The idea tha "Ryzom should be more like other MMOs" should never be muttered .... because Ryzom does not have the resources to compete on that level and when it did, ... it lost ... badly. Different cultures existed on each server and since the merge, each of those cultures have been on a mission to convert the others to "their view of Atys". It's not going to happen.
The reason those individual cultures developed is because the player base essentially "steered the ship" to develop the culture and a game they wanted to play. Recognize that in the last year subscriptions are down 20% ... 50% over last 3 years. Do you want to "win" and turn Ryzom into your game ... with a small population or do you want the game to survive with a larger player base that will allow ongoing improvements and new content ?
The most common reaction to this fact is that "if only the game was more like what I want", things would be better. If we say for simplicity's sake that we have 5 groups ... Kami, Kara, Marauder, Rangers, Mercs / Tryton's and "other", then it will be a given that if advantages are available for just some of those group and not others, then the game becomes less attractive to those excluded and those players lose interest.
Ryzom, since the very early days, has strived to eliminate advantages which is why the most true thing in Ryzom is "there is no best anything" ... what we have is options that are best in certain situations. Yes, there should be certain advantages to making a choice ... but that does not preclude different advantages for other choices. Each race has basic resistances to magic that makes them "special" in some sense, but other races have different but equal resistances. If any race had a real advantage, that would be the only race on planet. Same principle.
The mindset that "we wanna be special and don't want anyone who doesn't ascribe to our game mindset to have anything comparable" is elitist. If Rangers are paying the same $10.95 a month that I am, there's no reason that I should have advantages as a Kami than they do not as a Ranger. Not the same advantages, but comparable gain for comparable effort.
For example we have the upcoming action at Dyron Hill Border Post. With the Walls and Towers, and NPC Harvesters, I can envision that the ground around those walls becoming soaked with Hemolymph (insect blood) like substance which could be mined by those NPCs and made available to those that dedicate their lives to defending the kittin threat, much like the drills at OPs. To quote an iconic TV commericial ... "where's the beef ?"
The reason those individual cultures developed is because the player base essentially "steered the ship" to develop the culture and a game they wanted to play. Recognize that in the last year subscriptions are down 20% ... 50% over last 3 years. Do you want to "win" and turn Ryzom into your game ... with a small population or do you want the game to survive with a larger player base that will allow ongoing improvements and new content ?
The most common reaction to this fact is that "if only the game was more like what I want", things would be better. If we say for simplicity's sake that we have 5 groups ... Kami, Kara, Marauder, Rangers, Mercs / Tryton's and "other", then it will be a given that if advantages are available for just some of those group and not others, then the game becomes less attractive to those excluded and those players lose interest.
Ryzom, since the very early days, has strived to eliminate advantages which is why the most true thing in Ryzom is "there is no best anything" ... what we have is options that are best in certain situations. Yes, there should be certain advantages to making a choice ... but that does not preclude different advantages for other choices. Each race has basic resistances to magic that makes them "special" in some sense, but other races have different but equal resistances. If any race had a real advantage, that would be the only race on planet. Same principle.
The mindset that "we wanna be special and don't want anyone who doesn't ascribe to our game mindset to have anything comparable" is elitist. If Rangers are paying the same $10.95 a month that I am, there's no reason that I should have advantages as a Kami than they do not as a Ranger. Not the same advantages, but comparable gain for comparable effort.
For example we have the upcoming action at Dyron Hill Border Post. With the Walls and Towers, and NPC Harvesters, I can envision that the ground around those walls becoming soaked with Hemolymph (insect blood) like substance which could be mined by those NPCs and made available to those that dedicate their lives to defending the kittin threat, much like the drills at OPs. To quote an iconic TV commericial ... "where's the beef ?"
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