this is a dangerous thing to do Tony, for one while you may not wish to harm NCsoft, some of us do. I for one want NCsoft's reputation to suffer over what they have done, and I would mind seeing there profits take enough of hit from this for them to feel it.
Yes, these things do take a back seat to the goal of Saving CoH and my (and i am sure0 others unwillingness to buy other NCsoft games in the future simply for the fact that we don't want to repeat the experience of what has happened with CoH again (IE the 0 warning shut down).
That said when to email them, I wouldn't be so crass as to Level threats ( a)cause that would reflect badly ad hurt our goal b) I really can't back them up so no point to doing so) or send any thing Defamatory or inflammatory, but some people might. How do I know this? you might ask. Well cause simply put I pondered hate mail for a few moments (and I'd be lying if I said I didn't contemplate it)
Something that I will likely put in my email is the simple fact that due to the way this has gone down I will not be buying NCsoft games in the foreseeable future and the reasons why. (IE that I am not willing to deal with another Repeat of the Paragon closure). While not a fan of threats these are businessmen and I am afraid an emotional plea may not work so great. They care about profits and loss.
All that said, IF NCsoft's reputation and profits suffer from this, I don't want it to be as a result of mud slinging. I want it to be due to the way they have handled this situation.
Edit below it my email to NCsoft (I just hope they read it and not just delete it):
Greetings Dear Executives,
My Name is Chad Michael Kook, I have been a customer of yours for at least eight years and have played many of your games including Guild Wars, Aion, and City of Heroes. The impending closure of the latter is the reason for my letter today. I am with an organized group of people who have formed on the forums of the Titan Network (http://www.cohtitan.com) in an effort to save City of Heroes from being shut down. First off I would like to thank you for backing such a wonderful game for so many years. We understand that nothing lasts forever and that games like this some times get shut down. What we don't understand and are upset about is the nature of this shut down. Every one felt rather blind sided when what seemed to be a rather populated and profitable game was suddenly announced to be shut down and the staff behind it fired/ let go.
We sort of understand the line "It does not fit with our company's current direction", however to be honest that doesn't feel like the whole story and it has left things wide open for speculation in the wake of other random facts; this of course leading to wild speculation and reasoning that sounds like a conspiracy theory.All this said, we need you to know what it is you are doing.
In this case you are not only tearing down a game that has been going for eight years, you are also tearing apart a tightly knit community of people and disposing of what has been an ever evolving work of art. This is game has fostered a community of both Devs and players who have worked closely together to bring many, many constructs from our inner most imaginations to life. In many case these where ideas that would have otherwise remained trapped in our heads for lack of ability to create them ourselves. The imagination fueled the community and the community fueled imagination and we created this world we play in. That said it isn't just a place we play, we have created friendships some of us have gotten married to people we met in game, I have seen generosity in City of Heroes I have not seen in any other game, both in the sharing of in game funds through various contests, but also from the Devs and the sharing of there time to talk to us play with us and make us feel like we mattered. This is what you are taking away from us an world we created. You may own the Game, but we made it what it is and this is why if feels so cruddy that it is being balled up and tossed away in this manner. We understand nothing we can say or do will make you suddenly want to keep City of Heroes and rehire the Dev team, what we are asking is that you don't toss it in the trash, but rather sell it to another company or group that would like to keep it alive. We would prefer the game continue to get developed by what ever entity it ends up with but we would be at least some what content with keeping the game as is.
I would now like to talk about how this effects me personally. As stated above I have made friends in City of Heroes have seen my imagination come to life in ways I couldn't other wise express in any other way much less any other game. I have come back to City of Heroes time and time again, my lapses in playing being for financial reasons, but I always came back because i love it (yes I love a game). The closure of City of Heroes is depressing and sad all on its own. It is the nature of how it was closed that added anger, resentment and distrust to those feelings. It is because of the distrust that I find my self telling you I will not be buying any more NCsoft products in the foreseeable future. To be blunt I am not willing to pick up a game fearing that when ever the company paradigm shifts that the game I play and community I have become attached to will simply be ripped away with a moments notice, no reasons, no recourse and no hope of proper closure such as on last patch with proper story and send off for the game.
Sincerely,
Chad M. Kook
Virtue Server City of Heroes
Global @Xen0phage
Member of Razors Edge