Poster: Grizol at 4/9/2005 9:24:00 PM PDT
Subject: Non-information, Compensation, Communication |
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Q u o t e:
Hetic... it's the weekend. The developers aren't here. I am, because my job revolves around the community and the forum, and Saturday's a busy day. While I would love to call a meeting this very instant, I don't think they would pick up the phone, heh.
Be advised that I DO take your concerns to the developers. In the meeting, I'd say a good third of the time was spent talking about DPS (keep in mind the meeting happened after this patch was finalized). I related the community's concerns on the subject. I am doing all I can for you, but you folks do need to understand... just because I bring your concerns to the developers does not mean that particular issue will absolutely be changed to fit what you desire.
You may think this a deficiency on my part, and I suppose I can't really prove that without taping the meetings (which I will not be doing, sorry). I am decent when it comes to debating, and I present your concerns in an assertive manner that, at the same time, is worded in a way to be more sympathetic to the developer's position so they can understand where you're coming from. I help them understand your position and your concerns on the class. That is my duty as your advocate. If this enacts change, all the better, but it isn't a requirement.
Caydiem,
You say you brought our true concerns to the developers and that at least one-third of your time was spent discussing DPS, yet you also say you didn't know about DPS nerfs in the upcoming patch.
As a software developer for a company larger than yours, that constantly works on systems more complex than yours, I know from years of experience that it takes all of 3 seconds to interject a question during a meeting. If you had read the hundreds of posts from the angered hunters and truly understood our concerns, then you would have not only asked developers about previous DPS changes, but also relayed our concerns about FUTURE DPS changes. It would have taken 3 seconds to ask a question that would have allowed the developers to address future DPS concerns, including those in the upcoming patch.
Also during my years of experience, I know it is easy to obtain answers to questions through avenues other than physical meetings. You can start an email thread outlining questions, or an email list, or god forbid, pick up the telephone and call the lead developer/manager. I understand that you may have a process for which information obtained from developers is allowed in public statements, but I also know from first-hand experience that the process should not take more than a couple of days.
Beyond that, I do not buy this whole concept you continue to push that revolves around "advocation" for the hunter community. How is it that the developers are so out of touch from the game and individual classes that they need a mediator to tell them what their consumers think of the class and their changes, as well as community requests for design changes and just for information in general.
No, I believe they do read the forums. I am certain they knew already that DPS, both present and future, is a major concern for us hunters, and they should have brought it up on their own during this meeting. However, it seems they are obviously doing very little to waylay the concerns of the consumers, and also obviously believe that things will be easier if they make stealth nerfs instead of actually informing the community about the design changes beforehand.
Unfortunately, over the past weeks and months, we have gotten very little actual concrete information from you. We have had the rug pulled out from under us a number of times because of this lack of information. None of us hunters know what to expect from the class anymore. It is pointless for us to tame and level pets since we don't know what to expect from the entire pet system and the future abilities. It is pointless for us to hunt for gear because you have now changed the meaning of attributes on gear that we own as well as how our damage is taken into account against an opponent.
We are no longer a DPS class, we are not a pulling class, we are a minimal support/utility class. In reality, no one knows what the hunter class is anymore or where it is supposed to fit into the game. We now know less about what the hunter class is supposed to be than the day when WoW was first launched.
Because of this, many of us have had to constantly change our talent trees, costing us plenty of gold. We did not change trees because the change appealed to us or because we wanted to, but rather because we were forced to in order to adapt to the ever-changing design of the hunter class.
Blizzard owes the hunter community in-game monetary compensation. I personally have spent 50g on talent changes thanks to the game developers. That kind of money doesn't come overnight, and I'm sure many other hunters had to make similar changes to fit the constantly morphing hunter class.
Even further in-game monetary compensation is needed due to the re-gearing we will be going through when you change how crits work, when you nerf crits for us, and change how our damage affects other PCs and NPCs. We are going to have to re-gear based on these additional changes.
The hunter community also deserves actual game credit. WoW was released about 5 months ago, and the only thing we know about the hunter class is that a) its a ranged class, and b) we have a pet. Other than that, all of the guides that have been researched, written, and studied, all of the min/maxing information, all of the stats computations, all of the experience we have gained from endless months of PvPing and PvEing is quickly being thrown out the window. Our class is being drastically changed, and the class that hunters are evolving into is not the class we started with. The past 5 months of our lives playing this game leveling up and learning the class has been an utter waste. Because the game designers/developers have wasted 5 months of game time of everyone who plays a hunter, Blizzard needs to credit all of hunter accounts as compensation.
Lastly, please provide, either in this thread or via PM, the contact information of your manager. Whether its your fault, your manager's fault, or the fault of the CEO of Blizzard, it doesn't really matter. You have not been able to provide the hunter community with anything other than vague information and empty promises. Therefore, its time we move to the next link in the communication chain in order to better facilitate communication surrounding the hunter community's concerns about the hunter class present and future. We need to know what to expect from the class if we are to continue playing the class, and we need to know quickly.
Sincerely,
An angry hunter.[ post edited by Grizol ]
~ The Duskwood Gankster ~
| | | http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/thread.aspx?fn=wow-hunter&t=248563&p=#post248563 | | | Poster: Caydiem at 4/9/2005 9:42:33 PM PDT
Subject: Re: Non-information, Compensation, Communicat |
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Actually, it's wowreportedpost@blizzard.com for the moment. There's a CM feedback eMail being created for just that purpose, but it is not yet ready.
- Caydiem -
Assistant Community Manager
| | | http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/thread.aspx?fn=wow-hunter&t=248563&p=#post248634 | Poster: Caydiem at 4/9/2005 9:47:00 PM PDT
Subject: Re: Non-information, Compensation, Communicat |
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I am not being sarcastic. That is the temporary box being used for multiple purposes. It gets to the right people. We're making a new eMail exclusively for feedback on our performance.
- Caydiem -
Assistant Community Manager
| | | http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/thread.aspx?fn=wow-hunter&t=248563&p=#post248642 | Poster: Caydiem at 4/9/2005 9:49:34 PM PDT
Subject: Re: Non-information, Compensation, Communicat |
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That is something I am not permitted to give. The proper method of escalation is through the eMail I gave you.
- Caydiem -
Assistant Community Manager
| | | http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/thread.aspx?fn=wow-hunter&t=248563&p=#post248651 | Poster: Caydiem at 4/9/2005 10:02:04 PM PDT
Subject: Re: Non-information, Compensation, Communicat |
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I am not going to argue with you, Grizol.
You have asked for a means with which to get in contact with my manager. I have given you the proper communication method through which to contact my supervisor at this time. It is not a dead eMail address and will be seen by the right people.
That is the eMail I am allowed to give, and that is the eMail you have been given. I cannot offer up any other. If this is unacceptable to you, I apologize, but I have given you a way to contact my supervisor. I have no other eMail address to give to you until such time as the CM feedback eMail address is ready.
- Caydiem -
Assistant Community Manager
| | | http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/thread.aspx?fn=wow-hunter&t=248563&p=#post248688 |
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