DUST Search - Scrutinizing the Long-Term of CCP Shanghai

Aeon Amadi wrote:

Just read the PSU Exclusive Interview with CCP Rouge and CCP Rattati. Here's what I have to say about that.

First of all I want to mention that I feel as though I've had a moment of clarity recently. Excitement about recent hotfixes and Uprising 1.9 were distracting, absolutely, but after focusing on this recent interview and feelings I've had in the past I'm starting to understand what I'm trying to convey more clearly now.

A while back I asked the question: "What if Legion dies...?". It was a thought provoking exercise toward the community to consider the long-term possibilities of what could happen if not everything went according to plan. CPM weighed in with the "It's still being worked on and you should be worried if we ever stop talking about that". Which is cool, it's a minor reassurance, but it's not the reassurance we needed.

Consider for a moment the rate of communication. At Fanfest 2014, the big surprise was out and it went terrible. Hell, it was dubbed the "Rouge Wedding", just to give you some context as to how bad it was. Understand that even with that in mind, there was no reason any longer to continue long-term silence and for a while we were seeing tidbits from Legion developers about what they were working on... Then, out of no where, dead silence again. Like a stick of chewing gum that had lost it's flavor.

What's bewildering is the continued rhetoric about Legion: "We want to hear your feedback, keep it coming." But as I explained in my thread on Legion Transparency, that dialogue is not a one-sided street and it is physically impossible to give feedback on a game that doesn't exist yet without any sort of information to go off of. The devs are silent, the most recent tidbit of info was a few seconds of gameplay in the John Wick movie, and all eyes are on Dust 514 all of a sudden.

Consider the wording used in the interview when asked the second question: "We were told we weren't going to be getting any major updates. Why the sudden change?" It started as a bug fix and then started growing more and more but the general gist is that very few of the additions in the update weren't trickle down from previous projects (Caldari Production facility) or something that was already desperately needed (NPC market).

The premise here is that the content of the newest update was already there; it just needed optimizing. Sure, some things were added in after talking with the CPM but there wasn't a substantial amount of -DEVELOPMENT- shifted over. Which either means that all focus is still on Legion - truthfully - or development has come to a grinding halt entirely and we're right back to the same routine we were at toward the end of 2013 with CCP Shanghai being dead silent on everything that actually matters while sponging as much as possible to stay afloat.

It's a hypothesis, a theory, if you will.. But there's really no other option here. We're not holding CCP Shanghai hostage when they're the ones with the gun. By all accounts, there is no mid-term or long-term plan. There is only a short-term plan that bounces between hotfixes and balance passes... Which is worrying because eventually we -WILL- run out of things to balance and fix. It was said that before Legion releases, they wanted Dust 514 to be as enjoyable as possible and that there were no plans to end it's current reign... but in the same sense, it has no where to progress without development. This is made even more evident by the considerations I've made in this thread.

The catch here is that if Dust 514 -DOES- start getting development (which looks to be increasingly likely as of late) then it really does meant there is no mid or long-term plan to keep the studio in action. Legion -IS- the only option for CCP Shanghai to have long-term viability and it is imperative that it be done properly; which can only happen at the behest of their current and future consumers. Neither of which are available as long as there is perpetual silence.

What is CCP Shanghai's mid-term and long-term goals for EITHER game?

What part does the community play in it and do we even have a say, or is this just another case of "CCP knows best", perpetuating the endless cycle we've gone through for years?

Where do we go after everything is balanced in Dust 514 - without the excuse that "there is so much more to balance" as it is a fallacy that does not answer the question; a deflection?

EDIT: I've consolidated some questions for the CPM as well in a sister thread here
Scrutinizing the Long-Term: Questions for the CPM.


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postapo wastelander Wasteland Desert Rangers 602	Posted - 2014.11.11 15:14:00 - [1] - Quote Aeon Amadi wrote: Just read the PSU Exclusive Interview with CCP Rouge and CCP Rattati. Here's what I have to say about that. First of all I want to mention that I feel as though I've had a moment of clarity recently. Excitement about recent hotfixes and Uprising 1.9 were distracting, absolutely, but after focusing on this recent interview and feelings I've had in the past I'm starting to understand what I'm trying to convey more clearly now. A while back I asked the question: "What if Legion dies...?". It was a thought provoking exercise toward the community to consider the long-term possibilities of what could happen if not everything went according to plan. CPM weighed in with the "It's still being worked on and you should be worried if we ever stop talking about that". Which is cool, it's a minor reassurance, but it's not the reassurance we needed. Consider for a moment the rate of communication. At Fanfest 2014, the big surprise was out and it went terrible. Hell, it was dubbed the "Rouge Wedding", just to give you some context as to how bad it was. Understand that even with that in mind, there was no reason any longer to continue long-term silence and for a while we were seeing tidbits from Legion developers about what they were working on... Then, out of no where, dead silence again. Like a stick of chewing gum that had lost it's flavor. What's bewildering is the continued rhetoric about Legion: "We want to hear your feedback, keep it coming." But as I explained in my thread on Legion Transparency, that dialogue is not a one-sided street and it is physically impossible to give feedback on a game that doesn't exist yet without any sort of information to go off of. The devs are silent, the most recent tidbit of info was a few seconds of gameplay in the John Wick movie, and all eyes are on Dust 514 all of a sudden. Consider the wording used in the interview when asked the second question: "We were told we weren't going to be getting any major updates. Why the sudden change?" It started as a bug fix and then started growing more and more but the general gist is that very few of the additions in the update weren't trickle down from previous projects (Caldari Production facility) or something that was already desperately needed (NPC market). The premise here is that the content of the newest update was already there; it just needed optimizing. Sure, some things were added in after talking with the CPM but there wasn't a substantial amount of -DEVELOPMENT- shifted over. Which either means that all focus is still on Legion - truthfully - or development has come to a grinding halt entirely and we're right back to the same routine we were at toward the end of 2013 with CCP Shanghai being dead silent on everything that actually matters while sponging as much as possible to stay afloat. It's a hypothesis, a theory, if you will.. But there's really no other option here. We're not holding CCP Shanghai hostage when they're the ones with the gun. By all accounts, there is no mid-term or long-term plan. There is only a short-term plan that bounces between hotfixes and balance passes... Which is worrying because eventually we -WILL- run out of things to balance and fix. It was said that before Legion releases, they wanted Dust 514 to be as enjoyable as possible and that there were no plans to end it's current reign... but in the same sense, it has no where to progress without development. This is made even more evident by the considerations I've made in this thread. The catch here is that if Dust 514 -DOES- start getting development (which looks to be increasingly likely as of late) then it really does meant there is no mid or long-term plan to keep the studio in action. Legion -IS- the only option for CCP Shanghai to have long-term viability and it is imperative that it be done properly; which can only happen at the behest of their current and future consumers. Neither of which are available as long as there is perpetual silence. What is CCP Shanghai's mid-term and long-term goals for EITHER game? What part does the community play in it and do we even have a say, or is this just another case of "CCP knows best", perpetuating the endless cycle we've gone through for years? Where do we go after everything is balanced in Dust 514 - without the excuse that "there is so much more to balance" as it is a fallacy that does not answer the question; a deflection? EDIT: I've consolidated some questions for the CPM as well in a sister thread here Scrutinizing the Long-Term: Questions for the CPM. Easy if legion dies, more time and efford for dust, what i actually prefering more boyo "Nanohives, repairs or droplinks, just ask me on field i can tink anything"