Discussion Thread: ArenaNet News of 21 February 2019 [Merged]

[Tiviana.2650]

@wetwillyhip.7254 said:

@Tiviana.2650 said:

@wetwillyhip.7254 said:

@Tiviana.2650 said:

@"cptaylor.2670" said:With the latest article stating that the game will not be “affected” but will have less developers working on it I think that’s either a hint that we will probably getting some pretty drastic delays with more than just the wvw mount patch. And with so many veterans leaving, likely due to volunteering, I fear that this game while undoubtedly continuing one way or another, will just devolve more and more until it’s merely a shell of its former self.

With many of them leaving in solidarity i think gw2 will be going into maintenance mode shortly. Any living world stories that come out next were already pretty much done, after that who knows. NCsoft just basically killed the game.

if we're not careful, posts like this will help instill the idea to the community that the game is dead and will help kill it off. Please stay positive for now.

Its really hard to stay positive when you look at the devs twitters, many left of their own accord because of this. This is a tragedy many people lost work, sure the really good devs will be snapped up, but CMs and the like will be out in the cold. And to say nothing of the game , with all the talent walking out or getting layed off whos steering the ship?

I think the best we can do it just take this for what it is currently with sadness and yes I'm gloomy as heck today (see my bigger post above) but like all tragedies, with time, we need to stay positive for what is next to come. Otherwise, if people keep stating the game is dead, that lowers the morale even more for the community and everybody. It doesn't do any good to say things like that.

Oh im going to stick around because i like GW2 i just hope it pulls through.

[Arkham Creed.7358]

@Tiviana.2650 said:

@Neural.1824 said:

@Tiviana.2650 said:Its not Anet , its NCsoft pulling plugs, get it right. When the kitten hits the fan know where to point the finger, squarely at NCsoft.

The question is this: After what happened to Paragon, and with this happening to Arenanet (and let's be real, there's no facts/proof, but Arenanet could very well get the same treatment as Paragon sometime soon), what are the chances that people will finally be fed up enough to not purchase any more NCSoft products?

I wont thats for sure, just like i told bioware to take a flying leap.

Now who is using the wrong name? I think you mean EA; Bioware actually doesn't have a say in anything. And Bioware is about to pay the price for EA's mistakes, again, if Anthem is any indication.

[Kal Spiro.9745]

@Tiviana.2650 said:

@Neural.1824 said:

@Tiviana.2650 said:Its not Anet , its NCsoft pulling plugs, get it right. When the kitten hits the fan know where to point the finger, squarely at NCsoft.

The question is this: After what happened to Paragon, and with this happening to Arenanet (and let's be real, there's no facts/proof, but Arenanet could very well get the same treatment as Paragon sometime soon), what are the chances that people will finally be fed up enough to not purchase any more NCSoft products?

I wont thats for sure, just like i told bioware to take a flying leap.

Why would you tell BioWare to take a leap, they're in the same boat under EA.

[ilovegw.1258]

GW1 and GW2 were the only products I purchased from Anet and NCSoft and I can surely say they will be the last regardless of how things turn out in future.

[Ulyssean.1709]

@Ruufio.1496 said:

@Ulyssean.1709 said:Why is it NCsofts fault?

It's not. It's Mike O Brian's and Mike Z's fault. I think Colin was trying to better the game but butted heads with the ones who wanted to make mobile games.

Good to see someone else sees this. I hate this stuff about NCsoft being at fault. Anet thinks that chairs and loot boxes are top tier content, everyone should have known this was going to happen.

[Tiviana.2650]

@Arkham Creed.7358 said:

@Neural.1824 said:

@Tiviana.2650 said:Its not Anet , its NCsoft pulling plugs, get it right. When the kitten hits the fan know where to point the finger, squarely at NCsoft.

The question is this: After what happened to Paragon, and with this happening to Arenanet (and let's be real, there's no facts/proof, but Arenanet could very well get the same treatment as Paragon sometime soon), what are the chances that people will finally be fed up enough to not purchase any more NCSoft products?

Two words; Carbine Studios. How about another? Wildstar.We've already seen what NCSoft does when they feel like a game isn't profitable enough.

@Tiviana.2650 said:

@Arkham Creed.7358 said:

@Tiviana.2650 said:Its not Anet , its NCsoft pulling plugs, get it right. When the kitten hits the fan know where to point the finger, squarely at NCsoft.

That really doesn't matter at this point, does it? Arena Net is in trouble, people are loosing their jobs, and the future of this game is in question. So is a semantic argument really what we should be focusing on?

Because its important that game companies learn from their mistakes. Mega corporations may be great to tie yourself to for monetary reasons, but in the end they hold your future in their hands. Have we learned nothing about corporate greed?

You say that is if it means anything. What lesson, exactly, do you expect these Mega Corps to learn? None of them have lost a dime, and if they shut GW2 down tomorrow they still won't lose a dime. Using the right name on a forum NONE OF THEM ARE EVER GOING TO READ OR CARE ABOUT really doesn't accomplish anything, does it? And even if everyone who plays GW2 starts a massive PR war and boycott...guess what; they still won't loose a dime. Because they are based in another country with legions of fans playing legions of other games making more money. You might as well scream at the wind, you're just that powerless.

Im not talking about corporations like ncsoft, the lesson to be learned is not for them, its for the little game companies, dont sell out to these big corporations. They change everything.

@Arkham Creed.7358 said:

@Tiviana.2650 said:

@Neural.1824 said:

@Tiviana.2650 said:Its not Anet , its NCsoft pulling plugs, get it right. When the kitten hits the fan know where to point the finger, squarely at NCsoft.

The question is this: After what happened to Paragon, and with this happening to Arenanet (and let's be real, there's no facts/proof, but Arenanet could very well get the same treatment as Paragon sometime soon), what are the chances that people will finally be fed up enough to not purchase any more NCSoft products?

I wont thats for sure, just like i told bioware to take a flying leap.

Now who is using the wrong name? I think you mean EA; Bioware actually doesn't have a say in anything. And Bioware is about to pay the price for EA's mistakes, again, if Anthem is any indication.

Yes i mean EA the "parent " company.

[X T D.6458]

GW fan for almost 10 years, this is a very sad day :'( . Let me just say thank you to all those that worked on these 2 great games, you will all be missed. I wish you all a better future.

[ilovegw.1258]

@Ulyssean.1709 said:Why is it NCsofts fault?

Because they sent the lay off message to Anet initially when this storm started?

[Teratus.2859]

I do feel that Anet should communicate with us more.. specially now with a lot of people (myself included) feeling very worried about the future of this game..

I'm not saying Anet needs to come out right now and put all our fears to rest.. confirm a new expansion and a bunch of unannounced content etc.But going forward in general.. a bit more information being shared here and there would make a lot of difference for some of us.For example.. knowing that there was going to be another mount this season was a good thing, kept me excited even though there was nothing other than that information.I don't see any problem in Anet saying stuff like.. yes, don't worry.. we so plan on adding more paid expansions in the future and they'll come when we feel the time is right.

[Ulyssean.1709]

@ilovegw.1258 said:

@Ulyssean.1709 said:Why is it NCsofts fault?

Because they sent the lay off message to Anet initially when this storm started?

So if you do not perform to standard and get fired, it's your manager's fault?

[Teon.5168]

This is typical of all older mmorpgs(except maybe WoW...ugh). GW2 is now almost 7 years old. My wife and I saw the same thing when we played Dark Age of Camelot for 10 years. The good news is that the game will continue on, albeit maybe with lesser content and such coming down the pipe. And yea, populations might decrease, but that is something that remains to be seen.

I will be here until the doors close, and I have no doubt that the game will continue on for many more years. It just might not be a whole lot different from what we are currently playing.

[Leo G.4501]

@ilovegw.1258 said:

@Ulyssean.1709 said:Why is it NCsofts fault?

Because they sent the lay off message to Anet initially when this storm started?

Self awareness is knowing when you're sitting at the throne of ignorance.

[Zaoda.1653]

I heard 100 staff laid off? Not sure if numbers are correct but if so, isn't that about a quarter of the staff? That's pretty concerning for the game's future.

I was thinking about upgrading my computer to better handle the graphics and ram required for GW2, but hearing this news, I think I just saved myself $4,000.

It's really sad news, and it's never easy to find a new job in such a short time frame. Hope those laid off are able to find new work.

[ilovegw.1258]

@Ulyssean.1709 said:

@ilovegw.1258 said:

@Ulyssean.1709 said:Why is it NCsofts fault?

Because they sent the lay off message to Anet initially when this storm started?

So if you do not perform to standard and get fired, it's your manager's fault?

Because NCSoft is known for excellent managerial skills like how they managed CoH?

[Arkham Creed.7358]

@Tiviana.2650 said:

@Arkham Creed.7358 said:

@Neural.1824 said:

@Tiviana.2650 said:Its not Anet , its NCsoft pulling plugs, get it right. When the kitten hits the fan know where to point the finger, squarely at NCsoft.

The question is this: After what happened to Paragon, and with this happening to Arenanet (and let's be real, there's no facts/proof, but Arenanet could very well get the same treatment as Paragon sometime soon), what are the chances that people will finally be fed up enough to not purchase any more NCSoft products?

Two words; Carbine Studios. How about another? Wildstar.We've already seen what NCSoft does when they feel like a game isn't profitable enough.

@Tiviana.2650 said:

@Arkham Creed.7358 said:

@Tiviana.2650 said:Its not Anet , its NCsoft pulling plugs, get it right. When the kitten hits the fan know where to point the finger, squarely at NCsoft.

That really doesn't matter at this point, does it? Arena Net is in trouble, people are loosing their jobs, and the future of this game is in question. So is a semantic argument really what we should be focusing on?

Because its important that game companies learn from their mistakes. Mega corporations may be great to tie yourself to for monetary reasons, but in the end they hold your future in their hands. Have we learned nothing about corporate greed?

You say that is if it means anything. What lesson, exactly, do you expect these Mega Corps to learn? None of them have lost a dime, and if they shut GW2 down tomorrow they still won't lose a dime. Using the right name on a forum NONE OF THEM ARE EVER GOING TO READ OR CARE ABOUT really doesn't accomplish anything, does it? And even if everyone who plays GW2 starts a massive PR war and boycott...guess what; they still won't loose a dime. Because they are based in another country with legions of fans playing legions of other games making more money. You might as well scream at the wind, you're just that powerless.

Im not talking about corporations like ncsoft, the lesson to be learned is not for them, its for the little game companies, dont sell out to these big corporations. They change everything.

They also fund games. Without publisher money pretty much all of the best games will die without ever seeing the light of day. Where would God of War be without Sony paying for it? Where would Spider-Man PS4 be without Insomniac putting the bill? Yeah indy games are nice, and sometimes you do get a powerhouse like CD Project Red, but more often than not you get Bethesda being forced to restructure and create their own little ZeniMax to ruin things a decade later. And MMOs...yeah, show me ONE indy MMO. Servers cost money, and not everything can be paid for with Kickstarter.

[Teon.5168]

@Ulyssean.1709 said:

@ilovegw.1258 said:

@Ulyssean.1709 said:Why is it NCsofts fault?

Because they sent the lay off message to Anet initially when this storm started?

So if you do not perform to standard and get fired, it's your manager's fault?

How do you figure that? I think this was all about the bottom line, and NCSoft cutting costs to further profits. I don't think it had much to do with 'performance'.Until we have evidence to the contrary, none of us will ever know if this was due to performance issues, or purely for profitability.

[GDchiaScrub.3241]

@Ulyssean.1709 said:

@Ruufio.1496 said:

@Ulyssean.1709 said:Why is it NCsofts fault?

It's not. It's Mike O Brian's and Mike Z's fault. I think Colin was trying to better the game but butted heads with the ones who wanted to make mobile games.

Good to see someone else sees this. I hate this stuff about NCsoft being at fault. Anet thinks that chairs and loot boxes are top tier content, everyone should have known this was going to happen.

If the wiki article is to be believed then the restructuring was dictated by NCsoft. https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Guild_Wars_2_Wiki:Love4ArenaNet

I haven't found anything to support the suspicion that O'Brian is to be blamed. I would advise avoiding blame in general, especially without trying to form a credible basis for someone else's intention.

D:

[Teon.5168]

@Zaoda.1653 said:I heard 100 staff laid off? Not sure if numbers are correct but if so, isn't that about a quarter of the staff? That's pretty concerning for the game's future.

I was thinking about upgrading my computer to better handle the graphics and ram required for GW2, but hearing this news, I think I just saved myself $4,000.

It's really sad news, and it's never easy to find a new job in such a short time frame. Hope those laid off are able to find new work.

I read that it was something like a 37% layoff.

[Obtena.7952]

The fact is that NCSoft does have a record of dealing with devs ... Anyone remember Tabula Rasa? Not saying Anet was perfect in all it's ideas and decisions but there is history here. Seems to me that if NCSoft is pulling your strings, your strings will be very short.

[Mourningcry.9428]

@Ulyssean.1709 said:

@ilovegw.1258 said:

@Ulyssean.1709 said:Why is it NCsofts fault?

Because they sent the lay off message to Anet initially when this storm started?

So if you do not perform to standard and get fired, it's your manager's fault?

To seriously believe this is the main reason for layoffs during a restructuring, one would have to be even more ignorant than such belief would indicate.

[Ulyssean.1709]

@ilovegw.1258 said:

@Ulyssean.1709 said:

@ilovegw.1258 said:

@Ulyssean.1709 said:Why is it NCsofts fault?

Because they sent the lay off message to Anet initially when this storm started?

So if you do not perform to standard and get fired, it's your manager's fault?

Because NCSoft is known for excellent managerial skills like how they managed CoH?

@Teon.5168 said:

@Ulyssean.1709 said:

@ilovegw.1258 said:

@Ulyssean.1709 said:Why is it NCsofts fault?

Because they sent the lay off message to Anet initially when this storm started?

So if you do not perform to standard and get fired, it's your manager's fault?

How do you figure that? I think this was all about the bottom line, and NCSoft cutting costs to further profits. I don't think it had much to do with 'performance'.Until we have evidence to the contrary, none of us will ever know if this was do to performance issues, or purely for profitability.

In very simple terms performance IS profitability.

Make content (performance)Engage customersExpand customersCreate profit

Are NCSoft suddenly being strict? I'm honestly not sure.

[Teon.5168]

@Ulyssean.1709 said:

@ilovegw.1258 said:

@Ulyssean.1709 said:

@ilovegw.1258 said:

@Ulyssean.1709 said:Why is it NCsofts fault?

Because they sent the lay off message to Anet initially when this storm started?

So if you do not perform to standard and get fired, it's your manager's fault?

Because NCSoft is known for excellent managerial skills like how they managed CoH?

@Teon.5168 said:

@Ulyssean.1709 said:

@ilovegw.1258 said:

@Ulyssean.1709 said:Why is it NCsofts fault?

Because they sent the lay off message to Anet initially when this storm started?

So if you do not perform to standard and get fired, it's your manager's fault?

How do you figure that? I think this was all about the bottom line, and NCSoft cutting costs to further profits. I don't think it had much to do with 'performance'.Until we have evidence to the contrary, none of us will ever know if this was do to performance issues, or purely for profitability.

In very simple terms performance IS profitability.

Make content (performance)Engage customersExpand customersCreate profit

Are NCSoft suddenly being strict? I'm honestly not sure.

And how, exactly, would you know that this is NCSoft's business model for GW2? It might just be because the game is old, and they wanted to get rid of the more senior members of the team that cost more.

None of us have any idea exactly what was behind this layoff.....only assumptions and half-arsed guesses. Myself included.

[Leo G.4501]

@Mourningcry.9428 said:

@Ulyssean.1709 said:

@ilovegw.1258 said:

@Ulyssean.1709 said:Why is it NCsofts fault?

Because they sent the lay off message to Anet initially when this storm started?

So if you do not perform to standard and get fired, it's your manager's fault?

To seriously believe this is the main reason for layoffs during a restructuring, one would have to be even more ignorant than such belief would indicate.

Considering you're on the outside looking in with no actual information with the gall to call someone else out on their ignorance...why not just accept that we don't know exactly what's going on and your outbursts are based on emotion?

[Psycoprophet.8107]

U guys are being Naive and blinded by ur emotional ties to the developers which is normal response but arnt looking at the fault in a logical way. Ncsoft is the parent company that owns and in the end funds everything. Arenet higher ups decided to pull resources from gw2 to fund mobile game projects etc,gw2 suffered for this descision and the side projects were not yielding any benefits nor being productive to the company in any way other than being a financial draw on nsoft whether it’s from lack of development etc. It’s nsofts company and they stated that the state they were in was unsustainable so what they did was their right to do so being as it’s their money and their company on the line so as much as it sucks their hardly to blame.Their past business handling has no bearing on this situation. It’s sad that people lost their jobs but Such is life I’m sure we all have lost a few or dealt with trying times in life. It sucks but the game will push on or it won’t and the laid off will find new jobs.

[Teratus.2859]

@Zaoda.1653 said:I heard 100 staff laid off? Not sure if numbers are correct but if so, isn't that about a quarter of the staff? That's pretty concerning for the game's future.

I was thinking about upgrading my computer to better handle the graphics and ram required for GW2, but hearing this news, I think I just saved myself $4,000.

It's really sad news, and it's never easy to find a new job in such a short time frame. Hope those laid off are able to find new work.

I'm not 100% sure but I think I heard somewhere that Anet's staff were around the 300 mark during the time Gw2 was originally released..I can't confirm that though.

Still upset by all this regardless.. loosing your job sucks, specially when it's not your fault.