How Can We Organize our Wish List for SL?
Apologies in advance if this seems like double-talk, but what I'm interested in discussing is gathering suggestions *about* suggestions!
I may be guilty of not knowing better how to put together the many suggestion threads, and to be able to see the feedback they are getting, both from other players and from STS.
Let me explain why I ask, and throw out some suggestions - to get the conversation started.
I'm seeing game feedback on a pretty wide continuum, from very specific suggestions on game features (e.g. changes on how specific gear works, minor tweaks to combat system, stims and enhancers, etc.) - mostly aimed at features already present in the game - within the existing framework, to more paradigm-shifting changes (e.g. the "open world" concept), to even broader concerns, which tend to end up being more unspecific criticism of the the design team for somehow chasing away the players. I'm seeing a lot of that one and I think they could turn into more constructive conversations if they were given some more specific context.
Does that make sense? I realize there is a TON of great suggestions here, but unless I'm missing something, without locating these individual threads and subscribing to them, I can't find a "wish-list" status very easily. These features are being planned for short-term enhancement, these are on the roadmap, these are probably a no-go, etc. Knowing what features are really in the pipeline may hold players' interest and keep them in the fold.
One suggestion might be to create more specific sub-topics under the "Suggestions and Feedback" thread, similar to the discussion about character class. Possible sub-top topics might include things like "Combat System", "Marketplace", "Social", "Campaign Ideas", etc. I know we couldn't have dozens of them, but I know some of the suggestions will fit nicely into the existing code framework, others would be a complete re-envisioning of the game. It would be nice for us to get enough feedback about the suggestions to know whether they are pretty easy to accomplish, or require a bunch of re-tooling and would be things we shouldn't get our hopes too high about.
A "Wish List Status" update sub-topic perhaps too, announcement style, from STS, on which suggestions have been evaluated and whether they are being considered, if they are planned, if so, when might they be added, etc.
The intended result here would be to make it EASIER for the community to feel like we are plugged in to the design process, so we get the game we want (alas, you can't please all the people all the time), but I think more feedback, in a more organized format, may keep people more engaged in the process and excited about future iterations of the game thus sticking around. Heck, even a green/yellow/red stamp for each suggestion (from the devs) would be great. "Probably", "Maybe", "No way", for example.
I just would like to see less "This company isn't giving us what we want" threads and more "Here's what would keep me and my friends excited about this game" ones. I think making it easier to categorize and follow up on the suggestions would help keep these conversations constructive.
Thoughts??
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