How do you participate in PTS?

Tyrant_Tim

It finally happened, today I caved and got off my Xbox and decided to start my desktop and install the PTS, and to my amazement, the servers were almost completely empty of players. After spending hours running around in both Cyrodiil and Imperial City while queued the entire time for Battlegrounds to no avail, it made me curious…

So I decided to throw together a poll to gather statistics on PTS participation and discussion with the hopes of understanding how we have so much participation in the forums around PTS time but very little activity on the actual server.

Here are the options, feel free to elaborate down below.

Soarora

I don’t really comment about changes. I do testing on PTS to check things out and answer the questions of those who have no access but I luckily haven’t had the need to voice my opinion about much lately.

By the way, I don’t think people really do PvP on PTS apart from duels. There’s not much to test this Q3 either so not many people on. Come for a chapter drop and there’s more activity in the chapter zone. No point in playing pts like its live— your progress gets wiped with every character copy (pc na first 2 weeks of patch? Then pc eu rest of time). Most people who are online are probably checking out the houses or messing with the new weapon passives.

phaneub17_ESO

Only a fraction of players will be on the PTS, finding a gathering of players will be very difficult except for Trial guilds who come as a unit to test changes against their regularly scheduled runs. Otherwise most people will be in their homes doing parses or running very specific content, usually solo or with organized parties. There's little point in doing most content unless that is your regular gameplay and you want to see how it plays out.

Tyrant_Tim

I was lucky enough to run into 2 people who I had the opportunity to duel a few times each, but I couldn’t find anyone else.

Is there a designated place for PTS duels that is different from Live?

colossalvoids

Some are filling out bug reports mostly, so did I when was testing stuff that interests me. Also to make comments about changes usually you don't need any actual testing done, it's all mostly pretty obvious with enough experience and knowledge. There are cases to test always, but I don't remember many surprises along the years.

Tyrant_Tim

colossalvoids wrote: »

Some are filling out bug reports mostly, so did I when was testing stuff that interests me. Also to make comments about changes usually you don't need any actual testing done, it's all mostly pretty obvious with enough experience and knowledge. There are cases to test always, but I don't remember many surprises along the years.

On the flip side of that, there are still quite a few people that read something and blow it way out of proportion without testing the actual thing they are complaining about, if we had even close to the number of people playing the PTS as commenting about it, we would have a more constructive forum.

Soarora

Tyrant_Tim wrote: »

I was lucky enough to run into 2 people who I had the opportunity to duel a few times each, but I couldn’t find anyone else.

Is there a designated place for PTS duels that is different from Live?

I don’t go looking for duels but I see a bunch by the wayshrine that template characters get sent to, so that is probably The Spot on PTS. I don’t recall seeing anyone this time but I wasn’t looking. I did see people discussing PvP in chat though.

The_Boggart

What is the point update 35 comments completely ignored

Turtle_Bot

If you're looking for PvP content on the PTS, it's limited mostly to duels outside the spawn area or in player homes. The PvP zones themselves are basically always empty.

As for myself, vast majority of the time I test things on the PTS and comment after testing them. This time is a bit different with work keeping me busy, but the changes are pretty obvious considering the staff changes are a flat 10% nerf to magsorc and there's nothing in the notes to indicate a potential way to make up for this.

Magsorcs will simply cease to exist in PvP if the proposed PTS changes go through, there is literally no weapon for them anymore and the stamina weapons are just objectively better utilized by stamsorc so no point even bothering with magsorc anymore.

DarcyMardin

I used to play on the PTS. For years. I’d dutifully offer feedback and suggestions as well as checking for bugs. I’d join in the discussions with other PTS testers. I’d been an alpha tester in my former, pre-2013 MMO, so I thought maybe I could be useful, here, too.

Not only my feedback, but pretty much *all* of the PTS testers’ feedback was routinely ignored. What hits the PTS invariably ends up on the live servers. Maybe they catch a few bugs, but even those often get missed.

So I stopped devoting any of my time to the PTS. If you want a sneak peak and/spoilers, have at it, but don’t expect them to change anything you’re not fond of.

TaSheen

I don't have access to PTS due to lack of data for an extra download like that every time it's up.

JanTanhide

The_Boggart wrote: »

What is the point update 35 comments completely ignored

This. Update 35 was the Titanic hitting not one, not two, not three but four Icebergs at full speed with ZOS at the helm.

So many people left the game when U35 went live. We lost thousands upon thousands of players. ZOS ignored us completely about U35 changes on the PTS.

JanTanhide

DarcyMardin wrote: »

I used to play on the PTS. For years. I’d dutifully offer feedback and suggestions as well as checking for bugs. I’d join in the discussions with other PTS testers. I’d been an alpha tester in my former, pre-2013 MMO, so I thought maybe I could be useful, here, too.

Not only my feedback, but pretty much *all* of the PTS testers’ feedback was routinely ignored. What hits the PTS invariably ends up on the live servers. Maybe they catch a few bugs, but even those often get missed.

So I stopped devoting any of my time to the PTS. If you want a sneak peak and/spoilers, have at it, but don’t expect them to change anything you’re not fond of.

Same. U35 was the last time I tested and commented and again was completely ignored. So no more PTS for me.

Cadbury

Tyrant_Tim wrote: »

colossalvoids wrote: »

Some are filling out bug reports mostly, so did I when was testing stuff that interests me. Also to make comments about changes usually you don't need any actual testing done, it's all mostly pretty obvious with enough experience and knowledge. There are cases to test always, but I don't remember many surprises along the years.

On the flip side of that, there are still quite a few people that read something and blow it way out of proportion without testing the actual thing they are complaining about, if we had even close to the number of people playing the PTS as commenting about it, we would have a more constructive forum.

Reminds me of awhile back when someone suggested that the forums and PTS be open only to those who have ESO+.

KlauthWarthog

The PTS stands more as a "brace for impact" showcase than a part of a dev-player feedback cycle nowadays, so... I only read the patch notes, comment here and there, and get ready for the problems that will go live anyway.

Tyrant_Tim

Turtle_Bot wrote: »

If you're looking for PvP content on the PTS, it's limited mostly to duels outside the spawn area or in player homes. The PvP zones themselves are basically always empty.

As for myself, vast majority of the time I test things on the PTS and comment after testing them. This time is a bit different with work keeping me busy, but the changes are pretty obvious considering the staff changes are a flat 10% nerf to magsorc and there's nothing in the notes to indicate a potential way to make up for this.

Magsorcs will simply cease to exist in PvP if the proposed PTS changes go through, there is literally no weapon for them anymore and the stamina weapons are just objectively better utilized by stamsorc so no point even bothering with magsorc anymore.

One of those two people I fought yesterday, was a MagSorc using an Inferno Staff with a backbar Vateshran, and I’ll be the first to tell you MagSorc isn’t dead.

I was on a resistance cap StamPlar with Major Evasion and Living Dark and the only way I wasn’t getting shredded was by keeping Vigor up 100% of the time. The new Inferno Staff change feels very good, and opens up use of the Asylum Inferno again.

Tyrant_Tim

Cadbury wrote: »

Tyrant_Tim wrote: »

colossalvoids wrote: »

Some are filling out bug reports mostly, so did I when was testing stuff that interests me. Also to make comments about changes usually you don't need any actual testing done, it's all mostly pretty obvious with enough experience and knowledge. There are cases to test always, but I don't remember many surprises along the years.

On the flip side of that, there are still quite a few people that read something and blow it way out of proportion without testing the actual thing they are complaining about, if we had even close to the number of people playing the PTS as commenting about it, we would have a more constructive forum.

Reminds me of awhile back when someone suggested that the forums and PTS be open only to those who have ESO+.

I don’t own ESO+, nor do I believe the forums should be gatekept.

I do believe people should get in there and test things out if they can and make their own opinions of things based on gameplay, rather than assumption and the opinions of others with class bias.

colossalvoids

Tyrant_Tim wrote: »

colossalvoids wrote: »

Some are filling out bug reports mostly, so did I when was testing stuff that interests me. Also to make comments about changes usually you don't need any actual testing done, it's all mostly pretty obvious with enough experience and knowledge. There are cases to test always, but I don't remember many surprises along the years.

On the flip side of that, there are still quite a few people that read something and blow it way out of proportion without testing the actual thing they are complaining about, if we had even close to the number of people playing the PTS as commenting about it, we would have a more constructive forum.

Agree but those are quite easy to distinguish from just bias or emotional touches people have. It's cluttering topics though so kinda makes sense to remember they exist and better see for yourself lol.

Reverb

DarcyMardin wrote: »

I used to play on the PTS. For years. I’d dutifully offer feedback and suggestions as well as checking for bugs. I’d join in the discussions with other PTS testers. I’d been an alpha tester in my former, pre-2013 MMO, so I thought maybe I could be useful, here, too.

Not only my feedback, but pretty much *all* of the PTS testers’ feedback was routinely ignored. What hits the PTS invariably ends up on the live servers. Maybe they catch a few bugs, but even those often get missed.

So I stopped devoting any of my time to the PTS. If you want a sneak peak and/spoilers, have at it, but don’t expect them to change anything you’re not fond of.

Exactly this.

I may comment on a few of the patch notes, and I test some pts cycles to better understand the impact of the changes on my builds, but I long ago stopped submitting bug reports or giving feedback in the official PTS threads. There’s zero point. Zeni doesn’t want our feedback, so why should we waste our time compiling and giving it?

valenwood_vegan

Our feedback isn't desired so I don't participate in PTS anymore.

EDIT to be more clear: When I say feedback, I mean about bugs as well. Bugs identified very early in PTS regularly go live. It's pointless.

I may occasionally comment on forum threads regarding some of the biggest issues, because it makes me feel a little better to say something.

chessalavakia_ESO

I generally do get on the PTS but, I will at times comment on items before doing them or interacting with them if the time/people requirement is higher than the amount of effort I'm willing to put in.

For example, I went into Cyrodiil and killed some delve bosses, did some of the dolmens, and helped someone grab an Elder Scroll. I was probably in Cyrodiil for 45 minutes and I didn't see any of the new kill messages. If I see some footage of them I might make some comments beyond concern based on the patch notes without experiencing them directly.

Tyrant_Tim

When I think of PTS, and how it’s handled by ZOS, I believe it’s more of a place to find out if things are working as intended, and less of a place to provide feedback.

After seeing the recent updates, it’s more clear to me that ZOS has a specific vision in mind, and that they are executing it slowly and safely, which is something that I do appreciate and gives me reason to understand why they are listening less.

Feedback is important, but as Asmon said in a stream a few days ago, you can’t be so open minded your brain falls out.