Hello from Paragon Marketing
By
Ad Astra,
Posted on: 2010-04-16 09:39 in CoH and CoV General Discussions
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There are several technical problems with this.|
Originally Posted by SpittingTrashcan
I personally would pay a lot of money for figures of one or more of my characters, if the quality and fidelity were high.
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- 3D Printing methods require solid mesh objects, which our costumes are not. We use a "building blocks" methodology, which results in a huge amount of flexibility. In order to get 3D Printing to work for one of our models, we'd have to export your character as a solid mesh, which would require a non-insignificant amount of work. It *may* be possible to automate the process; I don't know. I kind of doubt it, though.
- 3D Printing doesn't support Bump mapped or reflective textures well, and those are both things we use a lot of in our costume bits.
- Aura's aren't really doable at all in 3D Printing, and for many of the best costumes out there, the Aura is a key feature.
That said, we'll continue to follow the technology and, hopefully, one day it'll be doable!
Me, I still want posters of my characters.
Thanks for the info. I'll put that one on the "someday" pile.
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This would do nicely also, and seems much more doable with current technology - especially ultra mode. I'd buy it.|
Originally Posted by Castle
Me, I still want posters of my characters.
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Edited to add: It'd be more of a niche product, but monochromatic models you could paint yourself might be more workable. There's still the geometry issue though.
@SPTrashcan
Avatar by Toxic_Shia
Why MA ratings should be changed from stars to "like" or "dislike"
A better algorithm for ordering MA arcs
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Originally Posted by tokyo
please black pebble... No furry cox packs...
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Thanks for posting that, Castle. That's all good to know and, though it isn't currently possible to do, it's heartening to hear you guys are staying on top of the tech. So, let's talk posters... |
Originally Posted by Castle
There are several technical problems with this.
That said, we'll continue to follow the technology and, hopefully, one day it'll be doable! Me, I still want posters of my characters. |
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We're discussing ways to spread the word about the game to people beyond those who get it now, and you're actually pushing for the reverse?|
Originally Posted by Tokyo
Ghost Widow for Paragon Studios pin-up girl, Thanks.
Ms. liberty is a push-over. P.s. Black pebble, I can not pM you but I have a bit of a request: Can you please STOP directing people to Twitter and Facebook? Social networking sites should be used to direct people TO the Cityofheroes website; please stop directing people AWAY from the website. Please post the upcoming Q&A information here on the website and any other information pertaining to Cityofheroes/CityofVillains. |
I prefer they release info in any medium they choose. Better than no information at all, or buried somewhere in the forums.
Little bits and bobs that doesn't deserve a full blown webpage are perfect for Twitter.
Not hearing the info in the approximately 3.4 seconds it usually takes someone to repost anything from Twitter back here, is not an adequate reason not to use it.
However, I will say that it would be a fantastic idea for the website people to insert code similar to what they use at Slate magazine. Scroll down a little ways and you see the Twitter feed box which aggregates tweets from their staff. I know the majority of dev posts have nothing to do with the game, but still I think that's a much more forward thinking solution than ignoring the fact that the web has moved beyond forums and websites to in some respects.
"Null is as much an argument "for removing the cottage rule" as the moon being round is for buying tennis shoes." -Memphis Bill
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I'm not trying to bug Castle about this, but I really dislike that this (and 'non-trivial' too) became a popular term...it just sounds so silly...why can't we just say 'hard', 'difficult', or even just 'significant amount'? Or what's wrong with 'time/resource costly' even, if we still want to sound hoity-toity?|
Originally Posted by Castle
non-insignificant amount
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I speak not about just this, but it's proliferated into many fields (mine and the devs especially)...ugh.
...sorry Castle/everyone, didn't mean to pester.
/off topic
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Kindly drop that schtick.|
Originally Posted by Tokyo
Please Black Pebble... No furry CoX packs...
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Before I belt you one with it.
It's getting really damn tiresome.
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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.
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Unless it's a label that gets given to artists who happen to draw some anthro characters, and intended as an insult. |
Originally Posted by Golden Girl
Furries are totally harmless
 All the ones I've met so far in the game have been normal polite, helpful people - they just seem to get way more of a bad rep for the weirder and extreme section of their community than other communities get for theirs. |
Then they get as ticked as everyone else does for getting labelled as a 'freak' by idiots who don't know any different and all that cr@p.
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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.
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I'm not sure items #2 or #3 would deter people from buying customized figures, but then I'm not big on auras or shiney bits usually. However, has anyone actually talked to anyone from Figure Prints (or a similar company) about #1?
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Originally Posted by Castle
There are several technical problems with this.
That said, we'll continue to follow the technology and, hopefully, one day it'll be doable! Me, I still want posters of my characters. |
If the devs were really worried about the possibility that their game might attract fans of anthropomorphic animals, they probably shouldn't have made Mynx a signature hero.
That catgirl is long since out of the bag. The chickenfolk have come home to roost. Sleeping dog-people have not been left to lie. You may as well throw 'em a bone.
Enough dumb jokes yet? If not, I'll send up the Steelclaw signal.
@SPTrashcan
Avatar by Toxic_Shia
Why MA ratings should be changed from stars to "like" or "dislike"
A better algorithm for ordering MA arcs
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^^ Black Pebble: Start Here if you're serious. ^^
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Originally Posted by Anti_Proton
CG adds on TV and previewing in Comic movies.
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Heh, I got here late. The title seemed like a joke thread to me so I didn't look in until now.
I've seen some great suggestions and I'll mention some that have already been posted before but I'm pedantic that way.
1. Forget expensive stuff. TV ads just are too much money for the penetration you get. Stay focused on your intended core audience.
2. Product placement. I heard that more than a few celebrities play this game, or have played. Try and get in touch with them and send them some swag. I know for a fact that some people who were in the Firefly series/movie used to play this game. Maybe Jenna Jameson in a CoX T would be a bit controversial but controversy gets attention. Seeing an Arachnos logo'd shirt at a movie premiere would be great.
3. Sponsorship. Give some youtube celebs some sponsorship bucks. The Guild, Miss Hannah Minx (who doesn't like catgurls?), ZeroPunctuation all would be a decent fit for getting some attention. There's probably a dozen more online celebs that could be mentioned here.
Buy adspace/sponsor the comixology and marvel ipad comics app.
4. Reviews. Everyone outside of this game has forgotten that each issue can potentially bring a brand new experience to the game. Get some big sites to review it.
Arstechnica, slashdot, and ZeroPunctuation would be good to get a review in on. Coordinate the reviews so they all go out at the same time. Give those guys early access to GR.
A retrospective 2 minute video comparing issue 1 to the new ultramode graphical and content differences would be a great way to lure back the other huge population that used to play CoX who doesn't know how far the game has come.
5. Technology. This involves programmer time but can be well worth it.
Make a free iPhone/iPad app that has the costume creator and then uploads it to the server so people can dress their toons before subbing.
Additionally make a script to render their newly made toon in a variety of comic book cover style poses so they can be used as desktop pics would be great.
Online realtime name check/reservation would be nice too.
Smartphone chat client. Logs you into the game so you can keep chatting on a few globals so you're never out of the loop. No real marketing part here but more customer retention than anything.
With the introduction of Ultra mode, having all options on can bring a powerful machine to it's knees. Create a benchmark and sponsor various websites to use it. It's free advertising every time a new video card is reviewed. Deploy a 'test' server or script for the sites to minimize external variance.
6. More swag. Steal the art guys and lock them in the marketing dungeon for a week.
- CoX Calendar.
- Cheesecake/beefcake pin up posters
- BackAlleyBrawler mitts. Just kidding, sort of.
7. Contests
Contests with real world prizes for things like video review of GR on youtube and deviantart would get people to talk about CoX again.
That's all I can think of right now. Oh yeah, welcome to the forums (as a red name).
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What about those 'photo-etch' items (like the kind you find at Wal-Mart, etc)?
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Originally Posted by Castle
There are several technical problems with this.
That said, we'll continue to follow the technology and, hopefully, one day it'll be doable! Me, I still want posters of my characters. |
Apparently, I play "City of Shakespeare"
*Arc #95278-Gathering the Four Winds -3 step arc; challenging - 5 Ratings/3 Stars (still working out the kinks)
*Arc #177826-Lights, Camera, Scream! - 3 step arc, camp horror; try out in 1st person POV - 35 Ratings/4 Stars
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Originally Posted by UnSub
*waves back*
I'm being devil's advocate here. Unless Samuraiko announced she is getting paid by PS in a message I missed, what reason does PS have for hiring her? Especially when they have their own internal people to do the same thing and her work is currently free? EDIT: No disrespect to Samuraiko intended and I apologise for speaking about her as if she isn't around, but this is more in response to the blanket "Hire Samuraiko!" comments. PS does appear to be hiring predominantly fans of CoH/V, but it is a valid question about what they bring to the table. And there is also the broader issue of how much said videos helps to attract or retain players, and if it is worth the investment. |
Remember the guy they hired off of the strength of his MA arc(s)?
And I would contend that Paragon (or NCSoft) backing small scale machinema competitions (promoting them in trade pubs and events (offline/online) could be an advertising force. Maybe doing one of these prior to every new issue release (or shortly thereafter)?
Apparently, I play "City of Shakespeare"
*Arc #95278-Gathering the Four Winds -3 step arc; challenging - 5 Ratings/3 Stars (still working out the kinks)
*Arc #177826-Lights, Camera, Scream! - 3 step arc, camp horror; try out in 1st person POV - 35 Ratings/4 Stars
How about contracting a well-known/established comic author(s)/artist(s) to do a single-page storyboard (signed and sealed) of player's characters (providing the players submit the character art, bio and event) for a small cost.
Apparently, I play "City of Shakespeare"
*Arc #95278-Gathering the Four Winds -3 step arc; challenging - 5 Ratings/3 Stars (still working out the kinks)
*Arc #177826-Lights, Camera, Scream! - 3 step arc, camp horror; try out in 1st person POV - 35 Ratings/4 Stars
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I thought you'd just be able to walk into a decent print shop with an image file and they'd do that? Unless they do things a bit differently in the US. We used to get A1-sized posters made for presentations all the time at Uni.|
Originally Posted by Castle
Me, I still want posters of my characters.
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Unless of course you meant some fancy drawn poster by some artist!
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Well how about a T-shirt printing service?|
Originally Posted by Castle
There are several technical problems with this.
That said, we'll continue to follow the technology and, hopefully, one day it'll be doable! Me, I still want posters of my characters. |
Custom T-shirt matching the torso design of your selected character.
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Yes, because directing traffic interest to the CoH main-site through twitter, facebook and other social networking websites; somehow, pushes people away from finding more information or perhaps even subscribing to the game..
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Originally Posted by Lemur Lad
We're discussing ways to spread the word about the game to people beyond those who get it now, and you're actually pushing for the reverse?
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I've got limited experience with 3d printing so I've decided to chime in here. Most 3d printing software comes with a function to shrink wrap an optimized mesh around a model if it's not a solid shell. Besides that, it's quite doable within a standard 3d package like Max or Maya with a number of methods.|
Originally Posted by Castle
There are several technical problems with this.[list][*] 3D Printing methods require solid mesh objects, which our costumes are not. We use a "building blocks" methodology, which results in a huge amount of flexibility. In order to get 3D Printing to work for one of our models, we'd have to export your character as a solid mesh, which would require a non-insignificant amount of work. It *may* be possible to automate the process; I don't know. I kind of doubt it, though.
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This is no more a hurdle than it is for WoW models. Like CoX Models, they're not solid geometry either and http://www.figureprints.com/ is offering such a service.
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| [*] 3D Printing doesn't support Bump mapped or reflective textures well, and those are both things we use a lot of in our costume bits. |
Auras simply can't be done, but I think the majority of people would understand that.
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| That said, we'll continue to follow the technology and, hopefully, one day it'll be doable! |
Maybe they'd be interested in working something out for CoX if you guys contacted them. Maybe not. My point is, they got around the same obstacles you listed.
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Ok... I may have hurt myself laughing at this.|
Originally Posted by Tokyo
Please Black Pebble... No furry CoX packs...
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I swear... sometimes I'm 12.
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No it means... they... should... hire... you!|
Originally Posted by Dark_Respite
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And me too...
Battlerock X - inv/str tank, Justice Server
http://battlerockx.blogspot.com - The Battlerock X Chronicles
http://guardiansofthedawn.wordpress.com - fan-based comic book series "The Guardian Powers"
http://twitter.com/BattlerockX
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"With Me - Against Me" Mission Arc 230667
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Mmmnotquite. I am obviously not privy to Figure Prints' processes, but there are aspects of the WoW character generator which would permit certain brute-force pre-caching approaches that CoH's more flexible generator would not. I'm not saying that FP can or can't do it, but I don't think that it's as simple as "you can do it here, so you can do it there."
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Originally Posted by Johnny_Butane
I'd say it's doable today. Figure Prints is doing so right now with Blizzard.
Maybe they'd be interested in working something out for CoX if you guys contacted them. Maybe not. My point is, they got around the same obstacles you listed. |
@SPTrashcan
Avatar by Toxic_Shia
Why MA ratings should be changed from stars to "like" or "dislike"
A better algorithm for ordering MA arcs
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Do you actually have a Marketing Degree? What is your experience in marketing? Who made the marketing plan?
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Originally Posted by Black Pebble
Hello everybody,
I am the silent Black Pebble, otherwise known as the new North Americanbrand manager for City of Heroes. I’ve been playing City of Heroes since 2004. I remember when my Fire/Rad controller had 12 fire imps. I remember how cool it was to get the chance to meet Positron on the test server, so I could finally whine about how much I hated Electric Manipulation on my Energy Blaster. One of my favorite memories was the first time I got to see the CoT temple map, which was the most breath-taking instance I had ever seen. Sometimes, I would log in just to fly all the way to the top of the invisible skyline, then drop, and try to turn on fly before I splatted. I’ve played a lot of other MMO’s, but none of them have ever given me the same thrill that flying in CoH has. And nothing is better at making you feel overpowered than clicking Nova and seeing 20 mobs lying at your feet. No other game has managed to capture that feeling of freedom, power or uniqueness. It’s been almost six years, and the game still inspires the same sense of excitement in me. There is still one adventure left for me and it would be to face my most fearsome nemesis – all of you. Some of you may already have painted an image of me in your minds. I can reassure you that I do not have a cat (I am allergic to them), I do not wear suits to work, and although I could lose a few pounds, I am in pretty good shape. My hope is that by getting a red name on the board, I can show you that I am a fan and I will listen to you. Perhaps we can even have some interesting, new discussions. I cannot promise you my undivided attention sadly, as I have many diabolical marketing schemes to inflict on the teeming masses. However, I will do my best to listen to all of you, and answer what questions I can. And although you may not see my direct hand in things, you will soon see the fruits of my devious plans very, very soon. As a heads up, if you ask me questions about powers, art, distribution, retail, stories, billing, Latin, sales, bugs, dairy products, accounting, singing, costumes, anything that happened from 2004-2009, conventions, PvP, design, or algebra, not only will I not be able to answer them, but I’ll feel pretty bad about myself. I can only answer questions that directly involve my job. So what do I do? Long story short, I try my best to make sure that everyone knows what a great game City of Heroes/Villains is and that we never forget that our most important part of our game is you – the players. I don’t program, I don’t draw and I don’t write great stories. You already know all of those people. I kind of do everything else. The one thing I can promise you is that I will do my best to earn your respect. That is all I have for now. See you again soon, - Guy without a cool signature, avatar or costume. |
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Tick quote = I like you.|
Originally Posted by Black Pebble
I thought so, too. However, I'm afraid we'd end up like Chairface Chippendale and just end up getting the first two letters engraved.
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But I'm curious as to what you named yourself after in CoX? Just a pebble in Atlas Park? Sort of a "fly on the wall"?
I'm going to touch on a different facet of a concept mentioned earlier. College campus were brought up due to the general aspect of demographics and placement. I'm actually going to say use Mission Architect's capabilities as a selling point for college departments that have game programming curriculums. While obviously not as robust as a true programming language, it allows some of the more writing/design oriented folks in such departments to use it to experiment with.
I offer myself as an example. I got into CoX due to the new Mission Architect edition being released and a few instructors in the writing/design portion of the program opting to use it as that course's final. Some people buddied up on working on an edition and I think most of them unpublished when finished but at least through me you got a year long subscriber and a few of the instructors subscribed for a few months though they were hit by the economy crunch.
A while back I tossed out some PMs seeking out more direct Paragon Studio support but I didn't know the right channels and I never heard back from anyone. The college itself is Central Piedmont Community College. The instructor in charge of this can be contacted at Marc.Tucker@cpcc.edu and I personally can be reached either through forum PMs or zamuel01@hotmail.com
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Mission Architect Handyman