Guild Wars 2

Sent you a PM ^_^

Sent you a PM. ^_^

just shot you a PM, as we’re on YB too ^_^

sent you a PM. ^_^

sent you a PM. ^_^

sent you a PM. ^_^

sent you a PM.

Geikamir.6329:

Josh Foreman.8250:

Here’s how it worked. I started putting little jumping challenges into my maps several years ago. About a year and a half ago Colin and a couple other designers decided that these were fun enough to turn into some kind of bonus content. About a year ago all the other map artists were told to put a bonus jumping challenge or two in all their maps. We were in our polish phase and these were never intended to be anything more than small diversions for people who like platforming. Not a lot of time was dedicated to this because it was seen almost as Easter Eggs. Just fun little hidden places to discover. As such, JPs were never advertised as primary content, never included in world complete, never required for any story step, and never containing loot that could not be obtained elsewhere.

Because JPs are such a minor part of the game, specific camera issues that are primarily caused by them are not super high on the list of systems that demand the camera code bends to their needs. This does not mean that JP camera issues are ignored by the programmers who work on the camera, simply that they have to prioritize things. And while I’m not happy with the way the camera works because I spend a lot my time doing JPs, I know the engine optimization guys are not happy either because part of the compromise they have to make with us JP guys means that there are places where the world drops out because the camera can get through the occlusion planes. If the optimization guys had it there way 100% the camera would never even get close to a wall and we would build all our maps as flat planes with waist high walls. (Not that they actually want that, but that would be the ideal for avoiding world-dropping bugs) Since the camera has to serve two or three masters, who all want it to do different things, its current implementation is a compromise. This is not due to laziness or bad coding. We simply don’t hire lazy people or bad coders, and we get rid of any who show that tendency.

One issue that a non-developer would not know is the difference between creating a single-player game and an MMO. So it’s easy to look at Uncharted’s camera or Skyrim’s camera and say “Why don’t they just do it that way?” In fact, a lot of us artists DO say that to the coders. And then we get taught a lesson in how incredibly more complex an MMO engine has to be. The sheer amount of dependencies on any one system is staggering, and there is hardly ever a time where a programmer slaps their forehead and says “Oh, I never THOUGHT about just doing like Skyrim!” There are always REASONS that our systems are the way they are. None of this is to say that all our systems are perfect and our team is perfect and nothing will improve. Of course we aren’t perfect, and we are just as frustrated by the limitations and quirks as you are.

So yeah, had we been inflexible, we would have not allowed JPs in the game because they expose weaknesses in the camera. Had we been omniscient, we would have planned the camera from the start to work with the extreme geometry that JPs have. Had we been perfect, maybe we could have come up with a solution to work for all the systems at once perfectly. We are none of those things. What we are is a bunch of people who love making this game and who are constantly looking for ways to provide interesting and new kinds of content. That means pushing against the limits of what our engine can do, then iterating the engine to try to keep up with the design ideas. It’s a process, not and end point. There will never be a point at which we are all happy with the game and declare it to be the perfect representation of our design wishes.

I’m currently in a conversation with the latest ‘owner’ of the camera system and we’ll see what comes of that.

Bravo.

Why can’t all issues be handled like this post? There are so many issues that get brought up sometimes and we are given canned responses that literally make the situation so much worse, because if feels like we are being treated like children. This post talked to us like people, not customers. It actually answered questions instead of avoiding them (and in laymen’s terms, no less). And you even gave us solid information that you are actively trying to make a fix for a problem so many players want.

I really wish all big-ticket issues were handled so well (like cross-region guesting for example).

+1

excellent explanations by Josh, and an excellent response from Geikamir. kudos to both of you.

confirmed by me as well. it’s really a bummer when it happens to 3 or 4 of you at once, since now you can’t simply just waypoint your way out while the other 1 or 2 players are in combat protecting Hodgins.

Seraki, sorry for this blatant copy/paste from a previous posting, but I think you’d fit in well, and we’d love for you to join us.

Our guild is friendly, laid-back and is comprised of mostly adults who have to juggle between gaming, our jobs, and our families. We are not large at all (maybe around 20 people), and there’s about 6 or 7 of us who play on a pretty regular basis at least every other night.

We typically run PVE most of the time, and love to run dungeons as much as we can (been on an AC kick for the past few weeks), including fractals on occasions. We love to have a good time and chat, and don’t take ourselves or this game too seriously, as it is just a game at the end of the day.

Voice chat is available but is honestly rarely ever used any longer for some reason. Please feel free to check us out at www.sempermoxie.com. We really don’t take the website too seriously either, maybe posting something every now and then on the forums. It’s nowhere near being utilized to its’ potential.

We’re looking for another handful of active PVE/Dungeon players to join. We’d love to have you.

Ha, sorry for this wall of text. Feel free to send me a PM/Mail here or ingame.

thanks.

Ima Seamstress (IGN)
Goodbye Mr Anderson (IGN)

Russ, our guild is friendly, laid-back and is comprised of mostly adults who have to juggle between gaming, our jobs, and our families. We are not large at all (maybe around 20 people), and there’s about 6 or 7 of us who play on a pretty regular basis at least every other night.

We typically run PVE most of the time, and love to run dungeons as much as we can (been on an AC kick for the past few weeks), including fractals on occasions. We love to have a good time and chat, and don’t take ourselves or this game too seriously, as it is just a game at the end of the day.

Voice chat is available but is honestly rarely ever used any longer for some reason. Please feel free to check us out at www.sempermoxie.com. We really don’t take the website too seriously either, maybe posting something every now and then on the forums. It’s nowhere near being utilized to its’ potential.

We’re looking for another handful of active PVE/Dungeon players to join. We’d love to have you.

Ha, sorry for this wall of text. Feel free to send me a PM/Mail here or ingame.

thanks.

Ima Seamstress (IGN)
Goodbye Mr Anderson (IGN)

officially still bugged. the times it’s been bugged for me, someone from the party was slow to enter the Hall. the player was either knocked down while the rest of us ran through the mobs, or maybe they were just slow to run.

it probably has nothing to do with it, but just something i’ve noticed when it’s bugged. nothing to do other than exit the dungeon, break the party, regroup the party and start over.

officially still bugged. the times it’s been bugged for me, someone from the party was slow to enter the Hall. the player was either knocked down while the rest of us ran through the mobs, or maybe they were just slow to run.

it probably has nothing to do with it, but just something i’ve noticed when it’s bugged. nothing to do other than exit the dungeon, break the party, regroup the party and start over.