Author Topic: How To Properly End an MMO.  (Read 13237 times)

Aggelakis

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Re: How To Properly End an MMO.
« Reply #40 on: October 02, 2012, 01:50:08 AM »
... whilst making ID's 64+ be the "duplicate" zones (ie Atlas Park 2/3/33 etc). ...
51 zones + 16 free = 67 total, so 68+ would be duplicate. I can easily see why the original devs back in 2002-2004 never expected to see that many zones and thought it would last them through the life of the game. Of course, the players don't really have the same view of the life expectancy of the game, so 67 is getting pretty tight in these parts.
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Victoria Victrix

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Re: How To Properly End an MMO.
« Reply #41 on: October 02, 2012, 02:43:08 AM »
Never underestimate the propensity of a programmer under pressure to just say "oh f-- it" and hard code in a number.
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Codewalker

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Re: How To Properly End an MMO.
« Reply #42 on: October 02, 2012, 03:09:51 AM »
1-100 for normal zones.
101-199 for Atlas Park 2 - Atlas Park 100 (though only 51 Atlas Parks are currently defined, so they *could* use some of the empty space for another zone, but it would be a dirty, dirty hack and that zone would be a one-off unable to spawn more instances due to too many players).
201-299 for the instances of zone #2.
So on and so forth.

There's nothing special about Rogue Isles or Praetorian zones that sets them apart.

If you think there's only 60ish being used, you're forgetting a few. :)

Victoria Victrix

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Re: How To Properly End an MMO.
« Reply #43 on: October 02, 2012, 03:13:30 AM »
1-100 for normal zones.
101-199 for Atlas Park 2 - Atlas Park 100 (though only 51 Atlas Parks are currently defined, so they *could* use some of the empty space for another zone, but it would be a dirty, dirty hack and that zone would be a one-off unable to spawn more instances due to too many players).
201-299 for the instances of zone #2.
So on and so forth.

There's nothing special about Rogue Isles or Praetorian zones that sets them apart.

If you think there's only 60ish being used, you're forgetting a few. :)

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Codewalker

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Re: How To Properly End an MMO.
« Reply #44 on: October 02, 2012, 03:26:56 AM »
Well, you got PDP, Echo: DA, Echo: Galaxy.

Off the top of my head, there's also the PVP zones, Tunnels of the unicorns if you didn't count them in the Paragon total, Rikti Crash Site, old Faultline, Midnighter Club, Fort Trident, The Cruicible, First Ward, Night Ward (so 8 for Praetoria), destroyed Galaxy City tutorial, the original Galaxy City (it's still there separate from the echo, I have a character logged off there), um.... Precinct 5 Tutorial, and Lord Winter's Realm.

There's also a few one-offs that could probably be removed and recycled. For instance, the special copy of Ouroboros they made for the wedding event.

And yes, the way zone IDs are allocated could be redone I'm sure. It's just a question of how much work it would have been and how many other systems had to be touched (Pocket D teleporter for one uses a static teleport to zone 83 in the power definition; there may be others).

Codewalker

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Re: How To Properly End an MMO.
« Reply #45 on: October 02, 2012, 03:52:16 AM »
As far as I know iTrial maps operate like regular instanced mission maps. You can actually get a lot more than 8 people on a mission map if the leader quits team and invites more.

There's actually 5 different Winter Realm zones, with different layouts.

Eating up another 10 spots in the ID list are the extra 10 copies of Outbreak. I don't know why they exist; possibly predating the multiple zone-spawning system as a way to handle overflow from too many new players. Those might be able to be reclaimed now, especially since Outbreak is no longer in active use.

There's 7 more that I know of that haven't been mentioned, but it's unlikely (though not impossible) that anyone has heard of them or stumbled across them. Nothing juicy, just really, really old stuff that could probably be removed -- those are the ones I mentioned that I thought could be recycled without too much trouble.

dwturducken

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Re: How To Properly End an MMO.
« Reply #46 on: October 02, 2012, 03:54:19 AM »
Lemme run my three characters that are logged out in Outbreak through before you go repurposing the zone!
I wouldn't use the word "replace," but there's no word for "take over for you and make everything better almost immediately," so we just say "replace."

Victoria Victrix

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Re: How To Properly End an MMO.
« Reply #47 on: October 02, 2012, 03:54:42 AM »
As far as I know iTrial maps operate like regular instanced mission maps. You can actually get a lot more than 8 people on a mission map if the leader quits team and invites more.

There's actually 5 different Winter Realm zones, with different layouts.

Eating up another 10 spots in the ID list are the extra 10 copies of Outbreak. I don't know why they exist; possibly predating the multiple zone-spawning system as a way to handle overflow from too many new players. Those might be able to be reclaimed now, especially since Outbreak is no longer in active use.

There's 7 more that I know of that haven't been mentioned, but it's unlikely (though not impossible) that anyone has heard of them or stumbled across them. Nothing juicy, just really, really old stuff that could probably be removed -- those are the ones I mentioned that I thought could be recycled without too much trouble.

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Codewalker

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Re: How To Properly End an MMO.
« Reply #48 on: October 02, 2012, 03:56:47 AM »
Lemme run my three characters that are logged out in Outbreak through before you go repurposing the zone!

Hehe, well I meant you could probably remove the 10 (out of 11) extra versions, leaving only one behind.

However, if there were characters that logged out in different Outbreaks, then you couldn't do that without breaking them; or manually moving them. Since they're <100 zone IDs they act like standard zones rather than overflow zones (which redirect you to the lowest instance at login).

dwturducken

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Re: How To Properly End an MMO.
« Reply #49 on: October 02, 2012, 04:09:04 AM »
I was supposed to put a smiley at the end of that, but it's must be past my bedtime.  I could swear someone just told VV in another thread that she deserved an "adorable mention."  :D
I wouldn't use the word "replace," but there's no word for "take over for you and make everything better almost immediately," so we just say "replace."

TimtheEnchanter

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Re: How To Properly End an MMO.
« Reply #50 on: October 02, 2012, 04:14:12 AM »
Although, to be fair, it was probably a legacy design limitation. They probably didn't think that in the end they would end up with over 64 zones in the game, especially when at the start (8 years ago) they probably had half this number.

*edit*

Yeah, maybe so. I can't remember for sure, but I feel like the game didn't create multiple zone instances in the beginning. Either that or the population cap on zones was much higher.

eabrace

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Re: How To Properly End an MMO.
« Reply #51 on: October 02, 2012, 06:12:59 AM »
Yeah, maybe so. I can't remember for sure, but I feel like the game didn't create multiple zone instances in the beginning. Either that or the population cap on zones was much higher.
I'm pretty sure that we had multiple instances as early as the first Halloween event.  We may not have had them at launch, though.
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Re: How To Properly End an MMO.
« Reply #52 on: October 02, 2012, 07:52:19 AM »
Eating up another 10 spots in the ID list are the extra 10 copies of Outbreak. I don't know why they exist; possibly predating the multiple zone-spawning system as a way to handle overflow from too many new players. Those might be able to be reclaimed now, especially since Outbreak is no longer in active use.

I still have some toons in Outbreak, in Breakout, and in old Galaxy City. When I went through and used Sentinel to archive my vast array of characters I stumbled across a few oddities.

I especially liked how hard it is to leave Galaxy City since the train doesn't connect through anymore.
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dwturducken

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Re: How To Properly End an MMO.
« Reply #53 on: October 02, 2012, 02:05:39 PM »
They've probably fixed it by now, but the last one I found in Outbreak, I chose Galaxy at the end. I don't remember how I got out, because I couldn't even use the Pocket D teleporter until I leveled up to 2, and BABs wasn't on his pedestal. :)
I wouldn't use the word "replace," but there's no word for "take over for you and make everything better almost immediately," so we just say "replace."

QuantumHero

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Re: How To Properly End an MMO.
« Reply #54 on: October 02, 2012, 02:57:23 PM »
They've probably fixed it by now, but the last one I found in Outbreak, I chose Galaxy at the end. I don't remember how I got out, because I couldn't even use the Pocket D teleporter until I leveled up to 2, and BABs wasn't on his pedestal. :)

I had a toon in old galaxy...I got out by walking through the highway gate.  It was an interesting experiance having an entire populated zone to myself.  Enemies to fight and pedestrians but no contacts or levelers
If given two roads that lead no where good...stop using roads and carve your own path.

Codewalker

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Re: How To Properly End an MMO.
« Reply #55 on: October 02, 2012, 03:53:08 PM »
The gate to Perez park definitely still works in the old Galaxy to get you out, but the spawn point was removed, so it dumps you in the middle of the map.

The return gate from Perez to Galaxy does not work -- the "guards" (they're really doors and are part of the map) are still there behind the barrier, but the destination information was removed. If you manage to click on one by getting under the map and flying, they simply tell you that you cannot enter.

The tunnel out of Galaxy to King's Row probably works as well, but I haven't tested it. Edit: QuantumHero confirmed that it does.

QuantumHero

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Re: How To Properly End an MMO.
« Reply #56 on: October 02, 2012, 04:45:35 PM »
I'm trying to remember but I *think* the kings row gate dumped me on the atlas spawn point...this was a couple of months back.
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Victoria Victrix

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Re: How To Properly End an MMO.
« Reply #57 on: October 03, 2012, 10:15:11 AM »
You know, I can add something else to "How to Properly End an MMO."

Don't lie.

Especially don't lie to your customers.

Don't lie to your customers by forging resignation letters.

Don't lie to your customers, telling them how sorry you are that you are going to pave over their playground.

Don't lie to your customers, telling them how much you supported their game, when the evidence all points to the contrary.

Really.  Don't lie.  Because the Internet never forgets, the Internet has perfect memory, and it's all out there to expose your lies for what they are.
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Quinch

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Re: How To Properly End an MMO.
« Reply #58 on: October 03, 2012, 10:56:02 AM »
Well, it's not quite true. The internet is very, very easily distracted - it's just that it's even better at keeping notes.

Segev

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Re: How To Properly End an MMO.
« Reply #59 on: October 03, 2012, 01:42:07 PM »
The internet is very easily distracted, but it also has a billion attentions to focus at any given point in time.