This is a direct copy/past of TonyV's post at the City of Heroes forums. TonyV is the center of Titan Network's efforts to save CIty of Heroes.
It is being copied in case it is taken down. The reason should be very obvious once you read the entire post. Do so now. And take his call to action and advice to heart.
Cross-posted at Titan Network forums
Hey all,
[SKIP TO "TL;DR" TO BYPASS SOME FLUFF]
(but it's worth a read if you think I've lost my mind)
So here's the situation. Two weeks ago today, we received word that NCsoft is closing Paragon Studios and shutting down City of Heroes. Since that time, the community has pulled together with amazing strength and clarity. Our story has been published on over two hundred news sites and blogs, we've gotten notable personalities including Mercedes Lackey (who has unwaveringly supported and promoted this game for years), Neil Gaiman, Sean Astin, Felicia Day, Scott Kurtz, Tara Platt, John Kovalic, and John C. Wright to support us. I personally have been on an Internet streaming radio show, and a pre-recorded interview from yesterday is due to be played on a broadcast radio station tomorrow. Our community has reached out even further through social media outlets like Facebook and Twitter, through user-submitted articles such as iReports on CNN (one of which was vetted by a producer), posts on other gaming forums to rally our extended community to our cause, and we have touched literally millions of people.
Over the past two weeks, I have tried my best to communicate with NCsoft. I have been copying upper-level management on our press releases as well as sending e-mails imploring them to talk to us or provide some sign that our Option A--allowing Paragon Studios to acquire the game--is being seriously considered. I presented this not as a demand or even as charity, but in clear terms of how this would benefit NCsoft both financially and in terms of public relations not just to the City of Heroes community, but to the community of gamers--their customers--as a whole. I have tried to convey that I respect their business decision, but that there are alternatives in which we all can win and that our community can avoid being needlessly destroyed as a casualty of a strategic realignment.
Unfortunately, I have heard nothing back from them but silence, the silence is deafening, and now we are at serious risk of losing even if we win. Our development team is a highly qualified group of people with proven talents in developing successful games. We have undoubtedly lost some through finding other employment, and we are at the time now where if we don't fall through to our next course of action, our window of opportunity for retaining the people who made this place great will be irrevocably closed.
TL;DR READERS START HERE (yes, I know it's still long, bear with me, this is really important)
Before any of this craziness was going on, I managed to get e-mail addresses for NCsoft management. Not e-mail addresses you'll find on any public publications. I have stressed that our goal is not to cause NCsoft harm, neither financially nor reputation-wise. At this point, I am convinced that our message just isn't getting through. I still think that they do not understand why this game is so important to us. And it might be my fault; if they have not been seeing the news or our efforts with the rallies or the outreach, what does the word of one random stranger on the Internet really mean?
So for two weeks, I have been desperately resisting doing this because I don't want it to be mistaken as a sign of harassment, but we have to get our message through. I am now asking you all to contact the following people at the following addresses. Let them know what this game means to you. Tell them your stories. Send them your pictures. Stress how much our development staff has meant to us over the years, why they are unique in the industry, the story of how fun it was on Game Night before the Player Summit, how nice the artist was who signed your Blue King #1.
: Mr. Taek-Jin Kim, CEO
[url=mailto:sy@ncsoft.com: Dr. Song-Yee Yoon, Chief Strategist
[url=mailto:dikim2@ncsoft.com[/url]: Mr. Dong-Il Kim, CFO
Please note them now, because there's a chance that this post might be taken down quickly.
I hope that the e-mails will stress positives, reasons why we believe releasing City of Heroes to be acquired by a third party is a good business move that benefits everyone. However, I know that there are still a lot of hurt feelings in the community, and I suspect that there will be some negative e-mails sent no matter how much I ask them not to be. I will ask that you at least do this for me: Tell them why you are hurt and angry over a game being canceled. Express to them what you're feeling, how in the past five years this makes five games now (Dungeon Runners, Auto Assault, Exteel, and Tabula Rasa as well as City of Heroes) that NCsoft has shut down; why that is having a very negative impact on their reputation; why you have started "Boycott NCsoft" movements and why you are telling friends in the gaming community--their customer base--to avoid titles such as Guild Wars 2 and Blade and Soul, titles they need to thrive. If you are angry over having sunk costs in City of Heroes that cannot be recovered (extended subscriptions, Paragon Points, microtransactions for which you feel you are not receiving the full value of), be sure to point out how these issues go away if the game continues.
Send them e-mails. Tell your friends, supergroups, coalitions, and teams. Post on Facebook. Tweet it. Yell it out your front door if you have to, butget the word out.
I know some of you might disagree with this strategy and opt not to take part, and I understand; it's your choice. Please know that this has been a well-thought-out decision that I've struggled with and I was really hoping that there would be some hint that things would be resolved by now. I wish we had the luxury of continuing our current plan of urging one-on-one communication or waiting until we receive some sign that things are going our way, but we've gotten to the point that now, every day we wait is one more day that our development team is permanently at risk of dissolving through attrition, one more day that we lose players who become demotivated, one more day until November 30 when this all becomes a moot point.
I'll continue posting news and updates on the Titan Network forums. You guys are the best damn community ever. We really need you now.
__________________
We've been saving Paragon City for eight and a half years. It's time to do it one more time.
(If you love this game as much as I do, please read that post.)
It is being copied in case it is taken down. The reason should be very obvious once you read the entire post. Do so now. And take his call to action and advice to heart.
Cross-posted at Titan Network forums
Hey all,
[SKIP TO "TL;DR" TO BYPASS SOME FLUFF]
(but it's worth a read if you think I've lost my mind)
So here's the situation. Two weeks ago today, we received word that NCsoft is closing Paragon Studios and shutting down City of Heroes. Since that time, the community has pulled together with amazing strength and clarity. Our story has been published on over two hundred news sites and blogs, we've gotten notable personalities including Mercedes Lackey (who has unwaveringly supported and promoted this game for years), Neil Gaiman, Sean Astin, Felicia Day, Scott Kurtz, Tara Platt, John Kovalic, and John C. Wright to support us. I personally have been on an Internet streaming radio show, and a pre-recorded interview from yesterday is due to be played on a broadcast radio station tomorrow. Our community has reached out even further through social media outlets like Facebook and Twitter, through user-submitted articles such as iReports on CNN (one of which was vetted by a producer), posts on other gaming forums to rally our extended community to our cause, and we have touched literally millions of people.
Over the past two weeks, I have tried my best to communicate with NCsoft. I have been copying upper-level management on our press releases as well as sending e-mails imploring them to talk to us or provide some sign that our Option A--allowing Paragon Studios to acquire the game--is being seriously considered. I presented this not as a demand or even as charity, but in clear terms of how this would benefit NCsoft both financially and in terms of public relations not just to the City of Heroes community, but to the community of gamers--their customers--as a whole. I have tried to convey that I respect their business decision, but that there are alternatives in which we all can win and that our community can avoid being needlessly destroyed as a casualty of a strategic realignment.
Unfortunately, I have heard nothing back from them but silence, the silence is deafening, and now we are at serious risk of losing even if we win. Our development team is a highly qualified group of people with proven talents in developing successful games. We have undoubtedly lost some through finding other employment, and we are at the time now where if we don't fall through to our next course of action, our window of opportunity for retaining the people who made this place great will be irrevocably closed.
TL;DR READERS START HERE (yes, I know it's still long, bear with me, this is really important)
Before any of this craziness was going on, I managed to get e-mail addresses for NCsoft management. Not e-mail addresses you'll find on any public publications. I have stressed that our goal is not to cause NCsoft harm, neither financially nor reputation-wise. At this point, I am convinced that our message just isn't getting through. I still think that they do not understand why this game is so important to us. And it might be my fault; if they have not been seeing the news or our efforts with the rallies or the outreach, what does the word of one random stranger on the Internet really mean?
So for two weeks, I have been desperately resisting doing this because I don't want it to be mistaken as a sign of harassment, but we have to get our message through. I am now asking you all to contact the following people at the following addresses. Let them know what this game means to you. Tell them your stories. Send them your pictures. Stress how much our development staff has meant to us over the years, why they are unique in the industry, the story of how fun it was on Game Night before the Player Summit, how nice the artist was who signed your Blue King #1.
: Mr. Taek-Jin Kim, CEO
[url=mailto:sy@ncsoft.com: Dr. Song-Yee Yoon, Chief Strategist
[url=mailto:dikim2@ncsoft.com[/url]: Mr. Dong-Il Kim, CFO
Please note them now, because there's a chance that this post might be taken down quickly.
I hope that the e-mails will stress positives, reasons why we believe releasing City of Heroes to be acquired by a third party is a good business move that benefits everyone. However, I know that there are still a lot of hurt feelings in the community, and I suspect that there will be some negative e-mails sent no matter how much I ask them not to be. I will ask that you at least do this for me: Tell them why you are hurt and angry over a game being canceled. Express to them what you're feeling, how in the past five years this makes five games now (Dungeon Runners, Auto Assault, Exteel, and Tabula Rasa as well as City of Heroes) that NCsoft has shut down; why that is having a very negative impact on their reputation; why you have started "Boycott NCsoft" movements and why you are telling friends in the gaming community--their customer base--to avoid titles such as Guild Wars 2 and Blade and Soul, titles they need to thrive. If you are angry over having sunk costs in City of Heroes that cannot be recovered (extended subscriptions, Paragon Points, microtransactions for which you feel you are not receiving the full value of), be sure to point out how these issues go away if the game continues.
Send them e-mails. Tell your friends, supergroups, coalitions, and teams. Post on Facebook. Tweet it. Yell it out your front door if you have to, butget the word out.
I know some of you might disagree with this strategy and opt not to take part, and I understand; it's your choice. Please know that this has been a well-thought-out decision that I've struggled with and I was really hoping that there would be some hint that things would be resolved by now. I wish we had the luxury of continuing our current plan of urging one-on-one communication or waiting until we receive some sign that things are going our way, but we've gotten to the point that now, every day we wait is one more day that our development team is permanently at risk of dissolving through attrition, one more day that we lose players who become demotivated, one more day until November 30 when this all becomes a moot point.
I'll continue posting news and updates on the Titan Network forums. You guys are the best damn community ever. We really need you now.
__________________
We've been saving Paragon City for eight and a half years. It's time to do it one more time.
(If you love this game as much as I do, please read that post.)