Are we getting a server merge soon?

[Diavolo]

No, I'm not being sarcastic. In many ways, you and I are vastly different people. You seem to enjoy shouts and pick-up groups, but that's not a point of emphasis for everybody.

When you mention not being able to find help with older content, I'm going to assume you're talking about older Adoulin content like Skirmish, Delve, and SR. I'm with you there, it sucks not being able to fill a group for those. I just think the solution is to transfer to a more populous server, not to merge all servers.

I believe there have been times when the transfer fee was cut in half so if SE permanently lowered the fee and designated a few high population servers, then maybe everybody would be happy.

I asked if you were being sarcastic because Asura players, at least here on the official forums and at least one other, have been complaining about crowded XP camps and NM pop locations with the population reaching 1,600 at peak hours, yet you hear it's lovely just the same, so either the complainers were exaggerating or they've found ways to make it work.

I actually loathe shouts and pick up groups, but this isn't about me, it's about the health of the game. Larger, more diverse servers offer more options to both the players and the development team moving forward. It will undoubtedly annoy those of us who enjoy having the freedom to solo/lowman whatever we want, whenever we want, but let's not forget this is an MMORPG. We'll still be able to solo/lowman content, maybe just not as often or during the same hours, and if things do get to the point where areas are overcrowded I'm sure the development team would address those issues.

Yes, the transfer rate gets cut in half every so often, but is that really the solution, forcing the player base to spend money so they can join a server with a healthier population? Merging the servers is a win/win for both the players and SE and it's a fix they have implemented twice before, so I don't see why not now where it's in need more than ever. I imagine the players preferring the lower server populations to be in the vast minority here, but they seem to be a vocal majority on a forum such as this just because of the nature of it all (casual players often don't spend time posting on forums).

[detlef]

I asked if you were being sarcastic because Asura players, at least here on the official forums and at least one other, have been complaining about crowded XP camps and NM pop locations with the population reaching 1,600 at peak hours, yet you hear it's lovely just the same, so either the complainers were exaggerating or they've found ways to make it work.

I was not aware of that. Almost everything I've read about the server's conditions has been positive.

I actually loathe shouts and pick up groups, but this isn't about me, it's about the health of the game. Larger, more diverse servers offer more options to both the players and the development team moving forward. It will undoubtedly annoy those of us who enjoy having the freedom to solo/lowman whatever we want, whenever we want, but let's not forget this is an MMORPG. We'll still be able to solo/lowman content, maybe just not as often or during the same hours, and if things do get to the point where areas are overcrowded I'm sure the development team would address those issues.

Yeah, there's nothing much sadder than seeing somebody shout for something and not get any response. Is it really easier to adjust for overcrowding than undercrowding though? SE has definitely been pretty hit or miss on adjusting content for smaller groups but overcrowding seems like it would present issues that the dev team would be unable to address at all.

Yes, the transfer rate gets cut in half every so often, but is that really the solution, forcing the player base to spend money so they can join a server with a healthier population? Merging the servers is a win/win for both the players and SE and it's a fix they have implemented twice before, so I don't see why not now where it's in need more than ever. I imagine the players preferring the lower server populations to be in the vast minority here, but they seem to be a vocal majority on a forum such as this just because of the nature of it all (casual players often don't spend time posting on forums).

Yeah I don't have a perfect solution there. Maybe if SE stated, okay Asura, Odin, and say... Bahamut are going to be our "high population" servers, here's a free one-time transfer. Would that solve things?

As for your other point, I agree that casual players probably don't post very much here if at all. But at the same time, people clamoring for server merges are among the most vocal of all. In general, I think people who are satisfied with the status quo would not be vocal unless prompted.

[Olor]

I asked if you were being sarcastic because Asura players, at least here on the official forums and at least one other, have been complaining about crowded XP camps and NM pop locations with the population reaching 1,600 at peak hours, yet you hear it's lovely just the same, so either the complainers were exaggerating or they've found ways to make it work.

um... what? I haven't seen congestion at all for at least a year on Asura, longer, really.

The server is not *that* populated, it's just less unpopulated. And really, if folks want a higher population server they should transfer to Asura.

I am not necessarily against merges but I worry that folks will get upset about it and leave if they are forced to merge. A free server transfer event, or the option to free transfer 1 time to a designated "high population server" would probably be better for allowing folks to maintain their communities and allow others to get into a more populated server.

[Diavolo]

um... what? I haven't seen congestion at all for at least a year on Asura, longer, really.

The server is not *that* populated, it's just less unpopulated. And really, if folks want a higher population server they should transfer to Asura.

That's been my impression, despite the statements claiming to the contrary. The last time server merges came up here, in the Quality of Life thread, Elexia suggested "CP camps are already kinda packed at times" about two months ago. Those arguing against the merge tend to worry about this happening even though Odin and Asura seem to be doing just fine on the high end of the spectrum.

I am not necessarily against merges but I worry that folks will get upset about it and leave if they are forced to merge. A free server transfer event, or the option to free transfer 1 time to a designated "high population server" would probably be better for allowing folks to maintain their communities and allow others to get into a more populated server.

The only downside with this idea is that it won't do much to help the game as a whole. I can almost guarantee a large portion of those wanting a healthier server would choose Asura without even thinking twice, then you risk that server becoming a giant mess while leaving those that were already with low populations worse off than before. The merge has to come from the development team and it has to be handled with care. Maintaining a fairly balanced population of both English-speaking and Japanese players is important, as the world is still turning while you're at work/school. It would come to a standstill for half the day if everyone on a server was from the same region.