I think you are giving these guys WAY too much credit. Check
the log from the monk sit in. Smedley told us a bald faced lie.
Not something that he was considering but something he said he
was doing. He has yet to do it obviously and he never will. As
far as I'm concerned, I have no reason to accept their word or
that they are working with us in good faith.
From: "Greg" <
greg@...>
> From: Aaron Braunstein <aaron_spam@...>
>
> Just sent this off to Brad and Smedley... was hoping that if
> others felt as I do, we could continue to work them in a similar
> manner.
>
> Mr. McQuaid,
> I have just finished reading your rather long and impassioned
> eMail/Producer letter on the topic of Everquest's evolution. I found
> it to be one of the most effective communications from any game
> company to its customers that I have ever read, and for that I
> congratulate you. I hope that people read it, think about it, and
> take away from it that which you intended: that the EQ team cares
> deeply about Norrath and its citizens.
> As a software developer myself (although truthfully, I don't
> do as much actual development as I'd like any more - I tend to spend
> more time in the design and management process these days), I also
> understand that there must be a primary focus to every project. For
> me, this doesn't necessarily mean that the primary goal be "create
> the best possible system"... it goes beyond that to a deeper goal:
> "Make sure that the client is happy". Sometimes this involves
> difficult and painful decisions, Herculean efforts, and the ability
> to case aside profit considerations at times in order to fight for
> what is ultimately the best way to solve any given problem.
> I suspect that you and your team have a similar goal, except
> yours would be to keep your subscriber base happy and to attract new
> members to that subscriber base. Another parallel between what we do
> is that our clients (or subscribers, in your case) don't always know
> what it is that will truly make them happy or are at loggerheads
> about what any particular change might do to forward that goal
> (witness how many people cannot even agree on whether or not an item
> on your recently released change list is a "+" or a "-".)
> Most of us understand that tuning needs to take place. If
> things were too easy, then there would be no challenge to life in
> Norrath and therefore there would be little enjoyment of the
> surmounting of those challenges. If one class is too powerful, a
> surfeit of players using that class results, just as a underpowered
> or less useful class suffers a dearth of interested participants.
> The fact that it requires a group of people to do most worthwhile
> things in EQ is one of the more attractive things about the game
> (although there are of course those who would argue that this is also
> one of its greatest downfalls). The fact that each and every class -
> once it reaches maturity - can bring something unique to a group is a
> wonderful and fragile thing. Adjusting the balance of the classes so
> that their value to such a group is maintained is a task of
> monumental delicacy, and your efforts at maintaining this balance
> should be commended.
> Unfortunately, as people are by definition human, mistakes
> are occasionally made. Over time, the development team has
> recognized some of these mistakes and have made efforts to address
> them. By way of example, Warriors got some serious boosts some time
> ago, and with the introduction of the expansion, the presence of a
> Rogue in a well-rounded party will become very important indeed.
> These were both well-considered and well-deserved changes, and the
> players of those classes have (or will have) reaped the rewards of
> these changes over the course of time.
> Other classes who have been 'nerfed' may complain
> vociferously about it, but if they go over those issues which
> generated the most complaints (kiting, pet damage, etc) I think that
> people will realize that while these changes were made to the
> possible detriment of the solo player, they were certainly done to
> enhance the value and necessity of other classes in a group. If this
> was indeed your goal, then I must certainly say that your mission has
> been accomplished.
> With this in mind, I am still at a loss to explain why the
> Feign Death skill for Monks was recently so seriously altered. I
> understand your reasons for doing what you did, but the consequence
> is that the usefulness of a Monk in higher-level (40+) groups has
> been seriously compromised. True, we can do the damage of a
> decently-equipped warrior, but that's it. The warrior offers so much
> more to a group (stun, taunt, the ability to take huge amounts of
> damage, etc) that the role of a monk has been diminished greatly.
> The one thing that we could bring to a group - that of feign-pulling
> - has for all practical purposes been eliminated and replaced with a
> reputation for being the "Master Train Engineers". For this reason,
> monks are beginning to be refused entry into impromptu groups because
> they do not bring anything special and are often dangerous companions.
> As a level 50 monk, I no longer use FD for fear that on those
> occasions where it is necessary, I'll end up wiping out half the zone
> as I get up to work my way back to a zone point. I would far rather
> die individually than wipe out other innocent players in a ploy to
> save my own skin - and have now done so on a number of occasions.
> How has this change made your player base happier? How has
> it enhanced the role of a Monk in a group? How has it positively
> affected group dynamics? I really want to understand what the
> desired affect of this change was... perhaps if I did, I could lose
> the bitter taste in my mouth and not continually toy with the idea of
> dropping out of Norrath in disappointment. As it is, I only stay so
> that I can help twink up friends.
> Don't get me wrong, I am not saying that Norrath is an
> impossible place to live in without Monks being able to Feign in
> their accustomed fashion. Groups will just load up on more Warriors
> or Paladins in their stead, and the more difficult areas of Norrath
> that could previously be handled by a single well-organized and
> balanced group will now have to be taken by multiple groups just
> charging in willy-nilly with no plan more sophisticated than "kill
> this one first, then that one, and if we're still left alive, we go
> for that other one last."
> I understand that your decision is made and that further
> revision to the Feign Death mechanics is unlikely. I am not
> therefore asking for you to do so - your team seems to be happy with
> FD in its current form, and we as players should respect that and
> make our own decisions accordingly. I just wanted to ask for a brief
> explanation of the motivations behind this change and to also bring
> again to your attention the fact that the balance you strive for is
> an exceedingly delicate thing that is all to easily thrown out of
> kilter by even the best-intentioned and well-discussed changes.
> Thank you for your time.
> --
> Aaron Braunstein
> Pacific Data Management, Inc.
>
> <aaron_braunstein@...>
>
Hemmm, I can see it now
Brad: "u twink ur friends?" *BAN*
Sorry, I'm a cynical bastard and I just had to add that little bit.
Really, it is a sensible letter, but when has an MMORPG team ever made
sense?