COH officially coming back? New Content?

[Sepherion]

Just saw NCSoft is rebooting COH. Can we expect new content and or a flushed out endgame? Thank in advance!

[FupDup]

For new content, there will gradually be stuff like story arcs and powersets added.

 

For an endgame, probably not, at least as far as we've seen/heard up to this point. As it stands, the true endgame is still just Altitis...and I'm kind of okay with that, seeing what other games like Diablo 4 call an "endgame." 

Edited January 14 by FupDup

[Troo]

1 hour ago, Sepherion said:

Just saw NCSoft is rebooting COH. Can we expect new content and or a flushed out endgame? Thank in advance!

 

uh, i don't think there is a reboot. link if you know different.

 

Homecoming did get an official NCSoft license but that's different.

[Williwaw]

1 hour ago, Sepherion said:

Just saw NCSoft is rebooting COH. Can we expect new content and or a flushed out endgame? Thank in advance!

It's not a reboot; Homecoming is now the official CoH server.  Nothing else should change (including already-planned HC developments), except that it's now officially sanctioned by NCSoft.  They're not adding subscription fees or anything else.

[Greycat]

4 hours ago, Sepherion said:

Just saw NCSoft is rebooting COH. Can we expect new content and or a flushed out endgame? Thank in advance!

 

Homecoming now has a license, this isn't a "Reboot." NCSoft isn't doing anything regarding development - they're (from how it sounds) getting a licensing fee from HC.

 

As far as new content? We've already been *getting* new content for the past several years. Is it *fast,* no - but it's developed and tested. Don't forget, this is a strictly volunteer team. They're not being paid by NCSoft now, they're not really that large, this is not (and can't be) like live with an entire internal team of coders, artists, QA, the original tools/plugins, etc. working 40(+) hour weeks on this.

 

So - and I'd say this in genral - temper your expectations. What sort of things can you expect to see?

 

New content? (story arcs, for example?) Certainly. We've gotten them before, just look through the pages/issues notes.

 

New zones? I'm *leaning* on "probably not," I don't know what tools the team has to say yes or no to that. Though they *can* edit the zones (see AE removal from Atlas/Mercy.)

 

Endgame content? Depends what you mean by it. We have harder and harder modes (with rewards!) for existing TFs (and new ones - you'll see Dr. Aeon advertised in LFG, for instance) for those needing more of a challenge, for instance. A brand new *raid?* I don't know how much more that takes vs. a story arc (and they'd have to place it somewhere.)

 

We'll never have so much content that you won't run out. It'll take a bit, but even on live they couldn't do that. I've played enough that my "content" is whatever I create in AE and/or RP - lots of RP.

[Grouchybeast]

8 hours ago, Greycat said:

 

NCSoft isn't doing anything regarding development - they're (from how it sounds) getting a licensing fee from HC.

 

According to the announcement FAQ, there's no fee being paid.

[lemming]

Not a reboot, mostly just a continuation of what HC has been doing since 2019 without fearing NCSoft lawyers.

 

There is at least one new zone, though more a proof of concept, Echo Plaza, which is found off Pocket D, or any tunnel.  I know that there are plans for Kallisti Wharf, but no timeline announced on that.   (KW was on Beta before shutdown)

 

There's been quite a bit of new content in the forms of some player arcs and task forces.

[Excraft]

13 hours ago, Williwaw said:

Homecoming is now the official CoH server. 

 

Well no it's not "the official server", it just has permission via NCSoft now via a "license."  As I understand based on the official license thread, HC is the only server at the moment to have a "license".  There's nothing preventing other servers from getting the same from NCSoft should they choose to pursue it. 

[Ironblade]

10 hours ago, Excraft said:

Well no it's not "the official server", it just has permission via NCSoft now via a "license."  As I understand based on the official license thread, HC is the only server at the moment to have a "license".

So you're saying it's not "the official server", it is merely *A* official server, of which there currently is ONLY ONE.

So it's the only official server, but it's not "the official server".  Do I have that right?

[PancakeGnome]

On 1/13/2024 at 11:35 PM, FupDup said:

 

For an endgame, probably not, at least as far as we've seen/heard up to this point. As it stands, the true endgame is still just Altitis...and I'm kind of okay with that, seeing what other games like Diablo 4 call an "endgame." 

I think the endgame should be PVPVE..... player created content for players through the architect system. A progression to live out a top villain or hero designing missions for other players to go on that will level them up for interesting rewards and give the other players rewards too. 

The architect system was such a great first step towards opening up a ton of content for players. But they were scared of people leveling too fast (lol) or farming (lol) and getting other rewards from it..... in the end, none of that mattered. Now you can farm and level up and all the rest doing all sorts of things just as easy. 

[Excraft]

13 hours ago, Ironblade said:

So you're saying it's not "the official server", it is merely *A* official server, of which there currently is ONLY ONE.

So it's the only official server, but it's not "the official server".  Do I have that right?

 

That isn't what I said at all.  There's nothing in the announcement about the new "license" that expressly says HC is now the one and only "official server" and that HC will be the one and only "official server" from now until the end of time.  Again, it's just the only server who has a "license" at present, which means HC has an agreement with NCSof, and from the sound of it isn't something thats exclusively only for HC.  There's doesn't look to be anything preventing other servers from pursuing the same "license" agreement with NCSoft to operate their servers if they wanted to, nor is there anything saying other servers need to shut down and stop operating because HC is now the "one and only official server."  If you want to believe it is, go right ahead. 

[Black Talon]

All thanks, to everyone here, for the expansion and clarification on this.  Regardless as to whether NCSoft provides financial/personnel backing or has just waved the hand and said, "Yeah, sure, you guys represent the IP now," it counts as a serious positive development, especially considering how quickly and callously NCSoft shut things down a little over eleven years ago.  If anything, I think this incites a major round of applause for the Homecoming crew, who have given so damn much of their time, effort and dedication to something where the major benefit is knowing that life has been restored to what had it stolen.  God knows how many successor projects - and we sure as all-get-out have discussed those hobbled efforts in depth - have dehydrated and whispered away like dust in the wind not because of financial starvation, but because the people involved had just enough of all this to justify calling it quits.  New content, old, or published AE stuff, it makes no difference: we have been given a world in which humans can fly (among other travel powers), and that's good enough for me.

[StarseedWarrior]

On 1/14/2024 at 11:38 PM, PancakeGnome said:

I think the endgame should be PVPVE..... player created content for players through the architect system. A progression to live out a top villain or hero designing missions for other players to go on that will level them up for interesting rewards and give the other players rewards too. 

The architect system was such a great first step towards opening up a ton of content for players. But they were scared of people leveling too fast (lol) or farming (lol) and getting other rewards from it..... in the end, none of that mattered. Now you can farm and level up and all the rest doing all sorts of things just as easy. 

I always wondered why there was not already end game content like this, its really the perfect solution considering its all fan updated now.

[Snowbunny]

On 1/14/2024 at 9:38 PM, PancakeGnome said:

I think the endgame should be PVPVE..... player created content for players through the architect system. A progression to live out a top villain or hero designing missions for other players to go on that will level them up for interesting rewards and give the other players rewards too. 

The architect system was such a great first step towards opening up a ton of content for players. But they were scared of people leveling too fast (lol) or farming (lol) and getting other rewards from it..... in the end, none of that mattered. Now you can farm and level up and all the rest doing all sorts of things just as easy. 

 

THIS!!!! Sorry, I don't really know what to say but I agree with this. 

[Ruin Mage]

So I don't have a linkable source or a screenshot proof but I believe the answer to that is this;

It's not as easy as one might think to translate Architect Missions into actual missions.

They are not a 1 to 1 translation, and then there's the fact that maybe it doesn't fit the sort of stories HC wants to tell. There's a probable laundry list of why Architect Entertainment stuff cannot/has not been taken from AE and made into other content.

Secondly, PVP is not one of the main draws of the game and even if we do have 4 zones + the Arena for it? It's not exactly something that got a lot of great love (or well-received attention if you look at I13) -- the future is not in PVP, really, or involving it into the endgame at all -- that being my opinion.

CoH's "endgame" was only just beginning when it shut down, but even then it wasn't much of an endgame. CoH isn't like WoW or WoW-Clone MMOs.

To the matter of content in general;

• Homecoming works on the basis of Quality over Quantity. It's "easy" to mass produce powersets ala a dart board and call it a day. It's not easy to match those sets to the standard they hold themselves/try to hold themselves to.
• They are volunteers - real life takes priority. Their jobs take priority.
• New Devs take time to vet and train.

There's likely more points I'm missing, but be patient. Things will come when they are ready. It's feasible they wanted to get stuff out but couldn't for any number of reasons.

[Andreah]

3 minutes ago, Ruin Mage said:

• They are volunteers - real life takes priority. Their jobs take priority.

I'll put some emphasis on this. Not only do they have limited time, they're also motivated for their own reasons. One can't just assign a volunteer developer a project and expect them to work on it like one would with a paid employee. They need to be individually invested in their projects to get real work done. This complicates big projects and expansion plans because you have to plan around the developers you have and what they're willing to put effort in to. 

 

So I don't expect a lot of new content from them. I'm okay with that, since the game as it is is still a lot of fun and enjoyment. For most people, "Alt-itis" really is the current and foreseeable endgame, and they're happy with that. There is a vast panoply of possible characters to try out, and they play differently even in identical content. 

[mistagoat]

On 1/15/2024 at 12:38 AM, PancakeGnome said:

I think the endgame should be PVPVE..... player created content for players through the architect system. A progression to live out a top villain or hero designing missions for other players to go on that will level them up for interesting rewards and give the other players rewards too. 

The architect system was such a great first step towards opening up a ton of content for players. But they were scared of people leveling too fast (lol) or farming (lol) and getting other rewards from it..... in the end, none of that mattered. Now you can farm and level up and all the rest doing all sorts of things just as easy. 

If you're suggesting that end game content should require participation in any amount of PVP then I could not possibly disagree more! As it stands PVP can be ignored at all levels with no detriment to my character, that should remain the standard. No PVP in my PVE please.

[Troo]

On 1/13/2024 at 7:29 PM, Sepherion said:

Can we expect new content and or a flushed out endgame? Thank in advance!

 

check it out..

32 minutes ago, Widower said:

Issue 27: Page 7 - Coming Soon!
The next major update, Issue 27: Page 7, will be coming to Open Beta very soon™. This update is huge - new power sets, new story arcs (including the finale of Piecemeal’s story), zone updates, new customization options, enemy group updates, and our next Advanced Difficulty Task Force: Lady Grey.

 

We hope you like reading, as the patch notes are nearly 70 pages long when pasted into a document.

[PancakeGnome]

4 hours ago, mistagoat said:

If you're suggesting that end game content should require participation in any amount of PVP then I could not possibly disagree more! As it stands PVP can be ignored at all levels with no detriment to my character, that should remain the standard. No PVP in my PVE please.

No no, PVP is superrr broken, and it isn't really what the normal game is about. 

Instead, I mean PVE content.... basically villains and heroes living out the "mastermind" or "super commander" role by creating missions they send other villains and heroes on. 

AND the very high end should be the "PVPVE" content, which is PVP using the PVE content!!! Where architects are trying to WIN with their mission. Where you go into it knowing "ok, whoever designed this wants us dead.....we need to be careful". Giving a more unique PVE experience at the high end, where you are moving forward actually afraid of what is going to happen, because you know they aren't holding back. 

It could be balanced by limiting the number of "big moves" an architect could make. And if the architect is able to defeat the heroes, then they get some sort of bonus as they work towards their ultimate mastermind goal. And it could be a set number of "objective arcs". 

Basically, it is a system that rewards not just the people doing the missions....but also the person who designs them. Make creating missions be part of the game and part of a character. Make sitting in a base scheming and planning and putting it all together actually the gameplay of that hero / villain. 

 

Mission Progression:

1. Phase 1 - The Heist/Defense:

   • The villain architect designs a mission where their NPC character attempts to steal something (e.g., technology, information) from a lab.
   • Heroes are tasked to stop this heist. If they fail, the villain progresses; if they succeed, the villain must regroup.

2. Phase 2 - Escalation or Regrouping:

   • If the villain succeeds in Phase 1, the next mission involves using the stolen item for a larger plan (e.g., building a weapon, hacking a network).
   • If the villain fails, they must design a mission to regroup, like stealing resources or freeing captured allies.

3. Phase 3 - Showdown or Desperation:

   • Success in Phase 2 leads to a grand plan (e.g., activating a doomsday device, launching a large-scale attack). This is the climax for the villain.
   • Failure leads to a desperate last stand or an attempt to salvage what's left of their plan.

4. Phase 4 - Resolution:

   • Depending on previous outcomes, this could be a final battle, a peace negotiation, or cleaning up the aftermath.

So it isn't just "one mission and it's over". Its a set of higher stakes end game content.

Then just have some rewards that make it interesting to the end game....and things will be fun for everyone.

[mistagoat]

5 minutes ago, PancakeGnome said:

No no, PVP is superrr broken, and it isn't really what the normal game is about. 

Instead, I mean PVE content.... basically villains and heroes living out the "mastermind" or "super commander" role by creating missions they send other villains and heroes on. 

AND the very high end should be the "PVPVE" content, which is PVP using the PVE content!!! Where architects are trying to WIN with their mission. Where you go into it knowing "ok, whoever designed this wants us dead.....we need to be careful". Giving a more unique PVE experience at the high end, where you are moving forward actually afraid of what is going to happen, because you know they aren't holding back. 

It could be balanced by limiting the number of "big moves" an architect could make. And if the architect is able to defeat the heroes, then they get some sort of bonus as they work towards their ultimate mastermind goal. And it could be a set number of "objective arcs". 

Basically, it is a system that rewards not just the people doing the missions....but also the person who designs them. Make creating missions be part of the game and part of a character. Make sitting in a base scheming and planning and putting it all together actually the gameplay of that hero / villain. 

 

Mission Progression:

1. Phase 1 - The Heist/Defense:

   • The villain architect designs a mission where their NPC character attempts to steal something (e.g., technology, information) from a lab.
   • Heroes are tasked to stop this heist. If they fail, the villain progresses; if they succeed, the villain must regroup.

2. Phase 2 - Escalation or Regrouping:

   • If the villain succeeds in Phase 1, the next mission involves using the stolen item for a larger plan (e.g., building a weapon, hacking a network).
   • If the villain fails, they must design a mission to regroup, like stealing resources or freeing captured allies.

3. Phase 3 - Showdown or Desperation:

   • Success in Phase 2 leads to a grand plan (e.g., activating a doomsday device, launching a large-scale attack). This is the climax for the villain.
   • Failure leads to a desperate last stand or an attempt to salvage what's left of their plan.

4. Phase 4 - Resolution:

   • Depending on previous outcomes, this could be a final battle, a peace negotiation, or cleaning up the aftermath.

So it isn't just "one mission and it's over". Its a set of higher stakes end game content.

Then just have some rewards that make it interesting to the end game....and things will be fun for everyone.

Okay, I gotcha! It's an interesting concept. Sorry for jumping to conclusions, I see the letters "PVP" and go red!