112 replies to this topic

[BLOOD WOLF]

N0MAD, on 25 June 2014 - 04:48 AM, said:

Just run the sever 48 hours..for a test.

I have to ask, do you have a profile on Moddb? I seen that name before.

Edited by BLOOD WOLF, 25 June 2014 - 05:01 AM.

[Cimarb]

Karl Berg, on 24 June 2014 - 11:40 PM, said:

The window was chosen to coincide with the production servers north american peak time, as per http://mwomercs.com/...test-24jun2014/

Unfortunately, even though we had very high population levels on production at the time, the turnout for public test was quite low. I'm sure there will be a lot of analysis as to the distributions of players who logged in, and how we might improve for the next time we run a population sensitive test. I will also pass your feedback on as well.

Thanks!

A few issues with the test, in addition to the "forewarning" and "time" ones that everyone keeps mentioning:
1. Quite difficult to really test the capabilities of the CTC/CC. While you can see the increased ranges on the HUD, that is about the only thing you can "test" regarding them. Everything else is subjective and you can't just toggle it on/off to really test the differences.
2. Jump jets: I know lots of people were trying them out, but all you can base it on is your previous perceptions compared to current perceptions. There are no hard numbers to look at, so you just have to remember the past shade of "yellow/orange/red" compared to the current shade of "yellow/orange/red" each time you jump.
3. Jump jets (continued): Russ stated mid-test that the jump jet damage had already been modified after the test build was finalized. While I don't have a problem with this personally, there were several people in game complaining about "testing something that had already been changed".
4. See below

Stickjock, on 25 June 2014 - 04:06 AM, said:

3 of us where on the Test for a while last night... one of the guys with us continually crashed as we played... after about the 6th time crashing out we all dropped and hit the regular Live server to see if it was the Test causing him to crash out or not... "seemed" to help and we went on to run 3-4 drops before calling it a night...

I had a similar experience. My game didn't crash, but I started getting some horrible lag about 4-5 test matches in. I would be fighting and the enemy would start to "stutter", freezing in place for 3-4 seconds before catching up. That usually meant I had missed and they had pounded me in the CT every time it happened, resulting in a much less than desirable outcome. After a few matches like this, I gave up on PT and just went to the live server, where everything worked just fine.

[SinisterSocks]

I just wanted to say thanks to PGI. Have had some good conversations with some of you guys, and what you all are trying to do has really turned around since I first started playing.

IMO all you guys saying you dont have the time to get on unless you are given something for free are amazing. You have no problem coming on here and complaining about the game but when there is an oportunity to test before a patch you cant be bothered to help make it better and give valuable input.

Bryan- Next time lets run the PTS for 24hrs. For 12 hrs of that do a maint window on the production servers so people that want to play have no choice.

[Butane9000]

Hey Karl,

Sorry for the low turnout but here's some things I saw from the test:

Combining 12 mans with non 12 man ques turned into stomps usually for the 12 man. I think this will bring back the days of 12 man teams stomping through pug groups. We'll have to see come July if this turns out to be true as we could have more 12 mans on. But I feel like this is going to bring up a relic of the past.

Fall damage feels good. It will definitely sting the pop tart meta that's currently in the game. There also seemed to be an unlisted nerf to jump jet power a few players noticed. However at current values any mech with jump jets will require the new fall damage reduction module. Especially on lights. I feel that with the coming jump jet heat nerf that pop tarts will become a rarity. Though ultimately this does not address the high alpha meta.

3/3/3/3 worked out well I feel overall. Some matches were clearly still stomps though. Sadly I never got a chance to pug it up and test that section. I also didn't get a chance to test the targeting computer/command console due to not having any builds that are designed for it.

Come next Tuesday I advocate just leaving up the match maker and letting it work itself out. A great many players won't want to run the lower tonnage mechs because heavies and assaults are all they know. It's time they learn the other aspects of MWO.

[Opus]

Ok.,.,., you want real numbers: Make the test server Static, leave it on permanently, or for a week at least,

watch your numbers for a whole week before you launch..

then we can possibly avoid something you overlooked during live deployment

Honestly I would give you 2 to 3 nights a week on the test servers to help you, and I think many of us would.....

Edited by Opus, 25 June 2014 - 06:31 AM.

[Rogue Jedi]

so when you put the public test server up for 12 hours with things people are keen to test at times conveniant for most people you get a big turnout yet when it is only on for 3 hours, at a time incoveniant for a large portion of your player base (e.g. it started at about the time I need to go to bed), you get less players logging in, what a suprise.

If the Test Server was available at some point between 5pm and 11 pm GMT (and not on a Thursday night when I am usualy out) I would have taken part, regardless of what needs testing because I want to help this game to be as good as possible, but I am not willing to risk staying up past midnight when I have to be up early the next morning to help with testing.

I suspect timing, lack of incentivaves and lengh of test are the major problems with low turnout

Edited by Rogue Jedi, 25 June 2014 - 06:47 AM.

[Threat Doc]

I'm wondering if you couldn't leave up a PTS for 24 hours, rather than two or four. If people have to be there to monitor, then have one PTS up for your regular two to four hours, but the people running it go home for four to six hours between tests, and you run three of these two to four hour tests, with the monitoring crew coming back for each of those. Any additional data that needs to be interpreted can be done by another crew, or over the next few days.

[TercieI]

We had 10+ guys on a lot of the window and whe we all want to play as a big group, we also have stacks of mechs to level right now.

If you could just figure out a way to let us keep XP and CB earned and we'll be there every time.

[BladeXXL]

Sky Hawk, on 25 June 2014 - 04:16 AM, said:

Ich stimme dir Teilweise zu, aber,.. (und ich will auch nicht deine "idyllc world" stören.. ) Was glaust du, wie viele Menschen haben internet, stark genug PC für MWO, oder haben irgenwas je von BT gehört, sagen wir hmm.. ein "bischen östlich" von Deutschland?

Dann schau mal:
https://www.google.r...ng_ru&oq=&gs_l=

Andere Sprachen habe ich nicht ausprobiert. :-)
Tatsache ist, dass Europa viel mehr Einwohner pro Zeitzone hat als NA.
Und bei 4 Stunden Test sind mehr als die Hälfte der Zeitzonen von NA noch auf der Arbeit.
Hier wären die 4 Stunden ausreichend von Russland bis England!
Klar gibt es hier viele Regionen mit schlechten Verbindungen aber auch in NA sitzt nicht jeder auf einer Standleitung. Die PC-Hardware ist in Europa die gleiche - kommt ehe alles aus China. ^^

[Belorion]

I kept crashing coming out of games, which made it hard to test since I had to keep restarting the client. This may have contributed to lower player levels.

[NRP]

Hey Karl,
I would have loved to help you guys out, but I was at work until 6 PM (pacific). If you can schedule these PTS sessions later in the evenings or even on weekends (and give us a heads-up sooner), I'm sure more people would love to help out. Giving an incentive might be a good idea too, but I personally don't need anything like that. I'd just be happy just to have the opportunity to help you guys make the game better.

[Docta Pain]

On the topic of incentive: I am constantly grinding c-bills & mxp & gxp, so for me as an 80% pug player, I was on the public test server because I wanted to help out, and because you guys earned some good will with the recent free mechbay/premium time. But in the future, things worth MC (1.Mechbay, 2.Ember because I can dream, 3.MC itself, 4. Premium Time) or keep my opportunity cost whole or better ($100+k CB & 100ish GXP per match played in public test). I am only mildly interested in a camo voucher and not at all interested in cockpit items.

On fall damage: I'm not a huge fan of making lights use a module slot for fall damage reduction that they would otherwise use for actual scouting modules.

One more thing to increase turnout, add Clan trial mechs in the public test.

Edited by Docta Pain, 25 June 2014 - 07:39 PM.

[NRP]

Yeah Docta Pain, that is a great idea! Add Clan trial mechs only for the PTS sessions. I bet a lot of people would jump all over that, and it might even have the added side benefit of shutting up all those ignorant fools who keep parroting "Clans are OP!! Nerf Nao!!

[Ehjay_52]

I like the idea of incentives... but it would have to be "# of matches" that would get you the item.
Otherwise we would just have people logging into the test server to get their item and then gone again.

On a side note - some of the new changes coming up are fantastic!

[Heffay]

Toker Hv52, on 25 June 2014 - 09:06 AM, said:

I like the idea of incentives... but it would have to be "# of matches" that would get you the item.
Otherwise we would just have people logging into the test server to get their item and then gone again.

On a side note - some of the new changes coming up are fantastic!

Yah. Something like "play 10 matches, get a million . Play 25 matches, get 10 million !"

You'll get people grinding hard if that were to happen.

[Docta Pain]

I would have no problem with first 5 matches for mechbay each 10 for $# of MC... Along with a flat CB & GXP per match or graduated if need be.

[Torgun]

I had a couple of matches and overall the fall damage as it is was there seems overly aggressive. I stepped off a platfom on HPG and fell a height about the height of my SHD and must have lost about about 5 armor on each leg. At least the cancel button for matchmaking is actually placed where it makes sense now, right in the middle of the screen. And also instead of checkout, the button is changed to save with a bigger font which also makes things more clear.

Edited by Torgun, 25 June 2014 - 09:53 AM.

[WVAnonymous]

Jody Von Jedi, on 24 June 2014 - 07:56 PM, said:

I only got to play 3 matches, between 10:30 and 11 PM EDT. They all loaded within 2 minutes. Sorry for the low turnout.

I kept getting repeated messages that my account was not authorized, even though I could log into the production servers. I wanted to get a two or three man group together and be a puzzle piece!

Opus, on 25 June 2014 - 06:29 AM, said:

Ok.,.,., you want real numbers: Make the test server Static, leave it on permanently, or for a week at least,

watch your numbers for a whole week before you launch..

then we can possibly avoid something you overlooked during live deployment

Honestly I would give you 2 to 3 nights a week on the test servers to help you, and I think many of us would.....

Remember, we were here for you in Beta!

[Cimarb]

Heffay, on 25 June 2014 - 09:14 AM, said:

Yah. Something like "play 10 matches, get a million . Play 25 matches, get 10 million !"

You'll get people grinding hard if that were to happen.

Too steep of a curve there. 10=mil, 25=five mil, 50=fifteen mil, maybe. I think five matches for a mechbay is way too easy, though, so maybe I'm just too strict...

[Deathlike]

Prezimonto, on 25 June 2014 - 04:17 AM, said:

There is the new module that negates 80% of the damage lights take from falling as well. I suspect the intention is that jump jet lights will pack that on as well.

TBH, I kinda wished people would have gotten that module for free (transferred to the main server) for participating in the PTS. Unfortunately I see a potential need for it now because of that new falling damage change that tends to hurt lights more than other classes.

Cimarb, on 25 June 2014 - 05:58 AM, said:

3. Jump jets (continued): Russ stated mid-test that the jump jet damage had already been modified after the test build was finalized. While I don't have a problem with this personally, there were several people in game complaining about "testing something that had already been changed".

It makes less sense to test something that has changed already. It's hard to make use of that feedback outside of confirming/validating what was determined internally before that change. It's unproductive use of the players testing otherwise.

I have really strong concerns and issues over this change though... because it's literally going untested by the masses... I don't know what the fate of everyone will happen to be on Patch Day Wednesday...

Edited by Deathlike, 25 June 2014 - 01:10 PM.