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[Mercury Fred]

Any chance we''l get something for this ps3 downtime?

No way.

SOE should have already compensated players 5 times over for the amount of glitches, disconnects, unannounced server outages, etc. I very sincerely doubt they'd do anything about a PSN outage.

 

[Mercury Fred]

So, PS3 players, bummer huh?

I'm worried that the PSN downtime is going to make the population on the game take a hit overall. SOE should really figure out a way around logging into PSN in order to play.

 

[Killthee]

So, PS3 players, bummer huh?

I'm worried that the PSN downtime is going to make the population on the game take a hit overall. SOE should really figure out a way around logging into PSN in order to play.

Meh, I think I needed the break. I was starting to get bored of the grind after completing my T2 role gear on my main and was starting to play it a lot less because of it, now I can't wait to jump back in. Plus it's given me a chance to finish the SP in SOCOM 4 so I'm ready for MP when the network goes live.

As for the population, I think it will remain mostly the same as long as the network goes up before the 14th/Legends renewal for most people and if they release info for Update 3 before the renewal date. The people still playing the PS3 version have put up with a ridiculous amount of crashes, 0 in game support, a crapload of bugs, long wait times for bug patches, undocumented nerfs/combat tweaks, and a severe lack of content. If after all that we're still playing the game, then we are beyond help and a week of downtime wont stop us from getting our next fix P). With that said, 5+ days of downtime is pretty ridiculous and SCEA/SCEE should extend everyone's sub by the same amount of days the network is down.

I don't think there's any way around PSN now because the game's backend relies too heavily upon it (all account info being tied to it). What I do believe is that if they weren't planning on using more PSN specific features such as the universal friends list, cross game invites, & presence data, then SCE should have just let them sidestep PSN and allowed them to use their own billing system/Station. Doing so would have allowed them to have offered PS3 lifetime subs or possibly universal subs that covered both versions, cross platform servers, and allowed them to avoid this downtime.

 

[Grinchy]

I could certainly imagine SOE extending subs for downtime. I mean, they are the ones who have to take responsibility for this incident, and they have people paying a subscription to one of their services. I would be pretty surprised if they did not compensate this downtime in some way.

On the other hand, if Square had released FFXIV already, it wouldn't be my opinion that they would be responsible for compensating people for the downtime, since the outage had nothing to do with them. For some reason I felt like I had to make that distinction. It's the only mark of distinction any of us have seen in a while, so take what you can get.

 

[The Elite]

This is half off at direct2drive.com today. Considering a purchase.

Also,

Follow the instructions here to get an extra 15% off. Came to $21.23 total for me.

 

[drhankmccoyphd]

Considering biting on this. How do you get the extra 15%?

edit: nm found it: http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=2373072738&topic=70925

 

[The Elite]

Considering biting on this. How do you get the extra 15%?

edit: nm found it: http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=2373072738&topic=70925

Forgot to include that link.

Yeah, I just grabbed it. 12 gig install means I won't be playing until tomorrow. I figure for $20, if I don't like it I've only paid for a bit more than a month of game time anyways. I'll probably get 10-15 hours out of it like I do with most games and for a good price.

 

[Killthee]

Looks like free PSN Sub extensions are in the works:

We apologize for any inconvenience players may have experienced as a result of the recent service interruption. As a global leader in online gaming, SOE is committed to delivering stable and entertaining games for players of all ages.

To thank players for their patience, we will be hosting special events this weekend across our game portfolio, including a Double Station Cash day on Saturday, April 30th.

We are also working on a “make good” plan for players of the PS3 versions of DC Universe Online and Free Realms. Details will be available soon on the individual game websites and forums.

 

[The Elite]

Where do most gaffers play. Pc version.

 

[Killthee]

Where do most gaffers play. Pc version.

PS3 version actually, but I don't think there's many of us left and the ones that are still playing are separated because of different servers/faction.

 

[Grinchy]

Yeah, is there anyone else who is a villain on No Man's Land? I have 2 characters on that server and mostly just play when my brother is also online. We both know how to play really well but it can be difficult when we end up with people who don't necessarily know how to play very well.

 

[Ivan A Nguyen]

Looks like free PSN Sub extensions are in the works:

I thought the reward for sticking with it was going to be double station cash. Ya know, the stuff you buy. Now if you buy more of their funny money, it's doubled.

 

[BattleMonkey]

What would I do with station cash?

 

[Killthee]

This is huge! Cross server queuing is coming!

Super Servers are Coming!

We have heard your concerns about queue times on the servers. This game is about people playing and fighting together so we feel your pain. Sometime in the next month, we are going to test new technology to meld all of our US and European PC and PS3 servers into four Super-Servers, one for each platform in each region. This will allow for more opportunities to queue and participate in other group related game mechanics. We are hoping to get this on our PC Test Server to start testing, again, sometime in the next month and then will tune it up for the PS3 platform as well. As soon as we know more about testing and timing we will let you know. But, believe this – it is one of our top priorities. Again, thanks for your patience, we appreciate your support.



We'll have more details at a future date.

One step closer to Super Duper Cross Platform PC-PS3 servers......

Spoiler

never gonna happen ;_;

I thought the reward for sticking with it was going to be double station cash. Ya know, the stuff you buy. Now if you buy more of their funny money, it's doubled.

PS3 version does not use Station at all, it uses PSN for all transactions/account management. One day Double Station Cash for a ~2 week service interruption would be a shitty "make good" offer for PS3 users. The Station Cash promo is targeted at their PC users as an apology for the 1 day service interruption that occurred on their forums/sites the same day PSN was shut off.

 

[Nishastra]

This is huge! Cross server queuing is coming!

Wow, that's awesome! That will make... everything so much better

 

[brucewaynegretzky]

This might not be the best thing for raids. Sure for HA's and Duo's it's fine because they aren't as hard, but if you get random scrubs in Raids it will be awful. They're gonna need some sort of lobby where you can find a group.

 

[BattleMonkey]

Well even without the cross servers, you take risks for scrubs on raids. This doesn't really change much, just is going to make it easier to get into games.

 

[Mercury Fred]

Hmm, I wonder if it'll be possible to group with people from other servers for HAs and raids...

 

[Raoh]

 

[BattleMonkey]

So they announced the payback for the outage for subbers. They are going to give us 30 days sub free and apparently one day per day of the outage as well. And a batman inspired face mask. http://kotaku.com/#!5798242/dc-universe-subscribers-get-a-free-month-free-cowl-over-hack-attack

So everyone should be getting about 6 weeks of game time free so far

 

[icechai]

So what does a typical play session look for you guys lately? Log on -> Raid -> Leave? I've been going back to try and get feats lately and it can get a little boring. Might be cuz I'm a healer but the challenges take so long. I feel like collecting styles and races are probably the best way for me to get the most points fastest. How do you go about getting style feats?

not sure how PS3 version is but on PC D&G there's probably about 20 people around the clock who are constantly pvping, and then hanging out at Superman statue dueling while waiting for the next queue to pop... sadly SOE's been down but at least last week it's do the dailies, pvp, feats, pvp, wednesdays raid, pvp

 

[Weenerz]

Silly question, but is the PC version down? I was thinking of coming back and giving it a real try, but I don't want to waste my money, I already do that for TF2 hats.

 

[Killthee]

Silly question, but is the PC version down? I was thinking of coming back and giving it a real try, but I don't want to waste my money, I already do that for TF2 hats.

Station went down earlier this week due to the SOE server breach that occurred last month. They've already said it wont be back up this weekend so the earliest possible date is Monday.

 

[brucewaynegretzky]

Station went down earlier this week due to the SOE server breach that occurred last month. They've already said it wont be back up this weekend so the earliest possible date is Monday.

Do we think the playstation version will be down all week? I'm kind of happy about it since I have finals all week.

 

[Chauncy Talon]

This is killing me. I want to play right now. I have a little time to play it, but now, it look like I'm going to be watching the NBA playoffs now.

 

[kyo_daikun]

I dread to think how few of my league mates will return to play after the servers get put back up, I might as well cancel my sub if im going to be the only one returning...

 

[Killthee]

Do we think the playstation version will be down all week? I'm kind of happy about it since I have finals all week.

They've said PSN is already up and running internally so it wouldn't surprise me if they start the rollout soon.

 

[Hazanko]

Does anyone know what will happen to the legends price plan? I think mine would of run out now. I'm guessing they won't let people lose their legends plan, well I hope.

 

[2th]

I have wondered how this game has done. I played for the first month and then dropped it, mostly due to the people being complete and total retarded care bears. The raids became farm mode. I mean i had 2 pieces of Tier 2 armor and three Epic (purple) weapons) Have to admit the Batman chest piece did look bad ass.

 

[Killthee]

Does anyone know what will happen to the legends price plan? I think mine would of run out now. I'm guessing they won't let people lose their legends plan, well I hope.

I think they've frozen all the subs (PS+, DCUO, Free Realms, etc...) and will automatically update them with new expiration dates (30 days + 1 day for every day the service is offline) when the servers go live. You wont lose your price plan because they're not letting the plans lapse during the downtime.

I have wondered how this game has done. I played for the first month and then dropped it, mostly due to the people being complete and total retarded care bears. The raids became farm mode. I mean i had 2 pieces of Tier 2 armor and three Epic (purple) weapons) Have to admit the Batman chest piece did look bad ass.

For my group it's gotten to the point where we've all got full sets or near full T2 gear so we're doing raids for feats, styles, or alts. It's still fun for me, especially doing it with my alt or when I switch my main to DPS stance. New set of raids are coming soon though (

Spoiler

Fortress of Solitude

) and they're also planning on adding new tier gear in the coming months.

 

[2th]

For my group it's gotten to the point where we've all got full sets or near full T2 gear so we're doing raids for feats, styles, or alts. It's still fun for me, especially doing it with my alt or when I switch my main to DPS stance. New set of raids are coming soon though (

Spoiler

Fortress of Solitude

) and they're also planning on adding new tier gear in the coming months.

i just think that i could get all that stuff in like 3 weeks of playing was pretty sad though. while they focused on end game content there was just not enough of it to make me care. and feats were meh. i had like 70 skill points or something ridiculous. i was in every single tree to max the stats for a controller. it was kind of bad though for raids at the start because originally i had so much domination as a controller i pulled agro from things like the RCP and Black Adam that it was very problematic for my raid group. Had to move stuff to Vitalization and i was the best power battery you had seen. so i guess i must ask if they ever fixed the bug where controllers were pulling agro so damn easily.

 

[brucewaynegretzky]

I hope I get a few more days to do the St. Patty's day stuff. I still need to the feat where you get the gold 10 times and I can only do it once a day....

 

[SuperSonic1305]

Has anybody else been reading the comics? The ending of issue 5 was really surprising.

 

[Nightz]

Has anybody else been reading the comics? The ending of issue 5 was really surprising.

I would if I could download them off PSN. >_>

 

[Killthee]

New update today:

We thank you for your patience as we continue to work around the clock to restore our game services. We know this has been a frustrating time for you and appreciate your understanding as we work to confirm the security of our network.

In light of the recent outage of Sony Online Entertainment's game services due to April's cyber-attack, we are committed to compensating our loyal player base for the inconvenience caused by the data breach and lost game time while we improve our security measures.

We are currently in the process of an extensive upgrade to our network to further protect your information from future attacks. It will likely be at least a few more days before we restore our services, and when we come back online, here is what you can expect for each of our game services.

First and foremost, all impacted players will receive 30 days of game time added to the end of the current billing cycle in addition to one day for each day the system is down. Additionally, many games are offering a variety of in-game items and special events to welcome players back once our services resume (per the outline below). This is true for both PC and PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system based products.

• DC Universe™ Online: Batman™ and Two-Face™ Inspired Masks and 30 Marks of Distinction
• Free Realms®: Free daily items (7 to collect)
• Clone Wars Adventures™: Count Dooku v2 Outfit
• EverQuest®: A series of events, including Double XP, Double Rare Mob Spawns and Double Faction Gains
• EverQuest II and EverQuest II Extended: A series of events, including Double XP, Double Guild XP, Loot Bonanza, and City Festivals
• Vanguard: Saga of Heroes®: A series of Double XP events
• Star Wars Galaxies™: Bounty Hunter Statue, a miniature model of Boba Fett's ship, the Slave I™
• Magic: The Gathering - Tactics™: Four of each of these spells: "Ivory Mask", "Duress" and "Angelheart Vial", plus 500 Station Cash
• PoxNora®: Limited edition Carrionling, Welcome Back 5K Gold Award Tournaments and two Draft Tournaments, plus 500 Station Cash

For our lifetime subscribers, we'll grant in-game currency; specifically 20,000 coins for Free Realms, 7,500 Galactic Credits for Clone Wars Adventures and 10 Marks of Distinction for DC Universe Online (in addition to the items listed above).

And finally, our Station Access subscribers will receive 500 Station Cash, in addition to the subscription time and items listed above.

Additionally, we announced today that SOE will provide its U.S.-based Station Account holders with complimentary enrollment in an identity theft protection program through Debix, one of the industry's most reputable identity protection firms. For Station Account holders who live outside the U.S., SOE will be offering similar programs, if and as available, and will provide details as they're confirmed for each country or territory.

We continue to work around the clock to restore SOE's services and thank you for your continued patience as we complete our investigation of this criminal attack.

Thank you,
Sony Online Entertainment

Has anybody else been reading the comics? The ending of issue 5 was really surprising.

That shit was hilarious. Issue #6 spoiler:

Spoiler

Too bad supes saved him in the next issue.... : /

 

[brucewaynegretzky]

So they're basically giving me a free piece of T2? This feels weird....

 

[Nishastra]

I'll take it.

I've been taking a break from the game anyway, heh

 

[Grinchy]

Yeah that's the first thing I thought as well. I'm not complaining, and I will accept the MoD, but it seems strange for them to give us one of the major things that keep us playing.

 

[BattleMonkey]

Most people by now should have lot of t2 so this is going to seem useless either way, though they did say new armor sets were on the way.

 

[brucewaynegretzky]

Yeah... that's all well and good, but will I get a week to do my St. Patrick's Day feats? I think I still need to do it 7 times. O and will I get MoD on all my characters?

 

[Killthee]

Yeah... that's all well and good, but will I get a week to do my St. Patrick's Day feats? I think I still need to do it 7 times. O and will I get MoD on all my characters?

My guess is the PSN outage has pushed back the release schedule for the next update to June at the earliest. That should give you and everyone else still missing the feats plenty of time to do them.

 

[Killthee]

Servers are coming back online right now. Station members get 45 free days of game time while PSN get 60 starting right now. All existing characters will get the freebies from the welcome back program.

More details here: http://www.soe.com/securityupdate/welcomeback/

 

[Wallach]

Weird. They are basically giving EVERY Station account 45 days free. I wasn't even subscribed to DCUO by the time this stuff took place, but there it is. Works for me.

 

[Hazanko]

I just checked my legends pricing plan on account management and it says my plan runs out today? I thought it was meant to give 30 days or doesn't that show up?

 

[Killthee]

I just checked my legends pricing plan on account management and it says my plan runs out today? I thought it was meant to give 30 days or doesn't that show up?

They haven't updated the system yet. Mine says it expired yesterday but I'm still able to log on and I haven't received a receipt for sub renewal yet. I'm guessing the system will get updated with the 60 day extension/July 13 expiration date right before the Store goes live.

 

[Kingbrave]

Weird. They are basically giving EVERY Station account 45 days free. I wasn't even subscribed to DCUO by the time this stuff took place, but there it is. Works for me.

Same here. It's good because my last pc played this like shit, and this new one should run it well. Saves me from having to resubscribe to see it at it's prettiest...

 

[Killthee]

Confirmation that Update 3 (PC & PS3) has been delayed because of PSN downtime/PS3 QA.

Now that the PSN is back up we will be able to get Update 3 into approvals soon. We should have more info soon out on this. I know everyone is very anxious to get there hands on the new update and we will push as hard as we can to get it to you soon. Sorry for the delay.

DeadMeat

Also some new info on the Super Servers/MegaServers that makes it sound more like a dynamic server merge than a cross server queue.

As RadarX previously announced, we will soon introduce new technology into DC Universe Online which will allow us to combine our current servers into huge MegaServers. I wanted to answer some of the questions that have popped up on the forums and Facebook to better explain what these MegaServers will mean to the game.

Why are you creating MegaServers?

We have a very large and active population in DCUO. As players achieve higher levels, a lot more of the game involves participating in Raids, Arenas, Duos, Alerts, and other queued instances. After examining how the queues were working in detail, we saw our players were spending far too much time waiting and not enough time playing. This just would not do. We wanted an approach that would not only help players waiting for queued content, but ensured that no matter when you play, there are a maximum number of people in the cities as well. MegaServers offers a way to have an incredible experience no matter what your play habits are.

I am on a PvP server. Will I still be with other PvP players when I get to a MegaServer?

Yes! MegaServers use "phasing" technology, meaning there is more than one version, or phase, of Metropolis and Gotham on the server. Players who selected PvP servers when they created their characters will always be in a PvP phase of the shared world with other PvP players. The same goes for PvE players; They will always be placed in PvE phases. However, since the queues will be shared, PvE and PvP players will be able to group up for Alerts, Raids, Duos, etc. greatly increasing the pool of available players for matchmaking. It is a very cool system that really maximizes the people online, and nearby, for you to play with.

Will I still be able to play with my friends?

Yes! We have algorithms that will attempt to place you in the same phase as your friends and League members. Even if you you end up in a different phase, you can almost always phase to your friends. Using the UI, or a command like /phase SooperBFF you will be relocated to SooperBFF's phase in the same location that you phased from. There will be some limitations on when you can phase based on whether you are in combat, in an Alert or Duo, etc. but I think you will find it is easy to get together with the folks you want to play with.

MegaServers? Why that name?

It just felt big. Putting hundreds of thousands of folks on the same server felt Mega! We considered 'UberServers' and 'MonsterServers' as well.

We will be rolling out more information in the days ahead. Have a great time playing DCUO!



Lorin 'DeadMeat' Jameson

Executive Producer

DC Universe Online

Regarding name collisions in the new Mega Servers:

There will of course be name collisions. We are still working out the details, but in general when names collide we will choose who gets to keep the name based on the amount of time investment a player has in the character. For example, if two folks have the same name, are both subscribers, and one has 100 hours played for a character and another has 5, the 100 hour player will get to keep the name. The other character's name will be changed and they will receive a rename token to allow them a name change. Some of these details may change but this is the general concept.

DM

Same here. It's good because my last pc played this like shit, and this new one should run it well. Saves me from having to resubscribe to see it at it's prettiest...

Yeah afaik the game just has to be tied to your Station account to get the 45 days.

PC WELCOME BACK DETAILS

We want to ensure that your experience is as positive as possible as you re-enter our games. To show our gratitude for your patience and support, Sony Online Entertainment is offering a Welcome Back Program, the details of which are outlined below.

Firstly, as a Station Account holder in good standing, you will receive 45 days of game time (30 days plus 1 day for each day of the outage) added to your Station Account. This game time applies to any game you have currently or previously activated on your Station Account.

For those customers on an active paying plan, this time has been added to the end of your current billing cycle. For all other customers, your time begins upon your first login to each of the relevant games. Customers must login by 11:59 pm PST August 31, 2011 to claim the game time.

It looks like just registering for the beta will grant you the 45 days for DCUO cause I never bought it for the PC yet my beta account has the free game time as pending. If any one else is in the same boat, I think you can download the client from the buddy key download link.

 

[BattleMonkey]

So they are not merging the servers but just implementing a big phasing system?

 

[Killthee]

So they are not merging the servers but just implementing a big phasing system?

It sounds to me like they are merging the servers and then dumping you into the instance/phase where most of your friends/league member are at when you log in. If no one else is on I'm guessing it'll dump you in the lowest pop instance/phase. Its cool because it'll revitalize the low pop servers and cut the queue times for everyone since there will only be one master queue list that includes all PvP and PvE phase queues, but that naming collision idea sounds pretty shitty.

 

[Sblargh]

I approve Mega-servers (also, thinking of coming back today).

Edit: I approve of something I don't understand at all. Will I be able to play with people that are currently on other servers? How friend list work?
Edit 2: Nevermind, I just learned how to read.