DT WoL Updates: Players want the diversity of features we once had

[Caesius]

Would be nice but peeps have been clamoring for more customization option (especially Au Ra in terms of Horn / Face shapes) for what now? close to 10 years?

I wouldn't hold my breath if I were you. DEV resources are probably bound upgrading current item stock for quite a while.

My hope is that the graphics update was implemented in a way that will make it easier for them to add new customization options in the future. If this is the case then it's already on their plate anyway, but we need to make it clear to them that what we want are unique features that add character, especially those that were present before but now lost.

And frankly "more customization options" is now no longer a feature request but something they owe the player base given the gap between what they said and what we got. They spent like 10 minutes at Fanfest talking about how they put extreme effort into making sure exactly one pixel on Lala faces looks exactly right, then the expac drops and it's clear that many unique and defining features -- some notable, some subtle -- were wiped out, whether by necessity or carelessness.

[Vahlnir]

Yeah. I was very fortunate in this regard. For my character, this was just a texture update. I don't think anything about him changed at all. But I've seen the side-by-side comparisons around here with other peoples' characters and that really is unfortunate to see. I sympathize. The differences are night and day, effectively making them brand new characters.

[Khryseis_Astra]

If we want our WoL's unique features back, we need to propose solutions, and the only feasible solution at this stage is to introduce more customization options.

Honestly this is really the only way to make everyone happy. There’s no going back to the old faces, because the whole lighting engine has been redone and they wouldn’t look the same in this environment anyways. Some people miss their old faces, other people liked the updates.

After they get through the process of reviewing feedback and finding what were bugs/errors (I think there’s a few things which may still fit into this category*) and what were stylistic changes that people may or may not have liked, they should really work on adding more choices. Players have been asking for that for years now. Whether they add more clans, or just add more face and feature choices to what we already have.

Most people understood that the lighting would change the appearance of certain features… but some things have definitively changed the actual shapes, and people are understandably upset by that.

* In particular the mouths, which they called out for incorrect mouth scaling initially. Can’t say if they tried to address this after benchmark 2 or not, or if it’s still on the list of adjustments to make, but most races I’m seeing still have a significantly reduced upper lip, and it changes facial expressions dramatically, especially in portraits and gpose. Others have pointed out eye shapes being different, but that was not addressed specifically by SE like the mouth scaling was.

[Heavenchild]

It's not possible for them to easily ad customization features. The problem is the speed of datatranfers on the servers. Yoshi P. spoke about that when it was just about seperating Au'Ra horns form the face.
Every player is a little data package. And when we meet others in game we send and receive a lot of data packages from other players, so that they can be displayed right (race, gender, hair, eyeform, and so on, everything).

If they ad stuff those packages grow very fast immensely and the datafraffic can soon be too much for the servers. That's why they did not add stuff like seperate Au'Ra Horns.

Of course I would love to see more options! But I guess it's just not that easy. Yoshi is no wizard who can make that technical components get faster as they are able to. :')

[Granyala]

Moreover, subset is a good sample size of your overall customer base, this is basic statistics.

I just told you why this forum's posts are not a representative sample.
So much for "this is basic statistics".

My hope is that the graphics update was implemented in a way that will make it easier for them to add new customization options in the future.

I'd like that. More options are always good. Though from what I've seen of these changes at a system level, I don't think there is anything here that would make it easier or harder to add more options.

This is more about willingness than technical capability, I'm afraid.

It's not possible for them to easily ad customization features. The problem is the speed of datatranfers on the servers. Yoshi P. spoke about that when it was just about seperating Au'Ra horns form the face.
Every player is a little data package. And when we meet others in game we send and receive a lot of data packages from other players, so that they can be displayed right (race, gender, hair, eyeform, and so on, everything).

If they ad stuff those packages grow very fast immensely and the datafraffic can soon be too much for the servers. That's why they did not add stuff like seperate Au'Ra Horns.

This is the most ridiculous technical nonsense I have ever heard. WTF and people believe this?!

Faces are just variables in transfer.
If you have a 4 bit variable you can address 2^4 = 16 faces, Increase that by 1 bit and you double the amount of options to 32. How many faces have we ingame? I think it's 8.
Separating them would need another variable but are you honestly trying to tell me that modern server can't handle another 5 bit variable?

WTF. Either Yoshi P was trolling, hoping that no one realizes or he is stuck in the frikkin 90s.
As much as I respect the man, this explanation does not fly AT ALL.

Why? I've seen other MMOs with far more detailed customization options .... 10 YEARS AGO.

Besides: they just added more customization slot items. Yah apparently there is no problem with the server in that regard. ... LooooL

The far more likely explanation: character options are done by ancient, undocumented spaghetti code held together by duct tape and they are terrified to touch it. Blaming it on "server performance" is just their way of saving face. Similar to how Blizzard Entertainment shied away from increasing the 16 slot basic backpack for a decade.

[Heavenchild]

It's what he said. I have no clue. :3