Guild Wars 2

How does Anet communicate with us? How open / transparent are they with us? Is there another way to be?

Yes, there is another way things could be.

I want to give an example of what I consider a good relationship between devs and players. An example of a little transparency from SOE and how they keep players in the loop on what’s going on.

https://forums.station.sony.com/landmark/index.php?threads/the-new-improved-blueprint-updated-10-06-14.34413/

EQN / Landmark has some awesome tech going into it, but perhaps more important, is the Dev interaction and openness. I feel like I have a fairly clear vision on where they are going with things ..things they are in fact definitely working on. As a player, I greatly appreciate that and it makes me feel more confident about the game and the dev (and more confident I’ll want to spend money to support it).

I really wish Anet had that kind of passion and confidence about their game, and respect for their players. Everybody would be better off for it, I think. I don’t feel like Anet “believes in” their own game anymore, and as such, I struggle to as well.

They’ve walled themselves off and refuse to have much to do with us ..anything of substance at least. There’s this disconnect where they won’t really tell us anything, and their actions indicate they don’t really hear us or care. I would LOVE to see more open communication like what SOE is doing.

Come on Anet, what features and fixes are you working on? I’m sure you’re not all there sitting on your hands, or making Gem Store items. It’s not like I’m asking for story spoilers. But everything you ever say is “that’s an interesting idea, but I can’t say anything”.

We don’t need exact dates, we just want to know, for sure, if the things that matter to us are actually being worked on or not. We want to know that, as a business, you value the priorities of your customers. Not with cheap talk, but with action. The CDI is nice, but it’s all non-committal fluffy talk. Actions speak louder and we want to know what you actually are taking action on.

The CDI would be more meaningful if you’d say"
“We ARE working on x-project. Currently it functions like this, but has these issues. We’ll give you an update in couple months and welcome your thoughts”.
This would give us the confidence that x-project IS being addressed (and answer questions about what’s not), and also give the opportunity to provide useful feedback on the direction you’re going with it before it’s too late.

GW2 was doing the same thing prior to release. Find examples of companies that have a released product.

My thoughts exactly^. Before release there were copious amounts of information being released…what they were working on, what was revised, etc., etc.

I always see comparisons with other games whilst in the pre-release stage, so I don’t know how forthcoming Dev studios are 2 years+ after release. /shrug

Not much different from GW2, especially during the pre-launch hype. As it is always – guess you are new to computer gaming? Wait and see that forum after launch when internet people enter the usual “everything about you sucks”-mode.

OP went full kitteh mode

I feel pretty much the same as the OP. I don’t know anything about the long term future of this game. I know nothing beyond the vaguest details about the short term: Halloween, season 2 and probably Wintersday.

Is an expansion being worked on? Don’t know
Are new classes coming? Don’t know
New abilities/weapons? Don’t know
How long will season 2 last? Don’t know
Will there be a break in season 2 for Xmas/New Year? Probably, don’t know
Will the break be another 3 months? Don’t know
Is the trait revamp being worked on in response to feedback? Don’t know
What happened to the ‘expansion worth of content’ that the Living Story was supposed to deliver? Don’t know
What happened to the super secret project that was being worked on by another team around the time that Living Story’s two week cadence was announced? Don’t know
I could go on and on with this…

This company policy of not talking about any future development is just ridiculous. Bottom line, I find it hard to invest in a game of this nature without having something exciting to look forward to. As a result, I’ll dabble from time to time, but ultimately my money goes elsewhere.

Like I’ve said before, the company’s policy of not telling anything that’s going into development or (potential) release is what makes us players feel like mushrooms.

I disagree with it and I’m totally not surprised with the community’s general state of disdain for the developers.

Valandil Dragonhart.2371:

I disagree with it and I’m totally not surprised with the community’s general state of disdain for the developers.

I think that a bad misconception that needs to be addressed a developer is by his/her nature generally not in control of things like news worthy releases, it is their job to get whatever asset they are working on working.

So if your looking for someone to paste a blame card on I would look higher up the food chain, the main reason however you hide things is that you do not want your competition knowing which direction your heading too, as this would give the competition an advantage that advantage can cost $.

Remember that not everything can be released to public because of business agreements and things like that.
And I’m pretty sure they lowered their responses due to overall feedback. Because of dev process they could tell something that later has changed or even wasn’t released at all. People of course would rush and start screaming ‘how can it be?!’. So it’s safer not to tell too much about future plans.

Kartel.2561:

I want to give an example of what I consider a good relationship between devs and players. An example of a little transparency from SOE and how they keep players in the loop on what’s going on.

https://forums.station.sony.com/landmark/index.php?threads/the-new-improved-blueprint-updated-10-06-14.34413/

Devs are always talking much more before the game is released .. also a while after
release .. until at some point the community turns everything against them no
matter what they say.

In EQ2 the communication also went worse when time went by .. especially after
Moorgard and Blackguard left. In the end the only dev that was posting quite often
was the crafting dev .. because everyone loved her.

And i’ve seen the same more or less in every MMO that i played from beta or release.

Yargesh.4965:

GW2 was doing the same thing prior to release. Find examples of companies that have a released product.

The same company. Check out Planetside 2’s Roadmap.

dace.8019:

Yargesh.4965:

GW2 was doing the same thing prior to release. Find examples of companies that have a released product.

The same company. Check out Planetside 2’s Roadmap.

Then the op should have used planetside 2 for any comparisons.

Yargesh.4965:

GW2 was doing the same thing prior to release. Find examples of companies that have a released product.

Easy

Warframe

If you watch the whole thing, you’ll notice that a fan even ambushed them with a pizza order during their devstream.

I have a boat load of gems to buy once the veil of secrecy is lifted on what they are actually working on at the moment, and what they are currently working on for the immediate future. A BOAT LOAD OF GEMS WAITING TO BE PURCHASED.

There are many other F2P games that have this sort of transparency about their projects. It actually keeps both their veteran interested (retention) and potential new players intrigued (attracted).

seabhac.5346:

I have a boat load of gems to buy once the veil of secrecy is lifted on what they are actually working on at the moment, and what they are currently working on for the immediate future. A BOAT LOAD OF GEMS WAITING TO BE PURCHASED.

There are many other F2P games that have this sort of transparency about their projects. It actually keeps both their veteran interested (retention) and potential new players intrigued (attracted).

Other players gave examples (other than OP) of what they consider good communication. I could say I am the king of kengsington and will give knighthoods if they give an outline, as meaningless as boatloads of gems. I personally have not seen a game that kept a good steady (over years) stream of interaction.

Planetside 2 possibly?
Planetside 2 – Work in progress Vids

And I’d even say the “Command Centre” vids hold some information sometimes.
I’m not sure how they fair up against PoI though – since PoI is very new

Communications, general corporate or forum hosting, is a fine art. It takes skill and forethought to communicate in a positive format while retaining knowledge base activities and maintaining intellectual property held by the communicating entity.
Allowing principal members to communicate without an appropriate buffer has caused the further erosion of the company brand’s image. I know a little about this type of atmosphere, and I can say that it is glaringly apparent they are below standard in many ways.
A trained professional would immediately increase the public image, while simultaneously improving internal communications within the company, utilizing established and time tested techniques.
I have related the obvious need for improvement in many posts before this one. I pray the company listens so that they do not continue to erode the clout they still possess.

aerial.7021:

Valandil Dragonhart.2371:

I disagree with it and I’m totally not surprised with the community’s general state of disdain for the developers.

I think that a bad misconception that needs to be addressed a developer is by his/her nature generally not in control of things like news worthy releases, it is their job to get whatever asset they are working on working.

So if your looking for someone to paste a blame card on I would look higher up the food chain, the main reason however you hide things is that you do not want your competition knowing which direction your heading too, as this would give the competition an advantage that advantage can cost $.

They’re playing with a double-edged sword.

It’s no misconception – their hands are tied. If company policy didn’t step in and prevent them from talking about whatever we should be getting all excited about, then they should at least be more responsive toward other areas of the game(I’m talking pre-Mike O’Brien Communication thread). Their accelerated (and appreciated) efforts recently don’t really make up for the past two years+ of general silence.

Of course they’re the poster-people of the game, and the company, because you won’t get in touch with anyone higher like parent companies, etc. I believe that if you want to keep people in the game longer, you talk to them about what you have in the works. Give us something to get excited about. Sod the competition… especially when an exodus thanks to LACK of communication will cost them quite a bit more in lost revenue.

The exodus started back at release, they’re trying to make up for that now with the NPE. It’s the veterans that will now leave en-masse, thanks to lack of content and timeliness for general fixes that are long overdue.

Varakkys.2490:

Are new classes coming? Don’t know
New abilities/weapons? Don’t know
How long will season 2 last? Don’t know
Will there be a break in season 2 for Xmas/New Year? Probably, don’t know
Will the break be another 3 months? Don’t know
Is the trait revamp being worked on in response to feedback? Don’t know
What happened to the ‘expansion worth of content’ that the Living Story was supposed to deliver? Don’t know
What happened to the super secret project that was being worked on by another team around the time that Living Story’s two week cadence was announced? Don’t know
I could go on and on with this…

I can help you with these. Note that I have absolutely no inside information, I’m just taking a few pot shots. You’re welcome to think otherwise, but I feel pretty confident about these answers.

Probably not. They almost certainly have ideas, but it’s low priority to implement them.
Probably. Expect to see a small number of these that will likely disappoint you with the expansion.
Almost certainly 4 more releases leading up to Christmas. November 4th and 18th, December 2nd and 16th.
Yes. ArenaNet’s last patch will be December 16th because the hard-working folks there deserve a break for the holidays.
I would expect the break to last at least until February, perhaps March.
Yes. Traits have already seen some updates and you can expect some additional small changes (like removing the map completion ones).
It came out. Sorry that you didn’t feel it was enough content.
It’s an expansion. They’re still working on it. It’ll be released When It’s Done™.

If you want a comparison for communication, look to Marvel Heroes, and it’s been live for about a year and a half. Yes, it’s a FTP more in the line of a Diablo clone than a true MMO, but the dev to community communication and interaction there is stronger than I’ve ever seen anywhere else. It’s something special.

That being said, there are just as many people complaining about not being heard and the game going in the wrong direction and blah blah blah there as well. The biggest difference is there is a TON of people saying things like “Well, you said you were working on this but it came out different/didn’t come out yet/ you lied to us” and all that, so I don’t know if them being as open as they are is something I would consider good. But hey, you were looking for examples.

IllegalChocolate.6938:

Yargesh.4965:

GW2 was doing the same thing prior to release. Find examples of companies that have a released product.

Easy

Warframe

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRRWH6bE6h0

If you watch the whole thing, you’ll notice that a fan even ambushed them with a pizza order during their devstream.

That’s one cool team.

I actually don’t recall Anet going into quite that much detail when GW2 was in development. We didn’t even really have forum access until the end. But that’s not the point.

The ultimate point is that communication and openness is a great thing and anyone not doing it, should. Anyone who used to, shouldn’t stop. A slow down post-release is understandable, but it shouldn’t be dialed back to nothing (unless there actually is nothing being worked on, which shouldn’t be the case for an mmo). But they shouldn’t be “not allowed” to talk about what’s going on. Open relationships foster trust and appreciation.

The more we are allowed to know what’s going on, and the more we can give feedback before it’s too late, the better the result is likely to be, and the more we are likely to be interested and care. It’s harder to stay interested and patient when you don’t even know what, if anything, you’re waiting for. There needs to be at least some fuel to keep the fires going.

Any good relationship has trust as a big component, and a big component in fostering trust is deciding the other party is “worth” being allowed to know the truth of things, even if that truth isn’t all roses. I can be much more accepting of failures and limitations if they just level with me, and even be inclined to try to help anyway I can (like with money). But if you expect my continued support, but push me away and refuse to me anything about what’s going on .I am not so inclined to continue caring or supporting. Anet’s not my family, and despite being a loyal customer for the past decade, I’m not THAT loyal.

I’m not interested in holding false hopes about what they may be working on because “technically anything’s on the table”. I want to know what actually IS happening ..what direction they actually are taking us in, and where they’re not. This blind aimlessness isn’t working for me for my bank card.

Blizzard with their dev watercooler blogs. It’s not an all the time thing and not very detailed, but it is really cool.

http://www.wowwiki.com/Dev_Watercooler

why would you want rational communication instead of endless speculation and talking points to dictate the evolution of the game…

This communication deficiency was made apparent for all to see when the Ascended Tier was announced a couple months after launch…it has not gotten any better since then, I might even venture to say that it has become habitual. Major, fundamental changes are getting sprung on the player base.

There’s been some glimmers that ANet as an organization is showing some self awareness, but they seem to always to default back to: saying nothing, not engaging or acknowledging.

The false dichotomy that includes the mantra: don’t listen to the players because they can lead you, the Devs, in the wrong direction.

But, I’d argue that there’s a balance to be struck in such things.

Btw.:
http://www.reddit.com/r/EQNext/comments/2ifkm5/any_news_on_eqnext/

The team needs to do a much better job at feeding fans EQN information. Suggesting that we play around with landmark, watch social feeds like twitch, and view the handful of annual SOE live videos as a means to keep abreast is disheartening.

Doesn’t sound sooo different ..

And no .. i don’t want to bash SOE .. i’m indeed more or less an SOE Fan, and never
understood all the generell hate against them just because of the NGE that was
mainly pushed by Lucas Art.

I have to agree with others’ statements above. SOE’s current transparency regarding EQN is at least as much about hyping the game as it is about actually telling players anything about their plans. Additionally, because of the competitiveness of the market for high-end MMOs, no company is every going to be truly transparent about what they’re working on, as to do so would simply allow other developers to capitalize on their ideas.

You can’t use a game that hasn’t even been released as a reasonable comparison. And SOE has never had a reputation for keeping players informed about upcoming changes to games that have been released already.

That’s not to say that ArenaNet’s current closed-lips policy is a good policy. In my opinion it is a mistake for them to refuse to talk about what they are or are not considering working on. It’s one thing to withhold details to protect against having their ideas copied by competitors, or to prevent players from complaining later about how they aren’t giving what they promised, but it’s another thing entirely to tell players absolutely nothing at all, and to appear to casually disregard legitimate concerns.

In my opinion, players need to realize that no developer will ever tell them everything they are working on, and ArenaNet needs to realize that they need to still keep us at least nominally in the loop in order to keep our interest alive between patches. And ArenaNet also needs to stop saying “we never promised that” when they in fact did.

My 2cp anyway.