View Full Version : You should be a careful!
I'm very disappointed how support and Bluebyte handles things.
I was on level 49, almost 50, and got reseted back to level 1 because a bug. When game was loading it gave me a message: An error was
detected on this zone. Please try again. Support gave me instructions to solve the problem but it didn't help. Support told me that he has tried to remove the problem again but they may need to actual reset my account if I'm still having issue after this. And the issue was still there..
So they told me that the type of blocked zone I have can’t be removed and this leaves us no choice but to reset my account back to level 1. And they said:
When we reset your account you will be issued the below items.
Gems purchased will be automatically placed back on your account in your case that will be xxxxx
We will replace any building purchased using event resources (eggs, presents etc)
We will issue once again the last 3 gift email that have been sent by our community team
As well as a starter kit to get you going again.
8.000 Stone
8.000 Planks
8.000 Tools
5.000 Marble
5.000 Real Planks
5.000 Coins
3.000 Granite
3.000 Exotic Planks
3.000 Map Parts
Even thought you will be back at level one the above should be enough materials to give you a good start on getting back into the game
Ok, very nice but [ Jeepers ]!!
I was on lvl 49 half way to 50 and I have spent huge amount of time playing this game. And this is their solution, just reset my account and give "some" stuff back. How about all the experience that I have achieved and how about all those materials (coins, granite, EWP..) that has gone in upgrades and so on..? And I have bought noble deeds, watermills, silos, got castles etc.. I have invited lot of players in to TSO and I have given a feedback about the game and development. Now I'm going to stop playing this after reset and I'm pretty sure there will be lot of people who aren't impressed about this and won't put any more money in to this game. Just reseting all with a little compensation of small amout resources is not a good way to handle this.
And why I wrote this to here cause people should think twice spending time to this game...
I understand this is frustrating, but please be careful with terms used
peck_ed
Playing since december 2011? You should ask them to give you all the weekly gem rewards between then and now that you've now lost. In my mind, that would be the minimum compensation for a long term player who's suffered a major bug.
BB_Dantesama
30.05.13, 15:01
Hello Miciz,
I am very sorry that you had to reset your account. This bug is rare but very damaging when it happens.
Your frustration is completely justified, I also understand why you wouldn't want to spend anymore time on the Settlers Online.
Although the compensation will never truly replace your loss, it is the best Support can offer. I hope you understand.
This is a hard bug to tackle, I will inform you guys immediately if I get any updates on this.
Best
BB_Dantesama
BB_Dantesama on test server they can make you an island with all level 5 buildings and make you level 50 instantly.. I fail to understand why here "it is the best Support can offer" ?
I get the feeling its not the best they can offer it is all they can be bothered to offer... someone is rubbing there hands going "yup another lvl 50 gone to make room for some more cash cows"
I guarentee if this happened on German server Miciz would have his island, level and items back to exactly how it was before.
I personally have already stopped spending any more money on this game I hope this post will open peoples eyes and they do the same until something drastic is done.
BB_Dantesama
30.05.13, 16:07
Indeed, there was an island set up once for all users on the Test Server.
Yet you should know that our test server is different from our live server, we can afford to make "mistakes" and try new things out, there are no direct consequences when we make changes like these.
If there are major problems, don't forget that a test server can be wiped at any time, not the live server.
It differs on a live gameworld. There are millions of ongoing complex changes made by players all the time. The risks are way too high for us to create an island from scratch, it could create a serious bad domino effect.
A wipe will never be appreciated by anyone, I understand that.
However, no, we never created islands for players on live game worlds due to the reasons mentioned above. It is simply too risky.
Please contact the support if you wish to discuss this, as a Community Manager I am sorry, but I cannot help you more at this point.
I can just tell you this was never done on a live gameworld so far.
Best
BB_Dantesama
Thank you for quick reply BB_Dantesama
No further questions.
Indeed, there was an island set up once for all users on the Test Server.
Yet you should know that our test server is different from our live server, we can afford to make "mistakes" and try new things out, there are no direct consequences when we make changes like these.
If there are major problems, don't forget that a test server can be wiped at any time, not the live server.
Best
BB_Dantesama
Sorry, but this doesn't really make sense to me.
This problem was first identified by we, the players, on the aforementioned test server along with many more.
These should have been tackled there and not imported to the Live servers.
I even begged BB on this very forum not to allow these bugs to go 'Live', and many other players have also voiced this concern.
I would really like to see the Devs spend a considerable time going back over bugs that have been reported, before introducing any more new content. This includes the ones that they "think have already been fixed", even though reports are still being made that prove they have not been.
*gulp - faints*
having hard time believing what i read, never thought this was possible to happen........
The risks are way too high for us to create an island from scratch, it could create a serious bad domino effect.
You should give enough materials for player to build the island back to its glory. I think players could handle 8 days update time, if you gave them resources to rebuild and not some little amount to "get you going again". Calculating might take little time, but that would be the very least blue byte should do.
So sorry for you, Miciz! :/
Giving the exactly same island back would be the best thing to compensate, of course, but if that is not possible, cant support give the experience points back? If even that is too much, maybe the same experience amount could be 'payed' in small parts during a period of time, for example?
Your best chance would be for it to happen to a lot of people, that way they'd be forced to roll-back to a backup copy of the game as happened on the US Zeus server when it got corrupted. (and people thought the parrot exploit was 'something for nothing', there's the real cost).
Seeing as these backups exist, surely it wouldn't be beyond a decent Dev's ken to delve within one, and see what you had at that point in time?
Have to agree about the 'pre-made' islands though, these can be toxic. On the test server they regularly crashed the Flash plugin once the settlement reached higher levels.
I would like to find out what is causing that bug so I can avoid it? So far I've heard it happens when you move buildings around from/to shrubs that were removed at your own responsibility as BB does not support that.
As well would like to ask why map can't be restored fully? Isn't that why we have maintenance so back up can take place and "locked" player will only lose ~week of playing at most ?
Thank you all for support! It's good to discuss about this, especially about the bug. I'll give you some more info what I was doing when this issue happened: I didn't move any building. I was doing BK adventure and if I recall right I was building some random fields or copper mines same time in my island, as usual. And of course I moved my generals in BK adventure and one general was going back to home island. Crash happened when I tried to come back to my island from my current adventure...
So I guess everybody agrees that backup system should be developed even more that this kind of things could solve properly. If that is not possible then reasonable compensation should be considered. And as for the 50lvl players starter kit is just a joke..
If you had invested money in the past, i would talk about this case with an laywer and send the story to some game-magazins. Could not be that a game-developer cheats his own customer in this way! Terrible to lose hours of playtime and then you get such a crap solution back from the support. Wow...really awesome :(
Thank you all for support! It's good to discuss about this, especially about the bug. I'll give you some more info what I was doing when this issue happened: I didn't move any building. I was doing BK adventure and if I recall right I was building some random fields or copper mines same time in my island, as usual. And of course I moved my generals in BK adventure and one general was going back to home island. Crash happened when I tried to come back to my island from my current adventure...
So I guess everybody agrees that backup system should be developed even more that this kind of things could solve properly. If that is not possible then reasonable compensation should be considered. And as for the 50lvl players starter kit is just a joke..
Sounds familiar.
The only two times it's happened to me, the cause seemed to be a general travelling to an adv map. I don't move buildings having witnessed the carnage in testing.
This really is shocking Miciz, thank you for serving as a warning to everyone not to pay for a game that hides behind the excuse of "beta" while still charging uncapped sums, I remember when beta testing was something companies paid You for. I'm just sorry it's cost you so much. I'll bookmark this as "100% Bonus of nothing is still nothing" for future reference.
Mirrors the same thing that happened to gunhof - http://forum.thesettlersonline.com/threads/23581-Restore-Gunhof-s-Island
In this day and age everthing is backed up. Surely a players island does not take much info and should be easily restorable.
Indeed, there was an island set up once for all users on the Test Server.
Yet you should know that our test server is different from our live server, we can afford to make "mistakes" and try new things out, there are no direct consequences when we make changes like these.
If there are major problems, don't forget that a test server can be wiped at any time, not the live server.
It differs on a live gameworld. There are millions of ongoing complex changes made by players all the time. The risks are way too high for us to create an island from scratch, it could create a serious bad domino effect.
A wipe will never be appreciated by anyone, I understand that.
However, no, we never created islands for players on live game worlds due to the reasons mentioned above. It is simply too risky.
Please contact the support if you wish to discuss this, as a Community Manager I am sorry, but I cannot help you more at this point.
I can just tell you this was never done on a live gameworld so far.
Best
BB_Dantesama
TSO will generate Backups of the database on a regular basis
Its common sense to go on the previous backup, check his island... and rebuild what he previous had?
I've seen this happen to a few people now. This is becoming a joke that we have to worry about our accounts being reset...
Duong_TonThat
05.06.13, 13:55
TSO will generate Backups of the database on a regular basis
Its common sense to go on the previous backup, check his island... and rebuild what he previous had?
I've seen this happen to a few people now. This is becoming a joke that we have to worry about our accounts being reset...
Did u even read what BB_Dantesama wrote? "The risks are way too high for us to create an island from scratch, it could create a serious bad domino effect".
However i think BB should give him a good amount gem the replace his lost apart from his refund gem. B/c this is serious problem and and be threat to everyplayer.
"Although the compensation will never truly replace your loss, it is the best Support can offer", why not more?
8.000 Stone
8.000 Planks
8.000 Tools
5.000 Marble
5.000 Real Planks
5.000 Coins
3.000 Granite
3.000 Exotic Planks
3.000 Map Parts
This offter is nothing compare to the time he play and he earn up to 49, i sure he make aleast 10x more than the offter
I'm sure BB can look at the previous back up and give proper offter.
if it really is that rare then surely support could have put the effort in to grab his data from an old backup and import it into the current db? Losing a week of progress is nothing compared to losing everything. The materials provided are pretty funny considering they are not enough to upgrade one building at high level.
I think one needs to separate out two things here and consider them that way:
1. It is perfectly possible that restoring an island on the live servers is too risky and could have knock-on consequences.
2. If the bug is rare then it is perfectly reasonable that BB compensate properly anyone hit by it rather than restoring their island.
However, the big problem here is that the compensation described (I have no reason to doubt it) is ridiculously poor. To get to level 49 takes vast amounts of resources and time, which can only be compensated by a huge amount of gems if the player is to re-establish a new island within a reasonable timeframe.
If the bug is that rare, then BB should be throwing huge amounts of gems at whoever it hits. The player may have to start again from scratch, but at least they would feel BB cared about them. The reset resources offered that have been shown on this thread are nothing short of an insult.
MizMoneyPenny
06.06.13, 01:10
Ok things happen out of our control including BBs, all cool that BB are replacing castles, reward buildings and purchased gems. Even some of the amounts they are replacing are reasonable, 3k mf isn't a small mount, that 100BKs........... the problem is the rest of the resources, and the time it will take to rebuild everything to a level where you can start doing BK again, once there then the LVL ups ect will come with ease. So BB up the basics and GC amounts, add afew advents of varying levels, weapons.... even throw in afew nobals so they have instant pop they can work with. They will get the lvl up gems again which isnt so bad.......... BB if you know this bug exisits and it happens to mostly high levels, think about it more and come up with a better package, sure who ever it happens to will be ANGRY as heck, but they may feel more prepared to start again if they feel like you give a dam
If you had invested money in the past, i would talk about this case with an laywer and send the story to some game-magazines. Could not be that a game-developer cheats his own customer in this way! Terrible to lose hours of playtime and then you get such a crap solution back from the support. Wow...really awesome :(
Under the title of the game "The Settlers On-line" is clearly written "B-E-T-A" ,its a magic word that validates any possible loss of money ,makes legal any decision of the company,cause the only responsible of paying is the gamer knowing the risks of loss in the terms of use that he has accepted before the money procedure gets completed ....
About what happened to Miciz its what separates "sensitivity and humanity" from business .Even if admins,operators devs and whoever else insist that this is the "best solution" and anything different puts on risk the server,excuse me but if the materials that they returned to him didn't put in risk the server why the double or triple amount would do ?
It differs on a live gameworld. There are millions of ongoing complex changes made by players all the time. The risks are way too high for us to create an island from scratch, it could create a serious bad domino effect.
However, no, we never created islands for players on live game worlds due to the reasons mentioned above. It is simply too risky.
BB_Dantesama
Is that hard to return the account during a maintenance that NO actions are taken from any player at that time ? I really don't see the risks there,even if you fail to restore it you can check what's happening before you even bring back live the servers
Ekonomista
06.06.13, 07:05
This is a really big loss to have all and then get nothing in comparison to it. The time a player spends to build all, upgrade it, find his own personal style of playing is more value than anyone can try to return it. Reading this thread made me really sorry for players who get this bug and no options from supports in a way that can at least make them say hey I lost something but I didnt lost everything. If the only way to help players get satisfied is by returning their resources then why shouldnt it be the 100% correct value of building/upgrade cost? As for my part I made it possible to see it for every building in game, its upgrade cost, even the whole sum build/upgrade costs off all building on your island. If there is a data with all buildings then it can be loaded to IVC and use it in a way to help players get what they lost because of what? who? why?but surely not because they are fault. We high lvl players play this game long and are bonded more to it because we will try to help grow it, give best critics because we know why, help tso team work and do their yob even better and improve overall rating of TSO. Dont give us reasons to hate it because we already like it. Miciz I wish you all best for future and dont give up! because you have all our support to fight for your rights. Cheers
P.S here is an example of how much an lvl50 island costs to build/upgrade but other spended way more time/money than me to have 2x of it.
(Pinewood planks 11.200) (Stones 11.550)
(Hardwood planks 169.170) (Marble 225.170)
(Exotic wood planks 98.550) (Granite 75.700)
(Tools 9.610) (Coins 88.400)
(Gems 38.595) (Licence 249)
One small point - saying the game is 'BETA' would actually prove no legal defence at all. If the company is accepting money for providing a service, then that is all that matters. They can call it alpha, beta, omega or Fluffy the Wonderdog for all it matters - they've taken your money in exchange for providing a service and that establishes a legal contract between company and player.
Having said that, of course this isn't going to end up in the courts! :) However, it's important to understand these things and the 'BETA' defence categorically will NOT protect them legally in this instance, because they have still accepted the money.
Duong_TonThat
06.06.13, 14:48
"We will replace any building purchased using event resources (eggs, presents etc)"
Some of the building gift from friend or trade from TO (such as silo and watermill) will it be include?
ther should be any back up for all acc just in case somethink happen.
BAAAHHHHHJJJAAA
08.06.13, 03:11
OMG this is dreadful!, I've taken the precaution of SS all my island and store.
BB get this sorted, permanently, as the players like myself that have invested in gems probably would not have the resolve Miciz has.
As a software engineer for a large insurance company, I'm not even understanding that a company is offering a solution such as "your account will be reset". Whenever I would even come up with a solution like this, auditors would shoot me without even asking one further question. They would even have to beat our IT helpdesk in doing so, since I'm sure they won't love to see all all history (like logging) linked to that account gone.
In this case it's even worse, since they are not deleting the account of a user, but of a customer. Imagine I would tell the contact person of a large policy holder that I am deleting his account. He would just laugh, and tell me that I will be fired before the end of the day.
To me this really sounds like a typical system administration solution "sorry, we will restart the server; perhaps that solves the problem".
99 out of 100 times, same problem again after the restart. So, in case you might think about playing again, be prepared to go down at level 50 once more.
Thanks for the warning therefore. I was not intending to put money in this game; I sure won't after reading this.
Regrettably todays corporate mentality is "We have taken your money now get lost", however unlike most markets online gaming demands a high level of customer support. Failure to provide this support will result in the company not being in receipt of a most valuable and desirable item, namely positive word of mouth advertising. In todays era of social media this word of mouth is potentially the most powerful of the advertising tools available to a business with the opportunity of generating more profit than all other forms of advertising combined.
BB have said that providing a player with a prebuilt island to replace what they have lost will not work. To me this says there is a serious flaw with the database, I would even go as far as to say that this flaw is probably the root cause of a lot of problems with the game. They need to either fix it or look into alternative database options with a mind of porting player data over. Obviously this is going to be a long term thing.
In the short term we the players still need a fix for corrupted islands. The solution for this given the constraints that have been mentioned is also obvious. We know for a fact that they can provide us with resources, gems and xp, all they need to do is find out how much of these are needed. To do that they either have to have somebody look at the back up and calculate what is needed or better yet write a script to automate the job.
The fact that we are here talking about this shows that the players refuse to be fobbed off with unacceptable excuses from support, a player unhappy with support = lost revenue. Is BB raking in that much cash that the loss of sales from unhappy players is too small to be of interest to them.
My sympathies Miciz
And as for the way BB have handled this.. I am shocked and apalled.
Fendal
I have ALSO got my island to reset, and when we posted a thread in here, they just closed it.. I was lvl 49, with tons of lvl 5 buildings and around 50 lvl 5 silos, i only got a fraction of what my island was worth, i got my gems back, but started at lvl 1, and lost everything in my star menu :-( Im so dissapointed by support, and still need to get my friary, but wont waste a second more on support..
Im sad to hear your story mate, only wanted to play again because of my really kind and helpfull guildies :-)
No we/i didnt got all i have purchased through trading and so on back, had 50 lvl 5 silos, and around 70 noble deeds, didnt got a single of any of them back :-( Have bought a few for gems, but far from all of them.. Maby 10% was through own gem purchase.
"We will replace any building purchased using event resources (eggs, presents etc)"
Some of the building gift from friend or trade from TO (such as silo and watermill) will it be include?
And if anyone interested in knowing why it happened to me, i simply just moved a building, and island freezed :-( SO a friendly advice, DONT move your buildings, if you wants to keep your island :-)
As has been mentioned this is a known problem and crops up globally (For example: http://forum.thesettlersonline.pl (http://forum.thesettlersonline.pl/threads/30326-Problem-z-logowaniem?p=98134&viewfull=1#post98134),) surely by now there is a better way to handle it.
While I appreciate there are difficulties I do not understand how the current offer of a reset and ridiculously low "compensation" is either "the best option" or "the best that can be done". 5k Coins is enough to level 10 (one sector's worth of Licenses) Basic Buildings to level 4 or a smaller number of higher buildings to lower levels or one Barracks/Prov to 4. The other resources offered are not much better.
It's past time a better resolution is found for this problem and though it may not be a perfect one there is no reason to penalize, at all, let alone to this degree, players who are seeking, in the face of TSO Ultimate Disaster, to play on.
With regards to Gunhof's experiences with this same problem, it is interesting to have a look at the thread he refers to in his post 32 -where he says 'I have ALSO got my island to reset, and when we posted a thread in here, they just closed it'.
This thread was closed by the forum moderator Sinister-King, who, upon closing and locking the thread, stated: I'm afraid this is a very unfortunate and complicated problem that hopefully won't be repeated.
It is clear, as has been pointed out in several posts above, that this problem is being repeated.
And as I said before, I think BB's response to both Gunhof and Miciz (and whoever else it may have effected) is both shocking and apalling. I think BobLurker has summed it up quite nicely in an earlier post, when he says: If the bug is that rare, then BB should be throwing huge amounts of gems at whoever it hits. The player may have to start again from scratch, but at least they would feel BB cared about them. The reset resources offered that have been shown on this thread are nothing short of an insult.
I am also a little surprised at how BB are handling this. The last time I checked, over 1,400 views have been made on this thread. That's not just views from random TSO players, but TSO players who are interested and motivated enough to check the forums and read threads. And they are precisely the players who are most likely to play the game alot, talk to their friends about it, chat in social media about what they are playing, and so on.
BB could have turned a potentially negative episode(s) into a positive one by the way they handled it - and we could be posting on a thread congratulating BB on their generosity and proffessionalism. Instead, in my view, BB have turned a potentially negative episode into a very real negative, precisely by the way they have handled it.
Fendal
You should have seen my mail correspondence with support, it was long and tiring, and finally they said they couldnt do anymore, so ticket was closed LOL.. They really take care of us :D
I could mention around 99% of my buildings and what lvl they were on before i was forced to reset my island, and what i got in my star menu, but as said, nothing from star menu, and we are talking 200k gold ore, and around 150 RFS and tons of adventures, was giving back..
And i know for sure they have a log of your island, since they gave me some of the stuff to upgrade back, and knew what buildings i had from event etc etc.
But I wouldnt waste a single line more on support, since they cant handle heavy trouble in a preferable way. I wouldnt have cared about a single lvl 5 coinages, or whatever, but i/we lost everything :-( I didnt wished any compensation, i would just have been happy to get all my resources back, so i could upgrade my island to its former glory :-) I dont think they in suport, knows how much time we spend on this, and what it means to loose an island.
I hope alot of ppl will read this thread, so they can see how things are handled and we a treated :-)
The best luck in the future miciz, whisper/mail me ingame, and i will help you all i can, with stuff to upgrade/advs etc etc
Hey everyone and thank you all for the support and good attentions! I just came to check what's going on in the forum. I read Gunhof's thread and I can definitely relate to that. It's great to notice that community around the game is awesome and people are supporting each other. That was also one of my biggest motivation but BB destroyed my desire to play. Of course I would have reached high levels fast with help of my guild mates and in game friends but that's not the thing as you all know. Let see if I'll come back around this game one day but not before BETA phase is still in progress...
Thejollyone
11.06.13, 20:28
In my mind this is simply an outrageous way to deal with a committed player (or any player to be honest).
I have previously said in other posts on this issue that I have screenshots of my island (updated regularly). If I was to be offered what the OP had been offered, I would be seriously considering legal action.
There is surely a method for BB to at the very least post the XP to a player as well as goods lost. If not, then they should be considering how to do it on the live server given the frequency this bug is occurring.
MizMoneyPenny
12.06.13, 00:06
BB could have turned a potentially negative episode(s) into a positive one by the way they handled it - and we could be posting on a thread congratulating BB on their generosity and proffessionalism. Instead, in my view, BB have turned a potentially negative episode into a very real negative, precisely by the way they have handled it.
Fendal
While I agree entirely on what is being said on how BB should have handled it..... the reality of it is, that if they had handled it well none of us would know about it...... people don't broadcast the good , only the negative
A player from my guild also had his account reset. So that is 3 from Newfoundland server. Does this problem occur on any other live server or only on Newfoundland?!
As for my guildie, he moved a silo and then it happened, if I remember correctly. He was around lvl 45 and now he's almost back on the same level. :)
Another guildie almost had the same problem when moving an Angel gate but it was solved, fortunately.
Weird though; I'm on the Newfoundland as well and moved a lot of buildings.
Perhaps on old bug solved in the meanwhile? It is really still happening as we all tend to believe now?
Or is the problem only occurring if your island is getting full, which means only to high level players?
Juhana_III
13.06.13, 19:07
This is ridiculous. If his island cannot be restored or experience cannot be generated for him (which I seriously doubt, but whatever), then all of his gems and special buildings should be replaced, with a substantial bonus! He should get like twice the gems his lost or something. Not a fraction, that's a joke. "Off to level 1 and we're sorry" is simply not good enough. If you're honestly unable to do anything else, then refund the payments he made for gems.
To add insult to injury, this was a player who founded one of the largest guilds on the server, spent countless hours organising it, paid a bunch of money to play, invited players, who then paid more and so on.
After reading how these affected players are being treated, i seriously doubt i will spend money on this game.
All those days of diligently logging in and tend to your island, gone to waste...ouch.
Herr_Pannenkoek
14.06.13, 19:55
Pretty sad stuff to read. BB should seriously consider some kind of back-up system to solve issues like this better in the future.
I don't think implementing a "click your tavern and receive xxxxxxxx experience" dummy guest should be too difficult.
Is there any new/answer or a solution about this matter from BB?
We cannot continue to invest money and time in a game that we could lost everything, without any real care from support! :(
I'm waiting a reply please from BB.
Thanks in advance.
I have never and will never spend money on this game. Only my time will be lost if this ever happens to me. Besides by the time I get to lvl50 my eyesight will have gone anyway!!
Hello Miciz,
I am very sorry that you had to reset your account. This bug is rare but very damaging when it happens.
Your frustration is completely justified, I also understand why you wouldn't want to spend anymore time on the Settlers Online.
Although the compensation will never truly replace your loss, it is the best Support can offer. I hope you understand.
This is a hard bug to tackle, I will inform you guys immediately if I get any updates on this.
Best
BB_Dantesama
Hi Dantesama,
May I ask a question please. Why does BB not backup it's variable data every day?
Surely that's the obvious answer here. Surely if variable data was being backed up daily then the worst that can happen is a player looses a days game play.
I realise Dantesama that you are the messenger regarding this event. Would you please pass on my genuine concern to the developers regarding the outcome of this situation. It shouldn't happen. Not to any player and not to one player. Please would you ask the development team to instigate an immediate action plan to backup the variable data on a daily basis.
Dantesama I cannot stress enough just how seriously the playing community at TSO should take this. I have to say it really is not good enough. Would you please come back to the community and confirm that some action has been taken to ensure that daily variable information is being backed up.
Additionally Dantesama I have to say that I will be drawing my guild members attention to this thread.
I look forward to a positive and timely response Dantesama.
Thank you for allowing this post into the forum where it can be viewed and digested by the playing community.
Best
Nutters :-)
BB_Dantesama
18.06.13, 08:49
Hello guys,
I have expressed my personal thoughts many times to Blue Byte regarding this issue.
BB is very much aware of this thread and I will do what I can to push for a different solution.
Best
BB_Dantesama
Hello guys,
I have expressed my personal thoughts many times to Blue Byte regarding this issue.
BB is very much aware of this thread and I will do what I can to push for a different solution.
Best
BB_Dantesama
Hi Dantesama,
Thank you for taking this issue up on behalf of the playing community. Also thank you for your persistence. I am aware that you are probably caught between a rock and hard place in regard to this issue, in as much as you are the messenger. It cannot be easy for those players who have had a reset to accept that the approach taken was ultimately fair.
Best
Nutters :-)
PS ... purely from a selfish point of view I would not like to find myself in such a position as those players who have experienced this bug. Ultimately I think we all know things go wrong. The thought that I could loose everything on my Island really does concern me.
Juhana_III
18.06.13, 11:09
I don't think implementing a "click your tavern and receive xxxxxxxx experience" dummy guest should be too difficult.
And what was the argument against this solution again? "May raise a catastrophic domino effect that will destroy everything" or something along those lines.
Makes no sense to me.
And what was the argument against this solution again? "May raise a catastrophic domino effect that will destroy everything" or something along those lines.
Makes no sense to me.
Actually that may be the case. In another game I played there was a catastrophic failure of the servers and the game data got corrupted. The only way to resolve it was to go back to a stable data set from a few days earlier. Everyone lost 3 days' game play, even though not everyone was affected by the bugs that cropped up.
I am not a programmer, but I would guess that resetting individual accounts to a previous day's data set may either start to have unwanted effects on other people's accounts or may involve more work than is currently reasonable to ask. If you note the unforeseen effects of implementing updates on the game, implementing individual resets may also have some unknown effects.
Juhana_III
18.06.13, 12:40
Actually that may be the case. In another game I played there was a catastrophic failure of the servers and the game data got corrupted. The only way to resolve it was to go back to a stable data set from a few days earlier. Everyone lost 3 days' game play, even though not everyone was affected by the bugs that cropped up.
I am not a programmer, but I would guess that resetting individual accounts to a previous day's data set may either start to have unwanted effects on other people's accounts or may involve more work than is currently reasonable to ask. If you note the unforeseen effects of implementing updates on the game, implementing individual resets may also have some unknown effects.
Yes but if you'd read the whole discussion you'd notice that I wasn't talking about rolling back individual accounts. I (or rather Herr_Pannenkoek) was talking about a dummy quest that would give the player exp worth of the levels he lost. There are plenty of exp-giving quests in the game as is and they don't cause everything to break down.
You say "it may involve more work than is reasonable to ask", but on the other hand BB is asking quite a lot from the players to rebuild their island they've spent months on, without appropriate resources or exp.
Yes but if you'd read the whole discussion you'd notice that I wasn't talking about rolling back individual accounts. I (or rather Herr_Pannenkoek) was talking about a dummy quest that would give the player exp worth of the levels he lost. There are plenty of exp-giving quests in the game as is and they don't cause everything to break down.
You say "it may involve more work than is reasonable to ask", but on the other hand BB is asking quite a lot from the players to rebuild their island they've spent months on, without appropriate resources or exp.
Okay, so you want the XP. Should you also get the resources? And the buildings? What is reasonable? It will still take time to rebuild that many buildings even with resources and XP. I agree the current solution leaves much to be desired, but what's a reasonable solution?
stefanceltare
18.06.13, 13:34
Every respectable company that offers online services (games too) has a backup server solution. BB has those backup servers too. Restoring a player's progress from 2-3 days ago can be done easily with just database queries. This "domino" effect is just an excuse for not bothering.
Juhana_III
18.06.13, 13:48
Okay, so you want the XP. Should you also get the resources? And the buildings? What is reasonable? It will still take time to rebuild that many buildings even with resources and XP. I agree the current solution leaves much to be desired, but what's a reasonable solution?
I don't know about reasonable, but giving the lost experience back is better solution than 0 exp. And more resources than what was lost (for having to rebuild everything) is better solution than a tiny fraction of them.
This is not that difficult as a solution, because they are already giving some resources, so I know they can do it. And the dummy quest for exp doesn't sound problematic to me. The problem is it would take effort from the devs, because it would have to be done individually per player. And they don't want to bother with it.
So what they say is "blah blah domino effect blah blah", which is the same as "we don't care, we already have your money, so sod off". Or rather, they make other people respond for them in the forums, because they don't even bother with a reply themselves.
The restore of player's data, 1-2 days before, is the ONLY acceptable solution for a player/customer, in my opinion and BB must see it!
FlagelumDei
18.06.13, 14:32
Every novice to the PC, first learns that he must make a Back up files. If the builders of the game do not know (and sell gems - they know), it is time that they learn immediately. If the error occurred, did not have to go back to the first level, that there was any back up. Of course we are legally agreeing to the conditions of the game, and we are informed in large letters that this Beta version, but there is still the question of ethical responsibility, in our time invested in the game, even if we had not bought a single gem.
3671 views on here now. Think of the money lost from people reading this knowing that may happen and deciding not to buy anymore gems.
BB has really missed the boat to turn this around. Advertising is a powerful tool, word of mouth is even better. If 3671 viewed this and we say that is 1000 individual people (some people probably have viewed a few times) out of them 1000 people if 500 said to 3 friends don’t buy gems because you risk losing it all if the "BUG" happens that is 1500 people potentially not spending money. If we said each of them would have spent 9.99 each that is a whopping 14,985 lost... wow
It costs BB nothing to send items to a player, even if a full restore was not done you should have pumped that player with so many untradeable gems that his storehouse exploded just for the sheer cheek that you have reset their island and wasted countless hours/days/weeks/months of time.
This really is shocking Miciz, thank you for serving as a warning to everyone not to pay for a game that hides behind the excuse of "beta" while still charging uncapped sums, I remember when beta testing was something companies paid You for. I'm just sorry it's cost you so much. I'll bookmark this as "100% Bonus of nothing is still nothing" for future reference.
Hi,
May I make a point please. I have no wish to sound as if I know anymore than anyone else. I have no wish to argue about infinitesimal small points. However, I constantly see people making reference to the term "Beta" and suggesting that BB are using this temr to hide.
First and foremost I genuinley do not believe BB are hiding. I genuinely believe what Dantesama has said. This is a rather difficult bug for the development team to deal with. I have no issues at all with that. As I understand it, and I am more than happy for someone to correct me, Beta does indicate that there should be no serious bugs in the software. It's not a catch all term that indicates the ultimate risk lies with the "paying" customer. I am unsure if the term has a definition in law.
I do not think BB are using the term incorrectly. I certainly do not think they are using it to suggest that they are taking your money and passing all the risk of bugs onto you. Infact the term Beta suggests that when you come across a bug in the software you contact the development team and they will add that to their "to do" list. It is expected that software in Beta will have bugs in it. That's the entire idea of putting the software out in Beta. It is not a hide behind that BB are using to take money off paying customers.
I am absolutely sure that BB are more than aware of their obligations under the various consumer protection acts that pervade the UK and Europe. In addition to this I would suggest from comments that Dantesama has made that BB believe they have compensated the player to whom this has happened in full.
All that said ... just what is happening here?
A player has lost his investment of time. And if that happened to me I would feel sick. I would feel angry too. Indeed I'd feel a lot of negatives thoughts.
Do I believe BB are hiding behind the term Beta? No I don't.
Do I believe BB are working on this internally? I want to. And I feel they are.
Do I want BB to come back to us and let us know they have taken the necessary action to prevent this awful situation occuring to more players. Of course I do.
Dantesama has indicated he has passed the weight of feelings in this thread back to BB and the development team. I hope they respond timely and effectively.
And finally to the players this has happened to I am more than happy for you to join our guild and I will personally send you resources to help you rebuild your map.
The guild is St George's on Newfoundland server.
Best
Nutters :-)
Nutty, care to explain why these 3 servers are still 'beta', and nowhere else's?
I agree with what Nuttymut has said - just because Dantesama has not got a reply to give us from BB yet does not mean it isn't being considered and action being taken. Sometimes things take time to go through the proper channels and it is usually better to get a proper solution rather than something hastily cobbled together. It is very unfortunate for the people that have lost a lot in the meantime, but it's not always possible to provide a solution that everyone is happy with. I think we have a good Community Manager on this forum and he does put in a lot of effort, including communicating what he can at any point.
The whole 'beta' thing is a complete red herring (irrelevance). They could call it anything they liked - alpha, gamma, winkydinkyplunkjunk - and it would still not matter. ALL that matters is if you have paid money to receive goods or a service. If you have paid money and BB fail to supply the service as specified, then they have a case to answer.
I too do not believe BB are 'hiding' behind the 'beta' term, but it is time both they and we stopped referring to it, because it simply isn't relevant. This game is commercially available and has to deal with the consequences of that. It is not 'beta', it has not been 'beta' for a long time and no amount of changes to the code will ever make it 'beta'. Forget beta, this is about whether players paying money are receiving what they have paid for and about whether BB cares about the bad PR generated by failing to adequately compensate players who may have invested time rather than money. Beta... shmeta.
Hang on! Of course its possible to provide a solution, By reading what the guy got back as compo id say multiply that by 10. That probably still wont come close to getting his island back to level 5! For his time lost, maybe a free gempit or something to apologise (Remember, this was not the players fault that this has happened).
I cannot believe that this reset is caused by placing a statue, or moving a high level building, or even as someone reported returning from an adventure! Surely this has to be a priority to get fixed asap. Problem is this sounds like its happening to high level players who have already spent their money on gems and as such isn't a priority to fix!!
Dantesama has indicated he has passed the weight of feelings in this thread back to BB and the development team. I hope they respond timely and effectively.
I would like to see a monthly list of things that are being sent to BB, otherwise it never happened. Maybe he is only sending "Thank you BB" kind of stuff to them? Is he too scared of his managers to say that people are whining in here or something?
I still don't get it why are people writing in here when you guys know we won't get any answers, that apply to whole forum as well.
May as well close the forum, no use of it to anyone.
I would like to see a monthly list of things that are being sent to BB, otherwise it never happened. Maybe he is only sending "Thank you BB" kind of stuff to them? Is he too scared of his managers to say that people are whining in here or something?
I still don't get it why are people writing in here when you guys know we won't get any answers, that apply to whole forum as well.
May as well close the forum, no use of it to anyone.
That is an absolute outrageous statement to make. This forum is viewable to those who aren't even members, do you think for one moment that a community managers superiors don't look at it even if it isn't just to make sure he is conducting his role in line with procedures laid out for him?
Have you ever heard of the phrase if you can't say anything nice then don't say anything at all? As all I see in your posting is nothing but negativity.
I would like to see a monthly list of things that are being sent to BB, otherwise it never happened. Maybe he is only sending "Thank you BB" kind of stuff to them? Is he too scared of his managers to say that people are whining in here or something?
I still don't get it why are people writing in here when you guys know we won't get any answers, that apply to whole forum as well.
May as well close the forum, no use of it to anyone.
If everyone took your attitude, then no one would ever post about problems and it would guarantee nothing got done and that other players were not informed. You would be proved right and everyone would be no better off. Perhaps you could more constructively suggest what should be done, because if you're not part of the solution then you're part of the problem. :)
Okay guys, lets try and stay away from personal attacks
I can however confirm that feedback is passed back and things like bugs getting reported are very useful to us. An example this week was the visiting friends bug, that was noted and sent to Support and also the fact that the community was able to find certain issues such as the troops being produced in the barracks appearing to affect it.
This also managed to help other community members, forum isn't just for feedback to BB, it helps other players as well!
But also lets try and steer this thread back on topic please. For feedback outside of this threads topic, please post in here
If everyone took your attitude, then no one would ever post about problems and it would guarantee nothing got done and that other players were not informed. You would be proved right and everyone would be no better off. Perhaps you could more constructively suggest what should be done, because if you're not part of the solution then you're part of the problem. :)
My attitude is exactly the same way BB treats his customers, as you can see from the 1st topic. I was posting ideas since I joined this game but then realized that BB doesn't care.
Peck_ed you can confirm all you want but your not BB employee means not an official response.
So far forum is there for players helping other players overcome massive amount of bugs but only few of them are actually getting fixed.
BB_Dantesama
19.06.13, 10:59
My attitude is exactly the same way BB treats his customers, as you can see from the 1st topic. I was posting ideas since I joined this game but then realized that BB doesn't care.
Peck_ed you can confirm all you want but your not BB employee means not an official response.
So far forum is there for players helping other players overcome massive amount of bugs but only few of them are actually getting fixed.
K0sh1,
It is clear that there isn't much I can say that will convince you otherwise.
I am very sorry you feel that way.
Constructive Community feedback is crucial to us, bashing, pointing fingers or personal attacks won't help you and are actually againt the rules.
If you wish to write an official complaint, I suggest you send a message to Support right here (http://www.thesettlersonline.com/en/help-and-support).
Let's please get back to topic.
Best
BB_Dantesama
TheOldBadger
19.06.13, 11:39
I've played many online games and some where buggier than others, those that didn't have many bugs where stagnant because the bugs had all but gone and the developers where not adding much of anything as it may have unforeseen side effects on other sections of the game, the more buggy games had monthly events and little done towards bugs.
In my short time on this game I have seen all the bugs I've come across personally fixed and several new things implemented, and a few events which where so much better than most games for lack of comparative lag and login issues.
I've also seen people complaining about every event being unfair, too costly and too hard .... I blame BB for this, not because they don't listen but for allowing the players to get lazy. Allowing guides for adventures , allowing the blocking exploit, the third party camp calculators etc has meant people are looking for the cheapest easiest way to do everything and growing faster than was probably intended in the beginning meaning they have to come up with high tier stuff sooner rather than latter.
I also think people fail to realise what they're asking.... you can't roll back some ones account on a game like this without it rolling back every ones games usually, you see it's not a domino effect more like kerplunk, you pull something and the marbles might fall if your unlucky because programmes such as this can react in mysterious ways when things are altered.
To those wanting an answer from BB, Well Dante is answering, that's all you need, he is employed as far as I can see to make sure BB is kept in the loop as to what is said here (I'm sure he has other duties but other than dev diaries I don't often come to forums ) If BB stopped to answer every query then nothing would ever get done so it makes sense to have one person read it all
Mini Rant over TheOldBadger
Just out of curiosity TheOldBadger in the short time you have been playing what bugs have you seen and what ones have been fixed?
Only someone with no programming knowledge would say something along the lines of "you can't roll back some ones account on a game like this without it rolling back every ones games usually, you see it's not a domino effect more like kerplunk, you pull something and the marbles might fall if your unlucky because programmes such as this can react in mysterious ways when things are altered."
The game should be designed where your account details are saved to an individual file for instance, TheOldBadger - coins 50, granite 50, silo building 568,621 - level 4 (the 568,621 number is the location on your map) etc etc etc. A backup should then be made at certain intervals on to several different hard drives. Should the worst occur and your island goes faulty it should be as easy as copy from backup location and overwrite existing for you and then you have rolled back to the last good point which would have been the last backup.
Now I have made that sound very simple, without knowing the in's and out's of this game it probably differs from that but you get the general idea. If the game has not been designed where backups are made like that then personally all of the developers need sacking and bringing in some fresh blood.
BB_Dante can you request a developer (someone who works on making this game, coding etc) visits here and gives us a brief idea of what happened and why it is not easily fixed, then maybe we as a community can be a bit more understanding as to why BB have not fixed this. This is now up to 4044 views and I reckon it will easily hit 10000.
Thanks
Now I have made that sound very simple, without knowing the in's and out's of this game it probably differs from that but you get the general idea.
Thanks
Isn't that the point? It is not as simple as you have made it sound. Would you prefer the developers to work on a solution or to spend time explaining why it is difficult? I'd prefer the developers to spend time on the solution and update the community manager when they have something that works. Just because there is no solution yet does not mean it's not being worked on.
The point I am making is you login, your island is predefined by details so you have all your items and buildings. Them details should be backed up on a regular basis. 5 mins or so for a dev to explain the problem which could save thousands of players leaving the game or spreading bad feedback I would prefer and I am sure BB would prefer. I am speculating because I simply dont know and in my opinion it can be done quite easily without doing any harm, an explanation as to why is what I am after. Simply saying because it may mess up other accounts is not good enough.
We have contact with the community managers which I think is great but once in a while it would be nice to hear direct from the devs and to be able to speak to them.
Ekonomista
19.06.13, 13:50
Ok I was thinking about this bug and only thing we as players can do is help figure out trigger event so BB can fix it.
First of all in 90% cases all this zone error bugs happen because of Build/Move. Some only by going from adv to island but lets stick to the first part.
So we need to start with simple questions.
1. If this bug happens how does the server know it happened and why does it say zone error to us? What behavior does server find as problematic and tells us the zone error?
2. When we build something on our map server makes a build code and place code. Place code should be code that are free to build(free space on our map). Known limitation that happened to me was about PH that when I deleted it the code for it was still on server so I couldnt build it again and needed to wait for tso script to clear that thing. When I would started building PH it would get deleted around 30% because its already marked as builded on server even if its not on my map.
3. If we move something that building code needs to get transfered to new place code and the old gets deleted. Question here is do sectors or the borders influence that so the script doesnt know in witch sector to place new building code. Or in worst case it only copies the building code to new place leaving the old one and when checking it gets problems.
4. Can server lag influence the code deleting/writing. Lets say we move a building and server lags so we see it already moved to new place visualy but when server checks codes it is on first place and the interface on second it gets problems and dont know what to do.
5. Does the map itself has false placing codes like trees or visual interface that is on map but makes problems to placing of buildings. Having trees on min or max does it consume more space or its not important...
6. There are some tips that you can do to like avoid this bug but they are 50% proven to not work. If player makes refresh and comes in the game they have like no used data like no chat, no changed things on island like if you builded something or moved. In basic it should let you build/move something fresh without any factors that could affect but that is true and not. So does the flow of information on island or from adv has something to do that makes the process of moving lag/stop/not get right done get bugged?
There are more to ask but in end for every problem there is simple trigger that makes it happen. If we find the source BB can try to fix it or tell us more about it because they made the game so we dont encounter it at least. Cheers
To add to point 1, from what I've seen it only appears to affect certain gem based or other "not acquired normally" items (like decorations).
From all the bugs regarding this I agree with peck_ed it happens with gem based or not normal buildings. I got off quite lucky I moved a level 5 recycle plant and lost the building instead of my island crashing. After much fighting with support I was reimbursed, at first they only wanted to give me enough resource to upgrade it to level 3.
Juhana_III
19.06.13, 15:17
If you wish to write an official complaint, I suggest you send a message to Support right here (http://www.thesettlersonline.com/en/help-and-support).
I know you mean well, but the problem with this advice is, that anything sent there (constructive or not) will only get ignored in reality. Writing your complaint to what is practically a trash bin isn't going to help anyone get heard. So people like to complain on the forum instead, where they'll at least get the eyes of other players and maybe the occasional BB ambassador.
For example, I'm happy Miciz wrote his complaint here instead. Imagine what the effect would have been if he expressed his disappointment only to the support.
If I am honest the only reason my problem got resolved regarding the level 5 recycle plant is because I posted the full email script between me and support here which then got deleted which then got sent on to a BB community manager who then did something which after support had said "as you did not accept the resource to upgrade the building to level 3 we will now close this ticket and do nothing" I mysteriously got an email to say actually we will fully reimburse you.
So Juhana_III is right as bad as it is, talking to support seems to get you no where these days, until that changes I can see posts like this popping up all over the place.
I've read this thread with interest - and annoyance.
My main issue is the compensation that is offered - it's insulting. It does seem like this happens rarely, and mainly to high level players that have spent time resources and sometimes real money on this game.
If this is such a rare bug, there is absolutely no reason why people should have the amount of resources offered being as measly as it currently is. I very much doubt that these people will dump the resources on the server and make trade go haywire. If anything - they are likely to get upgrading as soon as they can, some of which will take them 1-2 weeks per building. Even with the extra resources - they are going to have to slog their way through enough adv to get the xp to get back at their previous level.
I do not understand the technical aspect, but it does sound like granting xp might be a bigger issue than granting resources. To compensate for the "inability" to give xp - grant them some extra gems on top. In addition to providing a non-insulting replacement of resource loss.
I am disregarding the annoying beta label we still have. As others have said, it's not been used as excuse for the appalling customer service, and thank you to Dantesama who has :
Hello guys,
I have expressed my personal thoughts many times to Blue Byte regarding this issue.
BB is very much aware of this thread and I will do what I can to push for a different solution.
Best
BB_Dantesama
I'd like to take the time to say thank you to Dantesama for listening to our concerns and for pushing for a different solution
ty Dante:)
I agree with what Nuttymut has said - just because Dantesama has not got a reply to give us from BB yet does not mean it isn't being considered and action being taken. Sometimes things take time to go through the proper channels and it is usually better to get a proper solution rather than something hastily cobbled together. It is very unfortunate for the people that have lost a lot in the meantime, but it's not always possible to provide a solution that everyone is happy with. I think we have a good Community Manager on this forum and he does put in a lot of effort, including communicating what he can at any point.
May I once again stress that I know Dantesama has done a great job of turning this forum into a constructive place. Often none of us want to hear that another plyaer has suffered at the hands of a bug. It could easily be any one of us. I am in no doubt that Dantesama is both allowing the playing community to speak and to be heard where they need to be heard the most.
I cannot imagine how any player copes with the issue of being rolled back to the start. I think the opening poster has shown great restraint. Far better than I could have shown in the same circumstances.
It is correct that the playing community are kept informed of the down-side of the game.
Once again and I mean it genuinely I would invite the opening poster to join our guild and I will do whatever I can to help you rebuild. It's a genuine offer and I will not put any glass ceilings on it. I have a reasonably robust economy within the game and I am more than happy to assign that to helping you rebuild.
I am confident that Dantesama will come back to us all when he has additional information. Give him some space and also let BB work through this issue internally. The one thing I will say about BB is they do seem to react well. And in that respect I genuinely believe they are working on this issue now and will be positive about it. May I caveat what I have said please. It shouldn't have happened in my opinion. But it has and that's what we are left to deal with.
I really have no issues with the overall behaviour of BB. Indeed since Dantesama took over as community manager BB have lifted their game. I don't believe in coincidence. I have drawn my own conclusions.
We can either be part of the solution or by default we can be part of the problem. Sweeping generalisations aren't helpful in these sort of circumstances. The best I can do to be part of one solution is to offer in game help with resources to help Miciz rebuild. I'd hasten to add that I am not speaking for anyone else in my guild but I suspect many would also throw their weight behind such help too.
Best
Nutters :-)
To add to point 1, from what I've seen it only appears to affect certain gem based or other "not acquired normally" items (like decorations).
I guess it's allways better to cancel a building move if something comes up lagging in between.
Any progress on this I wonder?
Ekonomista
26.06.13, 15:34
Yea there is some on reply and view :D (Replies: 82 Views: 5,056) but for the fix its stil on ... :( Hope we get at least a word like "Hey" from BB so we know they are among us :D
Another one bites the dust.. Still BB have not solved this
http://forum.thesettlersonline.com/threads/24603-get-your-bonus-celebrating-20th-anniversary!
Need to stop letting this thread drift down the list and keep it active so BB do NOT foget about it.
ddaniel2012
01.07.13, 21:04
i agree, something needs to be done, and please do not insult us with starter pack and level reset
thank you
DocAckersonCO1
02.07.13, 04:17
sad compensation, this apparently has happened more than once.
I think I have given away more in equivalent resources than this
8.000 Stone
8.000 Planks
8.000 Tools
5.000 Marble
5.000 Real Planks
5.000 Coins
3.000 Granite
3.000 Exotic Planks
probably way more, and those were just gifts, I didn't tear down anyone's island
sad compensation, this apparently has happened more than once.
I think I have given away more in equivalent resources than this
8.000 Stone
8.000 Planks
8.000 Tools
5.000 Marble
5.000 Real Planks
5.000 Coins
3.000 Granite
3.000 Exotic Planks
probably way more, and those were just gifts, I didn't tear down anyone's island
That is not even enough resource to get your prov house or barracks back to level 5.
Jeez....the anniversary celebration already did cost more than that!
Another one bites the dust.. Still BB have not solved this
http://forum.thesettlersonline.com/threads/24603-get-your-bonus-celebrating-20th-anniversary!
Need to stop letting this thread drift down the list and keep it active so BB do NOT foget about it.
The above link was pointing to the thread created by me, which, can you believe it, was deleted from these forums today!! see below my last reply, I have not written anything offensive to them
BB is trying to get the dust under the carpet so that people would still pump money not knowing what is really happening
this was my last reply there, I still had it on browser cache:
ok, so let me try an answer a few of the questions asked until now
Quote Originally Posted by Gerontius View Post
So this can post can provide useful feedback rather than just be a rant, why not explain clearly
(a) why this offer is unacceptable to you
and
(b) what you think an acceptable offer would be
I thought it was obvious but, this offer is unacceptable because the compensation resources offered do not covered 0.1% of what I had on that island. Remember that I did not cause this issue, my fault is equal to zero for this damage.
In my view an acceptable offer would be :
- reset my island
- pop my account straight to level 50
- provide me with resources to rebuild what I already had
Do the math what resources you would need for:
- 6 lvl5 coinages
- 4 lvl5 and 2 lvl4 gold smelters
- 3 lvl5 gold mines
- 5 lvl5 recyclers
- lvl5 barracks and mayor house
- about 15 lvl4 storehouses (was at ~65k capacity), don't remember number exactly
- about 20 lvl4 silos and farms
- what I already had in warehouse; or at least the expensive stuff I remember about..
I'm sure they can verify what I say (for example restore a backup on a test/development server).
I'm not asking for something that was not mine already. I'm not asking them to give me something, I'm asking them to fix what I already have..
Only the time to rebuild all this would draw me back a lot, but this is something I would have accepted ... but 8k stone and pinewood ?! This is insulting in my opinion.
Quote Originally Posted by MutantKid View Post
Can I ask how this "error detected in zone" came about?
I wasn't even at my computer when this happened, minimized the browser and went off for 10 minutes. When I came back I got the error. Posted the question to support on Friday morning, no reply (except the automatic answer), I replied again on Monday at noon, then I got the bomb reply from their side on Monday afternoon.
This is something you don't wish even to your worst enemy, believe me is a bad feeling.
I have to say, this doesn't look good. Why has that thread been deleted? I saw nothing offensive there either. Surely whoever deleted it must realise this makes it look like BB have something to hide or are trying to stop players being informed about what is going on. I think at this point a moderator or BB representative needs to explain what is going on and why.
ddaniel2012
02.07.13, 08:51
that is a lame use of moderator powers .... don't deleted threads, if there was something against TOS, you CLOSE the thread, you don't delete it unless you have something to hide .... and i think they just don't want bad publicity about CRITICAL bugs that are on LIVE server
I've posted on another thread.
I was hit by a bug yesterday at 5.30pm. A script ran at 2am to resolve this.
I was nowhere near my pc when this bug hit me. The only thing I could think is I had entered a voucher code earlier. This could have caused the problem.
I've put my island to sleep for the duration of the event.
In addition I have decided to leave the game.
Best
Nutters :-)
I have to say, this doesn't look good. Why has that thread been deleted? I saw nothing offensive there either. Surely whoever deleted it must realise this makes it look like BB have something to hide or are trying to stop players being informed about what is going on. I think at this point a moderator or BB representative needs to explain what is going on and why.
I would like to see a moderator post on this topic also ..
that is a lame use of moderator powers .... don't deleted threads, if there was something against TOS, you CLOSE the thread, you don't delete it unless you have something to hide .... and i think they just don't want bad publicity about CRITICAL bugs that are on LIVE server
Like Bob mentioned above I also think they don't what players to know what can hit them. They need player to pump money and if a problem appears they can only say: your account will be wiped or you may choose to leave the game .. in fact they only give you the option to leave because they know you would not spend money anymore if this happened to you
GoodKnight
02.07.13, 10:45
Hello Miciz,
I am very sorry that you had to reset your account. This bug is rare but very damaging when it happens.
Your frustration is completely justified, I also understand why you wouldn't want to spend anymore time on the Settlers Online.
Although the compensation will never truly replace your loss, it is the best Support can offer. I hope you understand.
This is a hard bug to tackle, I will inform you guys immediately if I get any updates on this.
Best
BB_Dantesama
what an excellent "not answer". Where are those responsible, the grownups, who can make decisions on their own?
Started to read this thread today... I wasn't aware of the bug, that seems to be very serious. I've only played for just over a month now, only at level 30. But if I were to lose my island even at that level, I doubt I would start again from scratch. Just the time I spent to get there, I would want to do it again... So I imagine all these guys at level 45, 49, 50...
A month, that's about how long ago THIS thread started and there hasn't been much input from BB's side apart from a couple of posts from Dante, none of which give much new info. Doesn't sound too good...
Now about the deleted thread, this is an insult to the player. Just like others I didn't see anything offensive in it. But it was definitely bad publicity for BB, and with the event going, they want gems purchases to continue. Perfect opportunity to get money in, lots of people would buy gems to ensure their server will win. And report of a bug maybe being related to a voucher code... wow, that would be like dropping a bomb on the whole event. I can see why BB might not want people to know about it. However, this is not the appropriate response, BB, get back on track and act professionally.
How long until this thread disappears too?
Drunken_Abbott
02.07.13, 11:46
I dunno about all they can do, someone losing their entire game at L49....give him a gem pit...seriously
DocAckersonCO1
02.07.13, 13:06
I have informed a few of my high level friends about this. I think it is terrible compensation for something the player did not cause. even a gem pit would not cover the costs.
-
It seems to be three players that we know of. 30,000 or 40,000 gems seem about right. Maybe more. Pixels cost nothing for bb. if they can give 15,000 planks, they could give 50,000 hwp,50,000 granite, etc.
totally out of order this is proof that bb are wiping us all out,after all that time and effort put into the game,when will u all wake up and realise bb are now only milking the game
Monkeys_Nephew
02.07.13, 15:51
I think we should take screen shots of inventory EVERY time we add something to star menu that way NO-ONE from BB can say theres no reason to fully compensate what items a player had. along with log-in gems etc. and as way of an apology a few extra gems
By way of an update.
BB replied to my ticket that I took out last night. The reply came mid morning today. In short the reply told me what I already knew which was the issue with accessing my island had been dealt with overnight.
I replied politely to support and informed them of my decision to put my island into mothballs during the event as I felt it could be a voucher code that had caused my problems. Additionally I let them know of my decision not to play the game anymore as I cannot reconcile the void between how bugs are being dealt with and paying for the game.
Support replied. They have passed my email onto another department within BB who deal with these sort of issues.
There is no one more aligned with the succes of this game than me. I have been patient for some 15 months now. However, I have to be clear about why I am unable to continue playing the game. I am not reassured that BB are dealing with the issues of bugs very well at all. Whilst I am genuinely pleased that BB have a script to correct the bug which hit me yesterday I keep coming down on the side of no confidence.
I take the view, simple as it may be that the need for this script suggests that BB are trying to do something that they aren't capable of. I do not mean to sound as if I know a great deal about computers - I don't. However, clearly BB have attempted to do something and clearly the code isn't doing what they want.
In addition the removal of a particular thread from these boards has left me with some exceptionally negative perceptions. As much as I want to believe that the removal of the other thread was not done to cover over issues I am struggling.
I genuinely do not think it is unreasonable for BB's customers to expect a level of service and performance. As part of that I think I am entitled to feel reassured that if my account is hit with a bug that I will not loose my island to a complete reset.
Currently that reassurance is not forthcoming from BB.
Best
Nutters :-)
Doc recently put me on to this, and it's been a most interesting read.
Since it doesn't cost BB a bean to properly compensate I'm at a loss to know why they haven't.
I recently got 'dead-ended' in another game I'd been playing for about three weeks and don't feel much like repeating it. To lose everything after well over a year would be devastating.
ddaniel2012
02.07.13, 18:40
so game masters , is there any action taken to correct this bug and proper compensate the time and money invested here?
i am a level 50 player with about a year of play time behind my back. if this is the treatment i will receive also for encountering a game bug, i better stop investing my money and time here and now and start investing them in making some bad rep for this game.
your move. fix lodrpr account
regards,
daniel
Yesterday I got an email from support saying they are unable to provide me with support (ie answer my emails) because I don't want to accept they're offer and reset my account.
I must ask myself what kind of employees do BB have? I also work for a big company and I find BB's behavior unacceptable from a customer perspective..
I never got an answer from them why would not be possible to reset my account and them send me by email:
- the XP required to go lvl 50
- the resources to rebuild my entire setup
I have lost my island because of them and I get zero support to get it back. Unbelievable..
Hey guys, sorry for the delay in getting back to you regarding the other thread. From what I understand there was some information in that thread that may have gone against the code of conduct of the forum and was therefore removed pending approval. It may or may not reappear based on that, sadly out of my hands.
As for removing it to hide information, that certainly isn't the case as proved by this very thread.
Thanks peck for this reply.
My vision is that when a customer's account dissapears that person should, at least, know the reason why this happened. Also, another option for moderators would be to delete the inappropriate content from that thread, but leave rest of the thread alive & visible for everyone!
Can you also provide details about what "some information in that thread that may have gone against the code of conduct" mean? I tend to like to speak in exact terms, "some" and "it may" not being among them.
Thanks,
lodrpr
I can't at this exact time as I was not involved, however I will ensure to get this information cleared up for you as soon as I can.
I must confess I feel yet again dissaponted by BB attitude.. I'm not asking clarifications from you (peck_ed) but from BB .. telling me you were not involved and having no reply for half a day is, let say, not ideal.
But the attitude on forums is not my 1st concern now, because that would be getting my account back in the same shape it was taken away from me.
Hi Dantesama,
Would you mind if, in the interests of fair play, I spoke up about this issue. This is a very serious issue and I share the injustice these players are feeling. If I may be blunt please. And I have no wish to sound rude towards you. But this is wrong on all levels Dantesama.
It needs addressing. Someone within BB needs to take ownership of this issue and come back with a much more acceptable solution. I have decided it is fair and correct for me to align myself with these players. I was hit by a bug which was resolved, albeit slowly. I am confident that you are more than aware of the damage this issue is causing in relation to the playing communities reassurance that this bug is not going to happen to them.
I have stopped playing. I do not feel I can justify the time and money on the game without this reasonable reassurance.
Dantesama would you please inform the relevant people within BB that this really is not being handled very well at all. Players who loose their account to a bug are being treated with incredible disregard. And again this is wrong.
I am sure that BB are aware of this issue. I would still suggest that they are reminded of the urgency and indeed the severity of things.
I'm calling upon BB to address the issue of compensation for all players who have had their accounts reset. In addition I would like to see some reassurance that the code that is causing this bug has been identified and removed.
I am not going to apologise for this post Dantesama. This situation is terribly wrong and I refuse to sit idly by whilst players are subjected to this sort of treatment. I cannot stress enough how unjust and unfair this has all been and it really is not good enough.
Thank you for all you have done and are doing for the playing community Dantesama. I realise that you are the messenger and as such I do feel you are doing an exceptional job. I will go quiet now and await a timely response from BB.
All the very best
Nutters
BB_Dantesama
03.07.13, 13:28
I understand your frustration and anger guys, I really do.
I'm not one to justify my work but under those circumstances, I do feel it necessary to do just that. I mention this topic every week during our feedback call and we speak about it in thorough detail, BB is very well aware of the seriousness of this situation.
All I can say right now is that this topic is under very serious discussion, no final word has come out yet. As mentioned before, I will update you guys when I have an answer and a solution to this case. Until then, I will ask you to bear with me.
Best
BB_Dantesama
Dantesama you're a gentleman - thank you :-)
The best thing to avoid this problem is to check your account after each maintenance. If you cannot access your island then send the ticket to the BB support. As far as I know the maintenance scripts are creating a backup of each account before performing the modification of the data. If you send the issue as fast as possible they might have still the backup of your account and can restore it properly. This had happened to a member of our guild and they have succeeded to fix the account. Unfortunately this hint is not useful anymore for the players that have corrupted account data, but can help the others that might have this problem.
Thejollyone
03.07.13, 14:30
whilst I understand Dante's post to be patient, I have to say it is too little too late for some players.
We have been posting about this error in many threads for a very long time, but nothing reasonable has been offered from BB. I would suggest that BB take stock of the situation and stop offering the standard silly amounts of resource etc to replace all that has been lost. That alone insults people and causes heartache.
Please BB listen to your die-hard players who have not only invited friends/spent real money, but also supported you through votes for best MMO etc.... Have a real heart and take responsibility for each affected person for their relevant loss.
Refund not only gems spent but also enable these players to get back to where they were.. If this continues to happen, do you really think you will garner the awards you had last year?
I can see from previous posts and explanations that is is hard to set people up again, but you can at the very least put them back to the level they "expired at". Send them the xp through the mail. Youve done it before, do it again.... As that is the hardest thing to get back as a player.
whilst I understand Dante's post to be patient, I have to say it is too little too late for some players.
That's fact.
May I share my current thought process please.
We're being asked to be patient until BB have decided upon a reply to us. There's nothing wrong with that.
Of course patience works both ways.
I have concluded until I receive the reassurances I need I will not spend more money on the game.
From my perspective that seems fair.
Best
Nutters :-)
Hey guys, sorry for the delay in getting back to you regarding the other thread. From what I understand there was some information in that thread that may have gone against the code of conduct of the forum and was therefore removed pending approval. It may or may not reappear based on that, sadly out of my hands.
As for removing it to hide information, that certainly isn't the case as proved by this very thread.
I confidently predict there won't be an answer forthcoming on this, ever. If I had to guess, I'd point people at this from the 'code of conduct':
Exchange with Support/Mod/Admin in private
Any discussion or exchange with a Support agent, moderator or admin is considered private. It is forbidden to copy/paste your exchange on the forum or on the chat.
Frankly, the code of conduct has so many prohibited things that just about any message or thread could be removed, but that one above seems most likely for why the other thread was deleted.
Dantesama has promised us the matter is being taken seriously, but like others I am left underwhelmed by the great length of time that has passed since this bug first showed up and the continued unsatisfactory approach of support in offering the insulting level of resources 'reset' option as the only thing a player can do if this happens to them. We have little option but to 'bear with you' Dantesama, but bearing in mind the Uplay passwords fiasco, BB's inability to balance the 20th anniversary event and this ongoing account reset issue, it's not inspiring any confidence in BB whatsoever. I, for one, would like to see some actual evidence that players are being listened to and that action is being taken on all the problems. Fine words are all very well, but action is what is required for the players that have had their islands and game ruined by this bug. How long must they wait for BB to do the right thing by them?
I understand your frustration and anger guys, I really do.
I'm not one to justify my work but under those circumstances, I do feel it necessary to do just that. I mention this topic every week during our feedback call and we speak about it in thorough detail, BB is very well aware of the seriousness of this situation.
All I can say right now is that this topic is under very serious discussion, no final word has come out yet. As mentioned before, I will update you guys when I have an answer and a solution to this case. Until then, I will ask you to bear with me.
Best
BB_Dantesama
It's good to know that this issue is being worked on, but it seems like BB are missing the incredible urgency that really should be here.
How about multiplying the replacement package by, say, 30? And adding a quick dummy quest for the experience missing, as suggested by other players in this very thread. It would still not come close to the value of a high-level island, but it would help. It would be very fast, easy stop-gap measure to implement. And it would perhaps mean that the bug wouldn't seem to be quite such a cataclysmic issue. Right now, it's pretty terrifying.
How about multiplying the replacement package by, say, 30?
I'dd say everyone should get what he had before .. staying off game for few weeks is bad enough, having 240k stone in my inventory doesn't really help.
If the number of affected users is really so small as they say, then a backup can be restored on a test machine (not to affect everyone's environment) and then provide the players with resources to build what they already had.
That and the experience to bounce to lvl50.
BB has to acknowledge that players have zero fault for causing this bug, therefor their "suffer" has to be reduced to a minimum.
PatentPending
04.07.13, 14:26
I understand your frustration and anger guys, I really do.
I'm not one to justify my work but under those circumstances, I do feel it necessary to do just that. I mention this topic every week during our feedback call and we speak about it in thorough detail, BB is very well aware of the seriousness of this situation.
All I can say right now is that this topic is under very serious discussion, no final word has come out yet. As mentioned before, I will update you guys when I have an answer and a solution to this case. Until then, I will ask you to bear with me.
Best
BB_Dantesama
I would just suggest that, until the issue is fully resolved, compensation to players who have suffered from the problem be rethought. If a player has been slowing building their island for a year, they might expect a bit more compensation to be able to put themselves back on track more quickly.
I'dd say everyone should get what he had before .. staying off game for few weeks is bad enough, having 240k stone in my inventory doesn't really help.
If the number of affected users is really so small as they say, then a backup can be restored on a test machine (not to affect everyone's environment) and then provide the players with resources to build what they already had.
That and the experience to bounce to lvl50.
BB has to acknowledge that players have zero fault for causing this bug, therefor their "suffer" has to be reduced to a minimum.
I agree, it's really pretty unforgivable that BB don't just restore the account to the point it was. And their attempt to handwave it citing technical issues is completely ridiculous. Simpy put, they aren't willing to invest the time into properly reinstating these islands. Making the reward somewhat comparable to what's lost would be a very easy thing to do, so maybe they're willing to do that.
ddaniel2012
05.07.13, 10:27
any updates here? another week has passed
any updates here? another week has passed
Yes... Dantesama has left, so expect his replacement to ask for time to be able to get up to speed on this. And so on and so on.
Giving this person enoigh gems and not a cheap hand off will be compensation enough to rebuild. its the closed hand approach you guys give towards rewards thats most upsetting to players.
this player lost months of hard work. The least BB can do to ensure they keep their name and honor in tact is PROPER compensation. It cost BB nothing. but will safe face. A little kindness goes a long way.
my 2 cents.
121 replies and 8222 views.
BB surely do not care.
I'm saddened that Dantesama is leaving. I think he did a great job in an almost impossible situation.
I hope that BB take on board the depth of feeling expressed in this thread. And I hope they look at how they can help those players who have suffered catastrophic account resets.
Additionally there is still the issue of reassurance that this bug is not going to occur to other players.
Without such reassurance I am unable to justify additional spend on the game.
Best
Nutters :-)
ddaniel2012
05.07.13, 18:25
I'm saddened that Dantesama is leaving. I think he did a great job in an almost impossible situation.
I hope that BB take on board the depth of feeling expressed in this thread. And I hope they look at how they can help those players who have suffered catastrophic account resets.
Additionally there is still the issue of reassurance that this bug is not going to occur to other players.
Without such reassurance I am unable to justify additional spend on the game.
Best
Nutters :-)
totaly agree. i need to know that this bug is fixed before starting playing again
Need to know if the new CM will look at this problem in depth. This has to be addressed immediately. I wonder if any of the german/polish have had this bug? or any other server outside of the 3 euro servers? How many other servers are still in beta?
totaly agree. i need to know that this bug is fixed before starting playing again
I intitially responded to this situation with a decision not to continue playing. However, some members of my guild suggested this wasn't well thought out. I agree with them. Therefore, I am continuing to play. I'm no worse off (until a bug destroys my account).
The essence of my future game will be to prevent additional spend on the game until I am reassured that this bug is eliminated.
Additionally I continue to align myself with those players who have been reset and to ask BB to reconsider the compensation they have sent.
I am sure BB will respond positively to the community. However, like many other players I am finding it difficult to feel that the timelines are indeed in keeping with the serious nature of this bug and its consequences to date.
Best
Nutters :-)
I have opted out of the 20th event as the bug I had cost me about 4K in gold coins. I didn't want to add to that by thumping more voucher codes into my account. Well not unless one of them is for about 20K gold coins - then I may flip the coin and risk it ;-) Sorry my bad :-) jk :-)
rodrigosg79
06.07.13, 17:12
People must really really love TSO to still be playing this game despite the attrocious way BB deals with it. I know I do, but i wont be spending any cent on this game anymore.
KaffeKalle
06.07.13, 17:34
some1 said,they should calculate how much stuff needed to reach lvl49. Well they cant even calculate fair teams in world events :mad:
ddaniel2012
07.07.13, 07:53
I intitially responded to this situation with a decision not to continue playing. However, some members of my guild suggested this wasn't well thought out. I agree with them. Therefore, I am continuing to play. I'm no worse off (until a bug destroys my account).
The essence of my future game will be to prevent additional spend on the game until I am reassured that this bug is eliminated.
Additionally I continue to align myself with those players who have been reset and to ask BB to reconsider the compensation they have sent.
I am sure BB will respond positively to the community. However, like many other players I am finding it difficult to feel that the timelines are indeed in keeping with the serious nature of this bug and its consequences to date.
Best
Nutters :-)
I have opted out of the 20th event as the bug I had cost me about 4K in gold coins. I didn't want to add to that by thumping more voucher codes into my account. Well not unless one of them is for about 20K gold coins - then I may flip the coin and risk it ;-) Sorry my bad :-) jk :-)
money is not the only thing you can invest. time is also
and as you know time is money ....
middle of last week support sent me an email that my "ticket" has been dispatched to relevant team in BB and they (support) can no longer support me.
almost a week has passed and no sign of the relevant team from BB .. I tend to think that team is Recycle Bin where my ticket was sent to..
middle of last week support sent me an email that my "ticket" has been dispatched to relevant team in BB and they (support) can no longer support me.
almost a week has passed and no sign of the relevant team from BB .. I tend to think that team is Recycle Bin where my ticket was sent to..
Hi, lodrpr!
Did you receive a ticket number with your query? If you can private message this number to me, I will chase up what is going on for you.
BB_Alpaca
Hi Alpaca,
I have sent you the ticket number, together with the last email I got from "support"..
Thanks for trying to solve this mate!
Hi Alpaca,
And welcome to your new post. If you haven't read this thread you'll not appreciate the depth of feeling and the ever increasing size of the rising tide.
There's currently a 300% sale on today.
And I have to say that's great.
But ... what use is a sale of this magnitude to any of the playing community when there is currently a bug capable of wiping a player back to the start of the game. It's like sitting on the boat deck of the Titanic as it sinks and selling tickets for the next voyage across the Atlantic.
Can we please have some reassurances from BB regarding this matter. What is being done? What timelines are involved?
This is a community and it is fair that if one player is not getting the help he needs then someone should be held accountable.
Despite all the talk we have players who have been wiped clean.
Why is there a delay? Do you feel the delay is acceptable? It's very hard looking in on events to think it is.
I would have loved to have taken up BB on their offer of 300% gems. It would have given me 5 free silos. However, I cannot justify any further expenditure until I know my account is safe from this bug. Or at least if the bug hits me I am not going to be sent back to the start of the game.
You have, I'm afraid, joined BB as Community Manager at a difficult time. Reassurance is all I ask for. It hasn't been forthcoming.
That saddens me. I stand aligned with those players who are looking for help from BB to establish their account at something near where they left it. I also remain sure it is correct to ask for reassurances from BB given the nature of events and the regretable timelines now accruing.
Best
Nutters :-)
A catastrophic bug like this needs action and not the excuses and prevarication we have had so far. This bug can destroy months of hard work by a player.
I think we all understand that the bug may be very difficult to track down and eliminate, but in those circumstances there is all the more need for BB to act IMMEDIATELY to PROPERLY compensate players affected by the bug AND to reassure the rest of us that if it does happen to us we can at least know we will receive the same treatment.
Enough is enough BB, you need to tell us what you are doing about this and stop fobbing us off with delaying tactics and insultingly inadequate reset resources.
Thejollyone
08.07.13, 17:41
I'm glad this thread hasn't been shut down and with that I'm sure we'd all appreciate some positive feedback from BB on it.
Thank you Alpaca that you are going to question it, but please do not allow BB to leave this subject on the back burner or try and brush it under the carpet... It is any TSO player's biggest nightmare-scenario and has been the subject of other threads previously...
We all eagerly await more appropriate replies/actions from BB.
BB_Alpaca if it helps do not forget to pass on the message that this thread has had almost 10,000 views now, of which I would guess 2000-3000 are unique. Thats 2000-3000 people with a very bad opinion of this game and how support handle bugs caused by the game.
To be honest the people this bug has happened to have been very calm. I would not be so calm and would make sure it was every single server, country, language that knew how bad they have handled it.
ddaniel2012
09.07.13, 07:11
welcome to your new position Alpaca
we are all waiting with interest to see how this issue is addressed.
thank you
daniel
BB_Alpaca if it helps do not forget to pass on the message that this thread has had almost 10,000 views now, of which I would guess 2000-3000 are unique. Thats 2000-3000 people with a very bad opinion of this game and how support handle bugs caused by the game.
Actually that's about 10k unique users. I have just tested, if I visit this topic several times the views number does not increase.
10k people playing this game are aware of this issue ..
TwilightShadow
09.07.13, 09:38
Welcome Alpaca.
Im a newish player - only been playing for a couple of months now.
Yesterday I was intent on purchasing a quantity of gems for 100 GBP. However after considering this thread carefully I decided against it.
In the event that I was to lose my island due to a bug I would want 100% reassurance from BB that everything would be replaced to the same state it was in prior to the loss. In UK law this is called restitution and is an established legal principle. Unfortunately as the game is still in a Beta format it gives BB a lot of latitude as Ubisofts T & C's state in clause 14 (g)
"Beta versions of games and more generally any Test Contents are supplied to you as is and according to availability without any explicit or implicit guarantee of any kind. You play on a beta version at your own risk. You accept that (i) the Test Contents may include known or unknown bugs and that (ii) the games and/or other Test Contents may be available only on subscription once the beta phase is completed or at any other time subsequently. You acknowledge that UBISOFT is not obliged to allow you to play free of charge for any period, nor even to authorise you to access these Test Contents. You also accept that all your data, particularly any bonuses, points, Credits, states of progress and statuses attained in the course of the game may be erased and/or reset at any time. In this case, your progress and your data will be erased and you will return to the initial status"
A further argument would be that a contract was created for each and every purchase and surely their must be some form of redress in this situation. Section 15 of the contract covers this and in particular subsection 15(e) which states
"Your sole remedy in the event of a dispute with UBISOFT or its licensors is to:
cease to use the Services and terminate your Account; and
if applicable, seek damages for your losses."
I guess the "seek damages" term would mean via Ubisoft/BB but failing that through the courts - a potentially complex, costly and time consuming process.
So it appears that according to the contract that 'all bases have been covered' and anybody who loses their island through no fault of their own are completely at the mercy of BB who can pretty much avoid any liability whatsoever. The offer made to those who've fallen prey to this bug have been offered on what is clearly a 'goodwill gesture' and nothing more.
This may be an explanation as to why BB appear to be dragging their feet when it comes to full restitution.
To lose an island through something which is through no fault of the player/s and then not immediately and appropriately compensate the player is appalling and to be honest i'm astounded that a corporate body would not seek to address this issue within hours of the problem being identified by appropriately and fully compensating the affected player. The damage to the player base's confidence in Settlers and the long term viability of BB with Settlers are intrinsically linked.
I for one will most definitely not spend any money on Settlers until this issue as been resolved, the affected players appropriately compensated and the T & C's amended accordingly to reflect this (or at least clarified) - which is a shame as i really enjoy settlers and I think its got great potential!
Actually that's about 10k unique users. I have just tested, if I visit this topic several times the views number does not increase.
10k people playing this game are aware of this issue ..
The views do not update instantly. But I like your enthusiasm :cool:
Welcome Alpaca.
Im a newish player - only been playing for a couple of months now.
Yesterday I was intent on purchasing a quantity of gems for 100 GBP. However after considering this thread carefully I decided against it.
In the event that I was to lose my island due to a bug I would want 100% reassurance from BB that everything would be replaced to the same state it was in prior to the loss. In UK law this is called restitution and is an established legal principle. Unfortunately as the game is still in a Beta format it gives BB a lot of latitude as Ubisofts T & C's state in clause 14 (g)
"Beta versions of games and more generally any Test Contents are supplied to you as is and according to availability without any explicit or implicit guarantee of any kind. You play on a beta version at your own risk. You accept that (i) the Test Contents may include known or unknown bugs and that (ii) the games and/or other Test Contents may be available only on subscription once the beta phase is completed or at any other time subsequently. You acknowledge that UBISOFT is not obliged to allow you to play free of charge for any period, nor even to authorise you to access these Test Contents. You also accept that all your data, particularly any bonuses, points, Credits, states of progress and statuses attained in the course of the game may be erased and/or reset at any time. In this case, your progress and your data will be erased and you will return to the initial status"
A further argument would be that a contract was created for each and every purchase and surely their must be some form of redress in this situation. Section 15 of the contract covers this and in particular subsection 15(e) which states
"Your sole remedy in the event of a dispute with UBISOFT or its licensors is to:
cease to use the Services and terminate your Account; and
if applicable, seek damages for your losses."
I guess the "seek damages" term would mean via Ubisoft/BB but failing that through the courts - a potentially complex, costly and time consuming process.
So it appears that according to the contract that 'all bases have been covered' and anybody who loses their island through no fault of their own are completely at the mercy of BB who can pretty much avoid any liability whatsoever. The offer made to those who've fallen prey to this bug have been offered on what is clearly a 'goodwill gesture' and nothing more.
This may be an explanation as to why BB appear to be dragging their feet when it comes to full restitution.
To lose an island through something which is through no fault of the player/s and then not immediately and appropriately compensate the player is appalling and to be honest i'm astounded that a corporate body would not seek to address this issue within hours of the problem being identified by appropriately and fully compensating the affected player. The damage to the player base's confidence in Settlers and the long term viability of BB with Settlers are intrinsically linked.
I for one will most definitely not spend any money on Settlers until this issue as been resolved, the affected players appropriately compensated and the T & C's amended accordingly to reflect this (or at least clarified) - which is a shame as i really enjoy settlers and I think its got great potential!
I would also point out that until such time as the T&Cs are tested in a court it remains to be seen whether they can be enforced. We should all certainly be aware of what BB/Ubisoft think they can impose, but creating T&Cs and being able to make them stand up in court are two very different things. I have no doubt that they never will be tested in court, precisely for the reason that Ubisoft/BB cannot afford to have a court rule against them. I guarantee one thing - the 'beta' matter would be thrown out instantly. This game is not 'beta', it is a commercially available piece of software and no amount of attempted excuses about it being 'beta' will make any difference if some one decided to take a matter to law.
Having said all that... Forget it! LOL All that needs to happen here is for BB to give a clear reassurance that players will be properly compensated in the event of this problem happening to them. End of problem. It costs BB nothing to do that. Why have they not done so months ago?
I am under the impression regardless of what a company writes about a product being beta or alpha or test or not ready... if they charge money then laws come in to effect against quality of service and guarentee's etc etc. So like above I think BB would be ripped apart if someone was brave enough to take them to court.
So the ranking for the balloon event has just gone wrong... I reckon a full restore will occur from a BACKUP they have.
Why not just do what you have done to the players who had there islands reset and insult them with stupid compensation meaning reset all servers back to say 5%?
Benedicter
09.07.13, 20:15
So the ranking for the balloon event has just gone wrong... I reckon a full restore will occur from a BACKUP they have.
Why not just do what you have done to the players who had there islands reset and insult them with stupid compensation meaning reset all servers back to say 5%?
rofl
good one :D
so .. do you Alpaca have any news on this?
so .. do you Alpaca have any news on this?
Recall that Dantesama said he had raised the matter every week for months with the development team.
You're not honestly expecting a new response just because there's a new community manager? The messenger can only carry the messages they're handed...
Days, weeks, months go by. Silence. We must draw our own conclusions. Mine are this: they can't find the bug, they can't fix the bug, they won't change their reset offer. If they want us to believe differently they must respond to us. While it remains like this I have zero confidence in BB and will not risk money on an island that can basically disappear at any moment. I advise others to do the same.
Days, weeks, months go by. Silence. We must draw our own conclusions. Mine are this: they can't find the bug, they can't fix the bug, they won't change their reset offer. If they want us to believe differently they must respond to us. While it remains like this I have zero confidence in BB and will not risk money on an island that can basically disappear at any moment. I advise others to do the same.
Agreed
I was almost tempted by the x3 gem offer (even though it's still less value than the amazon gift pack). But not a chance I'm spending money on a game that's still officially and to all practical effects still in beta.
Hi Alpaca,
And welcome to your new post. If you haven't read this thread you'll not appreciate the depth of feeling and the ever increasing size of the rising tide.
Hi Nuttymut (and all others following this thread),
Thank you for the welcome! First of all, I would like to thank everyone here for communicating your issues in a thoughtful way. I understand that this is not the ideal situation for anyone involved, and the mature way you have written your concerns and approached this is really appreciated. So, thank you.
I can 100% guarantee you that I have read through this thread, and all other threads in the forums stating complaints after I came here to replace Dantesama. While I have only been here for a week and still have some things to learn, I am doing my best to catalogue the issues that are most important to the community and am working very hard to address them so that you can all have the most enjoyable experience playing TSO.
Can we please have some reassurances from BB regarding this matter. What is being done? What timelines are involved?
I have talked (incredibly persistently) to a number of teams at BB about this issue in particular over the past few days. After doing so, I can assure you that this situation is being taken very seriously by the TSO team at BB and the devs are currently working on the problem. Users having this experience on the game is the last thing any of us want, of course. However, I can't give you an exact date that it will be fixed.
Why is there a delay? Do you feel the delay is acceptable? It's very hard looking in on events to think it is.
Bugs take time to fix, and nothing can change that. Like I mentioned before, the dev team are doing all they can to rectify this issue. All of us would like it to be fixed instantly, but it is just not possible.
I would have loved to have taken up BB on their offer of 300% gems. It would have given me 5 free silos. However, I cannot justify any further expenditure until I know my account is safe from this bug. Or at least if the bug hits me I am not going to be sent back to the start of the game.
On the very rare chance you are hit by this bug, there are solutions to this issue. First, due to a recent update to our support tool, we can now award XP to players. This means that you will not go back to Level 1, but to the level you were before. Second, you will be immediately re-awarded any gems you have purchased, as well as any event building purchased with event materials, for example, the Easter eggs. Thirdly, you are awarded a starter resource pack with materials relevant to your level. I have campaigned hard for a better solution to be brought, and in the interim, this is the improvement.
You have, I'm afraid, joined BB as Community Manager at a difficult time. Reassurance is all I ask for. It hasn't been forthcoming.
It is a difficult time, but I am not afraid of it, nor will I stop being persistent in relaying the community's feelings. I am your advocate, and I am doing my extreme best to bring the best interests of the UK TSO players to pretty much anyone's attention.
Like I've mentioned in my welcome thread, my door is open. I have a great community to manage here and only want to do my best for you all.
Best,
BB_Alpaca
Way to go Alpaca. I think it's great we have some improvement over the current situation.
Getting my xp back was the most important missing part for me. if I have to place all the buildings again. Ah well I'll see it as a bonus and place them as optimal as possible.
kinda missing the
/cheerfulalpacanoise (http://www.hummmm.eu/images/SOUND/orgle.wav) though :)
Giving back the experience sounds like an excellent solution. Glad this has been made possible.
Great to hear that this issue - far more serious one than all other ones together- is being taken seriously. Hopefully actions will be accordingly to the sad next victim getting hit by it.
Being in IT myself, I'm getting more and more curious about what is going wrong here from a technical perspective. Apparently accounts do still exist and information like the amount of XP is still accessible for BB (otherwise it can't be given back). How difficult can it be to remove/adjust the database record that is causing the problem...
Hopefully all other - less urgent - problems will be picked up with the same enthousiasm. I'm sure Fexno's overview can be helpful; perhaps Fexno could even arrange some prioritizing in this list?
TwilightShadow
12.07.13, 11:49
Well done Alpaca and fantastic news that positive steps are being taken by BB to at least compensate those hit by this bug in a much more appropriate fashion.
A polite suggestion though (and this is aimed at BB not yourself). Any problems in future should be addressed significantly more quickly and at the very least players need to be kept in the loop about what is being done to resolve the issue. This ultimately will keep the player base fully informed about what steps are being taken to rectify it.
In another MMORPG I play, whenever there is a thread created which involves a problem with the game mechanics the Devs immediately get involved in the thread to explain what the problem is and the steps taken how to resolve it. This certainly keeps the community more 'settled' :)
Many thanks
In another MMORPG I play, whenever there is a thread created which involves a problem with the game mechanics the Devs immediately get involved in the thread to explain what the problem is and the steps taken how to resolve it. This certainly keeps the community more 'settled' :)
Many thanks
I think I would prefer the Devs to be working on the solutions and the Community Manager to do the communication. If the Devs are having to reply to threads on bugs, then they won't be working on bugs, will they?
Well done Alpaca and fantastic news that positive steps are being taken by BB to at least compensate those hit by this bug in a much more appropriate fashion.
A polite suggestion though (and this is aimed at BB not yourself). Any problems in future should be addressed significantly more quickly and at the very least players need to be kept in the loop about what is being done to resolve the issue. This ultimately will keep the player base fully informed about what steps are being taken to rectify it.
In another MMORPG I play, whenever there is a thread created which involves a problem with the game mechanics the Devs immediately get involved in the thread to explain what the problem is and the steps taken how to resolve it. This certainly keeps the community more 'settled' :)
Many thanks
Thanks for your positive comments! I've only been here for a week as the CM, but I agree players should be as informed as possible and I will continue to do my best for you all.
As for the developers commenting on the forums, this is not their responsibility but that of the CMs to communicate issues from the players, and comments from the devs. As Sto_Helit mentioned below, they have a lot of work to do already and I'm here to be the intermediary. ;)
Best,
BB_Alpaca
DayDreamer
13.07.13, 14:32
I'm also experienced this bug last month, but fortunately overnight the bug disappeared. The bug occured when i built overgrown ruins over exhaused packed wheat field.
WippleWorm
16.07.13, 12:56
I have just read through this thread and while I was worried at the start, by the end I was satisfied that suitable recompense is starting to be given to those who experienced the bug.
XP and purchased items are the most important part of the recompense as XP is what takes time to build up and gems cost money, these two items (time and money) are what the contract should be protecting.
I also work in a support environment and know that BB_Alpaca has responded to the challenges in this thread in a very professional manner
I have just read through this thread and while I was worried at the start, by the end I was satisfied that suitable recompense is starting to be given to those who experienced the bug.
XP and purchased items are the most important part of the recompense as XP is what takes time to build up and gems cost money, these two items (time and money) are what the contract should be protecting.
I also work in a support environment and know that BB_Alpaca has responded to the challenges in this thread in a very professional manner
Should not have taken 4 or 5 months to do this though like it has for some people to which the bug happened. Still the compensation needs looking at, Most of a persons island at a high level will have many level 5 buildings the compensation offered will give you the buildings back yes (very good) but you cant get them back to the level 5 status they were before with the resources offered. Most people have a whole star menu of adventures and buffs and other bits and bobs these all need to be taken into account also as they wont be given back either.
BB_Alpaca is pushing this in the right direction but theres still a long way to go.
As I posted previously I genuinely bookmarked this as "100% of nothing is still nothing". You won a wry smile from me with your 300% bonus BB :)
On a serious note though I am a little bit more reassured by Alpaca's positive responses and the new tools to reactively repair damage the bug causes. Combine this with the great community spirit shown here and the games constant evolution I'm willing to look past a few minor mutations and will continue to invest time in the game.
Had i known this before buying gems (then again that was during the christmas sale) I would not have invested money in the game. Thanks for the warning, hopefully I won't loose my island. Pretty sure I'd simply stop playing out of frustration at that point.
And glad you got the EXP back!
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