Population Concerns

If the definition of masterpiece is a criticality acclaimed reimagining of the rpg genre and gets better reviews then some third game being used as s measure I'll take those odds.
I'd suggest Persona 5 or Final Fantasy XV

Final Fantasy XV would be poetic given how Ultima inspired Squaresoft

 

Any idea how we could stop the bleeding out of the player base?

 

You can't really stop it. You can only hope to curtail it. There will be ebbs and flows as new content is released both in the game and outside in the general video game world. A steady addition of content and managed events in between is how you keep people logging in and engaged.

My hope is that once the game is more stable and we enter the marketing blitz that usually accompanies a traditional release that the monthly new content schedule turns into a bi-weekly thing, with larger updates every two or three months.

 

Easiest way would be to complete the game and make sure all aspects are functional. People will come and go, but we have a decent portion of players that are waiting for feature complete before they play.

 

We hired two world builders in just the last few days, so look forward to more scenes and polish in existing scenes in the near future... in fact, be sure to check out this week's Update of the Avatar going out shortly!

 

I figured with the 2 new recruits, it means things are still on the nice spiral up =)
Looking forward to the new content!

 

Of course player base will always be a fluctuating mass... But right now at least with the people I play with its more like who leaves next instead of friends asking to help me get them into the game. There is no selling feature really.

 

Agreed. That's why I said the easiest way is to complete the game. Its hard to get people into a game that is undergoing construction and is still in a very raw state, especially with things you really liking about the game suddenly disappearing or being massively changed. I know the current state of it is why none of my friends are currently playing.

**edit - decided to be slightly more useful in my post**

If we are just throwing out a wish list for what we think would draw more people in, then I'd go with:
Less tedious grind (I'm forced out of the game to amuse myself while waiting to finish gathering)
Improved combat mechanics (be it PvP or PvE, even with the recent changes to the deck system which I am a fan of, I don't find myself as engaged as I would prefer)
Load times (be it loading screens or high load cities, doesn't affect me much but it kills some of my friends ability to play) - I know this is constantly on the list to get improved, but only so much can be done while building the game
Content (it must be amazing to keep people interested) - its coming so I'm fine waiting on it
Offline mode (Companions are huge to me, never got into UO but the U games and the companions in them were fundamental to me enjoying RPGs) - note I think a solid offline mode will actually draw people into the online mode if done right (though I'm saddened that we won't get companions in any of the online modes)

Overall though, I don't think now is the time to be worried about it. A few months prior to release/launch/whatever you want to call it will become important to focus on this. While things are still being designed and coded I'm less worried about drawing new people (besides the whole not seeing friends I used to really enjoy playing with). I think it was definitely a mistake to go persistent early, but that is moot point and I don't think it will hurt us in the very long run (I do think it has hurt us in the current short term though).

 

Gathering is certainly not very engaging, but a fully unlocked deck and group pulls certainly push my ability to move/execute and stack. Very engaging even as a face-tanker AE build

Crafting annoys me, but there needs to be all that annoyance to keep the market from being flooded with perfect items

It's a hella grind as a crafter/adventurer. 2 pools and tons of uncommon mats to forage.

Hopefully some cool, engaging dungeons come. Really want to do stuff with my guild this winter!

 

Go back in time and change a number of things profoundly? SotA is, honestly, the game where I hear the most, "I really, really wanted to love this... and I just can't."

In other words, it's not a bunch of easy come, easy go randoms I see who are upset with SotA, but a bunch of people who gave it TONS of goodwill, over years, and really wanted to love it.

When people like that are the core of the group that's walked away from the game, the game's in serious trouble. People will deny this, of course, but it's there infront of us all if we just look.

 

I like the game more or less, but it certainly have some very strange design issues that just shouldnt have been in a game of this kind in 2016. But there are also some very good things, that at least makes it worth trying out. Not enough though, for a vast majority of players, as the player numbers sure is telling us now.

The problem is... the trouble with the game is so fundamental to its design, that it cannot be changed, at any point, making this game a really extreme niche for dedicated fans only and most likely there is a limit to how long even those people will keep playing it.

An example could be the problems with too much zoning required, but there are many other examples as well.

 

I know, thats exactly what I feel and observe but how do we get them back?

 

We are talking about it not being like a single player Ultima at all yet (meaning great storyline and quests that come along with that). And the time where the "it's not released yet" argument worked is over. Release is in less than a year. If nothing starts to happen now there won't be enough time. The time to speak up is now.

 

I watched this happen in Star Citizen... what was done there was they (CIG, developers) just cut away all the trade drama. The forums were busted for a time, but after all the kickstarter speculators finally left for 3rd party websites, open development and community involvement really began to flourish.

Maybe what Portalarium needs to do is close down the forum marketplace and just focus on open development and community involvement... it feels like that's what they're trying to do now, the focus part I mean - but there's always heat coming from a part of the community about resale and RMT and blah blah blah and that shouldn't influence game developers or drive community interests.

There really is no point in getting back anyone that's gone - and no reason to waste any energy on why they left. Me, I think it'd be really cool if Portalarium just stayed the course they're on but without all the anxiety of resale and meta surrounding people trying to trade things in the forums.

 

There is not only a point, it's essential. Those people check back from time to time and are willing to come back. But as long as it is going int he same diection there is no chance. A few very loud people make this game a game for them. And while they may be loud here, overall they are not many.

 

There will be new players, always. Chill.

 

I would say it's essential to understand why people leave.

Lets face it if player retention is low and you can't grow the player base then the game has no future. All indicators point towards a major problem with playerbase numbers which in turn is persistently dismissed by the fanboy community. I would even go so far to say that the fanboy community is part of the problem.

 

Regarding losing people logging into the game and play. I'm sure there are many other games out there that had a lot more people getting in initially and then left afterward. I don't really see the point to be emotional about people come and go, nor neither having being drama kings/queens and pulled up some soap box to declare that they no longer played the game and such.. I mean.. I've seen many people claimed they would quit drinking and smoking and made a big deal out of it. Turned out many of them come back to old habit anyway a few months later.

People will play any game if they:
1. own a copy.
2. have time to play.
3. have fun with it.

For #1, it's already been sorted out, for #2, that's up to the players, for #3, is what Portalarium can pour their energy and soul into it. In order to make the game fun, there needs to be good content, in order to have good content, there need to be tech to support the creation. Right now the game still does not have all the features it's supposed to have, so it doesn't surprised me that those who powergamed and burned the existing content will get bored and started becoming destructive on the forum.

There is no soul binding contract that people need to login everyday to play and the world won't end if they don't login. Right now many things are still under construction, so if someone wants to be part of shaping them, it is time to do so. If it doesn't work out, there are plenty of other things to do as well.

Think of it this way, if a group of people are in the car going to certain location. If they know that there will be a pot hole in about 100 miles ahead. What good does it do to keep screaming about the pot hole in the upcoming 100 miles when there could be 50 exits along the way that they could take or there might even be a pot hole 5 miles from where they are. Screaming about the pot hole 100 miles would just be a distraction from what's right up ahead.

 

I agree, but only to a point. I guess what I should have said was if the folks that left don't fit the desired target demographic for players then what's the point in wasting energy on getting them back. If Portalarium knows who it is they want as a customer, then maybe they're already doing exactly what needs to be done. I know a bunch of dudes that I would love to have join me in SotA, but they just don't fit or get it for one reason or another; and many of them even have accounts, tried the game and left because the hook just didn't set... it is what it is. Me on the other hand... I'd never even heard of a Lord British or an Ultima before I started playing SotA and I'm here for the long game.