So it didn't work.

[laufeyjarson]

Optimists!  The lot of you!

I am *so* glad you're around to keep me from being terribly unhappy with this announcement.

I'm pleased with the content of it, but afraid of what it might mean.  And, as several have pointed out, it might mean nothing.  Thank you for your clear-headedness.

[Ampithere]

Nothing that I was talking about would be any violation of an NDA. If it were, then closed beta testers wouldn't even be allowed to say, "This game is so cool!"

Technically, closed beta testers aren't allowed to say that. I know. I've been in several of them. They just don't typically punish people that give positive reviews. Testers that give negative press while still under NDA tend to get the boot if they're caught.

On topic, I think this is a good sign. If nothing else NCSoft has done two things:
1.) Admitted they have customers that deserve to be treated with respect.
2.) Gone on the defensive.

I'd say keep up the pressure. Make more noise. Buy more dinners. Something.

[Victoria Victrix]

What Amp said.  I've done that too.  In Andy's case, ANYTHING he says is vetted by the lawyers and ANYTHING he says is subject to much more intense scrutiny than anything a closed beta tester says.  I've signed WETA NDA and NCSoft NDAs, both.  They are about the same.  YOU SAY NOTHING until the company says you can say something, or you find yourself in a law court, as well as (in Andy's case) booted from what is left of his JOB.

This is what we know for sure.

As of Friday, Brian Clayton told me he had hoped to have news this week but that negotiations were still going strong.  As of a few minutes ago, there was no further word.  I assume this means nothing has changed.

NCSoft has blinked.  They are giving us our money back.

NCSoft has blinked.  They have given us a dedicated email address to send our comments and concerns to.

NCSoft has (through Andy) announced that they are not interested in continuing to support the game and are committed to the Nov 30 shutdown date on the NCSoft side.

This is what we know, anything else is pure conjecture.

Point one: good.  In business, no news is generally encouraging.

Point two: VERY good

Point three:  VERY good, they are getting a bit shook up by our united front

Point four:  Nov 30 shutdown.  Well this sucks a little, since I was hoping they would agree to something longer for a smoother transition, should we get a buyer, but it's still doable with a little downtime, depending on whether or not anyone still has the code for the OLD launcher around Paragon, and whether or not the deal will include the original servers.

[WanderingAries]

I am grateful that NCsoft will be issuing no-strings refunds for unused time, and am especially pleased that they'll be re-enabling accounts as VIP through the end for those who were unable to resubscribe at the time of the announcement.

That's not the way I Re-read it. They're simply refunding time and letting you Stay VIP from the way some of us have read it. IE: I wasn't subbed up so no VIP for me.

[TimtheEnchanter]

I think the troops need an 'official' address from this group over on the CoH forums, and sooner rather than later. The knee-jerk reaction to this isn't going to be good. Even though TonyV has said numerous times, that the main objective has been a transfer of ownership rather than a reversal of NC's decision, I have little doubt that many of the players who got on board for this, were thinking of the latter through it all. Something needs to be stressed to everyone about that fact. Today's news is going to thin the herd some, and that damage needs to be minimized. The players have been looking to the TitanNetwork for leadership and if they don't get a message now, there's going to be a panic. They need to know the torches are still lit.

[eabrace]

Looks like the final nail in the coffin is the last sentence.

"Thank you for your support and patience as we work to smoothly close this chapter with the sunset of the City of Heroes franchise."

Now, see, when I read that, I was focused on this part:

"Thank you for your support and patience as we work to smoothly close this chapter with the sunset of the City of Heroes franchise."

As opposed to this:

"Thank you for your support and patience as we work to smoothly close this sunset of the City of Heroes franchise."

[TimtheEnchanter]

Now, see, when I read that, I was focused on this part:

"Thank you for your support and patience as we work to smoothly close this chapter with the sunset of the City of Heroes franchise."

As opposed to this:

"Thank you for your support and patience as we work to smoothly close this sunset of the City of Heroes franchise."

Yes, that IS interesting...

[eabrace]

Zwill's crafty.  We should all read that three or four times and try to pick something new out of it each time to see if we can get to the center of the Tootsie Pop.

[MishaFox]

As a long time officer worker I do know one thing with such messages:

DO NOT READ TOO MUCH INTO THEM.

Zwill is working under some severe restraints of what he can and cannot do. That message was simply to clear up the barrage of messages from customer questions about money paid. NOTHING ELSE!

I will admit the wording is interesting. It did NOT cancel or have an end date for VIP customers. I have the feeling this was done to shut up those complaints. I think the issue of what happens to CoH is still very much in the air.

[Teege]

"Wut?"
https://ulife.vpul.upenn.edu/careerservices/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/tootsie-pop-owl.jpg

[Paindancer]

Ultimately... I think this is another small success.

It aint the war, but its another front we can say 'we got what we  wanted'

[eabrace]

Ultimately... I think this is another small success.

It aint the war, but its another front we can say 'we got what we  wanted'

Right.  We've done as much as we can with our initial blitzkrieg.  Now we begin our siege against the walls of NCsoft.

[DrakeGrimm]

That's exactly it. Well said, eabrace.

We've committed to Lightning War with every bit of ferocity and efficiency as we can muster. Now it's time to switch gears while keeping up momentum and entering Siege Mode.

Sieges are won through a combination of precision strikes, patience, and heavy bombardment. Keep up the pressure, but pace yourselves. Keep strong, hold to your convictions, and remember that you are not alone. You have an entire city to back you. Stand proud. Stand tall.

[Victoria Victrix]

Check out the Light A Fire actions.  Yes, I KNOW it is tedious to make all those posts and emails.  Remember, I make posts and emails as part of my living (fans...god love 'em) besides doing a load of slactivism (that means writing emails instead of going out and marching).  Look at it as a reward to yourself.  Remind yourself that every time you post, someone at NCSoft's PR firm goes a little crazier.  And believe me they will.  They are probably reading this right now and hate me.   :-*  This is their job, to ferret out every single mention of NCSoft and figure out which way they can spin it and there is NO good way to spin this in the English-speaking marketplace.  This is a PR disaster, coming as it does directly on the announcement of a new game they intend to launch here.  And we can use that....ooooooh how we can use that.

[Turjan]

Now, see, when I read that, I was focused on this part:

"Thank you for your support and patience as we work to smoothly close this chapter with the sunset of the City of Heroes franchise."

As opposed to this:

"Thank you for your support and patience as we work to smoothly close this sunset of the City of Heroes franchise."

Indeed, that's the word I found most curious too. The word chapter featured not just once, but three times in that announcement. While I do think it's a mistake to try and read too much information into any announcement, I couldn't help but notice that particular detail.

Countering that however is the statement "As the long history of City of Heroes draws to a close" implying a finality of City of Heroes, at least as a title or entity.

So that's a big "Hmm..." and a double head scratch really.
It may be wish fulfillment, or the desire to cling to hope, but I do find myself wondering if "chapter" was deliberate. After all, Zwill told us a little while ago he'd have an announcement for us, and I very much doubt he just sat down and rattled off that post without paying much attention to the wording of it.

If there's one thing I've learned about Zwill it's that he's a damn good community manager - that man knows how to listen, and how to communicate. But corporate NDAs mean he can't communicate as freely as he'd like, and that must be cutting him up inside because he loves the CoH community. He knows we're listening to a deafening silence and he can't say anything. So a part of me is thinking maybe...just maybe...this IS communication, as best as he can manage it under the circumstances.

*shrug*

Of course I may be completely wrong, and NCSoft issued him an official statement that just happened to include the word chapter...but I like hope. So I will choose to regard this as hope. At this stage, hope is what we need, so...I choose hope :)

[MishaFox]

Did I confuse you Teege? Sorry.

Just remember that the decision to keep or close CoH is being made by high level management. People who have probably NEVER played the game and think a Controller is something their kid uses to play Wii. Such people make decisions based on reports and numbers only.

Drat! I promised myself I wouldn't preach!

[Teege]

Oh, no. My picture was in response to this:

Zwill's crafty.  We should all read that three or four times and try to pick something new out of it each time to see if we can get to the center of the Tootsie Pop.

Don't mind me, I'm just odd.

[Victoria Victrix]

Did I confuse you Teege? Sorry.

Just remember that the decision to keep or close CoH is being made by high level management. People who have probably NEVER played the game and think a Controller is something their kid uses to play Wii. Such people make decisions based on reports and numbers only.

Drat! I promised myself I wouldn't preach!

And on the basis of the reports and numbers they decided they HAD to give us refunds instead of time-on-another game. 

What does that tell you, that they are doing something they have never done before in the shutdowns of the other five games they closed?

[eabrace]

... they are doing something they have never done before in the shutdowns of the other five games they closed

Precisely.  We have them off balance.  Now we have to keep them off balance.

[MishaFox]

Indeed! It means we ARE having an effect!