What is your opinion on Potco?

[The Skirata Clan]

From a new player view, I'd say the game is A.... But after playing for awhile the game starts to drop grades.

[Captain Whale]

Ahoy and welcome to the game Captain Lansing.

Opinions on the game vary a great deal here as you can see. I love the game as it is but I also like to see all the new things they are doing with it. Get yourself into a guild that fits your style of play and go have some fun. It all depends on what you expect or rather what is fun for you. This game has more of a social level to it than most and a good guild really ups the fun factor.

POTCO does not have a lot of the things other MMO's have. Personally it's one of the reasons I like it. I don't have to spend endless hours questing for gold and items to feed the auctions, make items and the push the economy. The grind here is much lower than most MMOs and you can level quickly if you want to. Skills and quests are very straight forward and the game interface is easy to learn and use. PVP and SVS are available for those who want to do so. It's nice to go questing without having to watch yer back all time for PVP attacks. GM participation in POTCO is awesome and if you are so inclined the role playing events can be really fun.

Glad to hear you are having a good time and I hope that continues.

Captain Whale

[Tom Sharkwash]

C just because I'm tired of doing the same thing over and over again.

[Angel Seafish]

Del,
I understand that they have to give fase reports, but even if they do, people will leave at one point if it just takes too long. But they are [B]NOT[B] giving false reports, because it will come out at one point. However, people will just let their accounts go basic because they are just waiting for something new.

At the start its an A+ then it goes all the way down to a D- Why? No new MAJOR content.

[Sven Osymthe]

But they are NOT giving false report

Actually, the way Del put it, they are. False reports doesn't limit it to what the content is, but it can also be the date that the content is released. And in a way it is not entirely false, as has said before, something obviously came up that delayed the release.

I'm still sticking with my previous grade, possibly higher (if you want to include friends in that). Personally, unless someone has a fully mastered level 50 (or at least the old fully mastered, level 40), then there is really no reason to complain. The raise in notoriety levels was major content, maybe not the exact major we want, but that will come in due time. Unless someone has finished that part, they still have something to do, so new story chapters shouldn't be that big of a deal.

[Johnny Storm]

I give the game a C-

[ex8404]

Originally Posted by Captain Del

Well, theres nothing that says you don't have the power to change that! There are a lot of great guilds here on POF, go find some! Test em' out, see if you like em'! Theres a lot of great pirates on here, and I'm sure if dig just a bit, you'll soon make new friends, and thats where the game gets fun!

I know all of this. I just don't have the time to do it all over again. If it happens it happens but things have changed lately and every guild I try is too hung up on rules and demands and (my least favorite) having a gazillion members. They are WAY less about just having fun. Oh. And being all grown-ups.

And, as for the "lies" about all the content they hinted at us:

1. POTCO is its own branch of a company, and companies need money if they want to continue up and running. If they DON'T give us hints about whats to come, sometimes even false ones, they lose members, and then, they lose money. And if they lose money, Disney would eventually have to shut down POTCO. Thats why the game matters on what the MEMBERS do, not the teams themselves. The more money they have = the more funding they have = the more developers they have. Thats why games like WoW have 300, even 400 at a time working on the game, probably more, while games like POTCO only have a team of 40 (at most!)

How in the world does ANY of this justify lying to PAYING customers? Is that where society has led us? Can't get customers to stick around because your product is less than adequate? Then just LIE! Maybe they should offer me a Free Sham-Wow. It would be more useful than that antique mini game they told me I could have but not use...

2. As said before, they don't have a lot of man power. They don't have a lot of people to work on such big projects. And besides, if I were them, I'd be discouraged by now. As Jack said, whenever they don't release content, they get pressured. When they get... ugh, not typing this over xP Just read my "Content Cycle" blog if you want my full philosophy.

OK. Then I will end my investment in this part of the conversation at this point too.

Originally Posted by Sven Osymthe

Personally, unless someone has a fully mastered level 50 (or at least the old fully mastered, level 40), then there is really no reason to complain. The raise in notoriety levels was major content, maybe not the exact major we want, but that will come in due time.

I've said it before and I will say it again. Content is what goes into my journal. Period. Mindless button mashing is NOT content. Simply hitting some arbitrary number is not a compelling enough reason to keep playing. This game is story driven because it is based on a pretty fun story. Take the story away and it is not unique anymore...Just my opinion

[Jeanne Stormcutter]

A from me, and Captain Rott quest, invasions etc. isn't new content? It has always been there?
Didn't think so.

[Sven Osymthe]

I've said it before and I will say it again. Content is what goes into my journal. Period. Mindless button mashing is NOT content. Simply hitting some arbitrary number is not a compelling enough reason to keep playing. This game is story driven because it is based on a pretty fun story. Take the story away and it is not unique anymore...Just my opinion

That is just a personal opinion, but many people do feel that way. Content is actually anything new added to the game, good or bad. Personally, to me, there is not much of a difference between leveling, and questing. Going by "leveling is just mindless button mashing", is questing not just mindlessly following what the game tells us to do?

Don't get me wrong, I would like a new story as much as the next person, but the discussion about new content is wrong. We have been given new content, just not in the form that we ourselves want.

[Angel Seafish]

Where is the "beef" in this game? In a way the level raise was major, but not what we are looking for. But hey, they have to do that before a new chapter for the mastered pirates, so they can master again. So were the caves (which by the way look more like tunnels now). But yes I do agree that they have been half false reports.

[ex8404]

Originally Posted by Sven Osymthe

That is just a personal opinion, but many people do feel that way. Content is actually anything new added to the game, good or bad.

Another personal opinion. What do you, Dear Reader, think? Is putting a tunnel, albeit a lovely tunnel, where a cave used to be content? Are the invasions content? What if you now avoid them? Feel free to discus it with us.

Personally, to me, there is not much of a difference between leveling, and questing. Going by "leveling is just mindless button mashing", is questing not just mindlessly following what the game tells us to do?

In a way this is true but it also assumes that leveling is the only point of the game. To me, finishing the chapter is the point of the game. Following a quest, no matter how linear it may be, is purposeful button-mashing. A means to an end where the end is something other than a number which merely indicates how many times you mashed a button. Notoriety = Mouse mashing. It has to be.

My main pirates on Open are still at level 40. I watched folks make a mad rush to re-master their pirates just to be the first. Some even cheated to do it. But what are they going to do if our good friends at Disney decide to drop a big, fat, brand-spanking-new story on us tomorrow? Why do the new chapter if all of your weapons and pirates are mastered? Do anything you want but just don't complain I guess...

Don't get me wrong, I would like a new story as much as the next person, but the discussion about new content is wrong. We have been given new content, just not in the form that we ourselves want.

Here we truly part ways. I look at it this way. Content is scripted, playable and on-going. Think of your favorite TV show. This year they try this...

The show comes on. Best episode ever. You LOVE it. Fast forward a week and tune in. It is the very same show as last week with one exception. The room your favorite character sleeps in has been painted a different color. Fast forward another week. Again, the same script, the same show except this time the kitchen has a new fridge and some wallpaper. Is this content? By your definition it is.

Remember, content is actually anything new added to the game (or TV show), good or bad.

We got the invasions. They were fun for a while. I count those as content. But after nearly two years, two once and future Mastered Pirates, a lost guild and monthly cash payments, I want more. You see, I pay for this. No one is giving it to me. Once upon a time it was an A+ experience. An E-Ticket for you Disney Lore Lovers. Then I finished the game. Finished it. But it was still a solid B. Still had my mates though. But they got bored and left and it was, quite frankly, Disney's fault. Dropped to a C-.

Then the silliness of "Here if comes, no it doesn't" that marked much of this year. And the straw that broke the pirate's back for me? Call Of The Kraken. Can you hear it? Its calling from 2006. I really think some guys are sitting back and coming up with new ways to mess with people. I guess I am just tired of having someone whiz on my leg and tell me its raining.

Now. If a new story comes out tonight? A+ Bay-Beeeee!. It is how much I like the game.

[MacIronhawk]

My personal opinion of POTCO is not one I think the devs want to hear... or read.

I've played toontown for seven years, and in those seven years content doesn't drop out of the sky like rain. It's not one update right after another, but it's enough to keep me in the game and entertained. They tried hard putting out a major update at least every year, and they did.

POTCO, on the other hand, has not shown this much work. The only really major updates have been extra weapons and SvS. New caves and islands DON'T count and shouldn't count because they should have been here from the start if they were going to change them anyways. Them changing the islands is probably because they wanted to release before POTBS.

POTBS is a rip off of POTCO, IMO. The combat stinks, the sailing stinks, and the graphics are only ok. POTCO delivers much more as far as graphics, sailing, combat, etc... However, POTBS delivers more islands, area, quests, etc...

POTCO could have been twice as good as it is now, but Disney forced the developers to rush to release before them, and that's obvious. I have nothing against the developers, but I have everything against Disney for pushing these guys past their limit. They can't deliver what the players what because the staff is small. Most games like WOW has staff member numbers over 100 just for developing. POTCO has around 18 developers, and that's it. They cover animation, modeling, scription, fixing bugs, putting every aspect of the game, etc...

This game had potential, and still has potential, but it's up to the developers to release a second story quest, new weapons, and more area(I.E. islands) before the end of this year. This game will not survive if the second story quest isn't released before or during the summer. That's my obvservation, but they're taking way longer than toontown.

Yes, I'm comparing games that are much different in age, simply because it didn't take toontown two and a half years to come out with something new.

I feel sorry for this game, because it can be great, but Disney is too lazy to spend a great amount of money on a game that could make them millions over time.

P.S. Not sure if I was trolling or not, but if I did I'm very sorry.

[The Skirata Clan]

Well said Mac!

This Year is Do or Die for POTCO!

[Sven Osymthe]

What do you, Dear Reader, think? Is putting a tunnel, albeit a lovely tunnel, where a cave used to be content? Are the invasions content? What if you now avoid them? Feel free to discus it with us.

Yes, that is new content. The tunnels aren't really new content by your definition, but they are pretty much eye candy for the players (much better graphics than the old ones), the invasions is another story. The invasions ARE the base of the next chapter, that in turn means that the invasions are MAJOR content. Granted, some players tend to avoid them over time, but the fact is, they still got the point Disney was trying to make across.

But what are they going to do if our good friends at Disney decide to drop a big, fat, brand-spanking-new story on us tomorrow? Why do the new chapter if all of your weapons and pirates are mastered? Do anything you want but just don't complain I guess...

I can't speak for everyone else that has mastered everything, but I know that personally, it won't effect me one bit. Those who mastered won't benefit, other than to know what else is happening in the story, but who cares? Either way, you are gonna end up leveling (the quests provide rep, and given that this is the second chapter, the tasks may be much more difficult to overcome unless you level), those that mastered just have it easier (given that they have already done so).

In a way this is true but it also assumes that leveling is the only point of the game. To me, finishing the chapter is the point of the game.

In my opinion, the point of the game is not to finish the chapter, it is also not to level. The point of the game is to have a combination of both. You can't do one without the other in the end. For example, the quests offer rep for completing an assignment, that in turn levels you up. But for another example, leveling up offers you a chance to finish a quest easier. If an assignment is to kill 5 thralls, who would have the advantage going alone, someone who "mindlessly button mashed" there way to a higher level, or someone who has not done any leveling other than questing? Many people on the site have commented on people who just level through questing, and in turn, their weapon levels are unbalanced, making some tasks impossible to complete alone. Disney raising the caps was, in my opinion, done to help eliminate this problem for those on the second quest.

Here we truly part ways. I look at it this way. Content is scripted, playable and on-going. Think of your favorite TV show. This year they try this...

The show comes on. Best episode ever. You LOVE it. Fast forward a week and tune in. It is the very same show as last week with one exception. The room your favorite character sleeps in has been painted a different color. Fast forward another week. Again, the same script, the same show except this time the kitchen has a new fridge and some wallpaper. Is this content? By your definition it is.

Remember, content is actually anything new added to the game (or TV show), good or bad.

Yes, that would fit into the short definition that I posted, but this also takes away plenty of the other comments in this thread. By your own definition, content is scripted, playable and on-going. Everything that Disney has added, for the most part, falls into that very definition.

Redesigned islands - gave us the impression the EITC were destroying the Caribbean. That in turn led us to the GM events. That went to new level caps and invasions. And THAT will lead to the next chapter. As you can see, the content that Disney has released is, scripted - it follows a plot, playable - we the players are involved in that plot, and on-going - each event triggers the next.


Also, Mac brings up some good points. The amount of people working on this game is not that large, meaning it is going to take more time to do stuff. On top of that, they also released the game too early, just to beat out POTBS. Meaning, they have to try to make the game the way they originally intended it to be (such as the redesigning of the islands). Given all of that, the developers have done a great job, if they had not been rushed to release the game, or had more money (thus leading to more workers), the next chapter would be here by now.

The game does have potential, and I feel it will become that much better in the coming months. They have built up a greater story with all the content they have released (even managing to make mistakes from releasing the game too early - island design - fall into that story).

[ex8404]

Sven...I come here for intelligent conversation. Thank-you for being a part of that.

Sort of off topic though...Is the whole Pirates of the Burning Seas thing a fact? Or is it conjecture? I never even heard of POTBS before I started coming to POF. On the other hand, for a while there, I couldn't turn on the TV without getting blasted by one POTCO commercial after another...The two just seem to be for different audiences to me.

No arguments here. I sort of study stuff like this and I am just curious...