GrapeShot/WildCard needs a common sense Manager!

[Un4gIv3nXxX 14]

       1st off, who thought it was ok to make claims of a 40k man server; have a huge twitch turnout in anticipation, and think 6-8, 150 player starter zones was ok. Seriously? Your solution to take up 1/3 of the map with additional starter zones was equally as terrible; 1/3 of a way to small map for even the current player base is now filled with foundations and boat docks. 1/3 of the map wasted where people can't even build; every Island I've been to is a complete circle of red claims. Every lawless starter area is a complete circle of shipyards and foundations. Why didn't you just make instanced starter areas? No one needs to go back, and why do you need a shipyard for a raft?  Who in the history of rafts ever used a shipyard to build one? no need for a shipyard = people  being able to leave an island without the need to find a suitable place to toss down a shipyard and alleviates all the useless shipyard spam or at the very least doesn't require you to find a spot to build on a completely claimed island. 

     So many Islands without key resources needed to survive, and I'm not even talking about all the islands that are just bugged and don't respawn. Every Island or at least server should have wood, thatch, metal (even if only a little), water, fiber, stone, flint, and food, period; if not it's basically unlivable. If it doesn't have those basics it's damn near impossible to live there ( are you expected to sail to a tropical region for fiber and berries everyday if you want to make the snow your home? If it's basically unlivable then your taking away useful real estate from a map cluster that is already to small for the number of people playing ( with it being on the top and the bottom of the map your wasting a lot of real estate). Unless, you have at a minimum the basics needed for survival.

     I can live with bugs, server down time, delays, and many other mishaps that occur during early access, but poor communication and the sheer lack of common sense on display here; makes me think you all could use my services. I have high hopes for this game, but for now until some of these game breaking decisions are touched up and some more servers sprout up I must bid you adieu. Keep working at it, I got faith in you. Good Luck!

[SgtOpt 9]

Very well stated.  So many things as they are in the game right now makes you scratch your head and think, "Why would they do this?"  The whole map being full of starter areas is an absolute disaster!!!  The vitamin system is a disaster!! The lack of resources is a disaster!!  Finding a spot to claim is a disaster!!  Sorry you stated these things.  I am in accordance!

[Lynx 92]

53 minutes ago, Un4gIv3nXxX said:

Why didn't you just make instanced starter areas?

Agreed.

[Combo77 2]

+1

[SoloHan88 23]

Yeah I'm not sure why they opened up with a handful of starter regions knowing full well 50k people would try to log in at the same time. Then open up another 1/3 of the islands as starter islands where you can't claim anything.

Anyone know if the lawless regions will eventually be claimable?

[Hackjob 57]

Yup and that's why this will be in EA for 2 years so they can see what's going to work and what's not. It been like a week out give them time to get that data so they can make the changes.

I understand a little on the resources of islands making everything available can cripple a trade industry there trying to develop. But I agree the most basic necessities should be available on most if not all islands

[Blackstone30 10]

2 minutes ago, Hackjob said:

Yup and that's why this will be in EA for 2 years so they can see what's going to work and what's not. It been like a week out give them time to get that data so they can make the changes.

I understand a little on the resources of islands making everything available can cripple a trade industry there trying to develop. But I agree the most basic necessities should be available on most if not all islands

And you really think PPL gonna wait like 2 years now less or more to finally have a semi working game...They should have made it like that planed it...An Ark DLC...then i wouldnt have bought this shit.

[Hackjob 57]

1 minute ago, Blackstone30 said:

And you really think PPL gonna wait like 2 years now less or more to finally have a semi working game...They should have made it like that planed it...An Ark DLC...then i wouldnt have bought this shit.

Or you could of just not bought an EA game , maybe you should stay away from these games and let grapeshot worry about there bottom line

[Lynx 92]

1 minute ago, Hackjob said:

Or you could of just not bought an EA game , maybe you should stay away from these games and let grapeshot worry about there bottom line

Isn't this why we are here discussing the game and making suggestions?

[Goldfish The Builder 105]

Its early access for a reason!

Trial and error  

[Grimmfang13 0]

Yeah.. but they really aren't being smart about rolling out a new product.  Failed launch, nerfing the skill system so small groups or solo play isn't playable.. failed resources spawning, unlimited claiming, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that most of this should have been worked out before taking a penny.

[Un4gIv3nXxX 14]

14 hours ago, Hackjob said:

Or you could of just not bought an EA game , maybe you should stay away from these games and let grapeshot worry about there bottom line 

I own and have owned plenty of EA games and understand it's a work in progress. Still doesn't explain the host of bad decisions since it's early access launch, and EA status shouldn't buy game studios blanket clearance for shit choices. Sorry to hurt your fanboy feelings, but I tend to call a spade a spade. Regardless your comment did very little to touch on the subject of my post, but hey, thanks for trying.

[warhealer 25]

7 minutes ago, Un4gIv3nXxX said:

I own and have owned plenty of EA games and understand it's a work in progress. Still doesn't explain the host of bad decisions since it's early access launch, and EA status shouldn't buy game studios blanket clearance for shit choices. Sorry to hurt your fanboy feelings, but I tend to call a spade a spade. Regardless your comment did very little to touch on the subject of my post, but hey, thanks for trying.

If you really played more ea games than would have posted this. 

This clearly states you have no idea what you're talking about.

''   I can live with bugs, server down time, delays,  ''  Seriously? and you can't wait for development,balancing and changing of mechanics?

If you think those things have to be good right from the start then you're delusional.

Those are  100% early access events.

 

I would suggest refunding the game, clear your tears, and play a game that is EA in your eyes.

Edited December 28, 2018 by warhealer

[Un4gIv3nXxX 14]

Don't just read Warhealer, try to comprehend what it is your reading then post a reply. I don't see early access having anything to do with the choices they've made since EA launch; sorry to hurt your feelings, but many have just been plain bad choices.

[Big Bojangles 35]

Yeah OP is spot on really.  I dont get the poor choices they are making and shake my head at a lot of things I have experienced in the game.  Overall it doesn't feel like a very rewarding experience and it sucks having to start over on a raft everyday no matter how hard you try. 

At every turn I feel like they development choices are putting more and more pressure on you joining a large zerg guild.  I have played games that you kind of have to zerg in for pvp but you can also play solo any other aspect of the game.  I didn't expect that of this game and don't remember getting it sold to me as having to join a large company or have no chance to play.  I may be the minority here but I don't game to deal with the politics of a group of 50-100 people just to be able to play the game, if that's the case I would like that to be a decision I make on my own not one that the game forces me to do or not be able to play.   

It's very frustrating to spend around 10hrs to start with nothing, get a raft, gather mats, basics items like tools,/weapons/armor, then sail for 2-3hrs of that while you watch you tube afk at sea to finally get somewhere fight for a claim then have to go to bed before you can properly build on that claim, just to wake up the next day to play the game and find you've been wiped and sent back to the freeport to go have all that fun all over again.  I ask you simply how does that sound like a fun game grapeshot or even the one you had in mind?  If we are meant to join a large company or have a shit experience than please advertise that and make that clear when starting the game in the freeport, otherwise you need to make development decisions that allow your customers to play your game that we all hope can be what you sold us on.

Edited December 28, 2018 by Big Bojangles

[McGimp 56]

Its fine if theh want people to join a large company - the best way to do that is not with the stick but rather the carrot. Solo play should be doable and enjoyable up to endgame. If people enjoy the ride to end game they are more likely to stick around and join an alliance. If you punish people this early for not being in an alliance, they are more likely to quit than to find a group.

But hey keep releasing content and mechanics that set people back to square one over and over and over again and see how fast your playerbase shrinks. Though im sure the die hards will tell me the game is better off without us. I have a feeling you all dont think that way.

[Captain Jack Shadow 488]

Yeah, way too many bad decisions are excused under the blanket of EA.   This would be like some racing team shaving the tires to a critical point, and when the driver dies, they say, "Well, we needed the info."  No...sometimes math and common sense should have been used first.  Math can tell you when the tire is shaved too much.  Same with many of these decisions.

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that they didn't just go too far...they went WAY too far on the skill tree.  And those are fubar from the word go.  Does it really take a rocket scientist to know that this was wrong?  Many of the unlocks for trees you will need, are buried part way into other trees, and each time it is often expensive to now unlock the new tree.   A moron can figure out that this is bad. You cannot force players to group up.  Not in a PvP game with no protection from insiding.  And with the way there is literally no repercussions for attacking somebody, trade will be non-existent.  In the real world, there were dangerous men with a government license to kill you for being a pirate.  They didn't have to grow anything, or do anything but be warfighters on a government ship, and hunt you down for being a pirate.  That at least gave you a good chance as a merchant.  You were far more likely to make it to port without seeing a pirate, than seeing one.  So the idea of trying to force reasons for people to have to constantly go on the sea is not well thought out.  Hey, Star Citizen is also early access, but they have thought these things through better.  There WILL be consequences for ruthless PvP, and with insurance, you get your ship back if it is blown up.  The risk vs reward in this game is simply not thought out at all.

This game as it sits, would be better as PvE with occasional NPC Pirate encounters.  Who wants to spend all their time building ships, only to have it blown up by some zerg Company the first time you sail it?  A game like this cannot be full PvP.  Not unless you unleash the skill trees, and drastically increase the resource gathering, so people can actually build a ship quickly.  Those huge drydocks just scream for a zerg Company to come after you about the time you near completion of the ship...especially if you are building a ship that can actually fight, like a Brigantine, or Galleon.   So on a full PvP server, you need to get those mats, and build the ship in one day, or you are screwed.  Those with fleets will not let you set sail.  This does not require testing, or excuses...just somebody who actually understands Metagamers.  Seems most game makers have no clue about Metagamers.

Edited December 28, 2018 by Captain Jack Shadow

[Incarnate 34]

I completely agree with OP and many of the other points made.

Also the amount animals is way too high, you can't even go anywhere without having to fight to survive against one or several animals, not mention their levels are also completely insane, including damage levels. Because with the amount of animals you're forced use a lot of your harvested materials on weapons and ammo to even be able to survive outside against them. Their aggro range is also insane, like seriously.

Also the amount of different but equivalent materials just makes the game more complex without actually achieving something new, other than just making it more complex.

Why should it be so difficult to get something so vital as water, because even with the amount of players there are now it's pretty damn difficult to actually find.

The vitamin system however, isn't necessarily a bad thing, but certain should mostly be tied to being a long time out on the ocean without being able to get proper food and vitamins.

Players having their characters die of old age is an interesting concept, this fits in single player games, not in MMO games, because as this requires other players to mate with your character, it forces this role onto players, meaning A LOT of players will not be able to continue with their character once it reaches that stage where it dies of old age, simply because thats a player controlled aspect, which it most certainly should not have.

Making an MMO game without an authentication login server that also handles queues for all of the live servers is not a very bright move.

That was just a few more to the list.