Server Mergers - Major Concern Over Inactive Players Being Distributed Among Servers

As a player with friends who would have come back when more content has been added to the game, I have huge concerns over the present server merger policy's being put in place.

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During the transfer selection period indicated below, players will be able to select a destination World on the World Transfer Application Page. Players who do not select a destination World during this period will be automatically distributed across the Worlds.

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I understand that they are not current paying customers and "SE doesn't need to care about people who are not currently subscribed" (which they do need to care, because they are potential paying customers). However, I have friends that have tried out this game, quit, and are waiting for it to get better to come back. Distributing inactive players around random worlds is a horrible idea.

I can see zero upside to randomly dispersing inactive players among random servers. People will find themselves on servers away from their friends. Current players who want their friends to come back will not be happy, friends of those current players will not be happy. I know the ability to play with friends is a deal breaker for a lot of people who want to come back, and not being able to get these players back over an issue like this would be a silly move on SE's part.

There are a few easy solutions that should be considered.

Solution#1: Allowing inactive players to choose their server when they decide to come back.
Players who want to are inactive will be in some sort of server limbo, and once they decide to reactivate, they can pick what server want to go to.

Solution#2: Funneling current servers into specific assigned worlds
Having a predictable List of where servers would be merged to would be nice.
For example, having Figaro and Saronia players who did not ask for a specific world assignments would automatically go to world#3. Letting us know something like this ahead of time would be important also, so we could all plan accordingly to pick servers which our friends would be on.

I have friends that would have come back, but they will not come back if they are not on the same server as their friends.

so if you dont get into a server that caps out before march 1st then have fun with a dead population :D

Put all the inactive players on one server and name it Absentia.

Try this for example, 20k people waiting for 2.0 see this, then they decide to choose a server and never come back, the server will get capped and people who want to play the game will be on what will become slightly less populated servers, or use up names other people want.

I remember every time a FFXI server merge was coming people would pay the extra pound to make a mule on thier destination server with thier name, they then delete the mule and reserve thier name, or trolls making mules to stop people keeping thier name. This can all happen with allowing inactive players to choose a server.

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Originally Posted by Delsus

I remember every time a FFXI server merge was coming people would pay the extra pound to make a mule on thier destination server with thier name, they then delete the mule and reserve thier name, or trolls making mules to stop people keeping thier name. This can all happen with allowing inactive players to choose a server.

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I'm not saying inactive players should be able to choose which server they want to be on now. I'm saying once they reactivate again, they can choose their destination instead of having it predetermined for them.

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Originally Posted by Seth_Ahriman

so if you dont get into a server that caps out before march 1st then have fun with a dead population :D

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You have to realize that 'caps out' is not as in the server is full to capacity, but that the server is full to the capacity SE wants it to be in order to distribute evenly. That cap is probably 60% or so. After the merges all servers will be eventually open to joining just as they are now.

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Originally Posted by Ashiee

I'm not saying inactive players should be able to choose which server they want to be on now. I'm saying once they reactivate again, they can choose their destination instead of having it predetermined for them.

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I would imagine they will beable to after 2.0, and thier character stays with the unbaptised babies in limbo until they reactivate, Yoshida has already said he wants to keep the current players here rather than get new players for now, this could be part of that.

I will be royaly pissed if they have random server distribution for new players after 2.0 because there is one paticular person I really want to play with who is joining on PS3.

If you're not paying you have no say.

I posted about this earlier, and it could be a serious issue. It's not necessarily even people waiting for 2.0. Financial reasons and life situations can take a serious toll on funds and MMO time. We're already losing linkshells/guilds, blacklists, and Friend lists, all three of which typically carry over as well in other games, and this will only further confusion and issues with communication.

In this day and age, it's fairly standard to allow players to choose what server they want upon next log in (or something of that nature). Why SE has chosen to skip this convenience that most other top tier MMOs offer is beyond me.

I woulda been concerned about these players too

but then i thought, do shells really hold spots for players who will be gone for a year?
if they do, they are insane


so those are lost players to begin with and they will have to start over with people when they get back regardless(many of them are probly gonna reroll anyway so they will end up on the server of their choice)

That's really besides the point, though, on two counts.

First, it's standard in this day and age. SE not being able to meet MMO standards of the last few years with something as simple as character transfers and merges is not something for people to take comfort in.

Second, will some of the returns be unphased? Will some reroll anyway? Is that there plan and intent? Absolutely. Will some of the returning players want to rejoin their old friends and come back to all their hard work, their 50s, their holiday items, their unique toys? Absolutely. Is that potentially a large number, maybe even a majority of returning players? It's entirely plausible.

So it's the standard, and it's something many players would want. Why would SE want to risk alienating them, and why would anybody argue against having the option there to benefit the unarguable portion of the population who wants it? How can we possibly argue against meeting MMO standards and making people happy by allowing them to continue playing with their friends with their earned levels and rewards when it comes to XIV?

This is really my only issue with their current plan. I know a handful of people who were going to come back once 2.0 hit but now the chances are slim to none since they'll likely not be on the same server as me. They should just allow people who are not subscribed now to choose a server once they subscribe again. At the very least allow server transfers come 2.0.