Ryzom

Here is what I garner from the people who have posted reviews about not liking the game. Please feel free to add constructive things so Nevrax can learn what these people are after too.

1. They want the lore / story / etc. Fed to them in a consecutive flow of in-game things. Quests, missions, instances, whatever.

2. They want there spells/actions handed to them in optimal form so all they have to do is click a button.

3. They want a VERY intuitive and slick use interface which tells them where to click/etc.

4. They want the game to be taught to them. In the first 1-2 hours maybe 3 hours they want to be proficient at the game. We all know that it currently takes months for that in Ryzom.

5. They want the game to draw them in and have them feeling completely a part of everything within the first 10-20 hours of play. I would probably err on the short side of that number. (I would agree here, with a 2 week trial you probably have a 10 hour shot at attracting a casual player.)


EDIT: P.S. You cannot imagine how much it would help to have the movement keys be W,A,S,D to start this alone pevs so many of the beginning players. The key mapping is pretty cumbersome too even if you know how to find it somehow, it does not intuitively let you remap over something, it just over writes it.

Sincerely just trying to help,

Noin.

The game would no longer be Ryzom, it would be like any other game out now. What I like about Ryzom is that it is different and I have to use my brain a little to play it.

marct wrote:EDIT: P.S. You cannot imagine how much it would help to have the movement keys be W,A,S,D to start this alone pevs so many of the beginning players. The key mapping is pretty cumbersome too even if you know how to find it somehow, it does not intuitively let you remap over something, it just over writes it.

The key mappeing and assignment could use an improvement.
We can hope that it is part of the code cleaning and new GUI.

As for movement on cursor/arrow keys, first of it is the logic place for them, as each key shows its action.
Secondly, not everybody have a standard keyboard or a qwerty like layout.
Some (me for instance ) uses a Dvorak layout, which would make W,A,S,D unplayable.

Window opening/closing keys could be shift+<key> by default.

It was very hard as newbie to fix interface after you typed someting to chat screen but focus was not in that... Many windows missing.

Exp system is abit borked, Reamp the system to get exp cap away.

Secret Patches be gone, no one likes then thing get changed with out a explaination/info.

Lack of Goals. Give players something to strive for.

Tyr.

magick1 wrote:Some (me for instance ) uses a Dvorak layout, which would make W,A,S,D unplayable.

O.o

I want to try that! Where can I buy one?

Ehm, constructive critisim? Nah, they are doing very well I think. My main point was:
- dont release patches that are buggy (doing well on that)
- Get the rites fixed for people who want all kinds of content (doing that as well)
- Keep up to your promises (doing well on that too using the same tactic as I have: not making promises at all)

I have an idea! As some people dont have a cc (like me) or dont feel like paying for a month by accident because they forgot to cancel so they dont try at all.
Now use paypal to let these people pay 2 euro's for a months worth of play. After this, cc will be needed, but they will try for a month, generating revenue as well. Dont start on me that this is expensive to implement, it is more expensive to have too few paying customers....

marct wrote:Here is what I garner from the people who have posted reviews about not liking the game. Please feel free to add constructive things so Nevrax can learn what these people are after too.

1. They want the lore / story / etc. Fed to them in a consecutive flow of in-game things. Quests, missions, instances, whatever.

2. They want there spells/actions handed to them in optimal form so all they have to do is click a button.

Personally, this is the only MMo that i have ever played that was able to suck me back in after along absense. So I have to disagree on that point. I love the Modular action system. Love that I can changed what i don't Like about a given spell.

marct wrote:3. They want a VERY intuitive and slick use interface which tells them where to click/etc.

4. They want the game to be taught to them. In the first 1-2 hours maybe 3 hours they want to be proficient at the game. We all know that it currently takes months for that in Ryzom.

Again, Not all of the players want things handed to them. I like the fact that you have to learn to Play Ryzom, For me it was as Fun as starting Everquest which was my first MMO, I've yet to play another game that was as fun for me. Ryzom comes very close. As it was Over a Year ago when Ryzom was in Open Beta It only took me about 3 hours to figure out the interface and what I need to do. That's when It was even more badly translated.

For the People that I play with, Alot of them From the Open beta it didn't take any of us Months to learn to "play". [/QUOTE]

marct wrote:5. They want the game to draw them in and have them feeling completely a part of everything within the first 10-20 hours of play. I would probably err on the short side of that number. (I would agree here, with a 2 week trial you probably have a 10 hour shot at attracting a casual player.)

Agree Here for the most part. Although I think the time frame is more onthe short side as well, I'd even go so far as to say it should grab them with in 2-3 hours of their first log in.

marct wrote:EDIT: P.S. You cannot imagine how much it would help to have the movement keys be W,A,S,D to start this alone pevs so many of the beginning players. The key mapping is pretty cumbersome too even if you know how to find it somehow, it does not intuitively let you remap over something, it just over writes it.

Sincerely just trying to help,

Noin.

I totally disagree on that point. Personally I've never played an FPS for longer than an Hour. W,A,S,D for me is way more cumbersome. Again i agree with remapping the keys. Maybe it should be part of the configuration Utility?

Hmm, what ur saying is true Noin, but trying to change Ryzom to cater for the WoW/EQ crowd would turn it into just another clone.

If Ryzom was changed to be more 'instant' and attact this demographic of player then i think our wonderful community would disappear very quickly, along with a lot of the people that currently make it so great.

>1. They want the lore / story / etc. Fed to them in a consecutive flow of >in-game things. Quests, missions, instances, whatever.

That would annihilate the particular charm of Ryzom and make it like everything else. However, the slow implementation of some other lore-revealing, difficult Ency missions could bridge the gap.

>2. They want there spells/actions handed to them in optimal form so all they >have to do is click a button.

Defeats the point of the stanza system.

>3. They want a VERY intuitive and slick use interface which tells them where >to click/etc.

They want to be told where to click?!?!?

It could be a bit better and require fewer clicks, so I'll let you have that one

>4. They want the game to be taught to them. In the first 1-2 hours maybe 3 >hours they want to be proficient at the game. We all know that it currently >takes months for that in Ryzom.

Not so sure that's true, but the introduction does need to do more.
Better newb islands and maybe an introductory lore mission that teaches something about the background.

You arrive as a Refugee, the whole place has a backstory and a feel to it aswell as a freindly live and active community which as you develop hopefully you play your part in.

The whole game gives you a feeling of finding your place and direction like no other, as you are not constrained by pre defined paths or templates, if somone wants to know the whole thing in next to no time go play tetris cos that isnt what Ryzom is about.

With regard to interface maybe better info could be given in the manual with regard to customising, macros etc but I think most people are pretty happy with the way it works.