i have and it used to be terribly bad on a ia but so far im only level 4 but its a smooth as soft serve icecream.

great cant wait

I have and It used to be terribly bad on a IA but so far im only level 4 but its a smooth as soft serve icecream.

Good to know but not quite reassuring to me.(the patch with the fix isnt even on the ptr yet as far as i know)When i only have a few abilities(the starter planet) it always plays completely smooth for me, then i get to the fleet, do fps, warzones etc and its never smooth again on that char. Still i can hope-ill prob try and download the ptr tom while im at work.

I was not invited to Beta test but did a couple of Weekends and noticed it as well, I thought it may be because of extra analysis tools running on the system etc... I hoped

 

I think this must've been all throughout Beta just as bad, perhaps people had a little bit higher tolerance to this because they were so happy to play the Beta at all and see this great game etc.

 

I doubt very much that it just occurred.

I actually assumed the same thing.

I have and It used to be terribly bad on a IA but so far im only level 4 but its a smooth as soft serve icecream.

No offense, but level 4 isn't really sufficient enough to know for sure. You only have a handful of abilities then.

I only started noticing the delay after 10 when I started PvPing and such. BW really needs to have a character copy for testing. How could you not?

My guess is that its how they handle messages sent client side vs server side.

 

If they moved more to the client side I bet we'll see less delays, but then again it can open it up to more hacking as well.

When you get DCed in WoW, you will notice that your character still behaves smoothly. It's just everyone else that stops moving. This is evidence that nearly everything related to your character happens client side in WoW, which increases responsiveness.

When I got disconnected from SWTOR, my character froze in place. That indicates to me that every action I take has to be confirmed by the server before I am allowed to take action. No doubt this is where most of the problem originates.

What really worries me is how difficult it would be to fix something like this.

Good to know but not quite reassuring to me.(the patch with the fix isnt even on the ptr yet as far as i know)When i only have a few abilities(the starter planet) it always plays completely smooth for me, then i get to the fleet, do fps, warzones etc and its never smooth again on that char. Still i can hope-ill prob try and download the ptr tom while im at work.

Classes and Combat

 

General

Fixed a bug that could cause the Global Cooldown to appear as if it has been cancelled when it is actually still in effect, resulting in a feeling of unresponsiveness to input.

Corrected an issue that could cause an ability icon to appear usable but be unresponsive to clicks or keypresses for several seconds.

Players revived by other players, including by in-combat revival abilities, now revive with 25% of maximum health.

Thats the 1.1.1 Patch Notes for the PTR. There is more but I choose to just post the part about the ability delay.

Xcore, the amount of detail, time, and outright articulation shown in your video are incomparable to any critique I've ever seen. It very accurately depicts the frustration and simply unacceptable combat mechanics is this video game that we all experience on a daily basis.

Thank you for providing this excellent feedback, and showing an entire army of developers/testers the enormity of their mistakes. I simply cannot comprehend, with the egregious budgets and copious amounts of time, how these issues could make it into a AAA title.

May we enlist you to head on over to the "high resolution textures" thread, when these delay issues are fixed?

Again, thank you for your hard work in exposing these issues. You have brought great credit upon yourself, and are in keeping with the highest traditions of gaming excellence sir.

--EW

No offense, but level 4 isn't really sufficient enough to know for sure. You only have a handful of abilities then.

 

I only started noticing the delay after 10 when I started PvPing and such. BW really needs to have a character copy for testing. How could you not?

Actually for melee classes JK and SW you can notice it from level one and level 4 once you do that smash attack.

Man F editing lol

Xcore, the amount of detail, time, and outright articulation shown in your video are incomparable to any critique I've ever seen. It very accurately depicts the frustration and simply unacceptable combat mechanics is this video game that we all experience on a daily basis.

 

Thank you for providing this excellent feedback, and showing an entire army of developers/testers the enormity of their mistakes. I simply cannot comprehend, with the egregious budgets and copious amounts of time, how these issues could make it into a AAA title.

 

May we enlist you to head on over to the "high resolution textures" thread, when these delay issues are fixed?

 

Again, thank you for your hard work in exposing these issues. You have brought great credit upon yourself, and are in keeping with the highest traditions of gaming excellence sir.

 

--EW

Hey thanks for the compliments! I've followed the Textures thread and fully support it and also find Bioware's responses to it quite terrible... as I mentioned in the end of the video Textures and Performance/Optimization are my two next concerns...

Xcore, I tried to get you on the YouTube video, but I didn't get a response.

I wanted to know if you were happy with their response to the issue. Although a lot of the mentioned factors do partake in the issue overall--I DO feel they are beating around the bush about it stemming from core animation priority.

What is your take? Someone said it good when they stated BioWare probably isn't going to say outright they they will start clipping animations.

I do think that the update coming this week is a step in the right direction, but they can't think that fixing server lag overall in the coding for future updates is going to secure the issue. It stems from the priority system. As long as it is Animation > Application, this game will never truly feel as fluid as WoW.

Oh, while we are mentioning how this game needs to feel as fluid as WoW--I literally cannot believe how you stated my thoughts word for word. I could not agree more that WoW is the only game that has nailed this and there is no doubt in my mind that the fluidity alone is what makes it a market leader.

You said it and I will reiterate. If TOR can make combat feel as tight as WoW's combat; we will have another market leader. But I screamed about this issue when they paid me to talk about the game in person 7-8 months ago. I stressed it as everyone around me in the room rated the game a 6-7 out of 10 because of the clunky feeling. It got a little better, but only a little.

Please, I am VERY curious if you think what they stated is sufficient for you.. for now. It seems as if they only watched the beginning of your video and started addressing the fact that abilities don't go through. In reality, it stems way further than that. Even if you are alone with one mob in a phased area, the lag may not add to it, but the lack of response is still there. Even clicking an ability when you are not in range, there is a hairline delay.... ALWAYS.

Also, to everyone stating that the game JUST came out and WoW has been out. WoW ALWAYS had fluid combat since day one. Looting was a small issue taken care of but combat always had the fluidity and responsiveness it has now. It is the reason why people played it so much. You grew attached to your character as you felt you had COMPLETE control. People may blame TOR for other reasons, but subconsciously, if the game was extremely responsive, people would have fun PLAYING and not feel the need to gain something at the end AS MUCH.

At the moment, the reason why people are raging over things they worked for is because in the back of their mind, they didn't have that much fun doing it. It was a pain to deal with the lack of control of your character to have what you worked for stripped. Because you did JUST that.. you worked. It feels like a job at the moment.

Keep it up Xcore I am with you 110 percent! There is nothing I can say that you haven't showed in your video, or with your words. Bioware fix it, and fix it right! It's not something that I or others will deal with much longer.

It's hard to have waited so long for a game like this. Then, when you finally get to play, and try to enjoy learning the mechanics. To have nothing but frustration exit your mouth instead of praise. It's a big ball drop on your part as Xcore already has proven, and others have also stated.

Thank you again Xcore, for doing such a great job, and putting a spotlight on ability delay. Not many of us would put that much time and effort into something like this.

/Highfive

When you get DCed in WoW, you will notice that your character still behaves smoothly. It's just everyone else that stops moving. This is evidence that nearly everything related to your character happens client side in WoW, which increases responsiveness.

 

When I got disconnected from SWTOR, my character froze in place. That indicates to me that every action I take has to be confirmed by the server before I am allowed to take action. No doubt this is where most of the problem originates.

 

What really worries me is how difficult it would be to fix something like this.

It appears to happen client side, but obviously the changes have to be propagated to the server, will be validated and sychronized back to the client (and other clients).

Pretty cool system. Actions seem to happen client side, but in reality it is only client-side "preview", until confirmed.

I think that the GCD (and it's server-client synchronization) was one of the reasons, why this system could be implemented.

Amazing post. You've articulated it better than I ever could, so when this topic comes up again in conversations I will have this thread bookmarked just to pass along.

Nothing irks me more than stubborn people who will argue with you that they have "no issue" with response time and it must be "your computer" causing the hang up. I mean, honestly? If you can't pick up on the delay after an hour of playing you either don't care or you're being willfully blind to the fact.

http://www.swtor.com/blog/georg-zoeller-gives-update-ability-delay

soon

http://www.swtor.com/blog/georg-zoeller-gives-update-ability-delay

 

soon

My doubts are strong about this post. But I will gladly be surprised

Xcore, I tried to get you on the YouTube video, but I didn't get a response.

 

I wanted to know if you were happy with their response to the issue. Although a lot of the mentioned factors do partake in the issue overall--I DO feel they are beating around the bush about it stemming from core animation priority.

 

What is your take? Someone said it good when they stated BioWare probably isn't going to say outright they they will start clipping animations.

 

I do think that the update coming this week is a step in the right direction, but they can't think that fixing server lag overall in the coding for future updates is going to secure the issue. It stems from the priority system. As long as it is Animation > Application, this game will never truly feel as fluid as WoW.

 

Oh, while we are mentioning how this game needs to feel as fluid as WoW--I literally cannot believe how you stated my thoughts word for word. I could not agree more that WoW is the only game that has nailed this and there is no doubt in my mind that the fluidity alone is what makes it a market leader.

 

You said it and I will reiterate. If TOR can make combat feel as tight as WoW's combat; we will have another market leader. But I screamed about this issue when they paid me to talk about the game in person 7-8 months ago. I stressed it as everyone around me in the room rated the game a 6-7 out of 10 because of the clunky feeling. It got a little better, but only a little.

 

Please, I am VERY curious if you think what they stated is sufficient for you.. for now. It seems as if they only watched the beginning of your video and started addressing the fact that abilities don't go through. In reality, it stems way further than that. Even if you are alone with one mob in a phased area, the lag may not add to it, but the lack of response is still there. Even clicking an ability when you are not in range, there is a hairline delay.... ALWAYS.

 

 

Also, to everyone stating that the game JUST came out and WoW has been out. WoW ALWAYS had fluid combat since day one. Looting was a small issue taken care of but combat always had the fluidity and responsiveness it has now. It is the reason why people played it so much. You grew attached to your character as you felt you had COMPLETE control. People may blame TOR for other reasons, but subconsciously, if the game was extremely responsive, people would have fun PLAYING and not feel the need to gain something at the end AS MUCH.

 

At the moment, the reason why people are raging over things they worked for is because in the back of their mind, they didn't have that much fun doing it. It was a pain to deal with the lack of control of your character to have what you worked for stripped. Because you did JUST that.. you worked. It feels like a job at the moment.

Apologies for not responding on YouTube, its very limiting in the size of reply etc.

Well, I agree with everything you say here. Having read the Blog Post by Georg, I have mixed feelings if they understand the core values of gameplay feeling and the entire issue properly. The problem is, describing a "feeling" of such intricate nature is very difficult. I think it'd be much like a F1 Driver complaining that the car doesn't "feel" right... He would try his best to articulate the problem but in the end, for someone who doesn't experience it themselves, it is very hard to understand and even harder to resolve.

This problem as is known, stems from multiple contributing factors and even totally different factors interacting to form a new factor altogether. For example, general delay between keypress and ability execution + animation visual effect + sound effect.... THEN you perhaps add the stipulation of "proc" instant following a cast in rotation and perhaps all this is following a stun? Etc.

On top of all that, there is the Client/Server interaction and netcoding. What about the entire "illusion" of responsiveness that WoW creates? For example in WoW, let's say we're both running against the gate in AB to get out as soon as it starts... The game begins and we both race towards the first flag, on my screen at home "I" am far ahead of you (in fact, isn't it odd that on your screen at home "you" are always ahead of the others in WoW?). So were both capping the flag but I should be the one that does it at the end of the cast time... However, mine gets interrupted as yours actually succeed... I was never actually ahead of you!

The above is likely a huge technical contributing factor to the feeling of responsivess...

So as to Georg's Blog Post, I am not entirely convinced that they understand the more intricate issue here. Perhaps I am wrong, I'm sure that some of them have salaries high enough to know what this is all about? /sarcasm.

What Bioware needs is, someone important enough in position to have this "feeling" and understand and can communicate the intricacies of the issue. As I would recommend any developer, hire a little team of serious, experienced, hardcore players to identify and define these things. By experienced I don't mean "being 40+ years old and having played MMOs since Ultima Online". I mean, get some Top100 experienced WoW Raiders, get some serious Gladiator PvPers, get some Pro Starcraft 2 players etc.

WoW doesn't have this issue because their Devs used to be serious, hardcore EQ Raiders... they would look at this system and say, "we can't play like this... let's do it better". Bioware Devs had no idea this delay even exists as they themselves aren't the type of player to notice... at all.

It's a logical conclusion, how else would you explain such a game? With such nice Sceneries, such nice stories, such nice sound effects, such nice animations... But yet such glaring and horrendous responsiveness? It's becsuse they aren't the kind of player themselves, playing on that level to notice.

I really see a standard Bioware Dev be someone

1) With sub-optimal spec because he doesn't know about EJ

2) Sub-optimal chants, gems, reforging and itemization

3) 3% over hit cap...

4) Roughly 2-5k below expected DPS

5) Backpeddling while tanking

6) No sense of proactive but only reactive healing

7) Triggering immolation traps and standing in crystal prison traps on Shannox

8) Impossible to do current content hardmodes with

9) Minimal keybinds

10) No "pre-potting", double potion on encounter...

This isn't an insult, or at least meant to be. All of the above points are ok for an average player, but such a player simply cannot notice the more intricate nuances in gameplay. Such a player will create beautiful stories, animations... sound effects etc. but not a good game...

So again, of course I am happy to read Georg's post and it shows that they're taking It serious. However I remain sceptical if they really will be able to get behind this. Is clipping needed? I am not sure 100%, ideally not, it appears ArenaNet is not clipping but using a more elegant system with Guild Wars 2. However, if it is needed, it should be properly introduced as in WoW.

Lastly, Bioware blaming it on hardware performance and optimization is a little weak. If anything, this would only be a minor contributing part overall and perhaps larger in Warzones but as you correctly stated, this goes beyond just Warzones.

I don't believe that Bioware is a company that can admit to mistakes or even be honest in regards to failures or flaws. They're in a tough position with EA and the need for SW:TOR to succeed but still, it has been proven since Mass Effect 1 and Garrus' face texture that Bioware simply isn't like Blizzard.

I can remember countless instances where Blizzard has admitted to failures openly. I cannot ever see Bioware do something like that without putting a serious spin on it...

I am hopeful but remain sceptical

My doubts are strong about this post. But I will gladly be surprised

I'm with you on this one. I won't reiterate my past post, but it basically sums up why I am still a bit worried.

I would also like to touch on the fact that WoW's GCD does function client side as a 'preview' like someone mentioned before. It is a reason why fake GCD hacks are able to made. Keyword is fake here. The hack does not actually work because the GCD ultimately has to communicate server side, but the hack makes it seem like it works by removing the GCD from your client. But in realty the abilities do not go through.

Although, there have been reports that they think either currently, or at one time, the GCD functioned completely from the client. No one will know for sure, because then everyone would have the super smooth system WoW does. It is their secret recipe, if I may.

Apologies for not responding on YouTube, its very limiting in the size of reply etc.

 

Well, I agree with everything you say here. Having read the Blog Post by Georg, I have mixed feelings if they understand the core values of gameplay feeling and the entire issue properly. The problem is, describing a "feeling" of such intricate nature is very difficult. I think it'd be much like a F1 Driver complaining that the car doesn't "feel" right... He would try his best to articulate the problem but in the end, for someone who doesn't experience it themselves, it is very hard to understand and even harder to resolve.

 

This problem as is known, stems from multiple contributing factors and even totally different factors interacting to form a new factor altogether. For example, general delay between keypress and ability execution + animation visual effect + sound effect.... THEN you perhaps add the stipulation of "proc" instant following a cast in rotation and perhaps all this is following a stun? Etc.

 

On top of all that, there is the Client/Server interaction and netcoding. What about the entire "illusion" of responsiveness that WoW creates? For example in WoW, let's say we're both running against the gate in AB to get out as soon as it starts... The game begins and we both race towards the first flag, on my screen at home "I" am far ahead of you (in fact, isn't it odd that on your screen at home "you" are always ahead of the others in WoW?). So were both capping the flag but I should be the one that does it at the end of the cast time... However, mine gets interrupted as yours actually succeed... I was never actually ahead of you!

 

The above is likely a huge technical contributing factor to the feeling of responsivess...

 

 

So as to Georg's Blog Post, I am not entirely convinced that they understand the more intricate issue here. Perhaps I am wrong, I'm sure that some of them have salaries high enough to know what this is all about? /sarcasm.

 

What Bioware needs is, someone important enough in position to have this "feeling" and understand and can communicate the intricacies of the issue. As I would recommend any developer, hire a little team of serious, experienced, hardcore players to identify and define these things. By experienced I don't mean "being 40+ years old and having played MMOs since Ultima Online". I mean, get some Top100 experienced WoW Raiders, get some serious Gladiator PvPers, get some Pro Starcraft 2 players etc.

 

WoW doesn't have this issue because their Devs used to be serious, hardcore EQ Raiders... they would look at this system and say, "we can't play like this... let's do it better". Bioware Devs had no idea this delay even exists as they themselves aren't the type of player to notice... at all.

 

It's a logical conclusion, how else would you explain such a game? With such nice Sceneries, such nice stories, such nice sound effects, such nice animations... But yet such glaring and horrendous responsiveness? It's becsuse they aren't the kind of player themselves, playing on that level to notice.

 

I really see a standard Bioware Dev be someone

 

1) With sub-optimal spec because he doesn't know about EJ

2) Sub-optimal chants, gems, reforging and itemization

3) 3% over hit cap...

4) Roughly 2-5k below expected DPS

5) Backpeddling while tanking

6) No sense of proactive but only reactive healing

7) Triggering immolation traps and standing in crystal prison traps on Shannox

8) Impossible to do current content hardmodes with

9) Minimal keybinds

10) No "pre-potting", double potion on encounter...

 

This isn't an insult, or at least meant to be. All of the above points are ok for an average player, but such a player simply cannot notice the more intricate nuances in gameplay. Such a player will create beautiful stories, animations... sound effects etc. but not a good game...

 

 

So again, of course I am happy to read Georg's post and it shows that they're taking It serious. However I remain sceptical if they really will be able to get behind this. Is clipping needed? I am not sure 100%, ideally not, it appears ArenaNet is not clipping but using a more elegant system with Guild Wars 2. However, if it is needed, it should be properly introduced as in WoW.

 

Lastly, Bioware blaming it on hardware performance and optimization is a little weak. If anything, this would only be a minor contributing part overall and perhaps larger in Warzones but as you correctly stated, this goes beyond just Warzones.

 

I don't believe that Bioware is a company that can admit to mistakes or even be honest in regards to failures or flaws. They're in a tough position with EA and the need for SW:TOR to succeed but still, it has been proven since Mass Effect 1 and Garrus' face texture that Bioware simply isn't like Blizzard.

 

I can remember countless instances where Blizzard has admitted to failures openly. I cannot ever see Bioware do something like that without putting a serious spin on it...

 

 

I am hopeful but remain sceptical

I love your list of the "types of players who don't understand this issue" It is ashame these people won't just admit the truth.

You know as soon as all your detractors read this post, they will all claim they do everything on your list and still have no problems. Too bad you don't have some kind of lie tester for those people.

I'm with you on this one. I won't reiterate my past post, but it basically sums up why I am still a bit worried.

 

I would also like to touch on the fact that WoW's GCD does function client side as a 'preview' like someone mentioned before. It is a reason why fake GCD hacks are able to made. Keyword is fake here. The hack does not actually work because the GCD ultimately has to communicate server side, but the hack makes it seem like it works by removing the GCD from your client. But in realty the abilities do not go through.

 

Although, there have been reports that they think either currently, or at one time, the GCD functioned completely from the client. No one will know for sure, because then everyone would have the super smooth system WoW does. It is their secret recipe, if I may.

This is a great point and I think the Client/Server interaction is a very big contributing factor on the technical side of things.

Apologies for not responding on YouTube, its very limiting in the size of reply etc.

 

Well, I agree with everything you say here. Having read the Blog Post by Georg, I have mixed feelings if they understand the core values of gameplay feeling and the entire issue properly. The problem is, describing a "feeling" of such intricate nature is very difficult. I think it'd be much like a F1 Driver complaining that the car doesn't "feel" right... He would try his best to articulate the problem but in the end, for someone who doesn't experience it themselves, it is very hard to understand and even harder to resolve.

 

This problem as is known, stems from multiple contributing factors and even totally different factors interacting to form a new factor altogether. For example, general delay between keypress and ability execution + animation visual effect + sound effect.... THEN you perhaps add the stipulation of "proc" instant following a cast in rotation and perhaps all this is following a stun? Etc.

 

On top of all that, there is the Client/Server interaction and netcoding. What about the entire "illusion" of responsiveness that WoW creates? For example in WoW, let's say we're both running against the gate in AB to get out as soon as it starts... The game begins and we both race towards the first flag, on my screen at home "I" am far ahead of you (in fact, isn't it odd that on your screen at home "you" are always ahead of the others in WoW?). So were both capping the flag but I should be the one that does it at the end of the cast time... However, mine gets interrupted as yours actually succeed... I was never actually ahead of you!

 

The above is likely a huge technical contributing factor to the feeling of responsivess...

 

 

So as to Georg's Blog Post, I am not entirely convinced that they understand the more intricate issue here. Perhaps I am wrong, I'm sure that some of them have salaries high enough to know what this is all about? /sarcasm.

 

What Bioware needs is, someone important enough in position to have this "feeling" and understand and can communicate the intricacies of the issue. As I would recommend any developer, hire a little team of serious, experienced, hardcore players to identify and define these things. By experienced I don't mean "being 40+ years old and having played MMOs since Ultima Online". I mean, get some Top100 experienced WoW Raiders, get some serious Gladiator PvPers, get some Pro Starcraft 2 players etc.

 

WoW doesn't have this issue because their Devs used to be serious, hardcore EQ Raiders... they would look at this system and say, "we can't play like this... let's do it better". Bioware Devs had no idea this delay even exists as they themselves aren't the type of player to notice... at all.

 

It's a logical conclusion, how else would you explain such a game? With such nice Sceneries, such nice stories, such nice sound effects, such nice animations... But yet such glaring and horrendous responsiveness? It's becsuse they aren't the kind of player themselves, playing on that level to notice.

 

I really see a standard Bioware Dev be someone

 

1) With sub-optimal spec because he doesn't know about EJ

2) Sub-optimal chants, gems, reforging and itemization

3) 3% over hit cap...

4) Roughly 2-5k below expected DPS

5) Backpeddling while tanking

6) No sense of proactive but only reactive healing

7) Triggering immolation traps and standing in crystal prison traps on Shannox

8) Impossible to do current content hardmodes with

9) Minimal keybinds

10) No "pre-potting", double potion on encounter...

 

This isn't an insult, or at least meant to be. All of the above points are ok for an average player, but such a player simply cannot notice the more intricate nuances in gameplay. Such a player will create beautiful stories, animations... sound effects etc. but not a good game...

 

 

So again, of course I am happy to read Georg's post and it shows that they're taking It serious. However I remain sceptical if they really will be able to get behind this. Is clipping needed? I am not sure 100%, ideally not, it appears ArenaNet is not clipping but using a more elegant system with Guild Wars 2. However, if it is needed, it should be properly introduced as in WoW.

 

Lastly, Bioware blaming it on hardware performance and optimization is a little weak. If anything, this would only be a minor contributing part overall and perhaps larger in Warzones but as you correctly stated, this goes beyond just Warzones.

 

I don't believe that Bioware is a company that can admit to mistakes or even be honest in regards to failures or flaws. They're in a tough position with EA and the need for SW:TOR to succeed but still, it has been proven since Mass Effect 1 and Garrus' face texture that Bioware simply isn't like Blizzard.

 

I can remember countless instances where Blizzard has admitted to failures openly. I cannot ever see Bioware do something like that without putting a serious spin on it...

 

 

I am hopeful but remain sceptical

Unbelievable post. It is uncanny how literally inside my head you are. It is clear that every ounce of feeling I have towards this issue is not only felt by you as well, but meticulously explained to perfection.

I want to touch on a few things you stated as I wholeheartedly agree and feel the need to elaborate. When you mentioned that developers of WoW came from EQ, I would also like to touch on the fact that every time a new expansion rolls out, even dating back to early development, Blizzard has ALWAYS invited top raiders to come and check things out. I remember there being reports that Blizzard was flying world ranked guilds to come help test and provide feedback for future content.

This is something BioWare, if not already, needs to consider. The budget is there and they need to select those who 'feel' this problem but also come from a ranked perspectives. Being a world 327 player myself and 2x gladiator, I can tell you that the problem stems further than what they mentioned and even what others do too. I sit in a vent channel with other members who claim they don't feel it on certain classes, but then want to claim priority as they feel they truly understand hardcore or competitive play. But I will state this, no self-respected TRUE competitive player does not 'feel' the issue and/or takes this game seriously because of it. Going back and speaking to ranked friends, all are laughing at the lack of control the game produces and refuse to ever come over unless it is fixed (but they expect it NOT to be). This brings me to my regurgitated statement that the rush to complete content is futile considering the competition is severely lacking and that regardless of you perspective, experience or ability to 'feel' the issue--it is STILL there. Like I have said 10000 times, even when you are not targeting anything, alone in a phased area, if you press your ability that will obviously cause red text to state "No Target"; there is still a slight delay from the time you press that key, to the point the ability on the UI lights up ending with the red text. It may be a smaller delay than the one expressed in the 'conditions' BioWare vows helping cause the issue, IT IS STILL THERE. Every ounce of delay needs to be fixed. Which is why I lit up with joy when Xcore explained how important sound plays a part, but followed by continued disappointment realizing this is another subject BioWare needs to address in order to achieve a full resolution.

The developers first mistake was the focus on a small percentage of MMO game play (leveling). I do not know why developers feel the need to act as if they know the 'secret formula' to competing with WoW, yet boast that it is removing the grind. THIS IS NOT THE CASE. WoW is successful because their end game content is tight and this is based on one simple fundamental factor--combat is fluid.

Combat fluidity is:

• The singular reason WoW's leveling experience is bearable and quite fun (although repetitive).
   
  
• The reason you are excited to get your next ability
   
  
• The reason why you feel satisfied upon defeating an opponent in a battleground
   
  
• The reason why you feel satisfied upon defeating an opponent in open world
   
  
• The reason why you feel satisfied upon defeating an opponent in a duel
   
  
• The reason why you feel satisfied upon defeating an opponent in a arena
   
  
• The reason why you feel satisfied upon defeating a boss in an instance
   
  
• The reason why you feel satisfied upon defeating trash in an organized fashion
  

The list goes on and on. Even misdirecting to friends or fooling around in stealth as I aggro and shift threat to my tank scaring him. I can literally go on forever as to how a fluid system severely directs players to an extraordinarily entertaining experience. This is the TRUE formula of success for an MMO.

BioWare's position and waste of developing hours focusing on leveling frustrates me as the writing was on the wall since day one. End game content is what makes a long lasting MMO, but this does not stem from content. Even though there are separate departments and I applaud BioWare for trying to show the community that they will be steadily releasing content; I can only frown at the obvious display of inexperience. An inexperience that stems exactly from what you state. That it is apparent BioWare developers do not come from a true knowledgeable player's perspective.

It also frustrates me that BioWare does not entirely admit they are wrong (like you stated), but that they also refuse to make a statement expressing the cause is related to an issue without stating player conditions is a contributing factor (or at least a sub-factor).

Consciously or subconsciously the true end game content stems from the fluidity of the most fundamental part of any part of the game (end game included), COMBAT RESPONSIVENESS.

P.S. I refuse to stop regurgitating points and I refuse to shut up about this matter until I 'feel' it is completely taken care of. I have followed the game for 5 years and the only reason I play is because of BioWare, the genre is SW in an MMO and that I quit WoW to invest in this title (not only financially but temporal). It is the singular complaint I have and the single thing I think separates this game from become a true market leader. I also invest the time I do in giving feedback to this matter because I do believe the combat has the ability and potential to attain fluidity. But it needs to be made a priority. Time is not on our/their side.