Okay, obviously some people are missing some things

Tyveil

Frost Gate Guardian

Join Date: Apr 2005

02 May 2005 at 16:20 - 44
Good post but I disagree with you on one major aspect of it (that pretty much sums up everything). Betas are suppose to allow players easy access to everything, so that more can be tested (IOW easy skills, low cost on guilds, capes, etc). In the production version, things should be made MUCH harder, and rightfully so. Personally I like the fact skills are much harder to come by now and I also like the outrageous guild cape prices, it weeds out a lot of the lEWt dOoDz guilds because they'll want a cape and not have the patience to come up with the gold to do it. Also it is better to start out with players ratched down tight (difficulty level on everything high, everything expensive) as it is easier to make thing easier for the player as the game progresses than it is to make things tougher on them.

Zek

Ascalonian Squire

Join Date: Apr 2005

02 May 2005 at 16:30 - 45
Personally I really like the idea of questable skills that are all purchasable at later cities if you missed them. It offers meaningful rewards for people who like to do all the available quests, but those who just want to hit 20 and start PvPing(or who missed a quest or found it too hard) can buy the skills they need and focus on later missions. What's the problem? I don't think there's any need for the game to spoon-feed everything to the players.

bstripp

Ascalonian Squire

Join Date: Apr 2005

02 May 2005 at 20:36 - 46
Quote:
Originally Posted by Krindi
First, Skills. It used to be that you could see a trainer and pick skills you wanted to buy. The skills cost you a Skill Point and a number of Gold. No biggie, a tried and true system. Now, you not only have to still pay for these skills, but you don't get to choose what skills you get. Oh, and by the way, you have to quest for these skills that you don't want in the first place. I have yet to find a trainer who offers me a skill I want. Fighter skills, have been reduced to Hammer...basically, you can't find any decent swords as yet and all the skills you can get are hammer related.
Personally, I like the system. I want some reason to PVE. You can build a decent PVP character with a minimum amount of time invested. Then tweak the builds as you work your way through the PVE. It's a brilliant system in my mind. So to your first point, different strokes and all. Realize that you have 6 months before the next expansion (roughly) and giving you reason to revist and give meaning to a large part of the game. We are a week into the game, in another two-three weeks all of the skills will be found and there will be hundreds of guides on how to get the skills you want.

If it bugs you to explore for skills or play PvP without the one skill you wanted, just wait a few weeks and that info will be readily available. With a low level cap in place, it won't take long to get right up to speed.

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Drops for all armor materials used to be fairly close. Granted, some were a little more common than others, but in this final release, casters of anykind are, to put it bluntly, screwed to the walls. Pardon the language, but hey, if it fits...etc... The drop rate between Iron and cloth is about 20-1 by my measurement at this point. Between me and a friend we've run 4 characters all the way through the beginning doing nothing but farming and here are our numbers, out of 4 characters we have a total of 543 Iron, and 29 cloth. Needless to say, we're never going to be able to outfit a caster decently as compared to the innumerable fighter classes we could support with armor at this point.
If you want cloth, hunt the whiptail things. They drop half eaten masses that usually break down into cloth. I have enough cloth to outfit whatever I need at this point.

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Three, Guild costs. When will you people decide on a price? In the begining it costed 50g to create a guild and 100g to create the cloak I think. During the last 2 BWE's the price of creating a guild went to 100g and designing a cloak costed 1000g. At the release, creating a guild costed 200g, and to design your cloaks costs 2000g. Are you just trying to see how painful you can make this. I mean, the name is GuildWars. So creating guilds should be something that is encouraged and fostered, not made into a grind. Furthermore, anyone who was in on the BWE's got to automatically keep their Guilds, and it looks like cloaks as well without paying this exorbitant costs. I thought there was going to be a general wipe with only characters names saved? But what you've done is give some groups a head start on several fronts now. Not only in giving them an organization right off the bat, and thus saving them a ton of cash, but also by making it more difficult for new players to form guilds and compete. Granted, being in the pre-order and running through the BWE's should have some benefits, but not at the expense of literally raping new players.
You didn't keep your cloak. You did keep your guild.

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Fourth, Time Based Gameplay. Here is an excerpt from the IGN interview with Arenanet, http://pc.ign.com/articles/400/400429p1.html . On the second page, second question of that interview they discuss the level drive system, and claim that this game will, in fact, not be like that. That a person who has less time spent playing will still be competative. The drastic changed that I've seen from the BWE's to final release do not bear this statement out. Like all other NCSoft games, the more a person plays, the greater his reward will be. Basically, this game has become just like any other in that respect, contrary to they're numerous claims otherwise.
I think that getting to the level cap in 20 hours is pretty casual friendly. Look at games like COH where 400-500 hours is the norm. While not point fingers directly at you, the instant gratification socieity seems to be alive and well on the boards. What's wrong with a little bit of game play? What's wrong with a bit of story? It's still one week into the game, I have two characters close to the level cap and I explore a lot. How rough is that?

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Fifth, World At War. Who's spastic idea was this? Do you not think there are enough political problems in the world that you have to bring real country names into a game? Do you really think that using real country and geographical names won't have posts and flames flying on the boards and in the chats? Guess what, not everyone playing this game is an adult. Not everyone will just pass it off and say, "Whatever". For absolutely no reason you've inflamed already burning issues.
Bah. Ban the Olympics while you are at it. This is not some burning geopolitical contest. It is a game and a bit of nationalism doen't make this into some kind of social comentary.

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Like many others I'm very disappointed in how this was presented, and I'll be watching over the next little while to see if anything changes or is 'fixed', to reflect your original statements about the games design and intent. If it fails to start taking the shape of what I was originally sold on, I will definitately be taking my time elsewhere.
Well its a shame to see anyone leave, especially over some pretty trivial things. While I am sure there are 'many' who do not like the current incarnation, I am pretty confident there an equal or greater 'many' who are still playing and enjoying a very well crafted game. I have yet to see anything that they have not delivered on, however, that is one man's opinion. Sorry to see you go.

mostro

mostro

Lion's Arch Merchant

Join Date: Feb 2005

Me/E

02 May 2005 at 21:00 - 47
Quote:
Originally Posted by Krindi
Gonna hafta disagree. I say at least 2 different people within the first hour who had cloaks. Not groups of people with the same cloak, but 2 individuals with different cloaks. I also saw talk within the chats during the first couple of hours people wondering how they got them so fast. A group effort is certainly possible, but when in the first hour you only see one person from a guild sporting a cloak, you have to wonder. And yes, I did take trip through the many districts to see how many others bore the same cloak, nary a single one.
-K
The price of the cape may be based on demand. When I logged in 3 hours after the game opened, I was able to get the cape in the pre-searing ascalon for 100 gold. However as the day goes on people reported that it costed them 2 plats to make the cape. *shrug*

LiquidLithium

Ascalonian Squire

Join Date: Apr 2005

06 May 2005 at 16:35 - 48
I agree and disagree.
I disagree with the armor thing, and the iron to cloth drops. You need to salvage stuff man to get cloth. I have to much cloth than i know what to do with. Salvage salvage salvage.

I agree with the guild expendetures. However, i solo'd for quite a while and then when i had 3k i created my guild and got my cape. And 200g for a guild hall? THAT IS VERY CHEAP. Are you sure it isnt more? I am not that far, but 200g is cheap. Maybe they should swap the prices if that is right. Make it 200g for capes and 2000g for gulid hall.