Death_Mage

Being told something is going to be given out on a certain date, and then having it given out on a different date is unprofessional. And yes, worthy of complaint. I know there are a lot of brown-nosers here who refuse to criticize when the devs do anything wrong, but you're only hurting yourself in the long run. If the devs don't feel that their feet are held to the fire, they're going to get even lazier.

Assuming it is not too late to answer now that it has gone live:


Base Repricing
1) How will the repricing of bases affect you personally?
I am a SG-of-one. This will allow me to finally get my base to look good, rather than just building up functionality. (I was nearly complete with my base, just a few final items that needed adding. This allowed me to add those and then some.)
2) Will you dismantle your base to gain the additional prestige from the repricing?
Doubtful. Just tweaking it. The system *SHOULD* have automatically adjusted the prices.
3) How long would this process take you if you were to engage in this practice?
n/a
4) What are the positive and negative concerns regarding repricing?
Mostly re-adding upkeep to my base. That worries me, a lot, since I want a fully functional base, but may not be able to maintain it.
5) How will this feature affect you long term and short term?
Time will tell.

Base Salvage Exchange to Invention Salvage
1) What is the negative effect on your base for this feature implementation?
I can no longer hold anywhere *NEAR* as much salvage on me as I used to be able to. Even maxed out at 80, that's only maxing out 4 items in the previous system. A lot more running around when building a lot of items. But, that is fairly rare anyway. Also, unless the salvage drops are increased, this is an overall decrease in the amount of salvage available.
2) What is the positive effect on your base for this feature implementation?
Well, it does make it easier... IF you can actually transfer all your old stuff.
3) How long will it take you to adjust to learning this new system?
Time will tell.
4) What side effects to this system do you currently see from transitioning the old to new system?
Temporary increase in invention salvage prices. Rendering the current salvage storage item obsolete. (Is there a bug that right now I can't put my old base storage items back IN the salvage storage?)
5) What security concerns do you have regarding this change?
For me? None. SG-of-one. But really, man up and give us our prestige and item back if custom items are sold. Otherwise, it's an easy way for people to sabotage SGs.

Additional Notes:
I've heard you can trade in the old storage. How? Where? Why can't I put my base storage BACK in the salvage storage? What is the point of even HAVING the salvage storage anymore, since it only held base and event items?

I have not read the entire thread yet, just the announcement. Has this already happened, or have they announced that they're going to do it?

They already merged accounts once before. So only accounts activated after that date would have had limited access. So that alone isn't a huge step. However, NC Soft's web site is STILL selling the games individually.

Now, what exactly does this announcement mean? Is it JUST another account merging, "if you had only one side, now you have both"? Or are they giving all characters full access to either side of the game?

Either way, this is the death knell for the game I enjoyed. City of Villains, already all but abandoned in the last two years, will now never see exclusive content again. It's time to finally accept the facts, and cancel my account. *MY* game is dead.

The capes are viewable here. The differences to the two are that the Wolf Spider's cape has a different attachment, and cannot have its colors altered.

Thanks for the pics of the two symbols. I was wondering what they did to change the vet reward one. I also wonder if they'll change the Wolf Spider cape to match, but I doubt it.

Might want to mention the Wolf Spider's cape is nearly identical to the CoV CE cape. You can't change it's colors, and the way it is attached is slightly different, however.

Also, do you have screen shots of the two Arachnos chest symbols (CoV CE and vet reward)? I'm curious to see what's different about them.

Don't forget the VEAT capes.

Prismist is right. Cyberelf is not the only one who feels this way. I feel that way as well.

The changes recently just smack of a downward spiral. We've got the game's ownership changing hands - despite how it has been portrayed this is almost always a very bad sign. Recent updates just smack of desperation, "More XP, less debt! Please come back to playing..." Now we're already starting to see "premium" content, and exceedingly light "free" content that used to have at least SOMETHING there. (Then again, Valentine's Day events always have been pretty light. Then again... all the events have been light. *sigh*)

On the flip side, we've been hearing about record increases to servers.... or more accurately, *A* server. I'm wondering how much of that is because of transfers. What are the global numbers?

It just smacks of bail out attempts and desperately clinging onto what's left. Whether or not that's that case, that is the appearence these tricks give off, becuase these are the tricks so many companies have tried before.

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Last year did we get a V-Day event and new costume pieces for free? As far as I remember we did.

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Funnily enough, we do this year as well...

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My point was last year the deveolpers were allowed to program an entire new event and did not have to charge anything for anything. This year we do get an event, but it is the same one that we got last year (ie. no new code). However, from what it sounds like NCSoft did not want the developers "developing" anything unless they could make extra money off of it.

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That's what I'm hearing. NC $Soft took over, no new events unless you're willing to pay extra for 'em.

Let me make this clear: If that damned test server only one time "wedding" was depending on *MY* purchasing this $10 wedding pack, as well as any future events like it, then my response is "shove it".

What did they add to the actual V-Day event this year, on the LIVE servers? *ONE* mission in the starting cities? That's it? No badge, no rewards, no costume pieces, no temp powers?

Did I miss something when I went to Pocket D and found the same ol' same ol'?

Considering the "new" content for Winter this year was a ski run.. doesn't look like I missed anything at all.

F- NC Soft. City of Heroes is dead.

Whohoo! Way to COMPLETELY ignore a post!

Once again, you can't compare Justice/Sinister to this. Justice/Sinister and two travel powers were part of a bonus for a new type of game pack - an incentive for people to buy the new Good vs Evil edition. They were free to everyone who bought that version of the game. In order to give everyone else who already HAD the game a shot at them, they were offered at a reduced price for the items only.

Collector's Edition content can't be compared either. The Collector's Editions, especially the wonderful CoV version, had a lot of physical, REAL bonuses in it. Great stuff. The in-game effect was one cape, and one symbol. The CoH DVD edition is another story, but again, it was released as an incentive to buy it (badge, power, cape), and again, those who already had the game were given the chance to get those in-game items at a reduced cost. Still missed out on the physical content, the HeroClix, the map, the comic, etc.

And the pre-order content? You're kidding, right. That was free to anyone who *gasp* pre-ordered the game. You got the pre-order price back, remember?

But now, this wedding content is NOT being offered as an incentive to buy any version. It's not free with any particular package. It's not free like all of the other costumes and emotes have been except those listed that came with special editions of the game to increase sales. They're asking $10 for what is very light content, especially given that we're supposed to be paying for the new content as part of our subscription fees. These outfits and emotes would previously have been free, part of the valentine's day event.

But they want $10 from us now. If this is successful, expect to see more costumes for a fee - thus fewer costumes released as the normal events, and normal updates.

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Ok I'm projecting forward a bit here because I've played so many of these games and I feel like I know where this is going which I admit is not fair of me. What I am seeing is that this is just the first. It's a test to see how many people will pay $10 for very little. Not only that, but to judge the reactions of the players. At the way it's looking now the test might work well for them. What would that mean? What I see is that the next time there's a new set of costume options to add they don't put it in for free. Instead they charge $10 for it. Instead of adding new emotes the charge $10 for it. This is what I feel would be wrong.

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Again, why is that wrong?

They make something new, something not required to play the game. They price it. They offer it for sale. Where's the "wrong" in that? You can play the game exactly as before without paying for the doo-dad they offer.

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Because part of our monthly fee was already supposed to pay for that. Now, they're reducing the resources for those of us who just pay the monthly fee to produce for their "premium" customers, who are willing to pay through the nose for extras that before NC $oft we were already paying for, and receiving, with no additional price, or hassle.

Sinister/Justice was not a costume pack.

They released a new, combined version of the game. They added some costume pieces and powers to the new version of the game. Similar to the collector's editions.

In order to make it accessible to people who already had the game, they made it possible to purchase the new content only at a reduced price.

*THAT* was a good way to handle it.

THIS pack is not. There's no new versions of the game that came with it. This is content that, before now, would have been given out as the holiday bonus. Now we have to pay for it.

BAD THING.

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In fact, I don't know of a single game where anything other than a very minor addition/upgrade to the game is given away, except CoH.

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WoW.

Only one paid expansion, LOTS of content added since release, just like CoX.

And unlike CoX, they don't build for Alliance only.

I have nothing against paying for packs - if the content is worth it. but this isn't guild Wars. This isn't Exsteel. We've already GOT a monthly fee. Some of us have already spent literally hundreds on this game (some, with multi-boxing, etc. have probably topped a thousand easily).

Content like this, costume pieces and emotes, USED to be simply part of normal updates. But now, with NC Soft in charge, they're starting to "offer" packages with very little content for an extra fee.

This is a BAD THING.

We've got a monthly fee. Part OF THAT FEE was the promise of free upgrades. Now, with NC Soft just taking the reigns, it's already devolved into "SOME free upgrades.. PREMIUM STUFF COSTS MORE!". Unless they plan on dropping the monthly charges, it is a rip-off. We're being charged twice for the same goods.

And yes, it is a "lose" for the people who DON'T buy it. Because the more people who DO buy it, the more incentive for NC $oft to make more "premium" packs, the fewer resources available for the free packs, the less content *WE* receive that we are already paying for.

This is a bad move no matter how you slice it.

To me.. it seems like a huge rip off.

$10 for some costumes that I doubt I'll ever use and four lowly emotes? No powers? No badge? $10 for something that I expect to see in most updates?

HUGE rip-off.

Well, we've had the "co-op" zone since, what, Feb '06? Pocket D in the Valentine's event? But there have always been problems with it. Heroes and villains cannot find each other when searching for players, we can't trade insps, enhancements, or recipes, etc. And so far every singly "co-op" mission has been blue sided. Not even grey, but straight blue. We have to save the world, rescue people, or save the holidays themselves.

As a villain, why the HELL am I being treated to nothing but hero tasks on the special occasions? At least the first CoV winter event had us stealing presents, but after that it's been all hero missions where villains could tag along. Hell, at least give us some variety. Why are we opening presents and being presented with naughty/nice options? Why are we trick or treating, and looking for treats instead of dishing out the tricks? Why are we rescuing baby new year instead of trying to bring down a fat man on a sleigh? That's all fine and well if you're a hero, but it doesn't freaking fit in CoV.

And this is what happens with the stupid "it's one game" mindset. They design for City of Heroes (since designing for an expansion would just be silly), and then we get access to Hero stuff. We're [censored] sick of it already.

These games weren't designed with cross faction in mind. It won't work well unless they do some SERIOUS retooling to the game engine. I hope to NEVER see complete cross faction in CoX. Save that for CoH 2 so the game can be designed with it from the ground up.

And once again, creating content for heroes and then giving villains access to it is NOT creating content for both sides. Giving us all the exact same stuff is NOT necessarily creating content for both sides, especially when the stuff is designed FOR one side.

RWZ is not villain content. Period. Until there are villain specific contacts, themes, etc. to do there, it is hero content. It isn't even good co-op content. Hamidon would have been good co-op content. RWZ goes against CoV story. God damn I am so [censored] sick of having to repeat this over and over because some people just [censored] refuse to see it.

When content is designed with City of Heroes in mind, and City of Villains is given access to it just becuase "they're one game", it doesn't fit. It doesn't address the issues CoV players have. It doesn't give us more content to fill our gaps. It doesn't give us our VEATs. It doesn't give us our SFs for the levels that are missing them. It doesn't give us our alternate leveling paths. It doesn't give us options. The "new" content is like trying to put a fresh coat of paint on a car that's rusted through and is missing it's engine, seats, and wheels. If this is all CoV players have to look forward to, CoH getting new content and CoV getting access to it, then they should just drop CoV entirely.

CoV has very specific problem areas, and "just any ol' new content" WON'T FIX THEM.

As Munki pointed out, and as I have been TRYING to get through Terra's thick skull, the game WAS marketed as an independent, complete, game. That's what I bought, that's what a lot of people bought. And we feel we were lied to. We were lied to. They're going out of their way now to run from their own marketing as fast as they can. It doesn't fly. I expect the game I paid for to be given attention too. I've been just as dedicated, just as loyal, as any blue-sider, my money's just as good, so why am I getting shafted all the time? Because "it's one game"? Again, if that is true, then NOBODY should complain if CoV gets a few issues worth of content exclusively. NOBODY should complain about anything CoV has that CoH doesn't. After all, it's one game.

But they do complain. And their own argument goes right out the window.

CoV needs attention. I'm not saying they need to match up number for number, but CoV needs more content. And it needs to be taken seriously again.

Well, Zyph, you're not trolling like Terra keeps doing.

The insane notion that these two games are only flavors of one game has given us the problems we're arguing about in this threat. It is *THE* reason why CoV gets ignored. The devs don't feel any pressing urgency to fix the game of City of Villains becuase they refuse to accept that it even exists. Since it's JUST an addition of CoH they can ignore any updates it needs like any OTHER expansion of CoH. It's already been released, it's done, it's time to look to the future.

F that logic, and anyone who believe it (Positron included).

I'll keep saying it until you people understand it: New content is needed where content is lacking, not where content is abundant.

CoV needs attention focused on it. It was billed and sold as a fully, complete, independent game, no matter how much idiots like Terra try to whitewash it now.

To put the FINAL cap on this argument: Even if you believe that it really is nothing but the villain half of ONE SHARED GAME, you must accept that as the villain HALF of one shared game, the entire game itself is not whole until the content gap has been eliminated.

Everyone arguing that they are just one game should, right now, if they have any intellectual honesty to their own stance, be requesting that the next few updates to THEIR ONE GAME focus entirely on bringing CoV up to the same content level of CoH. After all, if it's JUST ONE GAME you're getting the exact same amount of content anyway.

Once again, people fail to realize the "seperate but combined" games aspect is hardly new to CoV, nor does it make the individual games any less complete by themselves.

World of Xeen.
Sonic 3 and Knuckles.

etc. etc.

I happen to have a copy of the old box, unopened. Does that mean if I install it now it's NOT going to have both?

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So you're telling me that if I went upstairs and installed my CoV disk onto my kids computer she'd have access to CoH?

Not GvE, just plain old CoV. She could play CoH with that disk? Or would she have to install a separate disk for CoH, or at the least add CoH to her account management screen?

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Anymore? Yes. She can access CoH. They combined the accounts, gave everyone with only one side access the other side.

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But the executable is the same, right? its just a question of which flags are set and which data you downloaded.

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Ok, so by that definition, all games using the same engine are the same game. Using one .exe I can run Doom, Doom 2, Heretic, Hexen, Hexen's expansion pack, and Strife.

They're all the same game!

No, they aren't, Darkspeed. When CoV was released, you installed CoV. You got the City of Villains executable, you got the City of Villains data, and you got access to City of Villains. You had 8 character slots per server, you had your choice of 5 ATs to try, and you had no ability whatsoever to play a Hero.

Until you bought City of Heroes as well, which upped your character slots to 12 per server, let you install (or download) the City of Heroes data (maps etc.), and let you try 5 and eventually 7 more ATs.

They were sold as two separate, complete games. Many people don't seem to remember that thanks to GvE, or because they already had CoH and thus didn't notice that CoV really WAS a seperate game.

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I never said I didn't want more content red-side. I'm just not dimwitted enough to believe that the lack of it indicates some kind of secret agenda on the part of the devs. I know it's hard for emo types to understand, but sometimes it really isn't about you.

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From Positron:
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Just to head this off at the pass, there is no Anniversary badge for CoV 2 years... we want to get to a point where we only celebrate ONE anniversary a year, like normal folks.

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Yup, no favoritism there.

Sorry, the devs betrayed us. Flat out. It was billed, and sold as, an independent game. But the devs now have come out and said it's not, it won't be treated as such. So yea, there *IS* a discrepancy in how we are treated, and it DOES bother those of us who've been loyal to OUR game since launch.

I left City of Heroes when they announced villains would not be playable. I came back when they announced City of Villains. This is what I wanted to play from the beginning. And I'm sick of being dedicated to my game for years and being shat upon by the people who are supposed to be responsible for keeping the game up to date, especially when they DO continue crafting so hard in such an obvious blue side slant.

CoV might as well not [censored] exist in their eyes. They've basically said as much, and we have every damned right to be mad at 'em for it.