Monthly Development Update: February 2012

[Frubaliscious]

he is right tho, only a small % of the pop reads the forums. I remember it took me a year or more in 05' -06' just to find out about them, lol.

[Ilaliya]

No idea how Marketing can in any way impede a video being produced.

Just to be clear. After a video (or really, any material that goes to customers and/or potential customers) is produced, it's typically the job of the marketing department to work with various venues, such as online gaming sites, to maximize its visibility. For example, this often includes coordinating with other releases to the media from the same company, and being aware of releases from other companies, so that a given project has the best chance of not being overshadowed by other news, events, and so forth. Also, an analysis of metrics will yield that different days of the week are optimal for different kinds of press releases. Unless you are in the top 5 games or anticipated games of the season, you don't get to control the gaming news cycle. I am not a marketing guy, so I won't be able to really answer any more detailed questions, but these are fairly common principles. So, we are seeking to get the highest-profile placement possible for the engine video because we are confident in its quality and ability to increase excitement about the project. However, this involves a considerable amount of leg-work, and let me stress there are never any promises (again, unless you are in the top games of the season). But we feel it's certainly worth a little bit of time to see what our options are.

[Odov]

So, we are seeking to get the highest-profile placement possible for the engine video because we are confident in its quality and ability to increase excitement about the project. However, this involves a considerable amount of leg-work, and let me stress there are never any promises (again, unless you are in the top games of the season). But we feel it's certainly worth a little bit of time to see what our options are.

While I still feel it shouldn't have been suggested to be due in Feb if it wasn't going to be released in Feb (players are sick of delays obviously)... This is a completely valid reason to delay the video. It's not important that all of us forum warriors see the video, it's important that the video is shown to as many people as possible. Ignore us.

[BottingWorks]

Very exciting news! I think AO players have become quite jaded due to failed promises for many years. Perhaps we should give Lindelu a chance to prove she can keep to deadlines before we count her out.
Though saying that, if there's talk of a new engine and a new video, that's giving hope that it'll be released in the next 6 months, so you've got a balancing act on your hands!
Marketing MMORPG's has never been complicated, get yourself a Google Adscense account, add a cool picture and some catchy line and you'll increase player base. - That's just simple advertising/ marketing.
Any idea of when the video will be released? At least give us a ballpark, next month, this month or within 3 months? The first paragraph was a little vague.

[Dagget]

...But we feel it's certainly worth a little bit of time to see what our options are.

That doesn't give me a warm fuzzy feeling. If we are really concerned about the video being released in the shadow of some other game(s), perhaps it would be good to wait until TSW is launched. Since Marketing apparently now has control of the content, perhaps they could inject a time frame here?

[Hotdog]

no news on parry.

*sadpanda*

[Neosh1]

Seems like full relaunch of AO, but its missing one thing, VOIP!!

[Dukelewis87]

Seems like full relaunch of AO, but its missing one thing, VOIP!!

Exactly what it seems like and sounds like.

You know how you will see a preview at the end of a tv show for the next showing coming up and it gets you interested... Well same thing is happening here.

Theres a few details that she spoke about this month that really brought my attention.

Just hope they deliever.


PS: Marketing in one solid package will bring a larger ammount of players which in return will excite the people playing the game. In return it will have people reactivating no time + friends of the old players joining the game. Do the math break down. Its enormous.

[BottingWorks]

Mathbreakdown;

Level of AO Awesomness x Amount of Marketing + Return of old players = New player base?

[Belligerence]

Without having read anything other than Lindelu's post, I'm going to insert my comments.

1. It's nice and all to have such a thorough breakdown about what you've been doing, what you have planned, and how things are progressing, but at this point "just saying" isn't enough anymore. You have a volatile playerbase who are (largely) unsatisfied with repeatedly hearing "we're working on it". This is not a slight on your part, I'm not out to insult anyone, least of all Lindelu or FC, I simply care about this game enough to want to see something become of it.

2. The graphics engine is nice and all, but I think its far less important than, say, new player experience, or rebalance. Why? Simple; while nice graphics are a plus, what game have you ever responded to the question "why do you play it?" with "because the graphics are awesome!"? Graphics are a major factor only for those who won't stay long anyway. I personally feel the reason why people always point at the graphics engine is because it's been "in the works" and "coming soon" for a long time. The playerbase is tired of being lied to, for lack of a better term. In the end, rebalance will be a major deciding factor on people who leave, people who come, and people who stay. Graphics will not.

3. Server merge/new server/however you decide to handle this, if/when it comes around. I know a large amount of people would love to have a chance to "start over", and I know more than a few people who have said they would return to AO if a new server was started. I think its a good idea, which could provide a much needed boost to the playerbase, even if it is just an illusion (having 2 servers in 1 -> "twice" as many players).

I apologize if I seem harsh in my appraisal of this, but I really want to see something become of AO. There is no other game which can match AO in terms of complexity, uniqueness, challenge, and overall gameplay. AO is the game I turn to when all the other MMOs/whatever other games get me bored, and tired of the same thing. I feel that AO is truly my home, as far as a video game goes. I intend no slight, but please Lindelu, FC, do something about the game. Enough of the "soon" and get something out. Bring AO back to life, please.

[Taymo]

I am being sceptical concerning another server merge but I am more than open to it if it is going to help overall.
Unfortunately I am currently not actively playing ao due to missing time.

What I wanted to say:
The character name issue can be solved quite easily: The older characters can keep their name, those with the same name but newer creation date have to choose a new one.

[Cerberry]

Promises, promises.

And an actual thing to peruse is what - love themed items and a wedding bouquet. Why, that's nice, should keep us content and entertained till significant news and changes.

[Troxkeep]

You guys should just get two or three talented 3d animators, show them AO, tell them to run trough OA/Bore/Rome, describe them how the video should look like, and let them do it.
Then you can show us the video and tell us "Look what we were doing over those 3-4 years!".
Some of us could possibly fall into this, and pay for another 3 or 6 months, and you could get back to eating donuts, doing nothing with the engine till the servers shutdown.

[Pepsiholist]

A question: When do u expect to get this video on the markets? Answers please I can´t waaiit to get those things

[Mastablasta]

You guys should just get two or three talented 3d animators, show them AO, tell them to run trough OA/Bore/Rome, describe them how the video should look like, and let them do it.
Then you can show us the video and tell us "Look what we were doing over those 3-4 years!".
Some of us could possibly fall into this, and pay for another 3 or 6 months, and you could get back to eating donuts, doing nothing with the engine till the servers shutdown.

3D animators to produce a video? O.o why ever would you want that... It's always funny how people what people do what kind of things...

[Warhead]

I am one for the server migration! A fresh start to a server would be excellent. Part of me thinks a new server should = new toons. I know a lot of people who put a lot of time into characters would be annoyed but there's nothing wrong with a completely fresh start, it would make the exploration of rubi-ka and shadowlands so much more fun and would maybe stop AO from falling back into a powerlevel grind (hecks at shadowlands I mean) if old players returned.

You can completely forget about a char wipe. They dont want to destroy AO before they got around to safe it.

[Troxkeep]

3D animators to produce a video? O.o why ever would you want that... It's always funny how people what people do what kind of things...

You completely missed the point. Why I'm not surprised.

[Swordbreaker]

I am one for the server migration! A fresh start to a server would be excellent. Part of me thinks a new server should = new toons. I know a lot of people who put a lot of time into characters would be annoyed

You mean you know a lot of people who would finally be free of their addiction and quit AO forever. Myself included. Because that's what deleting all those toons would mean. The moment all my toons are gone is the moment I'll go away for good and never look back.

[Mastablasta]

You completely missed the point. Why I'm not surprised.

No, I understood perfectly well, but why say it with random words?

[Ciassene]

You mean you know a lot of people who would finally be free of their addiction and quit AO forever. Myself included. Because that's what deleting all those toons would mean. The moment all my toons are gone is the moment I'll go away for good and never look back.

You are just too emo sward j/k mut oisha se perseestä