aaaaand here comes my feedback
(not much, just trying to figure things out)
As I understand it, Nevrax development efforts, other than Ryzom Ring, are focused in the PvP enhancements and the outposts for short to mid term. One of the given arguments is that these 2 elements provide a durable gaming experience.
http://www.ryzom.com/?page=news&id=915However, during the internal reorganization, we have chosen to focus on key elements, such as the storyline with the development of episode 2, and the outposts/PvP. We believe these two content features will be closer to your needs, as they encourage roleplaying, move the story forward, and provide a lasting game besides leveling. This last point - having a lasting game - is especially important, since the lack thereof is one of the main reasons why there is such a huge demand of content"
The Fame system has always been seen as a core part of the game, enabling and fostering exchanges with tribes, and it is part of the incoming changes.
http://www.ryzom.com/?page=news&id=934The Fame system will also be improved as we change the PvP system. The new version of the fame system is designed to support all of PvP, PvE and the RP. It will feature less variables, but those left are effectively impactable by the players and their values detected by a number of NPCs (among the civilizations, the factions, the tribes). We are still in development on these things, so I wont say too much before I have a playable version on my screen. But I can already tell you that I like this new set of features very much (Outposts, Fame, consensual PvP) because they are what I consider to be the Saga basis.
I, for one, am glad that communication is improving and we have recently been told "thanks for your patience" and "things are taking time because we want to get things right, we have finished our spring clean, we have improved our development process, we have a team of dedicated testers, and our patch release process is better than ever". Nevertheless, I can't help thinking about something when I see this fame announcement. I see this change as an "ugly hack": Nevrax needs to release Episode 2 and Outposts in a more or less *tentative* schedule now. There are some aspects in game (fame in this case) that are somewhat not compatible with planned changes and a proper reworking of the fame system would take too many man/hours to release in time, and it is possible that the 'revamped' fame system is still in planning process. So if I understand it right, the Faction PvP system needs to be based on a fame value that can't be both positive, right? these fame changes were somewhat announced in previous communications
http://www.ryzom.com/?page=news&id=947What is the logic behind the fact that it is the *personal* fame and not the *global* fame which determines who are our friends and our enemies and our color on the radar when we enter a FvF zone? [Submitted by Billie21 (FR)]Simple enough: that's the only fame value which can't be either positive or negative on both sides. However, keep in mind that the whole fame system will be revamped; "global" fame will be handled differently, so you can see this as temporary
Some players are starting to ask things as "what's the fame taken into account here, the personal or the global fame?" and "what's the point of having a coordinated guild effort to increase guild fame if personal is what counts ?" "how come the civilization base fame is not taken into account regarding the faction conflicts?" IMho these are good and valid questions.
So what can I say? I understand the compromise that needs to be taken here, a fame system that does not conflict with the PvP changes in a short period of time. Well, my feedback "bring your personal or global fame temporary changes, I think it's a bit unfortunate that the fame system is not completely understood/working/affecting the game anyway, so we can fight each other with the PvP Episode 2 changes with funny situations as a team on a trek from GoC to Thesos traversing a faction PvP zone and the chaos that comes or not being able to heal whoever homin I want, and keep on working on the revamped fame system, hoping that it will stabilize in the future. In my opinion, the global fame should determine everything, -- even the dialog allows you to get a summary or detailed fame view --"
And of course, still afew questions
1. Color codes. Do we need the following?
"light red": the character is an opponent BUT is in your team
"dark red": the character is an opponent BUT is in your guild
2. Can you elaborate on the main features of the revamped, fully working, fame sytem? will be the global fame the one that counts? what can we expect of the new fame system - not these temp chages aimed at having a fame system that does not interfere much with our planned PvP changes for a durable game -
3. Even if it is possible to have both factions positive, why isn't it possible to either a) pick the higher fame value or b) change the system so it is not possible to have both positive? Is b) the intended solution but too costly to implement in a short period of time?
thanks