A Question from The Homecoming Team

[BurtHutt]

I have not gone through all of the posts so apologies if I have duplicate ideas here.

 

-New content with new environments. We have more than enough zones. Commit to making new environments and unique enemies in missions, TF/SF/Trials etc. This way it's another incentive to go do new content.

-More costume pieces

-Have as few servers as possible to ensure each server is busy. I know this is tricky but the Live version had WAY TOO many servers (maybe even when it was at its busiest).

-Continue to rely on a donation model for service. I am always happy to donate to the cause. So, continue as is - free to play with awesome content.

-Do not get bogged down in extensive, long, drawn out storylines like the previous devs. The Coming Storm took forever and the Praetoria content was beyond tiresome when it got all said and done. Each addition (issue) could almost be stand-alone and not have to go on and on and on and on.... So, let's not take forever to roll out stories etc - you may never get the chance to complete the arc. Also: fan fatigue.

-Try and add unique content. Maybe some quick hit type missions or activities. The DFB and DiB are great examples of mini-TFs that can be done in short time and are quick and fun. Also, they don't involve running all over God's half acre to get to the next mission (like Citahell and other, older TFs). More of this and maybe even some other unique angles to what players can do. 

-Speaking of old, awful TFs...maybe revamp a couple more or just add new ones. 

 

I'll add more later! 🙂

[BurtHutt]

5 hours ago, Robotech_Master said:

As long as we're blue-skying, how about getting some of the writers who originally worked on CoH back to do more content and stuff? Of course, you'd have to pay them, but perhaps that kind of thing could be crowdfunded along with the server costs. 

I would be opposed to this. I think the previous Devs and writers had their time and it's up. Let's put on a brand new coat of paint! Here's to hoping the new Devs are more open to incorporating what the players want.

 

Perhaps even having a poll on the website and having players pick which key features they'd like to see added in the next issue. Maybe put 3 big features up for vote and go from there. Perhaps each issue should have one part be all about the fan voted content. Not the entire issue is decided by fans but one part of it - maybe a new TF or a new power set and so on.

[Straenge]

Personally I would like to see a change in content a little. The Heist mission in the Blockbuster is actually fun and not just "go kill everything".. would love to see more like that as well as implementing other non-combat missions or even day jobs where you actually have to do something.. maybe a secret identity system as well for perks. 

[BlastLord]

A Perk tree system for endgame content

[Goblin Queen]

A naming system similar to Champions Online.

[norphlet]

I haven't read every post in this thread so if I cover something that's been over stated please forgive me. I will be sort of stating the obvious in some instances for clarification purposes.

Licensing Concerns

 

I know next to nothing about corporate law. However whatever deal you guys work out I hope it's some sort of flat fee access to the related copyrighted intellectual properties and related game engine software.  If you can at some point buy out either (not holding my breath for that) for a reasonable price great. If I am correct that will limit most liability concerns for NC Soft and allow you guys a great deal of creative freedom.

 

Cost

 

Running COH as a 501c.3 will eliminate pretty much all 3rd party intellectual property concerns as no profit is being made. 

Announced or scheduled increases to the monthly donations for hardware and software improvements, or labor costs for game or content updates with community input would be good.
 

Game Mechanics and Content

 

I would like to see some streamlining of the game content that was designed for a profit making model and veteran rewards.

For example re-imagining some of the now "free" powers like the Sands of Mu and the Nemesis Staff. Maybe where you get access to a set number of powers that are visually and functionally customize-able. For example one static melee and ranged power set that allows you to choose from a unique custom animation, possibly origin themed. As well as what kind of damage it does. Fire, Ice, darkness etc. with all the choices having the same basic dps. Customizing secondary effects as well if possible.

The same could be done with introductory travel powers as far as unique custom animations go.

Also looking into modifying the standard travel powers would be nice. This could be done in a number of ways that I'm sure the community would be up for throwing out ideas for.

The possibility of granting one highly customize-able  and slot-able power per character. I'm sure this would take a lot of work but it's something that would allow for a good bit of theme related flexibility.

Several games allow for character to be "reincarnated" and start over at 1st level with different Archetypes or classes. Granting them some minor stackable bonuses each time they do. I'd like to see if something like this would be possible.

Restarting "Veteran Rewards" with just repeating bonus cycles of some sort. That way there isn't a constant pressure to come out with unique game content every few months. Nothing too game breaking mechanically but something like repeating resource rewards or some sort of minor buff or tie in with an expanding set of utility related veteran powers static or not, that you slowly unlock abilities for. Again this can be done several ways.

Lastly I would look forward to what everyone else does. Quality of life improvements, new power sets, new archetypes, new costumes, new contents. All the stuff that makes this game great.

[Zodai]

2 hours ago, BurtHutt said:

I would be opposed to this. I think the previous Devs and writers had their time and it's up. Let's put on a brand new coat of paint! Here's to hoping the new Devs are more open to incorporating what the players want.

 

Perhaps even having a poll on the website and having players pick which key features they'd like to see added in the next issue. Maybe put 3 big features up for vote and go from there. Perhaps each issue should have one part be all about the fan voted content. Not the entire issue is decided by fans but one part of it - maybe a new TF or a new power set and so on.

As someone who's a writer myself, I want to say something like... if old writers want to return to their old world, we could at least allow them the possibility, though on the other hand I think new blood would be valuable as well.  There's probably people who have fond memories of CoH who have become great writers in the years since.  Though we shouldn't just pull from old CoH players.

[Hellkite]

I think it would be kind of awesome you have a concert in Pocket D to celebrate the return of the game. There must be some decent band that used to play CoH that would be up for it. Even if there isn't it would be awesome to have a party like the good ol' days. 😊

[tavmminqat]

Something I would love to see is the expansion of Kheldian/Nictus/Warshade lore. Perhaps with some space missions involving them, really start bringing in that interstellar aspect that you see in things like the Justice League, or Green Lantern. Heroes and space have been a thing for a long time and if love to see that explored further.

[ET3D]

From my point of view, the main question isn't what I'd like to see but what a license would allow.

 

I'd find it surprising if Homecoming could offer a licensed server and at the same time offer unlicensed servers. It doesn't seem like something that a reasonable licensor would allow.

 

Beyond that, the question is whether a license would allow continued game development. A licensed game would likely include oversight from the licensor, meaning that the Homecoming team may not be able to freely change the game as they (or the community) wish.

 

That doesn't mean that licensing is bad. I would certainly prefer that Homecoming had an official license to do what it does. That could make it safer in the long term, and open the way to future incarnations of the game. But that's if the license is good enough. It could certainly make things worse if it isn't.

 

A license could also imply that some money needs to exchange hands, perhaps on a regular basis. How this affects the game would depend on the sum.

 

So the simple answer to "What do you want to see out of a legitimate, licensed City of Heroes server?" is "the license".

 

Which of course isn't a great answer, but to me is the important part, because much depends on it.

[ET3D]

To answer more to the point, I'd have to preface and say that I'm not a Homecoming player and might never be. CoH was my favourite game, but I'm not much of a gamer these days. I'm still fond of CoH, of course, and might at some point try it, and the air of legitimacy that an official server would provide could certainly help in that.

 

Still, I'm unlikely to play if the game is made subscription based, or has an entry cost of more than $10. Though I might donate such a sum anyway, just for old times sake, like the Kickstarter backing I sometimes do even though I know I won't play the games.

 

If an official server means charging people for stuff, that's cool. I've never been against buying cosmetic items, or even game systems (paying for classes, housing, whatever). I've done it in EverQuest II and wouldn't mind doing it in another game.

 

But please don't go the CoH Freedom way. That was an incredibly convoluted system that really made non-sub players feel like second tier citizens.

 

 

Regarding game changes, the things I liked about CoH were on one hand its solo friendliness, casual friendliness and simplicity. Really, it was just something that one could enter, play for half an hour and still feel a sense of accomplishment. One could study things in more details and get more efficient, but it was also noob and casual friendly. And it was also quite easy to find a group if I wanted that, and then apologise and drop it if I needed to go.

 

The other thing was the fact that it had stories, and a lot of options for character concepts and costumes, and it actually encouraged people to write some text about their characters. It also had scripts for advanced users, which allowed even more outrageous character concepts to be created (like a balloon clown I created at some point, who'd jump all the time and randomly spew jokes). And the fact that it wasn't a hard game meant that I could select powers which weren't optimal for gameplay but fit a character concept. Oh, and having tons of character slots.

 

Different people would have different things they like about CoH, but these are the things I personally would like to see kept.

[YuDaiNao]

I want base raids back! keep doin what Yu doin! ILY!

and STF from ouro.. noty Yin!

Edited September 11, 2019 by YuDaiNao

[hermeticus]

More than anything else - anything:

 

A guarantee of permanence.

 

I cannot express to you what a blow it was to me when the game went away, particularly so suddenly.  I am glad that for most of you I don't need to.

 

That, however, is truly what I find that I wish for most deeply here:  freedom from the fear of losing my investment of time and heart, freedom to invest my creativity and ideas and soul and share it all without it vanishing without a trace.

 

Permanence.

 

...and thank you very much for asking -- sincerely. 

[DamageSponge]

Non-exclusive character names. 

[Oklahoman]

4 hours ago, hermeticus said:

More than anything else - anything:

 

A guarantee of permanence.

 

I cannot express to you what a blow it was to me when the game went away, particularly so suddenly.  I am glad that for most of you I don't need to.

 

That, however, is truly what I find that I wish for most deeply here:  freedom from the fear of losing my investment of time and heart, freedom to invest my creativity and ideas and soul and share it all without it vanishing without a trace.

 

Permanence.

 

...and thank you very much for asking -- sincerely. 

What he said.

 

and more Epic power pools.

 

but mostly what he said. 

[Hrothgan]

Don't know if this would even be possible, but some sort of group finder. Would be nice to just be able to find a group at the click of a button rather than having to rely on the LFG chat. It can be quite difficult at the moment to find a group when not playing on peak hours.

Edited September 11, 2019 by Darlomidge

[EggKookoo]

3 hours ago, DamageSponge said:

Non-exclusive character names. 

/JRanger

 

Instead, we should have more characters per name. Not that it's particularly tight now, but more would be nice. CoH is all about your character being unique. Your name should be no exception. If you want an MMO where you're not asked to use your creative juices when making another xXxDriztxXx, WoW is hanging out somewhere.

 

And more selectable prefix/suffix options, like how we have The. Things like Doctor, Mister/Miss/Mrs., Professor, Master, Acolyte, Apprentice, military ranks, and so on for prefixes. And maybe Jr., Sr. (or even spelled out as Junior and Senior), Roman numerals (I, II, etc.), Esquire, Incorporated, and other fun terms for suffixes. These wouldn't count against the character limit for your name and would open up quite a few name options without bloating out the character count in the database. And it might alleviate the feeling of not getting a name you really want without having a bunch of copycat names running around.

[Drakwatch]

Goes without saying that Free-to-play without a cash store would be the smart way to go. I think the most important things for the future of the game would be transparency in funding, development, and management. Being player run, it's really important to show -how- it's being run and really solidifies trust in the devs. Continued community feedback and testing with changes and updates would fall under this and the devs have been good about this. Personally, I think the efforts made towards future game sustainability has been great so far.

 

I'm just going to bullet from now on:

• Continued (and maybe expanded on) weekly strike forces. Maybe smaller rewards for specific story arcs or zone content?
• More community events
• Supporting and promotion of AE custom story arcs would be great and maybe get more people go jump into non-farming AE missions. 
• Continued adjustment and improvements in balancing archetypes for PvE and PvP.

As for new content, this is my personal wishlist (not sure how possible these are ATM, but "I want to believe":

• Completion of new pool powers from live (i25) (Experimentation, Force of Will, Gadgetry, Utility Belt) I highlighted this because it is very important to me.
• Wind Control for Controllers and Dominators.
• More Mastermind customization - colors, new skins for pets or custom costume parts
• More frankentypes? Some kind of melee mastermind would be sweet.
• New costumes / textures / patterns
• Asymmetrical gloves, boots, and shoulders.
• New trials and missions on the LFG finder (like Death from Below, Summer blockbuster, Drowing in Blood, ect.)
• Related to above ^ MORE incarnate trials and incarnate content
• More Lore pets
• More seasonal events and activities
• New task forces
• Completed content in Kalisti Warf? (this is a lot of work considering what Paragon Studios had planned, so I'm not sure what is possible)

That's all I can think of right now.  City of Heroes is really important to me - just having it back is a feat in itself. I really just want it to stay for good this time.

 

[buzzbcm]

Complete amnesty to any and all civil and/or criminal liability for all entities in regards to accumulating, disseminating, or modifying the source code.

Guaranteed amnesty for players for downloading and playing on all  rogue servers.

Free reign to design characters regarding pesky copywrite complications involving intellectual "properties".

NCsuckz can never shut it down never ever ever. 

"           " relinquishes any and all claims to characters created on the 'City Of ' servers.

Matt gets to be called Positron again.

No Mr Emmert, respectfully ( Im sure he means well).

No cash shop, P2W, lockboxes, or paywall. Basically, they should just give up the rights, and let people do whatever they want with the game.

Then I will pettition the community for an end to the boycott.

Thank-You for asking my opinion. 

 

 

 

 

[Chuckers]

Color tintable chest hair for male characters! Monstrous fur only works with open jackets.

[DamageSponge]

1 hour ago, EggKookoo said:

/JRanger

Instead, we should have more characters per name. Not that it's particularly tight now, but more would be nice. CoH is all about your character being unique. Your name should be no exception. If you want an MMO where you're not asked to use your creative juices when making another xXxDriztxXx, WoW is hanging out somewhere.

 

 I just don't enjoy spending 1 hour on each character trying all kinds of different stuff to find that one that isn't taken.  I don't care if someone's got a level 1 alt gathering dust with the same name.  We have global handles to tell people apart.  (And no, I don't pick common names from well-known IPs, nice assumption there, though.)

[Puma]

1 hour ago, DamageSponge said:

 

 I just don't enjoy spending 1 hour on each character trying all kinds of different stuff to find that one that isn't taken.  I don't care if someone's got a level 1 alt gathering dust with the same name.  We have global handles to tell people apart.  (And no, I don't pick common names from well-known IPs, nice assumption there, though.)

Agreed.  I mean, if DC and Marvel can have characters with the same name, so should we be able to.  


It's not the NAME that makes your character unique. 

[jubakumbi]

6 minutes ago, Puma said:

It's not the NAME that makes your character unique. 

To You.

Having a unique name is what makes it unique to a lot of people.

This has been a 'holy war' in CoH from Day 0.

 

Even at the end of Retail Live, we were still able to make new characters with uniquie and fun/interesting/timely names.

 

 

 

It is one of the few places IMO no changes should be made, as it is such a deep part of what makes the game what it is, coupled with the real life problem of actually doing it - the information I have suggests that the unique names are a deep part of the underying code, so a change of this nature might be a lot more trouble than it could be worth - just to piss off the same number of people that feel pissed on...

 

Like so many changes, it is very hard to gauge just how much this is really wanted, with the real potential to cuase more players to leave than to stay...

Edited September 11, 2019 by jubakumbi
speeling

[EggKookoo]

1 hour ago, DamageSponge said:

 

 I just don't enjoy spending 1 hour on each character trying all kinds of different stuff to find that one that isn't taken.  I don't care if someone's got a level 1 alt gathering dust with the same name.  We have global handles to tell people apart.  (And no, I don't pick common names from well-known IPs, nice assumption there, though.)

It was a nice assumption, wasn't it? I mean even if it didn't apply to you specifically, it's pretty accurate in general.

 

So here's how I would solve your problems. First, I'd remind you that you can check a name's availability and reserve it before going down the path of building your character and designing a costume. I'm sure you know that but it's a big deal and I wish other games did that.

 

Second, I'd ask CoH to have some kind of random name generator a la WoW, except one that works and doesn't randomly generate names that are already taken. I mean, come on Random Name Generator, you got one job!

 

Third, and I think they did something like this in live and if I understand right is currently implemented in HC, if you have a level 1 alt collecting dust beyond a certain idle time, its name becomes available for use. I think this even applies to levels above first but the idle time increases. Not sure about the specifics.

 

Finally, I'd point you to places like thesaurus.com (and many similar sites). Honestly I'm not trying to be snarky here, I love that place. I look up all kinds of name ideas. Also, dig into alternate languages. My brother likes to pick common Arabic words, but that depends on the flavor of the character.

 

It's not like I don't feel your pain. Back on live my wife had Virus (which rocked when she got a title and became Killer Virus). But that's been taken on HC, so she's come up with something else. It happens. It's an opportunity to broaden your vocabulary. My main is a speedster with his name based on the Sanskrit root word for "cheetah." Because, you know, Cheetah was taken.

11 minutes ago, jubakumbi said:

To You.

Having a unique name is what makes it unique to a lot of people.

This has been a 'holy war' in CoH from Day 0.

For me a name is paramount. I won't create a character unless I have a name. Powers are just powers...

[Abraxus]

10 minutes ago, EggKookoo said:

For me a name is paramount. I won't create a character unless I have a name. Powers are just powers...

That's interesting.  I typically create characters by visualizing who they are, and what they can do.  The name is usually what comes last in my process.  That said, I have never created a character whose name was already taken when I checked, so I guess I've done well on that count. 😎

Edited September 11, 2019 by Abraxus