Beta Test: Test Failed

[Svarty.8019]

Sure, the mechanics of the test might work as intended, but...

 

We're still outnumbered and lose everything at midnight every night. Except this time, I don't know 80% of the five people on our side (that's 4/5 for people struggling). 

 

This is objectively WORSE than before. What's the new system for? To make it so you don't care about your team?!!

 

This seems like madness.

[One more for the road.8950]

So, which part of
 

• - We hope to test a new internal deployment system that automates many aspects of executing a World Restructuring beta, including the steps involved in team creation and matchmaking. It should simplify the internal process of hosting beta events and make it less prone to human error. This is a big step toward having the feature enabled full time on the live game servers without manual upkeep by our Platform Engineering team.
• - We’ve reduced the likelihood that players will be placed on the incorrect team or realm (assuming they properly selected a WvW guild prior to the deadline).
• - We’ve implemented bug fixes and mitigations for the “queue bug.”
  
  went wrong?
  
  These are the goals stated for this beta.
  
  And of course it would be sides overrunning the others, this is like if you took the servers on either NA or EU and shook them in a box, and then randomly pulled who was gonna face who. A bit like what happens after relink - it always takes a couple, or more, weeks to stabilize, and so it would now if it was a continuing experience for a while.
  
  Also, the Alliance part isn't even in it yet, and therefore some have implemented their own way of getting the Alliance part by making community guilds, perhaps making it even more skewed... this time around.

Edited August 17, 2022 by One more for the road.8950

[Junkpile.7439]

Well it's stupid that match last whole week. 3 hours would be more than enough. 3 hours serious gaming in day would be better than this pointless 24/7 kitten show.

[Morden Kain.3489]

1 hour ago, One more for the road.8950 said:

- We’ve reduced the likelihood that players will be placed on the incorrect team or realm (assuming they properly selected a WvW guild prior to the deadline).

Yeah, that was a failure point for me.  Had done that prior, and still ended up on a totally different server from the guild I had selected for the Beta.

[One more for the road.8950]

42 minutes ago, Morden Kain.3489 said:

Yeah, that was a failure point for me.  Had done that prior, and still ended up on a totally different server from the guild I had selected for the Beta.

I know there has been some saying they did indeed choose before the deadline for the beta test, but from what I can see both in the game and on this forum, the amount of times this has happened have been reduced considerably compared to the earlier betas - which I would count as a success. It did say "reduced", not "eliminated". If the support tickets have had the same drop, they did something right for sure.

Which still doesn't mean it's any less "fun" for those few it did indeed happen to, of course.

Edited August 18, 2022 by One more for the road.8950
typo

[Sviel.7493]

There isn't any matchmaking going on so it's unlikely to be an improvement on that front.  There should be a similar number of accounts on each side, but some will be more active and massive guilds of active players can really make that imbalance hurt.

It does feel bad that the test is mostly backend stuff, but I'm still glad it happened because I got to just choose the team with RBL I look forward to when it launches for real.  WvW has more or less broken me.  I wag my tail when they pay me any attention at all.

[Leon Silver.2386]

It's true within 3 hours of reset my entire server had given up playing WvW, said they all quit for the week.

And the ONLY guilds and tag that run ONLY do PvE for the EXP because they want WvW rank for titles.

Nothing will kill WvW faster than alliance that have no allegiance, loyalty or desire to fight for their server.

[enkidu.5937]

5 hours ago, Svarty.8019 said:

This is objectively WORSE than before. What's the new system for? To make it so you don't care about your team?!!

 

This seems like madness.

To make it so Devs don't have to care about WvW! 😄

 

The overall goal is to automatize WvW: matchmaking, transfers, population balance. So they can reduce the number of devs working on WvW from occasional 1-2 to zero.

[Zok.4956]

2 hours ago, Leon Silver.2386 said:

It's true within 3 hours of reset my entire server had given up playing WvW, said they all quit for the week.

And the ONLY guilds and tag that run ONLY do PvE for the EXP because they want WvW rank for titles.

Nothing will kill WvW faster than alliance that have no allegiance, loyalty or desire to fight for their server.

Agreed. Yeah, I see this. too.  And it is also not fun if there are no enemies to fight against and all you can do is ppt for wxp and participation or also stop playing.

WvW this week feels like EotM, not like WvW.

Whatever backend-system Anet wanted to test with their customers as guinea pigs, it probably was lazyness to test it a full week and not just a few hours or one or two days.

[Dawdler.8521]

Objectively these issues are the same on worlds as on teams because the only thing its meant to do is average populations.

You will still be outnumbered because average population size does not control where people play.

You will still loose to night crews because average population size does not control when people play.

And you will still wont know 80% of the average population because no one remember 2000+ individuals.

[Aeolus.3615]

i don think they cared about population algorithms, for example my guild  we all ended in separated alliances some even against each other, and this is a wvw only guild.

 

 

Edited August 18, 2022 by Aeolus.3615

[Zok.4956]

1 hour ago, Aeolus.3615 said:

i don think they cared about population algorithms, for example my guild  we all ended in separated alliances some even against each other, and this is a wvw only guild.

Did you all select your guild in the "WvW-world restructuring beta" UI-panel around a day before the beta started?

 

[MedievalThings.5417]

13 hours ago, Morden Kain.3489 said:

Yeah, that was a failure point for me.  Had done that prior, and still ended up on a totally different server from the guild I had selected for the Beta.

Same here.  Taking into acct just my wife and I, and our daughter's and my alt acct we got:  my acct not with the guild, my wife's acct not with the guild or me, my daughter's acct and my alt actually had a choice list to pick a server instead of just assigning them to where the guild was placed.  My daughter picked a random name and still ended up with the guild.  My alt acct picked the server the guild was on and still had 1 character playing with the guild, and another that got to alternate between being green (our guild) and red in the same matchup.  It just kept switching who I played for.

 

All alliance choices were picked either Monday night or Tuesday morning, honestly don't remember which.

 

That said, the matchup my acct is on is a farm fest as we are outnumbered 20 hours a day.

Edited August 18, 2022 by Ubi.4136

[Svarty.8019]

17 hours ago, enkidu.5937 said:

To make it so Devs don't have to care about WvW! 😄

 

The overall goal is to automatize WvW: matchmaking, transfers, population balance. So they can reduce the number of devs working on WvW from occasional 1-2 to zero.

That's true, but they haven't HAD to care for WvW ever. That's evidenced by the changes  implemented/imposed/inflicted upon it over the past decade.

Edited August 18, 2022 by Svarty.8019

[Salvia.6431]

Honestly I stopped believing that they'd do the alliance restructuring back five years ago, and these betas are not making me optimistic that they'll actually manage it.

Edited August 18, 2022 by Salvia.6431
Going to make a separate thread on my wvw beta experiences

[Svarty.8019]

Here's the REAL solution to the population problem, from NCSoft themselves, lol...

https://schedule.gdconf.com/session/ai-summit-multi-agent-reinforcement-learning-invades-mmorpg-lineage-clone-wars/883212
TL;DR 

Quote

Attendees will be able to learn how to apply reinforcement learning in commercial MMORPG to develop AIs that can engage in large-scale battles (over 20-on-20) against users. They will also learn about the various issues that can arise in the process and how we have dealt with these challenges.

 

 

[Streaking.9065]

The last test was more balanced！

Too easy to win   this time 

[LetoII.3782]

I think the tests so far have done a great job of showing that not addressing timezones played when worldbuilding makes the whole endeavor pointless. No balance will be gained and community sentiment will be sacrificed.

Do more or don't bother.