Author Topic: Word-Spreading Event: Media Day  (Read 28985 times)

Segev

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Word-Spreading Event: Media Day
« on: September 28, 2012, 03:49:47 PM »
As per a very good suggestion further down the thread:  Here are the sign-up documents!


With at least one very famous superhero who maintains "reporter" as his day job, I think it might be useful to reach out to the media-at-large as a community. It is desirable that wider-read media should write about the game and its closure and the efforts to save it; the best way, I think, to get the story out there is to invite the news reporters to come play. Show them everything you love about this game, and why you want it saved. Show them what you find fun, introduce them to the community and what makes it great, and tell them your personal stories. Maybe even win a few over as gamers who now wish they could play longer.

To this end, I propose a "Media Day" event. One day wherein we schedule time for experienced players to walk members of the press (from bloggers to webtv to newspapers and magazines and even TV news programs) through the character-creation process, and then through the opening missions and the processes of forming teams and joining supergroups and the like. If SGs can still be made new, perhaps somebody should even make the Weekly Galaxy (since "Daily Planet" is taken) as such and specifically invite all participants in this event to join it.

Give tours of various HQs, show off the gameplay, and most importantly, tell them about all the efforts to save the game and why it's worth saving and how NCSoft can win by selling the IP to a new studio.

The biggest snag to this is the inability to make new accounts. We can't just invite a horde of new people to play.

The second biggest snag is getting the attention of the media people.

The third is that I am, myself, not a player, so I cannot tell you how best to do the navigation and on what missions to lead our guests. I used to play, but I imagine my 5-year-old account is quite defunct by now. Nor would I be good at mentoring, personally, since I am not experienced in the modern game and wildly out of practice from when I did play.

Fortunately, there are solutions to all three problems!

1) I need volunteers who have spare accounts! I am not going to ask for your account information, but will, instead, pair you up with guests from the media and let you arrange to share the information directly with them. This will help prevent any mix-ups and - I'll be honest - I want to avoid any appearance of phishing, here.

2) I need volunteers who would like to be mentors! These people should love the game and be experienced in the opening missions. They should be willing to help one or more newbies through the process of signing on to an account, creating a fun superhero (or villain), and leading them through missions. A key part of this will be ensuring that your proteges are able to fully appreciate the story, the ease and fun of the game, and most importantly the community. Expect to spend a lot of time on Media Day with this; you'll be answering questions, helping arrange interview times and "press conferences" so your media proteges can ask all the questions they need to to appreciate this game somewhere vaguely approaching the way you do.

3) I need volunteers who are masters of social media! Specifically, we need to get in touch with members of the press as stated above, and extend these invitations! So if you know anybody in the press, if you know ways of contacting press institutions, if you know social media where the press unicorn for news, put the word out. Gauge interest and hand out contact information so that we can get some measure of what sort of headcount to expect.


This project is in its earliest of organizational stages, and it is the first of its type I've attempted to spearhead, personally. We need to pick a date, and thing to consider for this date are timeliness compared to the news cycle and the sunsetting of the game as well as whether media people can be on on that day and whether our mentor volunteers can be on. So weekdays vs. weekends are a major consideration.

I am thinking of aiming for somewhere between October 15th and 20th, giving us at least two weeks to get this set up and still aiming for long enough before the deadline that the articles and stories will be published in time to make a difference.

My plan is to schedule this as an all-day affair, probably 6-12 hours of gaming and interviews and press conferences. A fourth category of volunteer to be the guys questioned at this press conference (or these press conferences) would be welcome. People like TonyV or VV or major players in the game who know the game, the community, and the circumstances as-we-know-them of the transfer of the IP would be ideal. It would be advisable for these volunteers to do as much research as possible into the situation so they can give authoritative but as-true-as-we-know answers without spreading unsubstantiated rumors.

For the time being, this thread is open for suggestions to refine this, mentions of tentative volunteering for any of these roles, expressions of interest in helping organize this game-side, suggestions for dates, times, formal sub-events to orchestrate as part of this, and general discussion. I will, this evening, set up some google documents for listing your preferred online name and contact info if you're volunteering an account or to be a mentor, as well as for leaving suggested ways of spreading the word. Anybody who wants to spread the word, speak up in here but also feel free to get some preliminary ground laid on garnering media interest.

Let's see if we can't have some major blogs, tv news, or newspaper articles telling the world about the writers' experiences in CoH and the efforts of that game's players to save it!
« Last Edit: October 01, 2012, 02:18:31 AM by Segev »

Maressa

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Re: Word-Spreading Event: Media Day
« Reply #1 on: September 28, 2012, 03:54:24 PM »
This is a fantastic idea with one downfall. If you don't already have City of Heroes installed you can't get in game.

Segev

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Re: Word-Spreading Event: Media Day
« Reply #2 on: September 28, 2012, 04:01:59 PM »
Hm. There's no way to obtain the client at all? I know we need already-extant accounts, which is why I've asked for volunteers who have spare ones they're willing to donate to a media guest.

The client may not be downloadable from the official site anymore...but would there be legal problems with creating a torrent site for it? Clients themselves were not, once it went free-to-play, what were being sold (as evidenced by the fact you could download it for free up until they announced the shutdown).

However, now that you've brought this up, I do have a backup plan (that I just came up with). It's messy and makes this a lot harder, though: we'll need to make an actual convention out of this. Volunteers donating accounts will bring their computer with them. I expect reasonably-paranoid volunteers will want to also be semi-mentors at this point so they can hover over their computer while somebody else is using it. The computer obviously already has the client installed.

The advantage of this is that it actually brings all the media people, mentors, and other participants together in one place. The disadvantages are that it now requires travel for many, is going to cost money to get the space, and is going to be a major investment of time and money in general.

So! While we'll keep that plan as a backup, first I'd like to investigate ways to get the client (legally!) onto computers which currently lack it.

dwturducken

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Re: Word-Spreading Event: Media Day
« Reply #3 on: September 28, 2012, 04:04:50 PM »
I just finished downloading and updating through the installer on my laptop, this morning.  The links were gone from the Master Account page, but I already had the CoH account, so it was there in the Installer once it downloaded and updated.
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."

Kheprera

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Re: Word-Spreading Event: Media Day
« Reply #4 on: September 28, 2012, 04:06:23 PM »
Out of respect for keeping to the EULA and ToS, if we cannot help them log in using accounts already made, there's always TwitchTV.  If we get a sort of online convention going, even better... with people showing off bases and base building, character creation and customization, making an MA arc, running iTrials (which free can't do), fighting GMs (Eochai and Adamastor... I have a spawn recipe for him), and other such activities (CC in Atlas Park 33!).

Run the various Live segments as a Virtual Conference room.  Have a designated player on hand in each chat to answer questions while the person running the live video portion shows off.

Either way it would require coordination, an agenda, as well as a Q&A Session afterwards, preferrably with TonyV as the spearhead of the #SaveCoH Campaign.  It would best if our dearest VV could be there as well.

Vulpy

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Re: Word-Spreading Event: Media Day
« Reply #5 on: September 28, 2012, 04:25:37 PM »
Depending on the date--the 20th is bad for me, and may conflict with the Extra Life play-a-thon--I'd be glad to be a mentor. I can use Skype for audio communication, and if we can get a twitch.tv set up for my mentor-ee, so much the better.
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Segev

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Re: Word-Spreading Event: Media Day
« Reply #6 on: September 28, 2012, 04:34:19 PM »
I will have to look into TwitchTV. How would that enable people to share clients that are already installed? (Or am I misreading Kheprera's post?)

There is, on the 19-21st, a convention in Rolla, Missouri. It's a gaming convention, tabletop, but if we need a hasty venue for physical gathering, it would be a possibility, as I actually do know the people running it. It is, however, Rolla, Missouri, which is fairly out-of-the-way in terms of accessibility. (It's halfway between Springfield, MO, and St. Louis, MO on I-44, for those who have rudimentary knowledge of city and highway layout in Missouri.)

But yeah, an online convention would be superior. Maybe a combination, with a physical locale and a twitchTV (again, I'm totally clueless how this works at the moment) linkup to enable remote connection. Other, better physical venues are also open for suggestion.

Vulpy

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Re: Word-Spreading Event: Media Day
« Reply #7 on: September 28, 2012, 04:38:01 PM »
Hm. There's no way to obtain the client at all? I know we need already-extant accounts, which is why I've asked for volunteers who have spare ones they're willing to donate to a media guest.

Just to respond to this: last I'd heard, the client could still be bootstrapped from the NCsoft Launcher, which is tied to games like AION.
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Siberian Spring

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Re: Word-Spreading Event: Media Day
« Reply #8 on: September 28, 2012, 05:13:22 PM »
Hm. There's no way to obtain the client at all? I know we need already-extant accounts, which is why I've asked for volunteers who have spare ones they're willing to donate to a media guest.

Is there a sign up list somewhere? I have an extra account I can "donate". I think my husband does too.

edit to add: I have two accounts I can donate... possible husband's too.

Kheprera

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Re: Word-Spreading Event: Media Day
« Reply #9 on: September 28, 2012, 05:14:33 PM »
I will have to look into TwitchTV. How would that enable people to share clients that are already installed? (Or am I misreading Kheprera's post?)

They would not be able to log into the game via Twitch, but they would *still* be able to see it.  The advantage is we could log into the Beta and show them what was in the works. We could have multiple "rooms" of Twitch videos going, showing all different aspects of the game.  The media could jump between rooms as they saw fit PLUS we would have extra exposure since other gamers tend to wander in.

It is not getting the media to actually play the game, no, but it's the next best thing, I think.

Segev

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Re: Word-Spreading Event: Media Day
« Reply #10 on: September 28, 2012, 05:19:06 PM »
Is there a sign up list somewhere? I have an extra account I can "donate". I think my husband does too.

edit to add: I have two accounts I can donate... possible husband's too.
Not yet; I can't access google docs to create one until I get back to my apartment this evening. I will be making sign-up sheets, though! Thanks very much for your interest!

They would not be able to log into the game via Twitch, but they would *still* be able to see it.  The advantage is we could log into the Beta and show them what was in the works. We could have multiple "rooms" of Twitch videos going, showing all different aspects of the game.  The media could jump between rooms as they saw fit PLUS we would have extra exposure since other gamers tend to wander in.

It is not getting the media to actually play the game, no, but it's the next best thing, I think.
Hm. That would be a decent "next best thing." I will keep it on the list of possibilities.

I am encouraged, however, to hear that the client can be bootstrapped onto a machine as long as there's an available account.

Maressa

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Re: Word-Spreading Event: Media Day
« Reply #11 on: September 28, 2012, 05:34:46 PM »
I'm curious which media outlets are the primary target for this? I know that Massively and OnRPG both have people who play the game. They were at the rally.

Segev

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Re: Word-Spreading Event: Media Day
« Reply #12 on: September 28, 2012, 06:40:12 PM »
"Any and all" is the obvious answer. More specifically, my thought is that we should be able to get more than a few general-content bloggers who might have heard "something" about this but not know enough to feel comfortable writing, and I'm hoping we'll get main stream media types (even if they're more 'general interest' story types rather than a big name reporter). For those who get picky about "main stream media," I'm including both left- and right-wing in this, as I don't think this is a particularly divisive issue in American political terms. I am not worried that any particular conservative/liberal bias would color reports on our efforts and the facts of the game's closure.

But this is intended to help "break out" of "just" the gaming news/culture bubble and get at least some passing notice by main western culture.

DrakeGrimm

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Re: Word-Spreading Event: Media Day
« Reply #13 on: September 28, 2012, 06:42:08 PM »
I am reminded of one of my favorite movies.

"...everyone?"


"EEEEEEEVERRRRRRYOOOOOOOOOOOONE!"


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MrTsuvykUZk
We are the crazy ones, the mavericks, the dreamers, the forgotten sons. We color outside the lines for fun. We are the crazy ones! - "The Crazy Ones," Stellar Revival

"We put ourselves in "the attitude of heroes"--and we all became a little more heroic." - VV

Segev

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Re: Word-Spreading Event: Media Day
« Reply #14 on: September 28, 2012, 06:43:39 PM »
I am reminded of one of my favorite movies.

"...so like, when you say...everyone..."


"EEEEEEEVERRRRRRYOOOOOOOOOOOONE!"
...now I'm reminded of the Nicholas Cage movie, Knowing. That's...frighteningly appropriate and horrifyingly wrong at the same time.

The White Rager

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Re: Word-Spreading Event: Media Day
« Reply #15 on: September 28, 2012, 07:24:14 PM »
Unfortunately I cannot participate in this, but the idea IS fabulous, good luck.

Segev

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Re: Word-Spreading Event: Media Day
« Reply #16 on: September 29, 2012, 12:21:19 AM »
Alright! Sorry this took so long, but here it is: a folder with the documents. If people would write their screen names and preferred contact methods in the documents corresponding to that with which they'd like to volunteer, and drop media contact methods in the appropriate document, I would appreciate it.

If anybody can get in TOUCH with media people, putting reports of such efforts in the media contacts document would also be appreciated.

Now. Having looked at the thread on the charity event on the 20th, I am wondering if it "conflicting" wouldn't be a good thing. If we could get the media guests participating or at least to see it, it might help. Thoughts?

I'm also looking for volunteers to help plan specific schedule events.

Nothing is set in stone yet; this is the first day of planning. Thanks for the interest!
« Last Edit: October 01, 2012, 02:17:55 AM by Segev »

Ironwolf

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Re: Word-Spreading Event: Media Day
« Reply #17 on: September 29, 2012, 12:26:10 AM »
I have sent you an email with an old EU server account i had - it is a Premium account and you can't access my main account from it unless you know all of those logins and passwords :)

So you are free to send it to anyone who wants to use it. I logged in on it to select the server as Virtue. Personally I would think a single point of contact for these is best.

Segev

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Re: Word-Spreading Event: Media Day
« Reply #18 on: September 29, 2012, 12:41:53 AM »
Good plan. Virtue sounds as reasonable a server as any!

The google docs are meant to be a central listing point.

Nobody needs to give their account info at this stage; the intent is to pair you up with the guest who'll use it. However, I do appreciate it! If we have sufficient, I might log in to the account myself to try to participate, depending on scheduling and if we have enough for all expected guests.

DrakeGrimm

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Re: Word-Spreading Event: Media Day
« Reply #19 on: September 29, 2012, 12:43:39 AM »
I can attest that Virtue is, in fact, awesome. >.>
We are the crazy ones, the mavericks, the dreamers, the forgotten sons. We color outside the lines for fun. We are the crazy ones! - "The Crazy Ones," Stellar Revival

"We put ourselves in "the attitude of heroes"--and we all became a little more heroic." - VV