I know it would be impossible to do, but to have some access to the world of Terminus prior to alpha so you could walk around and learn the lay of the land would be awesome. No npc's or mobs to dodge. just a few days early to wander an empty world and see where everything comes together would be real nice. I also know that it may take some of the fun out of exploring for some people who really enjoy that aspect of the game. Including me. But I still would like to wander around and see things the way the devs do wthout the problems of killing or running every second.
maybe if we're lucky, in their next stream they'll do a little GM running around as you described. just free form running (maybe a flyover, even) over some of the areasa we havent seen yet.
personally i would prefer things of that nature (as well as showing some mana and weather climates, more perception stuff, etc) instead of just mor estandard combat. that is, if there is a next stream haha.
Well, and I don't mean to sound like a jerk, but there is no reason to take the fun out of exploring in beta, because this is NOT for fun - this is to help the devs test systems and find and report bugs. There may very well be a testing session where they don't have any mobs spawned so that we can run around just as you were suggesting, in order to test zone borders or collision with objects in the zone etc. I believe that they will instruct us on what we are to test when we login for a session. So, it's true people don't HAVE to do what they are asking us to test, and can just do whatever they want, but that won't be helping the devs any.
AgentGenX said:Whatever the devs say is fine with me. If they say take on this mob boss solo because they want to see if he dances after slaughtering you-put me in coach. If they say jump off this mountain we want to see if you splat on impact- just give me a push. But please do not ask me not to walk around and explore while inbetween slaughterin and splatting because that would take all the fun out of helpingWell, and I don't mean to sound like a jerk, but there is no reason to take the fun out of exploring in beta, because this is NOT for fun - this is to help the devs test systems and find and report bugs. There may very well be a testing session where they don't have any mobs spawned so that we can run around just as you were suggesting, in order to test zone borders or collision with objects in the zone etc. I believe that they will instruct us on what we are to test when we login for a session. So, it's true people don't HAVE to do what they are asking us to test, and can just do whatever they want, but that won't be helping the devs any.
Part of the testing experience and data we require is seeing how you all do it when you first step foot in Terminus, we want to know if our world is immersive, leads you in the direction it should without forcing you or holding your hand, are POIs reachable by your level, where are the npc choke points holding adventurers back, why is everyone following this path away from some cool locations and surprises etc. this is all valuable data that we need to get from you when you experience it first hand.
There will not be a period to run around and learn the world prior to testing.
In fact, it would be massively counter-productive to have us able to 'preview' the landscape (fun though it might be).
Situation:
The people currently running about in the land are the DEV team or people associated with them - they have been over most areas in the world in the design phase, world-creation tools, not to mention in various zone-test phases where they check for gross features of concern, or merely laying out sight-lines for mobs.
This means they are intimately knowledgeble of the landscape! This is a problem!
Problem?
Yes, this is a serious problem! They are *too* familiar with the area. It is almost impossible to get true representaion of a 'first impression' for an area if you have just spent over 6 months putting it together, piece by piece, over several iteration.
Is the cave entrance too well hidden behind the foliage?
Does the northern trail look too steep for people to even try it?
Does the first sight of a fortress as you round the bend make you go 'wow!' ?
It is impossible to spot the 'safe path' through the mobs to the place you want unless you already know it?
Solution:
This is one of the areas that (pre-)alpha testers can help....
... but only if we have *not* seen the content before!
They *need* us to put ourselves (as close as we can) into the place of 'newbies' fresh into the world!
Oh, and report back on it!