Hey devs,isnt it about time (and overdue) for..
By
Aett_Thorn,
Posted on: 2009-10-02 04:52 in Player Questions
Quote:
A bank is something that's been suggested so many times over the years with, as far as I can recall, no Dev comment on one way or another. While I support the suggestion and would make great use of it myself, I'm assuming the Devs have some reason they haven't implemented it after all this time. |
Originally Posted by JenniferJ
1)A "bank" system of some sort..each player on a server has 1 bank account at a bank and all their toons can deposit and withdraw from it.maybe 2 locations like atlas and talos or something (or even more).But somewhere easily accessable to both yellow and green lines.It sure beats having to use someone else to transfer money.Maybe a SMALL charge for using it. Note the word SMALL lol.(Of course free would be better).We already have to pay for server transfers,extra toon slots,and expansion packs that probably arent worth paying for *cough* wedding pack *cough*...We're gonna transfer money anyway so why not make it official?
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2)Kill a server.Now that the AE controversy hype (and overhype) has died down some servers are dead again and some stayed dead even during the AE "gold rush".Isn't it about time everyone on dead server(s) was/were moved from one to another.Im not saying kill alot of em but 1 MAYBE 2 would help.You neutered AE to urge people to get back to teaming (and force people to work for a living lol) but while it worked for some servers, others it didnt. Just my opinion..but I think the first one shouldve been done a long time ago...opinions? |
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Keep in mind the in-game currency isn't "money" that can be put in a bank. You get influence, which can be explained like "Oh, you just saved Dr. danger-prone from the evil Arachnos, and prevented them from extracting his secrets. Have some free stuff!"|
Originally Posted by JenniferJ
1)A "bank" system of some sort..each player on a server has 1 bank account at a bank and all their toons can deposit and withdraw from it.
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When your running low on influence, it's also like saying "Hey, you haven't done anything heroic in a while, go beat up Tsoo and I'll give you some more stuff."
So, the currency in this game isn't tangible. You can't save some girls purse, then tell her "Hey, go tell the bank I saved you, so I can store some influence in there."
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| 2)Kill a server.Now that the AE controversy hype (and overhype) has died down some servers are dead again and some stayed dead even during the AE "gold rush".Isn't it about time everyone on dead server(s) was/were moved from one to another.Im not saying kill alot of em but 1 MAYBE 2 would help.You neutered AE to urge people to get back to teaming (and force people to work for a living lol) but while it worked for some servers, others it didnt. |
You think the servers are empty now? If they did kill a server, the servers would be even more abandoned, because you just killed a couple thousand players favorite server. Then NC would loose valuble customers, and then they would lose money.
Arc ID: 348998 - Becoming a villain
Arc ID: 373341 - To Save a Hero
Got Inf?
LOL No, JJ
We'll bring the cut and paste answers from the many times these dead horses have been dredged up if you need . . .
But I don't understand your logic of "People will do X anyway, We should make it easy".
Very bad logic. So many 'wrong' things can be inserted there, as 'X'.
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A bank in this game would not make cannon sense, and here's why influence and infamy while money in a sense is only that. We are not hired heroes and villians. If your house catches on fire and a fireman puts it out, do pay him $10,000. NO you don't that is their job to save lives. You will have a great deal of respect for that person and tell many people about it. That person now has some influence in the community.
Killing servers is never a good idea, I have a few toons with the same name on different servers. If those servers were merged I would lose at least one of them.
We already have access to a type of "account bank." It's called a Supergroup Base.
Now bases are not equipped to work as a bank on day one but it doesn't take much effort to get it to banking status.
Once you've earned enough Prestige you will be able to equip your base with a storage bin for enhancements.
Now instead of using the markets to xfer inf. from one toon to another, you simply make the enhancements your low lvl needs(made by your high lvl) and place them in the bin.
There's your "account bank" without having to pay the middleman (10% market take).
Obviously it's not as time efficient as your proposal but it gets the job done.
For the record I would be in favor of an account bank, but I will finish by saying I'm content with how one might use their Base.
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Influence stopped being conceptual in-game a long time ago, with the release of Wentworths, where you can now transfer it to anyone, even if you have no idea who they are. Influence and Infamy are now straight-up forms of currency, despite their names.|
Originally Posted by PhantomRanger
A bank in this game would not make cannon sense, and here's why influence and infamy while money in a sense is only that. We are not hired heroes and villians. If your house catches on fire and a fireman puts it out, do pay him $10,000. NO you don't that is their job to save lives. You will have a great deal of respect for that person and tell many people about it. That person now has some influence in the community.
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I'm still not in favor of the idea 100%, but let's not pretend that Influence isn't money with a fancier name.
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| Killing servers is never a good idea, I have a few toons with the same name on different servers. If those servers were merged I would lose at least one of them. |
Let me never fall into the vulgar mistake of dreaming that I am persecuted whenever I am contradicted.
~Ralph Waldo Emerson
"I was just the one with the most unsolicited sombrero." - Traegus
Personally, i'd love a bank. Heck, why not use the safe in the base? It's IS a vault afterall. Most vaults i see in banks have money in them. I don't understand the previous posts about the inf, those situations dont make sense. It's a heroes job, yes, BUT the game offers a way to train your toons and those ways cost INFLUENCE. I have dual accounts so inf transfers are no problem for me, but i'd hate to trust someone in this game to transfer, say, 400mil inf or better if i only had 1 account. Or a set of purples.
Server mergers i dont see happening. If someone creates a toon, walks into Atlas and don't see anyone and keeps the toons and levels them, then i don't think they can complain about a low population. Best advice i can think of is to intro yourself and ask in broadcast if its a low or high population server. If it for some reason was high, and everyone left then just pay 10 bux and go somewhere else. (after doing a pop. research)
Like Aett_Thorn said, influence and infamy became money a long time ago. It's just another name. If the devs were obsessed with not making it money, things like Wentworths or trading would not be added to the game(don't know how long trading is in the game though, could be there from the start...I don't know). Also, I'm not able to suspend my disbelief so far that my "influence" can buy me Improved Cybernetics from another hero.
The concept was nice but as soon as they started to add tangible objects in the mix it became very blurry.
So yes, I'm all for a bank.
And no, killing servers is never a good idea so let's not.
The M.A.D. Files - Me talking about games, films, games, life, games, internet and games
I'm not good at giving advice, can I interest you in a sarcastic comment?
@Lyrik
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I've got a tank and a blaster on Freedom and a scrapper and blaster on Liberty. The differences between the two are night and day. Freedom is full of kids and you can get on a team while walking across the street sans LFT shouting. Liberty, everyone is nice, no one broadcast spams, teams last longer than 40 minutes.|
Originally Posted by Hellguard
Some of us prefer to play on low-pop servers, and for those who don't, well, there's always server transfers.
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I don't want them to get rid of any servers unless they are taking the two lowest and merging them, as long as Liberty isn't one of those [and I think it's about median].
I'm not understanding what we'd do with a "bank." I'm a walking bank as it is. If you want to transfer [money launder] from one character to another, use Went's. I gave 3m from my 43 on Liberty to my 10 on Freedom last night by selling the 43 a rare but worthless lev 50 enh for that amount.
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Originally Posted by Memphis_Bill Copypasta |
Originally Posted by JenniferJ
1)2)Kill a server.Now that the AE controversy hype (and overhype) has died down some servers are dead again and some stayed dead even during the AE "gold rush".Isn't it about time everyone on dead server(s) was/were moved from one to another.Im not saying kill alot of em but 1 MAYBE 2 would help.You neutered AE to urge people to get back to teaming (and force people to work for a living lol) but while it worked for some servers, others it didnt.
Just my opinion..but I think the first one shouldve been done a long time ago...opinions? |
Why server consolidation is not a good idea.
Welcome to the forum. You have posted one of the oft repeated suggestions, "Consolidate the servers."
Disclaimer
Yes. This is a cut and paste reply that I keep handy, as well as a quick bit of instruction on how to search. Neither are meant to cause fights or to be insulting. The search instructions are in, not just because forum rules say flat out to search, but to help you and anyone else reading this use the search tool effectively.
The body of the cut and paste reply is the way it is because we've seen these arguments numerous times before. They're a summary of the salient points that come up each time. They are not here to insult you, make you feel stupid or otherwise "bring you down a peg." Instead, they are meant as instruction and information. Please read through the points and the explanation behind them to see the issues that are commonly brought up in response. They may not always match your suggestion 100% - in fact, you may have explained around one or two of them - but they're there for consideration and refinement of your idea.
Yes, I do look forward to the time, with some of these suggestions, that someone not only addresses all the points, but does so exceptionally well. It'll probably be added to the end of the cut/paste reply, with credit. For now, though, read and consider the points. They really are just there to help you, and move discussion along to help ideas evolve.
If you're going to see this and say an "evil forum vet is just shooting down your idea," or "You think you're the last word because of your post count," you're wrong. Heck, if you say the second, you've just worried more about my post count than I have in the last four plus years. Tongue-in-cheek comments in here are meant as hummor, not put downs.
TL,DR section.
First, my stock answer, one which I stand by and repeat with all due fervor. HELL NO.
Searching effectively
1. Click on "Search" up at the top of the forum.
2. On the left, under "Forum(s) to search," select "Suggestions and ideas."
3. On the right, Keyword Search Terms. This is probably where your problem was if you did search. Try the following, exactly as typed:
+server -pvp -"re: "
This will search for anything with "Server" in the title, including Servers, Combine Servers, Consolidate Servers, and The Server At Mcdonalds Is Rude. it will eliminate "PVP," so you won't see PVP server requests, and the -re: portion of it removes replies, so you'll see the root of every thread that comes up, letting you see just how many threads there are on this. (The last helps for other subjects, as well.)
4. Click the "In subject" radio button. This is a search, not a cute blonde in a bikini. Here, you want to ignore the body.
5. Leave Username Search blank.
6. Date range, Newer Than, change the 1 to a 3, and the time to Months.
7. Result format doesn't matter. Click on "Submit."
As I try this now, (12/3/08,) we have:
Consolidate Server
Server Stats RSS Feed
$server modifier ofr chat
Fix the forum server
Earlyissue server
Merging low population server
Combine slow server
Server status
Global chat on the Character and Server Screens
Rated M server
Add Ponies, Nerf Vills, merge Servers, PistolMelee
Server Visiting
Display Central Time on Server Status Page
Ignoring the smartalec reply, that's three full discussions about this topic.
You should have read one of them if (inevitably) something similar comes up in your search.
Now, on to the topic at hand....
Why server consolidation is not a good idea.
1. Just because YOU like living in New York City doesn't mean I can't like Kansas.
Yay, you love having huge lag spikes as you get near the black market/wentworths and a busy broadcast. Congrats. Enjoy Freedom. Some of us - many of which you will get replies from with this subject - like *low population* servers. If we *wanted* to be on Freedom, we'd *be* on Freedom.
I have characters on Freedom. I rarely play them (and actually moved a character OFF of Freedom to finish leveling it to 50) because *I DON'T LIKE FREEDOM.* I dislike the banality of broadcast, the high percentage of *horrid* teams I've come across there, the lag around any gathering point- and I've got a decent connection and system. For much the same reason, I typically startin Galaxy City instead of Atlas Park - I don't *want* to log in to a costume contest with several 50s spamming powers and nonsense arguments in broadcast.
Some of us *like* nice, quiet servers.
2, Kansas, part 2.
In addition, servers have their own personalities. No, I don't mean that literally, there's no AI to worry about if you start hearing "Daisy, Daisy" over your speakers or headset. Freedom's a crowded mess. Virtue is the RP server. Pinnacle is the "Drunk" server. Others have specific communities, such as those from Australia/NZ, Europe, etc.
3. "I only saw one other person. World of Conancraft has eleventy billion!"
So what?
We don't run around camping spawn points in this game. People are in missions. People are spread across many zones. Search on a map or do a /whoall and you'll miss those in missions, as well as those who are, for whatever reason, on /hide. Your "search" there didn't give you a full picture, not in the least.
I understand the "feel" of things being "not very populated," but take a good look around when you're in game. Typically, you don't really have a lot of visibility. Standing in steel canyon, there could be multiple, full 8 person groups surrounding you, and it's likely you'd never see them. We have buildings, walls, architecture, trees and more limiting our visibility. Yes, it can make you feel more alone... but that's rarely the case. Add to that that the population is spread between many, MANY zones, most quite large, and among two sides... well...
4. "I put up my LFT flag and nothing happened!"
Learn to search. Don't just wait. Form a team yourself.
5. "I AM SPARTACUS!" No, not any more.
Remember logging in and seeing all those slots? Everyone has those - some buy more than the base 12, you get an extra one each year, you could have a total of 36 on any server. Everyone does. Every one has a character with a unique name. Maybe not a *good* name, but a unique one. Every one has a character with a unique name. Maybe not a *good* name, but a unique one.
Now merge servers. Suddenly, CoolBlasterDude from server 1 is getting merged with CoolBlasterDude from Server 2. Who gets to keep their name? Nobody has been able to answer this with any degree of satisfaction. Add a number? But I am NOT CoolBlasterGuy1. And what if the name's too long? Does the older character keep it? What if they're not as active?
People are *VERY* attached to their names. They are, quite obviously, part of their character.
6. "This Is SPARTA!" Sorry, Sparta exists already. You are GenericSG 8734 287 9798.
What else has a name? Supergroups. And I can *guarandamntee* that the same name is in use on multiple servers. Sometimes it's 'branches' of the same SG, sometimes it's coincidence. But with *everything* involved in an SG - from its identity and reputation on the server, to everything stored in the database about what it owns, what its base is like and such, this would be a disaster in the making. And no, auto merging them when the servers merge, even if they have room to, is not an option.
This, of course, assumes that they *CAN* move supergroups as a unit. More than likely, it'd just be a mass character move, with bases, prestige, anything stored in bases and all SG affiliations just gone forever.
7. "I am... where'd Spartacus go?"
Remember all those slots? Well, you start with 1/3 of the available ones. You can buy up to 36 total (24 on top of the ones you get initially.) Now, what do you suppose would happen if you merged two servers, and someone has, say, 20 characters on each? Not unusual. In fact, before those extra slots, I had *filled up* several servers. Do those characters just disappear? Do they move? Free move to another server sounds great, right... well, except you now kick them from their supergroup, remove them from their friends lists and more. This makes for angry and unhappy customers. Or rather, ex customers.
8. I will play where I damn well want to. And you can too.
And that should be blunt enough. If I want a crowded server, I'll go to Freedom. If I want an RP server, I'll go to Virtue. I do NOT want to be shoved onto another server I *don't* like. If I wanted to go there, *I'd be there.*
If the server you're on isn't "busy" enough for you, you have two options that won't bother anyone else.
(A) If it's low enough, reroll. You have a ton of character slots for a reason.
(B) If you don't want to reroll, server transfers are available, and relatively cheap. They also finish fast - you should be up and running and being spammed to join someone's SG on the new server in a few minutes, in most instances. So YOU can go to the server of YOUR choice without screwing ME over.
9. "It'll free up server hardware for Freedom!" No, no it won't.
Freedom, because of the load it tends to have, already has more resources dedicated to it than other servers. And ALL of the servers have been upgraded multiple times. The servers are not allocated exactly the same. The servers that handle less of a load have less dedicated to them. So this argument doesn't fly.
10. DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
Last but not least (at least until better points come along to be added,) server consolidation is widely viewed in the industry as an MMO going on life support. No, we don't have WoWs numbers (and you should actually pay attention to when and how they got those.) They're an abberation in the MMO industry. COH has had and does have a very successful, sustainable population even at its lowest points, so there's no economic need to combine anything. The flip side of that, of course, has been suggested above - you crowd people together, break up their SGs and friends lists, cause characters to go missing and poeple definitely *will* quit, both out of annoyance and a sense of "The game is almost dead!"
In conclusion....
As stated before, when it comes to server consolidation... HELL NO.
Aren't these more Suggestions then Player Questions?
To the OP: Devs don't generally read or respond here. This forum is for Player Help.
__________________
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Victory Server: Join Victory Forum for team forming and general game chat and IRC Chat: irc.hashmark.net #victory for offline chatting.
Rock, rock on Hamster.
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Actually you gave 2.7 million to your level 10 as you got charged 10% for the privilage. Come to think of it that's actually a pretty good Bank Simulator |
Originally Posted by Postagulous
I'm not understanding what we'd do with a "bank." I'm a walking bank as it is. If you want to transfer [money launder] from one character to another, use Went's. I gave 3m from my 43 on Liberty to my 10 on Freedom last night by selling the 43 a rare but worthless lev 50 enh for that amount.
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As a chronic alt-er with not too much dosh I'd love a common account-wide Salvage & IO storage solution. SG bases are server & side only, and using Wentworths is side specific and costs you 10% of the selling price.
Agree on the bank. I've multiple accounts so it isn't a problem for me. But others aren't so lucky. I find it hard to believe influence isn't money when I can suddenly not have any because I got a new costume. What about all that good stuff I did? I understand that the costume guy doesn't want to give me any more stuff but what about you enhancement guy? You should still appreciate me! 
Disagree on the server merge. I play on Freedom and love it but others enjoy their low pop servers just as much.
1: Yes. I've been asking for account wide storage for ages. As one that predominantly soloes, it would be extremely helpful. As would OFFLINE SG INVITES.
2: No. People: Quit Asking For Server Mergers. If you think your server is dead, MOVE. QUIT WHINING AND MOVE. There are a lot of us that prefer our low pop servers just the way they are.
Be well, people of CoH.
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Example: I have 5 purple recipes on character 1. I want them on character 2.|
Originally Posted by Postagulous
I'm not understanding what we'd do with a "bank." I'm a walking bank as it is. If you want to transfer [money launder] from one character to another, use Went's. I gave 3m from my 43 on Liberty to my 10 on Freedom last night by selling the 43 a rare but worthless lev 50 enh for that amount.
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Currently, I have to find another player I trust, hand the recipes off to them, log in character 2, travel to other player, get recipes.
This is a waste of my time.
Account wide bank allows for the following:
I place recipes in bank and continue playing. When I get around to it, I log on character 2 and hit bank. Get recipes. No other player involved. As it SHOULD be.
Be well, people of CoH.
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Oh dear multi-tentacled-gods-from-a-hellish-other-dimension please yes on the offline SG invites!
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Originally Posted by Bill Z Bubba
1: Yes. I've been asking for account wide storage for ages. As one that predominantly soloes, it would be extremely helpful. As would OFFLINE SG INVITES.
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H no.
(start of perspective reality check)
I demand that no one be able to transfer any money to any other character, (their own, or anyone else's), other than through the market.
All alts should start broke, and have to earn their way through their whole life.
I will compromise though, to the system we have now.
(end of perspective check)
ETA: and definitely no approved interdimensional (intererserver) transfer of funds,
other than buying the alt a dimensional transfer.
.
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Is there any logical reasoning behind this statement? Do you never use credit? Did your parents dump you on the street at 18, without a penny to your name and naked?| All alts should start broke, and have to earn their way through their whole life. |
That perspective is dumb. Outdated. Illogical.
Be well, people of CoH.
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No, but Bill Gates and Warren Buffett didn't bankroll me when I turned 18, more's the pity. Why? Probably because we're not related.|
Originally Posted by Bill Z Bubba
Is there any logical reasoning behind this statement? Do you never use credit? Did your parents dump you on the street at 18, without a penny to your name and naked?
|
Is it automatically assumed that my character who is a space alien from Regulus IV will receive a huge inheritance from my 1930s archaeologist? That my Civil War hero will be tricked out with money from my robot catgirl? Why would the characters on "an account" necessarily be related?
I'm not strongly committed to keeping it from happening, but I don't buy that it's necessarily any more "logical" than NOT having an account-wide bank.
If we are to die, let us die like men. -- Patrick Cleburne
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The rule is that they must be loved. --Jayne Fynes-Clinton, Death of an Abandoned Dog
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I'd rather not lose a dozen characters, thank you. |
Originally Posted by Postagulous
I don't want them to get rid of any servers unless they are taking the two lowest and merging them, as long as Liberty isn't one of those [and I think it's about median].
|
I refuse to play on Freedom. Of the other 10 servers, half of them have at the least 10 characters, 3 have over 12.
There I was between a rock and a hard place. Then I thought, "What am I doing on this side of the rock?"
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No servers are dead. There is constant activity on my home server, Protector, and I have no reason to think the other lower population servers are any different. |
Originally Posted by JenniferJ
2)Kill a server.Now that the AE controversy hype (and overhype) has died down some servers are dead again and some stayed dead even during the AE "gold rush".Isn't it about time everyone on dead server(s) was/were moved from one to another.Im not saying kill alot of em but 1 MAYBE 2 would help.You neutered AE to urge people to get back to teaming (and force people to work for a living lol) but while it worked for some servers, others it didnt.
|
Want to find teams and stay active? Stop running around and shouting "LFT" in broadcast.
* Use the Team Search to set your flag to Looking For Any.
* Join an active SG with players that you like and have compatible playstyles.
* Join your server's global channels. They should be listed in your server section here on the forum.
* Become global friends with other players that you enjoy teaming with.
* Form a team yourself. It's easier than ever now with the new SSK system.
* Look for events in your server section here on the forum.
There are lots of opportunities out there. Your success is directly proportional to the effort you invest.
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If Bill Gates was running a super group, don't you think he'd make sure that everyone in the group was properly outfitted?|
Originally Posted by Sailboat
No, but Bill Gates and Warren Buffett didn't bankroll me when I turned 18, more's the pity. Why? Probably because we're not related.
Is it automatically assumed that my character who is a space alien from Regulus IV will receive a huge inheritance from my 1930s archaeologist? That my Civil War hero will be tricked out with money from my robot catgirl? Why would the characters on "an account" necessarily be related? I'm not strongly committed to keeping it from happening, but I don't buy that it's necessarily any more "logical" than NOT having an account-wide bank. |
Inf IS money in this game. Any statement to the contrary is based on outdated design thoughts. SG/VGs do fund lowbies. Account wide storage is nothing more than a logical boon of convenience to single account holders.
Even from a roleplay standpoint, my main hero and main villain would pool funds because their end goal is the same.
If YOU wish to roleplay reasons why your characters wouldn't help each other out, adding account based storage won't change that.
Be well, people of CoH.
1) Not a bad idea I think
2) I LOLed.
1)A "bank" system of some sort..each player on a server has 1 bank account at a bank and all their toons can deposit and withdraw from it.maybe 2 locations like atlas and talos or something (or even more).But somewhere easily accessable to both yellow and green lines.It sure beats having to use someone else to transfer money.Maybe a SMALL charge for using it. Note the word SMALL lol.(Of course free would be better).We already have to pay for server transfers,extra toon slots,and expansion packs that probably arent worth paying for *cough* wedding pack *cough*...We're gonna transfer money anyway so why not make it official?
2)Kill a server.Now that the AE controversy hype (and overhype) has died down some servers are dead again and some stayed dead even during the AE "gold rush".Isn't it about time everyone on dead server(s) was/were moved from one to another.Im not saying kill alot of em but 1 MAYBE 2 would help.You neutered AE to urge people to get back to teaming (and force people to work for a living lol) but while it worked for some servers, others it didnt.
Just my opinion..but I think the first one shouldve been done a long time ago...opinions?