > > Another thing is Gw2 is the only mmo mmo-esque title without a conference. Wow has it, eso has it, ff14 has it, bdo has it, warframe has it, destiny has it (kinda), poe will have it later this year as well.

> > >

> > > Its a powerful thing to stroke your fanbase's ego and make them feel like big things are happening in their favourite game.

> > They won;t have a conference, because communicating is a must for it. And proper communication is something we'll probably never get from Anet.

> >

>

> They are pretty competent when it comes to communicating about meetups and events so setting up a conference would be the easiest thing.

Setting up? Yes, probably. Unfortunately for them, i don't see how a conference on which devs won't announce projects and won't talk with the community in-depths about past, present and _future_ could be succesful.

 

> Its the meat and potatoes of said event they prob dont work on rn which brings the whole thing down.

Even if they had something to show, they wouldn't talk about it anyway beyond a flat teaser or so.

 

Basically, an event at whose core lies communication between devs and the game community can't work without that communication.

 

[zealex.9410]

> @"Astralporing.1957" said:

> > @"zealex.9410" said:

> > > @"Astralporing.1957" said:

> > > > @"zealex.9410" said:

> > > > Another thing is Gw2 is the only mmo mmo-esque title without a conference. Wow has it, eso has it, ff14 has it, bdo has it, warframe has it, destiny has it (kinda), poe will have it later this year as well.

> > > >

> > > > Its a powerful thing to stroke your fanbase's ego and make them feel like big things are happening in their favourite game.

> > > They won;t have a conference, because communicating is a must for it. And proper communication is something we'll probably never get from Anet.

> > >

> >

> > They are pretty competent when it comes to communicating about meetups and events so setting up a conference would be the easiest thing.

> Setting up? Yes, probably. Unfortunately for them, i don't see how a conference on which devs won't announce projects and won't talk with the community in-depths about past, present and _future_ could be succesful.

>

> > Its the meat and potatoes of said event they prob dont work on rn which brings the whole thing down.

> Even if they had something to show, they wouldn't talk about it anyway beyond a flat teaser or so.

>

> Basically, an event at whose core lies communication between devs and the game community can't work without that communication.

>

 

Events such as these are mostly a glorified, "hey look at our new stuff, buy gems or our products" and much less about deep communication. Yes theres some of that but u mostly see partners doing interviews as well as some qna panels.

[Zeike.7469]

I do hope Anet are reading these, because like this has been pretty constructive. In my opinion a panel where you're going through questions from the community and answering to the best of their ability would be helpful. I know theres things they cant say etc.. as well I think if they showed they are reading forums and taking on player feedback. Needless to say theres going to be negative nancy's but there will still be those that offer constructive feedback.

 

"Guys we've taken a read on forums and we've heard your feedback on We are looking to at doing..."

 

They've done this before when they read feedback of the skyscale feedback that came from War Eternal. They explained their thought processes on it and made changes that was an olive branch for players, which I thought was really good of them. Just more emphasis that their listening, engaging with the community about aspects of the game. People love this game, wouldn't be talking on here if we didn't and I hope that this does help spark something that binds community and devs together to help make improvements to the game.

[KryTiKaL.3125]

> @"Saerin.1032" said:

> can we PLEASE stop with the kitten warframe kitten ? like JESUS every MMO i play people are saying "hey warframe does this better then this game" "warframe did better then this game" "i will play no other MMO then warframe because its the holy land where the devs are the gods that rule this land, where we the peasants are allowed to live" like kitten ?! i dont care if people like that game, i dont care if people play that game, i like it myself, but it gets SO kitten annoying when you go into the forums or even INGAME and people pray for this game, like it should be the only kitten MMO that should exist ! i literally stopped playing it because it got so annoying...maybe i had bad luck and that where heavy fanboys and girls in that days and i'm not here to defend Anet, of course they should talk some more, but i get SO kitten mad now when i read "warframe did blah" how long will it take that INGAME people will non stop talk about warframe in gw2 srsly...sry that this wasn't part of this thread, but i just got INSTANTLY mad because i cant go into forum without reading something like this...

>

> and yes im better now thank you very much

 

People bring it up so much because its a game that has evolved *significantly* over its lifespan and it has only gotten better, and a large part of that is due to Digital Extreme's communication and relationship with Warframe's community. If more Developers took pages out of their book they might see their games do better. Even Bungie is doing that now that they have pulled away from Activision, at least better than they had been while under Activision's thumb.

 

I don't think the implication is that Warframe is perfect, they have made their fair share of mistakes and definitely learned from them and there is still a lot for them to work on and improve in Warframe; *that* much is made clear by many of Warframe's content creators and regular players due to the consistency of feedback and criticism that they get.

 

However the defining factor that I think many people point out when referencing Warframe compared to GW2 is that at least Warframe's developers actually listen and try to do something with that feedback. They communicate with their community; "We've heard you and we can see this is an important issue, here are some ideas as to what we think we might be able to do to fix this." ANet hasn't done that for a *long* time and once you gain a perspective of games like Warframe, beyond GW2, it is difficult *not* to look to Warframe and then ask "Why does GW2 do so much worse at this?" and the same could be said of many other games.

 

It might annoy you to see it all the time but that doesn't mean the point is wrong, and also...why does it annoy you so much when you see it so frequently? Because you think it pertains to this assumption you've made; "i will play no other MMO then warframe because its the holy land where the devs are the gods that rule this land, where we the peasants are allowed to live"? If thats the case...maybe don't look at it that way.

[Saerin.1032]

@"KryTiKaL.3125"

 

I know it sounded dumb that i'm annoyed, because i see it so frequently, but its because they over hyped it, thats all, and when i saw it here too, just made me mad, so sry for that, but with your points, it's actually true and it's sad, but it will maybe reach them maybe not, but i also don't want to say, they dont want to communicate with us, because i dont know what's going on by them, or they're minds, maybe they dont know what they could tell us, what they cant hold, but that are standart answer from many so dont mind that, i just hope anet makes some comeback one day ^^

 

If not, it will be very sad to see this game die out...pretty sure im not the only one who see GW2 like a second world where you can live and have a "family" guild or people in general, like i said, was unnecessary from me, just got mad to see it here now, sounds stupid i know xD

[zealex.9410]

> @"Saerin.1032" said:

> @"KryTiKaL.3125"

>

> I know it sounded dumb that i'm annoyed, because i see it so frequently, but its because they over hyped it, thats all, and when i saw it here too, just made me mad, so sry for that, but with your points, it's actually true and it's sad, but it will maybe reach them maybe not, but i also don't want to say, they dont want to communicate with us, because i dont know what's going on by them, or they're minds, maybe they dont know what they could tell us, what they cant hold, but that are standart answer from many so dont mind that, i just hope anet makes some comeback one day ^^

>

> If not, it will be very sad to see this game die out...pretty sure im not the only one who see GW2 like a second world where you can live and have a "family" guild or people in general, like i said, was unnecessary from me, just got mad to see it here now, sounds stupid i know xD

 

They communication isnt that overhyped tbh, the game itself is tbh.

[KryTiKaL.3125]

> @"zealex.9410" said:

> > @"Saerin.1032" said:

> > @"KryTiKaL.3125"

> >

> > I know it sounded dumb that i'm annoyed, because i see it so frequently, but its because they over hyped it, thats all, and when i saw it here too, just made me mad, so sry for that, but with your points, it's actually true and it's sad, but it will maybe reach them maybe not, but i also don't want to say, they dont want to communicate with us, because i dont know what's going on by them, or they're minds, maybe they dont know what they could tell us, what they cant hold, but that are standart answer from many so dont mind that, i just hope anet makes some comeback one day ^^

> >

> > If not, it will be very sad to see this game die out...pretty sure im not the only one who see GW2 like a second world where you can live and have a "family" guild or people in general, like i said, was unnecessary from me, just got mad to see it here now, sounds stupid i know xD

>

> They communication isnt that overhyped tbh, the game itself is tbh.

 

Depends on what kind of game you're into. It *is* a looter shooter and it can get grindy at certain points but their business moel and monetization practices are kind of unparalleled. You don't need to spend a single dime on the game, hell you can earn the paid for currency just by playing the game and trading rare mods, frame and weapon parts with other players for it. At one point they even *removed* something from the marketplace because they didn't anticipate the reality of adding it; aka it would have been a bit predatory to their players. Other than that though it does a lot of things well, and considering what they are looking to *hopefully* release this year things only look to get better.

 

>!

 

Aside from that though yeah, I haven't seen such good communication and such a positive relationship between a developer and a community...kind of ever. They really raised the bar, and you know ANet could similarly be capable of it...they just don't do it. Whether it be because of upper management or a general inability to actually listen to community feedback, regardless of the reason, their lack of communication is a problem that needs to be addressed and addressed *properly*.

[zealex.9410]

> @"KryTiKaL.3125" said:

> > @"zealex.9410" said:

> > > @"Saerin.1032" said:

> > > @"KryTiKaL.3125"

> > >

> > > I know it sounded dumb that i'm annoyed, because i see it so frequently, but its because they over hyped it, thats all, and when i saw it here too, just made me mad, so sry for that, but with your points, it's actually true and it's sad, but it will maybe reach them maybe not, but i also don't want to say, they dont want to communicate with us, because i dont know what's going on by them, or they're minds, maybe they dont know what they could tell us, what they cant hold, but that are standart answer from many so dont mind that, i just hope anet makes some comeback one day ^^

> > >

> > > If not, it will be very sad to see this game die out...pretty sure im not the only one who see GW2 like a second world where you can live and have a "family" guild or people in general, like i said, was unnecessary from me, just got mad to see it here now, sounds stupid i know xD

> >

> > They communication isnt that overhyped tbh, the game itself is tbh.

>

> Depends on what kind of game you're into. It *is* a looter shooter and it can get grindy at certain points but their business moel and monetization practices are kind of unparalleled. You don't need to spend a single dime on the game, hell you can earn the paid for currency just by playing the game and trading rare mods, frame and weapon parts with other players for it. At one point they even *removed* something from the marketplace because they didn't anticipate the reality of adding it; aka it would have been a bit predatory to their players. Other than that though it does a lot of things well, and considering what they are looking to *hopefully* release this year things only look to get better.

>

> >!

>

> Aside from that though yeah, I haven't seen such good communication and such a positive relationship between a developer and a community...kind of ever. They really raised the bar, and you know ANet could similarly be capable of it...they just don't do it. Whether it be because of upper management or a general inability to actually listen to community feedback, regardless of the reason, their lack of communication is a problem that needs to be addressed and addressed *properly*.

 

In terms of communication they are hreat as well as monetisation if you have the time to do the whole trading game. In terms of content they are rather meh.

 

Another game id compaired to warframe communication was would be poe, but they dont really show you smthing thats in development years before it comes out. They mainly communicare updates foxes and how they justify changes (sorta manifestos) wity weekly communication and such. Really great studio.

[KryTiKaL.3125]

> @"zealex.9410" said:

> > @"KryTiKaL.3125" said:

> > > @"zealex.9410" said:

> > > > @"Saerin.1032" said:

> > > > @"KryTiKaL.3125"

> > > >

> > > > I know it sounded dumb that i'm annoyed, because i see it so frequently, but its because they over hyped it, thats all, and when i saw it here too, just made me mad, so sry for that, but with your points, it's actually true and it's sad, but it will maybe reach them maybe not, but i also don't want to say, they dont want to communicate with us, because i dont know what's going on by them, or they're minds, maybe they dont know what they could tell us, what they cant hold, but that are standart answer from many so dont mind that, i just hope anet makes some comeback one day ^^

> > > >

> > > > If not, it will be very sad to see this game die out...pretty sure im not the only one who see GW2 like a second world where you can live and have a "family" guild or people in general, like i said, was unnecessary from me, just got mad to see it here now, sounds stupid i know xD

> > >

> > > They communication isnt that overhyped tbh, the game itself is tbh.

> >

> > Depends on what kind of game you're into. It *is* a looter shooter and it can get grindy at certain points but their business moel and monetization practices are kind of unparalleled. You don't need to spend a single dime on the game, hell you can earn the paid for currency just by playing the game and trading rare mods, frame and weapon parts with other players for it. At one point they even *removed* something from the marketplace because they didn't anticipate the reality of adding it; aka it would have been a bit predatory to their players. Other than that though it does a lot of things well, and considering what they are looking to *hopefully* release this year things only look to get better.

> >

> > >!

> >

> > Aside from that though yeah, I haven't seen such good communication and such a positive relationship between a developer and a community...kind of ever. They really raised the bar, and you know ANet could similarly be capable of it...they just don't do it. Whether it be because of upper management or a general inability to actually listen to community feedback, regardless of the reason, their lack of communication is a problem that needs to be addressed and addressed *properly*.

>

> In terms of communication they are hreat as well as monetisation if you have the time to do the whole trading game. In terms of content they are rather meh.

>

> Another game id compaired to warframe communication was would be poe, but they dont really show you smthing thats in development years before it comes out. They mainly communicare updates foxes and how they justify changes (sorta manifestos) wity weekly communication and such. Really great studio.

 

Yeah I've heard similarly good things about PoE devs communication.

 

Its a shame ANet hasn't taken notes because it seems like they just aren't paying attention to everything else going on around them.

[Linken.6345]

> @"MisterDapper.5984" said:

> > @"Magnus Godrik.5841" said:

> > > @"Poormany.4507" said:

> > > > @"Magnus Godrik.5841" said:

> > > > Lets stop kidding ourselves. The expectations of getting mountain size content in a f2p game needs to stop. I get it we are jealous that games like ff14 and WoW seem to have so much going on but the reason for that is the subscription. We get very little in the content department so what can they possibly say to get us excited. Nothing IMO.

> > >

> > > Except it's not a f2p game since we bought expacs/LW/gems, so I think we should be able to expect reasonably frequent new content and updates for that money paid.

> >

> > Your expectations are set too high. A 1 time purchase is not gonna put this game in the category you want it to be. The guaranteed money from a sub is what is needed to get that constant and consistant stream of meaty updates. Sure the gem store is nice but you dont need real money to acquire anything off it, thanks to the ability to convert. This game is in category of its own and people need to stop placing it as the same tier of MMO as the big 3, which all have a sub, cash shop and most importantly way more players. I love this game too and wish anet had that big kitten budget, but the truth of the matter is, it doesn’t.

>

> What are you talking about?

> This game isn’t truly f2p. Gem stores have been proven that they generate more revenue than subs. The monthly revenue for gw2 is 2mil+. Also all the players who have to pay for living world episodes? Yeah they can grind for it, but without the LW maps it takes a very long time. Most people just want it right away. Also do you know how much WvW guilds pay to server hop every month or so? It’s 600-700g per player depending on the current gem value. Most players aren’t making enough gold to pay for all of this. You can’t tell us this game doesn’t have the income needed to generate consistent content.

>

>

You do know that the gemstore spending dont go to anet right it goes to ncsoft that then decide how much of the cake go to anet itself and shareholders right?

 

[KryTiKaL.3125]

> @"Linken.6345" said:

> > @"MisterDapper.5984" said:

> > > @"Magnus Godrik.5841" said:

> > > > @"Poormany.4507" said:

> > > > > @"Magnus Godrik.5841" said:

> > > > > Lets stop kidding ourselves. The expectations of getting mountain size content in a f2p game needs to stop. I get it we are jealous that games like ff14 and WoW seem to have so much going on but the reason for that is the subscription. We get very little in the content department so what can they possibly say to get us excited. Nothing IMO.

> > > >

> > > > Except it's not a f2p game since we bought expacs/LW/gems, so I think we should be able to expect reasonably frequent new content and updates for that money paid.

> > >

> > > Your expectations are set too high. A 1 time purchase is not gonna put this game in the category you want it to be. The guaranteed money from a sub is what is needed to get that constant and consistant stream of meaty updates. Sure the gem store is nice but you dont need real money to acquire anything off it, thanks to the ability to convert. This game is in category of its own and people need to stop placing it as the same tier of MMO as the big 3, which all have a sub, cash shop and most importantly way more players. I love this game too and wish anet had that big kitten budget, but the truth of the matter is, it doesn’t.

> >

> > What are you talking about?

> > This game isn’t truly f2p. Gem stores have been proven that they generate more revenue than subs. The monthly revenue for gw2 is 2mil+. Also all the players who have to pay for living world episodes? Yeah they can grind for it, but without the LW maps it takes a very long time. Most people just want it right away. Also do you know how much WvW guilds pay to server hop every month or so? It’s 600-700g per player depending on the current gem value. Most players aren’t making enough gold to pay for all of this. You can’t tell us this game doesn’t have the income needed to generate consistent content.

> >

> >

> You do know that the gemstore spending dont go to anet right it goes to ncsoft that then decide how much of the cake go to anet itself and shareholders right?

>

 

That...is not how subsidiaries work. ANet is a subsidiary of NCSoft, NCSoft operates as the parent company to ANet and other companies it may have as subsidiaries. As I understand it, or tried to, Subsidiary companies keep their own bank accounts, financial records, assets and liabilities. ANet is not a branch or a division of NCsoft, those are actually a part of the same company; a subsidiary is essentially its own entity still under a parent company. Taxes and accounting for subsidiaries *can* be very complicated depending on the circumstances, at least to my limited understanding of it, so I don't think you can really simplify it to "NCSoft gets the money from GW2". Not in the way you state it at least.

 

*Anyway*...

 

I've read back through some of this thread and its kind of, I dunno, a little disheartening to see some people just lay back and be completely complacent with the current state of things. If not that there were also some "You don't get to tell ANet how to operate" as well as others who I think were honestly just kind of missing the point; i.e thinking we are asking ANet to rush things or just drop spoilers all over the place.

 

Its not a bad thing to criticize, its not a bad thing to want the company developing the game that you love to do better. As much as I've appreciated ANets work in the past that doesn't make them exempt from me being critical of the company they are today, and as much as it stands that we wouldn't have this game if not for ANet they similarly would not have this game if not for us having supported them since GW1 released. I understand there is a business to run, I understand they have to make money, I even understand they have upper management that likely tells them "no" a lot of the time. Regardless of the circumstances, as we don't know specifics, but something needs to change here and at this point it can fall to the community to try and elicit that change.

 

Not that we need sign a petition, but at the very least keep repeating that things need to improve, that ANet needs to do things differently than they have in the past with their communication and their relationship with their community because things have really fallen to the wayside in these recent years due to the loss of content creators, stagnating content, focus being taken from GW2 (as we learned) and their communication that has only gotten worse as time has gone on, either due to prior failures that they never picked themselves up from or more unfortunate things like the recent layoffs.

[Obtena.7952]

> @"ProtoGunner.4953" said:

> At anet it seems they just don't want to see themselves as 'oh this is cool, let's do it' no they try to shape and change and make it gimmicky etc etc and in the end it's just more annoying and wasted manpower.

 

This doesn't make sense ... if Anet wasn't doing things that people didn't like, the game wouldn't exist in the first place.

 

Anyways, the thread is misguided; the idea that Anet doesn't communicate with players is absurd.

 

[KryTiKaL.3125]

> @"Obtena.7952" said:

> > @"ProtoGunner.4953" said:

> > At anet it seems they just don't want to see themselves as 'oh this is cool, let's do it' no they try to shape and change and make it gimmicky etc etc and in the end it's just more annoying and wasted manpower.

>

> This doesn't make sense ... if Anet wasn't doing things that people didn't like, the game wouldn't exist in the first place.

>

> Anyways, the thread is misguided; the idea that Anet doesn't communicate with players is absurd.

>

 

Why is that absurd? How frequently do we hear about actual updates to the state of the game? ANet isn't EA, its not Activision, they are not a AAA company with multiple products out there and pulling in communities. They have the *one* game, technically two if we're still counting GW1 though content support for it isn't a thing anymore. They don't exactly have the "luxury" of behaving as if they are one of those AAA companies with the lack of communication and limited relationship they have with their community.

 

I have consistently brought up an example of a company with a similarly sized team, that is slightly older than ANet and work within roughly the same parameters. Yet we can see their methods of communication and their relationship with their communities is *vastly* different from one another. Which *different* isn't the bad part, its *how* it is different that creates the problem.

 

ANet communicates on some level for sure, no one is saying that they *don't* communicate, however it is that their communication on the state of the game is significantly limited and we might as well be getting practically nothing from them. We *sometimes* hear about "future" updates or things being planned but aside from that initial statement we don't hear much of anything else.

 

* Last update on Alliances for WvW was back in November; 8 months ago

* We have heard *nothing* about the Swiss style tournaments since 2017

* Build templates got mentioned in passing and we have heard nothing since; this was back in April 2019

* Legendary Runes and sigils were also mentioned in passing back in April 2019 still nothing since then

* We *got* balance patches about a month apart but now they are back to a multi-month release schedule it looks like and there is not yet any discussion around them by ANet either prior to or after the balance patch is released

* The only thing we know about coming for PvE is Season 5 Living World but have no release date and know of nothing in-between.

 

Also your logic doesn't track...plenty of video game companies do plenty of things that players don't like; EA, Activision, Bungie, Blizzard, etc, etc and do you know what happens? Their communities criticize them for it yet many do still play, but that doesn't mean the criticism doesn't have any merit. Take Bungie as an example, since Destiny 2 released they have been trying to listen to the feedback from their community and improve the game as much as they can while under the thumb of Activision, however now that they are out from under said thumb they have been making much more significant changes to their game and their communication with their community in their efforts to improve things. People were *unhappy* with how Bungie had been handling things for a long time with Destiny 2, yet Bungie took steps to listen to that feedback and they seem to now be making more concerted efforts to improve on all of those fronts.

 

I do not see that happening with ANet. They had a good stint of it in the initial weeks after the lay offs, but it has since *died off* and it shouldn't have. They have just gone back to the same routine and its not cutting it, not when people are unsure of the future for the game and not when they have needed to make these changes for a long time now and just haven't.

 

Acting blind to the problem because you, it seems, don't understand what the problem is doesn't qualify as a good excuse to call the criticism misguided; especially with everything I listed above serving as more than adequate reasoning for the criticism.

[Obtena.7952]

> @"KryTiKaL.3125" said:

> > @"Obtena.7952" said:

> > > @"ProtoGunner.4953" said:

> > > At anet it seems they just don't want to see themselves as 'oh this is cool, let's do it' no they try to shape and change and make it gimmicky etc etc and in the end it's just more annoying and wasted manpower.

> >

> > This doesn't make sense ... if Anet wasn't doing things that people didn't like, the game wouldn't exist in the first place.

> >

> > Anyways, the thread is misguided; the idea that Anet doesn't communicate with players is absurd.

> >

>

> How frequently do we hear about actual updates to the state of the game?

 

Often ... I mean, what do you think is reasonable and what is Anet doing?

 

[Poormany.4507]

> @"Obtena.7952" said:

> > @"KryTiKaL.3125" said:

> > > @"Obtena.7952" said:

> > > > @"ProtoGunner.4953" said:

> > > > At anet it seems they just don't want to see themselves as 'oh this is cool, let's do it' no they try to shape and change and make it gimmicky etc etc and in the end it's just more annoying and wasted manpower.

> > >

> > > This doesn't make sense ... if Anet wasn't doing things that people didn't like, the game wouldn't exist in the first place.

> > >

> > > Anyways, the thread is misguided; the idea that Anet doesn't communicate with players is absurd.

> > >

> >

> > How frequently do we hear about actual updates to the state of the game?

>

> Often ... I mean, what do you think is reasonable and what is Anet doing?

>

 

I would think at least a "We are/aren't [planning to] working on NEW (not random filler content like Cooking 500 and festivals) content past LWS5" for PVE and a "We are working to improve x,y, and z in WvW/PVP" for WvW and PVP would satisfy a lot, if not most, players without spoiling much, if anything, even generate hype that the game needs right now. Currently all we get for future content is a short trailer a week or two before releases, which just isn't enough for players right now, especially after the layoffs and decision to do LWS5 instead of an expac.

[KryTiKaL.3125]

> @"Obtena.7952" said:

> > @"KryTiKaL.3125" said:

> > > @"Obtena.7952" said:

> > > > @"ProtoGunner.4953" said:

> > > > At anet it seems they just don't want to see themselves as 'oh this is cool, let's do it' no they try to shape and change and make it gimmicky etc etc and in the end it's just more annoying and wasted manpower.

> > >

> > > This doesn't make sense ... if Anet wasn't doing things that people didn't like, the game wouldn't exist in the first place.

> > >

> > > Anyways, the thread is misguided; the idea that Anet doesn't communicate with players is absurd.

> > >

> >

> > Why is that absurd? How frequently do we hear about actual updates to the state of the game?

>

> Often ... I mean, what do you think is reasonable and what is Anet doing?

>

 

Often? Since when? Just the last couple of months since the lay-offs? That has dropped off significantly and they did that because of the obvious PR scare implications about the future of the game, which haven't necessarily dwindled and now are likely rising back up due to the lessened communication.

 

You also didn't address anything else I said...if you even intended to address it.

 

GW2 is a live service game, as are practically most games these days, and we don't get weekly state of the game updates or at the very least them talking about the game in a more informative way, nor do we get updates on things they are working on (no I am not asking them to rush things or give spoilers), nor do we get information on topics relating to game balance despite how ANet consistently messes things up with balance. Just the recent balance patch was a big "wut" due to multiple changes and how they have affected PvP yet they released that post of "Upcoming Balance Changes", however their Friday stream was about *Cinematics*. So on Tuesday, the week after, the game got hit with that balance patch with nothing more than the basic, and hardly informative, summary posted in the patch notes themselves and people getting their hands on the changes and going "...Why?" So now we'll have to wait *months* until anything is done about it, or hear anything about it, more than likely *just* like in the past.

 

And you think they communicate "often"? Read the rest of my post...they don't communicate often; we know next to nothing because they tell us next to nothing. Compare that to Warframes developers, like I keep saying. The contrast is astounding. Both live service games, similar sized companies, both games similar in age yet Digital Extremes does about 20 times better in communicating with their community about their game.

[Obtena.7952]

> @"Poormany.4507" said:

> > @"Obtena.7952" said:

> > > @"KryTiKaL.3125" said:

> > > > @"Obtena.7952" said:

> > > > > @"ProtoGunner.4953" said:

> > > > > At anet it seems they just don't want to see themselves as 'oh this is cool, let's do it' no they try to shape and change and make it gimmicky etc etc and in the end it's just more annoying and wasted manpower.

> > > >

> > > > This doesn't make sense ... if Anet wasn't doing things that people didn't like, the game wouldn't exist in the first place.

> > > >

> > > > Anyways, the thread is misguided; the idea that Anet doesn't communicate with players is absurd.

> > > >

> > >

> > > How frequently do we hear about actual updates to the state of the game?

> >

> > Often ... I mean, what do you think is reasonable and what is Anet doing?

> >

>

> I would think at least a "We are/aren't [planning to] working on NEW (not random filler content like Cooking 500 and festivals) content past LWS5" for PVE and a "We are working to improve x,y, and z in WvW/PVP" for WvW and PVP would satisfy a lot, if not most, players without spoiling much, if anything, even generate hype that the game needs right now. Currently all we get for future content is a short trailer a week or two before releases, which just isn't enough for players right now, especially after the layoffs and decision to do LWS5 instead of an expac.

 

I don't see the problem here ... why do I need to know what Anet is working on that I won't see for a year or more?

 

> @"KryTiKaL.3125" said:

> > @"Obtena.7952" said:

> > > @"KryTiKaL.3125" said:

> > > > @"Obtena.7952" said:

> > > > > @"ProtoGunner.4953" said:

> > > > > At anet it seems they just don't want to see themselves as 'oh this is cool, let's do it' no they try to shape and change and make it gimmicky etc etc and in the end it's just more annoying and wasted manpower.

> > > >

> > > > This doesn't make sense ... if Anet wasn't doing things that people didn't like, the game wouldn't exist in the first place.

> > > >

> > > > Anyways, the thread is misguided; the idea that Anet doesn't communicate with players is absurd.

> > > >

> > >

> > > Why is that absurd? How frequently do we hear about actual updates to the state of the game?

> >

> > Often ... I mean, what do you think is reasonable and what is Anet doing?

> >

>

> Often? Since when? Just the last couple of months since the lay-offs?

 

Again ... how often do you want Anet to update you on releases that take months to do? I mean, think about that ... I see almost zero value in Anet communicating more often than they can release content. That kind of communication would have zero substance.

[KryTiKaL.3125]

> @"Obtena.7952" said:

> > @"Poormany.4507" said:

> > > @"Obtena.7952" said:

> > > > @"KryTiKaL.3125" said:

> > > > > @"Obtena.7952" said:

> > > > > > @"ProtoGunner.4953" said:

> > > > > > At anet it seems they just don't want to see themselves as 'oh this is cool, let's do it' no they try to shape and change and make it gimmicky etc etc and in the end it's just more annoying and wasted manpower.

> > > > >

> > > > > This doesn't make sense ... if Anet wasn't doing things that people didn't like, the game wouldn't exist in the first place.

> > > > >

> > > > > Anyways, the thread is misguided; the idea that Anet doesn't communicate with players is absurd.

> > > > >

> > > >

> > > > How frequently do we hear about actual updates to the state of the game?

> > >

> > > Often ... I mean, what do you think is reasonable and what is Anet doing?

> > >

> >

> > I would think at least a "We are/aren't [planning to] working on NEW (not random filler content like Cooking 500 and festivals) content past LWS5" for PVE and a "We are working to improve x,y, and z in WvW/PVP" for WvW and PVP would satisfy a lot, if not most, players without spoiling much, if anything, even generate hype that the game needs right now. Currently all we get for future content is a short trailer a week or two before releases, which just isn't enough for players right now, especially after the layoffs and decision to do LWS5 instead of an expac.

>

> I don't see the problem here ... why do I need to know what Anet is working on that I won't see for a year or more?

>

> > @"KryTiKaL.3125" said:

> > > @"Obtena.7952" said:

> > > > @"KryTiKaL.3125" said:

> > > > > @"Obtena.7952" said:

> > > > > > @"ProtoGunner.4953" said:

> > > > > > At anet it seems they just don't want to see themselves as 'oh this is cool, let's do it' no they try to shape and change and make it gimmicky etc etc and in the end it's just more annoying and wasted manpower.

> > > > >

> > > > > This doesn't make sense ... if Anet wasn't doing things that people didn't like, the game wouldn't exist in the first place.

> > > > >

> > > > > Anyways, the thread is misguided; the idea that Anet doesn't communicate with players is absurd.

> > > > >

> > > >

> > > > Why is that absurd? How frequently do we hear about actual updates to the state of the game?

> > >

> > > Often ... I mean, what do you think is reasonable and what is Anet doing?

> > >

> >

> > Often? Since when? Just the last couple of months since the lay-offs?

>

> Again ... how often do you want Anet to update you on releases that take months to do? I mean, think about that ... I see almost zero value in Anet communicating more often than they can release content. That kind of communication would have zero substance.

 

It definitely depends on how they communicate it, but with things like the Alliance System and swiss style tournaments it can help to know more about their intentions with it and how the development is going with it and it would likely do well for them to get *community feedback* on it as they develop it so that we don't get a scenario where they release it, its a massive disappointment, and we have to wait years for them to bother doing anything about it again.

 

Digital Extremes for Warframe has discussed content they intend to implement but might not be released until a year or more later. Thats been the case for the content we will be seeing for that game by the end of this year, most of which had been teased the previous year. They share concept art and update their community on the state of it as well as take some questions and answer them as best as they can without giving spoilers or making promises. They also showcase things that release between these larger updates, in Warframes case thats new Warframes, new weapons, changes in regards to the balance of weapons/warframes/mods for weapons and warframes, UI updates, events, new Quests (their method of progressing the story of the game), as well as discussing QoL changes and updates, along with reworks for Warframes that are less useful in the current state of the game, etc.

 

ANet can do all of these things as well and it might actually contribute to a better development cycle for changes and updates to the game as people won't feel like we get blindsided by these "surprise" changes that, again, just make most people go "why?"

 

ANet could have a weekly stream where they;

 

* Discuss upcoming long term updates (Alliances, Swiss style tournaments, etc) when pertinent

* Share some teasers to generate more hype for upcoming story elements in Living World such as early concept art or really anything that wouldn't spoil the story but would rather just heighten the discussion about whats next and the "mystery" of it

* Share concept art for new skins they are looking to release and get some early feedback and also generate hype for them

* Share ideas and thoughts on balance changes, why they do what they do and where they hope for the change to lead as well as get their actual take on the state of balance in the game right now in *real* discussion

* Discuss possible reworks for classes/elite specs that are not as favored as others in PvP, WvW and PvE and what could be done to make them more relevant or just to crate more diversity in their respective metas

* Talk about QoL and feature updates and their progress, such as Build Templates or possible UI updates they are looking into and get feedback from the community about it either from the stream chat or afterwards from the forums or elsewhere. As well as discuss accessibility options like colorblind settings because this game woefully lacks them.

* Discuss upcoming events or look for feedback on event ideas they have as well as possibly look for suggestions from the community, ones that are actually feasible and not silly of course.

 

And you think this kind of communication would have zero substance? Do you play or pay attention to any game beyond GW2? Not being snarky, I'm actually genuinely curious.

[Poormany.4507]

> @"Obtena.7952" said:

> > @"Poormany.4507" said:

> > > @"Obtena.7952" said:

> > > > @"KryTiKaL.3125" said:

> > > > > @"Obtena.7952" said:

> > > > > > @"ProtoGunner.4953" said:

> > > > > > At anet it seems they just don't want to see themselves as 'oh this is cool, let's do it' no they try to shape and change and make it gimmicky etc etc and in the end it's just more annoying and wasted manpower.

> > > > >

> > > > > This doesn't make sense ... if Anet wasn't doing things that people didn't like, the game wouldn't exist in the first place.

> > > > >

> > > > > Anyways, the thread is misguided; the idea that Anet doesn't communicate with players is absurd.

> > > > >

> > > >

> > > > How frequently do we hear about actual updates to the state of the game?

> > >

> > > Often ... I mean, what do you think is reasonable and what is Anet doing?

> > >

> >

> > I would think at least a "We are/aren't [planning to] working on NEW (not random filler content like Cooking 500 and festivals) content past LWS5" for PVE and a "We are working to improve x,y, and z in WvW/PVP" for WvW and PVP would satisfy a lot, if not most, players without spoiling much, if anything, even generate hype that the game needs right now. Currently all we get for future content is a short trailer a week or two before releases, which just isn't enough for players right now, especially after the layoffs and decision to do LWS5 instead of an expac.

>

> I don't see the problem here ... why do I need to know what Anet is working on that I won't see for a year or more?

 

Because there's no point investing in a game that might go into maintenance mode after a year or two, which many players currently are worried about (as can be seen from the numerous "GW2 is doomed" posts recently). If I was a new potential player and saw that many frequent "this game is dying posts" with no dev responses, I wouldn't even bother installing and move on to the next mmo. While I don't necessarily agree with these posts' urgency, I do think more substantial and more frequent communication is necessary to address this issue and keep/gain players in the game and buying/spending gems.