State of the Game (a little late)
I’m catching up on my reading and just got done with Marc Jacob’s State of the Game. Along with the announcement that Mythic will add the Knight of the Blazing Sun (supposedly a mirror of the Chosen that can twist auras) and the Black Guard to the game for free in December, Jacobs also says the game needs to be more stable for low-end PC players:
Creating an MMORPG, especially an RvR-focused MMORPG, which runs perfectly on all types of PCs, is one of the most challenging technical aspects of game development. While the performance of WAR is great on most higher spec machines, we know that we can improve its performance on lower spec machines. We’ve been working non-stop to improve that performance and we’ve got a number of things going into the game between now and 1.1 that we expect will help to address everything from crashes to desktops (CTDs) to stuttering.We have a number of other client changes that will improve things such as propagation and ghosting.
This is great news. I know a few of our members have been highly frustrated with their play experience to date. It’s only been a month since the game came out and they are trying to get the game to work for everyone within the spec requirements. Awesome!
RVR-specific changes that Jacobs addresses:
- An RVR influence system similar to the PVE influence system
- Item linking in chat
- Improved PVP gear drops, drop rates and itemization
- ”We will also be giving players more incentive to engage in open RvR by improving the rewards for both assaulting and defending in RvR. WAR is an RvR-centric game and we will continue to do whatever is necessary to encourage people to join in RvR and reward them when they do so.”
Other changes in the pipeline:
- Server transfers to underpopulated realms
- Improved targeting system, such as adding main assist and target of target.
- Most classes will see changes in the coming weeks, and few of them nerfs (and people will complain about those I’m sure)
In a nutshell, I’m really happy with this game, and I’ve always been happy with how Mythic communicates with its player base. I only wish they’d bring back the weekly grab bag like DAOC had for so many years.