Ironically, I believe the devs consider (or at least, at one point, considered) scanner mission ramrodding to be a bigger problem than farming single maps, based on some comments by Positron last year.
And for a while things were cold,
They were scared down in their holes
The forest that once was green
Was colored black by those killing machines
Yay! Here's my "me too" story:
I recently joined a new SG (Feline Fellowship) on a new Server (new to me, naturally) Triumph. It inspired me to make a new character (yet another TriFormShade, I know, not very original) who has teamed with the SG members in several Scanner runs and I'll admit, some awesome fun Demon Farm.
For the first time in a long time, I had fun creating a new character, making a two costumes for it (it's Lv29, so soon I'll get a 3rd costume slot... YAY!) and a BIO!! (now that linebreaks actually work again in biography textfields, thank the Devs 
)
So yeah, the game isn't dead. Hurrah! 
I believe that a Kheldian Gold Standard should be based on SO's, and for anything above that... there's Platinum!
Save Ms. Liberty (#5349) � Augmenting Peacebringers � The Umbra Illuminati
Save Ms. Liberty (#5349) � Augmenting Peacebringers � The Umbra Illuminati
Nah the game is definitely not dead, I regularly receive pms from ppl running non-AE content to join them (I'm on Freedom).
There are big groups of players running the regular content, and not participating in farms (check my Sig if you wonder who those ppl are).
Btw radio missions used to be a form of farm ppl repeated ad nauseam, as is the AE now. There werent a problem for the community as they didnt offer more/less xp than story arcs, they had just an easier access (not stupid travel to different zones, go kill X mobs... etc).
Today, some AE missions just offer so much more xp than regular content and this create an inbalance in some way. Most of the time it's according to the risk vs reward ratio however, as the AE allows you to create much more difficult content (aka 54 boss maps). Sometime it's not, as there are still a few exploits that need to be fixed (hamis right now).
You know, with all the people saying AE killed the game, I always wonder why they don't team up with each other or form SGs or put each other on their friends lists or ANYTHING.
As far as farming with AE is concerned: Eh. It's firmly established that there will always be farmers, and even nerfing the AE or the rest of the game won't ever change it. I'm no farmer, and I honestly don't care either way. Just fix the exploits, like the now-deceased Meow Farms or now the Hami Farms, and that "Risk vs Reward Ratio" business will be back to normal.
How refreshing. Thanks for posting this. Since personal anecdotes seem to be the order of the day, I'll just say that, personally, I've been greatly enjoying the game. Granted, I'm relatively new so I don't have much cred when it comes to comparing "today's" game to "yesterday's" game. If I may speak for my friends though (and none of them are in the room, so I guess I will ), they've been playing for years and as far as I know, are still enjoying both the regular game, and the MA feature.
More anecdotes...Been playing the end game Praetorian content lately (and now have my first lvl 50!). So, apparently, have others, because I see other teams all the time, popping in and out of the same portals I am. In Cap last week, somebody in broadcast stated that they were currently doing regular content with a team they had just picked up off the streets. And...I could go on...but others have already told these tales, all over the forums.
My impression so far is that many of the "MA has ruined the game" threads are being started by players who only want to join PUGs; they don't want to start their own PUGs, and they don't seem to want to have to adjust their play style at all. Which is fine -- not really my business how somebody else plays -- until they start agitating to have changes made that diminish my experience of the game, in an attempt to facilitate their own. I find that rude.
EDIT: Deleted a couple of anecdotes. There's only so much about ME, ME, ME that even I can stand.
So true.
Like I said in an earlier topic the other day.
Wednesday night we got a mothership raid going. we actually got 5 whole teams of people and had a tremendously successful, 500 or so merit run, and that was with a new raid leader. She did awesome.
So, affterwards i decide to zone to atlas to see if AE spam at 7:30 PM central is flooding the town.
"Perez team needs more"
"lf one more for sewers"
Yeah. AE sure killed the rest of Infinity server.
Want comedy and lighthearted action? Between levels 1-14? Try Nuclear in 90 - The Fusionette Task Force!
Arc ID 58363!
um perez and sewers are really low level, that's why.
and just because 5% of players above 20 are still doing regular missions doesn't mean it's not as good as dead. It doesn't have to hit 0%. No mmo has been shut down with 0 players logged in having fun.
[ QUOTE ]
Ironically, I believe the devs consider (or at least, at one point, considered) scanner mission ramrodding to be a bigger problem than farming single maps, based on some comments by Positron last year.
[/ QUOTE ]
Scanner missions killed teaming for me before the AE ever came along. They're as boring and repetitive as farms, IMO.
I haven't seen any difference in non-AE team invites since AE came along, either, no matter which server I'm playing on (including Freedom). The only thing I haven't seen at all are the "Fill Plz" tells and getting blind invited and refusing 3 times from the same person in the span of 5 minutes (it's always 3 since that 3rd invite earns a place on the ignore list).
@Doctor Gemini
Arc #271637 - Welcome to M.A.G.I. - An alternative first story arc for magic origin heroes. At Hero Registration you heard the jokes about Azuria always losing things. When she loses the entire M.A.G.I. vault, you are chosen to find it.
[ QUOTE ]
Ironically, I believe the devs consider (or at least, at one point, considered) scanner mission ramrodding
[/ QUOTE ]
What's ramrodding?
If we are to die, let us die like men. -- Patrick Cleburne
----------------------------------------------------------
The rule is that they must be loved. --Jayne Fynes-Clinton, Death of an Abandoned Dog
[ QUOTE ]
So true.
Like I said in an earlier topic the other day.
Wednesday night we got a mothership raid going. we actually got 5 whole teams of people and had a tremendously successful, 500 or so merit run, and that was with a new raid leader. She did awesome.
So, affterwards i decide to zone to atlas to see if AE spam at 7:30 PM central is flooding the town.
"Perez team needs more"
"lf one more for sewers"
Yeah. AE sure killed the rest of Infinity server.
[/ QUOTE ]
I agree that the AE has not killed the game. It staggered the game with a stunning punch, yes.
However as with many new things that the game has brought in over the years, the novelty will fade some, and people will get tired of sifting through the AE search for the non farms and head back to newspapers, story arcs, TF/SF, Raids, etc.
There will always be farmers, be it AE or otherwise.
The game is alive and well. In the last week I've:<ul type="square">[*]Run with a level 44 Indigo story arc mission team.[*]Duo'd level 36 Borea missions in RWZ[*]Been duoing a level 50 PI mission arc (can't remember which one) every night[*]Done an ITF[*]Co-led a MS Raid[*]Solo'd the MA Portal Bandits[*]Solo'd the MA Operation: Discredit[/list]
I also mod the Liberty LBx channel and am on VU2009. There are TFs, arc, scanner, non-farm MA, and badge teams going on practically non-stop, and Virtue has either a Hami or MS raid practically every night. If people can't find things to do they aren't looking.
Together we entered a city of strangers, we made it a city of friends, and we leave it a City of Heroes. - Sweet_Sarah
BOYCOTT NCSoft (on Facebook)
https://www.facebook.com/groups/517513781597443/
Governments have fallen to the power of social media. Gaming companies can too.
(QR)
I think we can safely assume that if on Infinity, I can get my All Kheldian SG to gather up a team of 5 people (4+myself) to do some Lv50 Unai Kemen arcs on Lv5 Difficulty against Malta/Knives and some Carnie paper missions, the game is still alive, at least for the 5 people directly involved.
I believe that a Kheldian Gold Standard should be based on SO's, and for anything above that... there's Platinum!
Save Ms. Liberty (#5349) � Augmenting Peacebringers � The Umbra Illuminati
Save Ms. Liberty (#5349) � Augmenting Peacebringers � The Umbra Illuminati
yuppers, and the person from Freedom is full of crap. I only play on Freedom, and I get tells constantly about doing regular missions or TFs.
If you want to do regular content, here is a hint: GET OUT OF AP!
Every time I leave AP I get a tell within about 5 minutes. Every time.
Dark Armor is like that kid you knew in school that didn't know when to shut up, and no matter how bad he got beaten down, he got right back up again and kept on talking.
Unless I'm in Atlas Park, the tells I get rarely involve the MA. Yesterday I helped some people put down Adamaster and the last 2 tells I received before that were for TFs (Unfortunately didn't have the time for them).
I predict the more exploits are removed from AE, the livelier the game will get as a whole
I believe that a Kheldian Gold Standard should be based on SO's, and for anything above that... there's Platinum!
Save Ms. Liberty (#5349) � Augmenting Peacebringers � The Umbra Illuminati
Save Ms. Liberty (#5349) � Augmenting Peacebringers � The Umbra Illuminati
[ QUOTE ]
um perez and sewers are really low level, that's why.
and just because 5% of players above 20 are still doing regular missions doesn't mean it's not as good as dead. It doesn't have to hit 0%. No mmo has been shut down with 0 players logged in having fun.
[/ QUOTE ]
You missed the whole first part of my post apparently.
5 team. Mothership raid.
Oh look. at least 40 people doing NON-AE content right there.
Want comedy and lighthearted action? Between levels 1-14? Try Nuclear in 90 - The Fusionette Task Force!
Arc ID 58363!
I want in on the next Mothership Raid... pretty please?
I believe that a Kheldian Gold Standard should be based on SO's, and for anything above that... there's Platinum!
Save Ms. Liberty (#5349) � Augmenting Peacebringers � The Umbra Illuminati
Save Ms. Liberty (#5349) � Augmenting Peacebringers � The Umbra Illuminati
I have my team message field set on my lvl 35 defender on Victory to say "No AE - No Blind Invites", turn on the active "Looking for team" flag when I start playing and have managed to get into groups almost every night I felt like being in one. Sometimes arc missions, sometimes radio missions, sometimes a task force invite. But I almost never find myself lonely the entire night.
I do agree with people who want the AE building out of AP/GC/KR but I can't go so far as to claim that it's killed the game. At least not my game.
[ QUOTE ]
I have my team message field set on my lvl 35 defender on Victory to say "No AE - No Blind Invites", turn on the active "Looking for team" flag when I start playing and have managed to get into groups almost every night I felt like being in one. Sometimes arc missions, sometimes radio missions, sometimes a task force invite. But I almost never find myself lonely the entire night.
I do agree with people who want the AE building out of AP/GC/KR but I can't go so far as to claim that it's killed the game. At least not my game.
[/ QUOTE ]
Same experience for me and my friends on Infinity.
I get TF/pug invites almost every time i log on at any time of day both from friends and people i dont know.
Want comedy and lighthearted action? Between levels 1-14? Try Nuclear in 90 - The Fusionette Task Force!
Arc ID 58363!
When I got back in the game, I fell into some PUGs, found one that really sung well, joined that SG, and now I run missions with a group -all the time.-
I've run multiple TFs with these guys, got my friends into it, ran TFs with them...
Oh, and I go into Atlas Park 2 when I have business there. Much less lag.
In my opinion, the ae themselves aren't the "villians", instead it's the ability to do missions without having to travel anywhere. Especially at low levels, it is more appealing to spend time *doing* missions than *getting to* them.
What is the new player going to choose? I know what *I* prefer!
And even worse, extreme case, I started thinking about why bother to take a travel power at all?
I admit I flip-flop on the issue. While I'm trying to find a team I think AE is the worst thing ever, but once I'm on a team in an AE mission I think its the best thing ever.
While I'm getting all this easy XP and influ I think it's the best thing ever. When I find myself chained to it, because trying to doing other stuff doesn't pay as well I think it's the worst thing ever.
While I'm doing a hami AE getting lots of xp without risk I think its the best thing ever, but no risk is boring and it never takes long to feel like its the worst thing ever.
You see where I'm going with this, it is indeed the double-edged sword.
[ QUOTE ]
...it is indeed the double-edged sword.
[/ QUOTE ]
Just like any tool, they all hold potential for better or worse and both beauty and horror is in the eye of the beholder. 
I believe that a Kheldian Gold Standard should be based on SO's, and for anything above that... there's Platinum!
Save Ms. Liberty (#5349) � Augmenting Peacebringers � The Umbra Illuminati
Save Ms. Liberty (#5349) � Augmenting Peacebringers � The Umbra Illuminati
All my heroes are on Liberty. In the past month I have had no shortage of finding people to do TFs and I have put together and run a lot.
Hell the last sunday I did a DR-Q, a Posi, and a Numina for good measure. Then on monday ran a total of 5 TFs.
Missed getting on a Sarah Moore saturday night. They only had 1 spot and I was with a buddy. So we did a citadel and a moonfire.
Hell on champion, there were 2 full teams doing the lady grey at the same time, which messed up my Leviathan TF as they spawned in nerva just as we were starting the Lonbow hunts.
AE is just a tool, its the new people who only do AE that hurt. But they will get bored and move on.
Even did a Moonfire contest twice, with another team to see who got the best run without stealthing.
Its alive you just gotta dig some times. When you find those people global em and keep em!!!
[ QUOTE ]
You know, with all the people saying AE killed the game, I always wonder why they don't team up with each other or form SGs or put each other on their friends lists or ANYTHING.
[/ QUOTE ]
Well there is more than one server for starters. Not everyone wants to move, assuming they could all agree on one to begin with. Also despite having a common disagreement it doesn't mean that they all want to hang out together.
Anyhow, last couple weeks I've only gotten invites when a) I'm already logging off or b) during a time when I may need to AFK without notice. The later is going to last for quite a few more weeks while my sister recovers from her knee surgery.
I logged on last night to do a little messing around on a L44 Blaster. I didn't feel like doing any AE, and fully expected to be soloing. He was about 2/3 to 45, so I figured I'd see how much closer I could get him.
Within a couple minutes I had a tell "Want to do L46 missions in PI?"
I replied "Please forgive my hesitation, but do you mean real missions or farm/pling?" (I was NOT interested in running the Behemoth farm half a dozen times again.)
"Scanner missions"
"Sure!"
I then ran several scanner missions with a very good bunch of players, with only a little dieing. I got him the rest of the way to 45 and half way to 46, and had a great time.
The regular game is NOT dead. Even on a "dead" server like Champion.