Why is Bioware so silent on major gear issues from 5.10?

I'm in one of the biggest guilds in SS [not SC]. We routinely have 20-30 people on at night, perhaps half that during weekdays. We mostly raid or do FPs, but also some pvp. As far as the 5.10 gearing goes, there have been a few convos about it in discord, and annoyance about our evasive community manager, but in general they do the Ossus WBs and grind for the weekly masterwork crystals without fuss. They rarely go to the forum, and when they do, it is only to read the gold posts for updates.

Now, is this typical of players? Maybe. I want to say 'probably'. They may be somewhat annoyed about the state of the game, but they still go out and grind for gear, and enjoy playing, and they don't make a big production about it on the forum. They wouldn't agree with Oleg, but they also wouldn't argue with him either, because at the end of the day, it's not the last straw.

For me personally, I've barely done Ossus with one character [I stayed for the reveal, then got bored and played a different game]. I've made no move to collect masterwork crystals, or to get my characters through ossus to grind rep. Just as UC and GCXP was originally broken when it was first released, this will probably get fixed too. Soon? Probably not. I also don't care enough to complain, because lots of other people are willing to either complain or play it through so I don't have to. By the time I get around to actually grinding Ossus, it'll be fixed so it won't be as much of a pain as it is for you. So, I guess I should say thank you. Thank you for beta-testing this, and sacrificing your time and emotional stamina, to make it easier on the casuals who will come later.

Does that put your melodrama in perspective?

I normally do, but sometimes when in game pvp is slow, the only recourse is forum pvp.

Where are you getting data that shows the majority of players are unhappy?

I'd like to see data that shows players are happy with the changes. What data can you provide that shows players are happy, and that the game is actually doing better since they have made changes to conquest and now most recently to gearing?

Seeing that the feedback given has been overwhelmingly negative in the game, on the forums, on twitter, basically everywhere I have to say that common sense indicates the changes BW/EA have made to conquest/gearing has made the players unhappy.

Sure, some may say "adapt" or "it's not a big deal" but those are about the best responses you get out of the hundreds of responses regarding conquest and gearing changes since 5.0-5.10. Those types of responses don't exactly indicate a sense of happiness do they? Not in my world anyway.

I not claiming people are happy or not happy. Thus, i have no need to provide data.


I see some people unhappy, but certainly not the majority of posters, and certainly cant conclude that people who havent publically stated anything are automatically lumped in with the unhappy players. Like i said, prove it. Heresay from you personal experience and connections does not equate to the entire population.


People dont have to be happy to not be unhappy. Expectations of the game often lead people to be apathetic to changes the game goes through, which is normal for a lot of MMO players. If you expect super exciting bells and whistles after 7 years, you will likely be unhappy. If you expect the standard MMO experience of grinding, new gear, old content mixed with a little new content, then maybe you wont be happy, but more than likely satisfied.

An MMO doesnt need to make someone happy, but it does need to have value to that individual. Ive been content in relationships that didnt necessarily make me happy. Ive had meals that were great, but didnt necessarily make me happy. It doesnt mean i should be disappointed or unhappy with what i had. Perhaps people need to re-evaluate their expectations. After all the bashing and criticism of BW over the years, one thing remains for many people - they arent providing what THOSE people want. But they continue to do it. Perhaps the takeaway should be that you (and others) need to adjust their expectations. If it looks like an orange, smells like an orange, feels like an orange, and tastes like an orange, no matter how much you believe its an apple wont change it from being an orange. We can expect it will be an orange next time we feel, smell, taste, and look at it.

The part about recognizing the game for what it is at this point is true. Hence why everyone should come to their own conclusion about the game and the changes to it and how they ought to respond to said changes.

I think the difference here is tons of time and emotion by many players has been invested, unlike recognizing a fruit for what it is. If you went to the store and got an apple, then the apple changed into an orange, and you hated oranges you would not be pleased with the change.

Now imagine years of time, energy, thoughts, emotions, all of which have gone into this game dealing with very significant changes. Changes that are like my analogy of your apple turning into an orange, which you hate only on a much grander scale.

That’s why it’s not really comparable from an emotional stand point. It’s a good point though recognizing the game for what it is now, though, I agree but you can’t compare the emotional impact some of these changes have on many of the players. Most players view a MMO in a much different light than a random piece of fruit.

Expectations for the game often start out based on what the game began as especially for those who subbed from the very beginning. Most expect the game to follow a similar route of development as it began with, so when the game changes significantly it’s inevitable to cause a lot of blowback. Which it has.

I highly suspect that this gear grind is just BioWare buying time until Anthem drops. I have heard that their future depends on its success. Whether this is true or not the issues that you are talking about here are 100% intentional. Last I checked you have to be a sub to get CXP and gear up. Thus that is the objective; they are just trying to force subs and buy time until their new title is released.

I'd like to see data that shows players are happy with the changes. What data can you provide that shows players are happy, and that the game is actually doing better since they have made changes to conquest and now most recently to gearing?

5.10 killed off the last bit of fun i was having in swtor, so i basically stopped playing. Sorry Musco, your grind for the aake of grind coupled with your usual ninja changes and lack of communication finally killed it for me.

Besides, when I do decide to log in, I can choose between the toxic server and the server full of people who started playing a week ago, or that's what it feels like.

My time is more limited than ever - I have zero desire to do grind for the sake of grind and was perfectly accepting of the fact new content was few and far between. All you had to do, Musco, was literally nothing. Instead, you continue to change for the sake of saying you're doing something and in the process, ruin what was fun about your game.

The straw that broke the camel's back was your response to those of us who completed the kill two world boss weekly for a 252 weapon but had it bug on us. Seriously, replying with "its a bug?" Well no crap?! Somehow I figured that much out for myself, thanks. I was under the impression you used PTS now and thus, major bugs shouldn't have made it live. Since obviously they did, you should just accept that fact and throw players that can prove they killed the bosses some kind of bone. Instead its, "oh its a bug!! But we'll fix it a week from now, maybe, and screw you. May the force be with you!" Well Musco, may the force be with you, and the players who seemingly like getting screwed on every corner.