NCsoft Brighton more trouble?
By
3dent,
Posted on: 2009-02-11 11:33 in CoH and CoV General Discussions
I agree with you JawDropper, the absolute lack of information is even worse that knowing what's really happening, as it's all speculation and pure conjecture flying away.
Leaving hundreds of customers cutted off any support or information is generating a general wave of distrust in NCsoft future plans (in case there would be any, which I seriously doubt) and is not a worthy economical policy in my opinion, specially with Champions and DC knocking at the door.
Proud Coleader of: Fuerza Letal (H), Liga de las Sombras (V), Legion del Fenix (H), Infernal Justice (H), and a happy member of GammaForce (H) and D.O.A. (V).
My alts: http://cit.cohtitan.com/profile/13494
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but how long will it take to gain back the purchase of AI of CoH before they even hit break-even? (afaik no numbers of purchase are known)
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Well i have more faith in them than to think they'd buy the IP (by Ai i assume you mean the IP) even though they thought they couldn't break even or turn a profit. The fact is they did buy it which means they thought they could make something out of it. Which is why i think this game as a bit of life in it yet and i doubt they're just going to shut it down and cut their losses.
P.s. even if you didnt mean the IP my point still stands 
sorta
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Ah yes, IP. Mixed up a few words here 
Agree on your point, combined with the 'omg payed expensions' posts on the US, microtransations is 'hot', little effort, big profit. Apply this to CoH, you got a steady (though small) healthy future of the game. If players will like this.. i dont mind, but thats me 
50)Sinergy X/(50)Mika.
(50)MaceX/(50)Encore
Sign the petition, dont let CoH go down! SIGN!
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the truth of the matter is u wont see the full nature of i13's demise until the q1 fy 2009 is realease as i13 was only realeased on the 2nd of dec
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The truth of the matter is that Issue 13 had a sustained positive effect on server populations and subs.
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it may have done alex but the fact remains a lot of ppl are unhappy with everything that went on before and after it (and also new issues espically after a 9mnth wait will always bring in more ppl)
What happened in the weeks leading upto i13 was absolutely absurd and inexcusable on soo many lvls please explain y that was even allowed to happen and also explain why it had such a notoriously bad effect on SOME of the older subscribers
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i think you need to speak for yourself. I have been playing for quite a while and the only thing that really bugged (forgive the pun) me about i13 is the nose dive the game took in stability. Never known so many crashes and bugs to appear in one issue. Except maybe i7.
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Ive been playing since i6, so i have some experience in this i13 has been the worst issue for buggs and crashing and lag that ive played. This issue has also been the worst by a heck of a long way for PR, I make no disguise badgehunting doesnt turn me on, i like to pvp (or more to the point i did) i also like to run TFs like the River Seven flows at hide tide, there really was very little for me to be happy about in i13, theve removed the bug from LGTF whihc was a good bug becoz it gave both side another TF from 35+ (and res side desperately needs more TFs (and basicaly theve semi removed it)
Castle's and the Devs behaviour has been porr this issue and thats smt that no-one can deny. so i ask u this If u were a PvP hardcorer (or even softcorer) would u be happy with they way that they (Castle in particular) treated this.
The case is the vast majority of older subs US and EU are seriously unhappy with
A) the PR side of things
B) the PvP side of things
C) the serious lack of appoligies
D) the serious lack of updates from the Devs
i14 will be even more hit and miss than this issue becoz the MA will not appeal to all and tbh should have been brought about 2 yrs ago when the recession wasnt here and marketed it with some sort of tie between the red and blue side and being extremely good or extremely bad, the lass that does the videos (i have forgotten her name an im sorry for that), would do excellent publicity by tying it in. and then NC could market that (properly) and the MA would be a huge success to creative ppl
neway No Dev Red Name is a very bad thing, I know they dont really give 2 [censored] about us, but we still pay for the game they dev. the longer they hold out the more ppl will get peeved at them
Is not going to remain VIP after Jan 14th 2012, but may remain an active Premium account holder.
See some of you guys/gals in other/new MMOs Soon(tm)
N.B. If you are going to do smt, please do it or GTFO and STFU nab
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Now you are back tracking... you said the media caused the credit crunch, not made it happen sooner/worse.
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Much as this recession sidetrack i sinteresting in itself, I'm not so sure it's good to divert from the what's going on and why won't NC talk to us nature of most of the thread.
But I'd love to point out, as my quote seems to keep being repeated at the top of that quote pyramid, that I always took the view that the media took the banks subprime debt-shuffling cockups and made things far worse. And indeed, had spending/lending patterns remained as was before their spin it is possible that we may not have seen a recession and it's pretty much certain that if we still did it wouldn't be as bad.
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Surely if the media doomsaying caused some people to alter their spending habits it could have lead to or exacerbated the recession.
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By my mohawk shall ye know me!
my toons
Funny: Ee-Ai-Ee-Ai-Oh! #3662 * The foul-mouthed Handyman! #1076 * City of Norms #132944
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You could argue that the greed of the bankers simply reflected the greed and moral bankruptsy of the society they where living in.
There is plenty of blame, to put wherever your politics suggests it sould go.
I really should do something about this signature.
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Tell me something, do you think this is being handled well?
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Is this one of those questions asked to determine baseline response for polygraph tests?
i.e. We know the answer and it's impossible to lie without being caught on it.
I'd have thought about the most positive anyone could answer (whilst avoiding answering) is that it's not the worst way that it could have been handled.
I just hope that the lack of communication with the customers/players is because all the NC guys are tied up trying to look after the staff they're affecting - if they are communicating with the staff as badly as with us then it really is shameful.
By my mohawk shall ye know me!
my toons
Funny: Ee-Ai-Ee-Ai-Oh! #3662 * The foul-mouthed Handyman! #1076 * City of Norms #132944
Serious: To Save A Single World (#83744) * Marketing Opportunity (#83747)
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Short, what does NCwest/Europe/NorCal contribute to NCasia? Problems, failed games and region issues. So maybe they are better off with only their Asia region.
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I think this is a bit premature. If you check the last earnings report, their investment in NC Interactive is still showing gains. The big losses are in NC Europe and Arenanet (and to an extent you'd expect Arenanet to show losses before GW2).
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And btw pretty sure that the UK media started serious talk of recession as being a recession and not a credit crunch way before the 2nd quarter of shrink was announced.
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A-nope.
They point-blank refused to call it a recession until halfway through Q3 last year, because they were adamant it would "scare the general populace". It was only when it was unavoidable that they were quoted as saying if this trend continues, we will be seeing 2009 in recession (the worst since the 70s).
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so i ask u this If u were a PvP hardcorer (or even softcorer) would u be happy with they way that they (Castle in particular) treated this.
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I don't think we should turn this into a 'i hate the PvP changes thread'. To be honest i'm not a Pvp'er, i dabble now and then but not to an extent that i would say it part of my gaming life. However i did play enough before and after to notice the changes. To be honest i felt that they'd tried to make it more equal and accessible for all rather than those top few who would just blitz everyone and make it less fun for others, especially new people.
What people have to remember is this isn't City of Veterans. It has to cater to new people too and obviously they felt that PvP didn't, as i did when i first started it.
As i previously stated i find the fact of creating a ton of bugs then not fixing half of them until i14 far more negligent than anything they did to PvP.
The above is only my opinion, please don't hate me for it
SG: Suicidal Maniacs @Aurealis
GhostRaptor: Server populations have been trending upwards since Issue 13 release. There are no current plans for any server mergers and we're looking forward to Issue 14 and the rest of the year.
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They point-blank refused to call it a recession until halfway through Q3 last year, because they were adamant it would "scare the general populace". It was only when it was unavoidable that they were quoted as saying if this trend continues, we will be seeing 2009 in recession (the worst since the 70s).
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So we had the recession in the 70s then michael jackson in the 80s . . . ., we'r having another recession now and michael jackson has said he wants to make a comeback soon . . . . .
This is just to much of a coincidence 
@Damz Find me on the global channel Union Chat. One of the best "chat channels" ingame!
I think a lot of the problems with NCwest managment is they are stuck in a buisiness model based on an Asian model.
E.g. lack of advertising: In asia, most gaming occurs in public areas, so word of mouth is much more effective. In the west, people usually game in thier own homes, so you need to find other ways to reach them.
I really should do something about this signature.
re: nooby_damz and others
this really isn't the place for discussion about what caused the global money problems, it's interesting but not here, it's annoying to see new posts on the thread and find it's no more new news or ideas on what's going on and just political arguing. :/
I wouldn't bother normally but this is quite important and I doubt I'm the only one watching this!
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so i ask u this If u were a PvP hardcorer (or even softcorer) would u be happy with they way that they (Castle in particular) treated this.
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I don't think we should turn this into a 'i hate the PvP changes thread'. To be honest i'm not a Pvp'er, i dabble now and then but not to an extent that i would say it part of my gaming life. However i did play enough before and after to notice the changes. To be honest i felt that they'd tried to make it more equal and accessible for all rather than those top few who would just blitz everyone and make it less fun for others, especially new people.
What people have to remember is this isn't City of Veterans. It has to cater to new people too and obviously they felt that PvP didn't, as i did when i first started it.
As i previously stated i find the fact of creating a ton of bugs then not fixing half of them until i14 far more negligent than anything they did to PvP.
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again another person who reads what they want to read (it isnt an i hate pvp thread) what im actually digging at therer is Castle and his communist PR skills (not the dire mess that PvP is in) one thing that is fairly certain a lot dropped off becoz of the pvp mess.
and the not fixing of bugs are just as much a problem as the mess of pvp (both are terrible and BOTH will put subscribers off (meaning bugs will put some off pvp will put others off))
What is indiputable is i13 has been an epic failure (as is my speeling)
Is not going to remain VIP after Jan 14th 2012, but may remain an active Premium account holder.
See some of you guys/gals in other/new MMOs Soon(tm)
N.B. If you are going to do smt, please do it or GTFO and STFU nab
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re: nooby_damz and others
this really isn't the place for discussion about what caused the global money problems, it's interesting but not here, it's asnnoying to see new posts on the thread and find it's no more new news or ideas on what's going on and just political arguing. :/
I wouldn't bother normally but this is quite important and I doubt I'm the only one watching this!
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Well the recession is obviously part of the reason they've decided to shunt so many staff out of Brighton. International trade is obviously very difficult right now, even China's exports have fallen significantly. It's probably easier for them to retreat to the US and wait out the storm than to try and keep it all afloat now and risk it all going under.
The above is only my opinion, please don't hate me for it
SG: Suicidal Maniacs @Aurealis
GhostRaptor: Server populations have been trending upwards since Issue 13 release. There are no current plans for any server mergers and we're looking forward to Issue 14 and the rest of the year.
totally agree deathkitten
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The truth of the matter is that Issue 13 had a sustained positive effect on server populations and subs.
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As i said i am seeing more new players or returning players in Union these days.
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And I don't think the 'Issue 13 destroyed everything' theory is really born out by the numbers in the NCSoft 3Q and 4Q reports. The big drop from 17000+ to 13000+ maximum simultaneous logins is in the Quarter ending in September. Issue 13 didn't come out until December, it didn't go Open beta until November, even Closed beta was October.
The Quarter ending December has a slight uptick. And anecdotally there seem to be more people about now than in December.
I'm not sure what happened in the ending September quarter, lack of a new issue for ages + WAR maybe?
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Can we say same about i14? I don't think so especially on New Player point of view. People don't get into games to build mods for a game they know nothing about.
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No, but they do get into games to play the mods that others have made if there's a selection of good ones. Does take a while to get that sort of effect going tho', and it's an open question whether the Mission Architect will give modders enough scope to make good ones.
...
OT: I'm afraid I'm in the Great Depression 2: Electric Boogaloo camp. It's probably due to my reading J.K Galbraith's 'The Great Crash' at a very impressionable age, and my Grandparents stories about rationing during the war, and growing up eight to a bed in the East End of London. Uphill, in the snow, both ways, whilst emigrating from Poland ahead of the Nazis.
Sorry deathkitten. 
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It's a good analogy. The people calling for server mergers didn't cause the problem, but they certainly made it worse/happen sooner (as we predicted at the time).
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This thread is the most hysterical block of doom-mongering ever to appear on these boards. Please don't forget to tar yourself with that brush, with extra lashings for FFM for spreading it over to the US boards too.
@GR and everyone at Brighton.
I just wanted to say I'm truly sorry to hear about the job losses down there; I've had a lot of pleasure out of the game and these forums over the years, and I'd like to thank you (and the people who were already axed previously) for that. Good luck with the future all.
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so i ask u this If u were a PvP hardcorer (or even softcorer) would u be happy with they way that they (Castle in particular) treated this.
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I don't think we should turn this into a 'i hate the PvP changes thread'. To be honest i'm not a Pvp'er, i dabble now and then but not to an extent that i would say it part of my gaming life. However i did play enough before and after to notice the changes. To be honest i felt that they'd tried to make it more equal and accessible for all rather than those top few who would just blitz everyone and make it less fun for others, especially new people.
What people have to remember is this isn't City of Veterans. It has to cater to new people too and obviously they felt that PvP didn't, as i did when i first started it.
As i previously stated i find the fact of creating a ton of bugs then not fixing half of them until i14 far more negligent than anything they did to PvP.
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again another person who reads what they want to read (it isnt an i hate pvp thread) what im actually digging at therer is Castle and his communist PR skills (not the dire mess that PvP is in) one thing that is fairly certain a lot dropped off becoz of the pvp mess.
and the not fixing of bugs are just as much a problem as the mess of pvp (both are terrible and BOTH will put subscribers off (meaning bugs will put some off pvp will put others off))
What is indiputable is i13 has been an epic failure (as is my speeling)
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No thankyou, i read what i see and what i actually meant was i didn't think that this thread should be turned into an 'i hate the PvP changes' thread which is what so often happens when this is mentioned.
I also think people are giving the PvP changes far too much weight in what's happening now. Fact remains some were going to like the changes and some were not. The small proportion that actually would of left is insignificant imo and could have easily been evened out by new people joining and old people returning for i13, which i saw quite a few of in game.
Imho if someones going to throw a hissy fit over a few PvP changes which accounts for a small part of the game then we didn't need them here anyway. There is a whole load more to do in game to have fun with. if they really wanted to make a point they could have stayed and put their point across rather than leaving in some sort of false martyrdom.
The above is only my opinion, please don't hate me for it
SG: Suicidal Maniacs @Aurealis
GhostRaptor: Server populations have been trending upwards since Issue 13 release. There are no current plans for any server mergers and we're looking forward to Issue 14 and the rest of the year.
Gracious, this is all turning rather political! - em,cower
I've emailed practically every global NCSoft PR department I can think of on three continents and let them know in no uncertain words exactly what I think of the current situation, and pointed them the way of this thread.
All I can say is if somebody... anybody doesn't get back to us to let us know what is happening - then I'm sorry but there is something fundamentally wrong with the company as a global business. There is no business scenario including a company takeover that warrants total communication blackout for your customers.
I guess things are stirring in the US also.
This from CuppaJo's twitter:
"oh good grief. Hugs NC Austin QA."
@Spindisc
Super Babes database
http://www.randomdice.com/coh/
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http://www.randomdice.com/cohgreetings/
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I guess things are stirring in the US also.
This from CuppaJo's twitter:
"oh good grief. Hugs NC Austin QA."
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Aye, they goit laid off as well... althoguh within reasoning the QA *should* be done inside the development studio
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so i ask u this If u were a PvP hardcorer (or even softcorer) would u be happy with they way that they (Castle in particular) treated this.
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I don't think we should turn this into a 'i hate the PvP changes thread'. To be honest i'm not a Pvp'er, i dabble now and then but not to an extent that i would say it part of my gaming life. However i did play enough before and after to notice the changes. To be honest i felt that they'd tried to make it more equal and accessible for all rather than those top few who would just blitz everyone and make it less fun for others, especially new people.
What people have to remember is this isn't City of Veterans. It has to cater to new people too and obviously they felt that PvP didn't, as i did when i first started it.
As i previously stated i find the fact of creating a ton of bugs then not fixing half of them until i14 far more negligent than anything they did to PvP.
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again another person who reads what they want to read (it isnt an i hate pvp thread) what im actually digging at therer is Castle and his communist PR skills (not the dire mess that PvP is in) one thing that is fairly certain a lot dropped off becoz of the pvp mess.
and the not fixing of bugs are just as much a problem as the mess of pvp (both are terrible and BOTH will put subscribers off (meaning bugs will put some off pvp will put others off))
What is indiputable is i13 has been an epic failure (as is my speeling)
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No thankyou, i read what i see and what i actually meant was i didn't think that this thread should be turned into an 'i hate the PvP changes' thread which is what so often happens when this is mentioned.
I also think people are giving the PvP changes far too much weight in what's happening now. Fact remains some were going to like the changes and some were not. The small proportion that actually would of left is insignificant imo and could have easily been evened out by new people joining and old people returning for i13, which i saw quite a few of in game.
Imho if someones going to throw a hissy fit over a few PvP changes which accounts for a small part of the game then we didn't need them here anyway. There is a whole load more to do in game to have fun with. if they really wanted to make a point they could have stayed and put their point across rather than leaving in some sort of false martyrdom.
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the only one turn this into a PVP debate is you
I mainly implied that Castle and his epic 1337 skillz at PR caused a alot of pvpers to leave.. i sorry but arrogant beligerent we do what we want and sod the rest of u attitude whihc is what he did cost the game a heck of a lot on subs (including some albeit not as many as pvpers)
you can not deny he has had a big part in the fall of subs
Is not going to remain VIP after Jan 14th 2012, but may remain an active Premium account holder.
See some of you guys/gals in other/new MMOs Soon(tm)
N.B. If you are going to do smt, please do it or GTFO and STFU nab
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This thread is the most hysterical block of doom-mongering ever to appear on these boards. Please don't forget to tar yourself with that brush, with extra lashings for FFM for spreading it over to the US boards too.
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Quite true.
But it's had about 48 hours during the middle of the working week to develop as such. 48hrs following an event planned by NC. And it could possibly be stopped just by a single post actually talking to us.
Do you not feel NC's at least a little lacking in customer relations?
In a blackout of course a feeling of doom will grow.
By my mohawk shall ye know me!
my toons
Funny: Ee-Ai-Ee-Ai-Oh! #3662 * The foul-mouthed Handyman! #1076 * City of Norms #132944
Serious: To Save A Single World (#83744) * Marketing Opportunity (#83747)
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Out of curiosity (inspired by the lovely person above me) should we all create Marvel/DC inspired characters just to see if we can get away with it or would that just be a mean a spiteful act?
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I'd personally call it mean and spiteful, but it DOES raise one question. Do we actually HAVE any GM's at the moment? Are petitions being ignored if so, or passed automatically to the US GM's already?
Are we alone in the dark?
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The CS team (GM's) remain, and they're working through their tickets as normal.
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Tell me something, do you think this is being handled well?