WURM and Steam

[ArthurHawkwing 176]

Dev's, Rolf, Game Chest Folks: For the love of God and before Steam starts getting bad reviews over lag and you start loosing new folks, make another Island on Northern Servers, spread us out to about 600 per server please. this lag and bad reviews will kill WURM off.

[katnip2067 45]

All these children will phase out soon and if we add another server then there will be lots of open land and people too spread out again. Just be patient it will settle down soon.  It's just because it's new.

 

Let me explain myself more clearly.  A F2P mmo launches on steam and lots of children will jump in to play.  Wurm is not a game that will hold the interest of most youngsters, so they won't play long before they move onto something else.  

Edited July 31, 2020 by katnip2067

[agentusp 126]

It's too late, the wall of red seems nigh impenetrable. And judging by all the ratings of the negative comments the player losses are in the thousands. However, some people might actually take it as a good sign, that this game is so great people are basically fighting to log on!

[nygen 106]

You only get one chance at a first impression.

[Brash_Endeavors 4,735]

9 minutes ago, katnip2067 said:

Just be patient it will settle down soon

 

because we'll have no more players  

 

 

 

[Hilo 4]

As a target customer who was excited for the steam release (played maybe 3 months max, 1-2 years ago?), but has now decided against picking up Wurm Online, I would like to give my criticism. There is really only one reason why (map size), as the first point will no longer be relevant... but my experience that night and loss of excitement is still very relevant for me and how I view Wurm.

My tent is currently on Harmony, and I won´t be coming back to it.

Painful Login Process at Release

I tried playing on release day but couldn´t justify attempting to log in over and over and over and over and over again. I gave up night one after realizing that there was no login queue in place and that multiple thousands of people were in a free-for-all frenzy trying to funnel into GV one by one, which had a 100 person cap. You could get lucky and get in your first try, or spend several hours trying to get in without success... not because of technical issues, but because no time or money was invested to make it a more user-friendly experience. Players were expected to just deal with it. Okay, cool. Not for me though, sorry. The lag was understandable.

 

Population vs Map Size
My wife and I then tried the next day. After finally getting in, we were of the opinion that the map was way too small (this was before the second map was released). Two starter towns? Xanadu may have been BIG (which I imagine MOST people expect from this type of game) but it makes no sense to me... Steam release for more players, but at the same time bringing out a new map half the size of the old one... while you are expecting a lot of new faces... just seems like you shot yourselves in the foot there. I understand that people wont be staying, that many feel Xanadu is too large + the technical issues of a huge map... but come on now. Harmony feels like going to a Los Angeles beach after three weeks of overcast weather... tents and people everywhere man. I couldn´t escape the masses, so I said screw it and logged out.

There are also other things, like the quick UI paint job although it could have used a real rework, a re-imagining of what F2P in this game is and what kind of limitations that comes with, etc.. but thats a different matter.

But yes, the concerns voiced in this thread were among the reasons why I won´t be coming back.


 

[Wilczan 2,048]

Lately, when wow classic were released, also many people couldn't log in on first day. Also there were too few servers, so they quickly needed to add more.

 

Now compare companies and money available.

 

Releases are just like that.

 

As for map size, it is true. I guess you much more easily find lands to settle on old servers.

Edited July 30, 2020 by Wilczan

[Goodwin 34]

I understand the frustrations of the first night. Am glad things are working more smoothly now.

 

In terms of the size of the map, I’m about a ten minute walk from Heartland, and there are forests full of no one. I think the map will be big enough, unless you want to be right on top of the starter towns.

 

Good to hear feedback though.

[Wonka 438]

Unless you want to settle right next to the spawn (like 300 other people apparently), there's loads of space, on both pve servers.  Yes the first week has been a bit rough, but it's a load better now than it was.  And a significant chunk of those red reviews are salty old vets who got booted off the game ages ago for behaving like 9 year old sociopaths coming back to piss on everyone else's party.  I've seen better launches, I've seen worse.

 

And please, no more servers that are so big they lag to hell for ever. Indy size is clearly about right, now they've fixed the worst of the lag stuff.

[Radni 1,089]

On 7/25/2020 at 2:11 PM, katnip2067 said:

All these children will phase out soon and if we add another server then there will be lots of open land and people too spread out again. Just be patient it will settle down soon.  It's just because it's new.

What a toxic mindset

[Brash_Endeavors 4,735]

2 hours ago, Hilo said:

Xanadu may have been BIG (which I imagine MOST people expect from this type of game) but it makes no sense to me... Steam release for more players, but at the same time bringing out a new map half the size of the old one

 

 

On the map size, Xanadu has always had severe lag because of the size of the server, while in the past Independence has handled 1200 with less lag (but yes, a little short on space). Also they were not *sure* how many people would show up. So an Indy sized map initially, with back up plans for additional maps the size of Deli/Exodus/Release etc , made the most sense. Which is kind of what they did, releasing the smaller server Melody a bit later. They are probably going to need a third mp the size of melody as well, as even mid week we are getting plenty of people and Harmony is still over populated.

 

Not to argue with your frustrations, but the initial map size was appropriate if followed up with additional maps as it became clear space was crowded. The whole messup with login through Golden Valley and the tutorial, is another story. They did try to fix that as soon as they could, but I have no idea WHAT they were thinking....

 

 

 

1 hour ago, Wonka said:

Unless you want to settle right next to the spawn (like 300 other people apparently), there's loads of space, on both pve servers. 

 

I have to disagree with that. I walked four hours from spawn to get the the absolutely most remote spot I could find on the map. Luckily I was there early and got a great spot, but I see people wandering past hourly looking for space, many have been walking a lot more than four hours as places they passed were all full. Not next to spawn, not 35 minutes from spawn, hours from spawn. Pretty much the main coastline areas are filled with people. There are a few little areas I have spotted still open. If you are passing by boat, the tokens are often hidden by trees and since the deeds are not fully developed yet, you wouldn't really see them on a sail-by.  So just sailing around does not give an accurate picture at all.

 

I still get lag any time Harmony passes 800 population, which is pretty much all of the time. Melody is also usually pretty full with 300-450 (which is a lot for a celebration-sized island). In addition, both maps NEED to have large wilderness areas preserved so that players can explore and truly get the Wurm experience of man vs nature. Simply because there may be areas you CAN put more deeds, does not mean you should be filling all of those up. Some of the more remote inland areas still have space but that is actually as it should be, this is a "wilderness" map, not a freaking suburban housing development. A goal of 650-750 population for Harmony and 250-350 for Melody would be ideal, but both maps are well past that almost all the time, even midweek and off hour.

 

I think another small Melody-sized server is both needed AND quite appropriate. As you can see we have new people leaving already for lack of an enjoyable gaming experience. We had 11,000 people put Wurm on their wishlist, most won't stay naturally since Wurm is a fairly niche game, but how many more of those 11k do we plan to lose simply by not being ready for them?

Edited July 30, 2020 by Brash_Endeavors

[ChampagneDragon 971]

1 hour ago, Brash_Endeavors said:

I have to disagree with that. I walked four hours from spawn to get the the absolutely most remote spot I could find on the map. Luckily I was there early and got a great spot, but I see people wandering past hourly looking for space, many have been walking a lot more than four hours as places they passed were all full. Not next to spawn, not 35 minutes from spawn, hours from spawn. Pretty much the main coastline areas are filled with people. There are a few little areas I have spotted still open. If you are passing by boat, the tokens are often hidden by trees and since the deeds are not fully developed yet, you wouldn't really see them on a sail-b

 Yes, the coasts were pretty well claimed three days ago. I went inland, found a very remote spot (took me 7 hours of wandering to find it again!) I see one or two people wander in local during a 5 hour play session, but nobody deeded in my local.

 

There is plenty of unclaimed land. With deeds dropping and those who just dropped a tent, never deeding, leaving there will be coastline available also. 

[Badvoc 204]

1 hour ago, Brash_Endeavors said:

 

 

On the map size, Xanadu has always had severe lag because of the size of the server, while in the past Independence has handled 1200 with less lag (but yes, a little short on space). Also they were not *sure* how many people would show up. So an Indy sized map initially, with back up plans for additional maps the size of Deli/Exodus/Release etc , made the most sense. Which is kind of what they did, releasing the smaller server Melody a bit later. They are probably going to need a third mp the size of melody as well, as even mid week we are getting plenty of people and Harmony is still over populated.

 

Not to argue with your frustrations, but the initial map size was appropriate if followed up with additional maps as it became clear space was crowded. The whole messup with login through Golden Valley and the tutorial, is another story. They did try to fix that as soon as they could, but I have no idea WHAT they were thinking....

 

 

 

 

I have to disagree with that. I walked four hours from spawn to get the the absolutely most remote spot I could find on the map. Luckily I was there early and got a great spot, but I see people wandering past hourly looking for space, many have been walking a lot more than four hours as places they passed were all full. Not next to spawn, not 35 minutes from spawn, hours from spawn. Pretty much the main coastline areas are filled with people. There are a few little areas I have spotted still open. If you are passing by boat, the tokens are often hidden by trees and since the deeds are not fully developed yet, you wouldn't really see them on a sail-by.  So just sailing around does not give an accurate picture at all.

 

I still get lag any time Harmony passes 800 population, which is pretty much all of the time. Melody is also usually pretty full with 300-450 (which is a lot for a celebration-sized island). In addition, both maps NEED to have large wilderness areas preserved so that players can explore and truly get the Wurm experience of man vs nature. Simply because there may be areas you CAN put more deeds, does not mean you should be filling all of those up. Some of the more remote inland areas still have space but that is actually as it should be, this is a "wilderness" map, not a freaking suburban housing development. A goal of 650-750 population for Harmony and 250-350 for Melody would be ideal, but both maps are well past that almost all the time, even midweek and off hour.

 

I think another small Melody-sized server is both needed AND quite appropriate. As you can see we have new people leaving already for lack of an enjoyable gaming experience. We had 11,000 people put Wurm on their wishlist, most won't stay naturally since Wurm is a fairly niche game, but how many more of those 11k do we plan to lose simply by not being ready for them?

 

Well said and spot on.

 

Another map, indeed would be welcome, release it ready for the weekend and maybe we will again see many more players giving the game ago.

[Radni 1,089]

Defiance has plenty of room still 😁 lol

[katnip2067 45]

21 hours ago, Radni said:

What a toxic mindset

How is that toxic?  I was actually trying to be encouraging.

[Hilo 4]

Comparing launches can be helpful, and I understand that the industry standard is where it is at. I was there for Vanilla and Classic WoW launch days too, but I didnt get the same feeling of "oh that's just the way it is so keep trying to log in, maybe you will get lucky" that I got after tuning into Retro's launch day stream. It is one thing to remain positive, but there was really an undertone of negligence at play here, at least from my perspective (which is blas, but reasonable). 

 

As far as Harmony goes... what is this game about? I look at Wurm and I see my cabin in the woods. I see wilderness. I expect a wild, open world, with settlements scattered throughout, but not a neighbor 45 seconds away in each direction. I know I am not alone. This is a concern for many people. I would have loved Xanadu had I known about Wurm at the time, and I was really looking forward to getting that chance. Some people want to live in Los Angeles, some people want to be super social and network all day. Others want to live in the countryside, away from the masses. The same can be said for Wurm, you just need to do a bit of reading in these Forums to see how much people differ when it comes to population density in Wurm. The game tries to please both sides, but I feel as the situation stands, the hermits do not feel welcomed to Harmony or Melody.  It is that simple. I do not enjoy having 6 people in local, regardless how much time and effort I spend trying to escape off on my own. So, I understand the game wasnt made for me alone, but I shouldnt have to make one compromise after another to play a game that wants my money at the end of the day in order to play it appropriately, and I would imagine that losing potential customers for an already niche game isn't necessarily what the developers were aiming for, even if it was a calculated decision. I would then be questioning that decision.  

 

Take it as constructive critizism. With the decisions that have been made, CCAB has alienated a portion of the people who were interested in their game, and I think that's fair to bring up.

 

The untouched world where players make something out of it is a big selling point of this game.. I see a lot MORE people in Wurm with a lot LESS land than what was even previously offered, and that is game breaking for me. All the excitement goes out the window. If I want to cuddle up with my neighbors, I could just go play Sims. 

 

I guess I will just have to pop into Xanadu from time to time, and otherwise stick to Wurm Unlimited to get the experience that I clearly can not get from Wurm Online. It's a shame, but alright. 

Edited July 31, 2020 by Hilo
Spelling / Additional Thoughts

[Beanbag 239]

33 minutes ago, Hilo said:

Comparing launches can be helpful, and I understand that the industry standard is where it is at. I was there for Vanilla and Classic WoW launch days too, but I didnt get the same feeling of "oh that's just the way it is so keep trying to log in, maybe you will get lucky" that I got after tuning into Retro's launch day stream. It is one thing to remain positive, but there was really an undertone of negligence at play here, at least from my perspective (which is blas, but reasonable). 

 

As far as Harmony goes... what is this game about? I look at Wurm and I see my cabin in the woods. I see wilderness. I expect a wild, open world, with settlements scattered throughout, but not a neighbor 45 seconds away in each direction. I know I am not alone. This is a concern for many people. I would have loved Xanadu had I known about Wurm at the time, and I was really looking forward to getting that chance. Some people want to live in Los Angeles, some people want to be super social and network all day. Others want to live in the countryside, away from the masses. The same can be said for Wurm, you just need to do a bit of reading in these Forums to see how much people differ when it comes to population density in Wurm. The game tries to please both sides, but I feel as the situation stands, the hermits do not feel welcomed to Harmony or Melody.  It is that simple. I so not enjoy having 6 people in local, regardless how much time and effort I spend trying to escape off on my own. So, I understand the game wasnt made for me alien.. I just want to give the constructice critizism that with the decisions that have been made, CCAB has alienated a portion of the people who were interested in their game, and I think that's fair to bring up. 

 

I guess I will just have to pop into Xanadu from time to time, and otherwise stick to Wurm Unlimited to get the experience that I clearly can not get from Wurm Online. It's a shame, but alright. 

 

You didn't get that feeling because there was nobody for you to listen to or get it from. You were less than a number to Blizzard, and still are, and always will be. You can lie to yourself and pretend WO's steam launch was different than virtually every other MMO launch in the past 5-10 years, but it really wasn't. They got everything fixed up in a few days, which is on par with AAA dev teams.

 

As for land availability, there is a LOT of free space with nobody around. The only thing is you actually have to walk to find it, you won't be dropped right onto your idea of a perfect spot from the get go. But you are right, there are going to be a number of people who will be upset and personally offended if the game doesn't immediately suit their preferences, and nothing can be done about that.

[Hilo 4]

I know a lot of people are being critical right now, and I am sorry if that upsets you, but I have addressed your "counter points", while you convienently leave out mine. If you are happy with the game, that's cool. Im not trying to rain on your parade, but dont start being condescending with me. I have no interest in arguing with you over personal taste. You can disagree with me all you want, but trying to paint me as too lazy to walk away from my spawn point? That i dont know Blizz-Activision is a bloodsucking profit driven company? You are making so many assumptions and reading into my words. Bordering on attacking me personally because I am being critical of something we are expected to pay for? You are quite special. 

 

It seems you are the only one here that is personally offended. You must really love this game, and I understand that. I just want to enjoy it too.. that's it man.. that's it. Nothing against you. 

Edited July 31, 2020 by Hilo

[Haseroths 60]

On 7/25/2020 at 3:11 PM, katnip2067 said:

All these children will phase out soon and if we add another server then there will be lots of open land and people too spread out again. Just be patient it will settle down soon.  It's just because it's new.

 

Let me explain myself more clearly.  A F2P mmo launches on steam and lots of children will jump in to play.  Wurm is not a game that will hold the interest of most youngsters, so they won't play long before they move onto something else.  

what a way to treat potential customers lol, call them all kids. Hopefully the new players who see this wont start thinking the entire community is this toxic.

[Pandalet 1,848]

For what it's worth, if you're looking for coastal space on Harmony, the far NE coast is pretty unpopulated, as are some areas on the SSW coast and SE corner.  There's loads of undeeded area in the inland areas, particularly the central landmass. 

 

On Melody, the East and SW coasts are less populated, and again, the main interior areas have loads of space.

[elentari 2,660]

The sad part of it is that people are settling ONLY on the steam servers. 

 

New players aren't joining the old established servers. I've checked deliverance population and we haven't had any new blood. 

Why is that?

 

How about part of the "server selection process" there's a text informing people that old servers have plenty of room (and honestly there is a s*** ton of room to play on ) so they don't overpopulate the new servers thus leading to more negative steam reviews? 

 

It seems this whole process leaves the old servers with the same  < dying > population and everyone is joining the new ones. For me this feels like Epic 2.0. No new players here, but as long as Wurm is fine, guess old freedom will get a taste of what Epic experienced through 3-4 years. 

[Eobersig 1,005]

13 minutes ago, elentari said:

The sad part of it is that people are settling ONLY on the steam servers. 

 

This is not quite right. Since July 24 (opening of the new servers) about 25 new villages have been made on Xanadu.

[atazs 964]

1 hour ago, elentari said:

The sad part of it is that people are settling ONLY on the steam servers. 

 

New players aren't joining the old established servers. I've checked deliverance population and we haven't had any new blood. 

Why is that?

 

How about part of the "server selection process" there's a text informing people that old servers have plenty of room (and honestly there is a s*** ton of room to play on ) so they don't overpopulate the new servers thus leading to more negative steam reviews? 

 

It seems this whole process leaves the old servers with the same  < dying > population and everyone is joining the new ones. For me this feels like Epic 2.0. No new players here, but as long as Wurm is fine, guess old freedom will get a taste of what Epic experienced through 3-4 years. 

People want and wanted a new start where they can compete and be part of building a new world. 

[Brash_Endeavors 4,735]

1 hour ago, Eobersig said:

This is not quite right. Since July 24 (opening of the new servers) about 25 new villages have been made on Xanadu.

 

 

Xanadu is not alone (and actually I count 30 for Xanadu, using Niarja).

 

Since July 24:

 

• Independence - 14 new settlements
• Release: 1 new settlement
• Pristine: 1 new settlement
• Exodus: 2 new settlments
• Deliverance: 5 new settlments
• Celebration: 1 new settlments
• Chaos: 2 new settlments

 

56 new settlements in the southern freedom islands in total, since the Steam launch.

The numbers may seem small in comparison to the northern isles,  but they are reversing a past trend of decline.

They are reason to celebrate.

 

 

Edited August 1, 2020 by Brash_Endeavors

[Chisco 55]

After playing a week on the steam servers, with a deed and all. I think im just going to go back to Xan and play my original characters now xD