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Has ZOS already built a new open world pvp system and they're planning to switch to it this year?

spoqster
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I've briefly been to Cyrodiil again yesterday (XBox/EU), after a long absence due to lag-annoyance, and we defended a fort against roughly 50 to 100 attackers. Big battle, lots of siege weapons spawning aoes, lots of healing springs, etc. Needless to say the performance was abysmal. No more than 10 fps I recon, any coordinated fighting beyond spamming aoes and throwing heavy attacks in the general direction of an opponent was impossible. 1v1s even on the outer walls were so laggy that even targeting the opponent was impossible in the first place.

I remembered an old developer statement by ZOS from way back in the first months after launch, where they talked about lag in Cyrodiil and how it is related to aoe abilities and the numerous checks that need to be transmitted and evaluated regarding to which player is affected by what aoe ability. Standing inside the keep, looking at 10-20 aoes stacking in the same area with 20-30 players running in and out of these aoes, while all of them being affected by single-target damage and healing abilities, I was thinking there is no way this system of stacking aoes will ever be able to work lag-free.

So what if ZOS came to the same conclusion and gave up on it? Maybe they've made the decision to rework Cyrodiil completely and that's why they want to shut it down and rebuild it from the ground up. Maybe they will leave out siege weapons completely, maybe they will just change how they work, or simply change how the effects are evaluated under the hood.

My guess is they rebuilt open world pvp already (and are now in the process of finalising) and they're planning to release it at the end of the year. So this year they're preparing the community for the change lore-wise, by easing us into the end of the three-banners war.
  • SugaComa
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    Nope ... Abnor Tharn is a necromancer .. he's going to try something dumb n stupid that will ultimately fail and in the process you will learn the ways of necromancy

    This three banners war ending is just an encore to the overland pve quests and has nothing to do with PvP what do ever
  • Berenhir
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    Or maybe they just screwed up the game code and the two programmers left have no idea how to fix it without completely rewriting the game.
    PC EU - Ebonheart Pact - Gray Host - Death Recap -#zergfarming -
  • Vapirko
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    spoqster wrote: »
    I remembered an old developer statement by ZOS from way back in the first months after launch, where they talked about lag in Cyrodiil and how it is related to aoe abilities and the numerous checks that need to be transmitted and evaluated regarding to which player is affected by what aoe ability.

    Is that why they recently added permafrost and time stop? Based on how ZOS currently deals with PvP i.e. in contradictory and unpredictable ways seemingly without rhyme or reason, no, I doubt that they have somehow conjured up a working version of Cyrodiil. Though not beyond the realm of possibility, it would go against everything we have seen from them over the past 3-4 years. And that would also mean that they have let their PvP player base experience massive amounts of frustration and rage, that they have let droves of good players and guilds quit, all without saying a single word. Not even a hint that they might be working on something. I mean the stupidity of that decision sounds like something they might do, but overall I can't imagine that it's what they're up to.

    Edit: you know on second thought, if they were doing something like this they might almost certainly lock it behind a paywall. Lets theoretically assume they did build a new working version of Cyrodiil, that would have to generate some revenue for sure. Idk, I just don't see them being like, "HEY GUYS! HAVE WE GOT A TREAT FOR YOU!' and there's a brand new working Cyrodiil to queue into for free. This all doesn't sit well with me. I almost hope they just leave it alone, there's just so much that can go even more wrong.
    Edited by Vapirko on January 11, 2019 1:55PM
  • pod88kk
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    I hope they don't replace it with some sort of last person standing battle royale
  • Vapirko
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    pod88kk wrote: »
    I hope they don't replace it with some sort of last person standing battle royale

    See this is what I mean, if something new is coming the odds of it being better that what we have now is just so, so slim.
  • Elsonso
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    SugaComa wrote: »
    Nope ... Abnor Tharn is a necromancer .. he's going to try something dumb n stupid that will ultimately fail and in the process you will learn the ways of necromancy

    Yeah. At best, Abner Tharn is a screw-up and whatever he touches is left worse at the end than it was at the start.

    As for a new replacement for Cyrodiil, my feeling is that the best we will see this year is the release of whatever it is they have come up with for Cyrodiil performance in the last year. Last year was pretty much a bust on the server performance side, although they did some client-side work. Hopefully, they were actually working on server-side performance last year, vs sitting around watching sports on the internet :smile: , and we will see that in the upcoming Chapter.

    PC NA/EU: @Elsonso
    XBox EU/NA: @ElsonsoJannus
    X/Twitter: ElsonsoJannus
  • Skwor
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    No
  • spoqster
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    SugaComa wrote: »
    Nope ... Abnor Tharn is a necromancer .. he's going to try something dumb n stupid that will ultimately fail and in the process you will learn the ways of necromancy

    Yeah. At best, Abner Tharn is a screw-up and whatever he touches is left worse at the end than it was at the start.

    As for a new replacement for Cyrodiil, my feeling is that the best we will see this year is the release of whatever it is they have come up with for Cyrodiil performance in the last year. Last year was pretty much a bust on the server performance side, although they did some client-side work. Hopefully, they were actually working on server-side performance last year, vs sitting around watching sports on the internet :smile: , and we will see that in the upcoming Chapter.

    Well I've got this really strong feeling that the current Cyrodiil game mode can't be fixed. Even with everything they've done, performance is so bad in 50-100 player battles, it's so far away from a well-designed experience, that I don't see how they could possibly bridge that gap.

    It's like trying to remodel a pickup truck into a sports car. It just doesn't make sense. Even if they give us the exact same game mode, I really think they have to throw away most of the code and re-write it from the ground up.
  • Ackwalan
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    It could be ZOS is going to open up the middle island and put a contested world boss there.
  • qbit
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    spoqster wrote: »
    SugaComa wrote: »
    Nope ... Abnor Tharn is a necromancer .. he's going to try something dumb n stupid that will ultimately fail and in the process you will learn the ways of necromancy

    Yeah. At best, Abner Tharn is a screw-up and whatever he touches is left worse at the end than it was at the start.

    As for a new replacement for Cyrodiil, my feeling is that the best we will see this year is the release of whatever it is they have come up with for Cyrodiil performance in the last year. Last year was pretty much a bust on the server performance side, although they did some client-side work. Hopefully, they were actually working on server-side performance last year, vs sitting around watching sports on the internet :smile: , and we will see that in the upcoming Chapter.

    Well I've got this really strong feeling that the current Cyrodiil game mode can't be fixed. Even with everything they've done, performance is so bad in 50-100 player battles, it's so far away from a well-designed experience, that I don't see how they could possibly bridge that gap.

    It's like trying to remodel a pickup truck into a sports car. It just doesn't make sense. Even if they give us the exact same game mode, I really think they have to throw away most of the code and re-write it from the ground up.

    6-wheeled-porsche-928-sports-pickup-truck-is-unique-video-93754_1.jpg
  • Draxys
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    Maybe that’s what they’ve been working on while they ignore all the other broken and imbalanced stuff.

    But let’s be real, the answer is no. They’re not going to put that much money or effort into it because it won’t be profitable.
    2013

    rip decibel
  • Elsonso
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    spoqster wrote: »
    SugaComa wrote: »
    Nope ... Abnor Tharn is a necromancer .. he's going to try something dumb n stupid that will ultimately fail and in the process you will learn the ways of necromancy

    Yeah. At best, Abner Tharn is a screw-up and whatever he touches is left worse at the end than it was at the start.

    As for a new replacement for Cyrodiil, my feeling is that the best we will see this year is the release of whatever it is they have come up with for Cyrodiil performance in the last year. Last year was pretty much a bust on the server performance side, although they did some client-side work. Hopefully, they were actually working on server-side performance last year, vs sitting around watching sports on the internet :smile: , and we will see that in the upcoming Chapter.

    Well I've got this really strong feeling that the current Cyrodiil game mode can't be fixed. Even with everything they've done, performance is so bad in 50-100 player battles, it's so far away from a well-designed experience, that I don't see how they could possibly bridge that gap.

    It can be fixed. The bigger question is whether they want to spend the money to do it. Depending on my mood, I go back and forth between hope and despair. :smile:
    PC NA/EU: @Elsonso
    XBox EU/NA: @ElsonsoJannus
    X/Twitter: ElsonsoJannus
  • ArchMikem
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    Ackwalan wrote: »
    It could be ZOS is going to open up the middle island and put a contested world boss there.

    You mean, the Imperial City? Which is already a DLC that's been around for years?
    CP1,900+ Master Explorer - AvA One Star General - Console Peasant - The Clan
    Quest Objective: OMG Go Talk To That Kitty!
  • Starlight_Knight
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    Its true PVP performance has been terrible and only gets worse. i really hope they are doing something that's for sure or they will loose even more players, i may be on the next boat out as well.
  • xenowarrior92eb17_ESO
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    doubt that...pvp was mostly ignored for the past 4 years so I dont think they will make open world pvp...considering that should had been at the beginning of the game...
  • Sinlar
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    Necromancers vs everyone else. Just give them a red aura and you would have your world pvp.
    This one would find that spectacle to be very amusing indeed.
  • Ackwalan
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    ArchMikem wrote: »
    Ackwalan wrote: »
    It could be ZOS is going to open up the middle island and put a contested world boss there.

    You mean, the Imperial City? Which is already a DLC that's been around for years?

    Nope, I mean the above ground area that is built on top of IC
  • Elsonso
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    Ackwalan wrote: »
    ArchMikem wrote: »
    Ackwalan wrote: »
    It could be ZOS is going to open up the middle island and put a contested world boss there.

    You mean, the Imperial City? Which is already a DLC that's been around for years?

    Nope, I mean the above ground area that is built on top of IC

    :confused: The Imperial City is what is built there. It includes a below ground and an above ground area, both open to players.
    Edited by Elsonso on January 14, 2019 9:56AM
    PC NA/EU: @Elsonso
    XBox EU/NA: @ElsonsoJannus
    X/Twitter: ElsonsoJannus
  • Jurand80
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    hope dies last
  • idk
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    The reality is that Zos has probably made improvements but have added more strain to the server along the way which they acknowledged.

    By adding more proc sets, buffs and debuffs along with CP Zos has created a mess for their servers to deal with. All due to a lack of vision in managing this game which has been the issue since well before launch. The management of developing this game is why it launched in PC in such an abysmal manner. While I enjoy this game, I am really surprised Zos was able to salvage enough players to keep it going.
  • spoqster
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    idk wrote: »
    The reality is that Zos has probably made improvements but have added more strain to the server along the way which they acknowledged.

    By adding more proc sets, buffs and debuffs along with CP Zos has created a mess for their servers to deal with. All due to a lack of vision in managing this game which has been the issue since well before launch. The management of developing this game is why it launched in PC in such an abysmal manner. While I enjoy this game, I am really surprised Zos was able to salvage enough players to keep it going.

    That's because the game is a good game at it's heart. It has wonderful art, good stories and good dungeon design, and in terms of the combat it's the best mmo out there. Even their concept of open-world pvp is a cool concept.

    They've just made a couple of questionable decision in terms of systems design, and the problem is that these mistakes are really hard to measure. How are you going to identify that a user left the game because he was overwhelmed by the horrendous number of sets in the game and the lack of a system to manage the mess, for example. Or how do you identify the users that left because there is no loadout manager, that gives you the option to save and load specific gear configurations?

    The problem with these issues is that people don't get as vocal about it, and most people that leave because they're missing these things don't even know why they're leaving. People get very vocal about pvp balancing, because the emotional momentum is very strong in these occasions. But if you're just overwhelmed by complexity, you leave quietly without a clear understanding of what is driving you away from the game.


    But in terms of the performance issues, I personally wouldn't mind if they removed some aoes from the game or would make them work differently (like remove the stacking or smoething else) - even if it would mean a significant change to the game's combat mechanics.
  • EphemeraCrawford
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    Question : if they redid the animations so they weren't so lengthy and clunky, would it help somewhat with combat speed?
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