TGIFF!
In this Feedback Friday we’ll give a quick build update, answer a few questions from the Feedback Form, and talk about a new “bubble” feature in production that should help with your game performance.
Deployment 9 is now on the Public Test Server. The developers had a great time playing with those that showed up on PTS yesterday. Expect more "dev sightings" on PTS throughout the weekend.
We are in the last week of adding new content for Deployment 10. This next week we'll be tweaking the content we've added, and the week after we will have what we call a “hardening week”. During this week, we will be focusing strictly on bug fixes to help polish the game and get rid of any nagging issues. Once this is finished, we will be continuing with our normal 4 to 5 week process.
Q & A
- PvP: A logout countdown would make it fairer during clan-war as anybody involved can log out at any moment to flee a combat situation. Any input on this?
- We agree. This issue should be resolved in Deployment 10.
- Trials: Can we expect longer trials soon? 3 days is hardly practical to test a game and decide whether to invest money into it.
- We realize 3 days may seem pretty quick when downloading and installing the game, not to mention real-life issues that might come up during the time frame. We will however be having more trials throughout the year of varying lengths so check back on rgtr.com to see the latest promotion. As of now, we currently have 3-day trials across the United States and Europe.
- Social network: At the moment it is difficult to keep track of my friends because I have to reinvite my friends whenever I create new characters. Is anything going to be done to make this better?
- Both the friends and ignore list are now user based instead of characters based, starting in Deployment 9.
- Comment: What specifically would you like us to test on the PTS?
- Thanks for asking! As far as testing, every little bit helps! Testing new content, such as our latest instance "Velon Hollow", will help immensely. You can also review the Deployment 9 patch notes and test any additions or bug fixes. Don’t be afraid to break it – that’s why it is on PTS.
- If you find a bug, simply type /bug (then press enter) and fill out the bug menu. You are welcome to submit it in French or German as we have native speakers who can translate your reports in both languages.
- If you have feedback about a particular change, please make sure to send it to use via the Feedback Form.
The Tabula Rasa Bubble
The "Bubble" is a new optimization we are working on implementing with Deployment 9 that causes the client to load only those static map objects (e.g. trees, rocks, but not creatures or usables) that are within a certain distance of the camera. Until now, we loaded all such objects up front. With this new technology, your client should use less memory, increase performance, and decrease perceived "hitching".
We have the ability to adjust the “bubble” to various ranges away from your character and would like your help testing this new feature once it’s ready to be activated. We hope to have the bubble tech turned on in an upcoming build of Deployment 9 or Deployment 10.
That’s it for this week’s Feedback Friday! Please make sure to submit any feedback using our Feedback Form!