Patches, addons and drama in the forums
by Amanda Miller 
Jul 16th 2008 at 4:00PM
- Breaking "our" addons and mods.
- Incorporating features from popular addons into the default User Interface, and thus breaking addons and mods. There's also a sentiment that Blizzard is "stealing" these ideas rather than being innovators.
- Fixing "their" bugs which in turn breaks "our" addons and mods. The suggestion is that they don't care, or could take steps to prevent this.
Before we address the juicy drama that includes some justifiably snarky blue responses and even an accidental admission of a Terms of Use violation, I simply must include some of the best points made against the complaints made.
- Patches don't come out very often, and there is lots of warning given. In fact, many developers of addons can fix their products before the patch by using the Public Test Realms.
- In most cases, all you need to do is update your addons. Using an updater program, this takes mere minutes.
- If you can't go a few days without certain addons, perhaps you are too dependent upon them.
- Adding and tweaking content will break other things, including third party applications. You might fix some terrain and end up with tiny Orc shoulder armor, because things aren't connected as simply as one might think.
Where do you stand on the issue?
Filed under: Patches, Analysis / Opinion, Bugs, Blizzard, Add-Ons, Humor, Forums
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)
Eric Hamilton Jul 16th 2008 4:11PM
Remember Tseric? Looks likes Zarhym is gonna be the new one. I honestly hope he doesn't get canned or "move on" but some of his responses were out of the typical CM response-type which is more along the lines of don't give any information and don't offend anyone. But Zarhym went right in and responded to an outright troll which is usually a no-no.
Hell, I like it. Give that PoS OP a little zing in your comments and don't let him hide behind the veil of some innocent little customer. Dumb guy though, announcing his use of a bannable mob in a post already prowled by Blues. That guy should really work himself out of the WoW gene pool.
Badger Jul 16th 2008 4:28PM
I don't really know what to say about Zarhym's particularly blunt "style" of response, since Drysc and Neth have repeatedly acted like total assholes to other posters before, and they never faced the consequences that Tseric did.
I will say, though, that his word choice puts him at serious risk in several places of becoming just as bad as the flamers in that thread. "Then why are you still posting?" comes to mind.
Procris Jul 16th 2008 4:36PM
What happened to Tseric for those of us that don't know?
Badger Jul 16th 2008 4:45PM
http://www.wowwiki.com/Tseric
That should provide you with most, if not all, of the details.
Recently, someone asked Drysc if Tseric quit or was fired. Personally, judging from how fed up he was with how shitty Forum members treated each other, I wouldn't be surprised if he quit. Drysc, however - who, speaking from my (thankfully) limited experience with the "official" Forums, has repeatedly talked to players like they're idiots - will not elaborate on the exact details.
Quickshiv Jul 16th 2008 5:01PM
I like this guy. Talking down to people or playing the corporate politician is getting old. I like this no-nonsense approach. Also any guy with a Tom Waits quote in his signature can't be too bad.
JohnC Jul 16th 2008 4:18PM
loll i really laughed when i read this:
"not just mods, i had to reinstall WoW because my panda-mod (druids in bear form look like pandas) is a no-no! all the other patchs were fine, but not this one. wtb ez solution. "
it reminds me of the thread someone posted yesterday in the customer service forum asking "why am i disconnecting from wowscape so much, p.s. my internet is fine"
some people have no clue
Saelorn Jul 16th 2008 4:20PM
I maintain that add-ons should not be necessary for the enjoyment of the game, and stand only to hurt it in the long run.
It seems to me that several higher end encounters are actively designed around the assumption that the players are using add-ons (specificially a threat meter), to the point where players are being punished if they do not succumb.
forthepie Jul 16th 2008 4:27PM
Really for high level raiding you only need a couple of pretty simple and easy mods.
--Threat meter
--Ora (if your raid leader requires)
--Boss mod
Sure, threat meters really should be a part of the UI, I think the nice thing about boss mods is they share with you visually (on the screen where you are looking) and verbally or through audio what your combat log/general log is already telling you. To me these are like HUD's for fighters. I don't know if that needs to be in the UI or not.
ORA or something similar is just an easy way for the raid leadership to make sure folks are doing well in the health/armor etc areas.
Khanmora Jul 16th 2008 4:53PM
They mentioned at last year's Blizzcon that they are incorporating a threat meter in to the base UI with Wrath. Mods are not essential, they are just convenient, for the most part.
However, the mod that the OP was complaining about was an ILLEGAL mod, one that changes character models in game.
All mod users know that every patch will require updates to any mods run and have no problem with that. Many mod authors also work with their mods on the PTR to make sure than any updates needed are available when the patch goes live.
Charlie Jul 17th 2008 12:57AM
With the above statement, the only thing that is absolutley necessary 100% is Boss Mods. Blizzard used to que spells and abiltiies in many encounters by what the Boss said, now that is not so as much. There are many encounters where its blatant (shade of Aran is best example), but there are a bunch where its not (malacrass).
For example, being able to time a PoH so it heals your group to full during Malacrass 500 dps spirit bolts is wonderful. For zul'jin, being able to prep Mass Dispell when you know a petrify is coming is great.
All other mods gimp you, but not as much as Boss Mods. And honestly, most are visual things that don't make an effect on your performance. Cooldown timers for professions, bag mods, action bar mods, buff mods, damage meters, minimap mods, "bar" mods (fu/titan), all those things arent necessary in terms of performance, but if they make the game less tedious and more enjoyable to play, then im all for it.
IMO the old valid arguments against mods are 1) keyloggers, and 2) memory. And if your only running the 3 for raiding (ora/ct, threat, boss), those three only take up at max 2 mbs of ram, which is nothing compared to the gig wow takes up.
MightyIdle Jul 17th 2008 11:12AM
For me, personally, add-ons are required for me to play. I use all of the goodies that modify the default interface to make it look better and function more efficiently. The mods that provide information in an easy to view format are also essential for my enjoyment.
You don't need any mods to play, really. The default interface is well thought out. Having mods, however, increases my enjoyment and keeps me in the game.
I don't in any way see how the use of mods can hurt the game or the gamer's experience. The game is about having the most fun for your buck. It's not about your mad skillz in using the default interface. Well, unless that's what you get off on, of course.
The game is designed to be modded. They've given the players the ability to customize their experience. It's purpose built. I find all of the arguments against mods and the deriding of the folks who use them to be rather lame.
yousum Jul 16th 2008 4:22PM
so blizzard should test their patches with each and every third party addon before they release patches? If the addon errors bother you that much, i suggest you stop playing wow for a week and go out and smell the flowers. Come back and the addons should be fixed. people think 15 dollars entitles them to just about everything these days don't they.
Sirg Jul 16th 2008 4:27PM
Zarhym is just adding more coals to the fire in his responses... just let the trolls be. Imo WoW should be played without addons, then you could port it to consoles as well.
If Blizz is improving their interface with things from addons, that's good, and I want to see a built in threat meter or a smarter way of knowing your threat meter.
William Jul 16th 2008 4:29PM
built in threat meter and damage meters to recount your damage, healing, etc. Maybe if we wish on falling stars and all that jazz...
Badger Jul 16th 2008 4:30PM
"Imo WoW should be played without addons, then you could port it to consoles as well."
Oh, dear God, it's not like we don't already have half a billion "Halo 3"-inspired PvPers in this game.
Aigarius Jul 16th 2008 5:51PM
Well, all the good consoles have built-in hard drives where addons could be placed and can also easily have a USB keyboard and mouse attached to provide good enough control interface that WoW requires. I don't see much obstacle to WoW going to PS3 for example. You just would have to use a keyboard and mouse to control it (wireless or not) and enjoy best possible WoW graphics at 100 fps in the most intensive boss fight.
Balius Jul 16th 2008 6:07PM
Speaking as DPS myself, I'm not entirely sure what the point of having DPS meters is. The DPS I put out as a rogue is almost always determined mostly by the threat of the tanks on my target. I can, and do, use vanish to clear the meter and add some unresticted damage, but with the long cooldown it's not goingto alter a DPS meter noticeably.
Threat meters are certainly necessary in any raiding situation (there are too many numbers coming too fast with too many modifiers to keep track of threat by hand, and taking aggro from a tank means death once you get into heroics, let alone raids), but DPS meters seem more like a vanity item.
Badger Jul 16th 2008 7:56PM
Aigarius: I totally did not think of that. I forgot about keyboards and mice for consoles. Good call!
... But how would they handle the Patch process?
Eh? Jul 17th 2008 3:45AM
Ah.....yet more people who think that consoles are the "best possible experience".
People seem to forget that consoles are extremely specialized pieces of hardware. To fully take advantage of what the system can handle would require coding specifically for that system, which takes quite a bit of manpower and time.
Even if Blizzard were to make the effort and port the game to consoles, I seriously doubt you would, "enjoy best possible WoW graphics at 100 fps in the most intensive boss fight." for 1. the fact that your network connection come into play for latency and updates and 2. the fact that most HDTV's in the US today refresh at a whole 60Hz (i.e. 60 fps) and the console will only display a picture as fast as the TV can refresh it. (note that with the new 120Hz TV's that will likely change depending on what happens between the TV and the console.)
For that matter, if you are already adding a mouse and keyboard to your console, why not just connect your current DVI output from your computer to your HDTV's DVI, HDMI, or VGA input and play WoW that way? (sound output would go to a sound input on the TV or receiver of course)
and if you are thinking of WoW on a normal TV, don't bother. Even the consoles display at such a low resolution that you will scream in frustration before you even take 10 steps on your character.
Some things just aren't a good idea to port.
William Jul 16th 2008 4:27PM
I already played both alliance and horde side quite a few times, leveling toons, so Quest Helper has been my friend of late, helping the monotonous "go get this item and bring it back" quests go easier since I can't possibly memorize the exact location of every little thing for when I decide to level another alt. Too bad it got broken. Oh wait, there's another mod that does the same thing... and it works... Problem solved. I don't understand why ppl don't take the energy spent complaining and apply it to a search for a replacement add-on that works... just my two cents.. now tear me apart!