A Q&A from Etaew's 7th March Livestream Answers Transcript.

[crasher]

This thread has blown up and I was away from the computer.

Before I finish reading the entire thread I would like to address one of the issues with the OP. (Subject to editing)

The shard system was out of control for lack of a better term. They could not design a system to evenly distribute the population into the shards because there was literally too many shards. This is a process they must go through. First, they have to bring the shard system under control and then once that is accomplished they can design a way to evenly populate the shards. There won't be "quiet shards" anymore, and there won't be "lost players" either. Should this have been in the game long ago? Most definitely. I am not blindly defending them. I am just happy with the response I received regarding this issue. Did they respond back to me directly? No. I do see them making progress behind the scenes however, and I am content with better late than never.

On the subject of the scoring system, I am concerned, yes. I am mostly a solo player unless it is a clan based event in the evening, etc. I am reserving judgement until the final release however. What I can tell you all, is that if it effects my gameplay in any negative way whatsoever I will be here beside all of you moaning and complaining, perhaps louder than many. Practice makes perfect, and I have practiced volge sieges so many times now that I rarely die. The warmaster encounter is very different however, and I believe we will all have to work together to redesign our strategies for it.

They had a shard system that didn't do this before.
It worked all along.
They broke it some time in the recent past.
Every day that it's not fixed after Tuesday is a day that somebody is going to be penalized for having no options, and that person won't let the door hit 'em ona butt on their way out, either.

As far as the WM is concerned:
Ancient history for the ppl who have won it.
Big cost with little pay-off for the up-n-comers.

[Amack]

Crasher, we have 1 person.... 1 PERSON who believes the chat system was working previously... what does that tell you?
It should tell you that perception is not the end all be all.

What you are saying is very similar to what that 1 person says about the chat system.

If chat was working, it would not have been modified in the way that it was, it is that simple. If the shard system was working previously, it would not have changed, and if it changed unintentionally it would have been restored just as it was this past week during the hotfixes.

[crasher]

Crasher, we have 1 person.... 1 PERSON who believes the chat system was working previously... what does that tell you?
It should tell you that perception is not the end all be all.

What you are saying is very similar to what that 1 person says about the chat system.

If chat was working, it would not have been modified in the way that it was, it is that simple. If the shard system was working previously, it would not have changed, and if it changed unintentionally it would have been restored just as it was this past week during the hotfixes.

Amack, My 3rd best friend in the whole world (of online TRION forums, but I digress....)
I respectfully submit 2 items for your perusal:

1.)"If the shard system was working previously, it would not have changed, and if it changed unintentionally it would have been restored just as it was this past week during the hotfixes."

2.)
07-23-2013 08:14 PM
Patch 1.025 - Patch Notes
We are happy to announce the upcoming patch 1.025.

DEFIANCE 1.025

- Challenges: Hotshots & Rampages: You should no longer get stuck after repeatedly suiciding (for example, during the Crystal Defense Hotshot)
- Fixed a rare crash that could occur during an Arkfall
- Fixed a bug where you would lose ammo swapping weapons in the current loadout when the ammo pool was full.

Both of those items are issues.
The item highlighted in "2.)" was broken again on 08-09-2013 in patch 1.027, and has not yet been fixed again.
I see zero reason, in light of the above statement "2.)" to assume that the items discussed in your statement highlighted in "1.)" is actually going to be fixed in the near term, and certainly not by the time DLC-4 goes live.

AND wish to point out that in spite of claimed ".... it would have been restored just as it was this past week during the hotfixes." it is still clearly broken as we speak.

Which does, kinda, if you think about it, put us exactly in the position I posited at the top of this thread.

As always, I remain your boon companion.
I trust I still hold a similar position on your friends list.

p.s.
That 'Chat System' comment/example you posted - while clever, is a red herring, and has nothing to do with this discussion.

[Amack]

Crasher you are one of the few people here that actually has good arguments and I respect that very much.

I can not speak for Trion, all I can speak of is what I witness happening. I know the same applies for you as well.

When I encounter something like the shard system problem, I never believe it until I verify it with multiple clan members / friends, etc.

I am not the only person who has been watching their progress. I am one of the few who comes here and spends time trying to point out what is happening.

I do not know how long the shard system was hurting us, nor do I know how long ago you found the shard system to be working. My question to you is, how did you determine it was working properly?

The ammo swapping example, while aggravating, is not a good example because it is far from game breaking. My last Houston thread was pointing out a game breaking problem, and it was addressed in some way in less than 2 weeks. That cannot be argued with me. They are more concerned with game breaking issues than things like ammo missing and that is the way a game developer should always look at issues presented. The issues should always be prioritized appropriately and I see them doing that, or atleast they are trying and that is all I can ask.

Should I or anyone else here have to bring game breaking issues to their attention? Heck NO! However, that is the situation we find ourselves in and we can decide to help, or we can decide to stop playing.

[crasher]

Crasher .........................

My question to you is, how did you determine it was working properly?

'Was working properly'?
As in, Dead shards are supposed to be the norm?

No, sharding was discussed in the beginning of the game on many forum and websites as an efficient way to keep people in populated dimensions together without ending up overpopulated. Also it was explained how populations were averaged over shards, and how shards were recombined when populations dropped.

1.) Because it started putting me into dead shards recently when it had not done so before to me or anyone of the people who I played with on a regular basis since April.

2.) The clear absence on the forums all along of people mentioning/discussing/whining/b*tching about dead shards as has been the topic of late, and the discussion of how it is affecting people's play and enjoyment.

While the ammo example may not be game breaking, it is a clear example of an issue that was important enough to be fixed once, clearly not understood as a game mechanic in conjunction with other mechanics by whoever was tasked with the fix, and then abandoned as a fixable issue in a most unprofessional display of defeat.

You eather gots the chops to fix you're own damned software, or you don't.
If you don't, 3 things come to mind:
1.) Why not?
2.) Who let it get to that point?
3.) Who let it get to that point without fixing the issue of it BEING at that point already, that we're even still discussing it?

I've said it before, me, and not a small number of people on this forum have been responsible for our own share of businesses, and some of them have been easily in the multi-million dollar range.
We didn't suffer fools gladly when they worked for us and jeopardized our names and assets.

TRION is huge compared to us?
Fine.
That don't mean they can lallygag and flounder about with no responsibility for production.
It means they have a tighter control over the daily doings, or they aint doing it by skill but by luck.

Are you trying to say they did it by luck, when we're trying to maintain that they did it by skill?

I love the game.
I'm begging TRION to please give me reasons to throw more money at them.

Are they listening, or not?

[Amack]

That is where the perception comes into play. People were perceiving the game to be dead because they couldn't find anyone. This could have been going on forever and we would not know it, if people were not mentioning it because it was misperceived.

I noticed a big jump in posts regarding this issue after I created that last Houston thread because they then realized, hey there are people playing this game somewhere and I just can't get to them for some reason.

If for example they changed the sharding code to try and put you in the same shard with friends or clanmates, that could very well negatively affect people who are in dead clans, no clan at all, and/or have no one active on their friends list.

[crasher]

That is where the perception comes into play. People were perceiving the game to be dead because they couldn't find anyone. This could have been going on forever and we would not know it, if people were not mentioning it because it was misperceived.

I noticed a big jump in posts regarding this issue after I created that last Houston thread because they then realized, hey there are people playing this game somewhere and I just can't get to them for some reason.

If for example they changed the sharding code to try and put you in the same shard with friends or clanmates, that could very well negatively affect people who are in dead clans, no clan at all, and/or have no one active on their friends list.

People mostly claimed the game was dieing because they didn't find the throngs that once teemed.
Some people resorted to hyperbole.

If they changed the sharding system, several questions come to mind:
1.) ANOTHER ninja change with no patch notes?
2.) ANOTHER issue with borked software that is swept under the rug, and pleas for information, help and reason for hope fall on deaf ears?
3.) Hey, hows about all thems people in clans who get stuck on the outside while maybe one person gets in to a break, or hows about them people who get disconnected?

Have you glanced at a calender, my friend?
It is now March -08
We are now slightly over 3 weeks from the first year anniversary of launch, with arguably a smaller population or players than were betatesting this program.

It aint rocket surgery. They didn't invent MMOs. They have an in-house MMO that's working, all they had to do was steal their own intellectual property rulebook and pie charts, and graphs to get it to work.

We would, at this point in time, NOT be discussing things in this manner if TRION people had come into THIS forum at almost ANY time in the passed 2 months to lay down some info on us and treat us as adults who were making a conscious decision about where to spend time and money.
And it's not as if we didn't beg them for month upon month upon month to treat us with respect.

The same can be said for all the other issues that we begged for info about, and received nothing for.

Am I stepping over the line by asking to be treated as an adult by a company that I've invested hundreds of dollars into?
A company that, I am on record as advocating for, I would pay an additional subscription fee to, to give me the services that I'm contracting for?

This is a 'Perception' problem?

You're lucky I don't come to Florida, with Big Jim, and make you and reb buy us beer.

[Amack]

I'm not trying to argue with you Crasher. You are not wrong, and many things you say could not be more correct.

Case in point...

1.) ANOTHER ninja change with no patch notes?
2.) ANOTHER issue with borked software that is swept under the rug, and pleas for information, help and reason for hope fall on deaf ears?
3.) Hey, hows about all thems people in clans who get stuck on the outside while maybe one person gets in to a break, or hows about them people who get disconnected?

I don't particularly "like" the way that North Korea treats its own people... but I am resigned to the fact that I can do nothing about it and don't waste my time trying.

I don't particularly "like" the way that Trion treats its own players when it comes to Defiance... but I am resigned to the fact that I can do nothing about it and don't waste my time trying.

If North Korea and/or Trion wants their people to be happy, they will change their procedures, it is that simple.
I can't force either of them to make it so.

[N3gativeCr33p]

As I've read through a few of the most recent posts in this thread, I'm reminded of that age old statement...

"Perception is reality."

[Bonehead]

As I've read through a few of the most recent posts in this thread, I'm reminded of that age old statement...

"Perception is reality."

Damn straight Skippy.