Joe Morrissey talks Architect
By
Aliana Blue,
Posted on: 2010-01-12 06:36 in CoH and CoV General Discussions
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GOD BLESS NCSOFT.| Then, once NCsoft acquired us, they pretty much asked, What do you guys want to do? and we said, Three things: Power customization, Mission Architect, and a boxed expansion. And theyre like, Okay. |
There are no words for what this community, and the friends I have made here mean to me. Please know that I care for all of you, yes, even you. If you Twitter, I'm MrThan. If you're Unleashed, I'm dumps. I'll try and get registered on the Titan Forums as well. Peace, and thanks for the best nine years anyone could ever ask for.
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That was pretty awesome of them to not only ask but let them do it. I am more used to being asked in a takeover and not getting to do it.
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Originally Posted by DumpleBerry
GOD BLESS NCSOFT.
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total kick to the gut
This is like having Ra's Al Ghul show up at your birthday party.
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Didn't Positron once describe it as NC rolling a wheelbarrow full of money to their offices and telling him to do whatever he wanted to City of Heroes with it?
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Originally Posted by SwellGuy
That was pretty awesome of them to not only ask but let them do it. I am more used to being asked in a takeover and not getting to do it.
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BackAlleyBrawler: I can't facepalm this post hard enough.
ShoNuff: If sophisticated = bro-mantically emo-tastic, then I'm going to keep to my Shonen loving simplicity dammit.
Great read, anyone know the Arc# of that Space Marine arc he mentioned?
This part, kind of concerned me, tho:
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I'm hoping he's not satisfied with how the rating system and MA search tool works, as recently, a farm actually made Hall of Fame before being reported.| We also have a hall of fame system, where the stuff has been played a lot gets pushed to the top, as well. And that primarily is about filtering the content to what the player wants to get access to. And if somebody wants access to stuff that really isn’t creative, you just have to look for it. |
By the nature of the system, most of the "good" content is actually lost deep in the 4 star arc pages.
Craft your inventions in AE!!
Play "Crafter's Cafe" - Arc #487283. A 1 mission, NON-COMBAT AE arc with workable invention tables!
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I agree with you, but I think this is a pretty good illustration of how the devs and players are divided.|
Originally Posted by BackFire
I'm hoping he's not satisfied with how the rating system and MA search tool works, as recently, a farm actually made Hall of Fame before being reported.
By the nature of the system, most of the "good" content is actually lost deep in the 4 star arc pages. |
I think the devs designed for this purpose and that they believe it is working as intended.
A good post, and reasuring. J.M sounds like the sorta guy I'd like to meet.
I need to get to work on some new MA stuff...I need to draft out a decent arc, rather than the two I have so far.
I do agree that the filtering could use some work. My favourite self-made arc (Heart of Steel 1, see signature) was on 5 star rating, then suddenly went to 4 star.
I wonder if some people just go through a rate 1 star or something, to shove stuff back into the 4 star mass?
They really should filter the Star groups better. Have 5 tabs at the top, 5 star, 4 star, 3 star, etc. and then go from most ratings to least. And allow you to flip it. Right now the system is a mess. The 5 stars are all at the front, with no order. You get 11 ratings, 7 ratings, 2, 1, 1, 1 and then the next page is one with 13 ratings...I mean, wtf mate? Oo
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Originally Posted by Zwillinger
GG, I would tell you that "I am killing you with my mind", but I couldn't find an emoticon to properly express my sentiment.
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Originally Posted by Captain_Photon
NOTE: The Incarnate System is basically farming for IOs on a larger scale, and with more obtrusive lore.
 |
I agree, Techbot, we need more filtering options. I have four stars averaged out on my arc, and it's been stalled out on 29 ratings now. Would like to see some random playtime, as I think it's worthwhile. Oh well. Makes it kind of hard to get me excited about making another arc... I have some ideas, but feel kind of meh about trying them.
As for this article, what is up with marketing and the website lately? It used to be we would know about articles like this from the website right away. And the Going Rogue stuff... nada. I saw it mentioned in an article on Gamespy, no mention of it here. No update on the info they were willing to hand out at Herocon, etc.
I liked this article, and I liked hearing that NCSoft was willing to give the devs this opening. That says a LOT about the developers and NCSoft. Yet... they don't seem to want people to know. What's up with that? I know they have people that can update the site (they did just put up that one article), so why aren't they staying sharp with everything else? It doesn't make sense.
Guide: Tanking, Wall of Fire Style (Updated for I19!), and the Four Rules of Tanking
Story Arc: Belated Justice, #88003
Synopsis: Explore the fine line between justice and vengeance as you help a hero of Talos Island bring his friend's murderer to justice.
Grey Pilgrim: Fire/Fire Tanker (50), Victory
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That's a built in answer to your question.|
Originally Posted by Grey Pilgrim
what is up with marketing
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I'm swiftly forming the opinion that Marketing = Evil incarnate.
No, more evil than Carnies.
Worse than Malta Sappers.
And worse than the PPD Flashbangs and glue grenades.
Marketing: Evil
Run: In Fear
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Originally Posted by Zwillinger
GG, I would tell you that "I am killing you with my mind", but I couldn't find an emoticon to properly express my sentiment.
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Originally Posted by Captain_Photon
NOTE: The Incarnate System is basically farming for IOs on a larger scale, and with more obtrusive lore.
|
We've had some good discussion about what's wrong with the MA ratings/Search and come up with some great solutions in this thread.
My favorite idea was moving all the Dev Choice/HoF to a separate tab and making the main search page a mix of a few random Dev Choice, HoF, 5 star, & 4 star arcs so it's always fresh, with new content, and not always the same Dev/HoF arcs.
As it is, MA has the appearance of being stale. Since there's so many Dev Choice arcs, it's always, pretty much, the same ones up front. There's tons of new and exciting content that most players never know is out there.
Craft your inventions in AE!!
Play "Crafter's Cafe" - Arc #487283. A 1 mission, NON-COMBAT AE arc with workable invention tables!
Cool article, Joe's a nice guy dedicated to his creative work. I agree that getting things rated and your arc seen is still hard work, but I'll keep plugging away at it for a couple of reasons. I'd like to make a creative arc that people enjoy, and with it kinda pay-back Joe and the team for all their hard work on it.
One day one of my arcs won't suck! I swear! They're in my sig if anyone wants to try and the best is probably, "In The Darkness Creeping".
K5K - The Killbot 5000
A Spanner In The Works Part One, ArcID: 336662, A Spanner In The Works Part Two, ArcID: 336665, Enter Japes, ArcID: 96001
In The Darkness Creeping, ArcID: 347709, When Dimensions Collide, ArcID: 412416.
I'd like an extra filter option so we could search by the number of play-throughs.
@Golden Girl
City of Heroes comics and artwork
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I think those are excellent ideas to freshen up that page. Maybe even some options to see what's being played now, what's hot (most played for the last day, etc.) would be nice. There really is so much out there some variables would be nice.
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Originally Posted by BackFire
We've had some good discussion about what's wrong with the MA ratings/Search and come up with some great solutions in this thread.
My favorite idea was moving all the Dev Choice/HoF to a separate tab and making the main search page a mix of a few random Dev Choice, HoF, 5 star, & 4 star arcs so it's always fresh, with new content, and not always the same Dev/HoF arcs. As it is, MA has the appearance of being stale. Since there's so many Dev Choice arcs, it's always, pretty much, the same ones up front. There's tons of new and exciting content that most players never know is out there. |
Guide: Tanking, Wall of Fire Style (Updated for I19!), and the Four Rules of Tanking
Story Arc: Belated Justice, #88003
Synopsis: Explore the fine line between justice and vengeance as you help a hero of Talos Island bring his friend's murderer to justice.
Grey Pilgrim: Fire/Fire Tanker (50), Victory
Quote:
That'd always be something with samuari |
Originally Posted by Grey Pilgrim
what's hot (most played for the last day, etc.) .
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@Golden Girl
City of Heroes comics and artwork
Hmmmmm.
*adds to list* "Make an MA mission with samurai in it."
Guide: Tanking, Wall of Fire Style (Updated for I19!), and the Four Rules of Tanking
Story Arc: Belated Justice, #88003
Synopsis: Explore the fine line between justice and vengeance as you help a hero of Talos Island bring his friend's murderer to justice.
Grey Pilgrim: Fire/Fire Tanker (50), Victory
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It'd have to be a certain type of saumrai mission |
Originally Posted by Grey Pilgrim
Hmmmmm.
*adds to list* "Make an MA mission with samurai in it." |
@Golden Girl
City of Heroes comics and artwork
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I suspect that he knows perfectly well that the rating system could use some work, but he also knows that marketing will beat him with a rubber hose if he admits anything is less than perfect while talking to the media.
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Originally Posted by konshu
I agree with you, but I think this is a pretty good illustration of how the devs and players are divided.
I think the devs designed for this purpose and that they believe it is working as intended. |
Avatar: "Cheeky Jack O Lantern" by dimarie
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Like you said.|
Originally Posted by peterpeter
I suspect that he knows perfectly well that the rating system could use some work, but he also knows that marketing will beat him with a rubber hose if he admits anything is less than perfect while talking to the media.
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There's no way that Paragon Studios couldn't know that the playerbase sees plenty of room for improvement in the Ratings system. That doesn't mean you're going to mention a products short-comings in the media.
K5K - The Killbot 5000
A Spanner In The Works Part One, ArcID: 336662, A Spanner In The Works Part Two, ArcID: 336665, Enter Japes, ArcID: 96001
In The Darkness Creeping, ArcID: 347709, When Dimensions Collide, ArcID: 412416.
Well, I do rather wish he had at least mentioned the improvements he's wanting to make. You can easily spin that as "good now, but going to get even better." Which the AE is at, arguably.
If anything, CoX and the AE haven't got enough got enough press as it is. It's a fun, different style that's worth a look from most players.
Guide: Tanking, Wall of Fire Style (Updated for I19!), and the Four Rules of Tanking
Story Arc: Belated Justice, #88003
Synopsis: Explore the fine line between justice and vengeance as you help a hero of Talos Island bring his friend's murderer to justice.
Grey Pilgrim: Fire/Fire Tanker (50), Victory
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The arc in my sig has seen quite a bit of action lately. I got a surge during the Player's Choice Awards deliberations and shortly after announcement, then a lull, and now some more. Clearly I chose the name well! |
Originally Posted by Golden Girl
That'd always be something with samuari
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(Actually, I'm pretty sure it's all Player's Choice aftermath, someone looking for a farm won't play an arc that caps at level 25
).
Players' Choice Awards: Best Dual-Origin Level Range Arc!
It's a new era, the era of the Mission Architect. Can you save the Universe from...
The Invasion of the Bikini-clad Samurai Vampiresses from Outer Space? - Arc ID 61013
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I'm not a roleplayer, but I enjoy playing that arc with my SG-mates and doing appropriate dialogue, such as:|
Originally Posted by Aliana Blue
The arc in my sig has seen quite a bit of action lately. I got a surge during the Player's Choice Awards deliberations and shortly after announcement, then a lull, and now some more. Clearly I chose the name well!
(Actually, I'm pretty sure it's all Player's Choice aftermath, someone looking for a farm won't play an arc that caps at level 25 ). |
(On seeing the enemies for the first time): My god, they appear to be some sort of bikini-clad samurai vampiresses from outer space! Clad in bikinis!
(When playing one of my inventor-type characters): As a man of science, I cannot admit the existence of such creatures, yet I believe that there are some things that SCIENCE ITSELF cannot explain! One of them may be these "bikini-clad samurai vampiresses from outer space!"
And, best of all, an exchange between me (playing one of my blasters) and "Dod," a very bouncy friend (playing the blaster's teenaged sidekick, which makes it funnier):
Her, upon finishing the arc: Yay! We won!
Me: Yes, but for how long, Dod? FOR HOW LONG?!!? Dun-dun-DUN!
"Bombarding the CoH/V fora with verbosity since January, 2006"
Djinniman, level 50 inv/fire tanker, on Victory
-and 40 others on various servers
A CoH Comic: Kid Eros in "One Light"
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First thing I thought when I saw the title?|
Originally Posted by Aliana Blue
The arc in my sig has seen quite a bit of action lately. I got a surge during the Player's Choice Awards deliberations and shortly after announcement, then a lull, and now some more. Clearly I chose the name well!
(Actually, I'm pretty sure it's all Player's Choice aftermath, someone looking for a farm won't play an arc that caps at level 25 ). |
Plan 9 From Outer Space
Look it up
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Originally Posted by Zwillinger
GG, I would tell you that "I am killing you with my mind", but I couldn't find an emoticon to properly express my sentiment.
|
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Captain_Photon
NOTE: The Incarnate System is basically farming for IOs on a larger scale, and with more obtrusive lore.
|
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Ahaha, appropriate dialog indeed! |
Originally Posted by Olantern
I'm not a roleplayer, but I enjoy playing that arc with my SG-mates and doing appropriate dialogue, such as:
(On seeing the enemies for the first time): My god, they appear to be some sort of bikini-clad samurai vampiresses from outer space! Clad in bikinis! (When playing one of my inventor-type characters): As a man of science, I cannot admit the existence of such creatures, yet I believe that there are some things that SCIENCE ITSELF cannot explain! One of them may be these "bikini-clad samurai vampiresses from outer space!" And, best of all, an exchange between me (playing one of my blasters) and "Dod," a very bouncy friend (playing the blaster's teenaged sidekick, which makes it funnier): Her, upon finishing the arc: Yay! We won! Me: Yes, but for how long, Dod? FOR HOW LONG?!!? Dun-dun-DUN! |
Players' Choice Awards: Best Dual-Origin Level Range Arc!
It's a new era, the era of the Mission Architect. Can you save the Universe from...
The Invasion of the Bikini-clad Samurai Vampiresses from Outer Space? - Arc ID 61013
Quote:
Well, on the positive side, at least he was able to get NCsoft to fund the creation of better content development tools.|
Originally Posted by peterpeter
I suspect that he knows perfectly well that the rating system could use some work, but he also knows that marketing will beat him with a rubber hose if he admits anything is less than perfect while talking to the media.
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I know from my past in the IT field, when I did custom programming for a health care company, it was a pain trying to get approval for anything that was not an immediate bandaid. There was a tendency to want to stay with what was at hand and not invest in sweeping improvements. But eventually I did get approval to create some tools with universal application, and the whole system greatly improved after that. Better things happened faster, with less work, and people were happier.
If the devs haven't given up on the MA and are still working on it and making progress - as the interview suggests - then eventually it should be a great tool for the continuing development of the game.
I'd give it a high priority, but then I'm keenly interested in content whereas others may not.
Probably not much new information, but an interesting read into their creative process.
http://www.mmogamer.com/01/10/2010/p...-joe-morrissey
Global: @Pandemonia
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