The other side of the story

[F3Speech]

Side A : http://forum.neocron.com/showthread.php?t=131194

Now for the flip side...

Downloaded the client a few days ago not because I was planning to use it at the time but just becasue I though might be handy to have for the future as i didnt intent to play at some point. the download speed was stupidly slow about 4k/sec but i left it going overnight and went to bed muttering about crap server hosting :)

Side A forum post (see above link) was made on the forum and I was surprised about the amount of intrest it got.

Despite thinking is was a bad idea yesterday I registered for a NC2 trial account. Reason I though it was a bad idea was just becase of the initial quality of some pages and from what I had read here. But i was itching to get back in NC, WoW it great and near perfect but it lacks the FPS that only NC has.

I registered with NC very smoothly for my trial account, wasnt expecting for it too be hard. Then im forwarded to the Click2Pay site, no im not a member to i click register. Few minor problems here, overlapping input boxes, radio buttons with no text with them look very amatuar and having home phone number as a required field when you click to contioue even tho the page says it isnt a required field. But all in all the pages processes very quickly with no problems, the click2pay site pulled most of the information needed form my NC trial application so i didnt have to re-enter it and the registration process finished and i was expecting to have to fill in more details about my NC trial but that wasnt the case, job done. I recieved email straght away confirming my click2pay account and another confirming my NC subscription.

I was really suprised at how easy it was after i actually started to do it, and no problems registring my CC.

Next I click the play NC button in the launcher, it downloaded 3 patches quite quickly tho i didnt see the actual speed, its wasnt 4k/sec tho :)

Launch game.. woohoo, getting there... in the char creation screen was the first NC problem that I noticed, it was to dark. I could hardly see what I was doing but I dont know it this can be changed before you get ingame it proberly can and tbh its a minor thing.

into the training atm, nice addition from nc1 for ppl to learn the ropes and again only one problem i found was that woman who talk you around the training area was to quite aganist the backgroud music, you cant turn her up and the music down.

stayed in the training breifly then went into the main NC game, TBH it looks the same as NC1 but with a new RPOS graphics, I am told that all/most of the changes are under the hood so ill just have to accept that NC2 is different :) so far ive noticied a snow effect which im sure nc1 didnt have, and its nice touch :). my first thing i wanted to do was get in the ingame forums and find a clan... easier said than done... there are ALOT of dead clans in the database which made finding and active clan in my faction VERY hard. After THREE fatual crashes putting me to my desktop using the ingame forums (i think they had somit to do with using the forums back button, but i havent had any apart from those since then) I decided to look for someone online and bend there ear a bit :)

after a few mins lookign a found a guy that didnt mind speaking to me for a bit, he said that the player population runs at about 300-350 on terra which i though was unbelievely low, but he told me that if you know where to go you can still find teams and pvp without much hassle, so that was good atleast. after a bit of exploring I relised that there really isnt alot of ppl about which i dont like as i love to team play but might get better after i lvl a bit :)

i logged out and decided to email NC support about getting my old NC1 chars moved, since why lvl to cap again if you can get them moved :) they replyed to me within 24hours im sure might have been 48, with the responce off after you have finished the trial contact us with your old nc1 account name and well get them moved. TBH I think thats a fair request since you dont want to me messing about with char moves and then find the person didnt even finish the trial and pay for the game etc, so hopefully ill get my chars moved in a few days.

last point is the community, over the last few days ive spoken to random ppl, asking them questions etc and everyone has been very friendly which is nice.

Now we come to the point of this post a few hours later :)...
I was very put off registering for NC2 and comming back for all the reasons stated above. But, now ive actually done it myself, alot of the things i thought would cause me hassle have actually gone very smooth, and I think that if your thinking about signing up that you should just do it and take your chances, you can see from the forum that some ppl have problems but i think maybe thos are the exception.

I decided that I would post this follow up post because i did slate NC2/Click2Pay in my first post and it would be unfair not to show that things arnt always as they seem.

anyway if youve read this fair well done, now go for a toilet break :)

Laters ppl. (appologies about grammer/spelling i cant be arsed re-reading all the above :)

[Nidhogg]

That's a great post, thanks. It's true to say that some people do experience problems with the points you raise but most people don't. I guess the moral of the story is not to get too carried away with what you read and give things a try for yourself. I wish you all the best in Neocron. :)

N

[Apocalypsox]

i wish i was back in without so much hassle =( im sorry but i gotta post this :p

Well canceled my account before Christmas. was all good. things went normal. C2P billed me the *last* time and i thought it was all good. well the next day ( i didnt bother checking credit card report for it no more cause i thought it stopped) i was billed 13.99 from C2P. surprise surprise. im like ok ill let it slide might be a error.

next month. Ding. 13.99 C2P Visa Credit Card. im like ok this is starting to make me mad now but ill let it slide once more. now the 12th of this month, i was billed AGAIN. emailed C2P and supposedly said they transfered the cash to 10t. im like yay maybe i get 3months of game time woot. account still dead. horray nearly 40$ USD down the drain for nothing! and support isnt answering my help ticket about it! yay!

anyways sorry. it had to be done. getting through this shit flawlessly is extremely rare. (sorry niddy -.-)

[unreal]

you can see from the forum that some ppl have problems but i think maybe thos are the exception.I don't see the countless number of people having problems an exception, there's quite a few posts on the forum about how crap the payment methods are, and how they've buggered up, but by no means does that mean that's all of them. Lots of people either don't bother or don't read the forum in the first place. 8 people I've been friends with in neocron have had problems, then there's myself, and there's been at least 4 people in my clan that's had problems, a couple others have left because of the bugs and such. Countless other people have had problems from their posts on the forum, and lots of people constantly say how they've been billed for more than they should (in some cases, for 6months rather than a 1month subscription).

If you take the average population of Terra, which is between 240-290 people on a daily basis, and you consider that perhaps 20% of the population i'm friends with have had problems with the payments (or not being able to pay because the account was screwed or got no reply from KK or C2P), and then a larger chunk from people I don't know personally that complain on HELP or OOC, that's turns out to be a pretty big figure.



It's true that we are reviewing our entire payment structure with an eye to improving it.Personally I would say it needs an overhaul, not a slight improvement. I know you're just the forum donkey for those sort of announcements, but I wish Reakktor would get off their arse for once. Please relay that message to them for me. ;)

[F3Speech]

@unreal: Ill reply just because im at a lose end :) and your post dosent seam to add up. dont take it as a personal attack I see the point your making but...


8 people I've been friends with in neocron have had problems
8

then there's myself
8+1

and there's been at least 4 people in my clan
8+1+4

a couple others
8+1+4+2 = 15



If you take the average population of Terra, which is between 240-290 people on a daily basis
ive benn told its 300-350 but lets just roll with 300 average.


and you consider that perhaps 20% of the population i'm friends with have had problems
300/100*20=60

so your saying 60 ppl, if all your friends were on in one go have had payment problems.
but in your post you said you only know of 15 ppl who have had problems.

that's turns out to be a pretty big difference.

@Apocalypsox: all i thought reading your post is that if you ignored the debt's you your CC then im not surprised that the charged you the following months. I'd get on the phone and kick off as well as contacting them in writing via fax for speed. then if your charged again contact your bank and they will contact C2P on your behalf for withdrawning fund without your concent (this does take weeks to complete tho so is a last option).

--
Anyway all I was trying to do in my followup post is tell people yes theres lots of problems noone could ever say otherwise, but if people just dont try it themselfs they will never know. whos to say that C2P or NC havent fixed a problem today and the next 500 accounts are created with no problems.

@Nidhogg: can you transfer that money to my account now :) lol

[Mr Kot]

found a guy that didnt mind speaking to me for a bit, he said that the player population runs at about 300-350 on terra which i though was unbelievely low, but he told me that if you know where to go you can still find teams and pvp without much hassle, so that was good atleast. after a bit of exploring I relised that there really isnt alot of ppl about which i dont like as i love to team play but might get better after i lvl a bit :)
Sounds familiar.

You didn't by chance happen to DM a monk who was just driving and chilling in the desert by any chance? If so, that may have been me. No, i wasn't Tangent (TFC) like my other chars.

I remember telling you about teams that you will only find if you look in the right places (like most content). If you want to level fast, go to F-12 caves, MB bunker, Gravis or Jankins swamp caves etc. Better still, just ask on OOC / Alliance where all the action is and tag along.

Even better, make your char as Tangent and talk to any online member of TFC. We will find you some random crap to do ;)

[Hellmag]

I don't see the countless number of people having problems an exception, there's quite a few posts on the forum about how crap the payment methods are, and how they've buggered up, but by no means does that mean that's all of them. Lots of people either don't bother or don't read the forum in the first place.

And then there are all those 'countless' people like me. That doesn't say anything, mostly because they didn't have any problems.
Of all my friends that play, none, I repeat, none has had any problems with c2p.

I don't think there has been anywhere near a hundred people on the forums that has had big problems. And that compared to all that play doesn't amount to countless hoards in my world. Sure there are quite alot of people that has had problems, and even one having problems is bad.
What I wanted to say is that what you said ("Lots of people either don't bother or don't read the forum in the first place") goes both ways, with the difference that those it worked for, extremly seldom write to tell.

[Dribble Joy]

If you have no problems with c2p (becuase of whatever reason), then the process is generally smooth and painless, but if there are probelms, then it tends to be catastrophicly bad.

The system is too hit and miss, it's either you can play or you can't, which is not only a massive barrier to returning players and new ones, but does not help KKs reputation (even if they don't have a hand in c2p's opperations), which can only have a negative impact on the perception of the game within and outside the community.

[nellus]

In nc1 we used paypal

why cant they use that aswell? is there a good reason?

[F3Speech]

In nc1 we used paypal

why cant they use that aswell? is there a good reason?

I'd assume its todo with commision rates, C2P must have given them the best deal, either that or there s Director in KK that has an intrest in C2P, I have seen that in places Ive worked where weve paid for software we dont need because the 'managment' say we should use it :)

[CMaster]

C2P own significant amount of shares in 10tacle, who KK are a subsidary of.

[joran420]

C2P own significant amount of shares in 10tacle, who KK are a subsidary of.

QFT this is the real reason C2P is pretty much the only option(yeah you have PayByCash too...but meh...)

IMHO the guys at KK need to go sign up for any SOE Game and see how they do theyre billing and copy it....

C2P could be fine if they wouldnt make you jump through so many hoops

[Dogface]

I've had 0 problems with C2P but it does feel like the whole thing is being held up by a burning match..

[chutza]

So far my experience with C2P has been great . They were very helpful when i had to call them on a credit card change and got me up and running right away . KK has answered my emails about my char transfer and they said that the chars would be transfered today so hopefully later ill ahve my NC1 chars to play with . So far its been a nice experience and I too was apprehensive after reading all the negative posts . If you ask me i think half the problems are PBKC ( problem between keyboard and chair ) . But so far overall experience is a 10 ,I'll let you know if i get my chars transfered today as stated in the email . Hopefully they remain at 10 out of 10 .

[Napalm82]

I have also had no problems whatever with C2P atltho i was fearing the worst when i read about some of all the problems people have had with them, but after a lil' reading i decided "what the hell" punch in the numbers, agree to the amount and play, i was playing after 10 mins.

I also used the same CC to pay for my friends subscription (Poor bugger doesnt have a CC) also with no problems.

- Nap

[Odin]

We will be making changes as stated in the last planfile to the billing system. More information when it gets closer to being implemented.