Original Post — Direct link
Hi Holotable Heroes,

The Developer Q&A is starting shortly! We've got tons of good questions from the survey but feel free to add more to this thread or the survey! We will be starting at around 2 PM PT.
See you all shortly!

Who is who?
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[*] CG_Carrie - Senior Producer
[*] CG_Tophat - Live Producer
[*] CG_Erik - Player Lifecycle Producer
[*] CG_154M - Feature Producer
[*] CG_Cyanides - Data Analyst
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almost 5 years ago - CG_SBCrumb - Direct link
CG_Carrie's Responses:

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[*] Q: Will you ever add multibuy to bronzium data cards?
[*] A: CG_Carrie: There are no plans for this. I think we get this question at least a few times a year, but the short of it is, when ally points were used as the currency in the old Tournament system, that was a big mistake that we made. When we turned off Tournaments, we didn't feel like we could take away the currency that was granted, even though we didn't want it to be used to open Bronzium packs at that amount. We probably should have then, but instead have decided to let it sit, and find other ways for you to spend large amounts of the ally points via the weekly shipments. NR: We'll likely try to find other ways for you to use large amounts of Ally Points on something that's meaningful for where you are in the game.
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[*] Q: On IOS devices when attempting a Territory War the game shuts down going into battle. When will we see a hot patch fix for this? -ScottDeluia
[*] A: CG_Carrie: If you're on a very old iOS device, we're aware that the performance issues have been getting subsequently worse. We are seeing this on iPad 2 and iPhone 4S in particular, and it may be that we aren't able to maintain the performance for the number of people on those devices. There was an asset download stalling/hang issue that got worse in the last update that we are fixing in TU16 (next big client update). But as we move forward, we also may need to start blacklisting or highly recommending alternate devices for those that are 6-8 years old. It's the nature of the growth of the game over time and the things we're doing to add to the experience as technologies evolve.
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[*] Q: There is a little sound that is heard right before most attacks, is that meant to be a sort of “dice roll” sound effect as a result of playing the holotables? -Dusty
[*] A: CG_Carrie: While I love this explanation, our audio guy believes you're commenting on the UI click made by pressing the button. Alas, that was the intention, but I'm going to think dice roll from now on!
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[*] Q: I took a year break from this game and as such my arena and my ship arena are brutally difficult; I see similar rosters as mine who rank in the top 10s and getting massive amounts of rewards while I am struggling; my question how is this equitable: will you guys address this type of issue? - A struggling old gamer new to the new ways
[*] A: CG_Carrie: We've been talking for awhile about how to address the shard system, which began initially with allowing players minimally to change payouts, and larger conversations about how squad arena IS the backbone for how people gain currency. We'd like to explore the nature of this, but really really do not want to upset the applecart that is people's current routine. I mentioned this elsewhere, but every day $300,000 worth of crystals is given out from squad arena alone. So changing that system is not something we would consider lightly, if at all. We are talking a lot about catch up mechanics, especially the normal influx of new players we see around movies and that we hope to see for Episode 9, so I expect that we'll explore something to lift you up rather than something that might affect others negatively as well. NR: As we've been discussing and hinting at more broadly, we're really trying to figure out how we change the game from being all about Squad Arena, but it has to be net positive for the player.. If we're able to change that, then when you stopped playing should hopefully not be as painful for you tor return to the game.
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[*] Q: How will you balance out new content for long term players while making sure new players don't have an insurmountable task to catch up? -MadScientist92
[*] A: CG_Carrie: It's an interesting Catch-22 because while we do want to move away from single meta teams, the existence of them has allowed people to catch up much more quickly than they will be able to in a more diverse meta. The way we think about the meta though, is we are often exploring teams that have value for endgame players, for those operating in mid-GP brackets, for people who are more casual, and everything in between. We find patterns in different player segments of different teams at the top, and we think about how you use those teams to "graduate" to the next tier of the meta. It's not a perfect science, but it is something we discuss and try to balance for this reason.
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[*] Q: Where is "Lord Vader" or "Fallen Anakin" and what hint can you give us to start farming towards him? -Yautjamorph
[*] A: CG_Carrie: As always, we don't comment on the nature of the characters we release and when. Nick had a Porkins-esque answer in here, and I'd like to avoid further Twitter accounts being made to harangue me.
[*] A: CG_Erik: Interesting factoid: the moment Anakin "falls" he becomes Darth Vader.

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[*] Q: What are you working on to include new players into existing guilds? I have friends that would like to play but my guild won’t let them in because they are too new. My suggestion would be a padawan system in which new players could join friend’s guilds. They wouldn’t be included in the 50 cap and there could be side missions during events such as Hoth that they could participate in. win/win? -Juanito
[*] A: CG_Carrie: We're talking about some kind of alliance / referral / mentorship feature that gives existing players a chance to be in the driver's seat towards recruiting and training up new players, and getting rewarded for it. We didn't call it padawan but yes padawan system. I'm alluding to Episode IX as an opportunity for something like that, but it's VERY early in discussion right now, and we may end up going in a different direction.
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[*] Q: What are your plans to make the game more interesting to new players? A three to six month leveling process of using very underwhelming toons is quite painful and disheartening to the point where that overcomes the joy of Star Wars and swgoh. Little things like reducing the challenge cool down for those less than lv85 would help a lot? -Kantouch
[*] A: CG_Carrie: We added a quest system last May specifically for this purpose, and one of the big downsides was people were moving through the game too quickly and not learning how to play at the same speed. This actually gave them a very negative experience, so they'd drop out or be quite unhappy by the endgame. I think some of the friction (albeit some unintentional) has created a gauntlet that makes long-term players so skilled. We reverted some of those changes and the newer experience ended up being better, however I would like to keep working on it.
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[*] Q: Is Darth Revan and Malak the last of the Old Republic line or can we expect more possibly?
[*] A: CG_Carrie: As I mentioned in the last Road Ahead, our focus is The Clone Wars for the moment. Don't get me wrong, we have lots of Old Republic stories left to tell, and until we have Khem Val, I won't sleep. But I think we've done it justice for now.
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[*] Q: Is there a plan to balance every character in order to make the game more fair an remove the meta teams? -Nimdull
[*] A: CG_Carrie: Something in between. Not every character in the game will be meta defining (sorry URoRRuR'R'R).
[*] CG_Tophat: That's it,Tuskens are the next meta (not really).

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[*] Q: When will Zetas become purchasable? -Good2Noe
[*] A: CG_Carrie: Not right now, and not for the foreseeable future. While we know people want to buy Zetas, at this point in the game it's the pinnacle of content for the character experience, and we like that it is restricted purely by how many you can earn. Maybe one day in the future we will sell zetas, and occasionally selling a few out isn't out of the question, but for now we aren't planning to sell them regularly (or even at all - again I'll triple underline - for now. It may change).
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[*] Q: What did Carrie mean by "tip of the spear"?
[*] A: CG_Carrie: Thanks for asking this! It's a military expression that means the people that get there first. By that I was referencing both free-to-play and spending players who get content first, that's it. In military terms, the tip of spear usually don't fare so well (sorry guys, not my main reason for the expression) but that they "cut through" the forces to make it easier for everyone to follow. In a better strategy of the Battle of Winterfell, the first wave of Dothraki would have been the tip of the spear (and that would have amounted to something more meaningful under a better military strategist). Or as my second favorite Bill P once said "tip of the spear, edge of the knife..."
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almost 5 years ago - CG_SBCrumb - Direct link
CG_Tophat's Responses:

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[*] Q: With the overabundance of KOTOR characters added to the game will we be lucky enough to get Expanded Universe characters from the comics coming to the game? i know quite a few players that would love to play with a squad of Doctor Aphra, Triple-Zero, Beetee-One, Black Krrsantan, and maybe Magna Tolvan. Even just on off characters from the Comics or Books would be great would love to be able to put Mr. Bones onto my Droid Team. -Bevel Lemelisk
[*] A: CG_Tophat: Personally, I love the comic book characters and I regularly try to find a place for them in the schedule. That said, we currently have no plans to introduce these characters into the game at this time. As always, we constantly think about future character releases and may consider these characters in the future.
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[*] Q: Do you think that walking stick Yoda uses prominently in Seagulls video to poke R2, should be more strongly represented in-game, too? -Spicewood
[*] A: CG_Tophat: "Let me grab my beater!"
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[*] Q: How do you translate what a toon does in the movies to what it does in the game? -naklip cond
[*] A: CG_Tophat: That's a great question and really hard to do in this format. We've explored some "behind the scenes"-type content previously that was really well received by the community and we want to continue to lean into doing more of that. EL: What I can offer is that I'll work with TopHat and Crumb to schedule a session where the designers can talk through their process and maybe field some questions in that space.
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[*] Q: You say that meta diversity is important but you seem to push one or two "prescribed" teams heavily. Will you allow players more creative space in the future?
[*] A: CG_Tophat: Managing/cultivating a meta is a really interesting process. Players evaluate "the" meta a lot of different ways. Often times, we see the most gravity of the meta discussion center around Squad Arena and the number of viable squads therein. As Carrie has hinted at and out right talked about, we're really trying to figure out how to shift the conversation to be more about the meta of Grand Arena and Territory Wars which are more about the meta of squads versus the meta of a particular squad. This is a roundabout way of saying, we're absolutely trying to expand the playspace, but in doing so we're trying to shift the conversation out of Squad Arena into other areas of the game. This process necessarily can't happen overnight and it is an incremental process because we don't want to "pull the rug right out from under you"/the way you know and understand the game.
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[*] Q: This game is currently oriented towards PvP content. GA and TW are modalities that require time and strategy. While Raids and TBs have become repetitive. Of course new TBs will bring a breath of fresh air to PvE content. But it's not something destined to last long. Don't you think that there is a lack of a new PvE content that can always be current, interesting and frequent in the game? And if you think so, do you already have something in mind ? Thanks for your attention. -JackMek
[*] A: CG_Tophat: I would say that this is an obsession of mine, if not a singular obsession - how do we serve up new, interesting PvE content consistently. We run into these two diametrically opposed forces in tackling this problem - time vs. quality. While I'm sure there are a lot of choice words to be said about the Sith Triumvirate raid, I would hope we could all agree that all of our raids and TBs have been carefully crafted with a lot of unique attention to detail. There is room for improvement on all of them, but they are all lovingly crafted by our designers, artists, and engineers. In serving up a regular, tailored experience it is a timely endeavor. And while there are some potential engineered solutions - procedural generated levels, etc - I think in general my concern is that it wouldn't feel to the level of quality that we want to deliver to the players. Ultimately, our goal is to provide excellent Star Wars experiences and that ultimately just takes a lot of time. What I can offer is that we are very aggressive in thinking about what our future PvE beats look like (we're already in discussions about what comes after Geonosis and making sure it doesn't come too long after).
[*]CG_Carrie: And I won't rest until we get an endless survival mode like Ninja Gaiden."

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[*] Q: Will any hero/villain eventually get a zeta for their Basic ability? -Strubz
[*] A: CG_Tophat: Potentially. There's definitely been conversations around it for some characters. CLS was a candidate. JKR was too. We ultimately decided not to for a variety of reasons, but the option is still definitely on the table. The primary concern/issue is how you balance the character around the requirement of needing a zeta on basic (is the short version of the larger design "issue" around it).
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almost 5 years ago - CG_SBCrumb - Direct link
CG_Erik's Responses:

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[*] Q: During a previous Q&A, a question was asked (by me) about entry to the GameChanger program. The answer was basically stay tuned more info on that topic coming soon. Any update? How can we gain access to/be considered for entry into the GC program? -JD - Meat City Gaming
[*] A: CG_Erik: Thanks for the question, but unfortunately we're not currently accepting new Game Changers. As you may be aware, we had some restructuring at EA in recent months, and as a consequence we no longer have a dedicated staff member to manage the Game Changer program. We've attempted to support the program as much as possible with the development team, however this is in addition to our other day jobs. We appreciate the Game Changers and the endless energy they've brought to the community conversation - and absolutely want to work with content creators moving forward - but we're in a bit of a holding pattern at the moment as we think through how to support a program properly and can staff it appropriately.
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[*] Q: The real question no-one is asking: How are you doing this Q&A when Caley is hogging the laptop??
[*] A: CG_Erik: We are all Caley.
[*] CG_Tophat: I am Caley.
[*] CG_Carrie: I am Caley.
[*] CG_154M: I am Caley.
[*] CG_Cyanides: I am Caley

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almost 5 years ago - CG_SBCrumb - Direct link
CG_154M's Responses:

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[*] Q: Are there any plans to improve cheat detection for the game to curb game hacks/cheats, especially with the plans for grand arena championships? -Raknar
[*] A: CG_154M: We do have plans to improve our tools for investigating and actioning against cheaters alongside the Grand Arena Championships launch. Some of them are already live, some of them will be coming at launch, and some of them will be coming once we see how well our tools and processes work in our initial "exhibition" championships. We intend to share more about our processes and policies here in a couple of weeks. We have learned a lot from the initial Grand Arena event system and are applying those learnings to the Championship.
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[*] Q: How do you plan to handle cheaters in GA championships, especially with respect to those impacted by cheating during a given season?
[*] A: CG_154M: See above. Without talking too much more about our policy before it's out in front of the community, we're going to be focused on quickly ensuring that a player affected by cheating does not have their entire Championship experience affected and that they are able to move on without "despair" at the outcome of a single Grand Arena match. We'll also be firming up our "make-good" policy around rewards to impacted players, especially when cheating is not detected and confirmed until after the Championship has ended.
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almost 5 years ago - CG_SBCrumb - Direct link
CG_Cyanides' Responses:

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[*] Q: Will you consider revisiting rewards from Challenges? Adding newer high demand gear, or upping the reward output? -Jorm Gandr
[*] A: CG_Cyanides: We have been looking into Challenge rewards as the game gets older (I'm looking at you Mace), but we don't have plans of changing the rewards anytime soon. As we are always adding new events and new feature modes, those get the priorities for updated rewards. Ideally, we'd release a new tier to the challenges with additional/new rewards in the future.
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almost 5 years ago - CG_SBCrumb - Direct link
MagicMatthews99;c-1871821

Why did Crumb add so many reserved comments?


I'm adding each person's responses to each section. Will review this thread for more questions shortly