While I’d like to once again register my belief that honesty is something to be lauded … I’m going to step back and agree that Brad McQuaid’s commentary hasn’t helped at all.

A press release totally unconnected to Massive games actually convinced me of this. The release that changed my mind was a recent missive from Palladium Books. Palladium is a publisher of table-top roleplaying games, and is helmed by a gent named Kevin Siembada. I dunno if things have changed since I followed tabletop closely, but back in the day he was regarded as a right proper ass. My nose wrinkled like I was smelling something foul as I read his dripping message to Palladium customers:

My goal and the goal shared by every Palladium staff member, as well as our freelance artists and writers, is to create some of the most dynamic, exciting and fun role-playing games and sourcebooks on the market. Not just for our own survival, but for the survival and advancement of the role-playing game hobby. We are disappointed by the low number of RPG products being released by other game companies. All of us at Palladium Books know role-playing games have a bright future, and we aim to prove it. In addition to RPG sourcebooks and games, you will soon see an offering of three, new T-shirts, Rifts Postage Stamps, the John Zeleznik Art Book, and a new product line I think is fun, different and something you and ALL fans of sci-fi and fantasy artwork will enjoy. I’m sure some of our detractors will shake their heads, but we think it’s something people will enjoy and use.

I read this, I recalled Siembada’s asinine plea to fans to keep the company afloat (which obviously worked, unfortunately), and I can’t help but think of Brad’s comments to the Vanguard fanbase. Yech. They’re honest, yes, but as with Siembada’s drooling exhortation to buy more of their crap to ‘advance the role-playing game hobby’, they’re essentially penitent excuses laid at the feet of the gamers who are subsidizing Sigil’s existence. “We really really tried. We tried so hard. I know it’s not as good as it could have been. Also: please keep giving us money!”

Moreover, and this is what has been weighing on me, they’re far too little too late. Yes, money was tight. Developing a game on your own often is. Yes, SOE forced them to launch sooner than they were ready. That happens when you let an older boy play with your toys – they might get broken. The bottom line here is that McQuaid and Co. had FIVE FUCKING YEARS to make this game. The official press release wasn’t until 2004, but Sigil has been around since January of 2002. They’ve had that long to get with the times, make changes, realize they were making a horrible mistake, or at least … you know … fix the bugs. The stink is rising from the shambling carcass that is Saga of Heroes, and already the vultures are beginning to take strips of flesh:

Kageru: Meanwhile I have no idea what happened with the game coding. The code seems to already have reached an unmaintainable state where bugs just can’t be fixed. I can’t imagine how else the act of forming a group, or not falling through the world, can still be so flawed. Meanwhile the rate of introduction for new bugs is scarily high.

I honestly can’t see the game holding enough subscriptions to fund the development it needs to be decent.

That, of course, is now the question: Will SOE buy Vanguard from Sigil? There has been lots of discussion on the subject of just what went wrong, and folks are on both sides of the fence. Is it worth saving? Is there any player interest? What does Brad think? (You’ll note he’s been fairly quiet on this particular front.)

My two cents: No, it’s not worth saving. But yes, if SOE can swing it they almost certainly will.

The reason it’s not worth saving? When I talked about throwing a MMOG and no one coming back in Summer of last year, I was talking about Auto Assault. From everything I’ve heard, even though there’s no one (really) interested in playing it … the people who *are* playing it are having a blast. It’s very different, it’s a little hard to understand, but they went out there and they tried something really different. And they fell on their faces. Which happens sometimes. Just like Pauly Shore – at least they tried. Vanguard, on the other hand, is a five-years-in-the-making retread of a game released in 1999 that isn’t even as good as the original game. Yeah, you can make ships and fly cool mounts etc. etc, but the metric shit-ton of content SOE has crammed into EQ over the years makes those extra features look like chump change. The diplomacy game is really neat. I’ll totally give them that. But em … what else is there to get excited about? LOTRO’s got Hobbitses and fancy titles … and you’re offering me a glorified card game?

Now, all that said, SOE is definitely going to buy it if they can. The reason: Because they can. They’ve already got their foot in the door by publishing the thing, and I’m going to take a wild guess and say that Vanguard would probably be pretty cheap to pick up right now. Poor dealings with Microsoft in the past and awful subscriptions rates in the here-and-now have to be making it hard for those guys to be making payroll let alone focusing on future development. So SOE slips some cash in a few pockets and bingo-bango: a 95% complete Massive game that just needs a few months of work to get the kinks ironed out.

Yes, it’s a lot like their two flagship products. Yes, it’s leaving a really bad taste in the mouths of gamers right now. Yes, people are going to yell at them and call them mean and nasty names for ‘butting in’ to ‘Brad’s sacred realm’. All those are good reasons not to. But, as I’ve tried to point out in the past, at the end of the day the Massive industry is a business. From a business standpoint, there’s a wounded competitor lying at their feet. You pick him up, dust him off, and soon enough he’s working for you. Why let the guy die when you can turn misfortune into an opportunity for profit?

(I’m mentally picturing Ferengi rubbing their lobes right now, so consider that as you mentally say the word ::profit::)

All this is just conjecture of course, but why not? Hell, it’s SOE’s money to throw away, not mine. At this point I wouldn’t invest in Vanguard with um … a twelve foot pole.

You tell me, though: What’s a real and honestly good reason for Sony Online Entertainment not to purchase Vanguard?

My appreciation for the world, the fact that I still haven’t installed the retail version of Vanguard, and peer pressure has made me cave: I’m going to go buy LOTRO today.

The bad taste I’ve had from Turbine games and many distractions made for what I now see as a very biased experience in the Beta. If I had to be even more honest I’d say this: I didn’t give it a chance.

In the interests of current and future projects then, I will tip my hat and head Middle-Earthward.

I’m thinking Minstrel. Foofy bard is not a role I’ve played in a while.

My opinion is still extremely mixed on Sigil and SOE’s love child, but I’m quickly becoming a fan of Brad McQuaid. As Krones and Lum pointed out early last month, he tends to be up front about the problems facing Vanguard. Simon characterized it as painfully honest, but I tend to view McQuaid’s commentary as pragmatism more than anything else.

Just today he let loose with another list of the biggest problems facing the game today, and from a certain point of view it’s a grim list: overtaxing technology, underpopulated servers, extraordinarily popular competition, and lackluster marketing. The server populations are blatantly obvious to the players, and so there’s no sense in hiding it or pussy-footing around it:

The reason we are enhancing the LFG system (other than it’s always a good idea in general) is because it’s too hard to find a group. One of the biggest reasons it’s too hard to find a group is that we were overly worried the newbie yards would be over populated the first couple of weeks post-launch that we opened with too many servers. That’s why we are working on better LFG tools, having to seriously consider overland teleports, etc. If a world at peak hours had 4-5k people on it, this wouldn’t be nearly the problem it is. 

Even though I don’t see his honesty as particularly noble, it’s still something to respect. A lot of other folks would give you a song and dance routine instead of copping to the reality of the situation; I think certain other titles could benefit from this level of honesty.

I’d specifically like to call out SWG on this one, but it’s not the folks running the game who have the problem … LucasArts. :P

Anyway, hats off to Mr. McQuaid for his forthrightness. Here’s hoping that continuing in that vein nets them good results with the users over the long run.

The Station Access Pass has been one of the best deals in online gaming for some time now. At around $25, it was less than the monthly price of two games and offered access to half a dozen. If you played one SOE MMOG primarily, and dabbled with a second, it was a no-brainer decision. Unfortunately, the price has gone up. As Krones, Abalieno, the Noob, Tipa, DingGrats, Cuppycake, Amber, and Aggro have all observed … that’s dumb.

I initially began writing this post at the end of last month. I stopped because it occurred to me that John Smedley might have some insightful additions to any statements I made here. He asked if I could hold off on it for a bit, and I did. GDC came and went, and because they’re still wrangling to get the legal terms on why they made the price go up nailed down we’ve still heard nothing. I don’t envy you sir, I imagine it’s something you very much want to get out here.

That’s a shame, because I can only assume they do have something vaguely cool planned. As Val, Rot, and the rest of the folks at EQ2 Daily mentioned in their most recent podcast, there has to be a good business explanation for this; otherwise they wouldn’t have done it.

Here are my own negative reactions:

1. The real loser here is Planetside, which has received a price hike of its own. I thought that the game should have been $5 a month when it launched. Lo these years later, it’s worth nowhere near the $15/month they’re now charging. Above and beyond that, I’d be willing to bet Planetside was that ’second mmog’ played by a number of Station Access users. With gamers pulling out of that deal, the PS playerbase will grow even smaller and make the price hike look even more asinine. This game only has players, in my estimation, because Tabula Rasa and Huxley have yet to launch. Whichever of those games pops first is going to get the remaining PS players day one.
2. EverQuest and Star Wars Galaxies are the two least likely to be affected by this, I think. Anyone playing those games in 2007 are playing for keeps; they’ll sluff off the Station Access and keep on trucking with their chosen fix. If SWG still hasn’t broken its current players by now, nothing they can do will stop them. (So merge servers already, darnit!)
3. EverQuest 2 and Vanguard are the two that people will be forced to choose between. I know a lot of EQ2 players have been checking out Vanguard on the theory that it’s a lot like the olden days of EverQuest; with the price hike folks now have to choose between nostalgia and the now. While Planetside slipping even further into obscurity isn’t that big a deal to me, this seems like an act of arrogance on SOE’s part. Vanguard is still very much an unproven element on the Massive scene. While folks are interested and they’ve claimed over 100,000 users, how many of those are bored WoW players checking out the countryside? How many of those are Station Access players? Both of those sources of subscription fees could evaporate in the next few months. EverQuest 2 is, I feel, pretty darn safe. With TBC’s charm fading faster than some folks expected, I think a lot of folks are looking at column B as a nice way to spend some time while they wait for their WoW itch to come back or for another game to launch. If SOE wants Vanguard to stay on the upslide over the next six months, it seems like this would be the last thing they’d want to do.
4. This is a dangerous time to be raising services like this. LOTRO’s never-ending membership is probably looking like a good deal right now. You never have to pay a monthly for the game, ever, if you fork over the equivalent of 7 months worth of Station Access. That’s crazy. LOTRO may or may not be a critical success, but given the license you know they’re going to run that thing for at least four or five years. Assuming five years that’s $200 for LOTRO or $1800 for Station Access. That’s some grim stuff there. Likewise, games like Tabula Rasa, Warhammer, etc, will not be available on Station Access.
5. At $30 a month you’re requiring people to make SOE games their only source of gaming. $30 is a used game, as has been pointed out by a few other folks. That’s an entire single-player used game a month, for the cost of Station Access. At $30, you basically have to be playing SOE games all month every month, or it’s not worth your time. The death of player choice in how he spends his time is really kinda shitty. For $30 a month, you’re offering two fantasy MMOGs, a crazy sci-fi world based on a movie series people don’t like any more, a sci-fi world people don’t like any more based on a movie series people love, and a mediocre FPS. That’s just not a lot of options for the now hard-core-dedicated SOE player.

Whatever they’re adding to the service that ‘justifies’ this bump had better be magnificent. In one year, a jump of something like 25-30% in price is outrageous. I know, I know, there’s a lot of value there, but that just leads back to point five: you can only play SOE games. It seems to me the Access pass has one of two purposes: either it makes big money for the company, or it gets bodies into SOE games that wouldn’t otherwise be there. These two purposes are at direct odds with each other; unless Smedley’s holdup is the announcement of another tier of pricing, purpose 2 is going to be simply inviable.

If I were going to pull the strings on the Station Access pass, it’d go something like this …

Welcome to Sony Online Entertainment’s ‘4 Tiers of Fun’ Website. Here’s what we we can offer you today:

• Tier 0 (Planetside) – $4.99/month. This is the ’soldier tier’, reserved for the special members of Planetside’s unique combat forces. Log in and go get em’!
• Tier 1 (Single Game) – $14.99/month. This offers you complete and unfettered access to one of our six [Gods and Heroes, remember?] high-quality Massively Multiplayer experiences. In addition, you’ll be able to play one of our highly engaging Station Arcade titles, like Cosmic Rift, Infantry, or Tanaurus. This Tier and every one above it also allows you access to Planetside’s unique engaging FPS gameplay.
• Tier 2 (Floating Access) – $19.99/month. Offering an affordable price and ultimate flexibility, Tier 2 is for gamers who like the option of moving around a bit. Choose from three of our six premium titles, and you’ll have unrestricted access to groundbreaking entertainment like EverQuest 2 or Vanguard: Saga of Heroes. This Tier includes the option of, for a nominal one-time fee, unlocking extra perks like downloadable episodes or extra character slots! Station Arcade and Planetside access is also included, insuring that you’ll be getting plenty of ‘bang’ for your buck.
• Tier 3 (Station Access) – $29.99/month. The ultimate offering from Sony Online Entertainment: Station Access. With unlimited access to all six of our premium titles, you have the freedom to play any time and any way you want. Elements like downloadable content, extra character slots, premium character and guild benefits, and reduced rates on the Station Exchange service are all included. Additionally, the client for every one of the games SOE supports is available for digital download absolutely free. That’s right, there’s no need to buy a box for one of our titles: You can download it at no charge, with every update already included. For the cost of a single, used console game, you’ll be purchasing six high-quality titles, the unique MMOFPS title Planetside, and all three Station Arcade games. It’s an unparalleled deal, and an unparalleled offering – take advantage of it today!

Ultimately, I want what the folks at SOE want: success for games in the Massive genre. Considering some of the positive steps forward SOE has taken as a company in the last 6 months, I am confused and concerned about their decision with the Station Access price. I really hope that Smed and the rest of those folks can give us the lowdown on the changeup soon, because I know we’re all dying to understand the plan.

I’ve been reading and listening to a lot of the fallout from SOE’s influencer’s summit (sniffle), and one of the things I heartily agreed with was Brent’s observations about Sony’s player support. The EQ 2 Players site is amazing, and I knew that they were talking about something similar for Vanguard. Indeed, the Vanguard Players page is a tremendous piece of work. What I didn’t know is that characters have individual, automated blogs. (Thanik, that avatar, is character of the day today.) The blog updates every time you ding, and takes a UI-less screenshot of your surroundings. Thanik is apparently a busy boy, because he’s also got numerous posts showing that he’s been the first person in the game on his server to explore several areas and find several items.

Thanik, accompanied by Fjir, Sapa and Izyrius, was the first person on Shidreth to discover the item Kullom’s Belt in Thelaseen.

Hats off to SOE for an awesome feature.

Ryan over at Plaguelands has reposted a set of Vanguard tweaks, to get the optimal experience out of the Vanguard Beta. A sample:

1. Go to: [install drive]:\ProgramFiles\Sony\Vanguard\bin\vgclient.ini
2. Open it using notepad and make the following changes:
3. AnisotropicFiltering=off (which supposedly works for NVidia folks VERY well) Side Note: ALSO go into your card’s propertied and change this there as well
4. UseJoystick=False (I don’t know why but this did give me an extra 3-5 FPS)
5. UsePrecaching=True (For NVidia folks and some ATI folks, this is the holy grail)
6. UseTrilinear=False (For some folks this was an incredible boost)
7. UseCubemaps=False (I only noticed an ugly load screen, the game still looks fine to me)

I think it’s cool that Mort and Ryan are helping gamers to get the most out of the Beta.

…

The fact that a Massive game needs shit like “TURN OFF Hardware Occulsion while in the field and TURN IT BACK ON in town. The FPS gain in the field (for me) is close to 10!!!” relayed BY ITS PLAYERS speaks volumes about the playability of a game. This isn’t Beta anymore folks, this load is going live at the end of the month. Booo! Boooo!

If you’re like me, you enjoy screenshots from Massive games. The static experience we have in single-player games make screenshots purely a marketing tool. In MMOGs, the unique experience every user can have results in unrepeatable, unique experiences – great fodder for photography. If you’ve got screenshot troves sitting around somewhere online, feel free to link to them in the comments.

My Stuff-

• Chocobo Express – A buddy’s adventures in Vana D’iel
• Star Wars Tragedies – My time in SWG.
• A Tale of Rotting Flax – ATITD
• World of Warcraft Beta Screens – See! Dwarven Mages, Night Elves on Raptors, Old Ironforge, and More!

Everquest 2 -

• just_gwendolyn’s flickr set – Some great scenery shots of Norrath.
  
• An EQ2 raid – A night in the life of a raider.
  
• mercera’s flickr set – Some great FanFest shots, as well as in-game moments.
  

World of Warcraft -

• AFK Gamer’s flickr account – That one guy. He’s a great in-world photog, actually. Take more shots, Foton!
• Joi Ito’s ‘weknow’ shots - In and out of game shots from the leader of the somewhat famous ‘We Know’ guild. Nice BC shots too.
• Downbeatjunkies’ BC set – Lots of scenery from the new newbie areas.
• PVP IronForge Raid – Caps from a Hordie raid on the center of the Alliance’s world.
  
• Mederi’s flick set – Nice raid-level scenery; Onyxia, MC, etc.
  

Others -

• Thanopstru’s FFXI flickr set – Follow him via RSS, always beautiful Vana’diel shots.
• haysophie’s Everquest flickr set – Raids from ye olden days of MMOGdom.
  
• Wizzel’s Vanguard Beta flickr set – See the shiny before it breaks.
  
• Pentadact’s CoH/CoV flickr set – Great moments from a game I often miss.