I saw this great movie. Let me tell you all about it!

[Professor Xavier]

Has this ever happened to you? Someone spoiled that movie you are going to see soon. Or in the theater talking during the movie with their friends making sure they don't miss the good parts. Ruining your experience and everyone's. Below is my idea to start a new community. Try to start over so to speak. If anyone does like I describe. I would like them to start a post about it. Hopefully only new players will post there. For all of us to read. I would truly like to hear someones opinion of the game before they enter our community. I have for my own reasons I returned to PSU after being gone for a year. I played for 2 1/2 years then quit for my own reasons. I have a low ID tag. I had friends in the game that set me up very nicely with gear and Meseta. I have more fun being back than I ever did before I left! More to the point.

My opinions differ from some or many here on the forums. Some of my opinions are wrong sometimes. I want to for these reasons and all the others reasons. I am spoiled so to speak. Negative in many ways! It is hard if not impossible for anyone to have an unspoiled perspective in the game, who has played very long. If you are that person CONGRATULATIONS!!

I think a fresh outlook on the game from new players would be good for everyone. I don't wish to influence them. I want their ideas and point of view to help make my own view of things better. Below is an edited and changed somewhat snippet of a PM I sent a long time PSO player who is thinking about playing PSU. It would have to be changed as to an introduction to PSU for anyone new to the game. Not something I really want to do alone. Just build on my idea. I don't in anyway consider myself an expert on this game. Maybe there is someone better suited to the task then myself. If not I would like a sounding board to PM others while I work on it myself. Taking all the advice on changes to it and making it better. anyway read on and let me know what you all think. Can and should we do this?

If you play PSU the best advice I can give you is to try to get with others new to the game. Go to your own private universe. Play only with new players. Avoid all contact with others already in the game Try to form your own opinions about PSU without all the negativity that comes from the current community. Try to level to at least level 30 or higher maybe 60. There are certain repetitive missions in PSU you want to avoid doing until you have explored the game for yourself. If you want to play I'm on the XBOX 360 version. If you want to do as I advise I can help you find the other players that are new in the game. I will not spoil anything for you. That would be like watching that movie everyone else saw on the first day. And has seen 2-3 times. Since you already heard all the good parts. You know what I mean. If you want to try it this way. I guarantee if you do. You will have the best possible experience on PSU! It is the best way to start!! Oh and if you do it this way. The only thing I will tell you is that even on the C rank missions. You do get Uber rare items. Don't sell or part with anything until you FULLY understand its value!! I cannot stress that point enough. Keep all your drops until you look up the prices!! There is a lot to do in this game. If you get in to big of a hurry you will miss out on a lot of the fun from being new. I'm already envying your experience. You get to play PSU for the first time. With a lot more stuff and missions than I ever had. Lucky you!!

[AOI_Tifa_Lockhart]

Hiya,

Nice post it was an interesting read. I admit when I started back on PSu I did the same, well after playing a fortnight I realized at least 3/4's of my card list were never online so I slowly started replacing old cards with new players and slowly but surely I know have a big card list of players who are online regularly which is whats needed to keep me playing as i'm on PC/PS2 and I think most have either given up, switched to JP or 360 etc or just playing other RPG's.

I've managed to get a few of my friends to join PSU, it really is word of mouth which helps promote this game. The pitfall for 360 users is the sub fee, people feel it unjust when they pay the xbox live sub fee as well. I can see their point but the demo version of PSu probably has a population to rival that of 360 and PC/PS2 combined. But how do you convert people to play the proper game? Its quite difficult especially in this day and age where people seem to be ever so stringent with their money.

I did try to get PSu 360 working but I can't due to lag issues, I really need to look into it, but in all honesty i'd feel guilty turning my back ont he PC/PS2 community i've played with now for years.

But yeah its difficult to promote this game I find, when PSU portables have now been released etc and there are much newer RPG's which people find more appealing.

I imagine when a private server is released the community will be bigger than the official servers could ever hope to be. The reason being a sub fee RPG is immediately confined to an early demise in my opinion. They do not have the longevity of free RPG's because when people pay they expect their "money's worth" and in the case of PSU its left a mass amount of bitterness due to JP and EU/US servers paying same fee but we're left with an unfinished game compared to JP and our servers will be shut down earlier. And its this blatent bias which has turned so many against the game, but its at the point of no return now.

I'll continue to play this game until the servers are shut down and help new players as much as I can as its a good feeling to help people out and really get them to appreciate what a good, in-depth game this is.

Ironic years ago when the population was huge I stuck more to solo missions, now the population is dying I aspire to do more team runs.

Anyways, sorry for waffling ^_^

Tifa

[Professor Xavier]

I agree with everything you said. I do feel however there is hope for PSU. The hardest part of PSU is the community. Ill give SEGA 70% of the blame for poor management of the new content. 30% to the community for being so negative because of the time it takes to get new updates or glitches fixed. Which is caused by SEGA's poor management of the game.

However I feel if we can start a new community like I describe. Where a lot of new ideas come from new players. Not to offend anyone already playing but we need new blood or this game is done!! There are still new players coming to PSU through used discs or however they get them. There could be a huge push by SEGA to have the digital download. Which is two fold. Anyone who played before who cannot get or afford a new disc can get PSU for 10 or 20 dollars. Depending on whether they still have AOTI on their gamer tag for download etc. It would bring them back. And simply having it available as a digital download it would be promoted on Xbox live. And if SEGA could actually promote PSU by making the game cheaper for beginners and current players. Give everyone half off for six months or something. Ill bet there would be so many players returning and starting new we could fill at least 10 stars daily on the servers. Think of all the Meseta to be made!!

I believe for this to work we have to have a huge community effort. We need all the new players to experience the game as we did from the beginning. We need to do the community effort now if only for ourselves to make the game better as it is. Then maybe if we are really lucky we will get the supplemental update. Which I am pretty sure we will get anyway. I just don't know how long that will be.

PSU greatest plague is that others who read this on the forums will now want to tell me so many reasons why this wont work. Maybe they would be right. But the simplest reason it wont work. As soon as this post goes negative then its done. I still think its worth an effort. I hope everyone will try to help this game just to make it better for yourself and everyone playing.

My last thought is that It is the 10th anniversary for PSO. The creator of PSO says good things are coming this year. That has to include us! Which is great news! I feel we have been having regular updates much better than 2008. There is good reason to feel good about PSU!

Just so everyone knows I post here instead of PSU's main site because everyone is so much more positive by comparison. Thats something to be very proud of. So when I speak of the negativity. I am mostly talking about SEGA's main web forum and in the game itself. The same effort could be made in the PC/ps2 version as well. We are playing the same game after all. I am thanking everyone in advance this really is a great web site and forum!!

[SuKKrl]

Surely there is still hope, I've played EQ2 before and it was almost dead, but they begun releasing good and packed updates, new player bonuses, recruit-a-friend and other systems. It is not a game packed of players but it is much better than before.

I think you're forgetting that for a community effort to have any chance of doing an impact you first need support from the developers.

I've not been here for long, and I actually believe this game can survive, but not as it is now.

One thing I think you're right is that there are people in the community (please don't say it is the community, I really hate when people generalize something) that bash this game far too much.

[Sparkles]

I've come from a long time of EverQuest and WoW (although not in years). Started on the Demo and loved the simplicity of the game. I am so used to the grind, I've been playing for like 2 months and don't care that I am level 77 (which I basicaly solo'd to). I've almost grinded myself to MF (lvl 2 now, few WB missions here and there).

I play with mostly new players, most of my friends list ID tags start with 301xxxxx.. I love this community and I have always looked at sites like this as a great source of information, as far as the negative posts that's there with any game you play. It's understandable but if I was unhappy it will be a simple solution to stop playing.

Good post though, I'm glad you emphasize the idea of playing with new players as I have found myself doing random missions besides WB/SE/IG and loving the landscapes of some of the other planets I might have never seen if I just read some posts here and stuck to what lvls you the fastest...blah.

[Professor Xavier]

I see your point of view. I do think the game is weak is some areas. I was kinda thinking the 70% then 30% then blaming SEGA for the negativity because of the way they do stuff. For me kinda puts all the blame on them. I don't mean to generalize. That's not my intent. I could edit the post but I want everyone to see I am being completely honest. I agree if the developers were on board it would help.

But its been 4 years I think since this game came out. I'm not very optimistic they will get on board. Maybe if we give them a reason to think things have changed with the community in general. We can give them the reason they are looking for to update and even expand the mission to new ones. I think if done right. That's a big if? If we do it right and consistently. Get the post I am looking for from the new player or players. If it works not everyone will have to do it. People should want to do it for the simple reason, if people like it others will follow! All it takes is one good idea. If its cool and catchy eventually everyone will do it. The game as it is I think is not perfect. Given new blood we all can learn to look at the way we play in a different way. Which I am convinced will change everything!

That change for each of us means something different. Look at me. I came back because of a personal setback. I have a whole new outlook I am now trying to improve on. That story for some may help some of us take a second look at PSU.

[Professor Xavier]

Bump---------------------------------------------------------------------

[W0LB0T]

The very backbone of this community was forged by negativity and whining. without it we'd have no PSU community.

[Shou]

Ill give SEGA 70% of the blame for poor management of the new content. 30% to the community for being so negative because of the time it takes to get new updates or glitches fixed.
You give us too much credit.

[Professor Xavier]

You give us too much credit.



Like I said my opinion is wrong sometimes.