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7.0 Follow Up


KeithKanneg

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Hello SWTOR Community,

 

I wanted to offer some insight about what's been happening since the release of our expansion on February 15th. First of all, thanks to all the players who have shown Legacy of the Sith and our new cinematic trailer a lot of love. Many teams came together and worked very hard to make both possible. A small handful of us were able to spend launch week in an in-person ops room. Watching players react to the trailer and then start pouring into the servers will remain a fun memory for me.

 

Secondly, we know that 7.0 was not a smooth transition for some players, so we have been very busy since launch day resolving issues, minimizing any downtime, while fixing key issues without requiring a game patch. For example, during our first 72 hours, we identified critical bugs such as the issues with keybinding resets, empty gear boxes, and combat styles on characters not displaying properly and we corrected them all.

 

Since those initial fixes went out, the team has been reading reports and feedback coming in and making additional adjustments; at this point, further changes will require a full patch. In this upcoming patch, which we are labeling as 7.0.1, you can expect the below changes and much more to be included. Here are some of the most reported bugs we will be fixing in 7.0.1:

 

  • Adjusted contrast in inventory screen
  • Rakata Med-Tech’s weapons and offhands can now be upgraded at the Operations Gear Upgrade vendor, as intended
  • Rakata Force-Lord’s weapons can now be upgraded, as intended
  • The Category Filter in the Ability window is now showing all the categories. The Vehicles category now appears when the list is opened
  • The following now contain loot: Tionese Requisition Cache, Noble Decurion Chest, World Boss Equipment Crate
  • The Decurion Gear Containers and Decurion Gear caches now contain gear for all combat styles/disciplines
  • Unifying colors on individual armor pieces is now correctly saved when leaving the outfitter window
  • Galactic Seasons Reward Level 67 for Subscribers now correctly grants the “Sliced Cybernetic Visual Enhancement Implants” Legendary Companion gift for Fen Zeil, as intended
  • Fixed an issue preventing players with Ryzen HS processors from viewing the list of available servers
  • Companions and invited NPCs no longer despawn during the Graul boss fight in Secrets of the Enclave
  • Veteran Mode Flashpoints in Group Finder can now be queued by all players at level 15+. Story Mode Operations in Group Finder can now only be queued by players level 80, as intended

 

Players can currently preview many of these changes on our Public Test Server (PTS) that was opened earlier this week. We are also working on putting together some preliminary PTS Patch Notes together, so everyone playing on PTS will have an understanding of what bugs are fixed. Jackie will post them in these forums once they are available.

 

We know that progress for some players is being halted in the Elom Flashpoint when fighting Malgus. Since the initial report that has come in, the team has been looking into the bug to understand why players are experiencing it. Here’s a little glimpse under the hood to give you some insight into why a potential fix is being tested on the PTS.

 

We have experienced this bug when playing on our live characters, however, this bug does not present itself on our development servers. Reproducing a bug on development servers is step one in resolving any issue as it allows us to dig deeper into the source of the problems.

 

The biggest offender of this issue is when Malgus is pulling or pushing the player. This creates one of two possibilities: something in the game is causing the player to take a substantial, unintended spike of damage which kills them, or the movement of their character is causing them to hit something we call a “death volume”. This is a space built into all environments that if a player enters, kills them instantly. In this case, this area is used as a mechanism to ensure players don’t ever get stuck in the environment. We have done explorations of the death volumes, combat triggers, the ballistics on Malgus’s attacks, and none of these appears to be the culprit. The bug remains so our hunt for a fix continues. As this issue only wants to rear its ugly head on live servers, we have made a couple of tweaks, most notably to death volumes, which you can help us test right now on PTS!

 

As of this post, this patch will include at least 200+ fixes of varying degrees. The player facing fixes will be reflected in the patch notes. Because we are implementing all of these fixes in one push, we want to ensure the necessary time is allocated to test them all to quality. We are currently targeting March 22 for 7.0.1, but we will update you all with a confirmed date as we get closer.

 

7.0 is a foundational update to the game. The fundamental refactoring of all abilities and Advanced Classes into Combat Styles, the addition of the long-requested Loadouts feature, and the beginnings of new UI/UX and Itemization constitute the most significant systemic changes made to SWTOR since launch. These are only the first steps toward the ambitious and inspiring vision we have for SWTOR's future. We are excited to continue bringing this vision to life in the ongoing updates and additions coming to the game this year and beyond. More story will be coming including new locations to explore, a PvP revamp, and more visual and modernization improvements are also underway. It was always intended that 7.0 would receive multiple updates in 2022 and beyond to celebrate ten years of SWTOR.

 

Not only does the launch of Legacy of the Sith begin the journey into updating the game, but this update also opens the doors to new players who have never experienced SWTOR before. 7.0 is meant to invite new players to the game while also bringing new experiences to returning and veteran players.

 

SWTOR is a ten year old game that is very dear to all of us, and we look forward to continuing the journey of a series of updates to make the game the best it can be.

 

- Keith

 

Edited by JackieKo
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Hello Keith, I appreciate the update as well as the breakdown of your investigation as to why Malgus' relentless assault seems to kill us. While its very unfortunate it hasn't been fixed yet its good to know a lot of effort went into investing why it happens, multiple avenues were attempted in order to try to find the reason and hopefully the adjustments made into these death zones help solve the issue. I shall test it myself later in the PTS.
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Thanks for the update.

Hello SWTOR Community,

 

I wanted to offer some insight about what's been happening since the release of our expansion on February 15th. First of all, thanks to all the players who have shown Legacy of the Sith and our new cinematic trailer a lot of love.

The cinematic trailer was fantastic. Best part of 7.0 by far.

 

Secondly, we know that 7.0 was not a smooth transition for some players,

Understatement of the millennium.

When are you fixing the glaring gearing problems and the weapon outfitter? When is 7.1 coming?

Edited by JaeOnasi
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I think you forgot to list one of the 'fixes' there - the option to choose between new and old ui look for inventory/character sheet. It looks so hideous when compared to almost any other window that still has the old style. The change currently seen on pts doesn't cut it.
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Thank you for the update swtor team. I know how much work you guys put into 7.0 and I do admit this was not the smoothest launch and you have been breaking your backs to fix the reported bugs and getting a patch together.

 

I'm glad to see a patch will be implemented for hopefully the intended proposed date should all run smoothly. I have been keeping away from Ruins of Nul for the time being.

 

Question: I didn't see on the list about a fix for the[Weekly] Veteran Flashpoints not counting. Will that be fixed in this patch too? I mostly rely on FPs to gear, so it's really annoying when the weekly is not counting.

 

Other than, thank you for everything. I really have been enjoying SWTOR after only playing it for a year.

Edited by MMPRPink
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Thankful for the coming patch, but they could've done more sooner..... They tout the non-patch fixes. Still have players that can't play because their server list is empty. Quite the timing delay. Looking forward to more in the future, but still frustrated. Both the lack of communication and the failure to fix items week to week at the bare minimum are an absolute failure. Yet, I'm still paying and playing... Cause the game is dear to me and I enjoy what you have built and expanded over 10 years. Here's to a better future and better support over the next 9 months of the 10 year anniversary year.
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Hello SWTOR Community,

 

I wanted to offer some insight about what's been happening since the release of our expansion on February 15th. First of all, thanks to all the players who have shown Legacy of the Sith and our new cinematic trailer a lot of love. Many teams came together and worked very hard to make both possible. A small handful of us were able to spend launch week in an in-person ops room. Watching players react to the trailer and then start pouring into the servers will remain a fun memory for me.

 

Secondly, we know that 7.0 was not a smooth transition for some players, so we have been very busy since launch day resolving issues, minimizing any downtime, while fixing key issues without requiring a game patch. For example, during our first 72 hours, we identified critical bugs such as the issues with keybinding resets, empty gear boxes, and combat styles on characters not displaying properly and we corrected them all.

Since those initial fixes went out, the team has been reading reports and feedback coming in and making additional adjustments; at this point, further changes will require a full patch. In this upcoming patch, which we are labeling as 7.0.1, you can expect the below changes and much more to be included. Here are some of the most reported bugs we will be fixing in 7.0.1:

 

  • Adjusted contrast in inventory screen
  • Rakata Med-Tech’s weapons and offhands can now be upgraded at the Operations Gear Upgrade vendor, as intended
  • Rakata Force-Lord’s weapons can now be upgraded, as intended
  • The Category Filter in the Ability window is now showing all the categories. The Vehicles category now appears when the list is opened
  • The following now contain loot: Tionese Requisition Cache, Noble Decurion Chest, World Boss Equipment Crate
  • The Decurion Gear Containers and Decurion Gear caches now contain gear contain gear for all combat styles/disciplines
  • Unifying colors on individual armor pieces is now correctly saved when leaving the outfitter window
  • Galactic Seasons Reward Level 67 for Subscribers now correctly grants the “Sliced Cybernetic Visual Enhancement Implants” Legendary Companion gift for Fen Zeil, as intended
  • Fixed an issue preventing players with Ryzen HS processors from viewing the list of available servers
  • Companions and invited NPCs no longer despawn during the Graul boss fight in Secrets of the Enclave
  • Veteran Mode Flashpoints in Group Finder can now be queued by all players at level 15+. Story Mode Operations in Group Finder can now only be queued by players level 80, as intended

 

Players can currently preview many of these changes on our Public Test Server (PTS) that was opened earlier this week. We are also working on putting together some preliminary PTS Patch Notes together, so everyone playing on PTS will have an understanding of what bugs are fixed. Jackie will post them in these forums once they are available.

 

We know that progress for some players is being halted in the Elom Flashpoint when fighting Malgus. Since the initial report that has come in, the team has been looking into the bug to understand why players are experiencing it. Here’s a little glimpse under the hood to give you some insight into why a potential fix is being tested on the PTS.

 

We have experienced this bug when playing on our live characters, however, this bug does not present itself on our development servers. Reproducing a bug on development servers is step one in resolving any issue as it allows us to dig deeper into the source of the problems.

 

The biggest offender of this issue is when Malgus is pulling or pushing the player. This creates one of two possibilities: something in the game is causing the player to take a substantial, unintended spike of damage which kills them, or the movement of their character is causing them to hit something we call a “death volume”. This is a space built into all environments that if a player enters, kills them instantly. In this case, this area is used as a mechanism to ensure players don’t ever get stuck in the environment. We have done explorations of the death volumes, combat triggers, the ballistics on Malgus’s attacks, and none of these appears to be the culprit. The bug remains so our hunt for a fix continues. As this issue only wants to rear its ugly head on live servers, we have made a couple of tweaks, most notably to death volumes, which you can help us test right now on PTS!

 

As of this post, this patch will include at least 200+ fixes of varying degrees. The player facing fixes will be reflected in the patch notes. Because we are implementing all of these fixes in one push, we want to ensure the necessary time is allocated to test them all to quality. We are currently targeting March 22 for 7.0.1, but we will update you all with a confirmed date as we get closer.

 

7.0 is a foundational update to the game. The fundamental refactoring of all abilities and Advanced Classes into Combat Styles, the addition of the long-requested Loadouts feature, and the beginnings of new UI/UX and Itemization constitute the most significant systemic changes made to SWTOR since launch. These are only the first steps toward the ambitious and inspiring vision we have for SWTOR's future. We are excited to continue bringing this vision to life in the ongoing updates and additions coming to the game this year and beyond. More story will be coming including new locations to explore, a PvP revamp, and more visual and modernization improvements are also underway. It was always intended that 7.0 would receive multiple updates in 2022 and beyond to celebrate ten years of SWTOR.

 

Not only does the launch of Legacy of the Sith begin the journey into updating the game, but this update also opens the doors to new players who have never experienced SWTOR before. 7.0 is meant to invite new players to the game while also bringing new experiences to returning and veteran players.

 

SWTOR is a ten year old game that is very dear to all of us, and we look forward to continuing the journey of a series of updates to make the game the best it can be.

 

- Keith

 

 

Just revert to 6.0 and be done with it. All you've done in 7.0 is a complete FAIL with no exceptions. You may fix 200 bugs but the other 2000+ will remain.

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Hello SWTOR Community,

 

I wanted to offer some insight about what's been happening since the release of our expansion on February 15th.

 

These are only the first steps toward the ambitious and inspiring vision we have for SWTOR's future. We are excited to continue bringing this vision to life in the ongoing updates and additions coming to the game this year and beyond. More story will be coming including new locations to explore, a PvP revamp, and more visual and modernization improvements are also underway. It was always intended that 7.0 would receive multiple updates in 2022 and beyond to celebrate ten years of SWTOR.

 

I really hope so, Keith, because honestly u guys haven't given us original founding members much to "celebrate" so far.

 

Anyways, does this umm "vision" also include the GSF system? ( u guys haven't posted anything substantial in that section since like 2017 :( )

 

It is, after all, still 'STAR Wars' , no? ( if you need any ideas, check my forum sig below :sy_galaxy: )

Edited by Nee-Elder
please see my 'forum sig' clickys for IDEAS on how to improve SWTOR.....thanks
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and combat styles on characters not displaying properly

 

Is this the bug that was, at its worst, swapping characters to the opposite faction, removing their ship, and locking them out of their original combat style? Are you saying that's completely fixed? I'd still love to know what happened here and how something like this slipped through the cracks (and didn't even get acknowledgement for a full week).

 

  • Veteran Mode Flashpoints in Group Finder can now be queued by all players at level 15+. Story Mode Operations in Group Finder can now only be queued by players level 80, as intended

 

And this is where I stop. This is a prime example of why it's so clear to a lot of longer term players that you're not actually listening to feedback. The issue people were pointing out when showing that lower level characters can't queue for flashpoints was that the current rotation system takes away the flashpoints that they're a high enough level to actually complete.

 

So your response to that isn't to change the rotation system, which isn't popular for a number of reasons in addition to locking out lower level characters, it's to change the flashpoint queues to allow lower level players into all flashpoints. Something, mind you, you specifically made impossible in the past because those flashpoints are balanced towards higher level characters, which leads to lower level characters fairly consistently getting kicked from the group if they get matched into one or just dragging the group down to the point the whole run fails. That doesn't work out for anybody.

 

And to be clear, before anybody asks, I logged into the PTS to confirm this is actually what was done and yes it is. Traitor Among the Chiss was a pain to get through with a GF group even when everybody was on level or above. With how bolster now works, imagine that with a group of sub 50s. You've just ruined the Vet Mode FP queues because you're too prideful to listen to feedback and undo the rotation system.

 

All because, of course, you couldn't listen to feedback before and understand why people were farming Hammer Station. You haven't made flashpoints that are longer or harder more rewarding. That was the problem in 6.0. The GF rewards weren't enough to make up for the fact that every FP counts exactly the same for other reward systems, making the ones that take up to 3-4 times as long as Hammer Station or are 3 times as hard punishing to run. The ideal solution would have been to adjust rewards so the longer and harder flashpoints are worth more in all aspects compared to comparatively easier flashpoints. But instead, we get this. So prepare for everybody to just avoid the FP queue entirely in 7.0, you just killed it dead.

 

I get that it's hard to admit when you're wrong about something, but in your attempt to avoid doing so, you're making things even worse.

Edited by The-Kaitou-Kid
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not coming back, this "expansion" was the last straw for me....kudos for actually acknowledge this disaster after almost 3 weeks LOL

edit: make some legacy servers where i can play 1,7 . 2.0 etc. i'd subscribe in a heartbeat

Edited by meddani
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Keith.

 

Something has to change.

 

Legacy of the Sith was announced for launch 14 December, delayed , and now bug fixes are being scheduled for the 22 of March, that's about 100 days. :owithout without knowing how much time actually went into "legacy of the Sith" before its original release date one can only speculate. This is a big portion of time for one of the worst received expansions since the launch of swtor. It is small. it is not finished. it is broken.

 

My question therefore is

 

is the team and management happy with the direction of the game? , and do they think this an acceptable level of service/product to provide to paying customers?

 

a final note / warning.

 

How can the team seriously hope to move star wars into an exciting future and explore the lore and creative talent they have, when they are constantly looking to the past. There has to be a fundamental shift in how you listen to player feed back. especially on the PTS.

 

the hard decisions need to made on the pts, the developers need to be able to pushback on the pts! if you can delay an expansion without any feedback from players, the team should be courageous enough to delay an expansion with feedback from the players.

 

I am greaftul you took the time to speak to us. Thank you for that. I am one of those players you mentioned that watched the fantastic cinematic and flooded back into the servers. The pulling power of SWTOR is still there, strike that balance between hype and delivery and lets get back on track for everyone to enjoy this awesome game.

 

SWTOR is 10 years old, but we don't have to go quietly into the night :D

 

All the best. Good luck!

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Weapon skins? I know it was planned, and it seems like a small thing amid all the other fixes, but I have weapons I spent real money on sitting in my inventory with no way to show them off unless I want to continue to use 306 gear.
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A post by the developer, that's something.

 

>Veteran Mode Flashpoints in Group Finder can now be queued by all players at level 15+.

Unless I get the meaning wrong... let lv15 q for Nathema, Lost Island, or Copero is a BAD idea.

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These are only the first steps toward the ambitious and inspiring vision we have for SWTOR's future. We are excited to continue bringing this vision to life in the ongoing updates and additions coming to the game this year and beyond. More story will be coming including new locations to explore, a PvP revamp, and more visual and modernization improvements are also underway. It was always intended that 7.0 would receive multiple updates in 2022 and beyond to celebrate ten years of SWTOR.

Sounds great! As my sub lapses today, I already look forward to re-subbing once you deliver on your promises :)

Edited by HeBecTyJlKa
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These are only the first steps toward the ambitious and inspiring vision we have for SWTOR's future. We are excited to continue bringing this vision to life in the ongoing updates and additions coming to the game this year and beyond. More story will be coming including new locations to explore

 

Keith, don't you feel you should have STARTED with this stuff in all the promotion you've been doing for this game?

 

A new player has a ton of things to do. But for a returning player, who played through Onslaught? You've totally neglected to mention that this "expansion" is less than an hour of gameplay. Nothing excuses that fact, nothing explains that fact, nothing justifies that fact.

 

Respectfully, Bioware should remember that new players are only part of the equation... it's your devoted player base that's been underserved by pretty much EVERYTHING you guys have done with this expansion. And I'm sorry, but if you feel that this continued hype is doing something positive for the game, when in fact Legacy of the Sith has the absolute worst reception I've seen of any 'expansion' of this game (and I've played since beta), then you're not paying attention.

Edited by damonskye
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And this is where I stop. This is a prime example of why it's so clear to a lot of longer term players that you're not actually listening to feedback. The issue people were pointing out when showing that lower level characters can't queue for flashpoints was that the current rotation system takes away the flashpoints that they're a high enough level to actually complete.

 

So your response to that isn't to change the rotation system, which isn't popular for a number of reasons in addition to locking out lower level characters, it's to change the flashpoint queues to allow lower level players into all flashpoints. Something, mind you, you specifically made impossible in the past because those flashpoints are balanced towards higher level characters, which leads to lower level characters fairly consistently getting kicked from the group if they get matched into one or just dragging the group down to the point the whole run fails. That doesn't work out for anybody.

 

And to be clear, before anybody asks, I logged into the PTS to confirm this is actually what was done and yes it is. Traitor Among the Chiss was a pain to get through with a GF group even when everybody was on level or above. With how bolster now works, imagine that with a group of sub 50s. You've just ruined the Vet Mode FP queues because you're too prideful to listen to feedback and undo the rotation system.

 

All because, of course, you couldn't listen to feedback before and understand why people were farming Hammer Station. You haven't made flashpoints that are longer or harder more rewarding. That was the problem in 6.0. The GF rewards weren't enough to make up for the fact that every FP counts exactly the same for other reward systems, making the ones that take up to 3-4 times as long as Hammer Station or are 3 times as hard punishing to run. The ideal solution would have been to adjust rewards so the longer and harder flashpoints are worth more in all aspects compared to comparatively easier flashpoints. But instead, we get this. So prepare for everybody to just avoid the FP queue entirely in 7.0, you just killed it dead.

 

I get that it's hard to admit when you're wrong about something, but in your attempt to avoid doing so, you're making things even worse.

 

My response to this new system, since I will never complete another weekly due to the missions resetting every Tuesday, is to simply uncheck any of the time wasters. Like this week, I am only queuing for four of the nine available FPs. The drawback to this is that due to Lowbies being unable to queue for the vast majority of the available list, I have ran Athiss about a dozen times this week. Last week I actually had to remove The Esseles/Black Talon from my queue list because it was the only thing popping. The entire Weekly system is garbage and needs to go.

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Please focus on fixing bugs for the time being rather than unnecessary "revamps" that will just introduce more bugs. And after that focus on adding story content.

 

Also please bring back the planetary gear sets that were removed asap.

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A post by the developer, that's something.

 

>Veteran Mode Flashpoints in Group Finder can now be queued by all players at level 15+.

Unless I get the meaning wrong... let lv15 q for Nathema, Lost Island, or Copero is a BAD idea.

 

You don't get the meaning wrong. I included this screenshot in my last post and, while I didn't mention it there, I'll say it here: that screenshot was taken on a level 25 character. So it's not just the text saying it, flashpoints no longer have a minimum level requirement.

 

It's a really bad idea, being done to avoid admitting that the rotation system was also a bad idea.

Edited by The-Kaitou-Kid
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