An Update from The Homecoming Team

[TonyV]

Just now, justicebeliever said:

There is almost no chance this is going to become a non-profit at this point...

 

We can't discuss details of what's we're working on, but I want to be 100% clear about this: There is absolutely zero chance that this will be for-profit. Screenshot this and hold me to it.

[justicebeliever]

2 minutes ago, MoggieCanada said:

I would have a problem with a subscription model. Anything else, particularly a model similar to Star Trek Online or Champions Online would be something I'm not on board with.

I'm sure their is an edit following this (forgive me for being so quick to respond), but you have  no problem with one of the models, and are not on board with the other 2?  Basically, don't like any of them?

Edited August 8, 2019 by justicebeliever
I see that you made the edit, so I edited mine...

[MoggieCanada]

Just now, justicebeliever said:

I'm sure their is an edit following this (forgive me for being so quick to respond), but you have a problem with one of the models, and are not on board with the other 2?  Basically, don't like any of them?

The edit already happened. 😄 ....I forgot the word "not". 

 

Truly, I am an idiot.

[justicebeliever]

15 hours ago, TonyV said:

 

We can't discuss details of what's we're working on, but I want to be 100% clear about this: There is absolutely zero chance that this will be for-profit. Screenshot this and hold me to it.

I'll believe it when I see it @TonyV...maybe it was premature to bring it up if you guys can't share any details, since all you are doing is fueling rampant speculation....

 

That said, I will take you at your word, and not post to the contrary any longer...

Edited August 8, 2019 by justicebeliever
silly spelling mistakes

[DeProgrammer]

1 minute ago, justicebeliever said:

I'll believe it when I see it @TonyV...maybe it was premature to bring it up if you guys can't share any details, since all you are doing is fueling rampart speculation....

 

That said, I will take you at your word, and not post to the contrary any longer...

Doesn't that sound like exactly the kind of thing businesses like to do--increase the hype? :P

[TonyV]

Just now, justicebeliever said:

I'll believe it when I see it TonyV...maybe it was premature to bring it up if you guys can't share any details, since all you are fueling is rampart speculation....

 

That said, I will take you at your word, and not post to the contrary any longer...

It's all good, really! And fair enough; I'm a HUGE believer in holding people accountable and remaining at least cautiously skeptical until someone gives you a reason to believe otherwise. I seriously hope that we can establish that level of credibility, but until we do, I'm not being facetious when I say you're absolutely justified and correct to be asking and thinking critically about what you're hearing.

[justicebeliever]

15 hours ago, DeProgrammer said:

Doesn't that sound like exactly the kind of thing businesses like to do--increase the hype? 😛

Hype is great, yes...Rampant Speculation could go any number of ways

 

We have a new secret powerset coming is different than we have a new business model coming

 

When this gets misquoted, I want to be clear, there is no secret powerset

Edited August 8, 2019 by justicebeliever
silly spelling mistakes

[Mansome]

I just hope you get permission. I couldn't bare the thought of losing this game again. I feel into a huge depression the first time.

[Tater Todd]

This is amazing news and now I know why you guys were so quiet!  (I was SEVERELY worried)  I can't wait and even if it becomes for profit I would gladly pay.

[Pie-ro]

Screw NCsoft they killed the game in the first place

[queenfrigid]

8 minutes ago, Mansome said:

I just hope you get permission. I couldn't bare the thought of losing this game again. I feel into a huge depression the first time.

I feel the same way.

[arkieboy72472]

Depending on how this plays out, myself and the people I play with will be leaving HC.

 

UNLESS they do some sort of thing, and I think it would be a fair trade, to allow in game advertising on signs and billboard etc. I think allowing for a promise to not come after you in exchange for adverts is a fair deal. However, if that also means they come after everyone else is a no-go. It does allow them to tout themselves as official. Honestly the other servers are so small in population that none of them are a challenge.

 

I wish they would just wait until they have more info than put this shit out and allow for all sorts of rumors. I can't see how this is a good thing, but I will wait and see and play a little longer while seas are calm. It was good for a while, at least. Considering all things, especially the history of all things and people involved, I am not optimistic.

[yukkuri]

I was dead certain that NCSoft would never even admit CoH existed let alone talk to anyone about this since that would be an admission of being wrong. I am pleased to find _myself_ wrong about it!

[Williwaw]

48 minutes ago, justicebeliever said:

We have a new secret powerset coming is different than we have a new business model coming

 

There's a new secret powerset?  Oh, man, now I'm really exicted!  I can't wait for...

 

When this gets misquoted, I want to be clear, there is no secret powerset

 

Oh. :(

[Omega-202]

I see nothing positive that can come from this.  

 

Option A) NCsoft issues a license to the HC team, for a fee.  Donations need to go up to compensate.  Other servers out there probably won't be able to afford a license and there's no way NCsoft will be willing to deal with places like /coxg/.  Eventually donations will peter out and the license will no longer be affordable.

 

Option B) NCsoft brings back a legit I24 server.  Goodbye all of our progress here.  Goodbye all of the I25 updates.  Goodbye streamlined progression.  Probably welcome back the MTXs.  

 

Option C) Negotiations go belly up and the whole shebang gets shutdown.  

 

I feel like the best scenario was to just tell them to pound sand.  It would be more hassle and expense for them to play whack-a-mole on servers and they'd quit really quickly.  

[Ironblade]

1 hour ago, justicebeliever said:

That'll be the moment that things start changing...Subscriptions?  F2P Model? Microtransactions?  Who knows, but they will need a revenue stream to support themselves...

Works for me.  I had two subscriptions active (for the perks) even after the game went F2P.  I needed two accounts because we could only have 12 characters per server originally.  By the time they increased that, I had two accounts.  And I bought every expansion/DLC/etc for the first account and everything but costume sets for the second account.

[Ironblade]

10 minutes ago, Omega-202 said:

I see nothing positive that can come from this.  

 

Option A) NCsoft issues a license to the HC team, for a fee.  Donations need to go up to compensate.  Other servers out there probably won't be able to afford a license and there's no way NCsoft will be willing to deal with places like /coxg/.  Eventually donations will peter out and the license will no longer be affordable.

 

Option B) NCsoft brings back a legit I24 server.  Goodbye all of our progress here.  Goodbye all of the I25 updates.  Goodbye streamlined progression.  Probably welcome back the MTXs.  

 

Option C) Negotiations go belly up and the whole shebang gets shutdown.  

 

I feel like the best scenario was to just tell them to pound sand.  It would be more hassle and expense for them to play whack-a-mole on servers and they'd quit really quickly.  

What was Vader's quote?  "I find your lack of faith disturbing."

Your depressing options are not the only possible outcomes.

[Omega-202]

8 minutes ago, Ironblade said:

What was Vader's quote?  "I find your lack of faith disturbing."

Your depressing options are not the only possible outcomes.

We're talking about NCsoft here.  They hold all of the cards and are under no obligation to play nice here.  I work in IP law, I know how these kinds of negotiations go.  

[TonyV]

6 minutes ago, Omega-202 said:

I see nothing positive that can come from this.  

 

Option A) NCsoft issues a license to the HC team, for a fee.  Donations need to go up to compensate.  Other servers out there probably won't be able to afford a license and there's no way NCsoft will be willing to deal with places like /coxg/.  Eventually donations will peter out and the license will no longer be affordable.

 

Option B) NCsoft brings back a legit I24 server.  Goodbye all of our progress here.  Goodbye all of the I25 updates.  Goodbye streamlined progression.  Probably welcome back the MTXs.  

 

Option C) Negotiations go belly up and the whole shebang gets shutdown.  

 

I feel like the best scenario was to just tell them to pound sand.  It would be more hassle and expense for them to play whack-a-mole on servers and they'd quit really quickly.  

Option D) None of the above...

 

Seriously, all I ask is to give us a little more time and wait until we can give some more details before deciding that it's all doom and gloom. I promise that if I didn't think this was going to be a good thing, I wouldn't be involved in it like I am. I'm not oblivious to the fact that at this point, my own reputation is inextricably tied to the outcome of what we're working on, and I'm not eager to come out of this with everyone thinking, "Man, Tony's an idiot." (Although I also recognize that a 5%-10% "hate rate" ain't so bad, so an occasional "Tony's an idiot" post doesn't get to me...)

 

Anyway, my point is that what we're working on isn't a "best deal we can get" situation. It is, in my opinion, a genuinely good deal. I'm trying my best to not get everyone overly worked up because nothing is inked yet and until it is I'll have a healthy dose of low-level paranoia. But I also think that as things are going, when we can talk more, a lot of skeptical people will come away pleasantly surprised.

[kajmir]

2 hours ago, xailadrell said:

As a question, if negotiations go tits up and they decide to protect the IP, what happens?

My question also.

[Number Six]

1 hour ago, arkieboy72472 said:

UNLESS they do some sort of thing, and I think it would be a fair trade, to allow in game advertising on signs and billboard etc. I think allowing for a promise to not come after you in exchange for adverts is a fair deal. However, if that also means they come after everyone else is a no-go. It does allow them to tout themselves as official. Honestly the other servers are so small in population that none of them are a challenge.

This is a common thing I see a lot, so let me just go ahead and shoot it down.

 

The code for in-game advertising is gone. It was licensed from a third party and could not be used or even bundled with the game anymore once their agreement with DoubleFusion ended. Paragon had already removed most of it, and the SCORE team ripped out what little was left.

 

That system is dead and it's not coming back.

[Moosejaw]

Full disclosure:  I am in no way affiliated with, well... anyone, really, and the following is just a random thought that occurred while reading this thread.

 

What if NCSoft provides Homecoming with a free license (almost certainly with a time restriction, say... 3 years) and pays (as someone else suggested via in-game ads on bulletin boards) for the server costs, etc., as a means of maintaining interest in CoX while they are working on a sequel.  A sequel which wouldn't have existed prior to all this free press and obviously positive response to the game's return.  What if we (Homecoming developers and we who simply play the game) have sparked a renaissance of interest in superhero games?

 

What if, in 2023, we were welcoming Planet of Heroes?

 

What if I was full of crap?

50/50

[Veracor]

This will be a very interesting development to follow.  We don't even know if the original people who shut down CoH are still at NCSoft anymore.  Rebuilding the old burned bridges and making efforts to become a legit operation is much better than having everyone stay whack-a-mole pirate islands with a constant, looming storm on the horizon.

 

Thank you for your efforts in not only providing us with a superb return to CoH, but also for being so professional in advancing and maintaining Homecoming as a project.  Whether it backfires or not, I have major respect for your courage in making this move.

[Abraxus]

First, folks have really got to stop speculating on this from the perspective of what they supposedly know.  The honest truth is, we know nothing about what is being discussed.  We got people ready to bail, and take their friends with them on the mere mention of this, without even knowing what it really means.  They are free to do so, but it would seem a little premature based on what we know so far.  There are those that have projected the scenarios they see possible, based on this announcement.  But, there are very likely possibilities that we can't imagine, because we don't have enough information to do so.  To assume that one knows for fact what will happen at this juncture, is presumptuous at best.

 

I was there for all the "Task Force Hail Mary", and "New Efforts" scenarios at Titan.  I checked the site every day for years looking for something, so I was a bit concerned too.  However, the fact that they were even able to say that things were looking very positive in this case, is more than we ever heard about those previous rounds of talks; which were so secret, we couldn't even know when they failed. 

 

I don't like the circumstances under which NCSoft closed down the game in 2012, and I was shocked to learn about the SCORE server that ran while I was pining away for the game.  But, what I don't do is hold grudges regardless of what has passed since then.  Life is too short.  So, I'll wait, and watch for more news, assuming good intent, until or unless I hear otherwise. 

 

In the meantime, I shall play the game!

Edited August 8, 2019 by Abraxus

[blam]

24 minutes ago, Number Six said:

The code for in-game advertising is gone. It was licensed from a third party and could not be used or even bundled with the game anymore once their agreement with DoubleFusion ended. Paragon had already removed most of it, and the SCORE team ripped out what little was left

I wanna mention that this is wrong. The code just wasn't released for the sole reason of it being used for monetary gains.