If we could pause instances, log off. Next time u login it will automaticly unpause and u can continue with your run. Well thing is...I cant really get into higher instances, with 2 kids its quite hard to spend 2-3hours straight without leaving everynow and then. In my last instance I was 1 hour in 08 when i had to leave (had some unexpected IRL stuff), not very fun to throw 400 ped down the drain. What if the Connection goes down for 15 min, then u will be kicked out of the instance. To me its too risky and not Worth it. One time is one too many. Does A-Team plan to do anything about this?
I don't think they could with the way I understand instances to work. If everyone did this then eventually the server would get to its limit (afaik they have an upper limit of concurrently running instances) and noone else would be able to get into an instance. Its part of the reason that a time limit was placed on instances remaining active if someone disconnects too. Mind you don't take what I've said as gospel, there's a high probability I'm way off mark here. I'm sure Chris or someone will pop in and confirm/correct this. However, that said, what you propose would be a fantastic feature if it could somehow be made to run clientside? I would certainly be more encouraged to run them more often if I was able to pause in the middle as I rarely have enough time either.
I Think it would be possible to create some kind of footprint when u log off. Next time u log in server loads that footprint and loads that instance again. But im no programmer
I think this would be a good thing... we'd see more people running instances and it would make them more fun and less stressful. As for server load, I don't think it would be too much of a problem, they'd just have to put in controls to keep the server from getting overloaded as they did previously. Other team members probably should just get booted out of the instance, they can always re-enter later thru the main door. I believe they receive their share of the loot when the boxes are looted, even if they're no longer in team... though I haven't checked this lately.
Maybe "save points" like in Zelda? Next to the repair and TT terminals. Maybe a cost associated with it to make sure it it not abused and you pay for the convenience.
While its theoretically possible to save instance state to disk and re-instantiate the instance after logging back in, there are significant issues in a team environment. I guess state would be preserved when the last team member logs out or crashes. And then when the first team member logs back in, he/she is automatically reinserted back in the instance? What happens to loot division at the end of the instance? Allocation to offline members? And I guess team membership has to be preserved for an extended period, which is another change to current functionality. What if one team member is busy for the next few days? Then everyone else in the team needs to avoid logging in or the absent player misses out. I think a nice to have for solo players is going to be offset by a messy situation for team players and the coding effort to cater to the team environment is not going to be attractive to MA.
Maybe you devs could create higher level instances that take less time to complete? You'd have to make it more difficult in various ways... either via making it harder to get to the end pysically or by lowering number of kills needed but increasing mob difficulty level/health, etc.? I haven't been to Cyrene yet, but MarioVR instance looks interesting... http://www.entropiaplanets.com/threads/m-a-r-i-o-v-r-instance-on-planet-cyrene.11314/ Not sure if you play much Neverwinter, but I'd sugget you check it out since they allow the community to create instances that other players can play and get rewards for playing, etc. That MarioVR video reminds me a lot of some of the stuff in there with paths outside of buildings, stairwells all over the place that you have to do different things to unlock to find the right path, etc. Something like that thpe of modding in EU has been needed for a VERY long time to keep the game from stagnating with boredom you get after doing an iron man mission grinding the same darn mob for thousands of times, etc. Since there are instance entrances in underground, maybe something like that could exist eventually down the road a few years? Since community will own the underground, it'd be a great way to give folks a reason to come there more often. Calypso deeds were suppossed to get you to a voting booth and land plots on that planet... maybe the underground deeds could someday be the key to unlocking access to a game mod interface to design a level that would then go to you guys for first level approval and to MA for second level approval, etc. ... create special keys for each fully approved mod/instance, etc. and throw it in to loot instead of blazers and novas... etc.
Try the underground vaults, they're very quick. David Dobson said a while back that the Aakas instances took as much work to design as the entire planet did previously. They're not just something that "users" can create without access to the test environment. We can of course give ideas to the A-team of course but the actual building would have to be in their hands.
I think it would ruin the essence of "running an instance". Whether in-team or solo, setting aside the allotted amount of time to successfully complete the instance is part of the challenge. I understand things in rl come first, but if I bought football tickets and got called away from the game in the first quarter, I wouldn't expect to get my tickets refunded.
BTW, instances take much less time if you kill the minimum number of mobs required to open the doors rather than all the mobs... you also get higher loot returns at least on individual keys (tho smaller globals, ofc).
I can sympathize with you here as having 6 lovely children of my own it sometimes becomes challenging to run the instances solo but we (my wife and I) have come up with a plan on running them together as a team or not at all, while our children are 1 asleep or 2 on a play date with friends & family. There are several things you can do and yes RL situations do arises at times but you have go with the flow. See if a problem arises that is not so bad that one of us can handle it then the other completes the instance. But if we both have to attend to the issue then we accept the loss and chock it up to a time management issue and add that problem into our what if this happens scenario. I run a business and well……. I play eu when I’m not busy, :fineprint:**legal Disclaimer**:fineprint:”I must mention here I own the business and would not allow or condone my employees to do this. Reason: I know when to stop, employees well.... not so much see they lose nothing if they ignore customers. Plus, when I play they think I’m doing paper work until I hit a global and do my global dance.” anyway I have come to know it is impossible for me to play an instance because it takes atleast 1-2 hrs. to run it solo killing everything and that kind of time is not possible while my shop is open. See I think the instances where meant to be run as a team effort not so much a solo one. It seems players (including myself) that have decided to run them as a solo solder. And some just want to test the uberness of their skill level or possibly not wanting to share the loot. I think the reason they have the “you must be in a team to enter warning” is to promote team play. In my experience it is far much greater fun to actually run some with friends & noobs rather than run them solo. I let everyone know that if an item is looted this will be mine and I will pay them the TT and a little MU, unless everyone wants to chip in on the key and the mu of the key then we all get to open one box with the top person opening the main chest at the top. I make sure it is fair with people having the same weapon (usually tt weapons) and in the end we can see who is on top its usually close unless someone dies. If I were you I would personally try it while the kids are asleep or plan for the “what if’s” this might become a challenge but the final outcome will be well worth the effort to properly plan to play. Also if you run it with a friend they can finish it and you guys can have an agreement that if you pay ½ of their repair bill and half the ammo spent then you guys would split the winnings 50/50 if you get dc’ed or called away that is. I would be willing to do that so if you don’t have anyone else look me up. As for the making it shorter I would leave them as they are why make them shorter you want shop the underground is the place to go for sure. The underground instances are perfect for short runs, only issue I see there is…….that it seems the Oratan miner’s loot the maps and they seem to be in global’s only. A buddy did a 200ped hunt 1 global and only1 map 1 this was from the lowest mature Oratan miners (so I was told) I have not personally tried this to see if different level Oratan miners loot different maps but it would seem to be the logical way to have it set up. But I hope they are not super rare because that would defeat the purpose of the instances, like now the keys are at an all-time stupid mu and taking a loss by buying them from the AH for the mu some are asking is almost a 100% bet you will be in the negative at the end of it. so if the deva team is reading this might be a hint to let you guys know they maps would be best placed in the loot not just the global loot if that is the way it is set up.
