Monthly (ahem) Development Update - April 30th, 2013

[Nusquam]

Hi guys, it's been a couple of months since we spoke (apologies for missing last month's update) and plenty has been going on in Anarchy Online during this time.

Firstly, we have merged to a single server, which has boosted activity and population significantly. This is a good for the health of the game going forward by ensuring that people are always around to group with (or fight against).

A reminder to people who want maximum character slots - if you are a subscriber during the next patch you will receive 12 character slots, else the number will be 10 for future subscribers and 8 for froob accounts.

Genele has been working incredibly hard on both the new player experience and revamps to the item shop - including removing the multiple tiers of old reward systems (such as phasefront points) and moving them into the store where they will be more easily accessible.

In addition, the current update on Testlive contains changes to various mobs in Rubi-Ka which should improve the leveling experience overall. Hecklers are no longer the only the game in town.

Work on the engine continues, and while the momentum was affected by the restructuring, everything is back in place so that work can continue. As Macrosun posted here http://forums.anarchyonline.com/showthread.php?t=605216 the new engine has been tested against the live environment with some success.

There is still plenty of work to be done. Once we have fully deployable internal versions of the engine, it will be in the hands of QA who will break it, break it and then break it some more. We will need to do art and animation cleanup work as well as fixing areas of the world that need touching up.

The current roadmap has us working towards a cautious goal of having the engine in an open beta state, later in the year. How long it will remain in that state, will depend on the feedback we receive from all of the different hardware configurations out there, and how well it runs for them.

I'll leave you today with a few more screenshots from the new engine.
Cheers,
Joel
Creative Director

[Lazy]

first

[Raggy]

second

I have to say, even though the Elysium Screeny is a blatant bullshot. It's damn pretty.

The current roadmap has us working towards a cautious goal of having the engine in an open beta state, later in the year. How long it will remain in that state, will depend on the feedback we receive from all of the different hardware configurations out there, and how well it runs for them.

THIS SEEMS HORRIBLY FAMILIAR.


Also Joel, I don't know what FunComs stance is on requirements in how you interface with the community, but we have become beyond adept at reading through the corporate schpeil. Just talk to us directly. We're not stupid.

[Notcrattey]

Thirded


Love ely. SL in general seems to benefit from the engine.

[Neosh1]

not much updates....

[Ekarona]

Last

Update would be rather simple to write:
1. So new slots will be around soon!
2. Here is a few more screenshots, guys are working hard on engine.
3. The new player experience is in the pipeline and comming out well.

Hmm so how well did I do?

[Neosh1]

hmm so how well did i do?

10/10

Edit: updates for AoC, TSW if anyone cares

http://www.ageofconan.com/news/game_...ter_april_2013
http://www.thesecretworld.com/news/g...ter_april_2013

[Notcrattey]

Hmm so how well did I do?

Were we expecting something different? I mean the most news we seem to get comes out of testlive.

[Aiken]

Ooo, shinies!

[Jihnna]

I'm really looking forward to the "new player experience". Will be fun to roll a new toon, just to check it out.

On a sidenote; how come you never use any AA/AF on these screenshots ? They're pretty, but will be alot prettier with AA/AF.

[Neosh1]

btw what is this?
http://i.imgur.com/0wfgs2s.jpg
I don't remember seeing that in other games. Will that be fixed with new engine?

[Wrangeline]

I have to say, this update was very depressing. It was even more "yada yada" than the updates we are used to getting for years now, which is saying a lot.

At least there were some "string along"-screenshots to gawk at

Oh well, at least I'm kinda enjoying the game as it is atm so I don't actually care so much any more. All thanks to the merge. Just hope the population stays as it is for a while on this last server.

[Lazy]

btw what is this?
http://i.imgur.com/0wfgs2s.jpg
I don't remember seeing that in other games. Will that be fixed with new engine?

Thats aliasing. You fix it by turning on aa.

[Gorathon]

This is where I post my reply to the update. As soon as there is an update I'll post my reply.

[hokutonoken]

Still on first page ^_=

i knew i should have gotten "flowers"..nice esly pix screenie

[Byste]

Thanks for going through the motions with us skeptics and critics. On the offchance you read these comments or if someone in the office is feeling kind enough to relay the message, please take less time touring around and invest it in the team! Even if that's just supplying the devs with endless coffee

[Phantom]

Thanks for the update, Joel. Even if it does feel like the same old song and dance, its better than complete silence. That said, I am curious about two things:

1) You mentioned you were going to start playing AO to get a more hands-on feel for the game. Has that started yet? Do you have any impressions to share?

2) It's been a long time since we've heard anything about the rebalance, and I noticed talk of it was absent from your MMORPG interview. Whats the status on this, is it something that has been put on hold, abandoned completely, or is it still being actively worked on? This is the most pressing thing for me as an active player, and I also question how wise it would be to draw in new players with a new experience and engine, only to completely change the gameplay of their professions (even if for the better) after x months or, maybe more realistically, years.

Edit: 3) What ever happened to new heads or models? All the new engine screenshots we've seen have been using the current ones, but I know Means posted a screenshot years ago of a new nanomage head in the client. He also posted a screenshot of a new sky in the Dreamworld engine, where'd that disappear to? D:

[Nusquam]

second

I have to say, even though the Elysium Screeny is a blatant bullshot. It's damn pretty.



THIS SEEMS HORRIBLY FAMILIAR.


Also Joel, I don't know what FunComs stance is on requirements in how you interface with the community, but we have become beyond adept at reading through the corporate schpeil. Just talk to us directly. We're not stupid.

Inherent delays in game development make me cautious with dates...

And yeah, the update isn't exactly roaring with ZOMG NEW FEATURE X for exactly that reason! I'm trying to say what exactly is being worked on and how.

Trying to give updates on every little change would be pretty ridiculous coming from my mouth considering I am still learning the AO lingo and I see that Genele and Macrosun and Michizure post a *lot* more than the devs on AoC and TSW forums.

[Nusquam]

Thanks for the update, Joel. Even if it does feel like the same old song and dance, its better than complete silence. That said, I am curious about two things:

1) You mentioned you were going to start playing AO to get a more hands-on feel for the game. Has that started yet? Do you have any impressions to share?

2) It's been a long time since we've heard anything about the rebalance, and I noticed talk of it was absent from your MMORPG interview. Whats the status on this, is it something that has been put on hold, abandoned completely, or is it still being actively worked on? This is the most pressing thing for me as an active player, and I also question how wise it would be to draw in new players with a new experience and engine, only to completely change the gameplay of their professions (even if for the better) after x months or, maybe more realistically, years.

1) I was waiting for a deployable internal version so I could accompany my blog with new engine screenies. I might change that policy and just get to it. (Damned engine delays... okay I may be poking the bear making jokes like this).
2) We will schedule this for after the NPE (and depending on the recommendations of the more experienced AO devs who will hopefully tell me exactly what needs to be done).

[Mastablasta]

Nice to see a new update, and screenies