Rinzler XVIII wrote:
The players just don't get an opportunity to get their voices heard which is why I hate the CPMs and their roles within the community. They basically give CCP an excuse to not talk to the players directly and instead converse with people they cherry picked to be our voices and often alot of player concerns are overlooked or not fought for strongly enough because certain CPMs may not feel the same way as the community.
We desperately need better lines of communication between the players and the DEVs, look at the respec discussion thread .. why hasn't a DEV come out and said we are dragging our feet about giving an infantry respec because of X Y Z or we aren't giving one because of X Y Z so the players and DEVs can actually talk it through and make sure if it was given that it was done properley ? The player base are the real testers of this game so why do CCP ignore us and not engage with us ?
-Right now there is no-one actively holding CCP to account or making them question how they are doing things and personally I feel that they are getting let off way to lightly. This game has fantastic potential, if I didn't believe that then I wouldn't still be playing this game which is why when I see the same mistakes being repeated and still people are praising them it's extremely disappointing because no one prominent is actively criticising them for all the bad things that they've done.
Hi Rinzler. Let me address some of your points -
- Players do get heard. We patrol our forums continuously (even if every thread doesn't necessarily have a response!) What is difficult to understand on the flip side is the sheer level of noise out there - and that's why the CPM serve as a fantastic barometer for overall Community temperature.
- There are several lines of communication between players and Developers - to say otherwise is simply not true. Many of us go out of our way to interact with players across numerous channels. I've recently set up the in-game DevHangout channel (and frequent it several times per week), spend time in the #DUST514 IRC, and personally reply to almost every Facebook message to the DUST 514 page. Many of us even use our personal Twitter/social media accounts to interact with players. It's important to remember that not everyone has the thick skin required to interact with players, but those of us that do really enjoy it.
On the topic of respecs, I have mentioned in numerous threads that a decision has not yet been reached and that I'll provide you with an update when I know more. For the record - the CPM are also pushing on this. :)
- We are absolutely holding ourselves accountable and question everything we are doing. The arrival of CCP Rouge has completely revamped our Development Process and I've never felt more confident in the future of DUST (even though I've only been here for about 6 months!). To say that we do not face criticism is again not only untrue but also unfair, because the Developers that take the time to interact with players face more than their fair share every day.
I hope that answers some of the questions you have.