ETA on Advanced Class change?

I agree. I was previously for this feature, but at this point, I would just like to know before I spend time leveling the same class twice if I dont need to.

Oh boy, do I remember this thread.......

i admit at first i thought this was a silly idea but after playing some other mmo's where you can be every class on the same character and just switch freely whenver you want.. it does'nt seem that silly to me anymore.

Welcome back ^.^

Lol. I thought you were going to say "My Condolences".

LOL! That too

Despite the fact that I know you are well acquainted with the devs statements as we have been back and forth over this again, I will post one of them again since you apparently are averse to the effort of going back to reread them.


Quote: Originally Posted by Yvin View Post
Hey folks,

Please be sure to read the Community Blog section, where weekly Q&As are posted. The one from February 10th answers this question:


Quote:
Aurozia: Will there be a dual specialization system in the future? Will there be a possibility of changing advance classes as well?

Daniel Erickson: We have no plans for switching advanced classes - which we see as fundamentally different class designs- but dual spec is in the works and coming soon.


You may find the full Q&A here and the discussion thread here. Check back on Friday to see what questions were selected this week!

Please also remember that our Developer Tracker is a great way to find out what the developers are posting!


You will notice that nowhere in the statement in the link you provided did the devs contradict that statement. They did not say that AC's were not fundamentally DIFFERENT classes, only that AC changes would "likely happen".

Have they said ANYTHING at all about allowing class changes to happen since that statement from over a year ago? No, they have not despite this over 440 page thread and countless other threads.

Well, I think that the telling thing as to whether or not they will do this is whether or not we have seen it by now....if it is coming, I would say it seems to be pretty low on the wall of crazy (if that is where it is) because many things have come and gone that folks indicated would never happen long ago....

F2P
Market
Expansion of appearance system
Multiplayer space (love the psychics on this one)
Housing

Not sure where this might fit on this list, but it must not be high up on the list...I expect housing was pretty low in the list.

I think it's about time folks stop saying things like "will never happen", considering how many times they have been wrong in this game, but at the same time I wouldn't personally hold my breath on this one.

As far as the argument over what ACs actually represent, never before in the history of this game has one topic of discussion and discourse created so much controversy and yet have little to nothing to do with whether or not a feature will come to pass IMO.

It is really an obtuse argument. It's like arguing whether or not orange is really orange.

I'd say the Dev's have seen how many of the newer MMOs place player housing as a point of player interaction. A space players can have creative input over and invest time in that's not connected to the regular gameplay. One aspect of SWTOR that's been quite lacking from launch is a sense of personal ownership and development of your character. You play the story Bioware want to tell, you get the companions Bioware have placed in the story, etc...

Some of the better decisions have come from opening up player input into what your character can equip so you have far more customisation options. While it may not appeal to the hardcore out there (I think they are more of the mindset that they don't care about what armour looks like as long as it's BiS and everybody knows it.) this ability to have more input into character appearance creates a stronger bond.

Don't believe me in the appeal of appearance? It's the central pillar of many cash shops that just sell vanity items.

Player housing falls into this appeal as it allows a player to reflect on the personal tastes of the character and display their achievements. Of course it's still a little early to hang out the bunting and celebrate as details are still light on the ground. But I see Galactic Stongholds as being a positive step forward to providing players a more concrete connection with the game world that they have created.

As to where 'AC swap' sits on the wall of crazy?
Quite a few MMOs out there seem to be less focused on the strict class philosophy of old (Rift, The Secret World, The Elder Scrolls Online) they make it far easier for a player to define the abilities their character can use. The more choice and control you give a player the more connected they feel to their character.
However... the biggest caveat to this is that it can be a nightmare to balance such varied abilities and it tends to result in cookie cutter builds handed down from on high if you are in a guild, or self imposed if you want to compete at the high end of play.
A more structured class system (defined abilities) is far easier to balance for in the long term.

I see AC swapping as a compromise to allowing some player controlled variation while not throwing out all consideration of balance. (The balance being you still only have access to the groups of abilities intended for any specific Advanced Class)

As I've said before I see it unlikely that AC Swapping as a feature would be released on its own. It's far more likely to be released alongside a larger feature that it could complement. For example the release of more Advanced Classes.

Oh, and welcome back to the thread LordArtemis you have my condolences

Well Daniel had much saying in SWTOR design but : Clicky.

Seems to me somebody else is taking design decisions now... especially since most of the team and decision have been switched. Can't wait for dual specs thought, I need one solo spec, one grouped one and one PvP one.