-
Posts
235 -
Joined
-
-
Most of the time, it's author, recommendation from people whose judgment I trust or, barring that, length.
Especially nowadays, I really dislike 5 mission arcs where some of the missions basically crap out on xp due to MA issues. Yes, I realize it's not the author's fault but it's still really annoying to me so I either avoid anything over medium and/or (usually AND) anything with the offensive mission components (allies, defendable objects, hostages, etc). While I would agree with the assertion that a great story is worth experiencing even in lieu of ingame reward, most stories I come across don't fit that category. Plus the aforementioned tendency for some folks to use vastly overpowered custom mobs, makes me avoid those missions too (specifically with under 20s or squishies in general). I've actually seen Eva's example a few times.
Nowadays, I rarely stray from the list of seven missions I like most. -
Yeah, this was a really fun arc. I did it with a level 5 DS/thermal MM and it was easy enough that I could pay attention to the flavor text and really enjoy the story as it unfolded.
I will say that the contact kinda turned me off, but that's only because I despise him in general. -
Quote:I dunno about this. Take a look at the people who write many of the antivirus programs everyone uses religiously. Many of them....are former hackers. Can't really teach the mindset that comes with being a malicious (or just curious) tinkerer.Except most of them are only working for the government as an alternative to going to prison. Otherwise they'd still be living a life of crime.
Quote:Inviting exploiters into beta will allow them to identify new exploits... which will not be dutifully reported so they can be fixed, but secretly disseminated so that they can be taken advantage of once the issue goes live. So that's a non-starter. You'd just be giving them a head start.
Quote:If Ultima Online could get elective PvP after its lead dev practically screamed at me on Usenet for a year that it was utterly impossible for the game to work with elective PvP
I'm disappointed the fix is being put off until July but not really all that surprised. -
-
-
Quote:This. While I'm not rockin' a borderline ghetto setup, the primary PC I play this game on is about 3 years old (and wasn't cutting edge when I built it, though it wasn't far off).I am honestly not having any issues at all, and I've been on the game for about 12 hours total since it has been released. I also do not have a high end gaming rig nor do I have the latest graphics card.
While I admit some of the bugs are just mindbogglingly elementary (stacked items), crunch has to end sometime. When the issue has to be out the door by a hard date, not much you can do, really. I don't think anyone denies that if stacked items were duping themselves (basically the opposite of what's currently happening), the servers (or at least the market) would come down NAO.
But if you think you've been "shafted" by the issue, I can only suggest you politely request to have your money refunded.
Oh wait... -
Quote:Steven Colbert.
J. Michael Straczynski
Chris Claremont
Arthur AdamsQuote:Kevin Smith
Stan Lee
Felicia Day
Seth Green
Neil Gaiman
Terry Pratchett
Piers Anthony
Ed Greenwood).
Adding:
Rob Liefeld (what? Who doesn't like watching a car crash?)
Patricia Briggs
David & Leigh Eddings
James Patterson
Dean Koontz
Andrew Vachss
Amanda Conner
Weis & (Tracy) Hickman
Douglas Niles
Mary H. Herbert -
You might be better served (and get more plays/feedback) if you post this in the "correct" MA forum. There's one in the 'For Fun!' section for advertising arcs and such: http://boards.cityofheroes.com/forumdisplay.php?f=602
-
Quote:Wouldn't be the state that executed him/her (Patterson probably couldn't even see him/her). At least not in THIS state.Wanna go from the Bronx to Brooklyn? Simple, transfer in Manhattan. Just get off at the Cloisters and walk to Battery Park for the transfer.
If any civil engineer did that in real life, they'd be executed by the state.
Quote:I havn't been following STO at all, I know it launched, is it not doing well? is it possible that another very popular franchise (like D&D) is failing online? -
I give year long subscriptions to friends on the verge of burnout in other games (EQ1, WoW, Darkfall, L2). I know from personal experience that sometimes your secondary MMO becomes the primary when you become sick and tired of elements of the current primary. Plus, there are many people who aren't in a position to support multiple MMO accounts and $145 isn't that big a deal to me. I'd rather have my friends playing in one or two places, rather than scattered amongst eight different titles.
I also call anyone out who tries to make a Rob Liefield joke and doesn't actively play either CoX or CO ("I'm pullin' your comic geek card. Show and prove, poser!"). -
Quote:This doesn't surprise me. There are many people who have no idea about present day lingo. Do you honestly think they'd know, or even be vaguely familiar with, the language as it was spoken in the days before even their parents were twinkles? For what it's worth, I thought it was a great touch. If you want, I'll balance those 3 stars with fives from my pair of accounts.I got this one today, not once, but twice from two people who clearly played the arc together and are either family or RL friends (they had almost identical global names) .
"get a native english speaker to check the dialog"
I didn't even know how to respond or where this could be coming from, but finally think I hit upon it. The contact in the arc is old and uses slang and sayings from the 30's and 40's in his dialog. I am guessing that the people behind these comments did not realize that and assumed it was just bad English. I actually spent a good deal of time doing research on phrases popular in the time period when the contact was at his prime. The kicker to this is the two three star ratings my research and hard work in this attention to detail got me.
WN -
Yep, this is the basic form my search comments take as well.
The 'my level or higher' thing is valid and can be for any of a number of reasons. Personally, even with SSK, I don't like exemplaring. Within the 5 levels is 'okay' but in almost every team I've joined under those circumstances, at some point, the team winds up doing missions for the lowest member of the team (who is often outside that 5 level range). I have enough characters split across enough ranges to almost always be able to provide one without exemping outside the 5 level range. That's what I prefer to do.
I wouldn't go to the trouble of typing out the 'not looking for team' thing though. I'd just set my flag to 'not accepting invites' if it's an absolute type of situation (like when I'm playing at work). Otherwise, I'll take my chances and just continue turning down blind invites. Though I have noticed that there must've been an influx of newbies or something because I get 'lft?' tells when I'm on a team. -
Quote:Common sense.why even post in this topic if you won't even explain what it is?
The devs tend to find anomalies via datamining primarily. Find a "method" and publicize it and it becomes much easier to spot (due to activity). Most people, even farmers, aren't particularly hardcore. One person doing a particular mission five times a day may not be enough to sound the alarm. Thirty people doing that particular mission five times a day, is a totally different story.
Players have always been more resourceful than developers. Add to that unlimited time and motivation (which 99% of developers don't have) and unlimited resources (which 100% of developers wish they had) and you see how the problem can never be completely fixed, only bandaided (and oftentimes, not in a timely fashion. These fixes have to be done AROUND the rest of the game's continuing development, after all). It can take days or weeks to get a "fix" through the proper channels and into the game. The longer you evade detection (by minimizing exposure to the datamining tripwire), the longer you can benefit from these things.
I use the word "method" because exploits are determined solely by the developers. Reward rates (and what is "proper") is only known by them. As long as there are missions in the base game that offer extreme levels of reward for those capable of taking advantage of them (which is everyone), players will never be able to truly figure out the metrics used to determine "proper" reward rates. Plus, players are emotional ("He's producing more stuff than me. He must be exploiting!") so a player's definition of out of whack reward rates can often be called into question. -
Quote:Star Wars in an underground environment is not Star Wars.I don't get it.
Are you saying the critique is invalid because you can't control the mini-map? While that is true, you CAN choose what map you use for any mission and stay away from those that have broken mini-maps.
To explain further, sometimes stories require a particular setting. If that setting is only available in one map (or two or three), you have to accept the possible deficiencies of those maps and go forward. OR, you could change the story to fit the deficiencies of said map(s) but again, in some cases, that would be like setting Star Wars underground (or underwater).
Forgive me if that sounds patronizing, especially given the forum section, but I thought someone needed to point that out. -
Quote:...and I'm supposed to know how well they play their character before I've ever seen them play? Golly, I didn't know psychic powers were a requirement for playing this game!Quote:The truth is, you have a choice as to who you play with, if the noob index is to high you can always quit the team... when you join a random team you get what you get... To avoid this, form your own team or join an sg and play with them, play with friends if you are low on friends join virtue and I'm sure you can find people to role play being your friend, then play with them...
There is a reason why some (or many, if some folks are to be believed) people only team with people from their SG or coalition or trusted global channels. Bottom line is, it's possible to reduce the number of moron teammates you wind up with, the best way being to put the team together yourself and only invite people you know are competent. Is this preferable? Probably not to most people who prefer to be lazy and passive and do what someone else wants to do but still reserve the right to whine and not do anything to remedy the situation. I notice all these posts about "I can't find a team". I haven't seen nary a one about "I can't find people to invite to my team".
You want to be passive, then accept the downside that comes with that. You'll constantly be at the mercy of "luck" and popularity swings. When I play the MMO with easily the most idiotic player community on the planet, I have zero trouble putting together teams that raze the "toughest" challenges in the game. The same thing happens here. I ask in my global channels first, then check my friends list, then run with whoever/whatever I happen to get. I don't need an 8 man team to get xp/drops/have fun. I also don't subject myself to clueless morons all the time (sometimes it's fun to team with these people for laughs).
Quote:Some of the dumbest players i've met in game are 60+ month vets. This includes people "set in their ways" who don't evolve with the game, people that have been here since 2004 and don't know the difference between an orange or a purple insp and even what they do, and of course the higfh and mighty carebears that think that since pvp wasn't in the game on day 1 that it's bad and that badgeing is more important.).
-
War Mace - my highest tanker is Inv/Mace and I despise the set with a burning passion that knows no bounds. My God, the damage is abysmal and easily resisted.
Trick Arrow - I plan to try it again soon but my first attempt at it (I5, I believe, when it and archery and sonics were rolled out) did not endear the set to me. Since I'm pretty sure the set's been looked at and/or changed so I might roll another when I'm bored but I'm not optimistic.
Sonics (both) - I have three but I just can't get into the sets for whatever reason.
Super Reflexes - Not a fan. I have an ice tanker who I love and used to have two SRs (katana and spines) but re-rolled them regen way back in Issue 4. Just didn't like SR then and I haven't seen anything that would compel me to try/like the set now. -
Quote:See, here's where the disconnect lies.That's just the thing: This is the only MMO I've played that ISN'T tedious for me, because playing the game is never the cost to an alternate self-serving agenda. I almost never sit down and play as work for the goal of achieving some objective through it. I sit down to play because I honest-to-God just enjoy playing the game for the sake of playing the game. On very, VERY rare occasions I may end up needing something specific, like a Romulus Sword, or a Redding Rail Rifle, or an aura, at which point I'll sit down and devote an hour to it or so, get the thing and glisten with glee for another hour, but by and large I want to play the game, not get things over with and out of the way.
All other MMOs feel like work, their ultimate goal being to watch numbers steadily increase like I'm the sort of person who takes photos of my car's odometer every time it clocks another thousand miles. The actual gamePLAY is the actual COST and WORK in this supposed game, and so something to be skipped, sped through and avoided as much as possible for the sake of things that, taken on their own, are actually utterly meaningless. I don't play to win. I play to play.
Tedium is in the eye of the beholder. There are people who feel the very act of leveling to 50 through existing content (not MA) is tedious. Are they wrong? No, because it's opinion. There are many people who believe that WoW is the shining example of what a casual MMO should be and that it is devoid of tedium. Are they wrong? No, but if they've never seen the other side of level 70 (and let's not even talk about 80), some folks might call their opinion uninformed. I've played MMOs for going on 15 years now (The Realm and Meridian59 popped my cherry) and MUDs prior to that (Gemstone, among others). I've seen all the various ways developers try to come up with to slow player progress (because not even Blizzard has the funds to produce content at the rate in which players consume it). Some are infinitely more pervasive, obvious, and effective than others. CoX has little in the way of blatant timesinks, pretty much everything is optional (as you alluded to).
However, I have this self-reliance thing and I also realize it's far cheaper overall if I control as many aspects of the supply and production parts of the equation. I don't look at it in absolute 'it takes 5 minutes to buy SOs but far longer to buy IOs' terms. It's business. An investment made now pays dividends down the line. If I can produce IOs myself, I'm never subject to market forces and am actually in position to take advantage of beneficial shifts in the market (like inadequate supply faced by overwhelming demand). I've made a good chunk of change last weekend into the early part of this week with folks overpaying for generic IOs. To me, it's all part of the gaming experience. I don't log in just to make stuff fall down and go boom, that's just one part of it. I don't play to win, I play to succeed, in whatever ways I choose to pursue or by any definition I set for success. My characters are IO'd out (to an extent) because it's easy (for me) and I find it beneficial to my play experience. That's it. I'm not trying to outdo anyone (this game isn't nearly as competitive as even say an old guard title like EQ1). But unlike my Shadowknight there needing 6.5k AC and 40k+ hp to do her job in appropriate content, as Part Troll pointed out, you can function properly naked here (since enhancements are the closest equivalent to gear here).
I consider the march to my first Field Crafter the same way I consider the march to my first 50. It's a journey and I didn't do it in a single day (or a single month, it took about 8 months, in fact). Every subsequent one, to me, is just like chasing accolades (or, more specifically, acquiring a badge specifically for its role in an accolade). I'm not a badge hound at all so besides cool names that fit concepts or requirements for unlocks (Master/Mistress of the Airwaves, for example), I don't concentrate on getting them at all. But being able to pop out an invention table at any given time, is a convenience that I often take advantage of. So I go after those badges for that accolade. It just so happens I play on multiple servers so have a "need" for multiple characters with that ability. -
Quote:This. But if blame has to be placed somewhere, it's with the team leader. S/he should've checked the defender's info if something specific was desired. If not, s/he should've informed the team that any build would be welcome (to flush out the uptight types who believe X AT should always take/have Y power). There are going to be people on the team who believe in full optimization and maximizing efficiency, regardless of how casual the game is in general. Full disclosure by the organizer/person holding the star would prevent this from being an issue, I think. Too much information is far better than too little when making any decision (regardless of importance).I would've just shrugged, maybe shared a few laughs over it in a private channel, and moved on. This is a casual-oriented MMO. Expecting a majority of players to have effective builds, a solid grasp of game mechanics and the ability to follow complex orders is unrealistic. Even if it turns out the team can't survive at all without the bubbles, what are you going to do, make her respec on the spot?
-
Quote:This post is awesome! But in their defense, many people consider some things 'necessities' when actually they're not. Like many people consider 'broadband' part of the 'basic utilities' section. Hell, I know I do but I also know it's a luxury when it comes time to tighten the belt. Heck, I pay for DISH's top package and the only reason I even want HBO or Showtime is for Dexter, Inside the NFL, and Real Time and if someone does a comedy special or something. I have one former guildmate in EQ who decided to cancel his account because he couldn't afford it.....because his cell phone bill was always too high. Turns out he was using the basic, entry level plan which didn't fit his usage and hadn't upgraded because "I don't need all that extra stuff". Moron, you need the additional minutes and the data plan! Instead of paying $30 more a month for the higher plan, he is/was paying $150+ more because of his data usage.Okay, point. Badly phrased. It was supposed to be a point that there's not a whole lot of difference between $15 a month and $10 a month if you are paying each month as it comes. If $5 is the breaking point for somebody's income on a consistent per monthly basis... I'm not entirely sure they should be playing an MMO.
Granted, I'm saying this having spent years supporting Cable TV and Cable Internet where there was an endless parade of people with either or both service(s) that couldn't afford things like:- a new pci network card. The network card's port had gotten buggered up and the customer flat out said they didn't have the money to buy a new network card... although they were paying for the fastest HSI service Cox offered. For those interested, the buggering up of the old network card involved peanut butter. No. I didn't ask WHY there was peanut butter in the network card port.
- batteries for the remote. Customer's account had the premium cable service (StarZ, Showtime, HBO, all of the HD channels), and when told to replace the batteries in the emote, exclaimed they didn't have money for batteries.
- A portable radio. This is one call I wanted to get a copy of. During Hurricane Katrina I took a call from a customer who had both the fastest Internet Service and all of the optional Cable Services. As there was a freaking HURRICANE going on, of course both services were off. The customer called in on their cell phone, desperate for us to send a truck out... in the middle of a freaking HURRICANE... to fix the cable service. Why? Because according to the customer their cable TV and cable internet was the only way they could keep track of the weather. When asked what happened to the battery powered radio that anybody in a freaking HURRICANE should have, the customer replied that they couldn't afford a portable radio.
The point of these anecdotes is that they have generated an inherently low opinion of people buying, or thinking about luxuries, that duck behind the well if it was $5 cheaper or I can't afford that. If $5 buck item purchases are the make or break point on things like video games, well, there are larger issues at hand that need to be dealt with. Namely food, shelter, water, medical supplies, and basic utilities.
A cheaper plan isn't going to help that many people. Honestly, if $15 a month is the difference between you eating and/or getting evicted/foreclosed on, that's not NCSoft's problem. Even wanting to play a game while in such dire financial straits is daft to me.
But je_saist, while your later points were correct, I kinda think you're preaching to an uninterested choir. If I remember right, Venture has quite a few characters (non-AE'd 50s as I recall) on Virtue, Freedom, etc. I do think he might sit on the 'more is better' side of the fence, though I'd disagree with that in this game. One of the reasons I consolidated my villains on Infinity was population (or lack thereof). Infinity + redside = a lot less people than blueside on Virtue. Low pop lovers and 'critical mass' types both have servers that fit their preferred environment. I'm not so sure that taking one away for the benefit of the other is such a good idea.
About the only notable thing I heard during the weekend from a returning player was from someone who quit in I6 due to ED and being "tired of Statesman lying to the players". For a delicious piece of irony, he also mentioned having played Champions from open beta through launch. -
It is for me.
Quote:First off, I have a badger that has all normal IO recipes memorized. I don't need recipes to make IOs for my characters, only salvage and money.
I have at least one Field Crafter on each account (I have two) on each server I regularly play on (Infinity, Virtue, Victory). I start using common IOs on every character at level 7 (L10s). This is because the Field Crafter accolade is a goal for every one of my characters that reaches or exceeds level 30. Thus, I tend to have lots of common IOs in stock. Plus, as a result of my market activities, I have a rather large backlog of set IOs (hero base on Victory has 9 complete sets of Thunderstrike and 4 of Detonation. Villain base on Infinity has 5 Crushing Impacts, and more than 8 Steadfast Protection Res/Def IOs. And so on). So moving up to sets in the 30-35 level range is fairly common for my characters. I also tend to keep the salvage parts for well used IOs in stock in the bases (luck charms, Alchemical silvers, Spiritual Essence, Scientific Theory, Spell Ink, Spell Scroll, Masterwork weapon, Ancient Bone, etc). Basically, any of the IO types that I tend to need in large quantities (accuracy, damage, recharge, end redux/end mod) I can usually make at a moment's notice. At first I did it because I hated having to replace SOs, especially since they often went red at the absolute worst times. Nowadays, I do it because I can and to keep the base's stock turning over.
I can definitely understand and respect folks who just don't want to be bothered though. I'd be in the same boat if I didn't decide to get it over with once (which turned into 'get it over with' eight times and counting). Understanding the system wasn't an issue (heh I've played EVE. CoX is a walk in the park in comparison), it was the initial tedium that bothered me. But then, every MMO is tedious in some way so it really didn't bother me that much (though I don't like what that says about me).
-
Yes it should, since the default setting is 'For Sale and bidding'. So unless you specifically change it to 'All', you won't see it if there are none for sale or being bid on.
-
My only problem with cysts is more related to how the current devs haven't gone back to fix the heavy-handed changes by the prior regime that don't necessarily fit the current day game.
Remember the portal nerf? The monkey nerf? They were both necessary but done differently. I don't like cysts because they're all risk and no (or insanely little) reward. Put the unbound nicti on the underling reward table (since that's probably the only workable solution that doesn't completely reverse the nerf) and I wouldn't have an issue. But as they stand now, just like the garbage spewed by summoning mobs now, they can give you debt but when you kill 'em, you get nothing. All risk, no reward.
Well, that plus I don't like how Kheldians are treated like a disease (once one "infects" your team, you're stuck with that infection even after the Kheld leaves the team, until you completely disband and reform). -
Quote:Yep, filter better. This is no different from any other MMO. Just because someone is max level does not mean they're knowledgeable about the game or their class/AT. Especially in this day of 'solo to level cap' gameplay, that clueless 50 doesn't have to be an AE Baby. They could very well be a casual type who leveled to 50 over the last four to five years and just doesn't know what "common knowledge" at their level might be (though it's more likely to be an AE Baby, admittedly).Oh, right, it's MY fault those 3 clueless level 50 n00bs who PLed their way to 50 using exploits ruined my TF.... Gotcha...
Then again, I'm an old vet from the EQ era where people at max level knew their (stuff) and heck, even being present in some zones suggested you knew more than Joe Casual (had to raid to get there and had to be competent to get into a guild good enough to do those raids).
But seriously, who doesn't at least check the badges on potential groupmates. That's no guarantee either but it's a lot easier to see an AE Baby coming by doing so. That "everything you do in an MMO affects everyone else" line of thinking is a slippery slope. When exactly does it end? Does my selling a ceramic armor to a QM/NPC hurt the populace by depriving the market of supply? Is my soloing depriving the populace of people available to team? Exploits are bad, no one's arguing that. But not everything is an obvious exploit. Demon missions on a fire tanker or brute, exploit or smart gameplay? I am SO banned if that's a 'sploit. -
Quote:I dunno which RPGs you played but I heard 'DPS' in Meridian59 and in EverQuest and that was well before the 'mid-2000s'.In the defense of the Devs, remember that until the mid-2000s the focus on power/spell design in many RPGs was still largely on "a few bread and butter attacks and some, neat quirky things players can do." It was only as the focus of MMOs pushed harder and harder toward raid/steamroller goals that many developers changed their focus. I've been playing RPGs for about 18 years and I think the first time I heard the expression "DPS" stated as such was in 2004. People always min/max'ed, of course, but there have been genre-wide changes in how that's evaluated since the old days.