Player Feedback

September 5, 2007 · Filed Under Level Up, Musings, Online 

When you’re running an MMORPG, it’s VERY IMPORTANT for the publishers to get player feedback. Whenever, we get feedback we make sure that the developers know about this ASAP.

This is so we can flag serious issues, bugs or errors in the game. In games with item malls or are free-to-play, the most critical aspect of this would be pricing. Pricing of the items, especially those that are consumables and are often bought is crucial to the prolonged satisfaction of the customer.

Few players know this, but as publishers, we CANNOT do anything to the game. The developers, the ones who design the game, have the right and the power to do this. We defer to their wisdom when it comes to game balance and game integrity issues, but we also maintain a close relationship to remind that WE know pinoy gaming preferences and spending habits better.

Some developers see this and act accordingly, while some take their sweet time to do this. Hence the delays.

It’s bad when we ANNOUNCE something and fail to keep our promises because some developers will change their minds at the last minute. This happened, for example, with the customized items we were supposed to give the RPC 2006 winners.

But I am digressing from the subject, let’s go back to player feedback.

We get player feedback from several methods and avenues:

  • The boards or forums
  • Customer Care tickets
  • EBs and Community Assemblies
  • Focus Group Discussions
  • Online and offline surveys
  • And comments from blogs (such as mine)

I always ask the Community Manager and the Brand Manager to keep careful track of the feedback and identify critical issues that we either need to address or send to the developers ASAP. It’s good that some players have direct line to my YM or cellphone too coz they often report a critical bug, dupe or exploit in real time. I remember this one incident in Ragnarok where users can have a no-fail updgrade in Alberta. Do you remember that?

At any rate, here are the reasons why feedback is important:

  1. Critical Issues - you find out about dupes, exploits or bugs right away. Even though we have GMs and playtesters who test the game even before we release it to the commercial worlds, we can’t patrol every nook and cranny. Sometimes, the best line of defense would be the players themselves.
  2. Pricing - Players, especially the leaders, have passion and dedication for the game and they want improvements for the better.
  3. Cheats - it is often the kind souls (players too) who report these cheats and abuses. I found out about a LOT of cheats in online games this way. And thanks to the players who alerted me, we were able to fix them.
  4. Policies and Rules - When we write the rules, often, people will find a way to make it better. GMs are only humans, of course, and we welcome anything to make the rules and policies better.
  5. Lag and disconnections - if it were not for our feedback mechanisms, we wouldn’t be able to address server capacity and connectivity issues. Sometimes external factors such as major telcos (or even natural calamaties) are to blame.
  6. Card availability and CDs - I recently wrote about possible solutions to CD distribution. This came as a result of good player feedback. And additional feedback from that article meant that work is now ongoing for this.

So there you have it, how we get and use gamer feedback to improve our games and our service(s).

Remember, there is no such thing as a dumb comment!

Keep those comments and feedback comin’

Start with the one below!

In the meantime, can I request to look at my Group Writing Project and join to get a chance to win a 1GB USB flash drive? Thanks.

‘Nite,

GM T

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Comments

13 Responses to “Player Feedback”

  1. joel on September 6th, 2007 7:38 am

    “It’s bad when we ANNOUNCE something and fail to keep our promises because some developers will change their minds at the last minute. This happened, for example, with the customized items we were supposed to give the RPC 2006 winners.” waa di nyo nabigay sa AnL? @_@

  2. ZhuanXu on September 6th, 2007 11:09 am

    That is one of the uses of the player volunteer programs like the RF Vanguards and the Perfect World Immortals.

    Player volunteer groups help the sides get closer.

  3. EvilAsh on September 6th, 2007 2:00 pm

    The Dupe Compensation sucks. 300m for the SGH, GTB Guard, and GR Silk that was wiped? A CS rep told me that was the MAX compensation you’re giving out. WTH? I checked the compensated players list and I saw someone receving 1B! What happened to checking the TRADE LOGS? Is there even such a thing as a TRADE LOG? Yeesh.

  4. andy on September 6th, 2007 3:19 pm

    i guess the trade log maybe good only after a certain amount of time after which it will be overwriten. maintaining this log since the start of commercial operation would in a sense not viable.

    they must keep the files for high valued transactions indefitely. marking rares and trades in excess of maybe 100m zenies would help keep tab on this items.

    i would also like to follow up on the split accounts/character transfer which until now have no update. its been a long 3months since server merge.
    i would like to suggest LU to just do the manual transfer from their end instead of waiting for the patch for this purpose. we the customers will have to get details of our characters(name/lvl/job/stat/skills) and present screenshots as evidence when we file for ticketing . zeny, items(kafra and inventory) we can transfer ourselves so no reason for us to ask for compensation.

    i hope i will not wait another 3months for this to be resolved.

  5. GM T on September 6th, 2007 9:03 pm

    Trade logs are only valid to a certain date. I can’t divulge the exact time due to obvious reasons. Re the transfer, I will revive this plan ASAP. Promise.

  6. EvilAsh on September 6th, 2007 11:04 pm

    So people with really old items that were wiped out are basically screwed.

  7. joel on September 7th, 2007 8:04 am

    sa akin wala daw sa logs.. *swt* dmi ako screenies ng +4 SGH.. wla sa logs nila na tinarade ko yung +4 sgh ko sa +10immune muffler at 500m.. haiii may screenshot p un.. *e1* sbgay 150m lng nmn nwla skn.. @_@

  8. david on September 7th, 2007 2:22 pm

    gm T bat naman ganun, na tapos ung donation namin ng 500m para sa rachel sanc, tapos ngayon nanghihingi na naman ng 97++ donations. sayang naman ung una naming donation.

  9. reikoku on September 7th, 2007 9:00 pm

    what happend to the regular RL meetings of the brand manager with the players? The last brand manager only made 1 meeting even when he said that he would be conducting several……

  10. blaqfire08 on September 8th, 2007 8:33 pm

    gmT ano na po ba ang nangyari sa permanent anti-dupe script na hinihintay nyo from gravity? implemented na ba?
    tsaka, nagwawipe pa rin ba kayo? gusto ko kasi bumili ng equips pero hindi ako makabili dahil baka bigla na lang mawala tulad ng dati.

  11. Sheil on September 9th, 2007 10:25 am

    We are not the only ones who’s Screwed..
    Even Level UP is screwed, they are not even familiar with the bugs of their own game. even if you slap it in their face with proof and explanations, so, how can they be able to help us if they’re the ones who’s closing all their doors.. T_____T

  12. issai on September 9th, 2007 11:54 am

    Some disturbing quotes here GMT

    The developers, the ones who design the game, have the right and the power to do this. We defer to their wisdom when it comes to game balance and game integrity issues, but we also maintain a close relationship to remind that WE know pinoy gaming preferences and spending habits better.

    - Aren’t developers the programmers? And game designers the designers? I seem to have a problem understanding some definition. Usually the developers/programmers don’t have a say on the design of a product.

    Some developers see this and act accordingly, while some take their sweet time to do this. Hence the delays.

    - Isn’t this finger pointing? If there is a system that is in place that would define when the product will be released, delays won’t usually be a problem. I think these are unfair statements, especially because you work with these people.

    It’s bad when we ANNOUNCE something and fail to keep our promises because some developers will change their minds at the last minute. This happened, for example, with the customized items we were supposed to give the RPC 2006 winners.

    - Isn’t this because they do what they seem is necessary. Apparently not all of their decisions make everyone happy. But again, isn’t that just finger-pointing?

  13. GM T on September 9th, 2007 2:33 pm

    Hi Issai,

    I am merely stating the facts that happen as relationships between developers and us. I did not name-drop a specific company, hence I did not point a direct finger at anyone.

    Second, “developer” will be defined here as a blanket-definition for the entity that programs and designs the game.

    Sorry if this post offended you, but it’s the truth and I just want to point it out.

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