Important Information and Q&A!

[Jupitus]

Dear Freddys,

please see below an open letter from David Petit, the Head Community Manager in Europe for Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning. This aims to help clear up any current confusion and also serves as a thread in which you can ask questions of the GOA representatives to help with your understanding of the current and future plans.

From my own perspective, I am somewhat disappointed in alot of the already inflammatory posting being made and I plan to close some threads which I feel are not very constructive. Please note: this is my decision as a FH admin, and not at the bequest of GOA themselves. I will also be reinforcing some earlier commitments I made when we first created this Warhammer forum area in line with preventing it becoming an unruly and flame-ridden forum as happened, at times, with the DAOC section. With this in mind, please try to make sure that your posts are kept polite and constructive, then I am sure we will avoid any unwanted mod-stick moments

Originally Posted by David Petit, aka 'Citseko'

Hello,
My name is David Petit and I am in charge of all European community management for Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning.

As you know, we are approaching the launch date for the game and just as there is a lot of information released, so too will you have a lot of questions. This exciting but delicate period can create confusion between different sources with mistranslations that can result in apparent contradictions. These rumours and errors only make things worse for the WAR community. There is only one way to combat this: effective communication based on mutual confidence.

The objective of GOA for Warhammer Online is to make the game a success and the sole indicator of this is your satisfaction. Just as you may have read in various places, we have invested in a quality infrastructure as well as quality people in order to respond to all your concerns. It is this last point that I want to talk about today.

We manage five communities in Europe, with varied and diverse customs and it is clearly impossible to communicate in a single manner to all these communities without taking into account their nuances or adapting to their significant differences in sensibilities. From the perspective of effective control of our communications and to ensure we bring the best feedback to our partner Mythic, we have recruited community managers to work within each community. These are video games professionals who possess indispensible skills in their work but who are also players that love the communities they represent.

To avoid all misunderstandings, for clarification of a situation or to obtain official information, I recommend to you therefore that you turn to the community manager dedicated to your language. He can reassure you as to the validity of any information or discuss the details.

He will read your contributions, heed your opinions and requests, so do not hesitate to ask him questions or to address him directly. He is here for you and for the regulars of this place.

In collaboration with the administrators of this forum, this thread will in future be dedicated to all your questions concerning GOA and the operation of Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning in Europe. Iain Compton and Magnus Kjellstrom, the community managers for your community will answer your questions as quickly and clearly as possible.

Until our paths cross in the Old World

Best Regards

David Petit aka "Citseko"
Head Community Manager Europe
Warhammer Online : Age of Reckoning

[Nate]

When are we going to get a non flash web-site?

[Derian]

When are we going to get any information on how you propose to manage the Account creation, Open Beta code access and general information to ease some peoples minds on how a game they have possibly pre-ordered is going to unfold in the next 5 weeks until the launch of WAR? So far we have had very little information on anything since the 18th Sept announcement was made.

We just need some clarification!

[IainC]

Questions I can answer now will get an immediate answer, ones that require more info or a green light to release will be hitting David's email and we'll get you an answer back as soon as possible. The plan is that all serious questions will get answered.

Having said that, I'm going to have sporadic net access this evening and throughout tomorrow so I may not be posting here much until Sunday. Regardless of that, it won't be possible to get an answer to many questions until Monday at the earliest when people are in the office.

[Derian]

So will any information be getting released today? About the CB/OB, website or Code entering?

[Downanael]

Originally Posted by Nate

When are we going to get a non flash web-site?

I'd like to know this aswell.

[Xandax]

There is only one way to combat this: effective communication based on mutual confidence.

100% agree. So why is information not only ineffective but also contradicting between which source you just happen to read that specific day?
Why is this piece not found on the first page of the website? It is these things people want to know, and crave to know.

To avoid all misunderstandings, for clarification of a situation or to obtain official information, I recommend to you therefore that you turn to the community manager dedicated to your language.

Funny - I would have thought such issues would have been found on the official site where it is easy to get out to people, so they don't have to scavenge loads of unofficial forums, through countless of posts to try and deduct the information.
GOA have a website. Posting actual information there would be vastly more productive then hiding them away in various, more or less angry threads.
That is effective communication, educating the communities and player base - and potential customers - where to find information will drill out many, many rumors and make your life much much easier. A lesson I find it very strange you, as a company, have not learned yet, and does not promote and pursue. It is communication 101, not something secret.

Also all this "information is coming soon, just be patient" information is not actual communication. People are craving information and "soon(tm)" and "to be determined" and "when we are ready" really do not cut it.

Lastly - when your CMs say they will get back with information, make them do so.
Saying the 7th of august that, one expect to return with new information regarding a specific situation, for example what GOA could do extra for the CE people in response to Mythic's actions, after a few days; then *do* return with something after a few days - even just "we could do nothing because our servers aren't up" would alleviate many peoples annoyances.
It is such apathetic behaviour and statements, completely ignoring peoples concerns which cause people to cling on every word and haunt every statement.


So if "effective communication" is any kind of goal to go by - then do live up to it, instead of this ineffective communication we see right now.

Communication will be even more important come live, and people *will* turn to the website for official information and not some obscure post buried in a long thread. That is *not* effective.


I would also seriously wonder why you (as a company) still have the following listed as official information on the website:
WAR is currently scheduled for release in early 2008. It will be released simultaneously in North America and Europe.
Isn't that a somewhat embarrassing competence level, and think of the reflection it creates of the company? It doesn't create trust in the company taking its responsibilities serious one bit.
That is not effective communication, or even close.....

So I'm sorry, but in conclusion - I do currently think you bring most of the "flames" and "whines" on yourselves, and I simply can't phantom the methods you use right now, because they are neither effective nor even sensible from a communication, management and customer-relation viewpoint


(edit: hope it was constructive enough.)

[Linnet]

How many people do you plan to have in open beta?

Do you have any plans yet for server types? Will there be a RP server?

[Earl]

Will there be a preorder box for the standard edition? If so when will it be out? If so, where will it be out? Please tell me its GAME or somewhere too, since HMV stores 'near' me don't even sell pc games.

[MagnusGOA]

Echoing Iain, I too, will not have regular internet access during the weekend but I'll do my best to check back.

There are already many questions here deserving a straight answer. Me and Iain will share what answers we can, and where we cannot, we will escalate to someone who can do so for us.

I can, however, give you a straight answer here and now regarding the FAQ. The explanation is simple: the Community Management team has many areas of responsibility and the FAQ was neglected. Apologies for this. An updated version of the FAQ is in the process of being translated and will be online early next week.

I look forward to further questions being brought up here. Please refrain from /signed posts and keep the discussion on-topic. Constructive criticism will be listened to, bashing will not.

Until next time, I wish you a great weekend!
-Magnus

[Bahumat]

The people with Head Start, will we get a few days to download the client before the Head Start takes place?

[Dervish]

Or to rephrase Bahumat's question will there be one download for Open Beta that is patched and usuable in Headstart and then patched for Live servers so that we only have to do 1 big download?

[Derian]

I would like to know the answer on the download also. If it is like the US download it will be one big download with the ability to re-patch it for the live head start. So if Iain or Magnus can shed some light it would be helpful, also any info on my other questions would be good aswell.

[lerusius]

What happened to the 23.30 MTV Sweden WAR trailer? It did not show anything between 23.15 to 23.30? Or maybe I misunderstood when it was showing. Does it mean one time between 21:30 - 23:30?

[nelg39]

I posted my questions at WHA but since there up to 6 pages already thought id repeat my post here.

This is a good idea, and will go a long way to making us (EU customers) feel like we are getting an equal service.

Q1. will EU CE get a extended HS?
Q2. will EU CE get into CB?
Q3. will there be an EU Road to War?
Q4. when will we be able to down load the client?
Q5. when will we be able to set up are accounts?
Q6. will the EU SE be invited to OB?
Q7. when will the EU website be updated? answered next week sometime, good stuff, 1down.

War is much more than just another game, and thats why the community are so vocal about there concerns. Im a long time Daoc fan and can see the improvements that GOA have already made.

Thanks for your time and effort.