The_Killbot_5000
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Posts
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Joined
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No way I'm aware of. Yet.
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I'd say that the key point of difference NCSoft/Paragon Studios is marketing Co* on at the moment is the Mission Architect. It's unique to the Superhero MMO niche, yes? Maybe to the whole MMO genre, yes? It was the subject of the latest boxed release, yes?
I think that the MA system is the primary marketing / unique point of difference feature that NCSoft are pushing. I think they've chosen right.
There is also of course Going Rogue, another box set, massive expansion, and new feature. Do other Superhero MMO's let you go from being a hero to villain, or back again?
I don't think the OP has anything to be concerned about, Ross and the Marketing Team know how to spin.
There are numerous articles on popular gaming sites with the developers about the latest in the game, contests, conventions...the list goes on.
I'm confident the game's in good hands. Can't say I'm so sure about the competition. -
I'd hope for an entire mirror-Paragon in Praetoria, all zones in Paragon reproduced with alternate-dimension spin. I believe 3 new zones has been dev-confirmed, to truly satisfy I'd want more of a new world to explore. New powersets, origins, costume pieces, ... hrmmm. Other than more zones (which is really just a question of quantity) I seem to just be restating the already announced feature list.
Gee, I think I'll be satisfied with GR. Hope I'm right. -
Welcome Dr. Aeon! I ran your HeroCon arc today and really enjoyed it. I won't give anything away for those who haven't played it, ("How to Save a Convention"), but needless to say it's actually got something for everyone, con-goer or otherwise.
You've got a lot of work ahead of you, luckily you also have a time-travel device.
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Quote:Yeah, actually, I'm not that interested in the prizes, as you said, I could just buy them. I was more interested in the titles and bragging rights (if in some unlikely event I had of won if able to enter). My trouble with the geographically limited contests is primarily one of principle. It offends me that there is not equal opportunity for all subscription paying customers to enter the contest.Originally Posted by Hemtroll
So what if it's not open to contestants outside of the US? If you really really want to get new gaming gear, save up some money and then buy it.
Not long till the contest closes now, get those story-arcs polished and sent in, I wanna see some superb winners, regardless of where they come from! -
Welcome Arbiter Kim! Nice to have another redname to work with the community on improving Co*.
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I logged in as my namesake toon yesterday and was at a loss as to what to do. So I thought I'd do some badging. I noted the Force of Nature Accolade on ParagonWiki and saw I needed just some more Arson side-missions to get the badge.
Running the few newspaper missions required to get Wiggy the Brit to offer me the Mayhem Mission didn't take long and then it was off to Peregrine Island to cause chaos. I didn't rush straight to the bank (the standard team-tactic I've seen), instead ambling slowly through Peregrine smashing all before me. Once I got to the bank I robbed it blind, cleared it of the so-called defenders and the person in the lycra claiming to be a hero.
My main objective complete I went hunting for an Arson side-mission, I managed to keep the timer going for about an hour start to finish while clearing out 3 side-missions (not an arson among them, oh well). While doing it I decided to head up to the PPD station, bash down the door and free Critical Mass for the heck of it.
All in all I really enjoy Mayhem missions in general (and Safeguards hero-side) and think that the side-missions are one part of them that increases my feeling of superness. I'll be the first to admit that Mayhem's on a team can be one of the saddest failures ever as people run willy-nilly uncertain what to do next. That being said, solo or on a team of players experienced with them Mayhem/Safeguard missions are uber-fun, the side missions are icing on the cake. -
Quote:They're not bad, they're just drawn that way!Originally Posted by NuclearToast
They're not graphics upgrades, they're morally ambiguous graphics!
--NT
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My toon the Purple Claw (Lvl 50 Claws/Regen Scrapper) would so sign up for a counter-invasion of the Rikti homeworld. A world fulla the critters he's bent on revenge against, sure, close the portal behind us, we won't be needing it, we'll be too busy slicing and dicing!
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Quote:Zombies ftw! That game had me jumping outta my seat in fright.Originally Posted by BackAlleyBrawler
Left 4 Dead, etc etc.
On the question of loyalty I think BAB's response sorta answers it. I can eat at McDonalds and Burger King without being 'disloyal' to either. Naturally I'd also have severe indigestion, but ya know...I like me burgers. -
Agreed. The option to have your last search saved for when you next log in would be a great feature to add to the MA. Yes, there need to be some new Dev's Choice awards handed out to arcs too.
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I'd love to resurrect this thread because I've been thinking about personal bases recently too. With the advent of the MA system wouldn't it be fantastic to be able to use its functionality blended with that of the base editor to create a personal base that you could invite people to. You could even stock it with an NPC version of your toon and various minions with scripted dialog and animations. Taking the idea a step further, possibly people could either be "Friend or Foe" when they enter your base. If friendly they could use it's features (Medibots, Teleporters etc) or if foe your base defenses and forces would react to repel the invader.
The benefits of having personal bases available would include:
- Allowing players to dispense with the SG structure, for those who don't wish to participate in it, while still allowing them to access features such as base teleporters etc.
- An addition to the SG structure for those who enjoy it.
- More content. Player bases could be flagged as open to the Public, SG, Team, listed as "raidable" or enterable as a mission or not.
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I have broken down my feedback into two parts, the first related to Trick or Treating, the second to the new Deadly Apocalypse. I did no testing related to the Zombie Apocalypse.
Trick Or Treating.
Merits:
- Familiar to players from previous years. Ya click the door ya take your chances.
- Good range of rewards available.
- Enemies seemed to be spawning at appropriate levels and in appropriate numbers while solo.
- I soloed some doors for Trick or Treating in Grandville. The Tricks seemed to outweigh the Treats by 8 to 1, could be a little more Treat-heavy.
- Familiar. Yes, this is both a Merit and a Problem. It’s a little dull for veteran players.
Deadly Apocalypse:
Merits:
- Sky turning red is suitably atmospheric. An accompanying roll of thunder in the distance with suitable sound would complete the effect.
- The Banners have nice graphical effects, the circles around them look good.
- The Event UI has a nice design and graphics. It conveys information relatively well.
- The incoming enemy groups, zombies et al. are paced well and keep a team on their toes.
- Temporary Power rewards were a fun surprise. Some stated that theirs could not be awarded though.
- The event is atmospheric, challenging and significantly different from previous ones. With more background information available to players in game to increase understanding of mission objectives will be a real fun event.
- No text errors in Badges or Accolade noticed.
Problems:
- Event needs more directions for unfamiliar players. Determining what the objectives were first time through was confusing. E.g. Defeat the Banner or attack the banner…oh, neither, attack the enemies until the Banner is vulnerable then attack it.
- Badges fell thick and fast, this cheapened them in my opinion, they were too easy to get.
- Low level characters or any without a travel power will have difficulty getting from Banner to Banner in time to participate in more than one Banner attack.
- Banner markers on mini-map should blink or in someway draw attention to themselves more as they are easily missed in a cluttered zone.
- Use of Shivan and Hydra models as enemy groups during Deadly Apocalypse seemed out of step with the ‘horror’ genre and more ‘sci-fi’. Both groups originally have sci-fi backgrounds, the Hydra created by dimension-invading Rikti and the Shivans although ectoplasmic goo stuck to human skeletons originated from space and landed via meteor strikes. New models would have seemed more appropriate.
- Destroying the Aspect of the Sigil GM was easier than taking down a Banner with our group. Some kind of rebalancing (HP increase on the GM or reduction on the Banners perhaps) to make the GM be more challenging than the Banners would be a good idea.
- There are some bottlenecks on the maps where the incoming mobs could be stopped easily, around the edge of shacks in Mercy Island for example.
- The Channel Members List window resets to Server from previously set channel (e.g. Halloween 2009) when using O-portal to travel from Cap Au Diable to Ouroboros or Grandville to Ouroboros. Doesn’t occur when zoning from Ouroboros to Grandville, Ouroboros to Cap Au Diable etc.
- Noted 2 cases of the ‘chat bug’.
All in all my first impressions of the new incarnation of the event is that it is exciting, new and interesting for a short time. I can’t see myself taking part in it for too long. I acquired all the new badges within an hour or so, the new temp powers while handy wouldn’t keep me coming back.
The new graphics are very nice, it would have been good to see the effort extended to new models for some of the mobs of the Deadly Apocalypse.
7.5/10. -
Quote:*blink blink*Originally Posted by Bovine_Avenger
Actually, there's a far more simple reason why EU players are going to be frustrated intensely by this competition; How many of you, where ever you are now, have got ANY plays of your arcs, no matter how good, over the last few months? Because if you aren't a Devs Choice, and on either the first few, or the last few (brand new) pages, with extreme figures either way for Played/Rated, people just aren't bothering any more. 4 stars and on page 100 is complete MA death; It's either all farms or the arcs that did well right at the start that are played now, and the madness of crowds has set in...
So. Here comes a competition to re-vitalize the attention paid to MA Arcs; Great! Actually, no it's not, because unless you're American, you can't even enter. Instead of giving us regular Dev Choices, like they actually promised, for everyone no matter where they live, or even following up on the thread for suggestions of quality we were given months ago, what we'll be getting is the best of the purely American arcs; Some of which may indeed be fantastic of course. But they'll be fantastic AND unfairly propelled to the top of the list again. It's going to lead to a form of MA Apartheid, and how anyone can honestly not see the huge discontent that's going to lead too is beyond me...
Now I'm not going to pretend free swag doesn't have it's appeal too... of course it does. But having already had my custom content published for free with other games too (Dawn Of War: Winter Assault when published in Poland, of all places, gave away one of my maps with the game as an online unlock) I'm entirely happy with giving the community something for nothing... just at least honestly acknowledge that it's appreciated for what it is. Criticise it where it's needed too, because that's where all self-improvement ultimately comes from. But don't just come out with "Sorry, you're not American, and we can't reward you, so you're not even in the running for recognition either."
Oooooo, I like you.
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Quote:*shakes fist at sky* Dang you geography! You win this time.Originally Posted by Zombie Man
So, don't make it a geopolitical slight, it's just a geographical slight.
As much as the articles you linked about international competition law being a bee-atch were very helpful for some who weren't aware of the complexities, they don't shed much light on why NCSoft won't spend the money to get their new fine print created to the satisfaction of their lawyers.
I would imagine it's because it costs more money than the promotion the competition is likely to garner will gain the company. In other words somebody did a cost-benefit analysis and for financial reasons the competition is limited.
It will be nice to see which arcs win, play them, compare and contrast with my own and others arcs. It would have been nicer to participate.
Good luck to all who can enter! -
Ah, this must be what Positron was hinting at in a recent Gamespy interview. A chance to be plucked from obscurity and have your arc recognised.
As with many above I think that NCSoft not opening their competitions world-wide (considering their international playerbase), is a disappointing move. Although it's never been stated by Paragon Studios we're all pretty certain it's because of the variety of competition laws around the world. I for one think that Posi and the team should find a relatively small cupboard to put the lawyers objections in (and maybe the lawyers themselves) and make all CoH/CoV competitions truly international.
It's not like it can't be done, there are plenty of international sweepstakes and competitions out there in the world, and I suspect it comes down to a matter of cost rather than effort. -
And to add further detail, cookie-handling in general seems funky. I just closed IE8, after having ticked Remember Me and changing my forum preferences, when I reopened IE8, it didn't Remember Me.
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XP, IE8 if it helps TJ.
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I too was Delrune, disturbing.
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Yeah, these are nice looking Praetorian Clockwork alright. They look similar to the Amped Clockwork in my MA ArcID 15127, "A Spanner In The Works Part One." I would have expected them to be more "clock-worky" too, but in Praetorian Earth I'm guessing that maybe the Clockwork King doesn't get whomped by Blue Steel and actually becomes a qualified robot-maker, producing these automatons of steel and wire instead of his pretendy psychically puppeteered ones on Prime Earth.
These are toggle costume powers, you get to flip the switch and "become" the Praetorian Clockwork in appearance.
Last year I flew from NZ to the US, so the distance argument doesn't really wash with me. If you really want it you'll go to HeroCon, it's for people who make the effort. -
If you arrive the night before the first day of the Con, then last year there was early registration open. This was much better to do than standing in line the next morning, so I'd recommend it.
Don't forget to bring your sense of adventure! If you're going to make the trip don't let you're own shyness stop you from getting in amongst all the other con-goers (who are all in the same boat), and making some new friends.
You might want to have a close look at the list of activities once announced so that you can pick out which ones you'd like to take part in. Last year there was some overlap of panels so you had to be quite choosy, this year I think they've learnt from that, hence the expanded 2 day affair.
Have fun! -
What a great looking event! I'm all about the robots.
Try ArcID 15127, "A Spanner In The Works Part One."
Technology in Paragon City is going haywire, everything from kitchen appliances to heart-rate monitors are on the blink. Can you discover the cause? -
Quote:Ain't that the troof!Originally Posted by Lady Athyna
Or allow telecommuting...
I think it's funny, and sad at the same time, that the I.T industry has so few companies that use telecommuting technology. The reason? Because people can't be trusted!
But you and I aren't regular people Athyna, we play Co*, so they should trust us!!
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Awesome job description, there should be more like these in the world. I've been looking at a few of them lately and mostly they'll make you want to tear your hair out with their banality.
I reckon I'd be able to do this job, albeit only because bear-wrestling was crossed out, if they added cat-herding I reckon they'd have made the description just for me! Sadly it's unlikely that they'd want to ship me in from NZ for 3 months.
Although if they do, I'm reaching for my suitcase right now...
C'mon Paragon Studios, you've got my phone number... I'm waiting.
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We must gather all nations under one banner to fight against the coming horde! Certainly, people may laugh now, but they will be laughing out of the other side of their zombie-ravaged faces if we don't do something now!
Thankfully we now have Maths to add to our arsenal of shotguns, chainsaws, garden implements, fire and dismemberment!!!
Remember, zombies never sleep.