If anything, I'm happy at this. I doubt it'll affect many spending. If you spent to boost your shuttles up, you probably still will. If you didn't, you'll probably still not.
It will increase spending. You didn't have to spend anything to do well using the kick start method. You just needed to have 10 of the 90 minute time boosters to get to the 4000 VP shuttles in the first hour.
Now to accomplish the same thing would require several thousand dilithium and more than 10 time boosts
Old: Free + 10 blue time boosts + 1 hour = 4000 VP Shuttles
New: Several Thousand Dilithium + 1 purple time boost + 20 blue time boosts + 1 hour = 4000 VP Shuttles
If anything, I'm happy at this. I doubt it'll affect many spending. If you spent to boost your shuttles up, you probably still will. If you didn't, you'll probably still not.
It will increase spending. You didn't have to spend anything to do well using the kick start method. You just needed to have 10 of the 90 minute time boosters to get to the 4000 VP shuttles in the first hour.
Now to accomplish the same thing would require several thousand dilithium and more than 10 time boosts
Old: Free + 10 blue time boosts + 1 hour
New: Several Thousand Dilithium + 1 purple time boost + 20 blue time boosts + 1 hour
That s u c k i n g sound would be the fun leaving.
It was fun opening 30 missions at once?
If anything, I'm happy at this. I doubt it'll affect many spending. If you spent to boost your shuttles up, you probably still will. If you didn't, you'll probably still not.
While this doesn't make the start of events more intuitive, at reduces the advantage that established players that know the jumpstart strategy over newer players that don't know about it.
And did I mention I don't have to open THIRTY MISSIONS at once? That was easily the worst part about faction events, other than the times I wake up at night to keep the shuttles going.
Maybe it really won't matter after a new strategy is worked out. I was comfortable with the 30 mission method and initially took this as a way to nerf the kickstart. I never got to 4000 in like twenty minutes like some people do, so maybe I should be happy.
Two years to come up with "fewer shuttles, in a shuttle event". To deal with lag.. which given the choice, most i believe would rather keep things as is.. and I for one (only speaking for myself) haven't seen lag in the shuttle events in over year, save for when something drastically breaks and shuts the whole thing down.
So.. I am curious, if this is part of a multi pronged effort to.. improve performance..
Can you tell us about the other prongs that are being enabled simultaneously to also help Combat this .. issue ?
What about the expanded 5* rewards that have been discussed ? Is that one of the prongs being enacted ?
What about RNG that actually correlates with the actual success fail ratio percentages displayed?
What about eliminating 5 man shuttles, if there are less crew flying around, it's less for the servers to keep track of. 2 & 3 man shuttles only.
How about instead of a 12 self terminate on open shuttles you reduce it to 8 hours ?
Shouldn't that reduce server lag ?
What about "run simulator again?" Button at the conclusion of every shuttle, win or fail and it would literally rerun the exact same shuttle, same crew same boosts applied ?
This would cut server requirements by at least 80% over the course of an event (in my own estimates)
Those are some really great, well thought out, ideas. There are so many ways they could have improved performance that also improved and enhanced the quality of the player experience. Instead they went the route of hurting the player experience.
That s u c k i n g sound would be the fun leaving.
It was fun opening 30 missions at once?
If anything, I'm happy at this. I doubt it'll affect many spending. If you spent to boost your shuttles up, you probably still will. If you didn't, you'll probably still not.
While this doesn't make the start of events more intuitive, at reduces the advantage that established players that know the jumpstart strategy over newer players that don't know about it.
And did I mention I don't have to open THIRTY MISSIONS at once? That was easily the worst part about faction events, other than the times I wake up at night to keep the shuttles going.
Maybe it really won't matter after a new strategy is worked out. I was comfortable with the 30 mission method and initially took this as a way to nerf the kickstart. I never got to 4000 in like twenty minutes like some people do, so maybe I should be happy.
It's not just killing the kickstart, which removed significant pain from the RNG and taking nearly a full day to work up to your potential. This significantly reduces the total amount of VP you can earn in the event, making thresholds harder to reach, and makes shuttles almost completely worthless in galaxy hybrids, when the galaxy phase already provided 3x the tVP and now an easy 6-10x the VP.
And the change to the number of unique faction mission is being made as an effort to reduce server lag during events. We will evaluate the effects and make changes as necessary.
I hate to be the bearer of obvious news, but most companies, when facing a similar predicament, look for ways to scale up server resources rather than implement ways to reduce customer demand.
THIS! +1
So we better hope then that not many new players find their way to this gamel otherwise in 1 year its only 2 missions max for each faction, cause server power can t handle anymore new folks?
That s u c k i n g sound would be the fun leaving.
It was fun opening 30 missions at once?
Nope, opening 30 missions at once is not fun. However, having to rely on the broken RNG to get any successes to reach 4K shuttles in a reasonable time WITHOUT spending money is less fun. Try having fun when you see 90%+ missions continuously fail bringing your next shuttles down to an even lower VP.
If anything, I'm happy at this. I doubt it'll affect many spending. If you spent to boost your shuttles up, you probably still will. If you didn't, you'll probably still not.
It will increase spending. You didn't have to spend anything to do well using the kick start method.
It might increase spending. Thing is there will still be players who start faction events armed with paid for event characters, have numerous paid for time-reducing boosts and the willingness to rush a 9 hour shuttle.
I can't compete with those kind of players even without the shuttle change. I'm not above buying event packs for a 4/4 threshold character but I draw the line at spending on everything else.
This is a slow down. Its a little annoying but I can still manage a top 1000 finish regardless. Finishing well in a shuttle event has little to do with a healthy start but rather the ability to maintain strong shuttles over a 4 day period. Being able to send out 84 4K shuttles over the final 3 days will more likely give you a strong finish than being able to do a 40 shuttle rush.
There's no clearer demonstration of how upsetting the change in shuttles is than that we're four pages into a thread about a Disco-heavy mega-event featuring a TAS character and no one has written a manifesto denouncing it. I'm reminded of when I was at a Pirates game and the fans were so caught up following a simultaneous Penguins game they forgot to boo Bobby Bonilla when he came to bat in the 5th.
There's no clearer demonstration of how upsetting the change in shuttles is than that we're four pages into a thread about a Disco-heavy mega-event featuring a TAS character and no one has written a manifesto denouncing it. I'm reminded of when I was at a Pirates game and the fans were so caught up following a simultaneous Penguins game they forgot to boo Bobby Bonilla when he came to bat in the 5th.
So you stated already that for a 1 faction event the max of 20 shuttles remains untouched, but how about 2 faction events?
So far you could open a max of 20 shuttles for a 2 faction event(10 per faction).
Does it stays this way as well or is it now 6 per faction and only 12 max then?
If for a 1 Faction event the max is 20 total, it should be the same for a 2 faction imho.
And the change to the number of unique faction mission is being made as an effort to reduce server lag during events. We will evaluate the effects and make changes as necessary.
Thanks, Shan. I appreciate that this announcement was made in advance, was clear, and has a reasonable rationale.
So you stated already that for a 1 faction event the max of 20 shuttles remains untouched, but how about 2 faction events?
So far you could open a max of 20 shuttles for a 2 faction event(10 per faction).
Does it stays this way as well or is it now 6 per faction and only 12 max then?
If for a 1 Faction event the max is 20 total, it should be the same for a 2 faction imho.
I think this is new enough that not all the permutations have been worked out... or they would have stated as such. Not giving me a lot of confidence in the stability of the change.
There's no clearer demonstration of how upsetting the change in shuttles is than that we're four pages into a thread about a Disco-heavy mega-event featuring a TAS character and no one has written a manifesto denouncing it. I'm reminded of when I was at a Pirates game and the fans were so caught up following a simultaneous Penguins game they forgot to boo Bobby Bonilla when he came to bat in the 5th.
You're not one of them Yinzers are ya Travis?
Nope. I was there on a week-long baseball trip, catching a game in a different town each night.
So you stated already that for a 1 faction event the max of 20 shuttles remains untouched, but how about 2 faction events?
So far you could open a max of 20 shuttles for a 2 faction event(10 per faction).
Does it stays this way as well or is it now 6 per faction and only 12 max then?
If for a 1 Faction event the max is 20 total, it should be the same for a 2 faction imho.
From the information I have received, the change will also impact Faction Events with 2 factions.
This is a first try for this change and we will reassess as needed.
There's no clearer demonstration of how upsetting the change in shuttles is than that we're four pages into a thread about a Disco-heavy mega-event featuring a TAS character and no one has written a manifesto denouncing it. I'm reminded of when I was at a Pirates game and the fans were so caught up following a simultaneous Penguins game they forgot to boo Bobby Bonilla when he came to bat in the 5th.
You're not one of them Yinzers are ya Travis?
Nope. I was there on a week-long baseball trip, catching a game in a different town each night.
Well you definitely experienced what most folks think the Pittsburgh culture is in your short visit, lol.
Considering that faction events were among the few things in this game people widely considered to be not at all broken and in fact working just fine, I find the reasoning and motives behind the change dubious. I've been perfectly happy with the game's performance since the recent server optimization. By all outward appearances, this move seems at least partially intended to disrupt our ability to get off to a quick start at the beginning of a faction event/phase.
First Officer - Task Force April
Squadron Leader - [TFA] Bateson’s Bulldogs
it really w ont make much of a difference in the ranking with the new mission amount change, just the points will lag by a couple hours. if everyone that kickstarted faction events still does the same thing with only 6 missions, it should run the same way it always had just with less points. the only variable would be players who decide to use dilithium to speed up their shuttles who didn't do it before. other then that it should all progress the same.
While I enjoy using the quickstart, it is getting more widespread and well-known that you pretty much have to do it. I don't know if this change is designed to make shuttle events more competive or to give the mission writers a break. Personally, I'll probably run 18 1-minute missions then use time boosts, probably not hitting 4K until the evening. I'm okay with that.
it really w ont make much of a difference in the ranking with the new mission amount change, just the points will lag by a couple hours. if everyone that kickstarted faction events still does the same thing with only 6 missions, it should run the same way it always had just with less points. the only variable would be players who decide to use dilithium to speed up their shuttles who didn't do it before. other then that it should all progress the same.
Not entirely. Thresholds become harder to reach. The faction half of hybrids become essentially meaningless. RNGeesus becomes even more prominent and selectively vindictive. Sleep and work schedules that disagree with the start times have less opportunity to catch up. Newer and shallower rosters have less opportunity to pick successful shuttles. Pre-purchased event specific crew gain more value and prominence. Thursday event challenges mean less because they have fewer opportunities to boost the event. Tactics and strategy have fewer chances to contribute to success. Variations in outcomes are diminished by selection available, again pushing RNGeesus to the front.
Considering that faction events were among the few things in this game people widely considered to be not at all broken and in fact working just fine, I find the reasoning and motives behind the change dubious. I've been perfectly happy with the game's performance since the recent server optimization. By all outward appearances, this move seems at least partially intended to disrupt our ability to get off to a quick start at the beginning of a faction event/phase.
I can't see it any other way. As I said up thread, since the upgrade, the game loads super fast and opening 30 transmissions is easy peasy lemon squeezy.
Considering that faction events were among the few things in this game people widely considered to be not at all broken and in fact working just fine, I find the reasoning and motives behind the change dubious. I've been perfectly happy with the game's performance since the recent server optimization. By all outward appearances, this move seems at least partially intended to disrupt our ability to get off to a quick start at the beginning of a faction event/phase.
I can't see it any other way. As I said up thread, since the upgrade, the game loads super fast and opening 30 transmissions is easy peasy lemon squeezy.
Oh, no doubt, this is an intent to monetarily squeeze the player base. 2 years, significant issues and many crashes, and not a change. Server side changes that significantly improve performance, loads of praise, and nearly no complaints. Then this. There's no way such a huge impact for a single 15 minute window of playtime suddenly became a game changing priority.
There's no clearer demonstration of how upsetting the change in shuttles is than that we're four pages into a thread about a Disco-heavy mega-event featuring a TAS character and no one has written a manifesto denouncing it. I'm reminded of when I was at a Pirates game and the fans were so caught up following a simultaneous Penguins game they forgot to boo Bobby Bonilla when he came to bat in the 5th.
You're not one of them Yinzers are ya Travis?
Nope. I was there on a week-long baseball trip, catching a game in a different town each night.
Fenway is BY FAR the greatest ballyerd in the world. So much history and atmosphere. I have been to Wrigley. I was not impressed or awed.
Or maybe people keep complaining about the server issues, and then complain about the apology, and so they finally said "to heck with it all, here's something that'll fix the problem once and for all."
Saru was wrong - there is such a thing as a no win scenario.
What i don't get is why they don't fix it the obvious way. You can not keep more than one transmission open.
But inside that transmission you can shuffle between missions and decide on your VP difficulty. The build-up is pure stupidity anyway. If it slows down the sever why not make it better for the severe AND the customer?
DB yet again have misjudged their customer requirements.
Faction events performance from a players point of view have improved over the last 6 months. This adjustment wasn't needed, yet issues with Ranking rewards 26-650 need serious revision as well as the irrelevant squad ranking rewards.
The voyages nerf has gone from one extreme to another.
Who on earth comes up with these ideas? A used car salesman?
Regards Grim
P.S. I still have faith that things will improve if not it'll be killed off with employees asking how did this happen?
So you stated already that for a 1 faction event the max of 20 shuttles remains untouched, but how about 2 faction events?
So far you could open a max of 20 shuttles for a 2 faction event(10 per faction).
Does it stays this way as well or is it now 6 per faction and only 12 max then?
If for a 1 Faction event the max is 20 total, it should be the same for a 2 faction imho.
From the information I have received, the change will also impact Faction Events with 2 factions.
This is a first try for this change and we will reassess as needed.
...I think a lot of reassessment will happen following the next event and not just "server side"
...if I see a significant change in how I finish in the coming event (an event, that I'm not even hyped for btw) then I will have to reassess if it is worth it doing any more events at all.
Galaxies are a rarity as is for me..
You've taken away expeditions and now shuttles are in jeopardy.
What is left for me ?
Lol I was just starting to regularly buy event packs on shuttle events too .
(As when it's all new crew, it's the only way to know that I'm not throwing my money away in an Immortalized crew)
I guess the next 10 days are going to be interesting for us all.
I have one last thing to say in this,
One of the biggest most annoying aspects of shuttle events is losing several shuttles in a row, killing point gain and lessening the value of subsequent shuttles.
If this is truly just about server performance,
Then end diminishing points on failures or increase the number of failures required to cause a reduction.
We already lose once when a shuttle fails by not gaining the additional points, why lose twice with the point lowering ?
Comments
It will increase spending. You didn't have to spend anything to do well using the kick start method. You just needed to have 10 of the 90 minute time boosters to get to the 4000 VP shuttles in the first hour.
Now to accomplish the same thing would require several thousand dilithium and more than 10 time boosts
Old: Free + 10 blue time boosts + 1 hour = 4000 VP Shuttles
New: Several Thousand Dilithium + 1 purple time boost + 20 blue time boosts + 1 hour = 4000 VP Shuttles
AHA!!! Somebody teased the truth out!
Maybe it really won't matter after a new strategy is worked out. I was comfortable with the 30 mission method and initially took this as a way to nerf the kickstart. I never got to 4000 in like twenty minutes like some people do, so maybe I should be happy.
Those are some really great, well thought out, ideas. There are so many ways they could have improved performance that also improved and enhanced the quality of the player experience. Instead they went the route of hurting the player experience.
It's not just killing the kickstart, which removed significant pain from the RNG and taking nearly a full day to work up to your potential. This significantly reduces the total amount of VP you can earn in the event, making thresholds harder to reach, and makes shuttles almost completely worthless in galaxy hybrids, when the galaxy phase already provided 3x the tVP and now an easy 6-10x the VP.
THIS! +1
So we better hope then that not many new players find their way to this gamel otherwise in 1 year its only 2 missions max for each faction, cause server power can t handle anymore new folks?
Nope, opening 30 missions at once is not fun. However, having to rely on the broken RNG to get any successes to reach 4K shuttles in a reasonable time WITHOUT spending money is less fun. Try having fun when you see 90%+ missions continuously fail bringing your next shuttles down to an even lower VP.
It might increase spending. Thing is there will still be players who start faction events armed with paid for event characters, have numerous paid for time-reducing boosts and the willingness to rush a 9 hour shuttle.
I can't compete with those kind of players even without the shuttle change. I'm not above buying event packs for a 4/4 threshold character but I draw the line at spending on everything else.
This is a slow down. Its a little annoying but I can still manage a top 1000 finish regardless. Finishing well in a shuttle event has little to do with a healthy start but rather the ability to maintain strong shuttles over a 4 day period. Being able to send out 84 4K shuttles over the final 3 days will more likely give you a strong finish than being able to do a 40 shuttle rush.
You're not one of them Yinzers are ya Travis?
So you stated already that for a 1 faction event the max of 20 shuttles remains untouched, but how about 2 faction events?
So far you could open a max of 20 shuttles for a 2 faction event(10 per faction).
Does it stays this way as well or is it now 6 per faction and only 12 max then?
If for a 1 Faction event the max is 20 total, it should be the same for a 2 faction imho.
Thanks, Shan. I appreciate that this announcement was made in advance, was clear, and has a reasonable rationale.
Captain Level: 95
VIP Level: 12
Unique Crew Immortalized: 525
Collections Completed: Vulcan, Ferengi, Borg, Romulan, Cardassian, Uncommon, Rare, Veteran, Common, Engineered, Physician, Innovator, Inspiring, Diplomat, Jury Rigger, Gauntlet Legends
I think this is new enough that not all the permutations have been worked out... or they would have stated as such. Not giving me a lot of confidence in the stability of the change.
Nope. I was there on a week-long baseball trip, catching a game in a different town each night.
From the information I have received, the change will also impact Faction Events with 2 factions.
This is a first try for this change and we will reassess as needed.
Well you definitely experienced what most folks think the Pittsburgh culture is in your short visit, lol.
Squadron Leader - [TFA] Bateson’s Bulldogs
Not entirely. Thresholds become harder to reach. The faction half of hybrids become essentially meaningless. RNGeesus becomes even more prominent and selectively vindictive. Sleep and work schedules that disagree with the start times have less opportunity to catch up. Newer and shallower rosters have less opportunity to pick successful shuttles. Pre-purchased event specific crew gain more value and prominence. Thursday event challenges mean less because they have fewer opportunities to boost the event. Tactics and strategy have fewer chances to contribute to success. Variations in outcomes are diminished by selection available, again pushing RNGeesus to the front.
I can't see it any other way. As I said up thread, since the upgrade, the game loads super fast and opening 30 transmissions is easy peasy lemon squeezy.
Oh, no doubt, this is an intent to monetarily squeeze the player base. 2 years, significant issues and many crashes, and not a change. Server side changes that significantly improve performance, loads of praise, and nearly no complaints. Then this. There's no way such a huge impact for a single 15 minute window of playtime suddenly became a game changing priority.
Fenway is BY FAR the greatest ballyerd in the world. So much history and atmosphere. I have been to Wrigley. I was not impressed or awed.
Saru was wrong - there is such a thing as a no win scenario.
But inside that transmission you can shuffle between missions and decide on your VP difficulty. The build-up is pure stupidity anyway. If it slows down the sever why not make it better for the severe AND the customer?
Tour of duty: January 2016 to present.
Shut up Wesley.
DB yet again have misjudged their customer requirements.
Faction events performance from a players point of view have improved over the last 6 months. This adjustment wasn't needed, yet issues with Ranking rewards 26-650 need serious revision as well as the irrelevant squad ranking rewards.
The voyages nerf has gone from one extreme to another.
Who on earth comes up with these ideas? A used car salesman?
Regards Grim
P.S. I still have faith that things will improve if not it'll be killed off with employees asking how did this happen?
...I think a lot of reassessment will happen following the next event and not just "server side"
...if I see a significant change in how I finish in the coming event (an event, that I'm not even hyped for btw) then I will have to reassess if it is worth it doing any more events at all.
Galaxies are a rarity as is for me..
You've taken away expeditions and now shuttles are in jeopardy.
What is left for me ?
Lol I was just starting to regularly buy event packs on shuttle events too .
(As when it's all new crew, it's the only way to know that I'm not throwing my money away in an Immortalized crew)
I guess the next 10 days are going to be interesting for us all.
One of the biggest most annoying aspects of shuttle events is losing several shuttles in a row, killing point gain and lessening the value of subsequent shuttles.
If this is truly just about server performance,
Then end diminishing points on failures or increase the number of failures required to cause a reduction.
We already lose once when a shuttle fails by not gaining the additional points, why lose twice with the point lowering ?