I am hoping the new project will bring back life to the game. I almost think they should call the new project L3, maybe it would bring alot more people back, and add alot of new faces.
As for Aion, I really don't see that one lasting long. Its funny to see them offering Veteran rewards for staying in the game more then a few months, when in L2, 6+ years doesn't even warrant a reward for staying that long. Maybe they are doing well? Not sure, I am basing it off all the e-mails I get from Aion trying to get me to come back.
I am hoping the new project will bring back life to the game. I almost think they should call the new project L3, maybe it would bring alot more people back, and add alot of new faces.
As for Aion, I really don't see that one lasting long. Its funny to see them offering Veteran rewards for staying in the game more then a few months, when in L2, 6+ years doesn't even warrant a reward for staying that long. Maybe they are doing well? Not sure, I am basing it off all the e-mails I get from Aion trying to get me to come back.
oh my for AION, and i was thinking to log in next week :/
I foresee lots of grinding, hard relentless grinding, wet slippery grinding, dry rough grinding and a few quests. Oh, and some epic raids that we grind out as a clan.
I guess that means more of the same but with new fancy pixels.
this games going nowhere..still best mmo out there in my opinion..and yes tried just about every online game out there...
all this doom and gloom on official forums...no wonder most dont bother to post here or ask for help with quests/items char setup etc...
lighten up folks..its a Game..a good Game at that..with plenty to offer...
made alot of good friends through this game across the world, and still making more 6yrs on ;)
If i played a game i hated so much, i would quite plain and simple..not keep an active account so i can just trash this game at every opportunit on forums!
p.s sry guys just needed to get that off my chest :)
this games going nowhere..still best mmo out there in my opinion..and yes tried just about every online game out there...
all this doom and gloom on official forums...no wonder most dont bother to post here or ask for help with quests/items char setup etc...
lighten up folks..its a Game..a good Game at that..with plenty to offer...
made alot of good friends through this game across the world, and still making more 6yrs on ;)
If i played a game i hated so much, i would quite plain and simple..not keep an active account so i can just trash this game at every opportunit on forums!
p.s sry guys just needed to get that off my chest :)
I could not agree with you more!!!
I too have made a lot of great friends on this game, some that dont play anymore but that I still keep in touch with. Unfortunately, I have lost a few friends too. Still this game has SO much to offer and there is so much I still want to do.
Well, I think NCsoft have to change to F2P payment model too. Lineage 2 still one of best and most unique MMORPG on the market, in the last months I think the service of NCwest is much, much more better as it was some years ago. But the problem, that they don't make bigger marketing to this game maybe the Goddess of Destruction will get a normal promotion when it will release at here.
Next problem is the too much Lineage 2 private server around world wide. I read some months ago, that only in Brazil plays about 2 millions players on different private servers. So if we watch America, Europe continents and the Middle-East too I think about 4-5 millions ppls can play this game on private servers while, we had only about 30k active accounts I think.
Some years ago the NCsoft could close a bigger private server and I read, that thousands of players came to official servers after this.
this games going nowhere..still best mmo out there in my opinion..and yes tried just about every online game out there...
all this doom and gloom on official forums...no wonder most dont bother to post here or ask for help with quests/items char setup etc...
lighten up folks..its a Game..a good Game at that..with plenty to offer...
made alot of good friends through this game across the world, and still making more 6yrs on ;)
If i played a game i hated so much, i would quite plain and simple..not keep an active account so i can just trash this game at every opportunit on forums!
p.s sry guys just needed to get that off my chest :)
I agree with ya! L2 forever! (ok, not forever but you know what i mean)
same ol group of dudes whining about something or other on off boards ... that's where L2 will be in a year.
Bunch of people will get bored and quit, core people will stay cause they 're high on L2 and they can't kick the habit tbh.
In one year, L2 will have max lvl 199 and uberepic quest saga which boosts you from 85 to 193 :D... you get 100x exp weekends and there will be less than 1000 players (including boxes and shops) on any of servers :D...and there will be finaly higher count of GMs..GM team vs players at ratio 5:1 so everybody will share his own GM with 4 another ppl.. (not sure what will be with those who have 5+ accounts :D) next Chronicle will be named 2012 and game will be shutdown at 20.12.2012 so there is no crash on the end of world day (21.12.2012) :D
One year for now, the push for the final merger, for more PvP, better markets, more online, best heroes, etc, will reach its final stages, NC will consider it seriously.
There will be max 2500-2800 online in Chronos, 1800-2000 on Naia with average at about 2/3 of that. We will have level 99 ppl running around, guarding their trains farming epics, enforcing Oly, getting castles and executing ppl in the exp places. The dropout rates, after a relative drop, will accelerate which will prompt NCNA to make some promisses about the future merger to retain the most accounts possible.
If nothing will change, come after a year to read this. If anything, will look too optimistic :D
M
It depends if ncwest decides to advertise like everyone else is. There are two main problems that make this game dead in one year. The first is 90% of the US gamers have never heard of L2. The 2nd is nobody wants to come to a game with maxed out toons griefing them while they try to spend 2+ years to get to the top level. There are 3 solutions to these problems:
#1 advertise (we all know this needs to be done even though it is not being done).
#2 make it more quest friendly and less of a grind to get to max level. I personally like the grind as I always have from playing jrpg's back on nes-ps1, but most people don't and they have to do what the majority of the public wants.
#3 make a higher penalty for pkers. Make weapons/armor/jewelry drop again, and not affected as less drop rate through clan luck. Make stats of a character lessen according to the number of pk counts or karma he/she has. Another thing you can do is make it so pk toons cannot bsoe or soe. This is so you don't have some overpowered bought toon griefing lower levels and bsoeing anytime the same or higher level shows up.
I convinced a friend from work once to try this game out. He said he was level 10 or so and this guy kept pking him. He said hey man I'm just trying to get some exp, can you leave me alone? The kid replied haha noob. This is a turnoff for newcomers because they would rather play a different game with the same attributes, but have more of a chance in pvp. Perferably a game that is newer so they do not have to wait so long to catch up to the top players.
If these two demands are not met, then this game will die out as much as the other servers did before the merge within the next year reguardless of the promissing new engine update. Good luck NCsoft.
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One last thing I forgot to mention. Another turnoff for newcomers is dead startup towns and the bots. When a new player see's nothing but bots up to his 2nd class change, he/she might get discouraged and quit.
I've been saying it and a person I know who did an interview with a farmer company got them to say it to. The only way to stop botters/farmers is have a 24/7 active gm service.
However like everyone else I have been saying this for 6 years and gotten no where which is why I stopped. But this is a contribution as to where this game will end up, so I felt it needed to be said here.
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As far as trying a new game, I'm thinking Tera for two simple reasons:
#1 the game looks to my liking and I have been waiting the last 3 years for it. I have only waited for 3 games over the last 4 years. Tera/Aion/Darkfall, aion and darkfall were both a dissappointment to me. If Tera is another dissappointment then I will just stick with L2, however, Tera is doing 2 things the other two games did not do:
A. Focus test groups, to gather information on what the public wants to see in the game and implement it.
B. They are also the only game not to rush it out and are taking their sweet time.
#2 It is made by the same creators of Lineage 2, which for me is an eye opener right there. I think lineage 2 is the greatest game created, it's just managed poorly is all.
Anyway my hopes are high. I just told what needs to happen to turn Lineage 2 back into a popular game. We will see what happens.
The only way to stop botters/farmers is have a 24/7 active gm service.
That is not true. The only way to stop bots is to stop them from loging in. That can only be done when NCNA will decide to stop cheating. I doubt they will, so the game will be where I said, in a year time, perhaps lower if the crackdown on legits will continue. The fewer legits to pk, the lower interest for bots too, because the low end bots will never win any "PvP".
M
Not quite sure how you expect them to just "stop" bots from logging in. Just like every other technology avenue. When there is money to be made, people will spend more time finding ways around your "security" then companies will spend securing them.
As for the "final" server idea. I don't see it working. There is no prime location in which to go that will please a majority of the playing population. Between messed up playtimes and lag you would have people jumping ship faster then ever.
My advice for making L2 last. Reset all servers upon the release of the new project. Rename the game to L3, and advertise it as a new game. And spend the money to have 24/7 GM support (nothing kills a new game faster then hearing it is a botfest). It will suck big time for all of us, but in the end, it might be the only way to draw enough people to keep the game around for the next 6 years.
Not quite sure how you expect them to just "stop" bots from logging in. Just like every other technology avenue. When there is money to be made, people will spend more time finding ways around your "security" then companies will spend securing them.
As for the "final" server idea. I don't see it working. There is no prime location in which to go that will please a majority of the playing population. Between messed up playtimes and lag you would have people jumping ship faster then ever.
My advice for making L2 last. Reset all servers upon the release of the new project. Rename the game to L3, and advertise it as a new game. And spend the money to have 24/7 GM support (nothing kills a new game faster then hearing it is a botfest). It will suck big time for all of us, but in the end, it might be the only way to draw enough people to keep the game around for the next 6 years.
As I told before, it is not the lack of GMs or GM time. Other places lock up bots the moment they login. As for the fact that you cant really stop it, that is true, but will stop 90% of them. They know exactly who is botting and banning can be made automatic, no need for a GM, if they want to, but they dont want, they decided to crackdown on legits now to make bots happy, so it is absolutely obvious there is no intention whatsoever to clear the game, so there is no hope also. No marketing campaign will be able to save L2, or at least bring more money than invested in ads, because nobody likes a place where cheaters are treated preferentially except the cheaters themselves, and they are here already making the game as they want it to be.
M
my real fear with direction of l2 towards making the game easier to reach top lvl's etc is, what happends then?get bored and leave?only login for sieges?
one of the main reasons i'm still playing l2 is the fact i still have so many goals to achieve and it takes effort...makes achieving that goal all the more rewarding for me...
in my time (starting to sound like my grandad hehe) reaching noble was very rewarding goal for me...didnt get the same achievement feeling with tw badges...
this game is hard....but thats what keeps me here :).
my real fear with direction of l2 towards making the game easier to reach top lvl's etc is, what happends then?get bored and leave?only login for sieges?
one of the main reasons i'm still playing l2 is the fact i still have so many goals to achieve and it takes effort...makes achieving that goal all the more rewarding for me...
in my time (starting to sound like my grandad hehe) reaching noble was very rewarding goal for me...didnt get the same achievement feeling with tw badges...
this game is hard....but thats what keeps me here :).
have u ever heard of pvp!? if u need tons of goals imo go wow and complete there achievements...
have u ever heard of pvp!? if u need tons of goals imo go wow and complete there achievements...
sorry for off topic
PVP one of the many reasons why i play L2 and not wow,aion..etc etc ;)
i get the feeling NC are making a real effort to listen to coummunity past 6 months or so, and talking in clan vent alot of ppl are starting to see this in the game...plenty of life in the old dog yet...:p
That is not true. The only way to stop bots is to stop them from loging in.
Obviously that is the reason for why I have said you need 24/7 gm's. I didn't think I need to explain why further, but I was wrong so here goes, and for those who are competent enough please ingore the following:
The reason I suggest having 24/7 live gm service is not for a tea party, but instead every player can then report a bot they see and watch it dissappear 5-10 mins later. People will enjoy their game alot more successfully when they see cheaters getting banned. The results are:
High level players will be more respected amongst the community because it was known they earned what they have. It's no longer people saying, "oh you 5box so you must be a bot, oh you are 85 so you must be a bot, oh you have great gear so you must be a bot, oh your in that clan so you must be a bot, and so on and so on". If they use the excuse oh you must be a bot, well then that person can just say report me, and if I don't dissappear, then you know I'm not and it's all skill.
Cheaters have a characteristic to keep the game always to their advantage and will do whatever it takes to win. This being a reason to form up into 1 ultra clan and through the use of the L2 system (hero's/tw wards/so forth) to keep them overpowered over any other clans. This is the chain reaction of what creates a 1 sided server and will leave the legit people with a vision of never being able to overcome them (especially if they are using programs for pvp). In turn the game is no longer fun for legits and it just adds on to another reason for them to leave.
Once legit players can see they no longer have to compete for hunting grounds/gear/so forth to bots, the game in itself will be much more social (both positive and negative) vs being completely dead with a non-responding botfest. This will create an environment of much more fun that will draw more people into the game. Once this happens servers will get overcrowded and we will need to start making more servers again.
So as you can see, having gm support means alot. Take a look at blizzard, one of the most successful mmo companies. I will tell you why as far is it goes with gm's and cheating:
#1 They don't mess around. You get caught your banned.
#2 They have live gm responses within the first 10 mins of your petition awaiting to take action upon this so called "bot" you are trying to report.
#3 The gm's will also help you with any game bugs that has cause your toon to not complete what it is trying to do.
I hope this helps you understand a little more clearly of why there is needed 24/7 live gm support.
Well...i reported once in petition bot train in catas...all those name were like xcszdfds....dfgsdrtyuj...fdfsasd...wewecxz...weqwe ...etc. There were 14 petitions pending before the one ive sent. After 5 mins i got reply from some GM about blahblahblah they need to investigate it..blahlahblah...ive asked back how long the investigating will take...i received answer in 1 minute from another GM with same, that they need to check carefully and they are happy that i reported it..ok...ive been waiting 30 minutes and petitioned once again about if there is some issue with locating those characters ingame cause im staying next to them so watching them to run to mob and when i targeted it from distance without to move, the train stopped to run to their target and was waiting for another mob to spawn...reply has come from 3rd GM about that they need to check all aspects and that they are happy that ive reported... so..this was my last report of bots and since then i dont give a f..k about them and their petition since it hasnt changed anything...same bot train was there for next 10 days during which ive leveled in other room next to them out of catas level range...so...dont tell me 3 GMs are powerless to port to me and 5 minutes watching bots... btw...it was in november 2010
frankly, L2 was the best mmorpg in the past 6 years, and still is. Aion is a complete joke, guild wars so so, FF 11 and 14 were utter failures, wow.... jimo, looks awful. However, agreed, strong competitions are coming. Tera looks awesome, Blade and Soul also carries strong buzzs.
IMHO, NC West should direct 100% marketing budget to B&S to combat Tera (which means 0 budget for L2). L2 is still the biggest show in Korea, yet very few heard about it in US. L2 is a great game, but NC West has completely destroyed it in NA and EU, and it can no longer be saved.
Obviously that is the reason for why I have said you need 24/7 gm's. I didn't think I need to explain why further, but I was wrong so here goes, and for those who are competent enough please ingore the following:
The reason I suggest having 24/7 live gm service is not for a tea party, but instead every player can then report a bot they see and watch it dissappear 5-10 mins later. People will enjoy their game alot more successfully when they see cheaters getting banned. The results are:
High level players will be more respected amongst the community because it was known they earned what they have. It's no longer people saying, "oh you 5box so you must be a bot, oh you are 85 so you must be a bot, oh you have great gear so you must be a bot, oh your in that clan so you must be a bot, and so on and so on". If they use the excuse oh you must be a bot, well then that person can just say report me, and if I don't dissappear, then you know I'm not and it's all skill.
Cheaters have a characteristic to keep the game always to their advantage and will do whatever it takes to win. This being a reason to form up into 1 ultra clan and through the use of the L2 system (hero's/tw wards/so forth) to keep them overpowered over any other clans. This is the chain reaction of what creates a 1 sided server and will leave the legit people with a vision of never being able to overcome them (especially if they are using programs for pvp). In turn the game is no longer fun for legits and it just adds on to another reason for them to leave.
Once legit players can see they no longer have to compete for hunting grounds/gear/so forth to bots, the game in itself will be much more social (both positive and negative) vs being completely dead with a non-responding botfest. This will create an environment of much more fun that will draw more people into the game. Once this happens servers will get overcrowded and we will need to start making more servers again.
So as you can see, having gm support means alot. Take a look at blizzard, one of the most successful mmo companies. I will tell you why as far is it goes with gm's and cheating:
#1 They don't mess around. You get caught your banned.
#2 They have live gm responses within the first 10 mins of your petition awaiting to take action upon this so called "bot" you are trying to report.
#3 The gm's will also help you with any game bugs that has cause your toon to not complete what it is trying to do.
I hope this helps you understand a little more clearly of why there is needed 24/7 live gm support.
I didnt say 24/7 gm support is not needed, I think you are preaching to the choir here, as well as bots preach to the choir tryin gto convince themselves theya re needed and l2 cant be played differently.
I explain a little better what i wanted to say:
While GM help 24/7 will do a lot to keep ppl happy, that wont stop the bots as long as GMs are not ready to ban them. I said that once bot login wont be allowed, and GG will be much more than a tool to prevent ppl from playing on private servers, or replaced with something that seriously impedes cheaters, then we can see that NCNA really wants to stop cheating.
Right now, you get answer to your petition all the time, but the bots are not banned, so, while we have GMs that have time to copy paste something, we dont have the will to ban the cheaters. They will even get upset when we protest about that over here and are answering bot calls to ban us instead.
Cheating can be solved, it is not even hard, they know who is cheating, but there is no will to do so. That is the problem we are facing and as long as koreans will pay for this inept policy and wont take any measures to shake up these ppl that are payd to do nothing, basically, because i think translation is not done here as someone pointed out before, we will not see any improvement, the fall will continue and in the end they will say to Korea, oh well, it didnt work out, in spite of our best effort to make events, to adapt to the western market, l2 is not for the westerners, sorry, it is your fault, you should have designed a better game.
Everybody knows the truth tho. I think only koreans dont. Yet...
M