I am going to refrain from making any predictions. Most of what I see posted here aren’t serious predictions, but more taking a shot at Anet due to built up frustration. And while many of those frustrations have a valid basis, it’s obviously not garnering the response that is hoped for.
As for expectations, much of what has already been listed here I would echo, or at the very least hope for. Though even before those things such as the Culling, Lag and UI functionality, I would ask ArenaNet to please set aside their own frustrations with us the player base. I am not foolish enough to think that your jobs are at all easy, and I am certain that being barraged at every turn has embittered many of you towards your players. It’s never an easy task to address such a large and obviously devoted mass of people. However, it is probably one of the most basic marketing issues any company in a service industry can deal with and the most daunting.
With that being said, perhaps the single most meaningful thing that a company can do is to maintain an approachable and clear information exchange with your customer base. Once customers realize they are being avoided and are not being ‘directly’ addressed via the very structure the company puts in place to impart information, ie: Arena Net’s very own forum, your customers become angry and suspicious. Then we arrive at the state we currently have here. Frustrated moderators (doing a largely thankless task) trying to keep a lid on the boiling over situation that is currently here in the WvWvW forums.
In customer service and marketing, perception is vastly important. While this seems the most obvious of statements, it is an elusive balance to maintain, much less to return your current customer base to a state of trust again. To achieve this seems much harder than it actually is though. Simply put, open the lines of communication and do not be stingy and evasive with that information. You already know that we the customers are huge fans, and we are going to speculate on the information we receive. Then why not make that information as clear and concise as you are able. This way when we excitedly discuss which updates and changes your teams are working on, we can do so with fact and not wild speculation.
Next is to engage your customer/fan base into HELPING your team. For instance, if your team is noticing something wonky going on such as a glitch in the meshing for a keep door or something that we would encounter while in the game world. Use our eyes and experiences to your teams advantage. Player based volunteers or “Realm Assistant” could be chosen from players who meet a criteria that your team of Devs and management decide upon to ensure that those volunteer positions are not going to be abused. This would free up massive amounts of time for the folks that are currently having to wade through, dare I say thousands, of “reports” each day. For instance, someone opens a report ticket on an issue they are having, the assigned “Realm Assistant” would get a PM. The “RA” (for short), would then log into the extra character slot assigned for this purpose. Then the player reporting the issue would get a whisper from the “RA” to clarify the issue. Even perhaps go with the player to look into whatever the issue is, say if it is a terrain problem or something.
In this way, your dedicated players who are realm citizens in good standing and wish to give something extra for their community can help YOU and free up your development teams and support team. While at the same time creating an atmosphere of an open and clear line of communication. It would enable ArenaNet to know with some certainty you are getting accurate information and your customer base is reassured that their issues are heard and acted on in a timely manner. (This of course would have to be anonymous with a non-disclosure agreement). There are various way to implement this effectively.
I apologize for the wall of text, but this has been on my mind for sometime. I truly enjoy GW2 and wish to see the rift that I am seeing be repaired. ArenaNet has created a wonderful game with some amazing design. Please allow us your customers and players to become a help and not a hinderance to future ideas and developments. If this meeting of the minds can be reached, you will find grateful and willing minds and hands to help in any way that is needed to keep this great game healthy and growing. Thank you for your time in reading this.. if you got this far.
Now let’s go take some keeps!
