Pricing of the game in its current state?

[eric]

Again I would like to thank all of you (including the developers) for taking time to reply with concise answers.

It's nice to see that people are enjoying this game in wording .

Although there are certain websites which I frequent (like MMORPG.COM) where people are less than positive about the whole 'pre-order' concept because of delays and Xsyon not living up to expectations thus far, I am starting to become convinced that the game and its creators has a future. Of course its all dependant on the amount of 'sand' in the box and how stable and above all fun the game will turn out to be.

As I've written in my first post I have been trying out Mortal Online recently which is, as far as I can determine, a similar concept. The idea of a world where the players are the game appeals to me, especially if one (like myself) is more of a builder instead of a pk-er.

Yet, in MO there are so many problems (both technical and in game mechanics) that unless one is a truly 'hardcore' pvp'er who enjoys grinding endlessly, one seldom really accomplishes anything. I'm not here to burn down MO but I've learned that alot more is needed than a world with dedicated players. Above all there needs to be enough support from the developers in both giving ingame tools (like tradingposts or vendors, a decent chatsystem with friendslist etc) and outside support.

I'm assuming that Xsyon is also developed by a handful of people (correct?) who can't do everything immediately. I just hope that (unlike in my experience with MO) they do what they promise and keep working on the game even when subscriptions are low. Of course, only time will tell.

Lastly: where can I find detailed information about gathering/crafting/trading that is possible in the game currently?

Cheers again,
Eric

[Virtus]

Yes, Xsyon only has a hand full of devs.

What detailed info would you like about those? The FAQ and Features list, if you haven't seen, might be able to answer some.

[Kinslayer]

I hear your concerns, very clearly. I got burnt the first time with Darkfall, that was just a complete disaster and didnt deliver a sandbox game. My next hope was MO, and I spent well over 12mths there in beta and post-release, trying to help them test and create the game they said they wanted to build. In the end, they gave into the PvPrs, and worked on nothing but PvP concepts of the game. In the end, my guild all decided that MO was a griefers PvP game, built for griefers/exploiters/Pvp'rs, by griefers/exploiters/PvP'rs.

This explains why Im here, as well as those in my guild that are willing to keep searching. The problem is, these days, too many indy devs are labelling their games as sandbox, sucking ppl into the dream which they describe so wonderfully, and completely and utterly fail to listen to those that wanted what they originally wanted as well. Instead, if you look at MO, they went for what they thought would be their main audience, which was greifer guilds and exploiter/duper guilds, and they lost out. What people want is depth in a game, not just PvP with eye candy graphics, not lean penalties on guilds that dupe so much gold they can build multiple keeps when honest guilds cant grind for 3 months to build one.

What we have here at Xsyon is a lead dev who actually listens to EVERYONE, and takes all suggestions into account, and then decides which best suits his vision. He doesnt seem to be giving into pressure of larger guilds/groups, and seems to be making only changes for the better, that the majority of the community seem to want. If Jooky can continue this, and continue with his level of communication, I think that alone will make a success out of this game.

Of course we all want depth, MO is years away from offering the kind of depth that is already in Xsyon now. Sure you have to give up a little on the graphical side, but graphics arent everything if you dont have the content to keep you entertained.

Although Im not playing in this testing phase a great deal, I do play a little, and give my opinion on improvements, and report bugs when I do play, and I honestly feel Im being listened to. Apart from a couple of very closed minded people, the community are all great, and we all discuss each others opinions and what we like/dislike about things, to come to a conclusion we all like, in most circumstances.

But the point is, if you feel this may interest you, and you really do want to contribute to the making of a game, this is the right dev for you. In the beginning I felt like I could make a difference with the developement of MO, but soon realised I was mistaken. Here, we actually can make suggestions, and they are listened to. This is a breathe of fresh air.

[eric]

@Virtus:
Never mind my question about crafting et al. I've found some more sparse information already elsewhere on these forums.

Another quick question that came to mind: where are the game-servers located?
I ask because I read that most of you (devs) are in Siberia (Russia?) but I also saw that the company is located in USA.
I myself live in The Netherlands and am somewhat concerned about the expected lag/ping when servers are (too) far away.

@Kinslayer:
Good to read your sensible response.

Mortal Online in itself is not a bad simulation, but as my preferred role usually is a drifter/builder and less a fighter its very unrewarding to play MO. How often not was I crafting something when some asshat repeatingly killed me and thus robbing me of all my work. Ofcourse full pvp gives this risk, but even while in a town no safety is ridiculous. Especially given the fact that MO is played 1st person, so that you never see attacks coming at all. I hope Xsyon is better 'equiped' in that respect.

About graphics: well, I wasn't really impressed by the graphics in MO. Sure the trees (after the recent patches) looked great and the lighting got better, but it still was a rather drab looking world.
So if the graphics in Xsyon are no better its okay. I value gameplay over gfx anyday.

Incidently, I followed the link in your signature and I'm impressed by the guild you are part of. Left a note in your forum so maybe I'll apply in that guild.


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@Admins/Moderators:
If this post degenerated into a more general thread instead of just questions about pricing, forgive me and just either alter the topic or lock it if needed.

[Virtus]

off topic? what's that? nah, its all good

The servers are located in Chicago, Illinois (middle of the US)