Glorious Alpha Two Testers!
Alpha Two testing is currently taking place five days each week. More information about Phase II and Phase III testing schedule can be found here
If you have Alpha Two, you can download the game launcher here, and we encourage you to join us on our Official Discord Server for the most up to date testing news.
Alpha Two testing is currently taking place five days each week. More information about Phase II and Phase III testing schedule can be found here
If you have Alpha Two, you can download the game launcher here, and we encourage you to join us on our Official Discord Server for the most up to date testing news.
Best Of
Re: Why the endgame progression feels bad and what to do about it
I haven't gotten very far in the crafting system yet, but from what I've seen so far, I'm seeing similar things to what is brought up here.
I've also been attempting to dive into being a scribe, but as the OP mentioned, it is just a huge gold sink for seemingly no reason.
Is crafting intended to put value into items? or is it intended as another grind to keep the economy moving?
If someone gets to the master artisan level, can they actually up charge for the items they make? or will the raw materials still be worth more?
I really want the artisan system to feel good at all levels, but so far it leaves a lot to be desired.
I've also been attempting to dive into being a scribe, but as the OP mentioned, it is just a huge gold sink for seemingly no reason.
Is crafting intended to put value into items? or is it intended as another grind to keep the economy moving?
If someone gets to the master artisan level, can they actually up charge for the items they make? or will the raw materials still be worth more?
I really want the artisan system to feel good at all levels, but so far it leaves a lot to be desired.
Re: PvP Experience is a big minus - I don't understand the design goals there
My general sense is that Ashes suffered a fate that seems common among kickstarted projects: the vision that you/we invested in changed during the course of development. When I saw the kickstarter and read about the node progression feature, I saw the game as an incredible UO- or SWG-style sandbox where questing, PvE, and a player-driven economy could lead to unique and emergent stories. It sounded like a PvE sandbox the likes of which we haven't seen in decades with, yes, some PvP-specific content woven in. Caravans, guild wars, and node wars.
At some point, it seems the development vision changed. Gameplay is not just challenging but punishing. The PvE and Economy elements all seem to exist in furtherance of PvP, which seems to have dominated the design goals ... both directly and indirectly via open corpse looting. Instead of a PvE sandbox, it feels more like the devs want to focus on a cutthroat PvP world in the vein of EVE Online and pre-Trammel UO. They're enamored with the idea of political intrigue and macro-guild drama, but in doing so, exactly as the original poster suggests, they will result in a very niche crowd. I don't remember any of those vibes from the kickstarter ... and for someone who has no interest in PvP whatsoever, it seems like the current state of the game looks to me and says, "This game is not for you. Look elsewhere."
At some point, it seems the development vision changed. Gameplay is not just challenging but punishing. The PvE and Economy elements all seem to exist in furtherance of PvP, which seems to have dominated the design goals ... both directly and indirectly via open corpse looting. Instead of a PvE sandbox, it feels more like the devs want to focus on a cutthroat PvP world in the vein of EVE Online and pre-Trammel UO. They're enamored with the idea of political intrigue and macro-guild drama, but in doing so, exactly as the original poster suggests, they will result in a very niche crowd. I don't remember any of those vibes from the kickstarter ... and for someone who has no interest in PvP whatsoever, it seems like the current state of the game looks to me and says, "This game is not for you. Look elsewhere."
Arkazon
1
Re: [Feedback] Why Ashes is currently destined to fail...
No it doesn't.
If you are having an issue that is appeased by it being acknowledged, you really don't have an issue.
What an ignorant thing to say lol the developers acknowledging an issue tends to put people at ease, even if the issue isn't actually fixed immediately. It shows that the developers are aware and paying attention to their userbase, and will generally lead to some level of trust from said userbase.
One of the absolute worst things you can do is not communicate with your users, and ignoring widespread and/or serious issues that have been reported is a very quick way to alienate your userbase and lose trust and confidence.
Re: Sol Deus Lotharia Griefing Sephillon/ Ruining the experience of players every day
lukedawuke wrote: »"s-s-mile y-you are r-r-ecorded"
☝🏻 Another toxic player
We need to talk about PirateSoftware’s interview.
I'm thoroughly disappointed with this interview.
The interviewer barely touched on what SHOULD be added during phase two - content we still haven't seen - and instead focused mainly on features for mega-guilds that few players actually care about.
What's more concerning is that Steven, instead of standing firm on his vision, seemed to be tailoring his answers to meet Pirate's expectations. Once again, he acted more like a salesperson than a creative director.
So Steven, let me be clear: we don't need you to keep selling us future features that only heaven knows when we'll see. What we need is honesty and transparency.
Focus on delivering FEWER features but actually releasing them, rather than constantly discussing 100 new features when you haven't even released 90% of what was promised for phase 2.
The interviewer barely touched on what SHOULD be added during phase two - content we still haven't seen - and instead focused mainly on features for mega-guilds that few players actually care about.
What's more concerning is that Steven, instead of standing firm on his vision, seemed to be tailoring his answers to meet Pirate's expectations. Once again, he acted more like a salesperson than a creative director.
So Steven, let me be clear: we don't need you to keep selling us future features that only heaven knows when we'll see. What we need is honesty and transparency.
Focus on delivering FEWER features but actually releasing them, rather than constantly discussing 100 new features when you haven't even released 90% of what was promised for phase 2.
Re: Weekly Feedback - 01/20/2025
Top 3-5 Most Important Bugs:
1. Crashing seems to happen quite a lot. With an especially punishing death mechanic, this can get quite exhausting.
2. Trying to do the introductory Caravan quest for the first time, another melee player about 6 levels higher was able to murder us in the driver seat in just a few swings. I was led to believe that the driver could not be targeted, but if this isn't a bug, it sure seems like a bizarre design choice.
3. Named commission enemies not spawning or taking a tremendously long time to spawn.
Top 3-5 Most Important Feedback Topics:
1. Showing a friend the ropes, by around level 8, he asked me, "So is this it? Is this the game?" All I could tell him was that it's Alpha and all the systems aren't in yet, but from his perspective it seemed like the only things to do are (1) gather and craft, (2) get into a farm group and grind for experience, or (3) PvP. And frankly, I couldn't say he was wrong. It might be helpful to know what is coming down the pipeline, what still needs to be implemented, and how it opens up the list of "what I can do ingame today."
2. Similar to Point #1, if a person has no interest in PvP whatsoever, this game does not feel like it has a place for them. When I backed the kickstarter, the emphasis was on the node system ... a living, evolving world where players' actions affected the unfolding narrative. This felt like a PvE Sandbox world. But at present, the PvE and crafting systems feel like they exist just in service of PvP, not alongside or as an alternative. Many design decisions feel like they are intentionally punishing: player death, grinding for levels, struggling to make money to keep up with repairs let alone buy new gear. There are minimal (if any) consequences for looting other players' bodies, so a string of bad luck can completely wipe out all the gains you've made.
3. As a result of 1 and 2, the game in its current state (and what feels like its current design direction) feels focused on an incredibly niche market: the EVE Online style PvP crowd. This emphasis on guild politics and drama and player conflict bears no resemblance to the vision of the kickstarter. Caravans, Node Wars, and Guild Wars are all major systems that are pretty well closed off to non-PvPers. And it feels like the game was never tested with griefers in mind, people who don't care about reward or consequences but just enjoy being complete jerks.
1. Crashing seems to happen quite a lot. With an especially punishing death mechanic, this can get quite exhausting.
2. Trying to do the introductory Caravan quest for the first time, another melee player about 6 levels higher was able to murder us in the driver seat in just a few swings. I was led to believe that the driver could not be targeted, but if this isn't a bug, it sure seems like a bizarre design choice.
3. Named commission enemies not spawning or taking a tremendously long time to spawn.
Top 3-5 Most Important Feedback Topics:
1. Showing a friend the ropes, by around level 8, he asked me, "So is this it? Is this the game?" All I could tell him was that it's Alpha and all the systems aren't in yet, but from his perspective it seemed like the only things to do are (1) gather and craft, (2) get into a farm group and grind for experience, or (3) PvP. And frankly, I couldn't say he was wrong. It might be helpful to know what is coming down the pipeline, what still needs to be implemented, and how it opens up the list of "what I can do ingame today."
2. Similar to Point #1, if a person has no interest in PvP whatsoever, this game does not feel like it has a place for them. When I backed the kickstarter, the emphasis was on the node system ... a living, evolving world where players' actions affected the unfolding narrative. This felt like a PvE Sandbox world. But at present, the PvE and crafting systems feel like they exist just in service of PvP, not alongside or as an alternative. Many design decisions feel like they are intentionally punishing: player death, grinding for levels, struggling to make money to keep up with repairs let alone buy new gear. There are minimal (if any) consequences for looting other players' bodies, so a string of bad luck can completely wipe out all the gains you've made.
3. As a result of 1 and 2, the game in its current state (and what feels like its current design direction) feels focused on an incredibly niche market: the EVE Online style PvP crowd. This emphasis on guild politics and drama and player conflict bears no resemblance to the vision of the kickstarter. Caravans, Node Wars, and Guild Wars are all major systems that are pretty well closed off to non-PvPers. And it feels like the game was never tested with griefers in mind, people who don't care about reward or consequences but just enjoy being complete jerks.
Arkazon
2
@ Intrepid - You're bleeding testers
Anyone can briefly look at this forum board and see the same issues popping up constantly. However Intrepid, you have failed to act on so many serious issues since last phase, or the new ones. I'm not sure why your priorities are on changing mount sprint icons over actual game-breaking issues, but I'm sure it's causing massive frustration for the average tester.
I for one am now done testing until next phase. I've weathered this storm for a month to see absolutely no changes, so I'm not going to waste any more of my time dealing with mentally ill players. The recent post Steven made about taking action against the griefers/exploiters is a joke. Only 19 people got permanently banned? Seriously?! I've reported more than that many offenders myself. These little slaps on the wrist aren't going to do a thing. The only real solution is to perma ban these players without hesitation or 2nd chances. They know what they are doing and that message needs to be sent. i understand why you may want to start slowly with offenders, but you are losing FAR more actual testers with your hesitation.
Until this is done, or a new server is created for those who don't want to deal with those toxic players is created, players like myself will not help with the testing of Ashes. Ya know, the players who are actually testing things and sending in bug reports. That is who you are now alienating with these decisions. I've seen so many people already quit due to these frustrations, and now I'm following suit. Vyra is flooded with the most toxic players I've ever seen in any game. You may want to start rethinking some of your systems, because without instanced dungeons for example, no one with brain cells will be playing Ashes in it's current form. No one will pay to be tortured. Many of us question if Intrepid even bothers testing their own game, because these issues are so obvious.
Almost all of these toxic players are in the game guilds. Guilds that advertise their toxicity making it VERY EASY to find and ban them all. I'll help you out by giving you a list:
Dopamine
Nerotic Savages
Enveus
Barcode
Kaos
Genesis
Polar
It won't matter how good the art, animations, and crafting are, everything will be overshadowed by the constant toxic behavior from these guilds. So either they need to be banned or redesign with instanced dungeons needs to happen. No one wants to be around these players. Your decision to use only two servers also fueled this and made things worse.
I didn't have to post this. I could have just walked away from this without saying anything. However, I want Ashes to succeed which is why I'm stating what should be obvious. Failure to take action will result in a max exodus.
I'll try again in May. Hopefully you took these words of warning to heart.
I for one am now done testing until next phase. I've weathered this storm for a month to see absolutely no changes, so I'm not going to waste any more of my time dealing with mentally ill players. The recent post Steven made about taking action against the griefers/exploiters is a joke. Only 19 people got permanently banned? Seriously?! I've reported more than that many offenders myself. These little slaps on the wrist aren't going to do a thing. The only real solution is to perma ban these players without hesitation or 2nd chances. They know what they are doing and that message needs to be sent. i understand why you may want to start slowly with offenders, but you are losing FAR more actual testers with your hesitation.
Until this is done, or a new server is created for those who don't want to deal with those toxic players is created, players like myself will not help with the testing of Ashes. Ya know, the players who are actually testing things and sending in bug reports. That is who you are now alienating with these decisions. I've seen so many people already quit due to these frustrations, and now I'm following suit. Vyra is flooded with the most toxic players I've ever seen in any game. You may want to start rethinking some of your systems, because without instanced dungeons for example, no one with brain cells will be playing Ashes in it's current form. No one will pay to be tortured. Many of us question if Intrepid even bothers testing their own game, because these issues are so obvious.
Almost all of these toxic players are in the game guilds. Guilds that advertise their toxicity making it VERY EASY to find and ban them all. I'll help you out by giving you a list:
Dopamine
Nerotic Savages
Enveus
Barcode
Kaos
Genesis
Polar
It won't matter how good the art, animations, and crafting are, everything will be overshadowed by the constant toxic behavior from these guilds. So either they need to be banned or redesign with instanced dungeons needs to happen. No one wants to be around these players. Your decision to use only two servers also fueled this and made things worse.
I didn't have to post this. I could have just walked away from this without saying anything. However, I want Ashes to succeed which is why I'm stating what should be obvious. Failure to take action will result in a max exodus.
I'll try again in May. Hopefully you took these words of warning to heart.
Re: We need to talk about PirateSoftware’s interview.
Steven doesnt owe us anything, its his vision.
Re: [Feedback] Why Ashes is currently destined to fail...
From a gameplay perspective, there's no reason for me to log in yet. Servers have been overrun by hordes of people since the start of phase 2, and they had already had a decent pop on all servers prior. The servers are overpopulated, and the combat is still the same as in phase 1, so no novelty to attract me and make me overlook the problems.
With the recent rampant exploiting and griefing, where it's formerly just been on one server (these people had been contained on Resna), I don't feel any desire to even log in.
Client performance has taken a dive for me in phase 2, even after I got a CPU upgrade. It's gotten objectively worse for me with the newer versions of the game.
Characters still look like monkeys. The hair of the new humans is an outright slap in the face, lol.
I'll probably be back when Summoner comes out, and if they couldn't fix the community by then (ban exploiters, start up more servers), maybe it's time to forget about it completely and move on.
With the recent rampant exploiting and griefing, where it's formerly just been on one server (these people had been contained on Resna), I don't feel any desire to even log in.
Client performance has taken a dive for me in phase 2, even after I got a CPU upgrade. It's gotten objectively worse for me with the newer versions of the game.
Characters still look like monkeys. The hair of the new humans is an outright slap in the face, lol.
I'll probably be back when Summoner comes out, and if they couldn't fix the community by then (ban exploiters, start up more servers), maybe it's time to forget about it completely and move on.
Andi
1
Weekly Feedback - 01/20/2025
Greetings, Glorious Alpha Two Testers!
Please share your top 3-5 most critical issues in the thread below using the following format:
======================
Alpha Two Phase II Feedback
Top 3-5 Most Important Bugs:
1.
2.
3.
Top 3-5 Most Important Feedback Topics:
1.
2.
3.
======================
To keep the thread organized, we kindly ask that you avoid back-and-forth discussions, and stick to the format above for your posts. We'll be closing the thread on Tuesday, 10 AM PST
Important Note: While we greatly value your insights, please understand that we cannot guarantee all bugs or feedback topics will be addressed, or provide a specific timeframe for fixes.
Thank you for your continued support, feedback, and dedication to improving the Alpha Two experience!
Please share your top 3-5 most critical issues in the thread below using the following format:
======================
Alpha Two Phase II Feedback
Top 3-5 Most Important Bugs:
1.
2.
3.
Top 3-5 Most Important Feedback Topics:
1.
2.
3.
======================
To keep the thread organized, we kindly ask that you avoid back-and-forth discussions, and stick to the format above for your posts. We'll be closing the thread on Tuesday, 10 AM PST
Important Note: While we greatly value your insights, please understand that we cannot guarantee all bugs or feedback topics will be addressed, or provide a specific timeframe for fixes.
Thank you for your continued support, feedback, and dedication to improving the Alpha Two experience!
Vaknar
1