Fwiffo, this post is mainly addressed to you, since your cool leaderboard tracking database allows to figure out the exact answer, at least for the short term
I wonder what is the dynamics of Alegiance active player population (those shown on Leaderboard). I remember there were over 750 when I once looked, I've seen Baker claimed there were 613 recently, and now I see 600.
So, Allegiance community is slowly dissipating, right? I think when we get to the point of having max. 10 v 10 in prime time and 7 v 7 in SGs, the process will fasten a lot, since Allegiance becomes less interesting with less people flying, IMHO.
Should anything be done about it?
Last edited by Zruty on Tue Sep 29, 2009 9:14 am, edited 1 time in total.
Zruty wrote:QUOTE (Zruty @ Sep 29 2009, 09:11 AM) Fwiffo, this post is mainly addressed to you, since your cool leaderboard tracking database allows to figure out the exact answer, at least for the short term
I wonder what is the dynamics of Alegiance active player population (those shown on Leaderboard). I remember there were over 750 when I once looked, I've seen Baker claimed there were 613 recently, and now I see 600.
So, Allegiance community is slowly dissipating, right? I think when we get to the point of having max. 10 v 10 in prime time and 7 v 7 in SGs, the process will fasten a lot, since Allegiance becomes less interesting with less people flying, IMHO.
Should anything be done about it?
People are trying to do things. We should be pushing R5 soon, which may attract/keep some playersWe are updating CDT training to try and keep more CDTsASGS has been updated to work with Win7A Community security system is being added to replace ASGS
It's dropped from about 800 active when I joined (I believe?), but a number of people are doing their best to improve matters (giving their time free).
Do you have any suggestions for getting new players?
Edit : In answer to the title question - no the community is shrinking, and thats pretty clear/everyones aware of it.
Edit2: Made a list
Last edited by notjarvis on Tue Sep 29, 2009 9:27 am, edited 1 time in total.
people have been saying we have been losing people and shrinking since ive joined. when i joined there were something liek 450 actives iirc
QUOTE Drizzo: ha ha good old chap
Drizzo: i am a brit
Drizzo: tut tut
Drizzo: wankarrrrrr
Drizzo: i only have sex whilst in the missionary position[/quote] Fas est et ab hoste doceri - Ovid
Allegiance wasn't just about the game, it was a community. I enjoyed hanging out with the people at least as much as I did playing the game really. I feel that it just isn't such a nice place to be any more, but that may just be me being old and cranky.
It seems like most of the new guys who do stick around, feel obliged to adopt the Allegiance attitude. IE: try to find their place in the pecking order, and abuse those they perceive to be below them.
One of the latter games I played which stuck in my memory was a smaller one, maybe 16 or 18 players with two not-the-usual comms. It was a really close, good fun game. Then the main game ended, and the usual suspects joined our side game and basically $#@!ed it up. The two comms lost confidence and handed it off, and it ceased to be fun.
Pick-up games can't be played to the same standard as squad matches. That seems to be what a lot of the better players expect them to play like though. They are by their nature all encompassing, and with mixed abilities all thrown into the same pot, tension is inevitable.
If we have agreed as a community that AS works (no offence, but I personally don't, just my opinion) then we need to divide up along lines of skill as determined by AS, because that is all we have. That way the "aces" could play with their own kind, the intermediates and the beginners the same. Then frustrations and tensions are minimised by playing with people with similar ability to yourself. You can't make people better simply by telling them to be better, people get better by practise. Players weren't magically imbued with the ability to play Allegiance at a decent level when the game was launched, they learned it by trial and error and naturally became proficient over a period of weeks, months and years. That natural progression we have attempted to shortcut with @CDT, but it isn't a substitute for hours played, in an enviroment where you aren't going to be abused and possibly booted for making an error, before you have reached a level where you wouldn't be expected to make that error.
My plan for making Allegiance more fun is.
1. Make it possible to divide games by skill level without fear of being abused for excluding vets or newbies.
2. Make it possible to set the maximum size of the game prior to launch to prevent it being hijacked.
3. Expect top level gameplay in Squad matches and not pick-up games (unless possibly it is set to vet only, in which case, AS says that everybody there is able to play at an elite level)
#Edited to correct typos.
Last edited by Duckwarrior on Tue Sep 29, 2009 4:05 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Those who make peaceful revolution impossible, will make violent revolution inevitable. John F. Kennedy.
Duckwarrior wrote:QUOTE (Duckwarrior @ Sep 29 2009, 11:22 AM) Allegiance wasn't just about the game, it was a community. I enjoyed hanging out with the people at least as much as I did playing the game really. I feel that it just isn't such a nice place to be any more, but that may just be me being old and cranky.
QFT
Back when I first started in the balmy autumn of ought six, only a small portion of veterans were asshats and (no offence to Ducky or the other fine members of XT) they were all largely contained within one squad. This has changed on both counts.
I actually see lots of new players on all the time, I imagine that we are keeping just as many of the keen ones as ever, and my experience with CDT bears that out. I reckon that we have just lost a lot of old players due to a combination of technical challenges, falling out of love with the game, people growing up/moving on and the above.
Duckwarrior wrote:QUOTE (Duckwarrior @ Sep 29 2009, 01:22 PM) My plan for making Allegiance more fun is.
1. Make it possible to divide games by skill level without fear of being abused for excluding vets or newbies.
2. Make it possible to set the maximum size of the game prior to launch to prevent it being hijacked.
3. Expect top level gameplay in Squad matches and not pick-up games (unless possibly it is set to vet only, in which case, AS says that everybody there is able to play at an elite level)
Ducky speaks wisdom, as per usual. The ability to limit game size without limiting NOAT would be great. Skill level limits are an interesing idea. I do remember the squad & cadet scrimmages being a lot of fun. Maybe we should try that again (preferaby at around SG time). As for 3. in general, I've enjoyed PuGs for the 650 hours over two years I've played. SGs are different, and one can't expect the same kind of play in a PuG. A balanced PuG with about equal commanders is still hellafun, especially when there are friends/enemies/assosiates on both sides to butt friends with.
About numbers
When I got back to Allegiance, about two years ago we were at a high tide of 1000+ actives. We've drifted down in two stages. First things levelled at about 800, and for the last 6 - 12 months we've been pretty steady at ~620.
Allegiance isn't dying, but we have no cause for complacency. Both myself and SaiSoma (and no doubt others) have plans to advertise Allegiance as soon as R5 goes alive and we are confident that new players can get the game working more reliably. I'll post more about this later (hopefully tonight).
<bp|> Maybe when I grow up I can be a troll like PsycH <bp|> or an obsessive compulsive paladin of law like Adept
Maybe it's about time some of the new content goes vanilla. I.e. the default circle crosshair is very annoying and it probably doesn't help new players.
Also, a lot of hi-res graphics would still look better downsized than the original ones.
I'm fairly certain that the allegiance community has been growing.
I just found out a few days back that my scale at home is broken and I in fact weigh 200lbs, which is a raise from the 185lbs I've been hovering at for oh so long.
The average home player who has little in terms of habits aside from drinking and sitting down to play does little than other collect mass.
