POTCO - ignoring the obvious problems?
 

While there has been several small updates that are nice, I find that they seem to be ignoring the real problem in the game. In addition to the Panda 3D issues posted by Leo, there are also a major lack of quests. The combined rep from questing and the rep from defeating enemies required for the quest only gets you to about level 35 (or level 40 for some players who also grind enemies while they are at the enemy area.)

As you already know, there are 50 levels in the game, and I find it ridiculous that you have to kill enemies to get from level 40 to 50, and the only lv 40+ area in the entire game, Tormenta, has 0 quests. There doesn't need to be more islands, there are tons of islands in the game that I'm sure took POTCO months to develop, just to have only 1 quest or even 0 quests of its own and the player is finished in an hour. I do not understand why they spend months making something to let players play for a day or 2.

The top part of Kingshead could be remade with lv 45+ enemies, as well as a few quests given by smugglers who want you to save his mate, kill some guards for revenge or steal some weapons. Ambitous navy soldiers could also hire you to kill the navy soldier 1 rank above him so his rank could increase, then turn on you when he is finished to get his gold back.
Raven cove's remaining ghosts could give you quests to explore Cave of Lost souls (which is not even introduced in the game).

And there is the second problem. A lot of features, the game just expects you to know that they are there and what the heck they are, such as potions, cannon defense, fishing, cave of lost souls, QAR, treasure fleets, etc. They give the lore when they release it on their web, but who reads all that when they first start the game?

The third problem is that almost all quests give the same XP. It makes no sense that a level 1 quest gives the same Xp as a level 20 quest. I remember doing the Black Pearl story quest and several other quests in PDF and just going "huh?" when I realized all the quests give 100 XP unless its the last part of the quest chain. Higher level quests should give more XP then just 100, regardless if they are the last part of the quest chain or not.

We'd all love to have more updates.....myself included. The only thing we can do is submit feedback for issues, send suggestions for new content in (via web site and support #) and sit tight.

The game has come a long way, but other pirates may agree with you that more should have already been brought to the table.

I agree with what you are saying. I have been playing a different game which has enlighted me on how bad potco is doing game wise. I plan to create a youtube video comparing the 2 games. I will probably start on it tomorrow.

Yeah, a new quest would be really nice. And not even just one, maybe many. Maybe we could chose a class. I know this sounds like Pirates Of The Burning Sea, but have you noticed in other games they have more than one story quest? Or follow-up quests? Or you chose quests? Instead of everybody being the same, how about we try to get other story quests? It would be nice to have something along the lines of smuggling weapons, or disguising to look like somebody. I know this happened in a quest, (Ravens Cove, I think) but couldn't we have it in the case of being a Navy Cadet or EITC Grunt? It would be fun, being forced to do something and blend in with everybody else. But, I guess we will just have to wait. And by the way Ruisen, there is a quest that requires you to go to Tormenta. It is an add on, and its a kill this job, but its a quest from a bartender.

Don't forget the staff quest. Kill 5 dregs, kill 5 flotsam, kill 5 spineskull....

A new quest is needed, but I would personally like it if they added a few islands here and there.

I agree to a point. My opinion is still that they've got to address the game performance issues before anything else, and they just don't seem to be willing to do that.

Supposedly the island re-designs were going to fix all of the lag/freezing issues, but I've got a much better computer than when I started to play and lag is WAY worse now than ever. I dodge invasions like the plague because of that.

I relapsed, and participated in one Sunday, and that was just like watching stop-motion animation slowed down 200%. Run 3 paces...freeze for 30 seconds...repeat.

And only in the last year or so have I experienced the "runtime error" issue that just crashes the whole game. It's that memory leak that's been part of the game from the start getting worse and worse.

Yes, we need a new chapter (or 3) and for there to be parity in the XP payout from advanced quest completion.

But if you've got to re-boot your computer every 3 hours in order to play, what's the point?

how much RAM u got?

I PM'd you Chalupa. I didn't want to off-topic ruisen's thread.

The only thing I want right now is for Disney to fix the graphic bugs.

Staff quest requires about 16 of each of these enemies now. My alt recently did the quest & it was far more difficult and longer than it used to be. Also, there are many side quests to help gain rep-but you probably already knew that. :bookishfj7:

The first thing they need to do is fix the connectivity issues like Ukebec pointed out and glitches/bugs. And that can only be done with everyone reporting issues instead of taking advantage or turning the blind eye to those issues. I have also noticed that a few years ago the Testers here posted about the issues found and they always reported them. And those issues got fixed before going Live. Now Testers use the Test Server for bragging rights and for showing off. There's hardly any post regarding issues in The Helm.

Second they can add Chapters, ships, and whatnot. But nothing should happen until they fix the technical issues. Then I don't care how long they take making stuff and testing said stuff as long as they tell us what is really coming not like those empty promises they used to give us.

Said very well. Agreed.

@TSC : Good form....good form.

Test = test the game and provide valuable feedback.

Everything that is stated here (technical issues) should be sent to Disney. We have to help them in order for them to help us.

Aye, but that quest gives 0 XP. :sadmh9:
Or at least, it was 0 XP when I did it back then.

Really? I forgot, lol. It's been a very long time. :)

I agree with TSC. Before I see any more significant updates, I want bug fixes done. The more innocent ones I could care less about (such as glitching through a wall), but fix the ones that actually harm gameplay. I'll give you a small list: Bad broadside aim (especially in SvS), enemies being able to run through walls and kill you because you can't find them, grenades not dealing damage when they hit another player, etc. Lots more, but that's a small list. Oh, and I forgot that POTCO really should really upgrade their servers and get better hardware to run their game on. If they did this, it would most likely eliminate a lot of lag, freezes, crashes, and disconnections on their end. Not to mention that it will support higher quality machines... I think, not positive, but think that they still support Windows 2000 computers and graphics cards. I mean, for the love of all that's good, why do you do that instead of spending your time and money working with newer computers. They've gotta start using some newer and more up to date servers and hardware, because they are going to severely fall behind technology before long if they don't.

One last thing they should do: Fix the report system. There are people who claim to have been reported dozens of times and haven't been banned. Even if 90% of those were false reports, there are still a lot more that are real. It cannot be that hard to fix this. I'm not sure if it's a problem with the actual report getting to the moderator, the moderator not really caring about anything, or if there is a moderator at all, but it needs to be fixed. The main reason I play this game is because of the socialization between characters and because of the community. But I have started to see a lot more rude players lately. I'll report them, but I know it's in vain as I end up seeing most of them the next day, perfectly unbanned. Their autoreport they honesty should do away with, as it tends to pick up things that are perfectly innocent and ban people for them. I say do away with all of it, except anything with a curse word or anything suggestive.

Then of course we have the filters. "Did that go through?" "No." Their intentions are good, but it does more harm than good. They really overdo the filters. For crying out loud, "Porc" is filtered! If that's a bad word, then why is it the name of an island in game? They really should just do away with these filters, with the exceptions of curse words and suggestive language. They are far too excessive and unnecessary. If they don't do away with them, at least let us have a notice when we are filtered so we don't have to worry that every other sentence we type will be filtered because it contains innocent words? A simple "Your last chat entry was filtered because it contained the word(s) _______." will do. By avoiding doing this, they are harming the game and the interactions between players. It has to be fixed. @those that will tell me to report this to them, I've tried. And my response is to email the "Suggestions for Dictionary" section.

There are a lot more things I could bring up, but those are the three big things. Before I see any new big updates, I want all those fixed.

I think they'll need a bigger team working on the game. Without major fixes, they are already releasing content at a very slow rate. If they really added the polish to the game by fixing, updating engines, we probably won't see anything new for a year, lol. And a lot of players in game (those who don't use POF) will not be very happy.
On another online game I play, they had almost 100 people working on the game. So if any major fixes needed to happen, no problem! They can easily do both at the same time.
I doubt POTCO even hae 50 people working on the game.

Edit : According to Team Bois : http://piratesonline.go.com/#/game_i...21114547040455
There are only 19 people working on the game.

Just to add on to Davy's post, I think adding numbers would be nice. I mean seriously? You can't say I need 9 of these or such? Its really hard being speed chat plus in a guild. When you can hardly understand things. How about just filtering bad language and some suggestive things? That would make it much better! But yeah. We need some bugs fixed. It really gets a bit annoying crashing. And an update in graphics would be nice. Again, I heard that POTCO is using a free design software, so I don't entirely understand what were paying for. Sharper graphics would be nice. I know though still, I want new things. So probably after fixes, a couple of new things would be nice. I think I would like different tattoos. And different areas. More pirate like ones. And a new island or two along with a good story quest would be nice.

As a tester, I will say that every time a new aspect comes out on test (and I'm not taking a break from the game) I go check it out to report to The Mouse. Now, I will admit I'm not really good about posting my findings in The Helm, here.

But I'm also operating from a sense of frustration:

Go to Padres. Test or Open, it doesn't matter. From the main docks, where you can fish, there's a blacksmith's shop up the beach to your right. Everyone savvy where I mean?

There's a building there with two doors. There's a blacksmith sign in front of the first door, as you're approaching from the dock. The actual blacksmith's shop is behind the second, further door.

I have reported this eight (8) separate times on test since Padres was re-designed. It's my personal pet peeve. But it has yet to be fixed, and I know it has to be confusing for new/lower level players.

I wanted so badly to be a tester, and was lucky enough to get into the tiny window of opportunity a couple of years ago when they opened it up to everyone (just for an hour or so, I think).

But when you repeatedly report the same problems, and see no resolution, it's easy to lose heart.

Slasher - I know what you mean. I understand The Mouse's reasoning behind banning numbers from chat, but it's obvious to all of us that there are easy ways around it (Won, To/Too, Tree, For, etc.).

Panda 3D is Disney's own creation. They allow others to use it for free, but they didn't just pick up some random free software - they built it.

And I've got to say this too, or burst: Disney totally missed the boat on advertising the game when On Stranger Tides movie ads came out. It would have been the perfect opportunity to show a game come-on during the trailers that appeared on T.V., the internet and during movie previews. They completely dropped the ball in luring new players into the game.

Although, given the state of the game right now, I'm not sure a huge addition of new players would be a good thing for the rest of us. But, still, what a lost revenue opportunity. I don't get that.

I like you.

Coming from RTS/MMO I am content hungry. What I don't understand in POTCO is why Disney isn't actually looking at the game. Imagine if they doubled the world, polished up the world, updated graphics, and maybe added 2 new story quests and 2 new weapons. Then they do some ads and try and sell the game. What if they get a ton more subs and it because a great movie MMO? Maybe kinda like LOTRO? It could get a lot bigger, they could get more devs, and we could fully embrace this game! Honestly, this game could be great. But Disney doesn't care about it. I don't really care much for the POTC movies, I mean, I like them, but not a huge fan. I play this game because I enjoy it. I'm sure there are more like me. Disney has the funds, they have the know-how, so why can't we MAKE IT HAPPEN?

Sorry if this was rambling on, but I just got all my thoughts out.

Yeah, disney isn't very keen on advertising POTCO. I often feel like they're telling everyone "play this game or not, we don't care". But then again, maybe they don't, since POTCO's incomes really aren't that much.

They don't seem to realize that they would make a lot more by advertising the game a little bit more.

I don't see how this is a problem. There are tiny companies doing fine - The company that makes Minecraft (and currently producing Scrolls), is working on a mobile version, xbox 360, content updates every couple of weeks, developing a whole other game, and they are also producing a whole new gamemode, which while provide a whole lot more content to Minecraft. They probably have less people working for them than Disney.

You don't need 100 devs working on it, you just need some who care about what they do.

It should be a disgrace to Disney that tiny companies are doing a much better job than the corporation that owns several parks, shops, and video games from 1999.

The real problem is their game engine. Panda 3D just isn't capable of delivering fantastic content/visuals, as well as performance optimizations.

The last release for anything (Content, bug fixes, etc.) was on June 28, 2011.

Today is 8/18/2011..........

Anyone see what's wrong that this big corporation with money is doing?

This game is not funded by Disney, from what I've heard.

But to me, the best way t get the game running is to get 40+ People working on it, and have this feature where you can spend real life money to buy peices of ate, or some special kind of coin. With those coins you can buy special items, like orange boots, and buy coin shop items with the special colors: Bright blue, Dark black, Orange, Forest green, Bright green, Bright Pink, Lavender,ect.

That way, POTCO can constantly bring in more money for updates, but they would have to add rides, which would let you move faster, without making a potion. The rides would make you move 150% faster. Then they would add a Captain's Cabin, which is like a mini house. You could decorate it it with items you buy from the peices of ate, and then they could use about 15 people for a sail customization, where, they have this thing where you can draw or design your flag, and they will accept or deny. Then you could redeem a code and have it, and you can give your friends the codes for the sails too! And last of all, they need to add a use to the gallows. They're just there. They need to be able to be used to defeat an Enemy, like putting them on the plat fo, and pressing shift to open the plat form, and the noose would grab the by the ankle, and drop them to give 500 damage, or as a quest, you must save Jack from getting hanged, buy running up, cutting the rope, and defeating 2 Hired Guns and 3 Mercenary's. Nothing bad with the gallows, just need a use for them.

I've always wanted Captains Quarters.......... The rest sounds brilliant as well.......good post Davy

Before I go in to depth, I must agree that bug fixes are the first essential thing that needs to be completed. We have been seeing a lot of updates in the months prior to July and August that have really added to the game in both content, and in the stress that the game puts on the computer; in all of my years of playing this game, I have never experienced as many disconnects, crashes, and lag as I have in the past. Before anything, Disney needs to rework their gaming system to make it run smoother. Even if this requires putting the game down in to maintenance mode for upwards of a week, it will still have a big enough of a pay out to make things much nicer in the long run.

I do agree that the gap between level 40 and level 50 is a little outrageous when compared to the overall neglect that the game has towards the higher level pirates. The only real place that a pirate in their mid to high forties can centrally level is Tormenta, which is ridiculous in the fact there is only one cavern that is based at that level group out of an entire system of islands and sea channels.

As I have stated in previous threads, the slew of sea-based updates that they have been releasing over the course of the past few months needs to end with new ships, at least for the moment. Once they have been added, that should give a little more of a balance on the ocean between players and enemy ships, which then gives reason for them to turn towards land. Remember mates, the islands of the Caribbean make up a very large portion of the game, FAR overshadowing sea-based content; so, the fact we have so little going on on land at this point and time is a misstep of Disney's part.

What needs to be done before any major content releases is, as stated in the OP, a re-landscaping of a few areas in the game that need to realize their full potential. The first thing that has been LONG over when it should have happened was a revamp of Cuba, which is perhaps the saddest little island in our Caribbean when compared to Tortuga, Padres, and Port Royal, especially on the fact it's supposed to be a major island. They need to turn it away from being a minor swamp with a few buildings and only one subzone, infested with low level "ranking" enemies alone, and instead take it on a much more grand scheme - I mean turning it in to a mecca of smuggling, swindling, and of course, VOODOO! Enchanted swamps, vile jungles, cursed caverns; so much could be done to make that island really become a jewel in the Caribbean!

Afterwards, they need to bring tougher enemies in to the picture. Introducing higher level enemies in to places like Kingshead and Las Pulgas would be a good step forward, but if we really want to see it reach full potential we need to add new subzones branching off of the current ones with new, higher leveled enemies (not level 50's either; I'm talking about enemies in the 50s, 60s, and maybe even the 70s) - kind of like what they did with the Cave of Lost Souls. Perhaps for Padres they could add the ruins of the old island buried beneath landslides of hardened lava, infested by the spirits of a few civilians who didn't make it out in time - maybe for Tormenta, one of the shipwrecks could act as a new zone filled with some personal crew mates of Davy Jones. The idea is we need to expand on the old content before we can get anywhere with the new.

Continuing on, I realize that it may be frustrating for some people to not necessarily know "why" things were added to the game. But realistically, if we wanted the game to get better, then we can't focus on things as trivial as adding new options to NPC's that lets them explain what the heck is going on in the Caribbean. Besides, it's not like the majority of the Caribbean gives a hoot in the first place - give a bored pirate a pistol and a barrel of fish and he'll entertain himself without asking questions.

On your third note about the experience progression with quests, I think it makes perfect sense. As you start out earlier in the game, you level faster so you can get a hang of the game more quickly, and then as you progress in to the higher levels more and more is expected of you. Of course, this cannot be used as an excuse to keep away content updates for higher leveled pirates, but you catch my drift.

PLEASE GOD, NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!! :laughks2:

The problem with real money transaction is that companies become VERY greedy. They put all the things you "need" in the game in there, making you spend more money, then more, then even more. On another game I played, players had to spend $40 a month to keep up with the updates. Without that few items you have to buy with real money, you can't really progress in game. It's equal to selling war ships, ammo, and the ability to use famed weapons only for real money.

I don't think Disney will take the game in that direction. in addition to the above, you would have players selling accts ( which is against Big D rules ) plus the game is written for Kids, who usually don't have their credit cards on them.

Ah, the F2P method. What most MMO games are leaning towards nowadays...

Too bad that system can get greedy and give advantages immediately to the people who cough up cash for the game.

Ruins the balance, the point of PvP, etc.

You can't sell power. You eliminate the purpose of the game.

I could write a lot here but it would be repeating most of what has been said so instead i am just gonna quote the ones i agree with and expand if i got something to add...

Fist I agree with the tittle. Starting from game play issues to content, The Obvious has been ignored in POTCO and that has been obvious to us players. Hoping that something changes with the new content.

I agree and this is Crucial to POTCO. They must work on bugs, glitches, game erros, Lag, Delays and disconnections. There are to many bugs in POTCO and the whole game isn't even that big of a map compared to some other great mmo's. We can only report the problems but cannot fix them. A lot of problems are so obvious yet ignored and some have been around for more than a year.


Again the first part mentioned, Very well said. POTCO suffers from big bugs/glitches. I'm sure they have been reported numerous times by players and still do not get fixed. To add to the fixes, i think everything should be fixed but they have to start looking at the major bugs than go into the detail. This is just not happening in POTCO. The bugs just happen and happens...content release...new bugs...no old bug fixed...fun for a short limited time...everlasting annoying bugs... repeat. Not really fun.

So far, Technologically POTCO is a fail. Like you mentioned, POTCO runs on windows 2000. I don't think there is anyone in the world that plays POTCO using windows 2000. That system is no longer supported by their own developers since July 2010 meaning it's a done operating system. If the game doesnt advance technologically it will not advance economically nor attract new people to play it. I have tried my best to get the pirate voice heard as loud and clear as possible to Disney as many others have but still nothing...Pretty sad for a 4 year old game.


Agree. Already talked about the problems so will jump to your other statements. The game has enough to keep a growing subscribed player to play but after a pirate masters, its usually friends and guild that keeps them in the game. High levels really achieve nothing when mastering other than having some more HP and the notoriety of mastering. I find mastering more of a lose than a gain. Why? Because there is only a few things you might find fun after mastering. By now, you are probably done with quests. You can kill anyone solo(with exception of foul which is just 1 in the entire game). So mastering in POTCO is like saying bye to a finished game unless you want to repeat the entire thing with a new player. There needs to be benefits to leveling up. Unlocking new things that are exciting and fun to keep playing even after you master. New challenges. The game does lack high level challenges that you mentioned.

Cuba is just sad. I find it dumb that the biggest island in reality is the smallest of the major islands. It is also the loneliest and saddest place. Cuba should be way more energetic and be full of experiences. I hope that the reasons Cuba is so bad in POTCO is not due to historical and political relations between the US and Cuba. Definitely need a remake.


:Pirate7::Pirate7::Pirate7:
Left this last on purpose. I joined test a few months back. Recently a lot of players were introduced test to test the latest content which seems to be like the biggest ever added to the game as it grows. Here is the problem though. I have seen a lot of players that are either glitching around just because they like glitching or inexperienced players who play just like playing live. Just recently i had a low level tester who probably just got it asking me what scoundrel of the seas was. Another question was if I was a hunter ship because i was sailing an upgraded ship. Some still ask for the SOTL. Some don't even know what is going on with Ship customization which has been asked by players for years. My point is that if Disney is just adding inexperienced players to test that will play test as if it is just the normal game, then progress will be slow. The type of questions would make sense on live but for test, its abnormal.

As testers, It's our obligation to report all found bugs, glitches, and errors in the game. Test is a voluntary job that you signed up for not to get an early taste of new content but to make that new content a better experience on POTCO Live!!!

Disney needs to chose the testers wisely as well. I am sure there are a lot of players who will do a good job in test that do not have it. I am also sure that there are a few testers that have been wrongfully chosen as they do not know what the point of having test is. Not trying to be mean but it is the truth. Maybe there should be a small description box where you write why you want to join Test. If you are on test, You should already be up to date what is is going on in the game, you should at least know what is already part of the game and have some experience as a Live player.

Another issue is the glitchers. In another forum, someone posted a poll about glitching and its sad that the leading choice is something like "I love glitching, It makes the game fun". If players continue with this thought, then POTCO will definitely have slow progress in fixing issues because instead of players reporting them, players are taking advantage of them.

A lot of things that could be written on this thread. A lot would be a repeat from others in this thread and other problematic threads in the past. POTCO has more potential than any game as it can be backed by history and fantasy. A lot of room to be expanded before adding new. POTCO is over 4 years old therefore it needs to be developed technologically and content wise. Players can only do so much to make POTCO better but it mostly lies in the hands of the game developers.

PS: For testers, Check out this thread as it needs to be updated by multiple testers.. Please report any bug you find so we can all test it and report it. Hopefully, we will eventually see a better POTCO. http://www.piratesonlineforums.com/f...692#post354692

Quote:

Originally Posted by leo (Post 356527) Left this last on purpose. I joined test a few months back. Recently a lot of players were introduced test to test the latest content which seems to be like the biggest ever added to the game as it grows. Here is the problem though. I have seen a lot of players that are either glitching around just because they like glitching or inexperienced players who play just like playing live. Just recently i had a low level tester who probably just got it asking me what scoundrel of the seas was. Another question was if I was a hunter ship because i was sailing an upgraded ship. Some still ask for the SOTL. Some don't even know what is going on with Ship customization which has been asked by players for years. My point is that if Disney is just adding inexperienced players to test that will play test as if it is just the normal game, then progress will be slow. The type of questions would make sense on live but for test, its abnormal. As testers, It's our obligation to report all found bugs, glitches, and errors in the game. Test is a voluntary job that you signed up for not to get an early taste of new content but to make that new content a better experience on POTCO Live!!!

Leo, you are just RIGHT ON with the statement I put in gigantic letters.

It's true, Disney is just wasting its test space allowing people who have no idea how to test bugs or report them. And some just log in to spoil content to their friends and exploit glitches then NOT report them.

We need more players that can actually care more about reporting the problems in the game rather then having the "Fun" take over people completely.

For example, this player discovered these two serious glitches in the game:



And



We need more people who can discover similar glitches that have a possibility of being seriously exploited. Reporting them ASAP with detailed instructions, not vague steps.

I think we'd all feel much more 'heard' if Potco would take the time to talk to us, or even acknowledge our concerns, even publish a 'vision' of how they'd like to see Pirates developing in the future.

Or atm if they think Pirates has a future at all :(

Even their twitter is less than helpful.

http://twitter.com/Pirates_Online

You guys should check test, they're going crazy with fixing bugs/glitches. :D (They were doing good until they hit September.)

I noticed on test, however, that some emotions are not showing up. If you type /glare, you will glare, but it won't show up in chat. I have also noticed that for clap and cheer. Another thing on test is that player friending isn't working. POTCO isn't ignoring us. They are just working behind the scenes.

[FONT=""][COLOR=""][SIZE=""]They took away coin flipping -_-
it just says "You flipped a coin... (heads/tails)[/SIZE][/COLOR][/FONT]

There's no need to be sorry for ranting at Disney when they are clearly not putting in "10/10" effort into a project that some of us players pay for.

Honestly, if you guys never spoken negativity about a project that's in a "depression" or "standstill" position, how will they realize that and make any dramatic change if you guys don't demand or request it enough?

This world doesn't revolve around positive comments all the time. There's always something wrong with everything.

I don't apologize when I rant about Disney because I know they're doing something wrong with the project and support treatment (IE. denying requests to respond to e-mail or live chat and transfer and other stuff)

I've played for 2 years and know Disney is losing their mojo as each 6 months passes.

[FONT=""][COLOR=""][SIZE=""]I read through nearly all of this and now I realize how horrible it really is in certain ways e_o
And OH MY LORD CHALUPA YOUR IDEAS ARE AMAZING <3

I've been playing since 2007 and find my own way through the wall and stuff just fir fun and alot of times never want it taken away because it never really caused lag.
But I HATE the glitch where you begin fighting an enemy, and they suddenly run in the wrong direction or disappear and they come back at you and makes you so annoyed.
Man... Even 07&08 had better and higher maintenance[/SIZE][/COLOR][/FONT]

I believe personally that POTCO has greatly improved over the past few years. Greatly. That being said, the game still has many problems, some serious, but it is definitely wrong to say it has deteriorated. There are many examples to show as to why it has gotten better, but that is not the point of my post nor this thread.

While I frown upon ranting, I don't disagree with it... as long as it is CONSTRUCTIVE criticism. Often times I see nothing but "POTCO doesn't care. (end of post)" or "POTCO is a bad game because of bla bla bla." without any ways posted to make it better.

As it has been shown in other threads, this game has improved dramatically over the past years. In the beginning, especially during out update drought, there was nothing in this game. It was, to be quite honest, a dying game. Now we have new players coming into the game every day, updates coming out faster than before. Granted that they are not coming as fast as other games, but we cannot compare this game to others in this kind of a situation. This game is not in a depression or standstill. In order to accuse the game of this, we must look to the game's past, and it doesn't require much evidence to show that it has improved.
I believe that a lot of updates that have come out, small or large updates as they may be, have originated from the players. Things as simple as dumping cargo or having the Scoundrel First Mate's voice turned off to as big as invasions have been requested by players. Players have requested things, and that is what has moved the game along (again, it is moving along).



As many, including me have said, this game does have a lot of problems. These problems do need to be addressed. I'm hoping that after Ship Customization gets out, POTCO can spend a month or so doing some major bug fixes and polishing up the game, as well as improving some technical aspects of playing. As others have said, ignoring bugs is really not the smartest idea, because the more updates that are added in in the future, the more bugs that will just pile up. Best to clean up your room before the mess gets too big to handle, savvy?

They've fixed a lot of bugs in the coming update, and who's to say they won't keep fixing other bugs after they've finished with it? Just because POTCO hasn't done very well with this in the past doesn't mean they aren't getting on top of it. I think we should all wait and see what they do AFTER the update comes before making any judgments.

Oh, I forgot to clarify.

This statement was only meant for the Live Game servers, not Test.

Test they're doing okay.

My statements are never intended (although some parts were) to be the fault of the Test Server.

It's only the Live Server I have problems about because lately they've just been neglecting it.

Testing is meant for testing. Wouldn't it be a good idea to see how a fix would affect Test before it hits Live, so we don't have a repeat of the "Refresh Madness" we had earlier this year? Or would we rather them jump back and forth in between Open and Test so nothing every really gets focused on enough at one time so it can actually be done correctly?

While there is an update on test I do believe that they should focus their time on working on fixing test bugs so that that update can go onto live with as few bugs as possible. I'll repeat that: When there is an update on test, they should spend their time fixing that update, and then when it gets out, work on the bugs live has. It is best to have the whole team working on test when there is an update on it, so that there don't end up being more bugs on live.

I hope you don't mind me referencing the Test server. The fact of the matter is, it's difficult to talk about the quality of this game without tying both Test and Live into the equation.

Now, this current update that the developers are focusing on, Ship Customization, does deserve quite a bit of their focus at the current moment. Mind you, I'd love to see them update Live with bug fixes more, but for the time being, when there is an update on Test, they need to concentrate on Test so that the bugs don't leak out over onto Live.

Continuing on, here's a quote from Ice Storm:
As I stated above, you cannot discuss this game without discussing both Live and Test. While Test may not have the majority of the players, the actions that the developers make on Test will leak over to live. Inasmuch, they ARE representing the majority of the players when fixing Test, they are just not representing them at that moment in time. They should devote all their time to the Test server so they will be able to transfer the bug fixes from Test to Live because the two are, essentially, equal. The bugs that affect Test will affect Live.

I will admit that the phrase cannot be swapped; the bugs that affect Live do not necessarily affect test, if only because there are more players on Live that are exploiting said bugs. However, the design is the same, so if they are able to take a report from Live, create the fix in Test, and then transfer the fix over to Live, they ARE concentrating on Live.

The only reason the selection for players on Test matters is because Disney is less likely to let the people who have been reported and exploit the bugs on Live onto Test, therefore not seeing the effects of said exploits on Test and making it less likely to fix them.

I'll admit, I do enjoy the new content every 6 months, but I only pay for certain months out of the year, such as when this content is released. For instance, the last time I paid for Unlimited was in Mid-October, when the Muertos Moon returned. It runs out sometime within the next two weeks. I'm with you in the fact that I see no point in paying for the months they're not giving me content.


I've said this before, but I don't know if you've seen those posts, so I'll say it again; Disney has the money, yes, but that does not necessarily mean that they give it to their MMO teams. From the impression I have gathered, they rely mainly on what the Unlimited Access players give. I am content with what they release, though yes, I do wish they released it sooner. My question is what can we do to pressure them into giving more, other than boycotting the game? (which, now that I mention it, was tried a few weeks ago.)

Please expect more from disney and expect them to actually use their funds to provide a business-qualified MMO game.

Toontown is doing way better than POTC and its by the same company!

Do you not see how many times their website gets updates with news articles?

In addition, you're right, they do care a lot more about Toontown, most likely because Toontown has been around longer and has a stronger base. It will draw in more children because it is rated E rather than E-10 as well as any adults. It makes sense that they will put more of an effort into Toontown because they know they will get more money from them.

My stance on the game is simple: They're doing better, no, impressively given the low amount of employees that the Pirates Online crew contains, and given the potentially low amount of income given to them by Disney. The Pirates staff works with what they're given, and although I would like to quest the second storyline or explore new islands, ship customization, infamy, and loot have kept quite a number of players paying, and it will continue to be that way.

You guys also have to remember that Disney, unlike other online game companies such as Bioware, Blizzard, and NCSoft, do not focus primarily on their online games. Disney earns most of its money from amusement parks and movies. Therefore, most of their money (and therefore workers) is going to go towards amusement parks and movies.

Pirates Online is funded primarily on subscription money. Because of this, Disney can't afford to have as many developers and programmers working on POTCO as say WoW or SWTOR (or even Toontown for that matter). So yes, they can't release as much content. And yes, it takes them longer than other games to fix bugs and glitches. Just give them time, and they'll have new content out eventually.

Not sure where you are going here. Subscription fees are what we pay to play and like on WOW and so on thats how they make the money for server upkeep and to pay for new releases so people keep playing the game and of course to make a profit. We don't pay to play to upkeep a park and if Disney is doing so that would be a bad use of our funds don't ya think. I love the game so don't get me wrong but that being said I paid for Guild Wars once and get new content at least once a year. I pay as we go along in Wizards 101 and get new content once a year. Guild wars and Wizards have cost me less and given oh so much more in return for my money. I have played since very early on in the game and evenually has become a very long time. Disney needs to be putting back into the game what we are giving for it, hard work ( or money earned from it ).

I guess what I'm trying to say (and I realize now that I wasn't very clear in pointing it out, thank you for replying :P), is that sometimes people expect too much of Disney just because "they're Disney." They're doing the best they can, sometimes you just have to be patient.

On the other hand, I agree that Disney is using our money very poorly. I played POTCO a while ago, left for a while, and came back. Besides ship upgrades and Raven's Cove much hasn't changed. I honestly think they did more to limit basic players than they did to give more to unlimited players.