1. #1

    Thumbs up [R#198] Changing Gear - Soft Patches to the Rescue

    [R#198]Changing Gear - Soft Patches to the Rescue

    ...are you f****** crazy NST?!

    Sometimes maybe, yes, but not this time - Let me explain

    Bragi's working hard to get his implant and armour changes working - his work is heavily dependant on iteration based on your feedback - this feedback and constructive criticism is essential and always very welcome. A staggering amount has changed with test patches R#198-T#198 to T#208 - several systems got an overhaul, some a complete rewrite, meaning a complete rework of implants, armour, weapons and NPCs is essential. Every layer is dependant on the others which is why this task isn't quite so simple.

    We've already covered why this is so drastic again, the unravelling of a new set of modifiers discovered buried in the code.

    You may have noticed that Vedeena patches have gone from one every few days to none since R#198-T#208. It's easy to explain this in my case - I have stopped working on the NC source code... because reasons.

    Wait! Wait! Don't worry! - it's because of a more important requirement, our tool chain! Some of you may already know that if you want to change things in Neocron you have to do it with tools like Notepad - This is not a joke, we're not kidding! This is how KK made changes in the past and how we have made many change since 2012 - there were no tools available other than Notepad and Excel.

    Wow! The 90's called... they wan't their tools back!

    In 2013 I started an internal project called "Neocron Suite". The Neocron Suite (NCS) is ONE tool to combine all things we need to develop content and maintain the servers. The NCS is a "work in progress", living piece of software which automatically updates itself with the newest available builds - hot off the press! - and will never be "finished" because it grows with us and our changes to Neocron.

    The NCS is plugin based and customizable so everyone on the team with the right coding skills can contribute new plugins. - the newest member of the plugin library is the "Weapon Editor", an essential component to aide rapid, iterative balancing on Vedeena. This new tool in our arsenal is also able to build and deploy the so called "soft patches" - this feature allows us to make changes to the game without patching it "hard" to your client.

    Simply put, Bragi now has the tools he needs to configure weapon balance on the fly so he needs your help on Vedeena to be able to change and tweak and achieve the end result!



    Yes this is the first time we show you some internal stuff - but I think it's okay in order to be more transparent

    Needless to say, this is where my time has gone recently, to the development of such plugins which is why there is no new patch just yet.


    Nice speech...! TL;DR. Don't bore me bro! What about future test patches?

    Yes, there is a huge problem with Stun/Freeze effects I want to solve. As a PvPer I really hated getting paralysed/frozen by other players but I recognized its importance sometimes. Of course not like we had it in NC1 where you got "paralysed" ten times and got nailed on the ground but the feature does have its place.

    Another item is Damage over Time (DoT) but for the most part there is no patch required, now that the system has been rewritten in T#208 and the NCS Weapon Editor exists. I personally want to have DoT returned to more weapons. Since we fixed the DoT system recently, there are just a few weapons which have DoT and most of them are not working OR the DoT is just something which makes you "burn" without any effect.

    I've added fire stacks to the Rocket launcher and Fusion Cannon (alpha cells) testwise via soft patch - what do you think?

    This is the end...

    ...of this post. The recent patches gave us back what we have missed since Evo 2.2 - The ability to fulfil our needs in PvP and PvE and all of this is now more customizable - and in most cases "on the fly".

    I just want so say a new era of Neocron starts now, as always your feedback is very welcome and needed! The current balancing on our testserver is still a mess, because the R#197 value don't match the new, far less tangled system any more. We need your help to get this working again to get the very best out of Neocron.

    ... Oh... and about Neocron 1 - we can't bring back this game anymore and to be honest, we don't want it back. It was full of problems! HOWEVER there is nothing stopping us bringing elements of it's gameplay to the current version of Neocron Think about it

    Z
    Last edited by Trivaldi; 21-05-15 at 18:31. Reason: Correction
    Zoltan
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  2. #2
    God of the Crahnsect LeoPump's Avatar
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    Nice to hear that, Zoltan!
    Glad you guys still working behind the scenes and we get some stuff to know

    Thank you!
    "Ich bin für klare Hierarchien. Gott hat ja auch nicht zu Moses gesagt: "Hier Moses, ich hab' da mal was aufgeschrieben, was mir nicht so gefällt. Falls du Lust hast schau' doch da mal drüber." Nein, da hieß es: Zack, 10 Gebote! Und wer nicht pariert kommt in die Hölle. Bums, aus, Nikolaus." (Stromberg)

  3. #3
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    This is the right strategy.

    Indeed, this is the start of a new era for Neocron.

    Now the real fun can start! With an effective balancing.

    Good job NST. Keep going! You Rock !!!

  4. #4

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    I expect quite a few panties will moisten with this announcement!
    If you want to fix the game, start with the most essential part: The Community...
    Quote Originally Posted by Danae
    <&Danae> i don't like anything that's furry, totally dependant on me, and shits and pisses in sneaky places
    <&Danae> i have kids, i don't need pets ^^

  5. #5
    freedom for neocron! Torg's Avatar
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    Neocron Galaxies NGE. At least. No, really. This is huge.

  6. #6

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    Quote Originally Posted by Zoltan View Post
    Yes, there is a huge problem with Stun/Freeze effects I want to solve. As a PvPer I really hated getting paralysed/frozen by other players but I recognized its importance sometimes. Of course not like we had it in NC1 where you got "paralysed" ten times and got nailed on the ground but the feature does have its place.
    Can you explain this more precise ?

    What would be the freeze's role in PvP?

  7. #7

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    I can haz noo toiz?

    Me and Z ironed out a few kinks earlier and had a little test.
    As some pointed out, the ion cannon spent less time firing than reloading, so we tested a softpatch so it has a 12 round clip and has an ammo usage of one, not two.
    It seemed to work.
    Bragi
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  8. #8
    Civil Servant Jack Slater's Avatar
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    Nice update!

    I haven't been very active in Neocron lately but reading this makes me want to!
    Is there a chance of skill tools with developer support or will we stay dependent on NSkill with vague (or are these precise?) formulas and outdated (customizable) database?
    Last edited by Jack Slater; 21-05-15 at 07:52.

  9. #9

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    keep it going.. see you on the server

  10. #10
    It Hurts - So Good Dru Blood's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Zoltan View Post
    [R#198]Changing Gear - Soft Patches to the Rescue

    ... Oh... and about Neocron 1 - we can't bring back this game anymore and to be honest, we don't want it back. It was full of problems! HOWEVER there is nothing stopping us bringing elements of it's to the current version of Neocron Think about it

    Z
    Great work up to now the latest changes and your ability to patch on the fly will have a positive impact on the future of NC.
    I would like to see certain elements of NC1 back in game, I really miss the old character models and animations.

  11. #11

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    Quote Originally Posted by BlueRobot View Post
    Can you explain this more precise ?

    What would be the freeze's role in PvP?
    I didn't think about that much yet, because the "freeze / stun" effect isn't working well yet and I need to fix that but in general I want to bring back the old "freeze in pvp or pve" model we had in NC1 - NC2.1.

    Maybe not that hard like it was in the older version - I don't want to bring back a pvp showstopper.


    Quote Originally Posted by Dru Blood View Post
    Great work up to now the latest changes and your ability to patch on the fly will have a positive impact on the future of NC.
    I would like to see certain elements of NC1 back in game, I really miss the old character models and animations.
    Sad to say - we can't bring back the old models. The animation are different to the new models and these are hardcoded aswell.
    Zoltan
    Management • Development • Server Administration
    Neocron Support Team
    N E O C R O N - G A M E . C O M

    »What do you hear? - Nothing but the rain. «

    »I felt a great disturbance in the Force, as if hundreds of voices suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced. I fear something terrible has happened.« - server crash

    DOWNLOAD NEOCRONPLAY NEOCRONFACEBOOKTWITTERDISCORDGET SUPPORTFORUM RULESRULES OF CONDUCT​​

  12. #12
    Xpertz William Antrim's Avatar
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    Do a search for the "No more para" thread. It might be in the web archive somewhere.

    Please do not bring that back. It systematically ruined NC1 almost as much as KK did with the botched DOY "expansion".
    "dulce et decorum est pro patria mori"

  13. #13

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    no more para? wtf? learn to use the antidrugs and everything is fine... : )

  14. #14
    Xpertz William Antrim's Avatar
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    Do a search for the thread.... the opinions of many are very different to the opinions of one...
    "dulce et decorum est pro patria mori"

  15. #15
    The REAL Walker
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    For the love of everything beautiful.. DO NOT BRING PARA BACK!
    The ONLY good thing that 2.2 did, was removing that fun-blocker..
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