Discussion TLOPO Q/A Thread

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I don't know how confidential this kind of info is but is there a certain level where it becomes possible to get legendary weapons? Despite having a sword at level 22 beforehand, I've only seen pirates start getting Lost Sword at level 21-22. I've also never seen a Mercer's Pistol below level 30 even if the pirate had a level 25 gun beforehand.
 
@Bort Greasegorb I'll do you one better, mate! Courtesy of the crew, I've been allowed to pack together Weapon Sprites, Skills, and of course models of the new weapons released with Hollowed Woods and Forsaken Shallows. This also includes inventory sprites, weapon cards with text palettes, and more.

(This will also be posted on the Custom Weapons Thread for those looking to utilize this for their own creations too!)

Weapons Template: https://bit.ly/2WDlo13
(Dropbox shortened link)

Everything included shown here:

While I already said so in the weapon card thread, I wanna give another thank you to you, man. This is really useful and I can't wait to impart some of my weapon concepts!
 
Hi guys, do you have any information to give about the FPS Boost patch known as Pypperoni ?
 
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Will we be seeing a level cap increase?

Mr. Dev popping in. @John Macbatten dragged me out of the terrible, horrible, foul-smelling development cave I share with @Truecrash to answer this question. It's 12:00 am and I went down an absurdly silly coding rabbit hole today to satisfy a Disney GUI choice that has triggered me since 2011. Sneak Peek, and yes I am at an unhealthy level of happy over this STUPID change.

ANYWAY ^ That may have been freaking incoherent, but my reason for saying so is that I'm asking you to please forgive any typos or weird grammatical errors I make in the statement below. I proofread, but my brain is fried.

Without further ado, thanks, and enjoy the show. (This isn't a movie, this is some response I drew up in 5 minutes. Settle down, Mr. Dev)

We don't have any immediate plans to increase the level cap. While we do think it is a great idea, there are a lot of repercussions to doing so.

First of all, adding a level cap increase without any other additional content to go around it would be a real grind. It's hard to go from ~40 to 50 as it is anyway, since most quest content and story stuff ends around that time.

We'd want to have new islands, enemies, and story quests to coincide with any level cap increase - and new weapons to loot from these new, harder enemies.

That then brings into question inventory space, balancing, and everything that is involved in that sector of the game.

FURTHERMORE, we'd also have to rewrite some fair portion of Disney code such that if you were, for example, level 60, you could still loot for Cursed Blades and other coveted weapons, whether for nostalgia or for their power/renown.

In the current system, good loot drops are harder to come by if the enemy you're farming is significantly lower than you in level. This is why it's so hard to find those fancy famed Navy-themed bayonets, since they only drop from Officers/Veterans, which are out of the looting "goldilocks zone" once you're level 50. In fact, there was an example of this posted just recently by @Bort Greasegorb
here.

I'm sure there are even more ramifications that I haven't thought of right now as of writing this, but I have no doubt that they exist, and would need to be handled with care.

If done hastily, a level cap increase could upend the entire infrastructure of the game as we know it - we don't want that, necessarily. Granted, some things we're planning on are already doing so (like trading), but when we add such content, we want to make sure that it still feels like a natural edition to the game - a revitalization, not a massive departure from what we know as "Pirates Online."

So, I hope my ramblings that clearly demonstrate I have an unhealthy relationship with this game helped shed some light on this subject. Or maybe not. Who knows? I'm going back into my hidey hole, blasting Hans Zimmer music while I work on new content. Maybe the dark cave isn't so bad after all?

~ Mr. Dev
 
Granted, some things we're planning on are already doing so (like trading)

I have been excited for this specific update for a very long time. Especially when the El Patrons weapons update launched into POTCO I was dumbfounded that it didn't exist already.

As such I have a few questions about it it if you can answer then.
  1. Is there any current idea what items will be tradable? (Both types like rare,famed, legendary. Or even materials and gold)
  2. There will be server side checks and presumably a system to prevent duplication and abuse?
  3. Will there be a requirement to unlock it (like a quest or specific level?)
  4. Will this be a stand alone update or will it be bundled with a larger set of content like Isla Escondida or the forsaken shallows?
  5. Will there be expanded inventory or a banking storage system added to compensate for the need of storing items for trading (for example looting duplicates of items, normally you would trash them but if they can be traded pirates will want to take them but this will further fill their already bursting inventories)
I realize you may not be able to answer these questions and it's okay if you don't since this feature is still under development and I'm sure it's going through many different changes

I'm very passionate about this topic and I'm glad the dev team is deciding to try and incorporate it into the game. I feel like it will add alot of end game benefit and make pirates who spend 9 hours looting without the item they want feel alot better about all of the duplicate items they don't want/can't use
 
I have been excited for this specific update for a very long time. Especially when the El Patrons weapons update launched into POTCO I was dumbfounded that it didn't exist already.

As such I have a few questions about it it if you can answer then.
  1. Is there any current idea what items will be tradable? (Both types like rare,famed, legendary. Or even materials and gold)
  2. There will be server side checks and presumably a system to prevent duplication and abuse?
  3. Will there be a requirement to unlock it (like a quest or specific level?)
  4. Will this be a stand alone update or will it be bundled with a larger set of content like Isla Escondida or the forsaken shallows?
  5. Will there be expanded inventory or a banking storage system added to compensate for the need of storing items for trading (for example looting duplicates of items, normally you would trash them but if they can be traded pirates will want to take them but this will further fill their already bursting inventories)
I realize you may not be able to answer these questions and it's okay if you don't since this feature is still under development and I'm sure it's going through many different changes

I'm very passionate about this topic and I'm glad the dev team is deciding to try and incorporate it into the game. I feel like it will add alot of end game benefit and make pirates who spend 9 hours looting without the item they want feel alot better about all of the duplicate items they don't want/can't use
We haven’t made any solid decisions regarding trading.

This thread is a bit of a mess but not a bad read if you have time, we’re still deciding on how it’ll take shape.
 
Will do my best to answer these with the current knowledge I have at hand about trading:

Is there any current idea what items will be tradable? (Both types like rare,famed, legendary. Or even materials and gold)
This has been discussed heavily, but we still have no final plans for restrictions on trading. Trading recently has gone on the back burner for a bit while we focus on getting mainly CTC and lobbies out ASAP (They come as a pair, we cannot have one without the other). Before this hold on tradings development, the core functionality of being able to trade any item in your inventory (i.e clothes and weapons) was being implemented and from what I understood almost finished. Of course from there, things like gold and mats (if decided to be tradable) will be added as options, and once the core of trading has been tested, from there restrictions on item rarity (if any) would be implemented.
There will be server side checks and presumably a system to prevent duplication and abuse?
Yes, a server side check will be fundamental to trading so no client side changes can change the outcome of a agreed upon trade. From what I understand, (forgive me as trading hasnt been discussed in about a month, per my previous statement about focusing on our next expansion) this is already being developed as a foundation of trading.
Will there be a requirement to unlock it (like a quest or specific level?)
Currently no, but it is an interesting idea. Right now our idea is trading will be available to any pirate, as it will be on every single player card, giving the opportunity for any pirate to initate or opt out of trading.
Will this be a stand alone update or will it be bundled with a larger set of content like Isla Escondida or the forsaken shallows?
As of right now trading would be stand alone. It is a relatively big addition to the game that likely warrants it's own update, but of course if trading coincides with a future update that will be finished around its internal ETA (whenever that is determined by the development team), it is possible there could be some tie in to that, but as of right now no.
Will there be expanded inventory or a banking storage system added to compensate for the need of storing items for trading (for example looting duplicates of items, normally you would trash them but if they can be traded pirates will want to take them but this will further fill their already bursting inventories)
This idea has been looked at but nothing for it has started development or made it past the initial very basic "discussion" phase.
 
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Will do my best to answer these with the current knowledge I have at hand about trading:


This has been discussed heavily, but we still have no final plans for restrictions on trading. Trading recently has gone on the back burner for a bit while we focus on getting mainly CTC and lobbies out ASAP (They come as a pair, we cannot have one without the other). Before this hold on tradings development, the core functionality of being able to trade any item in your inventory (i.e clothes and weapons) was being implemented and from what I understood almost finished. Of course from there, things like gold and mats (if decided to be tradable) will be added as options, and once the core of trading has been tested, from there restrictions on item rarity (if any) would be implemented.

Yes, a server side check will be fundamental to trading so no client side changes can change the outcome of a agreed upon trade. From what I understand, (forgive me as trading hasnt been discussed in about a month, per my previous statement about focusing on our next expansion) this is already being developed as a foundation of trading.

Currently no, but it is an interesting idea. Right now our idea is trading will be available to any pirate, as it will be on every single player card, giving the opportunity for any pirate to initate or opt out of trading.

As of right now trading would be stand alone. It is a relatively big addition to the game that likely warrants it's own update, but of course if trading coincidences with a future update that will be finished around its internal ETA (whenever that is determined by the development team), it is possible there could be some tie in to that, but as of right now no.

This idea has been looked at but nothing for it has started development or made it past the initial very basic "discussion" phase.
Thank you for taking the time to answer as best you can!
This thread is a bit of a mess but not a bad read if you have time, we’re still deciding on how it’ll take shape.
Yeah that thread got out of hand pretty quickly. Will there be another trading discussion or a survey for us to all independently (maybe privately) express our opinions and suggestions?


Thank you for taking the initiative to start this thread Steven I feel like it's really useful in the sense it allows the devs to have more interaction in a open format with the devs which is always good for morale
 
Thank you for taking the time to answer as best you can!

Yeah that thread got out of hand pretty quickly. Will there be another trading discussion or a survey for us to all independently (maybe privately) express our opinions and suggestions?


Thank you for taking the initiative to start this thread Steven I feel like it's really useful in the sense it allows the devs to have more interaction in a open format with the devs which is always good for morale
Since trading is coming, there won't be any need to attempt to derail a thread about it. I doubt any thing more can be added.
Probably shouldn't hold your breath waiting.
 
I have a few other questions I need to ask. Please understand I make a point to ask these difficult questions, I hope, for the sake of the community itself and not just for the purpose of my own understanding (for it is argued in lieu of policy made that 'truth' itself is difficult to decipher and to harvest from anyone specific online). As such, I would appreciate if the answers to these questions below are concurred wholly by TLOPO (as opposed to someone just spouting them off quickly [even though I have not seen that yet on this particular thread]). Thank you.
  1. What is TLOPO's definition of Beta phase? Does new content added fall forever under TLOPO's guideline and definition for Beta phase?
  2. How would TLOPO describe the pace of (player) testing submitted between January 1, 2019 and June 1, 2019?
  3. How would TLOPO describe the pace of (player) testing submitted between June 2, 2019 to present day (November 2019)?
  4. Has TLOPO ever been contacted specifically by someone whom represents/had been represented by Disney concerning TLOPO's efforts to remake POTCO (whether supportive, unsupportive, or likewise - for any reason at all)?
  5. Would TLOPO communicate to the TLOPO community openly and publicly if, hypothetically speaking, the Beta phase itself was as far as TLOPO could go towards remaking POTCO?
Thanks again! ;)
 
What is TLOPO's definition of Beta phase? Does new content added fall forever under TLOPO's guideline and definition for Beta phase?
We consider the end of our Beta phase to be when everything present in POTCO at its closing is in TLOPO. As for new content, we mainly add new content to hold players over during the monotony of testing. In addition, a lot of our new content have been tests for our content team to see their capabilities before we enter the Full Release phase.
  1. How would TLOPO describe the pace of (player) testing submitted between January 1, 2019 and June 1, 2019?
  2. How would TLOPO describe the pace of (player) testing submitted between June 2, 2019 to present day (November 2019)?
I'm assuming you're meaning in-game reports? It's hard to quantify the pace of player testing, it goes as fast as we can update the game. There's no grounds for concerns regarding testing if that is what you're asking.

  1. Has TLOPO ever been contacted specifically by someone whom represents/had been represented by Disney concerning TLOPO's efforts to remake POTCO (whether supportive, unsupportive, or likewise - for any reason at all)?
Not "officially". It has, however, been reliably confirmed to us that Disney is aware of our presence and has made no efforts to shut down TLOPO. As long as we continue to do things the way we have, it will stay this way. I think their lack of action against TLOPO through the past three years corroborates this as well.

Would TLOPO communicate to the TLOPO community openly and publicly if, hypothetically speaking, the Beta phase itself was as far as TLOPO could go towards remaking POTCO?
If we had plans to close, we would tell the community. If we were going to ultimately stop progress and keep the game as-is, we would also tell the community. As you can hopefully see, we are trying to be more transparent.
 
Hey everyone,

@John Macbatten and I figured we'd create a thread where people can pose questions for TLOPO and we can do our best to answer them. Before asking a question, please ensure that the question hasn't been asked in the thread already. In addition, please keep the thread civil and on-topic!

With that, ask away!
Serious question. Are any tlopo staff/developers over 30 years old? Not moderators. But people in actual control of the game development.
Just a yes or no is fine.
 
We consider the end of our Beta phase to be when everything present in POTCO at its closing is in TLOPO. As for new content, we mainly add new content to hold players over during the monotony of testing. In addition, a lot of our new content have been tests for our content team to see their capabilities before we enter the Full Release phase.
What exactly is missing? The only thing I can think off the top of my head is the lookout matchmaking which is getting overhauled with the new lobby system. Other than that, idk what Tlopo is missing
 
We consider the end of our Beta phase to be when everything present in POTCO at its closing is in TLOPO. As for new content, we mainly add new content to hold players over during the monotony of testing. In addition, a lot of our new content have been tests for our content team to see their capabilities before we enter the Full Release phase.

I'm assuming you're meaning in-game reports? It's hard to quantify the pace of player testing, it goes as fast as we can update the game. There's no grounds for concerns regarding testing if that is what you're asking.


Not "officially". It has, however, been reliably confirmed to us that Disney is aware of our presence and has made no efforts to shut down TLOPO. As long as we continue to do things the way we have, it will stay this way. I think their lack of action against TLOPO through the past three years corroborates this as well.


If we had plans to close, we would tell the community. If we were going to ultimately stop progress and keep the game as-is, we would also tell the community. As you can hopefully see, we are trying to be more transparent.
Thank you. ;)
 
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