What happened to the improved communication?

I know everyone at Trion is in panic mode. Failed DLC launch, another round of downsizing, office closures, etc etc etc, but I thought that the communication was going to be improving.

When it first started, I pointed out that it was just spin doctoring. Some people get that warm fuzzy feeling whenever someone at a company even responds in their thread. However, the 'White Knight Cavalry' rode in with the 'it is a new dawn in Trionville' rhetoric.

Since the debacle of a DLC, which could be named 'Look, it is day one release, part duex' the communication, when it is most needed, has come to a stand still. They circled the wagon and showed that there was not really effort for more communication. It was just PR rhetoric that way to many fell for.

I am sure Community Management is busy, as is everyone at Trion. It happens when you undercut your minimum staffing levels. But shouldn't Community Management be, I don't know, busy managing the community who is REALLY upset right now.

I have said it before, and I will say it again, the only thing that changed at Trion was that they increased the number of mouths not saying anything of importance. More bad (or missing) communication is not improved communication.

So I ask. If the whole improved communication thing was not rhetoric, but truth, what happened to it? Did the debacle turn into something that no matter how you spun it, it was bad? Did Community Management get ninja canned?

Seriously, everything is still in the same sh*t creek that it was 3 months ago.

I just want to know how you can spell rhetoric correctly but misspell cavalry so badly. Is it an inside joke or something?

EDIT: Also, communication has improved, there is just nothing to report expect policing thread titles.

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Originally Posted by Hiero Glyph

I just want to know how you can spell rhetoric correctly but misspell cavalry so badly. Is it an inside joke or something?

EDIT: Also, communication has improved, there is just nothing to report expect policing thread titles.

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I guess I am more accustomed to talking about political rhetoric than a bunch of people on horses. :D

Thanks for pointing it out thought. I corrected it for clarity.

With the debacle going on, there should be constant feedback from Community Managers. As it seems right now, the company is saying 'take a flying leap. We will fix what we want, when we want, and if you do not like it leave...because we are not listening.'

Gotta say they communicate more than the other online games I've played over the years. They may not have the answers you want to here or the information you are asking for, but they are here and very active. Not only that, but they take a lot of flak on their forums and show an unbelievable amount of restraint in doing so. I'd of banned 1/3 of the population here by now lol.

I'm not beating the Trion drums here either. I just don't agree with the OP's assessment of the topic.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Hiero Glyph

I just want to know how you can spell rhetoric correctly but misspell cavalry so badly. Is it an inside joke or something?

EDIT: Also, communication has improved, there is just nothing to report expect policing thread titles.

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another white knight more obsessed with pointing out spelling mistakes then replying correctly to some one that has an issue with the game, great work, being completely defensive at all costs is the problem

Quantity has increased. I think that can easily been seen.

"Quality" though has remained a constant.

Thus "improved" is a misdirect.

Hey there -

I recommend everyone check out the dev tracker. We are communicating every day (except maybe the odd weekend) and will continue to do so from here on out.

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Originally Posted by ralisti

I guess I am more accustomed to talking about political rhetoric than a bunch of people on horses. :D

Thanks for pointing it out thought. I corrected it for clarity.

With the debacle going on, there should be constant feedback from Community Managers. As it seems right now, the company is saying 'take a flying leap. We will fix what we want, when we want, and if you do not like it leave...because we are not listening.'

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I'm sorry you feel that way! Last week we put together quite a comprehensive poll and sent it to the devs. It will take a while to see the fruits of your labor in that poll, but we are actively reading and assessing what's said there, here, and from submissions within game among other sources.

Game development takes time but the suggestions and future wishes of the community have been sent to the team for them to work through.

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Originally Posted by WARDUKE

Gotta say they communicate more than the other online games I've played over the years. They may not have the answers you want to here or the information you are asking for, but they are here and very active. Not only that, but they take a lot of flak on their forums and show an unbelievable amount of restraint in doing so. I'd of banned 1/3 of the population here by now lol.

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I agree with that. I see 40-50 messages today alone from dahanese and Morgana, most in direct response to issues and questions raised by players here, along with updates to the existing issues.

There are clearly some ongoing problems, especially on the consoles. They have repeatedly acknowledged and confirmed that they're aware of them and are working to do their best to solve them. We know the current status and it gets updated as the situation changes, so we don't need to be reminded constantly "Yes, we're still aware of these issues, and yes we're still working on them." We have communication, we don't need constant hand-holding and babysitting. I can't really see what more someone could be expecting from them.

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Originally Posted by Rakshasa

I agree with that. I see 40-50 messages today alone from dahanese and Morgana, most in direct response to issues and questions raised by players here, along with updates to the existing issues.

There are clearly some ongoing problems, especially on the consoles. They have repeatedly acknowledged and confirmed that they're aware of them and are working to do their best to solve them. We know the current status and it gets updated as the situation changes, so we don't need to be reminded constantly "Yes, we're still aware of these issues, and yes we're still working on them." We have communication, we don't need constant hand-holding and babysitting. I can't really see what more someone could be expecting from them.

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Maybe a post with more than 'We are looking into it'. I know that in my line of work, if something as big as the DLC debacle occurred, it would mean an instant bridge call with all the major players from all the major teams looking into the issues. Within an hour, we are not just expected to know what the issue is (root cause analysis), but what needs to be done to fix it, how long it is going to take to fix it, the impact of the issue in both short and long term, etc etc etc...and we are expected to give the information to the client (you know, the person purchasing the product).

Why? Because it is important that we are transparent to the client to maintain a level of trust that has been built. If we start hedging information, the client would start distrusting not just our people, but our work.

Sure Community Management is posting a lot, but they are not saying anything. This means that Trion does not want to admit they dropped the ball (again), they can not figure out the problem (questionable competency), or they do not respect the customer enough to give a direct and honest answer as to the problem and estimate time of resolution.

I can understand not being committed to development stuff, as it ebbs and flows as it gets done. Priorities change. But this is an issue affecting many people who Trion took their money, continually pushed back delivery of said product, and even when Trion said they would deliver failed to deliver.

You know that Trion would not be as understanding if there was a problem with billing when I purchased an item, and Trion did not get the money. They would not wait as I continually fed them to lines they feed the players. They would want the problem rectified immediately or they would remove the item from my account. Don't tell me you think that the company deserves more leniency then they show their customers.