How About Making LFG Actually Look For Groups Rather Than Queue for Trials?
By
Agonist_NA,
Posted on: 2011-05-19 09:52 in Suggestions and Ideas
That's what I was expecting too.
Winner of Players' Choice Best Villainous Arc 2010: Fear and Loathing on Striga; ID #350522
I imagine this is likely what the devs have in mind too, eventually. The LFG as it stands today is the foundation. I think we will see it improved issue by issue until it's function is similar to what you have described here.
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I hope so! Still, I don't know that is the plan based on what they have said. Looking at what it does now, it is like the fine detail extreme of what I am talking about - if you are going to specify the EXACT thing you want to join (e.g. BAF) then you might as well make it a "turnstile" system to plop you right into the BAF. If you are looking at it that way, it doesn't make sense to implement what I am proposing - why have the middle step at all?|
Originally Posted by Irish Fury
I imagine this is likely what the devs have in mind too, eventually. The LFG as it stands today is the foundation. I think we will see it improved issue by issue until it's function is similar to what you have described here.
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Of course I would respond that some nights I just want to find a non-radio mission team, I don't want to do a particular thing. If future LFG expansions are heading that way, great. But the only thing I have heard about from the devs though is adding more "events" into the turnstile (e.g. Hamidon or the Praetorian events), rather than making it a "looking for group" system. The programming behind the scenes might allow for it to be a LFG system - I wouldn't know, but the externals of it are quite different in interface and intent than what I would think it would be if they were heading there.
Anyway, just a thought in case they haven't considered this approach!
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It depends on what direction the devs are taking in the long term. Right now LFG is limited to trials (which are essentially large single-instance missions) on your current server. This is problematic for small-population servers in the long run.|
Originally Posted by Agonist_NA
Looking at what it does now, it is like the fine detail extreme of what I am talking about - if you are going to specify the EXACT thing you want to join (e.g. BAF) then you might as well make it a "turnstile" system to plop you right into the BAF.
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If the ultimate intent is to make LFG and trials work cross-server, then it can't really work like a regular team, which can go into regular zones and enter and exit missions at will.
Howver, it seems feasible for players from multiple servers to be popped into a single-instance trial, which has restrictions on entry and exit. There are obviously issues to be resolved with cross server leagues (naming conflicts and the like), but the limited context of a trial seems the perfect place to start doing this.
My expectation when I first saw the LFG interface on the test server, before there were any trials hooked up to it, was that it was the cross-server interface.
I know cross-server trials would be a lot of work, but it would be really cool if they could make it happen. The interface would need to be beefed up so that you could see the composition of the other teams in the queue, to judge whether the league it was about to form was viable.
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Please let me be very clear when I say, my above post has no base in fact or in anything the devs themselves have said. It just seems to be the implied goal if the function follows a logical progression. |
Originally Posted by Agonist_NA
I hope so! Still, I don't know that is the plan based on what they have said. Looking at what it does now, it is like the fine detail extreme of what I am talking about - if you are going to specify the EXACT thing you want to join (e.g. BAF) then you might as well make it a "turnstile" system to plop you right into the BAF. If you are looking at it that way, it doesn't make sense to implement what I am proposing - why have the middle step at all?
Of course I would respond that some nights I just want to find a non-radio mission team, I don't want to do a particular thing. If future LFG expansions are heading that way, great. But the only thing I have heard about from the devs though is adding more "events" into the turnstile (e.g. Hamidon or the Praetorian events), rather than making it a "looking for group" system. The programming behind the scenes might allow for it to be a LFG system - I wouldn't know, but the externals of it are quite different in interface and intent than what I would think it would be if they were heading there. Anyway, just a thought in case they haven't considered this approach! |
Cross server teaming for instanced trials could also be the long term goal. Unfortunately, as Rodion pointed out, the two options are mutually exclusive. Time will tell either way, but at the very least, I think the LFG function is in its infancy and will be growing into something more useful down the line.
The way I see it is LFG is a going rogue feature the way supergroup bases were a city of villains feature. In an issue or three they may do what you are asking but it seems like they purposefully limited its usefulness to things that GR purchasers could use.
So on another thread we are talking about a suggestion to make a dedicated co-op league staging zone, to make assembling and getting on leagues easier without crowding out other players who want to be in RWZ or whatever to do something else.
That got me to thinking how I thought LFG would work when I heard about it, vs. the way it actually does.
What I really thought LFG would be is a system where I log on and let's say I want to join a mission team. I click LFG along with some high-level filters (Architect/arc/radio/TF/Trial/iTrial/MS Raid, etc. team, level range) and *poof* I am in a team.
On the other hand, if I have a team with 5 people, LFG changes to LFM. I click LFM along with some filters (I set my team type, then choose ATs, level range) and *poof* I get a full team.
It seems backwards to me to use LFG (looking for group) queue for a trial. It seems like you would use it to find a team that is doing what you want to do.
Obviously this would take significant dev resources, so I don't expect it soon, but maybe someday if it makes sense.
Does this seem like an improvement to you?