Housing update postponed? What's happened with it?

[zagreb000]

Put simply, Infinite Crisis is what happened to it... LOTRO is no more Turbines benchmark product... Get ready to receive less and less. You will get the housing update later this year probably but dont expect anything flashy... I have been here far 3 years and you can feel the content additions becoming scarcer... Its only natural. Basic economics.. Product life cycle and all that...

Be happy with whatever you get....

[Eartholloth]

Obviously, "overhaul" is wishful thinking, and the dictionary definition of "revision" is probably more appropriate. Whether it's "major" or not will probably be a matter of opinion, but Sapience is toning down expectations so I doubt the housing enthusiasts will consider it major.

My guess: crafting in your home, some more flexibility in the hook system to allow additional customization, perhaps some more hooks, and an extra storage chest you can purchase for TP. Oh, and a dozen new threads in the forums asking for an "overhaul" or a "rewrite" within 2 weeks of getting the revisions.

Khafar

As long as we get something with the hook system I will be happy. Although I would like free placement & why I say that is because most of the placed hooks in the yards is just stupid how there placed. If we got extra housing chest/s that be nice too. That's pretty much all I would like.

[ChromiteSwiftpaw]

Incredibly disappointing now that I see Sapience is downplaying it :-/ That bodes not well for whatever it is we end up getting.

Most of my friends have stopped playing because of the messed up loot system, messed up instances difficulty wise (read: too easy), poor "raids", etc. This is just another thing to add to their "won't be coming back" list.

Turbine, why you gotta be this way

[Khafar]

I would like free placement...

Many would, of course. Including me. But back when they did housing, they said free placement was just too much work to fit into their schedule, and that was back when they still had "all hands on deck" working on the game shortly after it launched. They'd done a hook system with Asheron's Call, and its constraints meant less development effort, less testing, fewer defects.

I'll be shocked if "revisions" means "free placement". Improvements to the hook system seem far more likely.

Of course, I'd also love to see some for-purchase improvements to housing, and making them self-funding seems like a good way to justify doing them. Examples:

• Add a basement to your home with 8 more hooks and an additional storage chest for 1495 TP.
• Add a stable to your yard with stalls to show off any 5 of your mounts for 995 TP.
• Add a "stable master" to go with the stable which allows you to set 3 Swift Travel locations (changed up to once a week)... 795 TP.
• Hire a handyman (no need for any further maintenance, ever)... 1495 TP.
• House pet (can be named, greets you when you enter, trainable)... 995 TP each.

Yes, that's over $50 worth of TP for everything, but I'd certainly spend it, and I'll bet I'd have plenty of company. I've had my house since the day they arrived in 2007, and would love to make some great improvements to it.

Khafar

[Sapience]

Although I would like free placement.

Was never on the table. I think we mentioned that somewhere already. Extra storage might make you a bit happier.

[scoughlin]

I'd probably be happy with more storage (at least 2 more chests), plus more hooks. I realize the ability to place hooks anywhere is probably either something the game engine can't handle, or it would require way too much dev time and money to do it.

[Elderban]

No offense intended towards Mrs. Paiz, but you have to take everything she says with a grain of salt. She also said we'd be getting a new PvMP zone which never panned out(1), "increased content" which never came to fruition(2), "smaller, frequent content updates between the major rollouts"(3) - again, we've had, what, two this year not including the expansion? Which was the same as last year and the year before, and the year before (and no, I don't count patches or bug fixes as content updates).

Sources:

1. "Expanded Monster Play – LOTRO’s monster play system will get a major revamp including opening up the feature to all players, changes to monster player skills and advancement and a brand new region for players to battle for or against the forces of evil." (Note: Official announcement/link has since been removed from the LOTRO site)
2. "In 2012, you can expect more content than you've seen at any time since our launch in 2007. We'll be unveiling details with you after the New Year..." - http://massively.joystiq.com/2011/12...ntent-in-2012/ ... (Note: Official announcement/link has since been removed from the LOTRO site)
3. http://massively.joystiq.com/2012/01...maps-out-2012/ ... (Note: Official announcement/link has since been removed from the LOTRO site)

[Eartholloth]

Was never on the table. I think we mentioned that somewhere already. Extra storage might make you a bit happier.

Then can you at least think about redoing the placement of hooks on the yards??? Allot of them are just annoying how there placed. For example you got some houses that have nice big yards & everything is pushed up towards the house & bunched close together. What really burns my butt is large hooks getting placed right in front of small hooks. Might sound silly but it really annoys me. I see it allot with the houses.

[Crell_1]

Then can you at least think about redoing the placement of hooks on the yards??? Allot of them are just annoying how there placed. For example you got some houses that have nice big yards & everything is pushed up towards the house & bunched close together. What really burns my butt is large hooks getting placed right in front of small hooks. Might sound silly but it really annoys me. I see it allot with the houses.

Any chance for some upgrades to 'Housing Permissions management'? I'd like to be able to remotely manage permissions and pay upkeep for any house I have manage permissions on.

[Mr.Hidden]

There is no serious need for free placement if there will be at least a LOT of new hooks added and also stuff like Rohan (Hytbold) furniture hooks fixed. I hope in it.

[Ziane]

What I would like most is to be able to place anything on any hook. No more distinctions of large wall, small wall, furniture blah blah. Then I could put what I want in my house where I want it. The system is just too rigid. I can dream

[Khafar]

No offense intended towards Mrs. Paiz, but you have to take everything she says with a grain of salt.

In hindsight, it seems likely that her letter back in 2011 was assuming financial conditions which didn't persist... F2P had happened a year earlier, and they were undoubtedly seeing more revenue. A year after that letter, they went through layoffs, so it's hardly a surprise that they cut back on plans. When we had layoffs where I work, it resulted in feature cuts, feature postponements (for a year or more), and project cancellations.

The lesson learned is probably this: don't talk futures. Ever. Talk about what you're nearly finished doing, and deliver exactly what you say - when you say you will. I suspect that's why we're hearing so little about Helm's Deep until just 6 or 8 weeks before it's likely to ship.

Khafar

[Gagmuk]

I will say what I have said before. Keep in mind we've been saying update, not overhaul and not 'new system'. If you're expecting a radically different, or entirely new system you're going to be disappointed. If you're thinking improvements and updates, you're probably going to be a lot more realistic in your thinking and a lot closer to the reality.

Actually Sapience, I can understand why everyone is thinking Overhaul and new system. Since It was a Producers letter announcing it, Kate Paiz.

https://www.lotro.com/en/game/articl...nline%E2%84%A2

Hello all!

January has been an exciting month for us on the dev team! We’ve wrapped up our plans for 2013, and I’m very pleased to announce some new big initiatives for LOTRO you can expect in the coming year:

Player’s Council – We are doubling down this year on the conversation between Turbine and you, our players. We are going to start a Player’s Council, a group of players who participate in more regular & structured feedback sessions with the dev group. We want to make sure that as we grow and extend this game, that we are incorporating your likes and dislikes about what we are into what we release. The Community Team will be releasing more information about how we’re going to construct and run the Player’s Council in the coming weeks.



Western Rohan – I am at this moment standing on the parapet of the Hornburg, looking out over Helm’s Deep as devs populate the landscape with hundreds (soon to be thousands) of Saruman’s Uruk-hai & Orcs. We will be bringing you the rest of Rohan in two installments – Wildermore, a northern region between the Wold and Fangorn, will be released this spring, after our 6th anniversary, and later in the year, you’ll be able to see Western Rohan, Edoras, and participate in battles of epic proportions. Much more on this to come…



Housing – I am extremely pleased to say that this year we will be tackling a major revision to the Housing system. In February and March we will be gathering information about how Housing should change, and then we’ll be releasing revisions to the system in the latter half of the year. We look forward to leveraging our new Player’s Council to help shape and guide the extension of this feature!



Class Adjustments – Later in the year, we will be making some significant changes to the skills and traits of the Free Peoples classes. We’ll be pruning out skills that just feel disappointing in play and increasing the potency of others. The end result will be fewer skills, but a more profound impact on moment-to-moment play. How you choose to specialize your class will make a real difference!



There are plenty of other things happening this year, and we’ll be doing more dev chats via Twitter to keep getting the word out, so stay tuned for more details and more news in the coming weeks.

Na lû e-govaned vîn.

[i] Housing – I am extremely pleased to say that this year we will be tackling [b]a major revision to the Housing system[b]. In February and March we will be gathering information about how Housing should change, and then we’ll be releasing revisions to the system in the latter half of the year. We look forward to leveraging our new Player’s Council to help shape and guide the extension of this feature![i]

Sorry Sapience, But i am only pointing out as others have already done so that a producers letter does not say update or overhaul. Its, "a major revision to the Housing system".. with that i can understand why folks would consider a Major revision could be considered as a overhaul, etc...

think the producers letter was posted back in January. Since it has been 8, 9 months since this letter was posted, it is possible turbine, etc. may have changed their minds, but i have not been able to locate any official posts that changes the producer's initial announcement from jan.

[TinDragon]

Actually Sapience, I can understand why everyone is thinking Overhaul and new system. Since It was a Producers letter announcing it, Kate Paiz.

https://www.lotro.com/en/game/articl...nline%E2%84%A2



[i] Housing – I am extremely pleased to say that this year we will be tackling [b]a major revision to the Housing system[b]. In February and March we will be gathering information about how Housing should change, and then we’ll be releasing revisions to the system in the latter half of the year. We look forward to leveraging our new Player’s Council to help shape and guide the extension of this feature![i]

Sorry Sapience, But your producer in letter does not say update or overhaul. Its, "a major revision to the Housing system".. I do believe that a Major revision could be considered as something more than just a update.

think the producers letter was posted back in January. Since it has been 8, 9 months since this letter was posted, it is possible turbine, etc. may have changed their minds, but i have not been able to locate any official posts that changes the producer's initial announcement from jan.

Personally I read "revision" as an update. They tend to use "revamp" when referring to a complete overhaul.

[Sapience]

Actually Sapience, I can understand why everyone is thinking Overhaul and new system. Since It was a Producers letter announcing it, Kate Paiz.

https://www.lotro.com/en/game/articl...nline%E2%84%A2



[i] Housing – I am extremely pleased to say that this year we will be tackling [b]a major revision to the Housing system[b]. In February and March we will be gathering information about how Housing should change, and then we’ll be releasing revisions to the system in the latter half of the year. We look forward to leveraging our new Player’s Council to help shape and guide the extension of this feature![i]

Sorry Sapience, But your producer in letter does not say update or overhaul. Its, "a major revision to the Housing system".. I do believe that a Major revision could be considered as something more than just a update.

think the producers letter was posted back in January. Since it has been 8, 9 months since this letter was posted, it is possible turbine, etc. may have changed their minds, but i have not been able to locate any official posts that changes the producer's initial announcement from jan.

I'm glad you posted this. As you can see the word is revision. A long way from what some were clearly thinking. A revision is an alteration. Not a wholesale ground up replacement.

[Gagmuk]

I'm glad you posted this. As you can see the word is revision. A long way from what some were clearly thinking. A revision is an alteration. Not a wholesale ground up replacement.

I agree, i also changed my initial post due it coming across to myself as a bit harsh, which is what i did not intend. but yeah, as Tindragon said a few posts up. Revision to me is the same as an update. but since the letter does say major, it could be construed as being the same as a "major update". my recommendation tho is to wait until its released and see then.

[TinDragon]

I agree, i also changed my initial post due it coming across to myself as a bit harsh, which is what i did not intend. but yeah, as Tindragon said a few posts up. Revision to me is the same as an update. but since the letter does say major, it could be construed as being the same as a "major update". my recommendation tho is to wait until its released and see then.

I'd say something like adding new chests or types of decorations would be minor, things like adding hooks or chests (things we have but are at a certain quantity) would be a major one, and something like hookless decorations would be a straight up revamp. I'm expecting something like extra hooks or modified hooks in some manner, but not expecting them to completely remove hooks and allow you to put anything anywhere. We'll have to see though.

I have seen quite a few people mention crafting stations at the houses. Not sure which of those three categories that'd fall in. Suppose it'll depend on whether the craft stations use hooks or not.

[ChromiteSwiftpaw]

Things that absolutely NEED to happen with housing:

1) Give us a REASON to go to our house or neighborhood. Heck give us a reason to go to our friends houses!
2) Provide storage for bound to character or account housing items. (Or just UNBIND them!)
3) Provide a LOT more storage inside of our house. Housing items on their own take up a lot of space let alone cosmetic items. Give us storage space.
4) Get rid of the 'size' system with hooks. If we want to put an enormous item in a small slot so be it. Who cares if it blocks the doorway or something. Maybe we want to create a crazy house. Hey, it'll have character.
5) Provide more hooks so we can do a finer placement of things.
6) Fix the completely broken housing items from the Riders of Rohan expansion (That I and others reported as bugs in ROR BETA!!!) and even the Dragon Painting from your latest event the Bounders' Bounty! How these things got past any sort of QA is unknown.

[Crell_1]

Things that absolutely NEED to happen with housing:

6) Fix the completely broken housing items from the Riders of Rohan expansion (That I and others reported as bugs in ROR BETA!!!) and even the Dragon Painting from your latest event the Bounders' Bounty! How these things got past any sort of QA is unknown.

I have only seen shots of the dragon's painting from Bullroarer. Is it broken in Live?

I'd like to see the Rise of Isengard housing items fixed as well.

[LethalLethality]

Things that absolutely NEED to happen with housing:

1) Give us a REASON to go to our house or neighborhood. Heck give us a reason to go to our friends houses!
2) Provide storage for bound to character or account housing items. (Or just UNBIND them!)
3) Provide a LOT more storage inside of our house. Housing items on their own take up a lot of space let alone cosmetic items. Give us storage space.
4) Get rid of the 'size' system with hooks. If we want to put an enormous item in a small slot so be it. Who cares if it blocks the doorway or something. Maybe we want to create a crazy house. Hey, it'll have character.
5) Provide more hooks so we can do a finer placement of things.
6) Fix the completely broken housing items from the Riders of Rohan expansion (That I and others reported as bugs in ROR BETA!!!) and even the Dragon Painting from your latest event the Bounders' Bounty! How these things got past any sort of QA is unknown.

2 Isn't gonna happen. It completely negates the point of shared storage in the LotRO store.

[Eartholloth]

I have only seen shots of the dragon's painting from Bullroarer. Is it broken in Live?

I'd like to see the Rise of Isengard housing items fixed as well.

Yes it is. That painting is now half in the wall & half sticks out! LOL

[Crell_1]

2 Isn't gonna happen. It completely negates the point of shared storage in the LotRO store.

They could always sell us specific housing storage. After all, we only get one house per account, and the store sells housing items itself.

[Khafar]

Things that absolutely NEED to happen with housing:

1) Give us a REASON to go to our house or neighborhood. Heck give us a reason to go to our friends houses!

Only if it's occasional. Trying to turn houses or neighborhoods into social centers would either fail, or be bad for the game. There are simply too many of them, dispersing players too much.

2) Provide storage for bound to character or account housing items.

Yeah, seems far past time to have fixed this restriction. I suspect "corner cases" are a problem here... what if a character with a bound item stored in your house chest were *deleted*? What happens if they're transferred to a different server? Etc. Getting any of that wrong could lead to storage with items you could never remove.

3) Provide a LOT more storage inside of our house. Housing items on their own take up a lot of space let alone cosmetic items. Give us storage space.

This is certainly a lot more feasible than adding more inventory space. Seems like a good way for them to get some $$ too, since more storage is likely to cost.

4) Get rid of the 'size' system with hooks. If we want to put an enormous item in a small slot so be it. Who cares if it blocks the doorway or something. Maybe we want to create a crazy house. Hey, it'll have character.

Decorations have collision volumes, which means putting them in the wrong spot could have a number of unpleasant consequences (and probably produce a number of unpleasant bugs). However, it does seem reasonable to be more flexible about where smaller items can be placed. If someone wants to put Large, Small, or Thin furniture in a "Special" furniture slot, let them. Speaking of which, why even have a "thin" category? Just move those spots a bit if necessary, make them Small, and let any Small/Thin items go there (or in a Large or Special furniture slot).

Bonus points if they give us controls to move furniture smaller than its "hook" around within those boundaries - instead of just having a rotation control, add left/right and forward/back ones too...

5) Provide more hooks so we can do a finer placement of things.

Or at least offer some different "layouts" (where hooks are placed in different places for each layout). 3 or 4 of those should help people get something they're happy with. If they kept size/location constraints (but made them more flexible, as above), they could even do this without requiring people to pick up all their items as it switched. You might wind up with a pretty goofy placement after a switch, but that's easily fixed when you redecorate.

Khafar

[Deusdictum]

I'm glad you posted this. As you can see the word is revision. A long way from what some were clearly thinking. A revision is an alteration. Not a wholesale ground up replacement.

Suddenly, I'm reminded of the California Constitution and the difference between revisions and amendments...

So are the latest class updates and skill trees considered revisions or replacements?

[TinDragon]

Suddenly, I'm reminded of the California Constitution and the difference between revisions and amendments...

So are the latest class updates and skill trees considered revisions or replacements?

Class revamps.