Tales of Tyria #12: Achievement Unlocked

[Perdristan]

Perfect game from Freelancer : Inception MMO :)

[MouseAndShiraz]

I want to note about Freelancer's comment regarding barriers to PvP;

PvP barrier is a slippery slope problem, where the higher the gameplay barrier gets (the fewer people who try PvP for the first time), the fewer people actually end up continuing to play PvP due to skill gap.

You see this in a lot of old PvP games (like CoH) where the pool of players is small enough and skilled enough that there is a real dearth of less-skilled players... (cont)

[MouseAndShiraz]

@MouseAndShiraz ... and there is only so much you can learn from having a veteran player (or even someone with a history of PvP in a new MMO) wipe the floor with them. It creates an environment where new players might be willing to try PvP but feel that they are so out of league that it isn't worth their time, or that they may never be able to progress to a point where they feel competitive.

If GW2 is going to have a strong PvP component, lowering that entry barrier will go a long way.

[MouseAndShiraz]

@MouseAndShiraz ... simply by creating a population of PvP players with a more diverse skill range where people can still feel like they are contributing in a meaningful way, rather than simply being fodder to pad a veteran's stats.

A lot of games suffer from the skill gap problem over time, as the PvP population skews further and further toward experienced players, as less devoted, less skilled players leave the game and new players are dissuaded by high levels of competition.

[MouseAndShiraz]

@MouseAndShiraz ... I am really hoping that the world PvP will manage to bridge the gap between PvE and PvP, and thus keep a healthy and diverse population of PvP players. (/end rant)

[SoundStrategyNetwork]

@MouseAndShiraz Creating a game for the masses is quite different from creating a game for the highest skilled players. The problem is that many games will use very complicated mechanics such that only with a huge amount of experience can you even know what's going on much less make informed decisions in the game (see Dota/HoN/LoL). This knowledge gap is a kind of skill gap, but the games that can best blend mass appeal and high skill ceiling are games with simple mechanics and complex outcome

[MouseAndShiraz]

Really enjoying these podcasts, guys, just as much as the ToH podcasts. =)

As someone who is only loosely following GW2 (this podcast is more or less the only source I am keeping up to date on, to avoid the whole 'oh god why isn't it out yet' effect), it'd be awesome if you guys linked-to/referenced articles or video releases (from A-Net & the community) that others might miss for not following the forums obsessively.

Anyway, keep up the awesome work!

[SoundStrategyNetwork]

@MouseAndShiraz Any articles/videos that we talk about on the show are always linked in the show notes. I put the link to the show notes in the Youtube description as well as on the main post on the Tales of Tyria website.

[Nemonstitch]

I don't know if you guys have considered this, but it's probably a safe bet to have the week of GW2's release just be a gushy, unstructured episode.

[GustavoMsTrashCan]

I'd resume my ideal MMO into one word:

Variety.

If It has variety, there will be a fun experience for everyone.

[pay4cayray]

daily achievements, sounds like the equivalent of double xp or point or what ever on the first battle in games like WoT, LoL and think HoN have some similar function.

to 1 balance out progress and

2. motivate players to come back more regularity.

just m take, maybe wrong but that is my interpretation of there post

[RemoteControlband]

These guys still getting all hard over Skyrim?

[chrismastere]

Laggy speech makes it unbearable to listen to.

[SoundStrategyNetwork]

@chrismastere Not sure what you mean. It sounds fine to me. Can you be more specific?

[chrismastere]

@SoundStrategyNetwork Hey thanks for your reply. After about 15 minutes it stops. An example of what I mean is at 0:06:14-0:06:50. It happens very frequently in the beginning, of an otherwise great podcast.

[TheTommerrock]

@RPGRogers ToT ist a very well done potcast, and ToH the funniest thing I've ever seen :)

So do both things. like you said, you are enjoying this; And that counts !

[kheath580]

is the sound kinda wierd and jumpy for anyone else?

[SoundStrategyNetwork]

@kheath580 Might have something to do with pushing my rig too hard for the show. The audio version doesn't seem to have this problem. It's on the talesoftyria-dot-com website if you want to listen to that one. Will try to fix it for next time.

[dhettinger80]

Personally I like ToT, its going to be really good once GW2 beta starts and as the game goes live.

For everyone whining about wanting more content every consider donating? Money is a great form of motivation.

[MrDeatrich]

ant damage taken at all breaks stealth if i remember correctly. any well timed aoe kills stealth in gw2.

[obverkid00]

@MrDeatrich

In fact, as of the demo build Gamescom2011 stealth does NOT break upon taking damage.

[Marcellone86able]

More of Tales of Heroes no more geek RPGs!!!!

[czymann]

Kill X number of mobs is just one type of achievement. There will be plenty of different types of achievements. There will be enough for different types of players who like doing different types of achievements.

[kevzy18]

Good show again guys. and to Vega yeah caught that episode of Southpark very funny. Also on the achievements I think there a nice way of showing to friends what you've accomplished but I wouldn't go out my way to get them all like an 'achievement whore' lol

[Aftershock2k7]

@Tojoker1994 I agree, i dont get these discussions? when tales of heroes was so fun to watch i think im about to unsubscribe from this.

[RPGRogers]

@Aftershock2k7 Bridger loves this game, we still do Tales of Heroes we just released a new episode on Christmas day... Please be patient and more content will be coming out in the next week or so.

[Aftershock2k7]

@RPGRogers Thanks for the reply! I didnt see the new episodes and am watching them now and cant wait for future episodes, Its really good entertainment and the training episodes are the best!

[SoundStrategyNetwork]

@Aftershock2k7 Tales of Heroes is still being released. We put it out on Dec. 25th. I do wish that I could have multiple channels on the same account. I'd rather have Tales of Heroes split off from Tales of Tyria on it's own channel, but that's not how Youtube works :(

[Aftershock2k7]

@SoundStrategyNetwork ahhh, well it was wrong of me to say that and in fact i have missed out on a few episodes so am working my way through them now and cant wait for more! all the best :D

[CaCaFoGo]

awesome episode as always! happy new year.

[darkmuskrat]

I want to see this series.

[Tojoker1994]

no one wants to see this...

Please bring the "Tales of Heroes" back!

[czymann]

@Tojoker1994 and you would be wrong. They have quite a few fans for this GW2 videocast. It appears to me they are still doing Tales of Heroes.

[RPGRogers]

@Tojoker1994 Come on man settle down. Bridger does this because he enjoys this. We still release TOH shows just less frequently, but episodes are still coming out. We don't get paid to do this, we do TOH and Bridger does TOT because we enjoy those retrospective games. Please try to be patient.