Server Passwords

[LaBelle]

If the refund thing is widespread among games like this, no doubt it changes the way people make purchasing decisions. This is a generation after all that has effectively ended the shopping mall. Our local one just got bulldozed.

I really liked this third-party-plugin I used in the past on the Source engine where a player who connected and got into the game had to press 1 to agree or 2 to disagree (and be insta-kicked) to a list of rules.

I really challenge the conventional ways people are used to things. Tutorials should be mandatory, but that's a pipe dream. Any arrogance you see in a place like this doesn't even come close to touching the arrogance of the throngs of players who just go straight into a game and have no idea what they're doing taking critical roles. One aught to know how to open the menu and check their controls. It goes for any game, you see it all the time. IMO a mandatory training would be impossible but I think it should be standard for any server you join in any game that you have to agree to the rules to be there.

When I say "Message of the Day" I'm thinking of a system where you join a server and the first page you see is a screen which could maybe be an embedded HTML page or just some page coded in HTML or something where the server owner can put rules, announcements or whatever. An easy way of putting out information that everyone sees. Then you should have to hit "Agree." The autokick (for being AFK) should apply to that as well. Just getting people to see that might help, even though many will grow to just skip through it as fast as they can. Ideally it would have a server-side setting where the "Agree" button only becomes activated after a set number of seconds leaving the connector with nothing better to do for 5 seconds than read about any upcoming events you're trying to advertise.

Steam groups used to be a great way to network but Steam utterly neutered them a year ago last August by requiring friendship to invite. So something like that is even more critical to get info out.

What does any of this have to do with server passwords?

[TRaider]

If you lose the community support, you can kiss your game goodbye forever. Because at some point we're just gonna realize we aren't valued or even wanted here and we'll move on to other competitors (BCOF or back to Warband for example).

Truth!!!

[Pvt. Dane Karlsen]

Server Password would only raise the quality of servers.

The events would be interrupted less, wich would make better battles. If 20-30 % of a team is independent players that will change the units fabric, and they will loose the ability to move according to company tactics. Or in the case of us guys in 2nd USSS playing along with 1st Cav. We have our tactics , our common understanding of each others tactics and ways of fighting.... All that goes away or are atleast comprimised when 1/3 of the team are independent players. And don't want too, or are not capable of following the tactics. Thus making it a les awesome battle and experience. Then there is the fact that organised companies that have fixed weekdays for events, loose interest from their members as they often excperience not beeing able to join a event battle with their fellow comapny men, due to independent players taking up the spot... That is on private owned servers, and payed for by the company servers mind you.

I really think that theese many Companies that has been with WOR from the beginning and till this day, more than deserve the possibility to protect their events with password. And I for one does not understand the devs want to cater to a bunch of players that don't want to play the game organised from the get go. Thoose players would still have the public servers during those few hours a week. Where they can have the battles they want. The ones with independent players like themselve.

it's a bit like when you are in a match full of independent players , and then one of them complains that there is not enough organisation......... A complete and utter contradiction.

And as others point out. Battle servers would still be open 80% of the time.

[Maximus Decimus Meridius]

let me recap the last sites and let me add my thoughts and suggestions to adress.

Problems of Companies:
- Organised Events are hard to host since other units and publics can fill the server before the Units can join fully which are official part of the Event
- Publics or others can take the officer slot and can ruin the experience of units
- some unfriendly people or trolls can join your line and start TK'ing.

(possible) Problems of Publics:
- this game makes only fun with a high attendance of players. Most of the players are from companies. If they hiding behind PW servers there would be not enough player to have a good experience and fun on a open server
- it is not really a great feeling as a newbie to see that the most populated server is locked. That is not a good first impression
- a great part of publics are willing to fall in with companies and like to play together with them without joining. It would be harsh to lock the out.

Problems of CG and Community:
- Refunds because not enough players or the game makes no fun because there are not enough players.
- Organised Units pushing for locked servers which could increase such refunds but would please this part of the community.

So lets find a solution. I can understand both sides so lets try to find a compromise of both while we try to avoid both extremes (locked servers and no way to control server population)

First problem: players join a event server and fill it before every participating unit can join.

A solution could be something like a temporary password something like a event prepare modus which could be activated by a server restart. It is possible to set a PW which is only active for 10 minutes and the it automatically turns of.

That is really enough time to send the password to the other participating units and give them more than enough time to join and get organised on the server. after 10 minutes the server will be open for everyone to take the last slots and fill the server.

second problem: People taking the CO role and can ruining the experience of organised units while an event.

That could be fixed with the suggested event preparation modus: in this mode the server admin can say how many rounds/maps should be played ( and can also set automatically the wished maps.) Now it is clear how long this organised event will be. Time to fix the CO problem. Now it would be great to make it possible to select everybody who should be allowed to take the officer slot while the event is going on. only these person will be allowed to take the CO class for everybody else it is disabled. The player ID should be saved because of timeouts etc ^^

third problem: can already be adressed with ingame moderating tools but we really need the feature to kick/ban players via the playerlist. This problem will be also a lot smaller with this preparation mode because there would be less space for such people.

problem 4-6: since the servers wouldnt be locked all the time, publics could participate at organised event (which are a lot more fun just my mind ^^). Also it would be possible to get in contact with the organised community which is also an advantage for the companies because they would still be able to recruit new people AND have an organised event.

problem 5 and 6:

since there would be a way to have an good and organised event it would please the companies and there playerbase. It wouldnt lock out publics and they would still be able to get in contact with companies and organised events. In my mind this feature can please both sides. Worst case would be that it doesnt effect refunds so I see there no risk.

I understand that it will take some time for you to develop such a feature (if it is possible for you guys) but it would be drastically increase the fun of organised events would would help companies and there players out of the small depression which some of them are in.

after the set numbers of maps/round it could show a small statistic of the whole event, something like: Battleday has been won 2:1 by USA and show the combined number of deaths from all maps. After that the server goes automatically back in the normal mode, no reserved slots and the normal map cycle is activated.

In my mind thats a good compromise between both sides and I would like to hear your ideas. I hope everything is clear and you guys are able to understand what I try to suggest ^^

[Cairnsy44]

Having been shut out from my company's organized event due to random players filling up the slots, I think a password protect option would be good. However, I also see the benefit of open matches, as that is the best place to find good new players to join your company. That said, privately purchased servers should be exactly that, PRIVATE. Company-affiliated players should still populate public servers now and then for the good of the game and to recruit as well. But that is what the PUBLIC servers are for. It sucks when I am running late to an organized weekly event and can't play because we have 20 randoms in there. Or like last time, when I was on time and playing, but was killed and then bumped out and could not get back in because the server was full of randoms.

[sal_tuskin]

these servers should not be called private they should be called semi-private listing them as private is very misleading statement, cause with out passwords they are not private period end of statement no matter how you slice it they are not private and should not be listed that way

[Leifr]

I think it’s fair to say that the ability to password servers would now be a welcome addition.

[LaBelle]

Absolutely agree.

[JammedHam]

Here Here!

[LTC Philip A. Work]

It baffles me as to how we don't already have them.