Proposed Content Schedule for Every Year in Ultima Online
Let's face it, players get anxious and concerned when nothing is happening in Ultima Online. There should always be something different to do, a reason to login and play all year round. A content schedule that the player base can rely and depend on will set their hearts and minds at ease. It will maintain subscriptions, and help the community grow confident in the games health and future. The following proposal is just a suggested outline. This doesn't mean the Developers have to do any of it, but I do hope they will consider something like it.
January & February the harrowing Mid-Winter Slump
1 - A New ToT in a different dungeon with all new rewards
2 - Add New Store Items (Mounts, Collections, Dyes)
1 - A New ToT in a different dungeon with all new rewards
2 - Add New Store Items (Mounts, Collections, Dyes)
March Madness
1 - Leprechaun/Fey Champ Spawn
2 - New Stealing Content
3 - New Veteran Rewards
1 - Leprechaun/Fey Champ Spawn
2 - New Stealing Content
3 - New Veteran Rewards
April & May
1 - Popular Easter Egg & Rabbit Hunts
2 - Farming/Plant Challenge
3 - Update Spring Cleaning Collection System Turn-In Items & Rewards
1 - Popular Easter Egg & Rabbit Hunts
2 - Farming/Plant Challenge
3 - Update Spring Cleaning Collection System Turn-In Items & Rewards
June
1 - Summer Solstice Champ Spawn
2 - Add New Quests to the Town Crier and/or Heartwood
3 - Add a New Trade Order Reward for the Cities & Slim the Fence
1 - Summer Solstice Champ Spawn
2 - Add New Quests to the Town Crier and/or Heartwood
3 - Add a New Trade Order Reward for the Cities & Slim the Fence
July & August the dreaded Summer Bummer
1 - Another new ToT in a different dungeon with new rewards
2 - Update Minax/Blackthorn Rewards to Include Updated Artifacts from ToTs & Champ Spawns
2 - Add more New Store Items (Mounts, Collections, Dyes)
1 - Another new ToT in a different dungeon with new rewards
2 - Update Minax/Blackthorn Rewards to Include Updated Artifacts from ToTs & Champ Spawns
2 - Add more New Store Items (Mounts, Collections, Dyes)
September Annual Anniversary
1 - Anniversary Champ Spawn (Maybe a Boss named after a Developer)
2 - Anniversary Party on Origin
3 - Anniversary Gift Token
4 - Update Bulk Order Deed Rewards
1 - Anniversary Champ Spawn (Maybe a Boss named after a Developer)
2 - Anniversary Party on Origin
3 - Anniversary Gift Token
4 - Update Bulk Order Deed Rewards
October Halloween Content
1 - Begging
2 - Graveyards
3 - Pumpkin Patches
4 - Mini-ToT in Doom, Deceit or Khaldun with couple new rewards & recycled rewards
1 - Begging
2 - Graveyards
3 - Pumpkin Patches
4 - Mini-ToT in Doom, Deceit or Khaldun with couple new rewards & recycled rewards
November
1 - New Fishing & Hunting Content
2 - Update Library/Zoo/Museum/Add New Collections Reward System
1 - New Fishing & Hunting Content
2 - Update Library/Zoo/Museum/Add New Collections Reward System
December
1 - Holiday Gift Token
2 - Artisan Festival
3 - Krampus
Annual Global Arc Content Suggestions
1 - City Invasions
2 - City Feature Update
3 - Dungeon Feature Update
4 - Introduce New Mobs
5 - Add New Lore to the Game
6 - New Race
7 - New Land
8 - Incorporate New Legacy
1 - Holiday Gift Token
2 - Artisan Festival
3 - Krampus
Annual Global Arc Content Suggestions
1 - City Invasions
2 - City Feature Update
3 - Dungeon Feature Update
4 - Introduce New Mobs
5 - Add New Lore to the Game
6 - New Race
7 - New Land
8 - Incorporate New Legacy
Comments
Never be afraid to challenge the status quo
Salvage Station – 7 Year
Shipped, without being fixed. There is no QA.
Never be afraid to challenge the status quo
Never be afraid to challenge the status quo
You're right but it doesn't look good at this point
Never be afraid to challenge the status quo
If they plan on finishing NLS, then they need additional resources for that investment.
And not to use existing resource at the expense of current shard users that still support the game. My 3 Accounts are fully paid to 2024 and NLS is not even on my list of reasons.
Bug fixing is always part of the job, not 100% of the Dev time.
Existing Dev resources should spend like 75% upgrading current content, and 25% fixing bugs.
NLS should have another 100% resource fully focused just on that and we would have already completed Season 1 of NLS today.
So cheap.
ESRB warning: Some Blood. LOTS of Alcohol. Some Violence. LOTS of Bugs
The lack of communication could be taken both ways.
Do you have an example of specific game mechanics / content that we have now that needs fixed first? I'm not trying to say there aren't bugs is in the game because there are a bunch, but I can't think of any bug that has some sort of large scale impact (ie the targeting alliance issue primarily for Fel PvP in group play. I played in Fel solo without any impact). Just my personal opinion but I think that lack of fresh content is likely more of a factor for people quitting than the bugs in the game. I would argue there is a work around for most bugs (whether it be facet or client alternatives) whereas there is not for lack of fresh content in the past 6 months (there has only been 1 "new" thing to do which was 2 months).
I think it's also worth noting that most of everything suggested by the OP are things we currently have the structure in place for (ie dynamic content / previously used events) so it's not like we are talking about reinventing the wheel. I think that there should be enough time for bug fixes AND reoccurring content; it doesn't need to be one or the other.
Never be afraid to challenge the status quo
2 New ToTs Set of Rewards
2 New Champ Spawns
2 New Store Items
2 New Anniversary Rewards
2 New Holiday Rewards
2 New Stealable Items
2 New Veteran Rewards
2 New Spring Cleaning Rewards
2 New Plant Rewards
2 New City Trade Quest Rewards
2 New Blackthorn/Minax Artifact Rewards
2 New Doom/ToL/Eodon/Illshenar Artifact Rewards
2 New Bulk Order Deed Rewards
2 New Craftable Items
2 New Begging Items
2 New Pumpkin Carvings
2 New Graveyard Butcher Items
2 New Fishing/Shipwreck/Treasure Hunting
2 New Huntmaster Challenge Trophies/Rewards
2 New Library/Zoo/Museum Rewards
2 New Obsidian Statue Bust Names
2 New Krampus Rewards
2 New Artisan Rewards
Up to almost 45 new different items to add to the game so far if they do 2 items minimum per each of the suggested old content collection systems, that's less than the approximately 300 new event items Events add to the game each year. If the Devs come to the player base to ask us what we want from each of these old reward systems, I am sure we can submit lots of ideas, and make them worth doing.
I also understand projects don't always progress as designed and sometimes they get canceled. There comes a time where the project manager (or whoever is in charge) needs to cut their losses. At some point they need to say resources should be spent elsewhere. It's now 3 years into the NL project with very little to show (they haven't even told us how basic concepts like skill gains will work) so I'd say we have arrived at that time. Wasting anymore resources on a project that appears to be a failure would be irresponsible. That said, we aren't even asking for them to cancel NL at this point, we just want some Prod love in the form of reoccurring content that has the pre-existing coding there.
My biggest issue with NL up to this point is that the Dev team uses it as the scapegoat of why the rest of the production game has been set to maintenance mode; "we are fully focused on NL". So for the past 3 years we've received limited cookie cutter events; the lack of effort on Prod is obvious and has become beyond frustrating. My opinion is that the lack of new things to do/get in the game is going to be more of a detriment to the game than NL will be a savior (people that might be interested are going to quit before it ever comes out...if it does). But again, nobody is really saying we need all brand new content and to re-invent the wheel with what we are getting in Prod; we just want similar content we have been getting just more frequently than 2-3 times a year.
The least this Dev team could do is to give some fresh content that cycles on a monthly/bimonthly basis to keep the people happy that are just looking for something "new" to do.
If the current state is all there is going forward they could at least say so.
Never be afraid to challenge the status quo