Current News: May 18, 2008
 

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Check your email! We've just sent out a whole new batch of invitations to the Test Server. The Test Server is where we test new features and game updates before they're released to the general public. If you are a Tester, log on to the Test Server and confirm your access -- we've released a new game update today.

As with all updates, there may be bugs or issues. If you see any problems, report them to us. Please remember to include very detailed steps on how to reproduce the issue you experienced including where you were, screenshots of the issue and what settings you were running in. This information can prove vital to our developers in solving the problems you report. We are working quickly to fix these issues.

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Based on your feedback we continue to make Pirates Online even better! Our latest updates introduce a number of improvements that not only make the existing gameplay more enjoyable but support future enhancements.

If you have Test Server access, we encourage you to log on now and explore these new features. If you don?t have access to Test, here's a look at what's coming:

Transportation Additions:

- New Ship Names. In addition to the names you've already come to know, Shipwrights will be offering an entirely new selection of player submitted Ship Names. Check them out here.

- A new transportation option. With the help of a Dockworker (located on the docks of the islands of Tortuga, Port Royal, Padres Del Fuego or Cuba), Pirates can get to a destination without needing a teleport totem or a ship.

Early Player Experience

- Improved Hint System. Hints are now displayed for players during early adventures (such as acquiring your sword) and Quest lines.

- We've re-balanced Level/Quests in early zones ? now lower level players should only encounter lower level enemies.

- New variations of enemies, this means new variants of Undead, Navy, and other land enemies. New enemy types include Undead Mutineers, Undead Brutes, and more.

Bug Fixes & Other Improvements

We continue to make various bug fixes and tweaks to Pirates based on your feedback, this latest updates such as:

- Improved loading times for cannons, now when a player starts using a cannon, they can fire right away instead of waiting for the cannon to reload. Afterwards, the cannon will reload like normal.

As with any new update, there may be bugs or issues with the . If you see any problems, report them to us. We will work quickly to fix these issues. Tell us what you think of these new updates!


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Well there is new stuff,

• There are level 28 stumps.
• Theres an undead named Undead brute.
• When opening the Sea Chest, The screen moves to the left a little.
• On a players card, it says if they have Open chat or not.
• New navy enemy named Marine
• Assassins are shorter.
• Theres a Cargo Watchmen on each Main island and he will take you to another Island for a price, Like a TP for islands for lower levels
• The spawning point and levels for mostly every enemy in Misty mire change.
• New undead named Undead duelist
• New undead named Undead slasher
• New undead named undead executioner
• New undead named undead Mutineers
• New Navy named Dragoon
• New fly trap named rancid fly trap
• God glitch seems to have been fixed
• New crab named Crusher crab.
• New wasp named Soldier wasp.
• The pink [AFK] Above someones head is now Grey

Bugs with the Update:

• When viewing someones weapons, it will say they will only have cannon and sailing

There are also navy Dragoon
http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/v...ramy/Test3.jpg
3 other new Skells duelist, executioner, and slasher
http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/v...ramy/Test2.jpg
but they reduced Tim Dartan to an undead withdoctor boss lvl 10 and Darkheart to undead duelist boss lvl 18
http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/v...ramy/Test1.jpg
and now el Suderon has moving Rancid Flytraps
http://i687.photobucket.com/albums/v...ramy/Test4.jpg

Well, it's good to see new stuff.

Was hoping for a different kind of update.. but this works for now I guess :)

Oh no way. Dartan and Darkhart bumped down? I hate it already.

its ok..... why dartan and darkhart bumped down?

• When opening the Sea Chest, The screen moves to the left a little.

Heeey. Now that's nifty. Now I can see all of my pirate when I open the chest menus. I like that.

Well for Darkhart, they said "Hey, this guy is great to level grenades and pistol on, lets ruin it!! Woo!!"

Same for Timmy - they said "Hey, this guy is USEFUL, can't have that can we?!"

man this is gonna be horrible,
I WANTS MYS HIGH LVL BOSSES!!!!!!!!!

Weve been saying that update after update after update for months and months.

Perhaps you start to understand what some of us mean when we complain about keep getting small updates/changes to help hold off the impatient (its not working very well anymore)

May want to merge some of this into the OP.

edit: nvm. Bat just did.

Most awesome with the cannon reloading item. Back to the way it was before! Hated to wait for my cannon to load every time I switch cannons.

Oh I understand.. That smiley face there is just a front lol.. My real emotion is along the lines of:
:psmiley27::degen::skull::126::pirate7::zu02zq:

I just wish they'd just give us a DATE as to when these "major" updates are coming. Then we can at least know when to expect them. I'm with ya Zep.. these mini updates just aren't cutting it anymore. How many people do they have to lose before it hits them that they need to up their game?

There may be more to this update as well, took awhile, but I determined the list that Swash II originally posted were his own findings and not an official announcment of changes made.

Oh really? cool, hopefully more new stuff is coming.

Higher level regular npc's must mean upcoming higher rep caps for pirates. I drink my rum and look on the bright side, I'll hate it in the morning.

I like new different enemies, that is great.... but... These updates are not things that have been on the board for months being worked over, they just throw out stuff like this every time they get a big influx of complaints, and canceled UA subscriptions. All of this stuff probably took a week or two at the most to do, they are just trying to keep people in the game, there probably is not even any big updates in the works yet, just some ideas on some guys note-pad (if that). They're trying to make as much cash off of POTCO with putting in as little effort as possible, and I can understand that, but they are going to cut their own throat with this and the game is just going to die out. They more than likely want to wait till the 4th movie is done to drop a ton of work into the game, that way they can use the game as a form of advertisement. This is just my speculation though, I am thinking it will be 2010 before we even see a preview of a chapter 2 story line. Disney is not stupid though, they know us who have went back to basic are holding our money til' there is more for us to do. I would just about put money on it that there will be a limit on canceled UA accounts that are now basic and in waiting so they can make people start paying again so they don't lose their pirates. I have two accounts just sitting idle at the moment while I wait for updates to start paying again, that is space being taken up on their dime that I am not paying for. I cant wait for the next POTCO news big D has to give us....


:SkullBullet1:
Larence Tuppington

After a review on test, seems to me they renamed a few enemies instead of creating new ones. Or created new ones to replace old ones. For example, I cant find a brigand anymore, but find the slashers in their place.. maybe they are here, just dont know where.

I also noticed that the watchman on PDF allows you to pay for TP to Port Royal, Tortuga, or Cuba. But most people on PDF already have these teleports.. so im not seeing the point.

Hmmm....hmmm......Disney developers :buds::buds::buds::buds:

Ok wait limme edit this post....

What Exactly is the WHOLE POINT of this?? we want new content, not just swap a few names around and yada yada, something new...

as far as i can see, I have no idea why there in the stages of working in the game in the begining stages i mean tips to help with new sword quest and etc?? tell you honestly the game is not that hard to figure out, just follow the ray of light and read the hints and there ya go...I think they need to move past all this and trying to come up with new content like kraken davey jones whole new story line, what about uping the level cap i mean c'mon....startin to get cheesy...no wonder so many peope are quitting.

I love how you guys add all these nice new things but um could you possibly oh idk FIX THE COMPASS IN PRIVATEERING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I like all this new stuff, although I prefer higher level enemies, not lowering the levels of other enemies to be replaced with new ones. If anything, I would prefer those Undead Mutineers be level 50!

i liked to lvl on dark hart but i have found that boss on kings thats like lvl 37 i cant beat him but with friends in a crew i got alot of rep from him

It is possible that they are prepping new enemies in getting ready for an additional storyline - and bt putting in bits at a time and working out bugs they don't do a big "dump it all in and crash" when it is released...

That's an interesting idea Max. It's easy to get mad at Disney, but hard to look at the big picture. Maybe they're waiting and adding in small things at multiple times, so they just have to rewrite a little code instead of a lot.

Actually, I saw a brigand somewhere, Forgot where but it was only level 8.

I agree with Max. I think this update is intended to find out a lot of info on Disney's part.

A) Let's find the bugs in all these new enemies.
B) Let's see how the player's react, what they comment on positively and what they comment on negatively.
(My big negative, so far, is going to be Tim and Darkheart being downgraded.)
C) Those who thought that this was going to be an increase in the Notoriety and Weapons caps, you need to think about it. Before they can raise the caps, they have to do a TON of other stuff. New enemies, new ships, new small quests, new story line. It would do absolutely NO GOOD to raise the caps if all these other items aren't ready to go. Raising the caps without the other stuff would mean nothing more than grinding weapons, which is something that almost EVERYONE of us has already complained about. (Self included.) Until all this other stuff is done and tested, there won't be any cap increases.
D) This update is a good step. Getting new enemies and levels is important to the overall process.
E) We are all impatient.

What short of an update was this? It's a piece of garbage!

They didn't even say that anything happened in the vista launcher release notes. How is changing a few names for enemies worth being called an "update". I've been playing POTCO since beta 2 and all they've slowly gotten worse.

When are you guys going to come out with some huge updates that will keep your players!? I enjoy this game and want to stay but why should I if nothing major comes out?

That's great and all but that still hasn't changed my mind, I go back to Basic on the 23rd of this month, and will gladly renew my membership once I see something worth while.

No matter how HARD they work, not everyone is going to be happy. I welcome the new stuff and can't wait to try it out.

Sadly, due to Eliza's potty mouth (she's been told by Marines to tone it down) - I don't have Test Access.

LOL, Eliza!
(The only way i got on test was that I was lucky enough to be online during that 2 hour window that they opened up test access 2 months ago.)

New Content
 

I was on Test last night and didn't really think much was different other than Tim and Darkheart, which IMO is a mistake.:degen:
I agree completely with Basil's post about agreeing with Max.
I noticed basic people on Test, which I didn't think was allowed. Makes my UA less worth it, also IMO.:sadmh9:

Andrea:piratear:

I see this as a possible beginning to the big prize :)

Disney this year has been all about the mini-update... They release some items, then work out bugs, then relase a few more items - not big releases.

In fact, I expect we may even see a few more "mini-releases" where characters appear in spots, items appear (oir new weapons maybe just before), and other mini-updates just before the new storyline gets pushed out (I don't expect the storyline to be out on test long before live - there's no 'hold-back' of info now and any new storyline will be posted so fast - I think Disney will want to move it live quickly).

Did anyone check on Neban or the EITC Boss on KH? Did their levels get lowered as well? What about the bosses on Tortuga and PR? I think I will spend some time this afternoon exploring to see if I can find other stuff.

I agree with you Max. And I agree with Max's post agreeing with Basil. Which when it comes right down to it means I, too, agree with Basil.

I agree with your post agreeing with Max's post agreeing with Basil.

I agree with wulf ageeing with Rackat agreeing with Max agreeing with Basil

I tend to agree with Max, Rackat, Basil, whoever.

If this is all there is, then it is very disappointing. The new enemies are cool, but they'll get old after a week. But if they are a prep for a new quest, then it could be great.

As for the Stowaway option, have you ever been on a public ship as a level 5 and been dropped off on PDF? I have, and I would have loved to be able to get back to Tortuga so easily.

Overall, I'm glad to see new things added, and I am hopeful that its the first installment of big new things.

Didn't notice this before.

There has to still be Brigands. One of the quests requires you to defeat a number of them. I would bet they are still in the little clusters inside the Thieves Den, or whatever cave that is where they dance around the fires, on Tortuga.

(You would think I should know all these quests and places by name by now, but NOOooooo.)

I have seen a few brigands on PDF in the catacombs beckets Quarry and on the back beach just not nearly as many as before.

lol i hate that too i really want it fixed im tried of magnetic rocks :piratewheelgo2:

We were laughing too, because while we're marveling at how awesome the cannons work, the compass is still broken. lol

Ah well ;)

Sweeet I will have to check these out later!

Looks like they'll have nothing interestingly new before June, so I will remain outside of the game. These new enemies are just the same deal with higher levels. Nothing much has changed, so best just stay out of the mess before it's fully cleaned up. Besides, there's not point in going back when they're just going to put more unwanted toppings on the pizza, we don't exactly need teh same build of enemies, or enemies getting tooken out of the game to add more...

I agree on that!
Would also be nice if they would fix not being able to repair and floating in the air after everytime you sink.....

I saw one on padres back beach. Did they change the quests that require brigands? or will people be fighting over the 1 or 2 in the game?

Basic pirates on test have always been allowed on test... how would they test basic account status? They need testing also! Create an account, link it to your UA account, and you have more pirates to play on test as well (in basic).

OK, good news. I just went and checked out Darten and Darkhart. They are back to being high level. The POTCO staff must've read the posts here on POF.

See? Just a bug from the update. Everyone's getting a bit too serious and paranoid about things.

I agree. Its nice to see some slight changes, but its nothing to get too worked up over. Get too worked up, you'll just be even more disappointed if nothing happens.

Whew, good. Good good good. I don't hate these updates anymore.

I think that all the role playing Disney is doing with the Black Guard and whatever is going to lead up to the next chapter in pirates. That, or Disney is still procrastinating.........

That may be true Maxi, but the thing about that is that we already had some good enemies. And why move enemies in front of others to make it harder to find them when they can actually expand the Carribbean. Before I come back, I'm not looking for a different Padres, PR or Tortuga. But another main island, nothing like Cuba which is practically just the corner of a good island. But we need more islands that could actually help the purpose of adding new enemies, and keep some smart and new people that have very low levels out of our way.

Sorry, but Pirates just made a deprovement again if you ask me. I give this update a 2 out of 10. Mostly because the new enemies are the same build, and because they just took forever to add anything new but decided to add something they never even talked about.

I don't think the "update" was about updating a lot - in fact recent updates I would call "tweaks" as they continue to just put in small items. An update to me is adding new content (like weapons quests) - not just adding a few bad guys :)

Hence - I won't be scoring or looking at each of these tweaks seperately, I'll wait until several come out then see what direction they take us.

Fingers crossed for lots & lots more tweaks ;)

They have to add up to something eventually.

But that is what makes you so endearing to us!!

a rather unfamous update, if you ask me, it's like spray painting Pepperoni's on a Pizza and calling them something new.

Exactly! And telling us that its a new and improved flavor, when its now barely palatable!